What Does a Small Project Actually Need?
One of the easiest mistakes to make with a small project is to assume it does not really need managing.
It is only a small system change.
Only an office move.
Only a process improvement.
Only a new customer implementation.
So it gets handed to someone alongside their day job and everyone gets on with it.
Sometimes that works.
Sometimes it does not.
The answer is not to turn every small project into a major programme with governance boards, endless reporting and a project plan nobody looks at.
But there are a few things that do need to be in place.
Be clear what you are actually trying to deliver
This sounds obvious, but it is amazing how often it is not.
“Implement the new system” is not really enough.
What does implemented mean?
Who is using it?
What needs to be working?
What needs to be finished before you can genuinely say the project is done?
And what is not included?
You do not need a twenty-page document to answer those questions.
You just need enough clarity so that everyone involved is working towards the same outcome.
Have a plan that actually means something
A small project still needs a plan.
Not necessarily a Gantt chart.
Not necessarily project software.
Just a sensible view of what needs to happen, in what order, who is doing it and when.
And there is an important distinction here.
As I've said previously a date is not a plan.
Writing “go live 30 November” at the top of a spreadsheet tells you very little.
The useful bit is understanding what has to happen before then and whether there is actually enough time to do it.
For a small project, the plan might only contain fifteen or twenty meaningful activities.
That is fine.
The point is that somebody has thought it through.
Make ownership clear
This is where quite a few small projects start to wobble.
Everybody is involved.
Everybody is busy.
But nobody is quite sure who actually owns what.
If something matters, somebody needs to own it.
Not “IT”.
Not “the team”.
Not “operations”.
A person.
That does not mean they have to do every part of the work themselves.
It means there is no doubt about who is making sure it happens.
The same applies to decisions.
If a decision is holding the project up, somebody needs to be responsible for making it.
Otherwise quite small issues can sit around for weeks.
Keep track of actions
This is not sophisticated project management.
It is basic follow-through.
A meeting happens.
Someone says they will speak to the supplier.
Someone else will confirm the costs.
Another person will check what the customer needs.
Then everyone goes back to their normal jobs.
Two weeks later, half of it has not happened.
A simple action log is often enough.
Action.
Owner.
Due date.
Status.
That is it.
But somebody still has to look at it and follow things up.
A tracker nobody checks is just another spreadsheet.
Keep problems visible
Small projects do not need a complicated risk process.
They do need someone asking some fairly basic questions.
What could stop this working?
What are we waiting for?
What assumptions are we making?
What is starting to slip?
What decisions are overdue?
Most project problems do not suddenly appear from nowhere.
There are usually warning signs.
The issue is that nobody is looking across the whole project and picking them up early enough.
Somebody needs to keep the whole thing joined up
This is the important bit.
A project is made up of lots of separate pieces of work.
People can be doing all of those pieces reasonably well and the project can still be going wrong.
Someone has to understand how it all fits together.
Is the plan still realistic?
Are actions being completed?
Are decisions being made?
Are problems being dealt with?
Are we still heading towards the outcome we originally agreed?
That person might be a Project Manager.
But on a smaller project, quite often they will not be.
It might be an Operations Manager.
A team leader.
A department head.
Or simply the person who has been asked to get the thing delivered.
The title does not really matter.
What matters is that somebody is doing the job.
No Fluff Takeaway
A small project does not need a lot of project management.
But it does need the basics done properly.
Be clear about what you are delivering.
Have a sensible plan.
Make ownership obvious.
Keep track of actions and decisions.
Spot problems early.
And make sure someone is keeping the whole thing joined up.
That is usually enough.
A small project may need less management, but it still needs managing.
If you’re running a small project and want a simple structure to get it moving properly, Project Kickstart is designed for exactly that.
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