Post Mortem Analysis: RIP Yearbook

The project I am involved in this year is that of Yearbook adviser. While the project hasn't exactly failed, it is not exactly the most well executed project I have ever done. It is my first year as Yearbook teacher, and I realize I have a lot to learn. Although the yearbook will be printed and delivered to the students on time, I have failed at many of the tasks that could have made my class run more smoothly and my product more polished. The students went over 2 out of 3 of their timelines, there wasn't a good enough representation of the student body in pictures, sales of the book are down from last year, and the students lack motivation to do a good job.

When I did the post-mortem analysis, the thing that stuck out for me the most was the fact that my stakeholders weren't as involved from the beginning and may or may not have truly understood their roles. If I had done a better job of communicating those specific details to them, maybe the deadlines would have been on time, and the finished product may have been done better. Also, the discussion of deliverables and creating a blueprint of the project made me realize that I could have improved in that area too. Had I spent more time mapping out all the specific details of each page with them instead of giving them a general topic and turning them loose on the page, I may have gotten a better product in the end.

Ultimately the project is a success because the yearbook will be completed, printed and distributed. The lack of success comes from the fact that it wasn't well planned, and the pages could have been a lot better. I should have spent time teaching my students about writing articles, interviewing students, and being creative. Instead I assumed they would be able to complete the pages with a general idea and the freedom to let their creativity flow. Boy was I wrong! What I needed to do was provide more guidance and training in order to best serve their needs. I needed to use the resources provided to me by my yearbook representative to motivate the kids to success. Their laziness and lack of creativity was a direct result of my lack of instruction.

From a PM standpoint, there are things I could have done as part of the process to improve my final product. In the video, Project Management and Instructional Design, there are tips for successful projects that I should have utilized. "Hold everyone accountable to the timelines, expect quality of product and outcomes, let the ID process guide the work, and ensure effective communication" (Stolovich, 2010). If I would have started by making sure that the students were aware of their timelines and held them accountable, then maybe they would have done a better job of meeting them. I reduced their grades based on late submissions, but maybe something more immediate would have been more effective. Also, I should have expected a high quality product and provided them with more training and tools to create high quality work. Training by me would have improved their final product. If I had used a model such as ADDIE to ensure that each step of the process was completed, then maybe my design would have given them a clearer picture of expectations. Communication is something that definitely should have been improved. Instead of telling them to get to work, I should have spent more time individually breaking down what needed to be done on each page.

If I had taken more time to learn about the process of creating a yearbook and spent time explaining that process in more detail to my students, then I'm certain that the project would have been a great success instead of the dismal performance it is now.

Stolovich, H. (2010): Project management and instructional design. Laureate Education, Inc.