MAKING THINGS HAPPEN

Project documentation
management
Content
2 Intro
2 What is project documentation management?
3 Key project documents
3 I Phase - Initiation
3 Project Business Case
4 Project Charter
4 II Project phase - Planning
4 Work Breakdown Structure
5 Requirement Specification
5 Risk and Issue Log
6 Change Request Management Document
7 III Project phase - Execution
7 Project Communication Plan
8 Project Timeline
8 IV Project phase - Monitoring and Controlling
8 V Project phase - Closure
9 Project Closure Sheet
9 Lessons Learned Register
9 Naming documents
11 Storing documentation
11 Quip
11 Google Drive
12 Microsoft OneDrive
12 DropBox Business
12 Benefits of project documentation management
12 Defining and setting project goals more efficiently
12 Supporting the planning phase
13 Simplifies monitoring
13 Easy information search
13 Process standardization
13 Version Control
14 Conclusion

1
Intro What is project documentation
management?
Project documentation is a vital part of project manage-
ment. It’s also their least favorite thing to do so the things
you can usually hear from them are: Managing project documentation is a process of creat-
ing, sharing and organizing project documents. But what
“We don’t have the time for this at the moment.” exactly do we mean by ‘project documents’?

“We are working on Agile.” A project document is any document which has a role in
the life cycle of a project. That includes the project char-
“No one reads those things anyway.” ter, project plan, proposals and status reports up until
the project closure document.
It might seem tiring but complete and organized docu-
mentation can make a difference between success and
failure of your project.

Without proper management of project documentation,

processes could go along undocumented, projects could
run off the course and employees could come across diffi-
culties in their everyday work.

In this tutorial we will tackle the issue of managing project

documentation, go over best practices and all benefits it
can bring.

2
Key project documents I Phase - Initiation
Project Business Case
Now we are getting to the point. In this section we aim at
showing you the documents which should be created in Business Case is a key document in the project initiation
every phase of a project. phase.
These documents cover a series of different topics which
provide stable progress of the project in every step of the It should state the capital needed for its completion and
way. give a detailed look into the ways it will be distributed. It
Below you will find a list of key documents for project man- should be strong proof why the idea is a legitimate project
agement which are needed for managing your projects. worth investing in.
That way you can guarantee that your team documenta-
tion is up to date.

3
Project Charter II Project phase - Planning
Another key document in the initiation phase is a project Work Breakdown Structure
charter. It should include general project description and
specification of the key roles and responsibilities the team
members should have. In order to ensure that the project will complete its goals
All in all, it’s a document designed to describe every within the defined deadlines, the planning phase should
aspect of the project. It ensures that the whole team is be well organized, clear and worked out to the smallest
clear on the requests, elements and goals of the given details.
project. Work breakdown structure document should contain vital
information for the team to understand what the project
includes in a simple and understandable way. Its main
purpose is to split the project into work components and
phases.

4
Requirement Specification Risk and Issue Log

The next document is requirement specification and it is Risk and issue log is the next vital document needed in the
crucial for the planning phase of project management. planning phase.
It requires a methodical approach in describing the proj- Use the contents of this document to consider potential
ect requirements which should lead to its successful com- project risks and note all the best mitigation practices. By
pletion. All things considered, these goals are the reason introducing risk management practices to your team in
to invest in the project so it’s vital to know how to reach the early project phases, you will ensure their awareness
them. and flexibility later on. Also, you guarantee that their time
is well spent and avoid most of the (potentially expensive)
process mistakes.

5
Change Request Management Document

The last document you will need for the planning phase is
the Change Request Management Document. You will
use this document in order to note the specific details of
any project changes your team could come up with so
that they can be dealt with reasonably.
Specify all the change details in this document including
the subject in question, how it can influence your current
project plans (for example, budget or timeline) and how
you plan on mitigating the possible disturbance it could
create in project execution.

