Project Management Techniques for Efficient Audit Projects Shanda Miller County Performance Auditor Lane County, Oregon October 2015 ALGA Regional Training, Portland OR 1 Planner a person who makes plans 2
Brainstorm - Why is project management important for auditors? 3 Purpose of project management for auditing: To complete a quality performance audit project that meets audit objectives and is on time and on budget. 4
5 Learning objectives State 4 principles for effective project management for auditors List three techniques or tools you can use to help avoid the audit project black hole 6
4 Principles 7 1. Plan, plan, plan 2. Develop realistic timelines and budgets 3. Commit to good time management 4. Learn from the past 8
1. Plan, plan, plan 2. Develop realistic timelines and budgets 3. Commit to good time management 4. Learn from the past 9 6 10
11 That one project we try to forget about 12
13 Typical Audit Phases Preplanning/Survey Reporting Planning Blackhole Fieldwork 14
Identify clear audit objective(s) 15 Potential Findings Criteria... Condition... Effect... Cause... Recommendation... 16
Fieldwork Plan 17 Where is time typically spent? 1. Pre-planning/survey 2. Planning 3. Fieldwork 20% 80% 18
How time should be spent! 1. Pre-planning/survey 2. Planning 3. Fieldwork 20% 80% 40% 60% 19 IDEAL Audit Phases Preplanning/Survey Learning Planning Reporting Fieldwork 20
Poll question What is the ideal percent of your weekly time spent on planning? a) 11-15% b) 5-10% c) 1-4% d) 0.001% 21 To Do List Daily planning Focused work Admin tasks 22
23 24
25 If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail 26
1. Plan, plan, plan 2. Develop realistic timelines and budgets 3. Commit to good time management 4. Learn from the past 27 28
Triple Constraint Triangle 29 30
31 9 steps for realistic budget & timeline estimates 1. Develop a budget for each phase of the audit 2. Take enough time to estimate 3. Gather past data 4. Gather team data 5. Consult with others 6. Be clear on the scope of work 7. Build in a cushion 8. Evaluate team member experience 9. Develop the budget hours and timeline together 32
#1 Develop a budget for each phase of the audit Example budget Audit Phase Budget (hours) Time frame (weeks) Pre-planning/Survey 100 3 Planning 100 3 Fieldwork 300 8 Reporting/Wrap-Up 200 6 TOTAL 700 20 33 #2 Take enough time to estimate 34
#3 Gather past data 35 #4 Gather team data 36
#5 Consult with others 37 #6 Be clear on the scope of work 38
#7 Build in a cushion Budget + 39 #8 Evaluate team member experience 40
#9 Develop the budget hours and timeline together Example budget 41 Exercise - Do a back-of-theenvelope budget & schedule estimate for a small work or personal project. 42
1. Plan, plan, plan 2. Develop realistic timelines and budgets 3. Commit to good time management 4. Learn from the past 43 44
45 The average person loses 1 hour per day to inefficiencies Perfectionism Procrastination Interruptions Meetings 46
Brainstorm - What are your top 3 time wasters? 47 48
49 50
51 52
53 Willpower is highest in the morning & falls during the day 54
Peak productive time a.m. p.m. 55 56
Work Container What doesn t fit? Time wasters Disruptions 40 hours What fits? Top priorities Tasks that get you to your next deliverable 57 To Do List Daily planning Focused work Admin tasks 58
Start your day with the three most important tasks (MITs) 59 To determine which 3 tasks are the most important ask yourself: 1. Will this task move me toward completion of my audit/project? 2. How long will it take? 3. When is the deadline? 60
The 4 D s Delete Delegate 61 62
63 Joy of progress The 64
Recap Shanda s TM practices Track your time in 15 minutes increments & know your time wasters Turn off email notification and fully process email once or twice per day Block out time for focused work & schedule meetings tightly (if possible) Understand willpower and your peak productive times of the day Take breaks 65 Shanda s TM practices cont d Fill your work container with productive work and mind your hours Make time for daily planning and prioritizing Win the Day and complete your top 3 most important tasks each day Use the 4 D s delete, delegate, delay, diminish Beware of multi-tasking 66
1. Plan, plan, plan 2. Develop realistic timelines and budgets 3. Commit to good time management 4. Learn from the past 67 68
69 70
Performance Management Monitor/ Report Plan Manage Budget 71 Budget to actual monitoring Cycle time monitoring 72
IDEAL Audit Phases Preplanning/Survey Learning Planning Reporting Fieldwork 73 Ask yourself Where did my budget and/or timeline estimating go wrong and why? How will I use this information when estimating for the next project? What were some unanticipated delays, bottlenecks, or other things that came up? How can I take this information to improve my planning and/or build in a cushion next time? What new project management tool can I adopt next? 74
4 Principles 1. Plan, plan, plan 2. Develop realistic timelines and budgets 3. Commit to good time management 4. Learn from the past 75 4 Tools 76
1. Project Schedule 2. Budget to Actual Tracking Sheet 3. Project Plan 4. Weekly Team Check-Ins 77 1. Project Schedule 2. Budget to Actual Tracking Sheet 3. Project Plan 4. Weekly Team Check-Ins 78
79 80
1. Project Schedule 2. Budget to Actual Tracking Sheet 3. Project Plan 4. Weekly Team Check-Ins 81 Budget to actual tracking sheet 82
1. Project Schedule 2. Budget to Actual Tracking Sheet 3. Project Plan 4. Weekly Team Check-Ins 83 Project plan At the core of a project plan is the work breakdown structure (WBS) Create a WBS for each phase yes, including planning and reporting Create the fieldwork WBS during planning Project Plan WBS survey planning fieldwork reporting 84
Purpose of work breakdown structure Have all steps listed in one location Assign ownership Check off completed tasks 85 Components of work breakdown structure Step Owner Date initiated Date due Date complete (or Review date) Workpaper or other reference 86
Fieldwork Plan 87 1. Project Schedule 2. Budget to Actual Tracking Sheet 3. Project Plan 4. Weekly Team Check-Ins 88
89 Weekly team meetings Report & celebrate accomplishments from prior week Plan out the week prioritize the work Discuss upcoming meetings/milestones to plan for Assign tasks/goals for the week Set expectations for tasks Discuss opportunities for development and on-thejob training Ensure each person leaves with a clear to do list 90
Scrum Source: Borrowed from Kymber Waltmunson, King County Auditor s Office, Project Management for Auditors presentation 91 Sprint backlog/ Items due in next 2 weeks Not started In Progress Completed 92
The Pareto Principle 80:20 Rule 93 4 Tools 1. Project Schedule 2. Budget to Actual Tracking Sheet 3. Project Plan 4. Weekly Team Check-Ins 94
Learning objectives State 4 principles for effective project management for auditors List three techniques or tools you can use to help avoid the audit project black hole 95 CONTACT: Shanda Miller Lane County Performance Auditor shanda.miller@co.lane.or.us 541-682-6267 96