Digital Project Success:

Transcription

1 Digital Project Success: Vision + Execution 3 October 2011 Digital Arts and Humanities Institute Long Room Hub, Trinity College Dublin ~ Funded under PRTLI, Cycle ~ The Digital Humanities Observatory: Enabling Awareness and Facilitating Discovery Speaker: Shawn Day slide

2 Our Objectives: to learn 1. Now that You are Funded - What are 1st Steps 2. How to set goals for the digital project 3. How to plan projects 4. How to communicate with partners with users 5. Why finishing should be a first thought 6. Tools 7. Tips and with future stewards of the digital resource Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 2

3 Exercise 1 ( 15 minutes ) Break into small groups with people you don t already know. Decide on the top five (5) things that you learned from previous projects things project participants should never forget. These can be dos or don ts. Brainstorm and then one member from each group to report back Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 3

4 Reporting Back Speaker: Shawn Day slide 4

5 Defintions What is a project? one-off, non-repeated set of tasks, which achieves clearly stated objectives within a time limit" What is a typical project lifecycle? Define -> Plan -> Implement/Control -> Close/Handover -> Evaluate Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 5

6 Before you jump in the cycle Study the likely audience of your digital collec3on (or resource) in order to set project goals and create a project plan in order to manage the project to achieve those goals Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 6

7 1. Study the likely audience of your digital collection (or resource) Think like an editor, indexer or cataloguer: Who will use the resource? What will they do with it? What questions can you ask of your digital creation? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 7

8 1. Study the likely audience of your digital collection (or resource) Think like an editor, indexer or cataloguer: Who will use the resource? What will they do with it? What questions can you ask of the digital creation? Conduct focus groups and/or surveys Get feedback at early stages of website or database design Project presentations or poster sessions at conferences will keep people updated Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 8

9 Not just at the beginning Study users not only at the beginning but at all stages of the project. User testing is on ongoing, iterative process. In addition to focus groups at the beginning, have these or other potential users look at mock-ups and test out site prototypes Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 9

10 2 Set project goals and create a project plan Scrap the funding proposal! - Well... It s important to define exactly what the project aims to achieve. What will be achieved, and under what condi3ons and partnerships will it succeed? Rank your goals in terms of importance. In case 3me, money, or both run out, what is most important? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 10

11 The cynical view Good Choose any two: Fast Cheap Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 11

12 Project Management Triangle The triple constraints Scope Quality Schedule Cost See h%p://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/project_management_triangle Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 12

13 Again before you start... Take a good look around - Environmental Scan Don t re-invent the wheel Good digital project managers don t re-invent They adapt and innovate Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 13

14 Write it down - Document! Not everyone interprets or recalls the same initial or subsequent project discussion the same way! Often when groups involved, it s crucial to have memos of understanding...but these make sense for individuals too. Write out your objectives and plan and turn to it throughout Revise and document why revised Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 14

15 Your project plan should contain Project phases In case limited resources prevent you from accomplishing all that you plan to, the most important and/or easiest work (in the earliest stages) will still get accomplished - remember our priorities? A timeline showing how things come together: what and when, including dependencies Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 15

16 Projects and Time Management Divide (as much as possible) the project into discreet and manageable tasks Identify all tasks that need to be performed for a particular activity divide tasks into component parts don t overlap of tasks within different sub-elements don't leave gaps Be realistic about the time an activity will take Break down tasks into reasonable time-units no point in setting unrealistic goals assess progress and revise Leverage the Tools Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide

17 A Gantt chart Source: h%p://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/file:gan%chartanatomy.png Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 17

18 You are the project manager The PM is responsible for implementing the project plan (and perhaps formulating it in detail). The PM is proactive: Seeking out information Involving people who are critical to the project Sharing information with those who need it Putting information in writing The PM must be committed to the project s success and must encourage others to also be committed Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 18

19 Working the Plan Perhaps the most crucial part of project management is an ongoing process involving: flexibility: know when to stop and change plans adherence: know when to stick to the plan communication: know who needs to know what when damage limitation: when things go wrong how to fix them Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 19

