Milestone meetings should be scheduled regularly (see 'Setting milestones' and 'First stage ') and ought to include people from outside the project. Milestone meetings are ideal for checking the achievement of intermediate objectives, the budget (see 'Controlling') and for discussing the progress of the project including unforeseen events and problems and their possible consequences. This is also the time to discuss professional questions as well as necessary changes, inter-personal relationships, conflicts, rivalries and other personal topics.
The rich potential provided by milestone meetings is seldom fully exploited and it is for this reason that they are often neglected or conducted in the most perfunctory way.
- In your opinion milestone meetings are too time consuming.
- You find it difficult to talk about tensions and conflicts in the team.
- Milestone meetings will help to keep your planning flexible and to direct the ongoing project continuously and actively.
- Periodic reflection on activities generates creativity and innovation.
- Checking the effectiveness of your measures regularly will permit you to react promptly to unexpected circumstances and to make appropriate corrections.
- Talking about potential conflict in the project team can prevent disagreements from occurring and makes finding solutions easier.
- At each milestone meeting review the previous stage and conduct the meeting according to the suggestions in the tool 'Milestone meeting'.
- At each milestone meeting plan for the next stage (state intermediate objectives).
- Discuss events and processes in the project and changing circumstances in the project environment.
- If needed adjust your timetable by agreeing on new priorities.
- Talk about the atmosphere at work and within the team.
- Implicate external experts if needed.
- Write a short milestone report.
- Are milestone meetings prepared with the necessary care and conducted at regular intervals?
- Are milestone meetings utilized as a tool for project management?
- During the milestone meetings, is enough time given to the discussion of processes within the team?
Project management
Criterion
Topics
Tools
