Project Health Check – Benchmark and optimize your Projects towards Project  Business Excellence

Projects do not run into trouble by coincidence. Often, profound deficiencies in project management hide behind.    A lot of Studies about why projects fail confirm this context again and again.

For many decision makers the true project status of their project is often not transparent.

Many know the typical symptoms of ailing projects.

• Multiple postponing deadlines and milestones
• Frequent changes to project scope
• Very optimistic reporting (a lot of “yellow” lights, although all parties see the project status to “red”)
• Lack of transparency in resource use in the project (budget consumption, investment, project work of the employee) or substantial budget overrun.
• Discord within the project team
• Mutual recriminations

 …. and, and, and.

Here, the Project Health Check, developed by Gotscharek & Company can contribute significantly to uncover the true project status. The benchmark is based on a points system of the Project Excellence Model of the GPM / IPMA in combination with the globally recognized project management standards PMBoK (PMI-Project Management Institute) and PRINCE2 (OGC – Office of Governance and Commerce).

A short assessment of your project will be conducted. Based on the number of points achieved in comparison with the benchmark and the weaknesses detected measures will be derived to get the project back on track.

The Project Health Check can be used to continuously benchmark your project work and optimize it towards Project Business Excellence.

With little effort, 3 – 4 days duration gives the true status of the project and results in valuable information how to get your project back on track.

Complete the Project Health Check with a Risk Check to increase the probability of success of your projects.

More Information: Project Health Check

How do you benchmark and optimize your projects?

The answer is given by GPM/IPMA every year. Annually a Project Excellence Award is awarded to the most successful project teams. Since 1997 the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Projektmanagement e.V. presents the national Project Excellence Award to project teams from small to large Companies across all industries. The international Excellence Award is awarded by the IPMA (International Project Management Association).

The Award is presented to the most successful project teams who achieved proven outstanding performance through project management.

Project Excellence is rated using the Project Excellence Model  (PE Model). The model rates the excellence of the management of the project and the excellence of the results, each by 500 Points – in total 1000 Points.

GPM/IPMA Project Excellence Model

The model itself  is based on the Business Excellence Model of the EFQM (European Foundation for Quality Management).

Within the model 9 main criteria which are further subdivided in 22 sub criterias form the base for the rating. The main criteria are weighted with respect to their impact on the overall results and form the 1000-point scale. The weighting factors (number of points of each main criteria) for the model were broadly agreed in a pan-European coordination. The model is an adaptable and open concept. From time to time the model is undergoing a review process and is adjusted according to new needs.

Applicants for the Award have to proof in writing that the criteria of the model are fulfilled. A detailed catalog of questions supports this process. A team of auditors, especially trained by GPM/IPMA, check and rate the projects.

The final decision on the projects and the teams is made by a top-class jury.

In 2009 the Deutsche Project Excellence Award has been presented to a  team of the Airport Munich (Flughafen München GmbH).  The team was awarded for the implementation of a standardized Project Management. At Airport Munich 500 employees are working in projects.

Are your Projects excellent?

What does Project Business Excellence mean?

Excellence means „outstanding performance, to excel, brilliant…”

Adapted to Project Business Excellence it means an ongoing effort in optimization to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of  an organiszaitons project business to gain maximal results. This applies to internal project  businesses as well as external project businesses.

Everybody knows them well. The lots of failed projects or projects which did not achieve their goals to the fully extend. A variety of reasons and circumstances were stated regularly.  Many of them are preventable, some are not.

Whether a project business could be successful or not depends on a lot of influencing factors and environmental factors. Project work is embedded in this certain context.

The following illustration shows this context.

What does Project Business Excellence mean to you?