Abbott Project Management Playbook

The delivery process of the accelerated project will contain the standard three phases of the project: FEP, Execution, and Closure. One of the major changes from the standard process is the elimination of the normal stops and gate reviews. Accelerated projects seek to achieve a faster project cycle-time by moving through the project initiation process quicker and developing the scope of the project faster. For an accelerated project, the leadership team needs to be engaged and empowered to create an overall agile project team that has the decision-making authority to maintain an aggressive project timetable. Creating an Accelerated Project Leadership Trio (APLT) consisting of an Executive Leader, Business Leader, and Project Manager was one of the key lessons learned from past accelerated projects. For the APLT to be successful, the business must allow these leaders to function as a dedicated leadership team, empowering them to make all key decisions in a timely fashion. The APLT needs to also empower all team members to carry out their roles efficiently, deal/manage risks at the working level, make detailed decisions and create an environment where mutual trust among all is created and sustained. Accelerated projects start with a preliminary funding request and attached form which is used to obtain approval from executive leadership. Approval supports delivery speed as the priority. Accelerated projects require planned phased (large) prefunding to allow the project to move quickly at the onset and remove the RCE from the critical path. The RCE is completed and routed as additional data becomes available through the project development. Due to the increased risks and accelerated schedule, contingency should be increased to allow APLT to manage and/or accept project acceleration risks. The content of the RCE is reviewed again in the project review meeting. Project Acceleration Meetings include the necessary resources to start the project and are used to create team alignment and direction through the early stages of the project as speed is the priority. It is necessary for the dedicated leadership team to make early critical decisions as there is a higher risk to capital due to lack of early information. Standard gate reviews are not held as Front End Planning decisions are made by the executive leaders of the APLT. The design phase happens after the acceleration meeting. The phased preliminary funding supports early engagement of design firms and consultants to work on the accelerated design. When the design has enough level of detail, standard FEP evaluation tools should be utilized. Project Definition Rating Index (PRDI) and/or Monte Carlo simulations will support scope definition development and provide probabilistic analysis of the cost and schedule. The Project Review Meeting is a check point should be completed prior to the start of construction to ensure the business is aligned with the project team’s path forward. The results from the PDRI and Monte Carlo analysis should be shared with the project team and any new concerns can be discussed before major construction starts. The Project Review Meeting should also evaluation funding for the complete scope and risk mitigation strategies for the project. If further funding is a required a supplemental should be written at the time.

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