This document provides guidance for planning a project by outlining 10 key questions to consider. The questions address determining the project purpose and stakeholders, defining desired results and constraints, identifying assumptions and required work, creating a schedule, assigning resources and risks. It also provides 10 tips for project managers, such as focusing on understanding reasons for requests, viewing people as allies, clearly communicating, acknowledging good performance, and balancing management and leadership roles. The overall document offers a framework to comprehensively plan a project from its goals through execution.

1. Proyecto Integrador III
Teacher: Miguel Vinicio Ponce Medina
Students:
• Ángelo Salazar Muñoz
• Sandra Pico Guevara

2. TEN QUESTIONS TO
ASK YOURSELF AS YOU
PLAN YOUR PROJECT
Hold on!
Before you start,
ANALYZE
these 10 questions:

3. WHAT´S THE PURPOSE OF
YOUR PROJECT?
The answers determine:
• The motive that led the project to take place
• The person who proposed the development of the project
• All the beneficiaries of the project.
• The possible scenarios if the project would not take place
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4. WHOM DO YOU NEED TO
INVOLVE?
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Different participants are needed at specific times.
For instance:
• DRIVERS look for the project´s outcomes
• SUPPORTERS contribute to the success of the
project
• OBSERVERS are interested in the project

5. WHAT RESULTS WILL YOU
PRODUCE?
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• Establish the desired outcomes
• Specify the tools to measure the results
• Determine the performance of the results after being
used.
• Make sure the outcomes meet the expectations of the
contributors.

6. WHAT CONSTRAINS MUST
YOU SATISFY?
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Identify all the weaknesses, threats, and barriers you may
face. For example:
LIMITATIONS: Restrictions set by outsiders
NEEDS: Restrictions established by the entire team

7. WHAT ASSUMPTIONS ARE
YOU MAKING?
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• Make a list of the assumptions at every stage of
the project.
• These forecasts may alter the flow of the project
• Decisions are based on assumptions to reduce the
risks

8. WHAT WORK HAS TO BE DONE?
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For all the team members, establish:
• THE WORK TO BE DONE: Specify in detail each step in the
process
• INPUTS: All the human and non-human resources
• EXPECTED RESULTS: Desired outcomes at every stage
• INTERDEPENDENCIES AND RELATIONSHIPS: The
connection among the activities and their logistic
• DURATIONS: The time needed to complete each activity

9. WHEN DOES EACH ACTIVITY
START AND END?
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Elaborate a detailed schedule with due dates and wanted results.
Take into consideration:
• DURATION: The specific time, hourly or daily, for each
activity to be completed
• INTERINDEPENDENCIES: What must be completed before
starting the next activity
• RESOURCE AVAILABILITY: How accessible are the supplies
that are needed

10. WHO WILL PERFORM THE
PROJECT?
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For a more precise budget, it is essential to determine:
• Workers´ names, position, titles, skills and knowledge
• Assign specific duties when working with others
• Level of effort investment
• Schedule hours with specific work time

11. WHAT OTHER RESOURCES
DO YOU NEED?
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Clearly Specify:
• Equipment, facilities, services, suppliers, and funds.
• The precise time when they are needed

12. WHAT CAN GO WRONG?
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• Be realistic about the RISKS and DANGERS
• Develop a plan to minimize the THREATS

13. TEN TIPS FOR BEING A
BETTER PROJECT
MANAGER
What you do it, how you do it.
Your attitudes and behaviors
toward people affect how
they respond to you.

14. Be a “Why” Person
Be a “Can Do” Person
• Look for the reasons behind requests and actions.
• Understanding why helps you make sure you respond
appropriately to team members.
• First, look to understand the reasons behind other
people’s requests and actions; then share your
findings with other people.
• Look at all problems as challenges, and do everything you can to find
ways to overcome them.
• Be creative, flexible, and tenacious.
• Keep working at the problem until you solve it.
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15. Think about the Big Picture
• Keep events in perspective.
• Understand where you want to go and how your plan will get you there.
• Recognize the effect your actions have on current and future efforts.
• Share your vision with other people.
Think in Detail
• If you don’t think through your project’s issues, who will?
• The more clearly you describe your intended results, the more easily people
can recognize the benefits associated with your project.
• And the more clearly you define your intended work, the more often people
will ask important and insightful questions and believe that they can perform
the work successfully.
• Clarity leads to increased personal motivation and reduced chances of
mistakes.
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16. Assume Cautiously
• Take the time to find out the facts; use assumptions only as a last resort.
• With every assumption comes a risk that you’re wrong. The fewer
assumptions you make, the more confidence you can have in your plan.
View People as Allies, Not Adversaries
• Focus on common goals, not individual agendas.
• Making people feel comfortable encourages brainstorming, creative
thinking, and the willingness to try new ideas.
• But viewing and treating people as adversaries can put them on the
defensive and encourage them to become enemies.
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17. Say What You Mean, and Mean What You Say
• Communicate clearly. Be specific by letting people know exactly what you
mean.
• Tell them what you want them to know, what you want them to do, and what
you’ll do for them.
• Don’t leave these details up to their imaginations.
• Being vague just increases the chances for misunderstandings and mistakes.
Respect Other People
• Focus on people’s strengths rather than their weaknesses.
• In each person on your team, find a quality that you can respect.
• People work harder and enjoy their work more when they’re around others
who appreciate them and their efforts.
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18. Acknowledge Good Performance
• Take a moment to acknowledge good performance.
• When someone does something good, tell the person, tell the person’s
boss, tell other team members, and tell the person’s peers that you
appreciate the effort and its results.
• Recognizing good performance confirms to a person the accuracy and
value of his work.
• When acknowledging a person’s performance, mention the quality of
the
• results he accomplished as well as the effort he invested.
• Be specific, tell the person exactly what he did or produced that you
appreciate.
• Be sure to provide your feedback promptly; don’t wait weeks or
months before recognizing someone for his hard work.
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19. Be a Manager and a Leader
• Attend to people as well as to information, processes, and systems.
• Create and share your vision and excitement with your team
members, but don’t forget to share a sense of order and efficiency,
too.
• Encourage people to strive for outstanding results, and provide the
guidance and support to help them achieve those results.
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