In our expanding electronic world, librarians are increasingly asked to plan and manage digital projects. The challenge is articulating the scope of the project and providing a clear and succinct justification. This session outlines 5 key questions every manager must answer to define and justify any digital project: • Why you are undertaking the project? • What you want the project to achieve? • For whom you are undertaking the project? • When you will achieve it? • How you will achieve it?

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Source
Part of Digital Project Planning and
Management Basics
Original design: Mary S. Woodley, CSU
Northridge
Revised: Danielle Plummer, TSLAC; Bill
Walker, Amigos Library Services
Partially funded by: IMLS Laura Bush
21st Century Librarians Grant
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What is a project?
A limited endeavor
having specific start and completion dates
undertaken to meet particular goals and
objectives
usually to bring about beneficial change or
added value
 "Project Management." Wikipedia. Available from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_management. Internet;
accessed 7 July 2009.

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People and Projects
Project managers may or may not have
authority over people doing project
Responsibility but no authority
Key project management skills:
Negotiation
Listening and facilitation
Time management
Leadership
Discussion
Why Do Digital Projects?
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Why Plan Digital Projects?
To improve access to resources
To add value to resources
To preserve fragile original materials
To support educational and research
activities
To fulfill the strategic mission and
goals of institution

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Defining Digital Projects
Why you are undertaking the project?
What you want the project to achieve?
For whom you are undertaking the
project?
When you will achieve it?
How you will achieve it?
Institute of Museum and Library Services.
"NLG Project Planning: A Tutorial." Available from
http://www.imls.gov/project_planning/index1.asp.
Internet; accessed 7 July 2009.
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Defining Projects: Why?
Why do we want to do this?
What are our priorities?
Who decides the priorities?
What do we want to achieve?
How will we know when we’ve succeeded?
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Defining Projects: What?
What are we trying to accomplish?
How does this relate to our organizational
mission?
What strategic goals will this project support?
What have we already accomplished?
What activities of the organization can be
redirected towards the digital project?
Survey digital collections and resources

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Selection for Digitization
What is the value of the item in terms of the
goals of the project?
What is the physical nature and condition
of the original?
Is the material out of copyright? Does the
institution have a deed of gift that allows
dissemination?
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Defining Projects: Audience
Who is your target audience?
Primary audience
Secondary audience
How are their needs being met?
Where are the gaps in service?
What skill, knowledge, or behavior can be
improved?
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Defining Projects: Constraints
Scope
What is the total amount of work required to
complete the project?
Time
What is the timeline?
When will the project start? When will it end?
Cost
What resources are available?
To develop the project
To sustain the products

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Steps in the Planning Process
Identify the key players
Conduct an “environmental scan”
Know your users
Needs and Gap Analysis
Create a planning team who will be
responsible for research, planning and
managing the project
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Stakeholders
Any individual, group, or organization
that influences your project or is
affected by it
External: Partners, boards, funders,
consultants, target audiences or users
Internal: Management, team members,
other staff
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Stakeholder Roles
Project Director
Task Performers
Project Sponsor
Subject Matter Experts
User Representatives

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Steering Committee
Group composed of key decision
makers
In a partnership project, often
involves one representative from each
of the partners
Collaborative decision-making
Agreements define responsibilities
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Advisory Board
Group composed of influential
outsiders
Provides key skills or knowledge that the
project team may not have
Lend reputation to project
Increases trust in project outcomes
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Communication Strategy
Stakeholders want to know what is
happening in your project
Communication tools:
Meetings
Presentations
Email lists
Blogs

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The Environmental Scan
Steps in the Environmental Scan
Gather information
Look both inside and outside the
organization
Scan for both content and context
Use both formal and informal information
Analyze and interpret this information
Apply this analyzed information in
decision making
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Organizational SWOT
Strengths
of the organization
helpful to achieving the goal
Weaknesses
of the organization
harmful to achieving the
goal
Threats
in the environment
harmful to achieving the
goal
Opportunities
in the environment
helpful to achieving the goal
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Sample SWOT
Strengths
 Qualified professional staff
 Existing set of print finding
aids
Weaknesses
 IT department controls
website
 No budget for software to
create XML
Opportunities
 Training course in XML
offered in region
 Funding available from
collection donor
Threats
 New version of standard
due to be released

