Learning from a Project - "Post Mortem"

EDUC6145 - Week 2

Planning A 50th Year Anniversary Celebration

Planning a celebration for my parents' 50th wedding anniversary was a pleasure and a project. At first, the to-do list seemed immense, but I found it easy with a plan!

The first step was to discover my parents’ vision for the party.  As the primary stakeholders, what they wanted to experience at the event was crucial information for the plan. It was a needs assessment conversation about what ambiance, color scheme, music, and menu selections they wanted to experience. I also sought to discover if there was a location preference, any non-negotiables, and a budget.  

Once I understood the vision, I created a list of deliverables, including booking a location, selecting the menu, ordering decorations & invitations, hiring a decorator, selecting the music, and hiring a DJ. Their anniversary was October 21, which was a Saturday that year. I started the plan in August. My budget was $10,000*.

Phase 1 and 2 – Completing the needs assessment, the list of invitees, assigning a budget, and creating the plan on paper was a success. My parents signed off on the Anniversary Party project charter.

Phase 3 – Specifying the deliverables consisted of booking the venue based on space and menu choices and developing a Pinterest page for décor and favor selections. This phase focused on finding a DJ who specialized in “old school” music and reviewing invitation designs on Canva.  Once these deliverables were narrowed down, my parents selected their choices. One situation that stands out is when my dad insisted on having the chocolate gold-covered coins as a party favor. I argued against it because they were hard to source and expensive.  I offered several alternatives, and he was willing to accept some, but he seemed disappointed that I decided to do what I could to find them.  I eventually did find them locally at a reasonable price.  My dad was very pleased, so I asked him what was special about the chocolate.  He explained he taped the engagement ring to a gold chocolate coin when he proposed to my mom. This deliverable was significant to my primary stakeholder because of its symbolic meaning.  I liken this to how a project manager's awareness of cultural and symbolic artifacts when executing a project is vital to successful stakeholder management.

Phase 4 – Creating the deliverables. For this phase, I hired a decorator for the party. She became my subject matter expert (SME) as she provided me with additional questions for the venue manager that I would not have thought to ask. For example:

• Does the venue allow confetti?
• What size and shape are the tables?
• What color are the linens?
• How early can we set up the decorations?

In addition to that, she arranged contact with other vendors who had the specific decorations needed.   The DJ was my SME of music. He inquired about a list of songs, our need for microphones, and if there were any live performances.  I had hired a singer but only thought of mentioning that when the DJ asked.  I then connected the DJ and the performer to ensure each had what they needed.  Frequent communication with the SMEs is crucial when designing deliverables projects. It is their insight that can increase the success of the project.

The party decorations, favors, and invitations were ordered, and the venue was secured.  Each of these deliverables was time-sensitive and needed to be in place to meet deadlines.  The ordering had to allow shipping time ranging from three days to two weeks until received*. The venue expected payment by specific dates, and the invitations needed to be given out at least three weeks before the party. A schedule was put into place for each deliverable to be sure that it or they would be in place in time for the party. 

A week before the event, I decided I would surprise my parents and hire a Steelpan musician. This caused additional pressure as it was a late deliverable that had to be sourced but was within budget.  When I finally made my decision on who to hire, it was three days before the party. This decision was an example of scope creep as it was an impulsive decision that did not affect the budget, but it did affect the time schedule. 

Phase 5 – Implementation. The day of the party arrived. The prepared decorations and favors were set up, and the place looked beautiful. Each vendor arrived and set up on time except my last-minute addition – the Steelpan player.  He arrived later than I expected. Then, he informed me that he needed an electric outlet, and the area I had set him up in did not have any. This involved the venue manager, who provided extension cords to an outlet, which unfortunately took some time. So, my hope of having the musician playing when my parents arrived failed. However, they were still delighted by the surprise and enjoyed everything about the party.

*In Bermuda, the cost of living is high, and everything is imported.