4/5/2019 Lessons learned

Lessons learned
taking it to the next level

Related Content
CONFERENCE PAPER ǀ Quality Management ǀ 2006

Rowe, Sandra F. | Sikes, Sharon

ARTICLE ǀ Quality Management, Risk
Management ǀ 1 April 2019
How to cite this article:
PM Network
Rowe, S. F. & Sikes, S. (2006). Lessons learned: taking it to the next level. Paper presented at PMI®
Global Congress 2006—North America, Seattle, WA. Newtown Square, PA: Project External Impact
Management Institute.
By Smith, Ronald B. ǀ Most project
managers know that testing new
Sharon Sikes, PMP, President, Evergreen Project software and/or hardware products
Management before they're released is an important
part of risk management. But
determining precisely what the project
Abstract team should…
Capturing lessons learned should be an on-going effort throughout the life of the project.
This mindset should be strongly encouraged by the project manager from day one. Whether ARTICLE ǀ Quality Management ǀ 1 March 2019

we are using lessons learned to prepare for current projects or for identifying project PM Network
management process improvements, we learn from project failures as well as project
Blind Spot
successes. By not learning from project failures we are doomed to repeat similar situations.
By not maximizing on project successes, we miss opportunities to implement good By Smits, Karen ǀ Project managers I
processes and practices to successfully complete existing and future work. talk with all agree: Culture is important
in project management. It influences
the quality of work, the
Introduction communication with stakeholders, the
results of teamwork and so much
Most project managers know the importance of capturing lessons learned; it is good for the
more.…
team, organization, existing and future projects. Lessons learned are the documented
information that reflects both the positive and negative experiences of a project. They
represent the organization’s commitment to project management excellence and the ARTICLE ǀ Quality Management, Risk
Management ǀ 1 March 2019
project manager’s opportunity to learn from the actual experiences of others. However, we
are all at different levels of lessons learned utilization. Some of us do not routinely capture PM Network
lessons learned because there is no defined lessons learned process in place. Or we capture Are You Really Ready?
lessons learned at the end of a project and never do anything with them. Or finally, we By Galligher, Renee ǀ You've completed
capture lessons learned, review them prior to starting new projects but we do not generate risk management, coding, unit testing,
metrics addressing the frequency of key word occurrence in failed or successful projects. acceptance testing, communications
This paper explores the different levels of lessons learned and provides solutions to assist and all other planning for your
with the transition from your current level to the next level. software project. You think the product
is now ready for release—but are…
Lessons Learned Overview
ARTICLE ǀ Quality Management, Team Building,
Learning occurs on every project. Lessons learned is the learning gained from the process of Resource Management ǀ 1 February 2019
performing the project (PMI, 2004, p. 363). We learn from our own project experiences as Project Management Journal
well as the experiences of others. Project managers, team members and leadership can all
participate in the lessons learned sessions, review the lessons learned reports and make
Organizational Justice,
decisions on how to use the knowledge gained. Sharing lessons learned among project team Project Performance,
members prevents an organization from repeating the same mistakes and also allows them and the Mediating
to take advantage of organizational best practices. Innovative approaches and good work Effects of Key Success
practices can be shared with others. Lessons learned can be used to improve future projects
Factors
and future stages of current projects.
By Unterhitzenberger, Christine | Bryde,
It is not necessary to wait until the end of the project for the learning to occur. Lessons can David ǀ Projects are under constant
be identified at any point during the project. A lessons learned session should be conducted pressure to improve performance, and
at different time frames based on the criticality and complexity of the project. Key times are research is needed to understand the
at the end of the project, at the end of each phase and real time – when you learn the
lesson. If you wait until the end the project for a large project you miss some of the key

https://www.pmi.org/learning/library/lessons-learned-next-level-communicating-7991 1/5
4/5/2019 Lessons learned
lessons. Because of the time that has elapsed, project team members may forget some of characteristics of high-performing
the things they learned or team members assigned to the project in the early phases may no projects. Using the concept of
longer be part of the project during the later phases. The best time to begin discussing organizational justice as a…
lessons learned is during the project kick-off meeting.
ARTICLE ǀ Quality Management, Team Building ǀ 1
Level 1: Lessons Learned Process January 2019