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Formal Information Sources
US Census statistics
Institutional statistics
Size and scope
Visitation statistics
Customer service statistics
Website analytics and usage logs
Published studies
Surveys and focus groups
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Informal Information Sources
Anecdotes and observations
Email lists and discussions
Popular culture
Television
Movies
Books
Magazines
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Targeting the Audience
Characteristics of the target audience:
Population size
Language skills
Disabilities
Education level
Geographic area
Summarize the similarities and differences
between the target audience and the
broader population your organization
serves

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Outcomes and Outputs
Outcome:
Changes or gains in knowledge, skills,
attitudes, behaviors, status, or life
condition that you would like the target
audience to achieve
Output:
A measure of the amount, quality, or
volume of use of the service or product
that you want the project to achieve
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Identifying Outcomes
Type of Outcome Definition Example
Knowledge What someone
knows
Students will increase their knowledge and
understanding of Texas history
Skill What someone
can do
Students and teachers will be able to search a
database of digitized objects
Attitude What someone
feels or thinks
about something
Students will demonstrate increased interest in
history
Behavior How someone
acts
High school social studies teachers will find,
analyze, and use digitized primary source
materials in their lesson plans
Status Someone's social
or professional
condition
The number of high school graduates in the
community will increase
Life Condition Someone's
physical condition
The rate of teen pregnancy will decrease among
students who have studied history
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Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Self-
Actualization
Ego (Esteem)
Social (Belonging)
Safety and Security
Physiological
Opportunities for innovation
and creativity
Recognition from others;
prestige and status
Acceptance as part of a
group or team
Physical safety and economic
security
Physical survival needs: food,
water, air, shelter

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Needs and Wants
Needs
Gap between the desired results, on the one
hand, and the current condition of the audience,
product or service, on the other
Wants
Wishes or desires of the target audience(s) that
should be taken into consideration in
determining the most appropriate solution or
solutions to meet an identified need
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Needs and Wants
Need Want
 To develop a more
accurate budget
 To hire a budget
analyst
 To reach an
underserved audience
 To use social media to
promote services
 To improve quality
control for metadata
 To develop a
metadata creation
tool
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Gap Analysis
Needed Services
– Available Services
= GAP
For a given audience:

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Gap Analysis
Time
Services
Needed Services
GAP
Available Services
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Gap Analysis Example
Need:
• 450 7th grade students need access to
primary sources for Arkansas history
Services:
• Museum provides traveling trunk to 2
schools (150 students)
• 3 classes visit museum and library
(120 students)
Gap:
• 450 – 270 = 180 students need service
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Closing the Gap
Benefits provided by solution
Short & Long-term
Cost of implementing solution
Personnel
Equipment and Supplies
Risks
Of implementing proposed solution
Of doing nothing

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Cost-Benefit Analysis
Cost of proposed solution
÷
Benefits of proposed solution
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Cost-benefit example 1
Solution:
Digitize 1,000 items
Cost:
Equipment: $500 (one-time cost)
Personnel: $1,500 (one-time cost)
$200 (annual cost)
Benefit:
Immediate: 250 students access sources
Long-term: 400 students/year access sources
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Cost-benefit example 1
Solution:
Digitize 1,000 items
Cost/benefit of solution:
Immediate: $8 per student
Long-term: $0.50 per student
(cost of maintaining service)

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Cost-benefit example 2
Solution:
Provide 2 more traveling trunks
Cost:
Equipment: $1,000 (one-time cost)
Personnel: $1,500 (annual cost)
Benefit:
Immediate: 300 students access sources
Long-term: 300 students/year access sources
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Cost-benefit example 2
Solution:
Provide 2 more traveling trunks
Cost/benefit of solution:
Immediate: $5 per student
Long-term: $3 per student
(cost of maintaining service)
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Cost-benefit comparison
Solution:
Digitization
Cost/benefit:
Immediate: $8.00
per student
Long-term: $0.50
per student
Solution:
Traveling trunks
Cost/benefit:
Immediate: $5.00
per student
Long-term: $3.00
per student

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Risk-Benefit Analysis
Proposed solution:
Digitize 1,000 items and put them online
Risks Benefits
High initial cost Low cost (ongoing)
Obsolete formats Items can be reused in
other projects
Copyright concerns Potential revenue from
licensing images
Unproven educational
value
Support from management
and teachers
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Checking the Plan
Will the project achieve the desired
result for your target audience(s)?
Are the project goals achievable,
given the opportunities and
constraints your organization may
face in the near future?
Do the key stakeholders support the
decisions that have been made?