The purpose of a synchronisation plan is to divide the project into sub-results, show in which order the sub-results are to be produced, create an overall plan for the whole project, organise the work by arranging sub-results in work packages and identifying teams, and plan handover points between the work packages. Each work packages should have as few dependencies to other work packages as possible. Then the teams can work with them independently.
Results from the workshops
An overall plan with a deadline for each work package (see image above).
How to create a synchronisation plan
Work method. Workshop with people that will work in the project or deliver results to the project. Use the nominal group technique.
Premises and material. Workshop room. Whiteboard and pens/markers.
Workshop 1 – The network plan
Step 1.1.
Write two post-it notes – START and FINISHED. Position the notes at opposite ends of the whiteboard.
Step 1.2.
Identify sub-results.
- What sub-results must be generated in order for the product goals to be fulfilled?
- What are the most important steps along the way?
Affix the post-it notes on the whiteboard. Remove any doubles.
Step 1.3.
Arrange the sub-results in work lines. Identify which sub-results are dependent on each other and which sub-results that are independent. Arrange those that are interdependent in sequence. Arrange those that are independent in parallel. Rearrange the post-it notes until there is a logical workflow. Add any sub-results that are missing. Draw the interdependencies as lines with a board marker.
Step 1.4.
Number the sub-results with a sequence number – 1, 2, 3, etc. Write the sequence number at the top right corner. For each sub-result, indicate which other sub-results precede it at the bottom left corner.
Step 1.5.
Estimate work time for each sub-result. How many hours (efficient work time) are needed to complete each sub-result? The sizes of the sub-results should be within the limits of 20 to 200 hours. A 10,000 hour project will then have about 100 sub-results.
Some sub-results also contain time for waiting; for example waiting for delivery of materials. In that case, estimate how much calendar time in weeks or days that is needed.
Enter work time and duration at the bottom right corner.
Workshop 2 -Work packages
Step 2.1.
Identify and delimit sub-results that belong together and strive for as few dependencies as possible between the work packages. Draw the delimitations in the network plan to define which sub-results each work package is to deliver .
Give each work package a name (A, B, C and so on).
Step 2.2.
Estimate need for resources in each work package based on the work time that was estimated in the network plan and the skills required. Define resources as Full when they will work full time in the project, otherwise Part when they will work part time in the project.
| Role | Full | Part |
| Mechanical engineer | 5 | |
| Electronic engineer | 2 | |
| Test engineer | 2 |
Each work package is linked to a team. One team can have several work packages.
Workshop 3 – Handover points
Step 3.1.
Identify all handover points between the work packages. Give all handover points an identity in the form of a sequence number.
Step 3.2.
Define at what point in time each handover should occur. Protect the handover with a buffer by defining a target date when the team should be finished and a buffered date when the next team will start working.
| HP | Target date (week) | Buffered date (week) |
| 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | 1 | |
| 3 | 5 | 7 |
| 4 | 10 | 12 |
Step 3.3.
Define definition of done for all handover points. Definition of done describes the results to be delivered at the handover point as well as test and verifications that will be used to secure that the correct results are achieved.
Step 3.4.
Calculate the ”speed” for the project. Speed is a measure of how many people on average is working in the project. A low speed indicates that there is a lot of sequential work or a lot of waiting time. A high speed indicates that there is a lot of work to be done in parallel in several teams and with many people working in each team.
A high speed is good because that will reduce the lead time of the project and increase interaction.
Speed = Total work time / (Working hours per week * Number of weeks)
Total work time is the sum from the Network plan. Working hours per week are set to 80 % of full time for one resource. Generelly 80 % * 40 h/w = 32 h/w. Number of weeks is the calendar time from the first handover point at the start of the project to the last handover point when the project is completed (including buffered date).
Visually represent the results
By drawing the handover points in to the same picture as the network plan and the work packages, you get an overall synchronisation plan. Draw the plan in PowerPoint (or equivalent). The resources needed for each work package (step 3.2) and the definition of done for each work package (step 3.3) are documented in Word (or equivalent).
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