Project Health Check Skill

Systematic assessment of individual project health across multiple dimensions.

Purpose

This skill provides a framework for:

• Comprehensive project status assessment
• Early warning identification
• Root cause analysis
• Recovery recommendation
• Stakeholder communication

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Prerequisites

Before health check, ensure:

| Prerequisite | Required For | Source | |--------------|--------------|--------| | Project baseline | Variance calculation | Project plan | | Current status data | Health assessment | Project manager | | Stakeholder feedback | Satisfaction assessment | Stakeholders | | Risk register | Risk health | Risk analyst |

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Health Check Dimensions

Dimension 1: Schedule Health

Metrics:

| Metric | Formula | Green | Yellow | Red | |--------|---------|-------|--------|-----| | SPI | EV / PV | >= 0.95 | 0.85-0.94 | < 0.85 | | Schedule Variance | EV - PV | >= 0 | -5% to 0 | < -5% | | Milestone Status | On-time % | >= 90% | 70-89% | < 70% |

Assessment Questions:

• Is the project on schedule?
• Are milestones being met?
• What is causing any delays?
• Is the critical path protected?

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Dimension 2: Cost Health

Metrics:

| Metric | Formula | Green | Yellow | Red | |--------|---------|-------|--------|-----| | CPI | EV / AC | >= 0.95 | 0.85-0.94 | < 0.85 | | Cost Variance | EV - AC | >= 0 | -5% to 0 | < -5% | | EAC vs Budget | EAC / BAC | <= 1.05 | 1.05-1.15 | > 1.15 |

Assessment Questions:

• Is the project within budget?
• What is driving cost variance?
• Is the estimate at completion acceptable?
• Are there unplanned costs emerging?

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Dimension 3: Scope Health

Metrics:

| Metric | Green | Yellow | Red | |--------|-------|--------|-----| | Scope Changes | < 3 | 3-5 | > 5 | | Change Impact | < 5% baseline | 5-10% | > 10% | | Requirements Stability | Stable | Some changes | Significant flux |

Assessment Questions:

• Is scope under control?
• How many changes since baseline?
• What is driving scope changes?
• Is there scope creep occurring?

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Dimension 4: Quality Health

Metrics:

| Metric | Green | Yellow | Red | |--------|-------|--------|-----| | Defect Rate | Below target | At target | Above target | | Rework % | < 10% | 10-20% | > 20% | | Test Pass Rate | > 95% | 85-95% | < 85% |

Assessment Questions:

• Is quality acceptable?
• What is the defect trend?
• Is rework manageable?
• Are acceptance criteria being met?

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Dimension 5: Risk Health

Metrics:

| Metric | Green | Yellow | Red | |--------|-------|--------|-----| | Open Critical Risks | 0 | 1-2 | > 2 | | Risk Trend | Decreasing | Stable | Increasing | | Mitigation Progress | On track | Delayed | Blocked |

Assessment Questions:

• Are risks being managed?
• Are mitigations effective?
• Any new critical risks?
• Are issues being resolved?

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Dimension 6: Stakeholder Health

Metrics:

| Metric | Green | Yellow | Red | |--------|-------|--------|-----| | Stakeholder Satisfaction | Satisfied | Concerns | Escalations | | Communication Effectiveness | Good | Gaps noted | Major issues | | Decision Timeliness | Timely | Some delays | Blocked |

Assessment Questions:

• Are stakeholders satisfied?
• Is communication effective?
• Are decisions being made timely?
• Any relationship issues?

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Health Check Gates

Gate 1: Data Collection

Objective: Gather current project data

Actions:

1. Collect schedule data (actuals, forecasts)
2. Collect cost data (actuals, forecasts)
3. Review scope changes
4. Review quality metrics
5. Update risk register
6. Gather stakeholder feedback

Output: docs/pmo/{date}/project-{name}-data.md

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Gate 2: Health Assessment

Objective: Assess each dimension and overall health

Actions:

1. Score each dimension (1-10)
2. Calculate overall health score
3. Identify red flags
4. Document root causes

Health Score Calculation:

| Dimension | Weight | |-----------|--------| | Schedule | 25% | | Cost | 20% | | Scope | 15% | | Quality | 20% | | Risk | 10% | | Stakeholder | 10% |

Overall Score Interpretation:

• 8-10: Healthy
• 6-7.9: Manageable
• 4-5.9: At Risk
• < 4: Critical

Output: docs/pmo/{date}/project-{name}-assessment.md

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Gate 3: Recommendations

Objective: Provide actionable recommendations

Actions:

1. Prioritize issues by impact
2. Identify quick wins
3. Recommend recovery actions
4. Define success criteria

Recommendation Categories:

| Category | Urgency | Examples | |----------|---------|----------| | Immediate | This week | Escalation, resource injection | | Short-term | This month | Process change, replan | | Medium-term | This quarter | Restructure, descope | | Long-term | Future | Lessons learned, prevention |

Output: docs/pmo/{date}/project-{name}-recommendations.md

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Anti-Rationalization Table

See shared-patterns/anti-rationalization.md for universal anti-rationalizations.

