1.5 Discovery Techniques

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1.5 Discovery Techniques

Now that I have talked about what to look for, it should be useful to spend a little time talking about how you go about getting this information. The following discussion is not limited, however, to the Big Thirteen process because the skills or techniques invaluable to developing useful information work in all matters of inquiry, not just this one. For starters, you need a game plan:

  1. Determine what information you need. When you begin the discovery process, you will probably feel there are many gaps in your knowledge base. They are quite easy to identify by asking yourself two simple questions.

    1. What project matters confuse me, or seem to lack organizational clarity or consensus?

    2. What project matters just seem too unclear or undeveloped to allow me to make any significant decision, whether for design, risk, scheduling, or operational considerations?

  2. Determine the best source. There may be multiple sources, with varying gravitas or credibility, or there may be just one. If the item in question is important enough, I like to sample multiple sources, so I can then play competing sets of data against each other. This makes the process more efficient and accurate. Do not hesitate to ask many people how to get specific information. The standard approach here is: "If you wanted to find out about X, who would you call, or where would you look? Who is the keeper of that information?"

  3. Get access to that source. The source could be:

    1. An online database

    2. Documents such as contracts, white papers, or operational runbooks

    3. An individual or team you need to query or interview

  4. Develop the information. Get what you need. You may need passwords or come bearing gifts for the gatekeeper to your Holy Grail.

  5. Review and analyze the information received. Completeness, accuracy, relevance, and timeliness of information must be assessed along with the content itself. Be highly suspicious of census, asset, or demographic data (i.e., detailed information about users, computer assets, network components, circuit lists, and software licenses). In large corporations, this information tends to be old, incomplete, and occasionally guarded for strange reasons.

  6. Corroborate the information if significant. Even if the matter at hand is not controversial, you are going to make decisions based on significant information, so validate it. Sometimes, the best you can do is to get others to review what you have learned and be told, "Sounds about right." I have been led down the garden path enough times to let my scepticism force me to check out everything I am told. My favorite technique is conversational (i.e., "Did you know that ?") instead of skewing the inquiry up front with, "Can you believe this stuff?" If you have not adopted a good deadpan delivery yet, perhaps now is time to start practicing.

  7. Follow up on potential consequences. Some information you learn may be not only significant, but possibly shocking as well. Project scope may have assumptions embedded in it which do not withstand scrutiny, or feasibility tests, for that matter. Most of us can cite instances where documented information could not be verified through physical inspection or consensus, so be sure. Try not to consistently believe the last person you speak with on any given topic, because life does not always work that way.



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Complex IT project management(c) 16 steps to success
Complex IT Project Management: 16 Steps to Success
ISBN: 0849319323
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2004
Pages: 231
Authors: Peter Schulte

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