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Any company working in development has faced the challenge of putting together a project at some point. The first encounter with this discipline can be daunting for those without much experience — yet in our daily lives, we plan and project things intuitively, all the time.

"Best practices" refers to a broad consensus that applying specific skills, tools, and techniques can improve the likelihood of success across a wide range of projects. Best practices does not mean that the knowledge described must be applied the same way on every project; the organization and/or the team are responsible for determining what is appropriate for a given project (Project Management Institute, 2008, p. 4).

One of the most compelling aspects of this discipline is its recognition that how a project is carried out matters just as much as the final deliverable.

Every project is unique. The approach and strategy for completing it must be tailored accordingly.

The following are key characteristics that should be clearly understood before development begins on any project.

Defining Project Objectives and Scope

Objectives must be clearly defined at the outset, with every team member understanding exactly what each one entails. A solid grasp of the real goals to be achieved is what makes accurate project planning possible.

Scope defines the boundaries. Knowing what falls inside and outside those boundaries determines the total amount of work required to complete the project successfully.

Project Planning and Resource Management

Planning framework for the development of design projects.

Planning requires the Project Engineer to identify what personnel and resources are needed to complete the project. This means defining which activities must be carried out to produce the final deliverables.

Equally important is estimating the time and effort each defined activity will require, then building a realistic schedule around those estimates. This is not a solo exercise — the Project Engineer should involve the entire team in estimating activity durations, collectively agreeing on the critical dates that will anchor the schedule.

Those dates must then be shared with the client for review and mutual agreement.

Tracking Project Progress

Monitoring and controlling progress throughout project execution.

Planning is only useful if it is communicated effectively to every team member. Each person needs a clear understanding of the responsibilities assigned to them.

Once a project is underway, it must be monitored continuously — comparing actual progress against the baseline set during planning. Each team member should generate progress reports that capture variances between planned and actual performance, enabling corrective actions before those gaps widen.

Self-Evaluation and Lessons Learned

Continuous self-evaluation strengthens deliverable quality and drives team growth.

Ongoing self-evaluation is essential. The progress reports generated by the team are a valuable resource; beyond that, final deliverables handed to the client should be tailored to their needs, with clear presentation and the most accessible language possible — so that anyone with a basic understanding of the subject can follow what each document communicates.

Every project, finished or ongoing, leaves a lesson behind. Running retrospective meetings where team members share their experiences — what worked, what didn't — creates a reference base for future projects.

When a particular team member's working approach proves successful, others can adopt it in their own areas. When it falls short, the team learns to avoid repeating the same mistakes.

Lisgrett Bellorin