1. Achieving Big Project
Success
With
Small Web Teams
Friday, October 18, 13

2. @Zablocki
Friday, October 18, 13

3. Hello!
Fran Zablocki
Strategist
mStoner
Friday, October 18, 13

4. Big Project
vs
Small Project
Friday, October 18, 13

5. Big Project:
Institutional
Redesign
Friday, October 18, 13

6. a.k.a.
“The 500 lb.
Gorilla”
Friday, October 18, 13

7. Characteristics:
•
•
•
•
Takes 10 - 14 months
All consuming for 3 months
Owns your world entirely
But then leaves for like 3 to 5 years so
you can...
Friday, October 18, 13

8. Relax!
Friday, October 18, 13

9. Hm.. Not quite.
Friday, October 18, 13

10. Small Projects
Friday, October 18, 13

11. a.k.a.
“Hordes of 10
lb. monkeys”
Friday, October 18, 13

12. Friday, October 18, 13

13. Small Projects:
•
•
•
•
•
Social aggregator site
Social media campaign
Campus anniversary site
Those “By the way, I need a website” sites
Those “Oh you weren’t aware of that
project?” projects
Friday, October 18, 13

14. What to do?
Tackle them with lean processes, tools and
communication
Friday, October 18, 13

15. Why?
Because you don’t have unlimited:
Time
You need it as quickly as possible.
Budget You don’t have endless money.
People
Friday, October 18, 13
Maybe it is just one person!

16. How?
By taking the project lifecycle and trimming
the fat.
Friday, October 18, 13

17. How?
By taking the project lifecycle and trimming
the fat.
Friday, October 18, 13

18. Approach
Lean processes
tools
communication
platform
Friday, October 18, 13

19. Lean means:
Having the right tools
Collaborating as much as possible
Centralizing documentation
Being smart with time
Friday, October 18, 13

20. The
Advantages of
Being
Small.
Friday, October 18, 13

21. Small Means:
•
•
•
•
Adaptable - You adapt quickly to new situations and
can take advantage of new opportunities
Direct - You don’t need to run everything by
committee
Decisive - Decisions can be made quickly
Multi-talented - being a generalist and wearing
many hats is not always bad! Variety keeps you current.
Friday, October 18, 13

22. Break down the process:
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

23. Tools
Process
Communication
Friday, October 18, 13

24. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

25. Strategy
• The best way to save time on a project is to never do it in
the first place.
• Portfolio management
• Does this project need to happen? Does it meet a need?
• Do we have the time/budget/resources to make this
happen?
• Do we have those resources right now?
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

26. Strategy
• Be realistic - if the answer is no, you won’t do yourself
favors later on by saying yes
• Make more time for the right projects by never starting
the wrong ones
• Ultimate goal is to become more proactive, less reactive
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

27. Strategy
• Don’t skip it just because “oh my gosh can’t we just get
this project done already?!”
• Give yourself time to think by scheduling meetings
outside the office.
• Meet with yourself to give yourself time to think.
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

28. Need / Want / Wish Grid
• Identify what must be included and what can wait
• Helps to define scope
• Helps channel creative but distracting ideas to
somewhere useful
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

29. Measurable Goals
• Set measurable goals
• Don’t get paralyzed by the details
• Don’t worry if there aren’t already metrics
• Pick a number, shoot for it
• Adjust later when you evaluate
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

30. Measurable Goals
Examples of measurable goals
• Reach ___ people on Facebook.
• Increase LinkedIn engagement ___ percent.
• Drive ___ people to the website from Twitter.
• Prompt ___ people to share your post.
• Attract ___ views of a YouTube video.
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

31. SWOT
Analysis
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

32. Strategy
Brief
One lean document: 2-5 pages
• Business Case - Why should this project / campaign
happen?
• SWOT - What factors will determine if this will happen?
• Need / Want / Wish Requirements - What needs to
happen?
• Measurable Project Goals - How do we know if it worked?
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

33. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

34. Planning
• Planning is hard, particularly if you don’t have history
on how long things take
• If you have done similar project before, use them as a
baseline.
• If you haven’t, see what else is out there that others
have done
• If you can’t do either, be conservative and take your
best guess
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

35. Planning
•
•
•
•
Begin at the end
When do you need it done?
Back it up from there
Be realistic
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

36. Planning
• Identify resources, roles, responsibilities up front
• Use collaborative tools to help save time
• Track time (even if it is a really rough estimate)
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

37. • Browser - based project and resource planning
• Collaborative - allows sharing, commenting,
discussions
• Current - dates adjust automatically
• Compatible with MS excel, project
• $160 / year
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

38. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

39. • Free, Collaborative cloud scheduling
• Integration with Google Drive and Business
• Features similar to Smartsheet
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

40. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

41. Responsibilites
List
• Outlines roles & responsibilities for project teams
• Map to position or individual
• Sets expectations from the start
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

42. Friday, October 18, 13

43. Time Tracking
• Having trouble estimating time? This can help
• Keep it simple, keep it lean
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

44. • If you are having trouble estimating, this can help
• Keep it simple and use tools to keep it lean
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

45. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

46. Creative
Production
• In the beginning, keep it simple. (paper prototyping,
back of napkin).
• Use online tools for collaboration points.
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

47. Wireframes &
Prototypes
• Help quickly organize and weight information visually
without needing heavy design work
• Allow focus on important elements such as
information architecture, content organization,
feature space
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

48. Back of Napkin
• Don’t be fancy
• Sketch it out - you don’t
need to be an artist
• 5 minutes, 5 people
• Quick, cheap way to test
visual ideas
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

49. Paper Prototypes
• One sheet (or napkin)
for each page element
• Good for quickly
rearranging page
elements and testing
different layouts
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

50. UXPin
• Collaborative wireframing
• Allows commenting, sharing, versioning
• Let you discuss functionality in the context of the
design instead of separately
• $15 / person / month for small teams
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

51. Hotgloo
• $14 / month for small teams
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

52. Friday, October 18, 13

53. Creative Review
Meetings
• 10 minutes of silence
• Cut the chatter and get everyone’s input at the same
time
• Simply look at what is in front of you and write your
thoughts.
• Use group chat to share ideas
• Open to discussion afterward
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

54. Testing
•
•
•
•
Usability / IA / Wireframes / Designs
Beyond your core team
As efficiently as possible
Gives you real results to justify your decisions
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

55. Surveys
• Efficient - use your existing student/faculty/staff/
alumni email lists
• Free basic service, $17 / month for unlimited
questions responses
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

56. Optimal
Workshop
•
•
•
•
OptimalSort: Online card sorting
TreeJack: IA pathing
Chalkmark: Wireframe / Design Heat Mapping
$109 / month for each
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

57. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

58. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

59. Responsive
Design
• www.responsinator.com
• Lets you see what your site looks like on muliple
devices quickly
• Free!
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

60. Responsive
Design
Friday, October 18, 13

61. Editorial
Calendars &
Content Creation
• Centralizing your effort on the cloud can reduce
coordination time considerably
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

62. Evolutionary
Google
Documents
• Use bookmarks to allow users to quickly jump to
different pages
• Eliminate tons of emails / attachments
• Use your content calendar / strategy as the
foundation
• Track what elements are in, what is missing, when
it’s due
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

63. Friday, October 18, 13

64. Friday, October 18, 13

65. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

66. Implementation
• You want your code to be
• in one place
• shared with everyone who needs it
• always current
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

67. Version Control:
Git
• When more than one developer is working on the
code, having version control is a must
• Git allows code segments to be ‘checked out’ so that
no one else can alter them
• Allows collaboration and saves on code re-writes
• git-scm.com
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

