Project Assessment Matrix

One of the first outcomes of the Project Assessment Workshop is to assess the project's scale in light of earlier discussions, using the Project Assessment Matrix, so as to establish the right level of control. The Project Sponsor must be involved, and other known stakeholders or team members should be consulted.

 

Determining project types in this way is not a scientific process; common sense should prevail to provide the most appropriate level of project management. If the P.A.M. 'rating' feels wrong – discuss why. For some service areas, a budget of £500k is small and insignificant or a timescale of 2 years may be quite common. For construction projects this is particularly true. In these cases use your own knowledge and experience to help you judge the right level of project control.  It is the Project Sponsors' decision after all. The P.A.M. process is there to help you understand the project better.

 

There are many different types of project; from small, low-cost, low-risk projects, through to large scale, major investment, high risk projects.

 

Every project will go through the same basic lifecycle and project management processes, but different sizes of project require different amounts of management control and project documentation. Large, complex projects obviously need greater management effort to ensure they are properly planned, tracked and controlled, whereas smaller projects will need less. These variations affect the way project management processes should be applied. Typically there are three basic types of project:

 

 

 

The Project Assessment Matrix (P.A.M) helps Project Sponsors and managers choose appropriate levels of controls based on the characteristics of their project in terms of:

 

 

 

When you have decided on the most appropriate project type, you should consult the Project Manager's Checklist to help you identify what you need to do to control the remainder of the project. The next section introduces the Project Manager's Checklists.