6
III Project phase - Execution
Project Communication Plan

In the execution phase (but also throughout the whole

project) efficient communication is necessary. Here the
project communication plan comes in.
This document contains clear guidelines for communica-
tion between all project stakeholders. It should specify the
what, when and how information should be shared in your
team. It should also explain how information should be
shared and by whom.

7
Project Timeline IV Project phase - Monitoring and
The next step in the execution phase requires you to
Controlling
specify a clear and detailed project timeframe which
should contain all milestones and deliverables of the proj-
ect. Timeframe should also clearly note which team In the controlling and monitoring phase, the project man-
member is responsible for which task and its deadline. ager oversees its implementation. They use the documen-
tation such as a communication plan or a project time-
Document with a project timeline also allows the project frame to ensure that the implementation is going accord-
manager to follow the work stream to ensure that no one ing to plan.
makes it difficult for the process to go on by handing in
their work late.
V Project phase - Closure
This document establishes the deadlines for different proj-
ect components which lead to a stable project progress. This phase consists of all the steps required before a proj-
By noting these key results in a highly organized way, you ect could be considered formally closed.
will motivate your team to complete them in the defined
time frame. Project Closure Sheet

When a project has been completed, but before the cele-

bration, you have to formally close all processes using the
correct documentation. This step requires you to create a
project closure sheet.
It is a document which could be used as a written confir-
mation that all stakeholders have approved the complet-
ed project and that their expectations have been met.

8
Lessons Learned Register

In order to close project processes, you will have to make

a Lessons learned register. This document shows what you
have learned from the project as a team. It gives the team
a chance to share their formal suggestions about what
could be done differently the next time around.

This is a key part of the docummenting process because it

ensures that your team uses the experience in their own
advantage (but also sheds a positive light on the mistakes
which have been made), so that their success and growth
are made possible on future projects.

Naming documents

Giving documents correct names is an important part of

organizing, sharing and tracking project documentation.
Our advice is to have a naming convention within the
team based on important elements of the project.

9
The usual practices in naming documents are:

- File names should be short put descriptive (up to 25

char)
- Files should be named consistently
- Avoid special characters and spaces in file names
- Use a bottom line instead of fullstops, spaces or slashes
- Use a date format ISO 8619: GGGGMMDD
- Include the working version count
- Note your naming convention in the data management
plan

Elements which should be considered when arranging a

naming convention are:

- Creation date (putting the date up front will simplify

filtering by date)
- Short description
- Work
- Location
- Name or project number
- Sample
- Analysis
- Version number

The picture below shows examples of naming which, in

practice, make documentation search easier. This has
proven to be a good practice for large projects where the
documentation scope is so large that it’s almost impossi-
ble to track and find if a convention doesn’t exist.

10
 Quip
Storing documentation
Quip has an interactive library for your internal documen-
tation. It allows you to create documents, edit them with
Storing team documents in a safe and organized way is your team in real time and share them with other people
important for both bigger and smaller companies and internally or externally.
start-ups. The amount of effort you put in taking care of
your documentation will pay up when managing risks and Professional advice: It allows you to turn emails off in your
avoiding potential problems during execution. work process.
Documentation management could help clear the air if it Profesionalni savet: Omogućava vam da isključite e-poštu
comes to misunderstandings, spreading false information, iz radnog procesa.
cooperation between departments and individuals, and
allowing your business to improve and learn faster. But to Pricing:
acquire the benefits of taking care of your documenta- Quip Starter – 10 USD per month/ per user
tion, you need an adequate approach in storing your Quip Plus – 25 USD per month/ per user
documentation. Salesforce Anywhere Advanced – 100 USD per month/
Companies are very aware of that and adjust accordingly per user
- 91% of companies are involved with digital transforma-
tion and 87% of management see it as a priority.
Google Drive
These tools keep all your team documents in one place so
that you can cooperate on projects in different time Google Drive is a good tool for storing and sharing team
zones. documents. You can import your own or create docu-
In further text you will find our suggestion list of tools which ments using Google formats like tables and slides.
you can use for storing your team documents. Their Google Workspace function is especially suited for
team collaboration and includes unlimited storage and
spare copies.