PM Network
At level 1 organizations are not routinely capturing lessons learned partly because there is
Team Rework
no defined process in place. Lessons learned are handled on a project by project basis with
no standardized tools or consistency among projects. At a minimum level 1 organizations By Bryant, James ǀ The performance of
may have a meeting where lessons learned are discussed and produce a report summarizing the core project team might be the
most critical success element of a
the findings. This report is then shared with the immediate project stakeholders.
project. It's also one of the most
What organizations need at level 1 is a defined process and basic tools and techniques. overlooked. Although competency
gaps or disengagement among a team
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) defines a process
will…
as a set of interrelated actions and activities performed to achieve a specified set of
products results or services (2004, p. 367). The purpose of a lessons learned process is to
define the activities required to successfully capture and use lessons learned. The lessons
learned process shown in Exhibit 1 includes five steps: identify, document, analyze, store and
retrieve. These steps are consistent for all three levels; however, the tools and techniques
become more involved with each level. Regardless of the level, it is important for the team
to view lessons learned as constructive. Leadership should encourage project stakeholders
to use the process, tools and results.

Exhibit 1 – Lessons Learned Process

Step 1: Identify Lessons Learned

Step 1 of the lessons learned process is to identify comments and recommendations that
could be valuable for future projects. The two activities for identifying lessons learned are:
1) prepare for lessons learned session and conduct lessons learned session.

Prepare for lessons learned session

The person who will be facilitating the lessons learned session should prepare in advance. In
preparation for the lessons learned session the facilitator should have the participants
complete a project survey. The project survey will help the participants to be better
prepared to respond during the lessons learned session and will also give them the
opportunity to provide input if they are unable to attend.

The project survey should be organized by category. The use of categories will ensure key
information is not missed and will later help to focus the discussion. Standard categories for
each project should be defined and additional categories specific to a project can be added.
Suggested categories include project management, resources, technical, communication,
business processes, requirements, design and build, testing, implementation and external
areas. These categories can be subdivided into more detailed categories. For example,
project management can be divided into the process groups: initiating, planning, executing,
monitoring and controlling and closing. Planning can then be further divided into project
schedule, risk analysis, etc. A simple approach is to begin with a few categories such as
project management, resources, technical and external areas and then add more categories
as needed.

The project survey should also include specific questions for each category. These responses
will be used by the lessons learned facilitator to guide the discussion during the lessons
learned session. Three key questions should be included as part of the survey: 1) what went
right, 2) what went wrong and 3) what needs to be improved.

Lessons Learned Session

A lessons learned session focuses on identifying project success and project failures, and
includes recommendations to improve future performance on projects. Project managers
have a professional obligation to conduct lessons learned sessions for all projects with key

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4/5/2019 Lessons learned
internal and external stakeholders, particularly if the project yielded less than desirable
results (PMI, 2004, p. 230). The lessons learned session is a very important part of the
lessons learned process. If the session is not successful, the organization loses out on the
lessons learned opportunity.

To obtain optimum results, the lessons learned sessions should be facilitated by someone
other than the project manager. If the project manager chooses to facilitate the session, the
project survey results should summarized by someone other than the project manager and
shared with the participants during the session. This will ensure the all the relevant items
are included in the discussion. The facilitator should review key documents and project
survey results, and then prepare a list of questions specific to the project. The facilitator
should use lessons learned categories during the session to help focus the participants
thinking and discussion. Finally, the facilitator should always ask the three key questions.

What went right

What went wrong
What needs to be improved

Step 2: Document Lessons Learned

Step two of the lessons learned process is to document and share findings.

