Page 103 - Budgeting for Managers

Budgeting for Managers
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Task A single piece of work done by one person or a small
group of people resulting in a deliverable.Also called an
action or a step.
Deliverable A work result that can be used as input for a later task.
It is independent of the person who created it during the first task.
For example, if we have milk delivered, we don’t have to call the cow
before we drink it.
Phase A collection of related tasks that, together, achieve a milestone.
Milestone A large set of related, complete deliverables that demon-
strate our progress on a project. Every phase ends with a milestone
that is approved before the next phase. Large phases may have internal
milestones as well.
Complete the List
The best way to do this is to work with someone else. The per-
son who’s doing the work will picture what he or she is doing,
thinking it through in detail. The other person prompts him or
her with questions and writes down the results, so that the work-
er’s concentration isn’t interrupted as he or she builds the plan.
When the worker is picturing the work to be done, ask these
two questions and write down the answers.
`1. Could you do that step right now? If you get anything
other than a firm “Yes!” ask, “What would you have to do
first?” Write down those steps above the step she or he
started with.
2. If the worker says she or he could do a step right now,
ask, “What would you do?” Make an indent and write
down those detailed steps underneath the main step.

Now, repeat the whole process. Have the person picture
every step listed and for each step repeat the two questions.
You might want to ask a more experienced person for help
checking or completing the list. This is usually easy. When you
present a written plan, you show that you’re trying to do a good
job. Most experienced people will be happy to help you do bet-
ter. Experts avoid giving help to people sometimes, but usually
because people are basically saying, “Plan my work for me.” To