What is the process for conducting a lessons learned review?

Conducting a lessons learned review is vital yet often sidelined. It entails preparation, gathering insights, facilitating discussions, and documenting findings. It requires an open mindset...a growth mindset. The process should be anchored around accountability and driving tangible value. Neglecting this step in a past project led to repeated mistakes—a bit like driving blindfolded, you might hit the same pothole twice!

Good article to share thoughts on & this involves preparation, gathering information, reviewing the project with stakeholders, identifying key lessons learned, analyzing insights, documenting findings, sharing lessons learned, implementing improvements, monitoring progress, and closing the review with a summary and celebration of successes. Also we should remember that conducting a lessons learned review involves reflecting on past experiences, identifying key insights, implementing improvements, and celebrating successes through each interaction .

Conduct a lessons learned review by facilitating open discussions among project stakeholders, capturing successes and challenges, identifying root causes, prioritizing lessons, and developing action plans for continuous improvement; for example, a project may have excelled in stakeholder communication but faced delays due to unforeseen risks, highlighting the need for a robust risk management strategy. Additionally, ensure findings are shared, integrated into organizational processes, and monitored over time for ongoing adaptability and improvement.

Conducting a lessons learned review involves identifying key stakeholders, gathering project documentation, organizing a discussion with the project team, using structured questions, encouraging open brainstorming, facilitating active participation, categorizing lessons, prioritizing them, documenting insights clearly, communicating to stakeholders, integrating lessons into future plans, and establishing follow-up for continuous improvement. This process systematically captures valuable insights for ongoing organizational learning and project success.

As a Program Manager, conducting a lessons-learned review involves scheduling a meeting with key stakeholders and project team members. Begin by reviewing project documentation to provide context. Facilitate an open discussion focusing on project planning, execution, communication, stakeholder management, risk, and team dynamics. Capture actionable insights and lessons learned, prioritizing them based on significance. Document outcomes, distribute findings, and assign responsibility for implementing recommendations. Follow up on actions and incorporate lessons learned into future project management practices for continuous improvement.

Identify everyone who had an influential role in the Program, people who can be open about what we could have done better What we didn’t do so good What we shouldn’t have done at all Make sure it is an open and honest forum

When selecting members for a lessons learned review, don’t choose only the usual suspects: senior managers, senior technical personnel, and widely recognized experts. Their input is invaluable. But also choose from *everyone*. Crowdsource the lessons learned. It’s more work, and it’s more value. Then bucket the responses and use a focused team to identify aggregate lessons. Share the message back with the contributors to ensure messages were not lost. Team composition for lessons learned should be based on people with feedback, not solely on people whose feedback you think you want.

The basic purpose of sharing lessons learnt will only be fulfilled if the feedback goes to the departments who are providing input and the one who is using the input. Therefore the participants should be based on the interdependency to get the real benefit of sharing the lessons learnt. Mainly the focus is to avoid repeated faults or errors thus increasing efficiency, productivity and quality of the overall process.

Selecting the right participants can make or break your lessons-learned review. Here's my perspective on why this step is so important, and some factors to bear in mind: Why Participant Diversity Matters Multiple Angles: Different roles bring different viewpoints. A team member might have insights into process bottlenecks that a manager wouldn't. A customer might highlight aspects of the final product or service that were particularly successful (or not) that wouldn't be obvious internally. Avoiding Blind Spots: A single-perspective review risks missing important lessons. Involving a range of stakeholders helps expose areas where improvement is needed that might be invisible from one vantage point.

Participants for a lessons learned review typically include project team members, stakeholders, subject matter experts, and relevant organizational representatives involved in the project or process being evaluated.

When I was managing projects, I added a Lessons Learned tab to the RAID log and encouraged my team to add Lessons as they went. When you get to the end of an 18-month project it's hard to remember all the lessons you learnt along the way.

Absolutely crucial step! Collecting diverse and reliable data is the backbone of any insightful lessons learned review. The mix of methods - surveys, interviews, focus groups, and more - ensures a comprehensive understanding of program or project performance. Valid and consistent data is the key to extracting valuable lessons. In my experience, this step lays the foundation for actionable insights and continuous improvement.

Data collection is the heart of a meaningful lessons-learned review. Here's my perspective on this step, along with a few things to consider: Why a Multi-Method Approach Matters Triangulation: Using different data sources paints a more complete picture. A survey might reveal widespread dissatisfaction with a process, while interviews could shed light on why people are dissatisfied and suggest solutions. Validating Perceptions: Quantitative data (metrics, reports) can either back up subjective feedback ("We felt the timeline was unrealistic") or challenge it ("Actually, the timeline was on par with industry benchmarks"). This makes for more robust takeaways.

Gather data and information related to the project or program, including project documentation, meeting minutes, performance metrics and stakeholder feedback. Use a variety of methods such as surveys, interviews, focus groups and document reviews to collect insights and lessons learned from participants. An example of this would be distributing a survey to project team members asking them to reflect on what went well, what could have been improved and any recommendations for future projects.

The AI is off on its own again. Many of these tools mentioned above are great for analyzing the data, but many are also great for identifying the lessons learned themselves from mapping disparate symptoms/events. An Ishikawa diagram is great for root cause analysis, for example, but can also be used to aggregate events or symptoms into a lesson learned. I love mind maps for this purpose because they support both brainstorming and subsequent organization. The AI often recommends SWOT analysis, but it seems to do so indiscriminately. The risks of SWOT analysis must be well understood to overcome the cognitive biases its form and asssumptions tend to introduce.

I. Still believe that a live human still needs to participate and oversee Machines are indiscriminate Humans are uniquely intuitive

Analysis could also utilize the time-tested methodology of triangulation of what you have obtained from the owners of the review, obtained from those what is said of the reviewed party by others, and what you as reviewing team observe in the process and glean from the environment. Sometimes the facts can be hidden in broad daylight.

