SME Survey on managing projects

1. Purpose of the Survey

In the current economic downturn, it is vital to be able to use limited resources effectively. For any new project i.e. an activity that has a clear start and end, this means being able to plan well and manage those resources across the project in the best way possible.

This survey is designed to help us to understand what areas SMEs do best, and what areas they may need help with. Once we've collated all the results we will have a much better idea of how our services should be developed and what we should be focussing on.

As a thankyou to everyone who has taken the time to fill it in, we would like to send you a brief 'help and tips' sheet in the area of your choice. We also send you a copy of the collated results.

All responses will be confidential.

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* 1. Company Name

This is to enable us to check entries are from valid companies, and to see whether standalone companies differ from small companies that are part of a larger group.

Name of UK Company

Name of Group (if applicable)

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* 2. Company Information

We'd like to know whether businesses of different sizes and from different secors have different types of projects and requirements.

	Number of Employees (UK)	Turnover	Location	Your primary business	Your primary market
Please select	Please select Number of Employees (UK) menu	Please select Turnover menu	Please select Location menu	Please select Your primary business menu	Please select Your primary market menu

Additional details

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* 3. To help us understand what sizes and types of Project are being done, can you tell us what range of Projects your Organisation has completed over the last 1-2 years?

	Most	Several	None	Don't know
Small projects (less than 10% staff and/or turnover)	Small projects (less than 10% staff and/or turnover) Most	Small projects (less than 10% staff and/or turnover) Several	Small projects (less than 10% staff and/or turnover) None	Small projects (less than 10% staff and/or turnover) Don't know
Medium projects (10-30% staff and/or turnover)	Medium projects (10-30% staff and/or turnover) Most	Medium projects (10-30% staff and/or turnover) Several	Medium projects (10-30% staff and/or turnover) None	Medium projects (10-30% staff and/or turnover) Don't know
Large projects (more than 30% staff and/or turnover)	Large projects (more than 30% staff and/or turnover) Most	Large projects (more than 30% staff and/or turnover) Several	Large projects (more than 30% staff and/or turnover) None	Large projects (more than 30% staff and/or turnover) Don't know
Simple projects (straightforward and/or low impact)	Simple projects (straightforward and/or low impact) Most	Simple projects (straightforward and/or low impact) Several	Simple projects (straightforward and/or low impact) None	Simple projects (straightforward and/or low impact) Don't know
Significant projects (complex and/or high impact)	Significant projects (complex and/or high impact) Most	Significant projects (complex and/or high impact) Several	Significant projects (complex and/or high impact) None	Significant projects (complex and/or high impact) Don't know
'Old' Project (involving existing skills, resources etc.)	'Old' Project (involving existing skills, resources etc.) Most	'Old' Project (involving existing skills, resources etc.) Several	'Old' Project (involving existing skills, resources etc.) None	'Old' Project (involving existing skills, resources etc.) Don't know
'New'Project (involving new skills, resources etc.)	'New'Project (involving new skills, resources etc.) Most	'New'Project (involving new skills, resources etc.) Several	'New'Project (involving new skills, resources etc.) None	'New'Project (involving new skills, resources etc.) Don't know

Additional details

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* 4. Project experience and skills.

We want to see what sort of skills and experience companies already have, so we can identify where the gaps are.

	Most	Some	Few	None	Don't know
Prince 2 qualified staff	Prince 2 qualified staff Most	Prince 2 qualified staff Some	Prince 2 qualified staff Few	Prince 2 qualified staff None	Prince 2 qualified staff Don't know
Other Qualified staff e.g. APM	Other Qualified staff e.g. APM Most	Other Qualified staff e.g. APM Some	Other Qualified staff e.g. APM Few	Other Qualified staff e.g. APM None	Other Qualified staff e.g. APM Don't know
Other trained staff e.g. other training	Other trained staff e.g. other training Most	Other trained staff e.g. other training Some	Other trained staff e.g. other training Few	Other trained staff e.g. other training None	Other trained staff e.g. other training Don't know
Staff with sufficient project management experience	Staff with sufficient project management experience Most	Staff with sufficient project management experience Some	Staff with sufficient project management experience Few	Staff with sufficient project management experience None	Staff with sufficient project management experience Don't know
Skilled/experienced outsourced resources that are easily accessible	Skilled/experienced outsourced resources that are easily accessible Most	Skilled/experienced outsourced resources that are easily accessible Some	Skilled/experienced outsourced resources that are easily accessible Few	Skilled/experienced outsourced resources that are easily accessible None	Skilled/experienced outsourced resources that are easily accessible Don't know

