This document discusses the importance of knowledge sharing and learning lessons from past projects. It recommends that organizations establish communities of practice where project managers can share stories and identify lessons learned. These communities should be both formally driven by a project management office to ensure timely feedback, as well as informally driven by project managers themselves. Bringing lessons to the front end of new projects can help avoid repeating past mistakes. Overall, the document emphasizes the value of learning from experience through open discussion within a community.

1. www.pi3.co.za
Louise Worsley
Linky van der Merwe
Promoting knowledge
sharing in projects

2. Extended life cycle
Hand-over
& closure
Project reviews
Concept
Benefits
realisation
Definition
Development
Reviews: A critical evaluation of a
deliverable, business case or
project management process
Termination
Project life cycle
Operations
Product life cycle
Gate review Post project review
Stage review Benefits review Output Outcomes and
benefits

3. Example lessons learned
Project Name Enter the Project Name Date Enter the Date (mm/dd/yy)
Lessons Learned are
recorded
Project Lifecycle Information
Project Lifecycle
and Phases
(select one Lifecycle and Phase only)
Knowledge Area Lesson Learned
That Worked
What Worked Well
Recommendation
Lesson Learned
That Didn’t Work
What Didn’t Work
Well
Recommendation
Scope
Time
Cost
Quality
Communication
Risk Management
Human Resources
Procurement

4. Do we learn from the past?
Adoption rates of lessons identified
are too low
It’s easier to identify a lesson than to
get an organization to act on it and
implement a useful solution – lesson
identified
When you uncover a problem, you
are calling into question the wisdom
of some earlier decisions.
Excuses and creative explanations
will emerge if a lesson learned
threatens some cherished process
"Those who cannot learn from history are
doomed to repeat it."
George Santayana
“The successful man will profit from his
mistakes and try again a different way” –
Dale Carnegie

5. SSS participants
 ABSA
 Transnet
 Eskom
 PnPay
 Woolworths
 BAT
 Others…
 Network Rail
 Eurostar
 Cellnet
 Lloyds TSB
 Remploy
 Its amazing what we covered in
1 hour. Listening to FC,
reflecting on the challenges he
faced and integrating this with
what I know about major project
management – this is the best
learning context for me. I came
away excited by my profession
 Thanks for the discussion today.
It was the first time that I got to
debrief about the threats and
issues that I faced on the project
and that was quite nice!

6. What have we learned
 Stories about the past
more naturally focus on
what went well
 The key learning point is not always clear
(especially on more complex projects)
and…
 Listening to project stories is interesting –
much more interesting than reading them!
 It’s what we do that matters!

7. Story sessions
Share a story (in 2s)
 Find a pair
 Share your story
Review a story (4s)
 Read your story
 Amongst the group discuss what you each feel is the
learning to be taken away.
 Compare with what the interviewee felt

8. Communities of Practice
Organisational
knowledge
management
 Manage project archives
 Conduct post project reviews or
post mortems
 Conduct project audits
 Implement and manage database
of lessons learned
 Implement and manager a risk
database
Sources: Aubry, M., Muller, R., & Gluckler, J. (2011). Exploring PMOs
through community of practice theory. Project Management Journal, 42(5),
42-56.
Communities of
Practice
 Articulate need to leverage
knowledge
 Practice sources BoK, methods,
stories, cases, tools and
documents
 Community: relationships and
sense of belonging
PMO driven Practice driven
Wenger, E. C., & Snyder, W. M. (2000, January-February).
Communities of Practice: The organizational frontier. Harvard Business
Review, 139-145.

9. Critical factors:
• Community – relationship among
members sense of belonging
• Shared BoK
• Valued – by members and ‘sponsors’
• Right rhythm and mix of activities
• Address details of practice
• Encourage ground roots responsibility

10. Our recommendations
 Formal feedback should be timely (and PMO driven)
 Bring learning to front end of project. Ask the question
what did we do last time at the beginning of every
project.
 Informal sharing – community driven
 For community and personal development. Share
stories and engage groups in learning identification
Stories to get you started – see http://www.pi3.co.za/success-stories-shared
http://www.virtualprojectconsulting.com/success-stories-shared/

11. References
Aubry, M., Muller, R., & Gluckler, J. (2011). Exploring PMOs through community of
practice theory. Project Management Journal, 42(5), 42-56.
Wenger, E. C., & Snyder, W. M. (2000, January-February). Communities of
Practice: The organizational frontier. Harvard Business Review, 139-145.
Wenger, E. (2002). Cultivating Communities of Practice: A start-up guide.
Retrieved July 2014, from Defense Teaching Centre:
http://www.dtc.org.au/Documents/182.pdf
Duffield, S., & Whitty, J. (2012). A systemic lessons learned and captured
knowledge (SLLCK) model for project organizations. Proceedings of the Annual
Project Management Australia Conference Incorporating the PMI Australia
National Conference. Melbourne, Australia.
APM SIG. (2012, August). Assurance assessment toolkit. Retrieved July
2014, from APM: http://www.apm.org.uk/news/assurance-assessment-toolkit#.
U9ZOB_ldUXE

12. www.pi3.co.za
questions
Louise Worsley:
lworsley@pi3.co.za
Linky van der Merwe:
linky@virtualprojectconsulting.com