Treasury Board Questionnaire Planning

Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
The Project Planning Phase
This questionnaire is a tool or checklist to evaluate an IT project proposal and to

ensure that all factors influencing the success of a project have been taken into
consideration in the planning of it.
Section I
Intuitively, how do I feel about this project?
Dangerous Might succeed Likely to succeed
Why?
March 4, 2008 Page 1

Guide to Successful IT Projects - Part III
Section II - Support for the Business

Not
Ask yourself: Yes No sure
1. Is the project well aligned with the business plans and the Information
Management Plans (IMP)?
2. Has an adequate business case analysis been performed and the results well-
documented and available?
3. Is the business case based on the full cost of the system from initiation through
implementation and estimated annual cost of operation?
4. Has the Project Sponsor, representing the users taken accountability and
responsibility for project scope and definition?
5. Have the requirements been reviewed and approved by the Project Sponsor?
6. Are there formal, documented plans in place to involve appropriate levels of
users throughout the project (from requirements definition, through evaluation
and acceptance of deliverables, product and integration testing to final
acceptance and sign-off)?
7. Has the Project Sponsor ensured user commitment and support?
8. Is the project justification based on an ROI with an attractive projected return?
9. Are the project specifications precisely defined?
10. Is there agreement from all executives that the project is essential (either to
support something else you are doing or for future positioning)?
TOTALS ____ ____ ____
Section III - Accountability

Not
1. Are the positions of project sponsor, project leader and project manager filled?
2. Are there clearly defined, documented and understood responsibilities,
accountabilities and authorities for each of these positions?
3. Is the matrix defining the accountabilities, responsibilities and authorities
appropriate for this project?
4. If there is a need for a project manager representing a contractor, are there
clearly defined, documented (beyond the contract) and understood
responsibilities, accountabilities and authorities for this position?
5. Has the project manager identified adequate resources to allocate to the
scheduled tasks at the scheduled time?
6. Does the staff have sufficient expertise in the project domain?
7. Is the project sponsor at the correct level in the organization? Will this
executive be held accountable for delivering the benefits outlined in the
proposal?
8. Has the project team and the organization successfully implemented a project of
similar size, scope, cost or duration?
9. Is the project within the demonstrated capability of the department and
contractors?
TOTALS ____ ____ ____

Section IV - Corporate Project Manager Discipline

Not
1. Have the project manager and project sponsor managed a project of this size,
scope and complexity previously?
2. Does the project manager (Crown’s and/or contractor’s side) have sufficient
control over appropriate project resources?
3. Does the project manager (Crown’s and/or contractor’s side) have the freedom
and ability to act when warranted?
4. Is the Project Manager prepared to escalate issues when warranted, based on
pre-determined criteria?
5. Is the escalation path clear and documented?
6. Is the necessary information available to support decisive action?
7. In the event of serious problems, are required decisions apt to be taken?
8. Is the project independent of other projects which are presently underway (i.e.,
not relying on the successful completion of other projects)?
TOTALS ____ ____ ____
Section V - Risk Management

Not
1. Was a formal process used to break down the work and estimate task duration?
2. Are formal mechanism or tools in place to monitor the project schedule?
3. Are costs allocated in accordance with work breakdown structures?
4. Do team leaders sign off on cost & schedule estimates and are they held to
budgetary constraints?
5. Have all known management and technical risks been assessed and are mitigation
strategies in place for all identified risks?
6. Does the project approach pass reasonable checks for what is to be
accomplished?
7. Are all external interfaces that are not under your control?
8. Can the project manager and sponsor list the current top 10 project risks?
9. Is the technology being used well tested and has project staff sufficient experience
in using it and knowledge of it?
10. Is it reasonable to expect financial stability for the duration of the project?
11. Does the project approach pass reasonableness checks in terms of what is to be
accomplished in the project?
TOTALS ____ ____ ____

Section VI - ‘Success Barometer’ Rating
Totals Calculation Green Red Yellow

Totals from Section II: ____ ____ ____
Totals from Section III: ____ ____ ____
Totals from Section IV: ____ ____ ____
Totals from Section V: ____ ____ ____
Colour Totals ____ ____ ____
Project total
Green total _____ x 15 = ______
______
+ Red Total ______ x (-10) = ______
______
+ Yellow Total _____ x (-5) =
______
PROJECT TOTAL =
______
Plot the project total on the viability/success scale:
Red Zone Yellow Zone Green

Zone
|--------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|
--------|
-400 0 300
600
Dangerous Might succeed
Likely to
s
ucceed
How does this rating compare to the one from Section I based strictly on your gut?
What does this tell you?
Recommendation
Approved (GREEN ZONE)

Approval withheld pending the following (YELLOW ZONE):

_____________________________________
____
Approval denied because (RED ZONE):

_____________________________________
____

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Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

The Project Planning Phase

This questionnaire is a tool or checklist to evaluate an IT project proposal and to

Intuitively, how do I feel about this project?

Dangerous Might succeed Likely to succeed

March 4, 2008 Page 1

Section II - Support for the Business

Section III - Accountability

March 4, 2008 Page 1

Section IV - Corporate Project Manager Discipline

Section V - Risk Management

March 4, 2008 Page 2

Section VI - ‘Success Barometer’ Rating

Totals Calculation Green Red Yellow

Plot the project total on the viability/success scale:

Red Zone Yellow Zone Green

March 4, 2008 Page 3

Approval withheld pending the following (YELLOW ZONE):

Approval denied because (RED ZONE):

March 4, 2008 Page 4

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