Are planners efficiency experts?

[pmkb]

What does it take to make a great planner?

[harrywaldron]

Patience, as a rose doesn't bloom overnight ... Seriously, as we're compelled too often to rush into the execution phase -- foregoing the due diligence required to properly research alternatives, optimized solutions, risk assessments, user requirements, etc.

[Bernard]

A great planner must be able to:

• visualize the proposed execution of project scope
• think critically about the proposed execution of project scope
• assess risks
• communicate effectively with those responsible for the project execution
• organize and coordinate lots of details

[snetzky]

Curiousity, Confidence, Creativity, Logic, and Humility.

Everything else can be learned in the classroom and/or on the job.

Larry

[pmkb]

Gary France, founder of the Planning Engineers Organization, discusses what makes a good planning engineer in a free video available from astadev.com.

[jsipila]

I believe that a great planner is someone that has been in the trenches, rolled up their sleeves, and has gotten their hands dirty. I think it's invaluable to have the experience of doing the work and learning from others' mistakes (as well as your own). In order to properly project timing and levels of effort, it definitely helps to know first-hand what it takes. It also helps with calling people on their BS when estimates are inflated or understated. Experience provides that 'gut feeling' of what's reasonable and what's not.

Having said that, I do not mean to imply that anyone who has been in the trenches would make a good planner. I think it's more of a necessary condition than a sufficient one.

A great planner must also have superior communication skills. They must be a leader and be able to engender the trust of those that will do the work. In the end, the plan will only be as good as the estimates provided by(perhaps) and agreed to by the workers. You might produce what might otherwise be the best plan in the world, but if you don't have buy-in from the people doing the work, it can all fall apart.

Additionally, the planner must communicate relentlessly with the customer to ensure that the deliverable(s) meets expectations. You can have a plan that is executed flawlessly, only to produce something different than what the customer expected. Does the flawless execution (on time and budget) mean that it was a great plan? Certainly not if it produces the wrong results. Right?

Finally, a great planner must be able to see the big picture and not get lost in details. Tradeoffs have to be made in real time, and it is very easy to get distracted by tactical issues. The overal plan (strategy) must be foremost in their minds at all times. Planning is not something that is done in series. The delivery of a workable plan is not the end of the planners job, but rather the beginning of a highly interactive process.

There are obviously other very important characteristics, but these are some that immediately popped in my head when pondering the question - some of the most critical in my opinion...

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