Congratulations, you’ve made it to step 7. You are about to graduate to rockstar-level project manager.
Throughout this series, we’ve been taking a deeper look at each step of the 7 Tasks Rockstars Check Off Before Kickoff.
Where did these 7 tasks come from? They’re all parts of the “Readiness call” that our custom development team has with clients before kicking off a project. This is not a kickoff call. You could consider it a pre-kickoff call. In this call, we confirm all the details and make sure we have the information necessary to kick off a project. Hear all about it in this webinar.
During an eLearning project readiness call, we go over 7 specific areas with our clients, gathering information and details that will help us stay on target to meet our scoped budget and timeline.
Step 1 determined the roles and responsibilities of all the key players on your project.
Step 2 defined your client’s success criteria.
Step 3 outlined the project scope.
Step 4 covered how to explain project phases.
Step 5 showed you how to plan for contingencies.
Step 6 clarified project-specific details.
Today we’re talking about Step 7: Timelines
This is everyone’s favorite part! Gone are the days when you could just ask “when is it due?” and be set.
Building a timeline involves making sure a project is properly staffed, knowing when employees are available to work, knowing when the client’s office is open or not, etc.
Dive deeper and ask pointed questions. Ask:
- Are there any vacation days we need to work around?
- How much time will you need to review?
- Our default at eLearning Brothers is 3 days for reviewing the first draft and 3 days for reviewing the second draft, but we will adjust that per client preference if needed.
- What’s our due date versus yours?
- For example, is September 1 the day we hand over the files—or the day the project goes live within your organization. Make sure you allow time for pilot programs, testing, and/or setting up files on an LMS.
Why we love having a “Readiness Call” before Project Kickoff:
In our experience, the readiness call has decreased timeline killers by collecting assets in advance, decreased kickoff call length, and allowed for more time to connect with stakeholders, subject matter experts, and other key players.
We no longer hear complaints like “I wish you would have warned me this…” or “You should have told me about…” from clients.
Our clients also love having a readiness call! It gives clients a safe space to identify risks they hadn’t considered before, prevents timeline and budget busters, builds project confidence, and makes them look like a rockstar to their stakeholders and supervisors!
Download the Top Strategies to Avoid a Change of Scope checklist to start implementing these techniques in your eLearning development.
Download the checklist to see all the steps rockstars check off before kickoff.
