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LESSONS LEARNED WORKING GROUP

KICKOFF MEETING NOTES

09/30/2008

MEETING ATTENDEES: Micci Bogard, Greg Bronson, RJ Davies, Stephanie Herrick (co-Facilitator), Sue Hilbert, Butch Labrecque (co-Facilitator), Ned LaCelle, Benoit McNicoll, Greg Menzenski, Irina Naydich, Christine O'Brien, Ron Parks, Nathan Reimer, Andy Slusar, Lisa Stensland, Casper Vanwyk

ADMINISTRIVIA:

IS Activity Code - 1853: Lessons Learned Working Group
Confluence Site - https://confluence.cornell.edu/display/LLWG/Home
LLWG Session 2 – Th, 10/23, 9-10:30, Maplewood

AGENDA:

Review Agenda
Purpose of the Meeting
Introductions
Expectations
Identify Common problems conducting Lessons Learned sessions & benefitting from them
Form Working Groups to Propose Solutions
Closing

PURPOSE OF MEETING:

orient and form the working group(s) to
create and improve Lessons Learned (LLs) practices and tools by
working together to identify common problems, potential solutions & define next steps.

INTRODUCTIONS & EXPECTATIONS:

Get the "Cornell view" on LLs
Learn from others, apply to other projects
"we talk about it", but how do we make sure that others benefit from it?
Learn common/"best" way to do LLs
Discover if LLs can be "generalized"
Put best practices in place & perhaps develop a common repository
We don't currently have a way to capture LLs (repeatable process)
How can we work LLs into best practices
Find out if there is a way for the PM to find "balance" conducting & participating in LLs as well as to apply LLs to future projects
Learn and hear others' experiences
Observe & learn how to conduct LL sessions
Can we combine LLs with something else to make it more valuable/practical?
Support problem ID & LL action items/next steps in order to benefit future PMs/projects
How to capture LLs, collaborate w/ the info & be more proactive with (acting on) LLs

IDENTIFY TOP PROBLEMS CONDUCTION LESSONS LEARNED & BENEFITTING FROM THEM:

ID#	Problem	# Votes
1	Keep team focused on identifying LLs instead of just complaining about issues	12
	Difficult getting people to identify top 3 problems
	Avoiding personal attacks, poor attitudes &/or taking comments personally
2	Difficult to translate LL's into concrete actions to improve processes and projects (Best practices)	7
3	Facilitating the LL session without imparting PM biases
4	No mechanism to share LLs more broadly than the project team, so LL's are not reusable, researchable or accessible to others	16
	How to communicate LL info to stakeholders for the next project/incorporate LLs into future projects
5	No follow-through on LLs	3
6	Distilling anonymous survey input & team discussion into a usable LL report	1
7	Different PM for the next project
8	Finding time to do LLs (especially when the project is "finished")	3
9	How to pull info out of LL session participants, esp. those hesitant to bring up negative info/comments	3

FORM WORKING GROUPS

"Facilitation" Team (problem ID 1) – Ron, Micci, Lisa, GregB, Irina

"Best Practices" Team (problem ID 2) – RJ, Nathan, GregM, Andy

"Sharing Outcomes" Team (problem ID 4) – Sue, Ned, Benoit, Christine, Casper

CLOSING/NEXT STEPS

Working groups assignment is to better define the problem, propose solutions, and devise potential strategies
Working groups will "report back" at Session 2 (Th, 10/23, 9-10:30, Maplewood)
Steph & Butch will post kickoff meeting notes to Confluence, plan Session 2, check-in with work groups
Post-meeting survey