After lessons learned are captured, they should be reported to project stakeholders.
Different types of reports can be produced based on the audience. The detailed lessons
learned report consists of the data captured during the lessons learned session and any
additional input from participants who were not able to attend. The facilitator should
distribute the detailed lessons learned report to all participants and participants should be
given time to respond to the accuracy of the report. After the report is finalized, the entire
project team should receive a copy even if they did not participate in the lessons learned
session. The final report should be stored with the other project documentation.

The facilitator should prepare a summary for leadership. This report should present an
overview of the lessons learned process and a summary of project strengths – what went
well, project weaknesses – what went wrong and recommendations – what we need to
improve. The detailed report can be included as an attachment or made available in the
event leadership needs more information.

Step 3: Analyze lessons learned

Step three of the lessons learned process is to analyze and organize the lessons learned for
application of results. At level 1 analysis is more informal as the team decides what can be
done with the lessons learned. Information is shared with other teams during organizational
meetings. Project management process improvements or training needs are often identified
as a result of lessons learned recommendations.

Step 4: Store lessons learned

Step four of the lessons learned process is to store in a repository. At level 1, organizations
do not have a dedicated lessons learned repository in place. Lessons learned documents are
stored along with other project documents, normally on a shared drive or in some form of
project library. There is no easy means of retrieving the lessons. Organizations often set up a
lessons learned folder on the shared drive to make the lessons learned reports available to
other project teams.

Step 5: Retrieve lessons learned

Step five of the lessons learned process is to retrieve for use on current projects. This is step
is rarely used at level 1. Although lessons learned reports are stored on a shared drive,
without key word search capability, it is difficult to retrieve the appropriate lesson.

Level 2: Evaluation of Lessons Learned Repository

At level 2 organizations have a defined process and basic tools for identifying and
documenting lessons learned. The process has become part of the organization’s culture and
is consistently applied to projects and process documents have been revised to allow for
more efficiency. Although organizations are consistently capturing lessons learned they are
not fully utilizing them.

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4/5/2019 Lessons learned
What organizations need at level 2 are effective tools and the beginning of analysis of
stored lessons learned. Why collect lessons learned if the valuable information is not shared
within an organization to either avoid reoccurrence of lessons learned or more importantly
repeat best practices lessons learned.

Process to Evaluate Lessons Learned Collected in Organization’s

Repository

As mentioned earlier, the identification of lessons learned from each project is the primary
responsibility of each project manager. During this level, organizations need to dedicate a
resource or resource(s) to begin the analysis of documented lessons learned. The purpose of
the analysis is to identify actions that can be taken within the organization to strengthen
weak areas of knowledge and implementation during each project. This can be done
through enhanced training of project managers and/or team members; this includes project
sponsors and champions. It may mean added or improved procedures and processes.

The person(s) tasked with analysis of an organization’s lessons learned should be located at
a level within the organization that will enable the person(s) to implement approved
solutions.

It is also important that gathering the original lessons learned data should be collected
utilizing consistent processes and forms. Consistency of input information allows for
speedier identification of reoccurring issues and proactive resolutions. An example of an
effective lessons learned tool would be a consistent lessons learned input form.

The lessons learned input form is a key tool. This document allows for more consistent data
collection as well as provides a means for easier retrieval. The lessons learned template
should include previously agreed to fields such as: category, lesson learned, action taken,
how did you arrive at the action taken, root cause and key words. Key words should always
be identified. Key words are ultimately one of the determinants of success in utilizing
lessons learned (Prichard, 1997, p. 94), and are essential for easy retrieval. The data on the
lessons learned input form is transferred to the organization’s lessons learned repository.
The lessons learned input form can also be shared with the project team during the lessons
learned session. As a team member identifies a lesson, that needs to be included in the
repository, the necessary information can be captured while the team member is available.

Types of Reports based on Lessons Learned Data

At level 1, organizations should be able to produce lessons learned detailed and summary
reports from information gathered during the team sessions and share these reports with
immediate project stakeholders. At level 2 more reporting options should be available.