Health Check-Specific Anti-Rationalizations

| Rationalization | Why It's WRONG | Required Action | |-----------------|----------------|-----------------| | "PM says project is green" | Self-reported status often optimistic. Verify with data. | Validate with metrics | | "One dimension is off, overall is fine" | One critical dimension can sink a project. | Address all yellow/red dimensions | | "Wait and see if it improves" | Delays compound problems. Early intervention is cheaper. | Act on warning signs | | "They're aware of the issues" | Awareness ≠ action. Verify mitigation progress. | Confirm corrective actions |

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Pressure Resistance

See shared-patterns/pressure-resistance.md for universal pressure scenarios.

Health Check-Specific Pressures

| Pressure Type | Request | Agent Response | |---------------|---------|----------------| | "Make the status green for the exec report" | "Status must reflect reality. Will provide accurate status with context and recovery plan." | | "Don't dig into that dimension" | "All dimensions must be assessed. Selective assessment misses problems." | | "The PM has it under control" | "PM optimism is natural. Independent assessment provides balance." |

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Blocker Criteria - STOP and Report

ALWAYS pause and report blocker for:

| Situation | Required Action | |-----------|-----------------| | Overall health < 4 (Critical) | STOP. Immediate executive escalation required. | | Multiple dimensions Red | STOP. Recovery intervention needed. | | Data unavailable for assessment | STOP. Cannot assess without data. Request information. | | Stakeholder loss of confidence | STOP. Relationship repair needed before project work. |

Cannot Be Overridden

The following requirements are NON-NEGOTIABLE:

| Requirement | Cannot Override Because | |-------------|------------------------| | All six dimensions assessed | Partial assessment misses critical issues | | Data-driven scoring | Opinions without data lead to wrong conclusions | | Root cause analysis for Red | Symptoms without causes cannot be fixed | | Evidence-based status | Feelings don't predict project outcomes | | Stakeholder feedback inclusion | Project health includes perception, not just metrics |

If user insists on violating these:

1. Escalate to orchestrator
2. Do NOT proceed with incomplete assessment
3. Document the request and your refusal

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Severity Calibration

When assessing health check findings:

| Severity | Criteria | Examples | |----------|----------|----------| | CRITICAL | Project viability at risk | Overall health < 4, sponsor withdrawing, budget frozen | | HIGH | Significant intervention needed | Any dimension Red, schedule slip > 2 weeks, cost overrun > 15% | | MEDIUM | Active management required | Dimensions Yellow, minor variances, stakeholder concerns | | LOW | Normal monitoring | All Green with minor improvements possible |

Escalate CRITICAL immediately. Address HIGH this week. Monitor MEDIUM bi-weekly.

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Output Format

Health Check Report

# Project Health Check - [Project Name] - [Date]

## Overall Health Score: X/10 - [Green/Yellow/Red]

## Dimension Scores

| Dimension | Score | Status | Trend |
|-----------|-------|--------|-------|
| Schedule | X/10 | G/Y/R | Up/Stable/Down |
| Cost | X/10 | G/Y/R | Up/Stable/Down |
| Scope | X/10 | G/Y/R | Up/Stable/Down |
| Quality | X/10 | G/Y/R | Up/Stable/Down |
| Risk | X/10 | G/Y/R | Up/Stable/Down |
| Stakeholder | X/10 | G/Y/R | Up/Stable/Down |

## Key Findings

### Red Flags
1. [Finding with evidence]

### Yellow Flags
1. [Finding with evidence]

### Positive Signs
1. [Finding with evidence]

## Root Cause Analysis

| Issue | Root Cause | Impact |
|-------|------------|--------|
| [Issue] | [Cause] | [Impact] |

## Recommendations

### Immediate (This Week)
1. [Action] - Owner: [Name]

### Short-term (This Month)
1. [Action] - Owner: [Name]

## Decisions Required

1. [Decision needed with options]

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Execution Report

Base metrics per shared-patterns/execution-report.md:

| Metric | Value | |--------|-------| | Analysis Date | YYYY-MM-DD | | Scope | [Project name] | | Duration | Xh Ym | | Result | COMPLETE/PARTIAL/BLOCKED |

Health Check-Specific Details

| Metric | Value | |--------|-------| | health_score | X/10 | | schedule_variance | X% | | cost_variance | X% | | scope_changes | N |

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When Health Check Is Not Needed

<MANDATORY> MUST: Health check is minimal only when ALL conditions are met: </MANDATORY>

| Condition | Verification | |-----------|-------------| | Recent check exists (<14 days) | Reference existing health check | | No reported issues | Confirm no new risks or blockers | | Project in maintenance phase | Verify no active development | | Stakeholders satisfied | Confirm no escalations or concerns |

MUST: Full health check REQUIRED for the following conditions:

| Condition | Why Required | |-----------|-------------| | Project status changed | Yellow/Red requires immediate assessment | | Milestone approaching | Risk assessment needed before milestone | | Stakeholder escalation received | Must diagnose the concern | | Project phase transition | Entry/exit criteria must be validated | | Periodic review cadence | Regular health monitoring required |

MUST: When in doubt, conduct the health check. Undetected issues become crises.