Project Management Principles from the Department of Energy

The US Department of Energy has $1.2B allocated for clean energy initiatives. Our firm is working a program that captures carbon from coal fired power plants and uses it to feed an algae farm that in turn makes a refineable "oil" (lipid) that can be burned in vehicles or turbines.

Along the way, we are building a Project Management Plan. The DOE has some useful guidelines for what makes a credible project plan.

1. Mission need must be defined and approved by the appropriate management official
2. A range of alternatives to meet the mission need must be considered, developed and evaluated
3. Project objectives must be defined upfront and used to judge project success
4. Project performance risks (technical, financial, and otherwise) must be identified and mitigated in an implementation strategy
5. Projects must be managed by qualified individuals
6. Scope, schedule and budget must be established for each project and serve as the basis for project management
7. Projects must be managed and reported against the established scope, schedule and budget

Any project, no matter the domain or context, would be well served when using these principles as a starting point.