Additional details

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* 5. Existing Project Management Processes

What processes do you have, and what do you currently use to ensure a successful outcome from your Projects

	Use successfully	Have but don't use fully	Don't have	Don't know
Well defined and documented Project Management methodology e.g. Prince 2	Well defined and documented Project Management methodology e.g. Prince 2 Use successfully	Well defined and documented Project Management methodology e.g. Prince 2 Have but don't use fully	Well defined and documented Project Management methodology e.g. Prince 2 Don't have	Well defined and documented Project Management methodology e.g. Prince 2 Don't know
Project Brief or other document describing the scope, resources,timescales and cost	Project Brief or other document describing the scope, resources,timescales and cost Use successfully	Project Brief or other document describing the scope, resources,timescales and cost Have but don't use fully	Project Brief or other document describing the scope, resources,timescales and cost Don't have	Project Brief or other document describing the scope, resources,timescales and cost Don't know
Planning Tools e.g. MS Project	Planning Tools e.g. MS Project Use successfully	Planning Tools e.g. MS Project Have but don't use fully	Planning Tools e.g. MS Project Don't have	Planning Tools e.g. MS Project Don't know
Risk Management process	Risk Management process Use successfully	Risk Management process Have but don't use fully	Risk Management process Don't have	Risk Management process Don't know
Change management process	Change management process Use successfully	Change management process Have but don't use fully	Change management process Don't have	Change management process Don't know
Progress management process	Progress management process Use successfully	Progress management process Have but don't use fully	Progress management process Don't have	Progress management process Don't know
Benefits Management process	Benefits Management process Use successfully	Benefits Management process Have but don't use fully	Benefits Management process Don't have	Benefits Management process Don't know

Additional details

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* 6. Problems experienced recently

Few projects go perfectly according to plan and deliver exactly the right business benefits. Thinking about a recent Project: what were the problems and what impact did they have on day-to-day business?

	Significant impact	Minor niggle	Not a problem	Don't know
Our current Project Management Processes don't work	Our current Project Management Processes don't work Significant impact	Our current Project Management Processes don't work Minor niggle	Our current Project Management Processes don't work Not a problem	Our current Project Management Processes don't work Don't know
Project team had insufficient skills/experience for this Project	Project team had insufficient skills/experience for this Project Significant impact	Project team had insufficient skills/experience for this Project Minor niggle	Project team had insufficient skills/experience for this Project Not a problem	Project team had insufficient skills/experience for this Project Don't know
Project team didn't understand the real business requirements	Project team didn't understand the real business requirements Significant impact	Project team didn't understand the real business requirements Minor niggle	Project team didn't understand the real business requirements Not a problem	Project team didn't understand the real business requirements Don't know
Communication was unclear	Communication was unclear Significant impact	Communication was unclear Minor niggle	Communication was unclear Not a problem	Communication was unclear Don't know
Resource management e.g. people, costs etc. were not well defined or were greater than expected	Resource management e.g. people, costs etc. were not well defined or were greater than expected Significant impact	Resource management e.g. people, costs etc. were not well defined or were greater than expected Minor niggle	Resource management e.g. people, costs etc. were not well defined or were greater than expected Not a problem	Resource management e.g. people, costs etc. were not well defined or were greater than expected Don't know
Changing requirements had an adverse impact on the project e.g. it cost more, took longer, didn't deliver all the benefits etc.	Changing requirements had an adverse impact on the project e.g. it cost more, took longer, didn't deliver all the benefits etc. Significant impact	Changing requirements had an adverse impact on the project e.g. it cost more, took longer, didn't deliver all the benefits etc. Minor niggle	Changing requirements had an adverse impact on the project e.g. it cost more, took longer, didn't deliver all the benefits etc. Not a problem	Changing requirements had an adverse impact on the project e.g. it cost more, took longer, didn't deliver all the benefits etc. Don't know
Uncertain time management e.g. deadlines were missed or were not clear	Uncertain time management e.g. deadlines were missed or were not clear Significant impact	Uncertain time management e.g. deadlines were missed or were not clear Minor niggle	Uncertain time management e.g. deadlines were missed or were not clear Not a problem	Uncertain time management e.g. deadlines were missed or were not clear Don't know
An unexpected event occurred for which there was no contingency plan e.g. loss of a key person, equipment failure etc.	An unexpected event occurred for which there was no contingency plan e.g. loss of a key person, equipment failure etc. Significant impact	An unexpected event occurred for which there was no contingency plan e.g. loss of a key person, equipment failure etc. Minor niggle	An unexpected event occurred for which there was no contingency plan e.g. loss of a key person, equipment failure etc. Not a problem	An unexpected event occurred for which there was no contingency plan e.g. loss of a key person, equipment failure etc. Don't know
Project clashed with day to day business activities	Project clashed with day to day business activities Significant impact	Project clashed with day to day business activities Minor niggle	Project clashed with day to day business activities Not a problem	Project clashed with day to day business activities Don't know
Other (please give details below)	Other (please give details below) Significant impact	Other (please give details below) Minor niggle	Other (please give details below) Not a problem	Other (please give details below) Don't know