Professional advice: Google workspace could be

accessed from anywhere, including phone and offline.

Pricing:
Business Starter – 6 USD per month/ per user
Business standard – 12 USD per month/ per user
Business Plus – 18 USD per month/ per user

. 11
Microsoft OneDrive Price:
Basic - 12,50 USD per month/ per user
Microsoft OneDrive is currently one of the most popular Advanced - 20 USD per month/ per user
tools for cloud storing. Most teams prefer Microsoft One-
Drive rather than other cloud storing tools because it Benefits of project documentation
stores photos and copies of files and keeps them protect-
ed, synchronized and available on all devices. It doesn’t management
matter if your team is working on their own tablets or com-
pany laptops, they can access all files and be sure they Defining and setting project goals more efficiently
are protected from breaches.
Project documentation guides you towards setting and
Professional advice: OneDrive has an integration with defining clear goals while making sure that everyone
Microsoft 365 which allows team members to collaborate included in the process (project manager and stakehold-
without noticing the differences between the two prod- ers) have the same expectations. This process requires
ucts. you to validate each created document.
Pricing: Starts at 1,99 USD per month for 100GB and goes Managing project documentation well from the very start
up to 99,99 USD per year for 6TB. means that you will be clear on general and project goals.
In return, you will see that your team is sure to actively
work on pursuing them.
DropBox Business

Business version of Dropbox includes unlimited storage,

spare copies of files and team collaboration possibilities
Supporting the planning phase
so they could work together in a safer and more orga-
Each document has a clear role and function in project
nized way.
documentation. Project managers use them for creating
detailed structures for categorizing work which, in return,
Professional advice: Dropbox Business includes unlimited
allows them to make real and achievable timesheets.
integration possibilities with third party applications so
that you can personalize it according to your work pro-
Each document which a project manager creates is
cesses.
meant to support the planning process which optimizes
and speeds up the project execution.

12
Simplifies monitoring 1. Harmonizing the team. Standardized processes enable
your team to be on the same page. Even if the project
Managing project documentation gives you a complete team is made of people from different departments, all
and thorough understanding of the roles and deadlines are following the same flow.
which all team members are facing. It makes the project
traceable and transparent. At the end of a project, the
manager is responsible for evaluation and notes on which 2. Enhances efficiency. With standardized processes your
aspects should be improved. workflow is more efficient. Why? Because there is no need
to worry about the next steps. Everyone knows what,
Easy information search when and how to do next in order to move the project up.

All project documentation is stored in one place. As you Version Control

can imagine, this allows the team members to find the
needed information on a shorter notice.
One of the great things about managing project docu-
This will save you some time in searching for key docu- ments is version control. If you’re unfamiliar with the term,
ments while being more productive and focused on your version control enables you to follow and have a clear
work. look at the previous versions of the same document. It
creates a revision trace so that you could see which
changes were made and who made them.
Process standardization As a result, the quality of project documentation is main-
tained on a high level.
Defining every step of the business process whether it’s Version control software we recommend are Git, CVS and
the customer journey or onboarding a new employee, you SVN.
can ensure the quality of processes a person goes
through no matter how big your team is.

Standardization is the key for every team work but two

advantages worth noting are:

13
Conclusion

If you’re looking to upgrade the level of organization on

your projects, we hope we’ve been able to show you how
much you can get from establishing a clear project docu-
mentation management system.
We’ve tried to point out a simple and efficient way you
can do so and see that your project goes on without
problems. Mark all fields, meet each deadline, follow up on
team effort and create consistently top notch content -
good organization is everything.

14
MAKING THINGS HAPPEN

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mth.rs
[email protected]