It seems like everybody is so busy running around trying to execute projects that fewer among us take the time to get projects started correctly — a mistake that will lead to expensive problems down the road. Have you ever asked yourself, “Why do we have time to do things twice but not right the first time?”
Well, the project kickoff meeting is how you “do things right the first time” and I submit that the need for project kickoff coordination is far greater than it ever has been. When CAD tools were stable and the work environment didn’t change much, project kickoff was just a matter of sharing project standards. No longer. Now we have to think about much, much more, including:
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Remote office IT coordination,
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Travelling workers with mobile devices,
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Cloud-based IT issues,
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File format issues, and more.
Simply put: there are a lot more variables involved with executing a CAD project than there were just a few years ago, so starting out organized is more crucial than ever. Or, put another way, the price we’ll pay for being disorganized on a given project is now much higher than it was just a few years ago.
Project Kickoff Defined
Whether the project kickoff meeting is conducted by an architectural or engineering project manager (with you attending as the CAD representative) or whether you run your own kickoff meeting, the goal is still the same — to understand how the project will work from a CAD point of view. Whenever I attend or lead a kickoff meeting, I always ask the following questions and strive to have them answered by the end of the meeting:
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What will the CAD deliverables be?
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What are the approved project tools?
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What is the timeline?
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Who’s on the team?
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Who’s in charge?
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How does CAD management fit into the above?
My reasoning for insisting on a kickoff meeting is not just to get the above parameters defined, but also to get everybody thinking about the project before work starts. My logic always has been that it's better to start a project in an organized manner and move forward than it is to start with anarchy and try to organize it later.
Find out what should be covered at your kickoff meeting, who should attend, and, even better, what leverage you will have once this meeting occurs! Read More >>
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