Additional details

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* 7. When you need help with a project, and there's no-one internally to turn to, where do you currently go for help?

Tick as many as used.

Business Link

External Project Manager

Project Management specialist company

Outsourcing specialist company

Friend

Other

Don't know

Additional details

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* 8. Please add any questions or comments.

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* 9. Free guide

As a thank you for answering this survey, we'd like to send you one of the following 'Help and Tips' sheets.

Quick guide to Project Planning & Management for SMEs

Pre-Project Preparation

Project Initiation - writing a successful project brief

Managing Project Risks

Managing Project Change

Managing Project Communication

Help and Tips for Innovation Projects

Just the results from the survey

None

Your name and email address (we won't send you any marketing material without your express permisssion)

Many thanks!

We really appreciate that you've taken the time to complete this survey. It will help us greatly.

Question Title

* 1. Company Name This is to enable us to check entries are from valid companies, and to see whether standalone companies differ from small companies that are part of a larger group.

Question Title

* 2. Company Information We'd like to know whether businesses of different sizes and from different secors have different types of projects and requirements.

Question Title

* 3. To help us understand what sizes and types of Project are being done, can you tell us what range of Projects your Organisation has completed over the last 1-2 years?

Question Title

* 4. Project experience and skills.We want to see what sort of skills and experience companies already have, so we can identify where the gaps are.

Question Title

* 5. Existing Project Management ProcessesWhat processes do you have, and what do you currently use to ensure a successful outcome from your Projects

Question Title

* 6. Problems experienced recentlyFew projects go perfectly according to plan and deliver exactly the right business benefits. Thinking about a recent Project: what were the problems and what impact did they have on day-to-day business?

Question Title

* 7. When you need help with a project, and there's no-one internally to turn to, where do you currently go for help?Tick as many as used.

Question Title

* 8. Please add any questions or comments.

Question Title

* 9. Free guide As a thank you for answering this survey, we'd like to send you one of the following 'Help and Tips' sheets.

* 1. Company Name

This is to enable us to check entries are from valid companies, and to see whether standalone companies differ from small companies that are part of a larger group.

* 2. Company Information

We'd like to know whether businesses of different sizes and from different secors have different types of projects and requirements.

* 4. Project experience and skills.

We want to see what sort of skills and experience companies already have, so we can identify where the gaps are.

* 5. Existing Project Management Processes

What processes do you have, and what do you currently use to ensure a successful outcome from your Projects

* 6. Problems experienced recently

Few projects go perfectly according to plan and deliver exactly the right business benefits. Thinking about a recent Project: what were the problems and what impact did they have on day-to-day business?

* 7. When you need help with a project, and there's no-one internally to turn to, where do you currently go for help?

Tick as many as used.

* 9. Free guide

As a thank you for answering this survey, we'd like to send you one of the following 'Help and Tips' sheets.