Stage-Gate Approach for Managing Projects based on Must-

Win Battles

Learn how to gradually allocate your budget in projects, making

your business easy to lead in five minutes

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Stage-Gate Highlights

Challenge- Multiple project

Management- Uncertain environments

Benefits- Prioritize Resource usage

- Control projects development

Tool- A Framework for advanced

PMO- Each development stage

has a decision gate

How to

- 5 simple steps

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Project managed companies face more and more control issues

• Is it hard to keep track of how many projects your organization is executing?

• How do you control the strategic alignment of each project with strategy?

• Which projects have a better fit with your strategy – Must-Win Battles?

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Are your risks controlled or uncontrolled?

The project’s level of uncertainty has to fit with its level of resources

Kick-Off Wrap-up

Project’s Uncertainty

Commited Resources

Controlled Risk

TimeKick-Off Wrap-up

Project’s Uncertainty

Commited Resources

Uncontrolled Risk

Time

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The Stage-Gate model enables detailed project portfolios control...

• Gradual budget allocation

• Priorization of resources

• Project Risk Management

... because bad projects are hard to Eliminate!

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P3

P8

P4

For an advanced PMO the Stage-Gate model is simple and agile

After each stage the project find a gate where a decision about its future has to be taken...

P2

Gate 1

Gate 2

Gate 3

P1

P5

P6 P

9P7

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3

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... These decisions can be one of the four

What other decisions would you like to take?

GO!• The project has achieved all the

objectives of previous stage• Projects Stakeholders have not

suffered major changes

Recycle...• More development is required in

current stage• Project is still a promise and still

has priority within portfolio

Hold?• Stakeholder needs have changed

• Project don’t seem atractive anymore in current scenario

• It might be interesting in the future

Terminate.• Project is permanently stopped as

it has not developed as expected• Changes in environment or stake-

holder needs turn project unfit

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A Typical Stage-Gate concept applied to a Development

IDEAS MARKET

Technology Development

Product Development

Idea Concept Application Stages

Gates

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What is must-win battles? (business strategy)

• Rather than spreading resources too thin, companies must focus on 3 to 5 key challenges — Must-Win Battles (MWBs)

• MWBs are crucial to achieving their business goals. • A well-chosen MWB

• make a real difference, • Be market focused, • create excitement, • be specific and tangible, • and be winnable.

Source http://www.mustwinbattles.com9© Cone Advisor

Only 5 Steps enable better controlling of your projects

1. Define your Must-Win Battles

2. Set Stages/Gates and parametrize gate decisions

3. Input the projects related to Strategic Elements in Cone Made

4. Classify them according to their Stage-Gates

5. Control the deadlines and developments in an easy to lead way!

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Tool

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Modeling - From Mantra to Key Activities

Step 1: Make a mantra

Step 2:Define 3-5 Must-

Win Battles

Step 3:Define 1-

3 Key Means of the Battle

Step 4:Define 0-3

Key Activities of the Mean

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2

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Set Stages/Gates and Parametrize Gate Decisions

• Configure Cone Made with the outputs that each gate might have (Go, Hold, Recycle, Kill, and any other your organization might need)

• On the ”Stage-Gate Model” line, choose the ”Edit” button and then configure Cone Made with the Stages/Gates you opted on having. Default is de facto Standard 1-5

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Input the projects related to Must-Win Battles in Cone Made

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Flag the Projects view

Click on the Business Element

Create: Project. Insert project details

Classify projects according to their Stage-Gates

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Select the ”Schedule” Tab Classify

project according to current stage

Remember what was the last gate decision and insert it in ”Status” field

Control the deadlines and developments in an easy to lead way

On the normal profile, chose ”Execute” tab and ”Projects” optionFilter project

view according to their stage-gate

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More information

www.coneadvisor.com (English)

www.coneadvisor.fi (Finnish)

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Learn more about Must-Win Battles

Cone Made softwareTrial 30 days

Ask for 30 days trial (in English)

Pyydä 30 pv trial tästä linkistä (in Finnish)

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Learn more about the Stage-Gate Methodology

• Cooper, 2002 “Optimizing the Stage-Gate Process: What Best-practice Companies Do – I and II ” Research-Technology Management

• Cooper, 1990: “Stage-Gate Systems: A New Tool for Managing New Products” Business Horizons

• Cooper, 2008 “The Stage-Gate Idea-to-Launch Process-Update, What's New, and NexGen Systems” Journal of Product Innovation Management

Need help making your business easy to lead? Check: www.coneadvisor.com18© Cone Advisor