Pay attention to the project environment

All projects are developed in an environment that can have a positive or negative influence or a combination of them. There are two types of forces that influence projects: external forces (Enterprise Environmental Factor - EEFs) and internal forces (Organizational Process Assets - OPAs).

Enterprise Environmental Factor - EEFs

EEFs originate from the environment outside the project and represent conditions that are out of the control of the project team. They can be internal or external to the organization, including but not limited to:

Internal to the organization

• Organization structure and governance

• Corporate culture

• Resource availability

• Employee capability

• Geographic distribution of infrastructure, facilities and resources

External to the organization

• Market conditions

• Legal restrictions and policies

• Government regulations

• Industry standards

• Commercial databases.

• Financial conditions: currency exchange rate, inflation, etc.

• Social, cultural, and environmental conditions/issues.

Organizational Process Assets - OPAs

OPAs are always internal to the organization and can originate from a portfolio, a program, another project, or from the organization as a whole. In this case, the project team is able to update the OPAs, especially the lessons learned and performance indicators, as part of the project work. To update processes, policies, and procedures the internal corporate policy must be followed.

OPAs are grouped into two categories:

Processes, policies, and procedures

• Templates

• Preapproved list of suppliers

• Corporate guidelines, methods, and procedures

• Organizational standards and policies

• Financial procedures

Organizational Knowledge bases

• Project files

• Historical information

• Lessons learned

• Other knowledge and data repositories

Are you considering the project environment throughout its life cycle? If you have any other important aspect to highlight, please share it in the comment section below.

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