Lessons Learned Learning Lessons as a Team

Lessons Learned

Learning Lessons as a Team

Success, failure, blame, mistakes and effectiveness are amongst some of the words which are usually associated with projects. Vic Passion and Gina Gotsill also incorporate many of such key words while discussing about reflections and lessons learned from a project in their article; 'Learning lessons as a team'. The article serves as a brief guide for project managers and organizations as it encompasses the old yet the golden rule of learning from experiences.

What issue/topic is the article addressing?

The article 'Learning lessons as a team' addresses the issue of assessing the lessons learned by the team in order to analyze the desirable and undesirable outcomes of a project. In other words, this is essential as it helps the project leader gain insight about the success of the project and look into the matter of improvement if required which could be later applied on the future projects or simply used to modify the ongoing one. This information or rather the quality feedback is obtained from the sponsors, the stakeholders and the participants of the project. In addition, the team leaders engage the members who have worked hard for the project. This paves the way for a healthy relationship which in return is vital for the success of future projects. The lesson learned is like a review or the feedback once a project is finished or is being carried out. Therefore, 'Learning lessons as a team' encompasses the realm of project management, project evaluation and team work. All these components are essential not only for the implementation of a project or for the success of the future work, but also for the triumph of an organization. On the basis of this, training and success becomes effective. Therefore, the lessons learned addresses four main basic facets; project goal, the direction or the progress of the project which might or might not be in line with the goal, the success of the project as to what went well and how, and the different approach to implementation of the project. Apart from highlighting the key aspects and the importance of lessons learned from a project, this article also focuses upon things to do and to avoid. For instance, as mentioned earlier, the article talks about the timings for the lessons learned meeting to be held. It merely depends on the duration of the project. However, it is advisable to not only rely on the completion of a particular project in order to evaluate its outcome which then could be implemented on future projects, but also conduct the meeting before the start and during the process. This is beneficial for the ongoing project and for the upcoming ones. In other words, the experience with the past projects would help improve the current manner. Moreover, if such feedback discussions are held during the course of the meeting, it would help improve it more efficiently. The article also provides innovative ideas for carrying out discussions by stressing upon the use of a proper conference room, the use of video conferencing and holding meetings in a restaurant environment. In a similar manner, the writer further elucidates the importance of maintain records of the feedback along with the idea of formulating the list of required actions to take in accordance with the performance reviews. Moreover, Vic Passion and Gina Gotsill have briefly described certain ways to handle with the most expected challenges. For instance, one of the major objectives is to engage the team members and provide them with such a comfortable environment, encouragement and value that they freely share the complaints and give feedback. Therefore, these meetings are similar to the performance review of the team with an edge over encouragement and incentives. These meetings are essential for the progress and success of the organization and its people

Who is potentially affected by the issue/topic?

Since this article; 'Learning lessons as a team' focuses upon team performance reviews, the lessons learned from a project and therefore an effective training procedure, it is likely to benefit the organization and its members. This article incorporates the feedback to be received from the project members such as the clients (external and internal), the vendors and the stake holders. The meetings conducted are a way to build a more trustful relationship between the organization and the project members. Encouraging their participation in the lessons learned meeting is like treating them and honoring them as being equal partners. The lessons learned from projects aim that the new initiators do not repeat the old mistake, the future project managers are most likely to be affected by this aspect addressed by the article. It also influences the employers who get a better insight about the intricacies of a project and also enabling them to look for competent workers and their training. Therefore, the lessons learned from the project is a process and an opportunity to discuss the strengths, shortcomings, the challenges, the desirable and undesirable outcomes of a project which is not only required to improve upon the ongoing work but also sets a guideline and a platform for the efficient working of future projects. For this reason, the lessons learned meeting discussion which is the prime focus of this article, benefits, the employers particularly the project managers, the clients or the workers working on it, the stake holders and investors, other planners and at time the government. This provides them with a broader framework to look and handle the potential challenges associated with a project and put an effort in minimizing the shortcomings and the mistakes of the past.

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