How to Create Project Timelines & Deliverables

Project timelines and deliverables can be the bane of a company's existence. However, project managers can simplify the process and ease the pain for everyone else by breaking a project's timelines and deliverables down into measurable and agreeable tasks, ensuring the successful completion of the project with little controversy or resistance. For example, let's say you have a deadline of only one week to reorganize file cabinets to maximize storage space for your company's new files. Creating timelines and deliverables for this project involves several steps: begin with the outcome you want to achieve for the project, break the project down into manageable and comprehensible tasks and determine an appropriate timeline to complete those tasks. Implement a documentation process--for example, a simple spreadsheet--to track and monitor project tasks, due dates and deliverables.

Instructions

1. Determine the project goal or desired outcome. Using the filing cabinet example, the outcome is to clear out all those old files to make room for incoming files by the end of the week.

2. Break the project down into tasks needed to meet the overall goal. For instance, the old files will need to be culled and destroyed. The filing space will need to be cleaned and the older files consolidated and moved toward the door for easy disposal. The newer files will then need to be labeled properly and placed in the newly created space.

3. Establish a timeline in which to accomplish these tasks by the project completion date.

4. Create an overall timeline chart or spreadsheet that clearly identifies all assigned tasks and their completion dates for all project participants.

5. Create a template for the project timelines and deliverables so that the same procedures, with incremental changes and improvements, can be used the next time a similar project is proposed and assigned.

Tips & Warnings

• •Adopt, adapt and improve is a good motto for any business because it allows for ongoing improvement of any process or procedure.

• •It's a good idea to champion those who take leadership roles in the process; they will make a greater effort to succeed if they take personal ownership of the project.

• •In many situations, some people will prefer the old to the new, and it may take some time to implement changes.

• •Do not let setbacks derail the process if it has been determined to be the way forward.

References

• Project Deliverables
• Project Tips
• Project Planning

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Project Management