• You don't want to run the risk of looking less than fully capable, especially with your Prime Mover.
• You don't know all the questions to ask of the Prime.
• Your Prime doesn't have time (or doesn't appear to have time).
• Your Prime commissioned the project in order to make something (usually a problem) "go away", so s/he isn't really interested in dwelling on the problem's particulars.
• You assume that your Prime isn't a very good source of information .
• Your life isn't exciting enough, so you decided to inject a large element of risk (sometimes referred to as the "Unresolved Career Death Wish").

Why You Should

You help the Prime Mover develop a detailed description of what s/he wants, needs, won't tolerate and could live without so s/he isn't surprised by a project result that doesn't jibe with his/her vision of the project outcome.

You are able to gauge the project's priority in terms of the money and resources that the Prime Movers think the project should require and the amount of both that they are willing to spend in a 'worst case' scenario.

You know where the real DEADline (as in you wish you were dead) lives on the Prime's calendar and where the "I'm beginning to get nervous" deadline hangs out.

You know what needed and available resources the Prime has direct control over and what either you or s/he must go out after in order to make the project possible.

You have a good idea of the connection, if any, between the project and (a) the company's overall strategy, (b) the annual departmental goals and (c) the Prime's performance (read bonus-impacting) goals. Of course, these connections have some bearing on your goals as well. These connections give you a good idea of the consequences that will be forthcoming if you bring the project in on time and budget and if you don't.

You know who will be using the result of your project and who will be benefiting from that use (many times these are two different people and/or groups) which allows you to gather information about what the users will expect and what their management will inspect.

And you know whether the participants you'll be seeking out are likely to stand in line to be part of your project, hide under their desks when they see you or confidently beg off because they know, due to any one of several factors (eg, your Prime's reputation, the history of the project idea, the departments that are competing for available resources, etc.) that your project is a non-starter .

Some Tips On How To

During the first project meeting with the Prime Mover, be sure to (a) write down any key project specifications/expectations (some project managers have the tendency to just sit there nodding their heads in agreement) and (b) get a firm 30 to 45 minute follow up meeting commitment so you can do some serious fact finding.

Work on a list of topics that will be important to the project and for which the Prime will have some information or expectations. Some general Prime Mover fact finding topics include:

• Budget (How much & when it will be available, Accounting expectations, etc.)
• Timeline (Deadline and Really Dead Deadline)
• Project Objective (What outcome are you expecting?)
• What's Fueling This Project? (Any politics you should be aware of)
• How Much Latitude Do I have In Targeting The Project Outcome & Developing The Project Plan?
• How Big or Small Should This Project Be? (As in "Should you be promoting the project to the organization or is this a 'stealth' project that can easily attract detractors?")
• What Are The Foreseeable Project Problems? (S/he may not know, but it's certainly worth asking about.)
• What Is The Project Priority? (As in "What current projects or tasks is this project more important than?")
• What Update & Documentation Expectations Do You Have? (If any)
• Available Resources (Who and what will you help me acquire so that I can lead this projects?)

Use your expanded Prime Mover project topic list during the scheduled fact finding meeting, going through each item and noting his/her answers.

Depending on the Prime and your relationship with him/her, you may consider sending an advance copy of your list so s/he can prepare and/or sending a post meeting summary that details your understanding of his/her answers. The former can save time and improve the Prime's answers and the latter can serve as your first documentation element as well as a way to clear up any misunderstanding before it becomes disastrous.

Build on your Prime Mover topic list with each new project. In no time, you'll have a VERY comprehensive fact finding tool that will save considerable time and trouble.