CornerThought Lessons Learned Template
The following form can be used for project/operations teams who are closing out a project or major milestone and need a quick process for conducting an after-action review (for a fillable form, contact us at www.getcornerthought.com):

Rules and Guidelines:
No more than 5 of these forms can be filled out by an individual
For guidelines on how to fill each field, see the following:
"Name an issue or success”
Guideline: describe an event or aspect of the project/operation that differed from what was expected
Can be either an issue (negative) or success (positive) – Just check-off which one applies
Can be either specific (i.e. specific events that occurred) or general (i.e. things that were overall positive or negative)
Examples of a specific items: “A gas leak was detected during the commissioning phase of the project (issue)”, “The compressor arrived onsite ahead of schedule (success)”
Examples of general items: “Materials consistently arrived onsite damaged throughout the project (issue)”, “Regulatory approval submittals required minimal revisions or public dispute negotiations (success)”
Statements should be objective and fact-based. Avoid any subjectivity, opinions, biases or accusations.
Do not add causes or impacts, as those can be described in the following fields.
Note: while there is a limit of 5 forms that can be filled out, there is no limitations on how many of those forms can be issues or successes, general or specifics (i.e. you can fill out 5 forms describing just issues, just successes, just general items or just specifics)
"What were the causes?"
Add as many causes as necessary
Consider the causes as they relate (but not limited) to: process, policy, people, technology/tools, externalities.
Process/Policy: Were our processes/policies followed? If so, were there any gaps in them?
People: Were there enough human resources? Was there appropriate training and communications? Did the team have enough resources? Did the team exceed expectations?
Technology/tools: Was our technology or tools sufficient for the job? Did it exceed expectations?
Externalities: Were there causes out of our control, (i.e. in the control of our contractors, stakeholders, or macro issues – the economy, political climate, etc.)
Statements should be objective and fact-based. Avoid any subjectivity, opinions, biases or accusations.
"What was the impact?"
Define the impact(s) as they relate to your project/operational KPIs.
KPIs can be qualitative or quantitative (Cost, Schedule, Quality, Safety, Effect on Reputation, etc.)
"What should future teams consider?" (Optional)
*Note: These are not actions to be taken, but insights that can be used to inform future teams.
This field should include insights future teams working on similar projects/operations should consider in a similar situation, and should address the causes and impacts:
For issues, future considerations should focus on preventing the causes from occurring altogether or escalating to the point that they trigger the issue. Considerations should also address how to mitigate or reduce the impact(s) of the issue.
For successes, future considerations should focus on how to enable the causes or promote/enhance the impact(s).
Avoid vague, generic statements that do not provide specific information (e.g. “the team needs to communicate better and work harder”)
Example: “When applying for permits in Texas, consider taking the following steps to avoid delays…”
"What actions should be taken?" (Optional)
*Note: These are suggested actions based on your experience. The ultimate decision to take action will be with the leadership team in this area.
This field should describe specific calls to action to update a process, procedure, policy, or technology
Actions should address the causes and impacts:
For issues, action items should focus on preventing the causes from occurring altogether or escalating. Action items should also address how to mitigate the impact(s) of the issue to a point where the residual impact is negligible.
For successes, action items should focus on enabling the causes or promoting/enhancing the impact(s).
Actions should focus on efforts that can be taken within the organization, and not on the efforts of external stakeholders.
Example: “The ‘Equipment Inspection Process’ document should be updated to include the following changes…”
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