Book: The Basics of Project Evaluation and Lessons Learned

Outlines how to capture, categorize, and control lessons based on best practices

Published: Wednesday, November 16, 2011 - 17:09

(CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL) -- How do you determine if your project was a success, beyond being within budget and completed on time? How do you determine the impact of a project? How do you capture valuable knowledge from a current or past project to enhance future programs? The answer to all three questions is through project lessons learned.

Although lessons learned provide invaluable information for determining the success or failure of projects, a systematic method for conducting lessons learned is critical to the ongoing success of your projects, programs, and portfolios. The Basics of Project Evaluation and Lessons Learned by Willis H. Thomas (CRC Press, 2011), details an easy-to-follow approach for conducting lessons learned on any project, in any organization. Whether your job entails running small projects from a home-based business or managing large projects as a part of an international supply chain, this book will be of great benefit. It outlines a well-indexed strategy to capture, categorize, and control lessons based on best practices.

Reinforcing the project standards as outlined in the PMBOK Guide (Project Management Institute, 2008), the book incorporates the five project management process groups: initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing.

It also integrates the nine project management knowledge areas: communications, cost, human resources, integration, procurement, quality, risk, scope, and time. Synthesizing essential concepts of project evaluation and lessons learned into an easy-to-follow process, the book:
• Outlines a practical 10-step process for conducting effective lessons learned
• Includes a wealth of project job aids, including templates, checklists, forms, and a project evaluation resource kit (PERK) on the accompanying CD
• Is supported by a comprehensive website.

Based on more than a decade of research supported by experts in the field of evaluation, this practical guide delivers the necessary resources for active engagement. It introduces innovative concepts, improved models, and highlights important considerations to help you gain a multidimensional perspective of project evaluation in the context of lessons learned.

This book is also available as an e-book here.

Contents

Project Management Overview
Foundations of Evaluation
Origins of Lessons Learned in Project Management
Challenges with Lessons Learned
Lessons Learned Tools and Techniques
Best Practices and Benchmarking
Lessons Learned Case Studies
Real Life Lessons Learned Scenarios
Advancing Lessons Learned through Evaluation
Implementing a Lessons Learned System

About Willis H. Thomas

Willis H. Thomas is associate director of learning management for Pfizer/Wyeth Research.

About The Author

CRC Press

CRC Press is a premier global publisher of science, technology, and medical resources. It offers unique, trusted content by expert authors, spreading knowledge and promoting discovery worldwide. Its aim is to broaden thinking and advance understanding in the sciences, providing researchers, academics, professionals, and students with the tools they need to share ideas and realize their potential. CRC Press is a member of Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business.