Additional reporting options include:

Detailed Report – organized by key fields from the lessons learned template and
includes responses gathered during the session.
Summary – a one-page brief summarizing the findings and providing recommendations
for correcting the findings.
Findings – a summary of the issues found during the review process.
Recommendations – recommended actions to be taken to correct findings. The
approved actions should be documented and tracked to completion. In some cases the
approved action may become a project due to high level of resources required to address
the finding.

Level 3: Metrics
During Level 2 we noted that organizations should have identified process and templates in
place to address lessons learned. Analysis of lesson learned data was discussed. During Level
3, it is important to be able to take the completed analysis and convert that data to metrics
that are important to the organization’s executive level action approvers.

A typical executive has a very busy schedule and most review their emails and reports
utilizing the “Evelyn Woods Speed Reading Technique” or something similar. So the
executive-level lessons learned report should be no more than 3 pages to ensure that the
data is read and decisions should be easy to determine. The 3 page report should consist of:
Page 1 – text overview of analyzed data including recommended next steps…improvement
or recognitions. Page 2 and 3 should be clear graphical presentations that provide a clear
picture for the executive to make a decision.

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The most successful graphical presentations display either pie charts or bar charts with
easily understood x-axis and y-axis titles. The graph legend should also be concise and easily
understood.

It is appropriate to include more than one diagram on each page, but remember the intent
of the graphs are to tell a visual story of what’s wrong and/or what is successful in the
completion of projects within the executive’s area of responsibility.

Equally important, remember who your ultimate audience will be when preparing your
metrics reports.

The key you want to achieve is Effective Metrics Reports which can only be achieved if the
capture of project lessons learned data is consistent and maintained in a centralized
repository.

Achieving the Next Level

We have shared with you different levels of lessons learned utilization and solutions we
hope you can utilize to either initiate of improve your lessons learned processes, repositories
and metrics. We have also provided you with justification for the importance of a lessons
learned repository and the long term value that can be gained if the stored lessons learned
are reviewed and analyzed on a regular basis.

Capturing lessons learned should be an on-going effort throughout the life of the project.
This mindset should be strongly encouraged by the project manager from day one. Whether
we are using lessons learned to prepare for current projects or for identifying project
management process improvements, we learn from project failures as well as project
successes. By not learning from project failures we are doomed to repeat similar situations.
By not maximizing on project successes, we miss opportunities to implement good
processes and practices to successfully complete existing and future work. Make sure that
capturing project lessons learned is part of your procedures and an expected deliverable
from your project management and product methodologies. Ensure that project teams work
together to document project best practices and areas of improvement for the next project.

The final important step to ensure a successful lessons learned program is a commitment
from senior level management. That commitment is visible through regular repository
metrics review, action taken to implement best practices, and support to improve negative
or re-occurring project trends. In order to keep the value of lessons learned in front of
executives, it is critical to keep executive level reporting brief and concise.
Recommendations for enhancements to organization processes and procedures and
recognitions for best practices should be available on the Summary Page and in the first
paragraph of any executive report.

References
DOE Lessons Learned Program on January 15, 2006 from http://www.eh.doe.gov/ll/

Peters, Lee A. (1999, October) The Learning Project: Perpetually Improve Projects by
Learning, PMI Annual Seminars & Symposium 1999, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Project Management Institute. (2004) A guide to the project management body of
knowledge (PMBOK®) (3rd ed.). Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute.
Pritchard, Carl L. (1997, September) Lessons Learned in the Twenty-First Century: Haven’t
We Been Here Before?, PMI Annual Seminars & Symposium 1997, Chicago, Illinois.
Zeitoun, A. (2006, January) Extreme Lessons Learned – “The Tale of Two Companies”
Retrieved on July 26, 2006 from http://allpm.com/modules.php?
op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=1483
This material has been reproduced with the permission of the copyright owner. Unauthorized
reproduction of this material is strictly prohibited. For permission to reproduce this material,
please contact PMI or any listed author.
©2006, Sandra Rowe and Sharon Sikes
Originally published as part of 2006 PMI Global Congress Proceedings – Seattle Washington

© 2019 Project Management Institute, Inc. USA

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