68. Bug tracking:
•
•
•
•
Keeps the bug list up to date
Automatically tracks changes and allows reversions
Allows comments and live chat while viewing
Invaluable during crunch time when heads are down
and meetings can’t happen
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

69. Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

70. Evaluation
• So easy to skip because: “We just finished the
project! Time for cake!”
• Crucially important to all the prior steps on the
NEXT project you do.
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

71. Evaluation
• So easy to skip because “Oh my gosh we just
finished the project! Time for cake!”
• Crucially important to all the prior steps on the
NEXT project you do.
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

72. Project Debrief
• Scheduled right after launch
• Honest assessment:
• Did we meet our goals?
• How close were our estimates?
• What did we do right?
• What did we do wrong?
• What did we not see coming?
• Make it the first thing you look at the next time you
do a project like this
Strategize
Friday, October 18, 13
Plan
Create
Implement
Evaluate

73. Strategize
Plan
Create
Communicate &
Collaborate
Evaluate
Friday, October 18, 13
Implement

74. Communication
& Collaboration
• Lean - cut out everything that is unnecessary, but
don’t skip anything that is necessary
• Get away from email as much as possible
• Reduce the time wasted on feedback loops (ie: the
endless reply all email thread from hell)
Friday, October 18, 13

75. Meetings
• Don’t meet to discuss, meet to decide
• Don’t have one if you don’t need one
• Everyone reviews/comments before the meeting
starts
Friday, October 18, 13

76. Meetings
• Save time by getting the basics done right
• Agendas
• Note-taking
• Minutes
Friday, October 18, 13

77. Agendas
Golden Rule: never have a meeting without one.
Template:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Friday, October 18, 13
Date, time, connection method
Agenda items
Review deliverables from last meeting
Discuss open items
Add new items
Upcoming deliverables and responsibility
Upcoming milestones (next 3-5)
Next meeting (if known)

78. Meeting Notes
Golden Rule: always take notes. No, you won’t remember.
• Designate a meeting leader and note-taker
• Have a note-taking buddy system (ie: Fran always
takes notes when Susan leads the meeting).
Friday, October 18, 13

79. Minutes
Golden Rule: Copy and paste the agenda and you are
halfway there!
• Date, time
• Attendance
• Agenda items
• Review deliverables from last meeting (notes in italics)
• Discuss open items (notes in italics)
• Add new items
• Repeat upcoming deliverables & milestones (next 3-5)
• Schedule next meeting date while you have everyone’s
attention
Friday, October 18, 13

80. Periodic Status
Reports
Sometimes you need to pull your head up and see where
you are in relation to where you should be.
• Can be monthly, quarterly. Less frequent than regular
meetings
• Compare estimated timeline to actual
• Let you flag slippage and discuss causes of and
solutions for issues
Friday, October 18, 13

81. Friday, October 18, 13

82. Collaboration
Tools
Friday, October 18, 13

83. Google Calendar
•
•
•
•
•
Friday, October 18, 13
Shared calendars allow different levels of detail,
including showing anyone (the public) when you are
busy
Can share with those who don’t have Google accounts.
‘Find a time’ allows you to quickly see what is open for
a group of people
Free.
Can house your social media editorial calendar.

84. Friday, October 18, 13

85. Google Hangouts
When in-person meetings aren’t possible
• Hangouts are a great way to see people who might be
remotely located.
• Lots of tools
• Chat room
• Screen sharing
• Document collaboration with Google Drive
• Still free.
Friday, October 18, 13

86. Friday, October 18, 13

87. Basecamp
Central location for all
• project correspondence
• files
• agendas
• notes
• conversations
• project calendar
• www.basecamp.com
• $20 / month for 10 active projects
Friday, October 18, 13

88. Friday, October 18, 13

89. Thanks!
Questions?
Friday, October 18, 13

90. Contact Me
Fran Zablocki
Strategist
@Zablocki
fran.zablocki@mstoner.com
585.300.4559
Friday, October 18, 13