⚙️ Ops Playbook #59

Today, we’re walking you through curated tools & tactics from the project management world. 

Yes, that does mean a lot of acronyms, but we promise to keep things practical, actionable, and as jargon-free as possible 🤠

Here’s what we’ve got going on:

• Value Stream Mapping 101 → A smoother business in three steps

• Keep Track of Who Owns What → Save yourself a headache with RACI charts

• Intro to Risk Registers → Mitigate risk without keeping yourself up all night

Ready? Let’s dive in 👇

P.S. No one wants to build solo. Let’s connect

Operator’s Library

• Redditors weigh-in on how to successfully manage upwards as a PM (r/projectmanagement)

• Check out this killer guide to using Microsoft Project to organize your work (Alvin the PM)

• Tap in to Notion’s enormous database of Kanban templates (Notion)

• A free (and highly-rated) course for project management fundamentals (Coursera)

• A comprehensive video tutorial on building a project plan (Adriana Girdler)

I. Value Stream Mapping 101

Insight from Scaled Agile

Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is one of those exercises that sounds handwavey and obvious but is tremendously useful in practice.

If you try this out, you’ll see results.

Let’s start with the basics: a value stream is the sequence of steps your organization takes to deliver value to a customer. 

It's your process from start-to-finish – everything from the initial idea to the moment the customer benefits from your product or service.

As the name of the exercise suggests, we’re going to map out our value streams and relentlessly optimize them 😈

We’ve simplified it (as much as we can) into three steps:

1. Map and Measure Your Current State

Schedule a 3-hour workshop with your team and draw out your entire value stream, from idea generation to customer support. For each step, measure two key metrics:

• Process Time: How long the work is actively being done

• Lead Time: The total time, including waiting periods

Calculate averages for each step and identify the largest gaps between process time and lead time – these are your bottlenecks.

2. Eliminate Waste and Implement Pull Systems

Waste is any activity that doesn't add value to the customer. Common types include waiting times, unnecessary handoffs, overproduction, and defects requiring rework. 

For your top three bottlenecks, conduct a quick "5 Whys" analysis to find root causes. Brainstorm solutions with your team. 

Set up a simple Kanban board (physical or digital) for your value stream. Establish Work-in-Progress (WIP) limits for each stage to prevent overloading and align work with actual customer needs.

By visualizing your workflow and limiting WIP, you create a system where new work is "pulled" in only when capacity allows, naturally pacing production to demand.

3. Continuously Improve and Iterate

VSM isn't a one-time exercise. Regularly review your progress, celebrate wins, and adjust your approach based on what you learn.

Schedule monthly review meetings to analyze your metrics and discuss improvements. In each meeting, identify one change to implement before the next review. Track the results and iterate.

The goal of VSM is to increase the speed and quality of your entire business.

To make the process more approachable, start small. Focus on one value stream at a time, and let the data guide your decisions. 

With consistent effort, you'll see smoother workflows, faster delivery times, and happier customers.

II. Keep Track of Who Owns What

Insight from ManagementConsulted

Chasing down project stakeholders is always fun, isn’t it? 🥲

After that fourteenth unanswered Slack message, I think we all start wishing we had a better way to keep track of why progress is stalled and who owns next steps.

Enter the RACI chart.

RACI stands for Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed. It's a simple matrix that maps out who owns what in your project 👇

Instead of the usual free-for-all, you've got a clear (documented!) map of who is:

• Responsible: This person actually does the work. They're the one rolling up their sleeves and getting things done.
  

• Accountable: This is the decision-maker. They're ultimately answerable for the completion and quality of the task.
  

• Consulted: These folks provide input before decisions are made. They're the subject matter experts you check with.
  

• Informed: These are the people who need to be kept in the loop. They don't directly contribute to the task but need to know what's happening.

The result? 

Everyone knows their role (and who to ping when progress is stalled) from the start.

For your next big project/initiative, define the role of your stakeholders using the RACI framework.

Here’s a template from Miro that will help you get started 😉

III. Intro to Risk Registers

Insight from Asana

Whenever I start a new initiative, I think of all the things that could go wrong.

(Probably something to unpack with a therapist 😬)

But I’ve found a productive way to deal with this! 

Instead of letting those potential disasters live only in my head, I document them in a risk register.

A risk register is a document that catalogues potential risks, their likelihood, impact, and - most importantly - how you plan to tackle them.

What’s useful about this specific form of documentation is that we’re not just listing risks, we’re prioritizing them.

A minor hiccup in the supply chain doesn't deserve the same attention as a major budget cut. Rank your risks based on their potential impact and likelihood. This way, you're always focusing your energy where it matters most.

As a manager, your biggest point of leverage is to assign each risk an owner. It’s not about passing the buck - it's about empowering your team to take proactive steps. 

When John from IT owns the risk of a server crash, he's more likely to implement that backup system he's been talking about.

We found a bunch of great templates for building your own risk register over at Smartsheet. 

Next time you catch yourself worrying about all the ways your project could go wrong:

1. Document it

2. Prioritize it

3. Assign it

After it’s built, review your risk register regularly with your team. As the project evolves, the risks will evolve. 

So should your plans!

Are you there? 👋

I know you’re there. Don’t be a stranger. I’d love to chat with you. Feel free to respond directly to this email with any questions, comments or funny stories you have.

Later,

Rameel from The Bottleneck

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