How to guide
Introduction
A programme decisions log is a key document in project management that captures and tracks all significant decisions made during the execution of a programme. This log ensures transparency, accountability, and provides a clear record for future reference.
Purpose
The primary purpose of a programme decisions log is to systematically document all major decisions taken throughout the lifecycle of a programme. This helps in maintaining a historical record, understanding the rationale behind decisions, and ensuring that all team members and stakeholders are informed.
Key Components
- Decision ID: A unique identifier for each decision item to ensure easy tracking and reference.
- Created: timestamp of when the action was first created.
- Category: Action category to allow filtering on action types or meetings
- Decision Description: A detailed explanation of the action, providing enough context to understand its importance and relevance.
- Update: An update on the progress of the dependency actions or additional notes or comments related to the action item, such as updates on progress, challenges encountered, or any other relevant information.
- Approval Body: Name of the approval body for the decision.
- Approved: Yes / No flag.
- Owner: The individual or team responsible for carrying out the action. This ensures clear ownership and accountability.
- Due Date: The deadline by which the action must be completed. This helps in prioritising tasks and managing timelines effectively. Due dates should be contracted with the owner and should not be changed.
- Priority: Identification of actions that are high priority or need to be escalated through other governance forums.
- Days: The days until the target date for the action closure.
- Closed: A timestamp when the action is closed
Benefits
- Transparency: Provides a clear and documented record of all significant decisions, which can be reviewed by stakeholders and team members.
- Accountability: Clearly assigns responsibility for decisions, ensuring that decision-makers are accountable for their choices.
- Improved Communication: Ensures that all team members and stakeholders are informed about major decisions and their implications.
- Historical Reference: Serves as a historical record that can be referred to in future projects or programmes to understand past decisions and their outcomes.
- Enhanced Decision-Making: By documenting the decision-making process and the rationale behind each decision, future decision-making processes can be improved and made more effective.
A well-maintained programme decisions log is essential for effective programme management, helping to ensure that decisions are made transparently, documented thoroughly, and implemented efficiently.
Projectoolkit | Decisions Log
Projectoolkit | How to Guides