Data analysis is where the magic happens in a lessons-learned review, transforming raw information into actionable insights. Here's my perspective on this crucial step: Choosing the Right Tools SWOT: Great for a high-level overview of a project or program, helping you capitalize on strengths and address weaknesses strategically. Root Cause Analysis: Ideal for digging into persistent problems. Techniques like the "5 Whys" or fishbone diagrams help you go beyond the symptom to the underlying cause, preventing recurrence. Gap Analysis: Perfect for comparing where you ended up against where you aimed to be (performance targets, budget, etc.). This highlights areas for immediate course correction in future projects.

Analyze the collected data to identify trends, patterns and recurring themes related to successes, challenges and opportunities for improvement. Use qualitative and quantitative analysis techniques to make sense of the data and draw meaningful conclusions. An example of this would be categorizing lessons learned into themes such as project management, technical challenges, stakeholder communication and team dynamics.

Sharing the results effectively is crucial for a lessons-learned review to have a real impact. Here's my perspective on why this step is so important and things to keep in mind: Action Drives Results: Lessons learned are useless if they sit in a dusty report. Effective sharing is what prompts people to implement changes and drive improvement. Engagement and Ownership: Communicating findings in a clear and accessible way helps stakeholders feel invested in the process, making them more likely to support changes born out of the review. Transparency Builds Trust: Especially when sharing lessons about shortcomings, transparency shows the organization is committed to learning and evolving, not hiding mistakes.

In my former organization, I worked with several others who were passionate about Knowledge Management - the advancement of Data into Information to Knowledge to Wisdom. We created a user-friendly PM Knowledgebase, deeply searchable, to share everything from templates, to favored (and terrible) vendors, and (to this topic) lessons learned - things that worked really well, and things that we should never, ever, EVER do again. Project managers from Lenexa, Kansas, Stuttgart, Germany, and Shenyang, China could easily take advantage of findings from similar or related projects. We also incentivized folks for both depositing AND withdrawing artifacts.

Be sure among the stakeholders you have some people from the search to show the reactions, use real examples and feedbacks. Is really important to have cross indicators to create a team perception of values in the results and next actions. Start with a quick view about the previous steps, one page showing the results and tell the history behind the graphics and numbers to leave a clear message about the process used to all audiences, adjusting one point or other depending on your needs to avoid misunderstanding. In the end, one page with " call to action " ( what must be done, when, owners and importance to the team/company) as well as " ZBB - zero budget base" (means something that is not priority at all).

Share the findings of the lessons learned review with relevant stakeholders and team members in a clear and transparent manner. Present the results in a format that is easy to understand, such as a report, presentation or interactive workshop. Solicit feedback and validation from participants to ensure accuracy and completeness of the findings. An example of this would be conducting a lessons learned presentation for project sponsors and key stakeholders, highlighting key insights and recommendations for future projects.

This is the step that is so often forgotten. So many lessons learned turn into lessons filed away and forgotten. Perhaps that's why I'm writing the first contribution here? One way I find helpful is to run a lessons learned session right at the start of a new program(me) rather than, or in addition to, at the end. This is early enough for people to be able to set up how this new programme will work and to learn from what's gone before.

Conducting a lessons learned review involves two critical steps to prevent recurring mistakes and foster continuous improvement. Firstly, it's imperative to encourage applying lessons from past experiences to future projects. This means integrating recommendations into processes, procedures, and decision-making. Secondly, reflection on the review process itself is essential. By identifying what worked well, areas for improvement, and necessary adjustments for future reviews, organizations can refine their approach. Ultimately, it's vital to avoid repeating mistakes by learning from past experiences and continually refining review processes.

What I encourage project teams to do is to look at Lessons Observed as an ongoing process throughout the life of the project. Produce a Lessons Observed folder that becomes a living document during the project. As a note a lesson is Observed / noted at this juncture - it becomes Learned when included in future projects.

Develop an action plan based on the lessons learned, outlining specific steps, responsibilities and timelines for implementing recommended improvements. Assign accountability for each action item and track progress towards implementation. Incorporate lessons learned into project management processes, templates and best practices to institutionalize continuous improvement. An example of this would be updating project management templates to include new risk mitigation strategies identified during the lessons learned review.

Be clear on who owns the lessons learnt. For every outcome a business desires, there is usually a primary person or team that is responsible for the quality of outcome that was delivered. A lessons learnt exercise loses relevance when the owner of the lessons is unknown.

This process does not have to be nearly as regimented or complex as this article describes. While all of these elements are worth considering, some of the most effective lessons learned sessions happened in about 10 minutes. From my Army experience, we would conduct AARs (After Action Reviews). These were immediate, informal, focused on top 3 things that went well, top 3 things that could have gone better, and a brief discussion that connected it all together. The leaders involved got exactly what they needed out of the meeting, it happened real time, and resulting in a learning experience for everyone involved. This approach works very well in business as well, and is foundational to an agile approach.

Lessons learnt should typically be collected by the whole team along the whole journey of the project/program with a periodic and collaborative review cycle along the way to identify the good, the bad and the ugly ! At the end of the program , a postmortem is conducted where the collected lessons are categorized and analyzed , for a feed into the common knowledge bank and to initiate any action plans.

Every lesson learnt must have a stakeholder who owns the lesson and account for it for the purpose of improvement and execute the learnings to avoid similar effects in future. Lessons requires accountability, ownership and followup.

Objectives, participants, data extraction tool, data acquisition, hold meaningful meetings, identify success and challenges, document, classify/ categorize, prioritize, initiate change management, share and improve