SILICON VALLEY SIERRA LEONE

BUSINESS TOOLS

What is a Project?

What is a Run-Away Project?

DEFINITION:

A ''PROJECT'' is an activity that is (1) carefully planned and designed to (2) achieve a specific aim or goal.

TYPES OF PROJECTS:

The are 2 types of projects: Individual and Collaborative.

1. An Individual project is where 1 entity (1 person, 1 company, 1 nation, etc.) is implementing the project using the resources available to the individual entity.

2. A collaborative project involves 2 or more entities (persons, companies, nations, etc.) working together to accomplish the the goal of the project.

RUN-AWAY PROJECTS

A run-away project is a project that loses track of its original goal and either (1) dies, is terminated, or (2) ends up becoming a different project that is far from its original goal.

TYPES OF RUN-AWAY PROJECTS

There are 3 types of run-away projects:

1. ''OVER BUDGET'' RUN-AWAY PROJECT

An ''Over Budget Run-Away Project'' is a project where the timeline (current activities and results) do not match the financial projections of the project, meaning that the team has spent more money than planned. Projects can also be ''UNDER BUDGET.'' Whether UNDER or OVER budget, the project is a run-away whenever the team loses control of the project.

2. ''HIJACKED'' RUN-AWAY PROJECT

A ''Hijacked Run-Away Project'' is a project in which the people responsible for implementing the project -- ''the team'' is not cohesive, not knowledgeable, and/or not confident in the project, which eventually causes the project to be hijacked (taken over) by an individual or group of people. The new team, to prove their control and/or worth, will always change the project from its original goal or aim.

3. ''LOCATION CHANGE'' RUN-AWAY PROJECT

A ''Location Change Run-Away Project'' is a project that naturally should take place at a specific location (example: in a city where the team resides), but due to several problems (financial, expertise, legal, etc.) is instead moved to an out-of-area location. For example, a movie project that was to be filmed in Los Angeles, California is moved to Manhattan, New York because of tax breaks provided by the State of New York for the production company. Hence, the project ran away from California to New York.

HOW TO AVOID A RUN-AWAY PROJECT

1. Create a PBP -- Project Business Plan that identifies all aspects of the project (the 7 business plan elements) before you start the project. Only start after your PBP is perfect in writing (on paper or in a digital file).

2. Remain 100% true to your PBP -- Project Business Plan. If a change in goal, team, or location is necessary, then update your PBP accordingly and follow the updated plan 100%.

3. Close out (END / EXIT) a project when it has reached it originally planned goal / end. If you wish to extend a project beyond its originally planned goal, you can (1) make the appropriate updates as explaned in Step #2 of How to Avoid a Run-Away Project, or (2) you can end the project (close / exit) and then start a whole new project for the new modified goal.

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