Project 2019
Project Canvas (Nieto-Rodriguez)
The HBR-era project one-pager: foundation, people, and creation of a project examined before the plan exists.
What it is
Nieto-Rodriguez's canvas asks whether a project deserves to exist before asking how to run it: the foundation (purpose, investment, benefits), the people (sponsorship, stakeholders, resources), and the creation (deliverables, plan, change). It's a project appraisal tool wearing a canvas layout.
Reach for it when
- An executive sponsor wants \"a plan\" for a project whose purpose nobody has written down
- A portfolio review needs each initiative on one comparable page
- A project kickoff with senior stakeholders and 60 minutes
Running it
- Fill purpose and benefits with the sponsor in the room. Their words, their numbers.
- Be honest in sponsorship and stakeholders: name the people, not the departments.
- Fill creation last, lightly. If the foundation boxes are weak, the plan doesn't deserve detail yet.
- 60 to 90 minutes; repeat one hour per quarter as the appraisal check.
Watch out: This canvas is a go or no-go instrument. If every project that enters comes out approved, it's being used as decoration.
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Recent Comments (3)
This workshop was incredibly effective for our remote team! We adapted it slightly for a virtual setting and it worked wonderfully. The key was breaking into smaller breakout rooms.
Great resource! One tip: prepare all materials the day before to avoid any last-minute rushes.
Used this for our quarterly planning session. The structured approach really helped us stay on track!