Maintaining good project records is essential to advance learning during a process improvement initiative. The appropriate documentation of the various activities that occur during an effort enables the effective communication of where the team currently is, where and how it plans to make progress and the results or outcomes that have been achieved. The documentation can also help to chronicle any barriers the team has experienced and can help to illuminate any peripheral and critical issues that must be addressed to enable improvement. The following statements characterize some of the most important reasons to maintain good project documentation and also detail some of the content good documentation may include to provide a foundation for continual improvement.

• Improvement efforts can last for as many as 6 months to 18 months or more. Consequently, the team may gain or loose membership. Good records can help new team members catch up and keep old team members up to date on what has occurred as well as any new developments. An effective top level approach to project documentation may include and not be limited to the following depending upon the characteristics of the project:

1. Project aim or purpose
2. Project Scope
3. Problem statement
4. Team member
5. Success Indicators
6. Improvement Plan to include project milestones, target dates, responsible persons and methodologies
7. Related planning documents for data collection, pilot testing and implementation rollouts
8. Data that denotes the relationships, level, significance, severity of an issue and/or its resolution.

• As a project progresses, the team may have to retrace its steps to track down problems or errors. Good records make this process easier. They may include and not be limited to documentation of the following:

1. Task Assignments and responsible person(s)
2. Methodologies (How’s)
3. Operational Notes
4. Completion Dates
5. Outcomes

• Keeping notes on decisions and problems discussed at each meeting prevents the needless rehashing of issues. Agendas, minutes, and the action and futures lists may all be maintained as a part of the teams documentation file.

1. Agendas
2. Minutes
3. Action Items
4. Parking Lot Issues
5. To Do Lists

• Clear records can help educate and win the support of people in the organization who may not have time to read or listen to lengthy reports. To enhance its effectiveness in communicating important improvement activities and their outcomes, project documentation may be assembled and maintained with many of the following characteristics in mind:

1. Organization
2. Layout
3. Readability
4. Clarity

Improvement initiatives scored in the 50% to 60% range will demonstrate effective, systematic approaches to project documentation that are responsive to the overall purposes of the criteria. These efforts will have included in the written documentation and/or contain in separate files an assemblage of documents as listed above depending upon the type, scope and complexity of the improvement initiative. Higher scores will result from increased integration and refinement as a result of improved analysis based upon experience and cycles of improvement.

Format:

Project documentation must be typed on standard 8 1/2 by 11-inch paper using a proportional space font of point size 11 or larger. While any type face may be used, the number of pages submitted must not exceed 45. All pages must be paginated including any pictures, graphs, flowcharts, data tables and appendices you wish to submit.

The preferred method to submit your project documentation is through electronic mail. You may also download the information to a floppy disk and mail it to:

Wonder Henderson

Office of Quality Management

Bergen Bldg. - Suite 1419

Newark Campus