What are EEFs and OPA, and how does it influence your work or projects?
Have you ever started in a new role and thought, how can I become familiar or get up to speed with everything that influences my function? Whether you like it or not, various aspects, internally and externally, affect your projects. Maybe you have started a new role in a new project totally out of your regular work. How do you know what standards and policies influence everything that happens in your project?
I recently started a new role in a new country and felt a bit overwhelmed, but at the same time felt excited about the upcoming learning journey, especially the kind of projects I could get involved in. As PMs and Engineers, we must focus on the task we have influence over, or we can quickly become overwhelmed. I thought I to share my learning journey with you. My focus will primarily be on Infrastructure development, mainly focusing on the Three Waters Reform of NZ.
Have you ever started a new role and felt overwhelmed by the internal and external processes and policies influencing your project and team? Have you ever wondered how I can best equip myself and my team members or future team members to fast-track their learning journey so they can get up to speed quickly? There are so many of these EEF’s AND OPAs that influence each of your projects. Before I go into the detail, you are probably wondering what is this eef’s and opa’s and how does it influence my projects.
What is EEF and OPA’s
PMBOK states that EEF (Enterprise Environmental factors) refer to conditions not under the project team’s control that influence, constrains, or directs the project. EEFs can be internal and external to the project. Internal EEFs include Organisation Culture, Structure, Governance, Resource availability, Employee capability, Information technology software etc. External EEFs can include examples of Market Place conditions, Social and cultural influences, Legal restrictions, and Government or industry standards.
On the other hand, OPA’s or Organizational Process Assets are plans, processes, procedures, and knowledge base specific to the performing organization. They can include any artefact, practice, or knowledge from any or all organizations involved that can be used to perform or govern the project. OPA’s are grouped into two categories: On the one hand, you have (1) Processes and procedures, and on the other hand, you have (2) a corporate knowledge base.
Firstly, processes and procedures include human resources policies, health and safety policies, ethics policies, project management policies, templates, change control processes, etc.
CORPORATE KNOWLEDGE: Includes information for storing and retrieving information and includes, for example, configuration management knowledge databases, financial databases (labour hours, hourly rates, etc., for Consulting Engineers), project files from previous projects, and many more.
You might be thinking, but Melvin, I am already doing this. I might not have the naming for it, but I understand how to apply it. I always say you can’t kill a dragon if you don’t have a name for it.
Now that we have named this dragon, how will we use it to improve in delivering projects? Join me in my learning journey while uncovering each aspect of the projects I will manage.
One of my mentors once told me, remember Melvin, I learn as much from you as you do from me. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think about these factors. What else can we as leaders, do to help our team members get up to speed when they start? Do you want me to go into more detail? As I learn as much from you as you do from me.
Take care, everyone, until the next one.