Interrogative Project Management, A Four-sonnet Sequence on Task-level Discovery

Project management requires much asking
Of clients and coders for more info
So that a PM can get to tasking
in Basecamp, Jira, or maybe Trello.
But before productive action can start
five basic questions need some addressing.
These W queries allow the heart
of a project to beat without stressing.

When newspapers report on the here’n now
All are asked the Five: who, what, when, where, why
(Plus the anti-alliterative how)
To separate truth from black-hearted lie.
These words can help PM pre-production
workflows work without any obstruction.

Who/What

Who is requesting the task to be done?
Hopefully one with authorizing writ.
Nothing’s worse than delivering a ton
of code your main stakeholder ne’er green-lit.
But approved work needs timely assigning
by the PM, who does the budget checks,
to a single assignee, defining
who will do what; What’s what we’ll ask for next.
What needs to be done is estimated.
Both effort and outcome identified
We get on the same page by what’s stated
The approval process is also eyed.
With the who and the what firmly nailed down
PMs can move on to When-n-where Town.

When/Where

Slotting in work depends when it is due,
But also when can we start on our code?
The budget might not allow immediate action,
So know when to begin and when to be done.
And since we don’t code like cowboys risking,
When can this work be sent to production?
And where is production code sent whisking?
Where will staging code endure construction?
And there are more wheres that need to be known,
Like where will we track task conversation
And where to track time as efforts are sown.
(Untracked time causes PM frustration.)
With all aforementioned finally filed,
Seek out the tamers of projects most wild.

Why/How

Because it was there, Mallory labored
Summiting peaks as if they were hillsides
But change for change’s sake is like a jaybird
Spinning through space on a whimsy joyride.
Why work is sought out is crucial to find;
The code must target an issue to thrive.
Issues mean metrics to keep top of mind
To suss out success once code work goes live.
Lastly is how, as in How is this solved?
Let your dev team handle all this thinking
After, you should understand what’s resolved;
Give space at first for solution linking.
Your workflow will flourish when firstly fed
these basic questions, John metrically said.