20 Things Go Wrong Delays often arise because time estimates are too short. That s why you plan for project phases. On the other hand, internal deadlines are useful for keeping forward momentum, especially on any longterm project. Revisit the project plan often and decide when to revise the plan and when to stick to it. Project planning is iterative like user testing! Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 20

21 People have different communication styles and preferences Asynchronous (delayed) in wri3ng does not necessarily break concentra3on allows 3me for reflec3on Synchronous (instantaneous) live requires interrup3on from work easier to keep track of discussions Find an appropriate mix of the two and appropriate tools for each Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 21

22 Some communication tools Asynchronous (delayed) online forums word docs wikis Some of both Google Docs Google + Synchronous (instantaneous) instant messaging VoIP (like Skype) mee3ngs chamng at someone s desk or over the phone Later we ll talk a bit more about some of these, plus look at sopware designed specifically for project management Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 22

23 Types of documentation For the project and future stewards of the digital resource: Internal documentation on decisions reached and how to carry the work forward (in case of changes in people involved or in case the project is revived in the future) Commented computer code For stakeholders (institutional funders, grant agencies) and the PR division: Promotional material (online and/or in print) For users: Documentation (if necessary) Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 23

24 Like user testing and project planning, project management as a whole is iterative Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 24

25 The Big Picture All the projects you will be working on will reside in a larger context of digital humanities projects worldwide what is the current expectation by potential users? what other projects will yours be in dialogue with? of digital humanities projects in Ireland how will these projects fit together? what interoperability and synergies can be achieved in the rapidly changing environment of the web what new communities may benefit from your resource? how do new technologies affect your project plan? changing expectations of users? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 25

26 Exercise 2 (in groups again 10 Minutes) Would you change your answers to Exercise 1? If so, how and why? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 26

27 Digital Project Management Tools Speaker: Shawn Day slide 27

28 A Selection of Tools Planning/Documenting Compiling Managing Delivering/Sharing Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 28

29 Planning and Documenting Google Docs Google + Zoho Projects PBWorks Suggestions? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 29

30 Compiling Zotero + Extensions Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 30

31 Managing Zoho BaseCampHQ Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 31

32 Delivering/Sharing Omeka Simile Exhibit 2.0 or 3.0 (note Zotero connection) Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 32

33 Tips for Success Speaker: Shawn Day slide 33

34 End Product You will hate your topic! Isolation? Community of 46+ Do not wait till 4th year to read How to Get a Phd. (5th ed!, 25 printings) How to get a (Digital) Phd! wiki? What is the end product? How will you sell this? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 34

35 Meetings & Reports Keeping Records of meetings with supervisors New Development Different regs in diff institutions find yours (supervisors may not yet know!) General Principles Regular meeting Agreed record of progress, plans, targets Student writes, sends to supervisor Annual Reviews Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 35

36 Ethics Will your research require Ethics approval? Permissions? Research interviews? Performances? Don t let the Review Boards ambush you! How many copyright/ethics violations are on this page? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 36

37 Being Digital Build Professional online presence Find communities Public and private spaces? Find tools to make sense of the flood You can work 24/7 but you shouldn t! Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 37

38 Digital Survival: Notes & References How many people want to spend 3 months checking references? How much ($, ) is that worth? Find the right format, take full refs as you go, keep full ref with notes and drafts. Find the right tool for you to Capture notes & information Tag and organise notes Keep references Experiment now! Use open, standards compliant formats Reuse is important Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide38

39 Digital Survival: Backups A Fire Hazard is not a backup The computer ate my thesis is no longer an excuse! 3 copies in different locations Post/ research home Use a good online service Check integrity Use open, standards compliant formats Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 39

40 Digital Survival : Passwords You will need lots of passwords! Avoid obvious Your passwords are not the Helpdesk s problem Colleges may require regular changes Include Numbers (1234) and others (~@:/ ) Compound words? Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 40

41 Slides from this workshop are available from the DAH Website: Mike Cosgrave Shawn Day Speakers: Mike Cosgrave and Shawn Day slide 41