How to Implement Critical Success Factors

Creating Project Schedule

Critical success factors are the elements pertinent to the completion of the task or project. Such factors consist of time management, subject knowledge, organization, quality of work and cooperation. When writing critical success factors, you must connect the nature of the business to the ideal of the job objectives. In order to implement critical success factors, define the central focus of the project, create goals that need to be reached during the course of the project and discuss how the goals relate to the critical success factors. Throughout the course of the project, make a chart that records whether or not the critical success factors were achieved.

Things You'll Need

• Pen
• Paper
• Computer

Instructions

1. Define the central focus of the project. In order to implement critical success factors, you must decide what the mission of the project is. For example, the mission of the project may be to design a robot that is able to clean up spills.

2. Create goals that need to be reached throughout the duration of the project. Such goals must involve the beginning, the middle and the end of the project. For example, your goals may be to sketch the design of the robot, to make the model of the robot, to program the robot and to test the robot.

3. Discuss how the goals relate to the critical success factors. Completing the tasks of the project will definitely involve the critical success elements of time management, subject knowledge, organization, quality of work and cooperation. For example, in programming the robot, you must manage your time so that the other tasks of the projects are already completed, and you can therefore devote your attention to working with the programming software. You must have knowledge of the programming software in order to create a program that will allow the robot to clean the spill. You and the other members of the team must be organized in the creation and testing of the program. You would want the program to work efficiently, rather than a program that works poorly but was fast to make. Also, you and the other team members must communicate and share ideas in a productive way.

4. Make a project schedule. In order to implement critical success factors, a project schedule is necessary. By listing the task to be completed, and the date of completion, this will help to facilitate organization and make it easier to relate to the critical success factors later on.

5. Make a chart that relates the critical success factors to the goals. Make a table that has two columns. One column should list the critical success factors, and the other column should list the goal. As each goal of the project is completed, you and your team members should write down whether or not you achieved the critical success factors. For example, if you completed the task of building the robot on the designated day, then the critical success factor of time management was achieved.

6. Discuss how the critical success factors helped with the completion of the project. When the project is finished, use the chart with the critical success factors and goals in order to further understand the implementation of the critical success factors. By discussing which factors were achieved, and which were not, you can determine how to be more successful in future projects. You can also develop strategies that will help you and your team members to progress.

Tips & Warnings

• You can create the project schedule and critical success factor table either with a pen and paper, or on the computer.

References

• RapidBI: Critical Success Factors-Analysis
• Mind Tools: Critical Success Factors