Project Planning

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name: project-planning
description: Deep project planning workflow—goals and non-goals, work breakdown, dependencies, critical path, risks and buffers, milestones, and communication rhythm. Use when kicking off initiatives, replanning after slips, or coordinating cross-team delivery.
---

# Project Planning (Deep Workflow)

Plans are hypotheses—update them as facts arrive. Strong plans surface **dependencies early** and make **trade-offs** explicit (scope, date, quality).

## When to Offer This Workflow

**Trigger conditions:**

- Multi-team effort with a hard date or external dependency
- Timeline slip and need to re-baseline honestly
- Scope creep without prioritization conversation

**Initial offer:**

Use **six stages**: (1) frame outcome, (2) decompose work, (3) map dependencies, (4) schedule & buffers, (5) risks & mitigations, (6) operating rhythm. Confirm planning style (milestone-based, agile release train, hybrid).

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## Stage 1: Frame Outcome

**Goal:** Problem statement, success criteria, **non-goals**, constraints (date, budget, compliance).

**Exit condition:** One-page charter stakeholders can align on.

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## Stage 2: Decompose Work

**Goal:** Epics or WBS → trackable chunks—not necessarily micro-tasks unless execution needs it.

### Practices

- Prefer vertical slices (end-to-end thin features) over “all backend first” when possible

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## Stage 3: Map Dependencies

**Goal:** External teams, vendors, legal, security, infra—on critical path.

### Practices

- Include lead time for reviews and procurement

**Exit condition:** Dependency table: item, owner, need-by date, status.

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## Stage 4: Schedule & Buffers

**Goal:** Identify critical path; buffer **risky unknowns**, not every line uniformly.

### Practices

- Milestones with demo-ready acceptance criteria

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## Stage 5: Risks & Mitigations

**Goal:** Top risks with likelihood/impact, owner, mitigation, and trigger for plan B.

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## Stage 6: Operating Rhythm

**Goal:** Steady cadence: weekly tactical sync, steering at milestones, RAID log updates, decision log to avoid re-litigation.

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## Final Review Checklist

- [ ] Charter: goals, non-goals, constraints
- [ ] Work breakdown with vertical slices where feasible
- [ ] Dependencies with owners and dates
- [ ] Schedule reflects critical path and buffers
- [ ] Risks tracked with mitigations
- [ ] Communication cadence agreed

## Tips for Effective Guidance

- Plans usually fail on hidden dependencies—make them visible.
- Fixed scope + fixed date + fixed quality: pick two explicitly.
- Agile still benefits from milestone intent for cross-company coordination.

## Handling Deviations

- Research-heavy work: timebox spikes before committing delivery dates.
- Small teams: minimum viable RAID + weekly priority still helps.