Project Premortem

Description

Teams roleplay project failure to uncover hidden challenges and strengthen their operational approach.

Objective

Identify potential existential threats to the M&A project by roleplaying project failure.

Technique

Unlike other forms of preliminary risk analy- sis that attempt to foresee various challenges that could emerge over the project lifecycle, a premortem assumes that the project has already failed and attempts to explain why. By placing the “mortem” examination before, rather than after, the deal, this play allows the deal team to take meaningful steps against project failure, rather than simply reacting after the fact.

• Roleplay failure scenarios to anticipate areas of weakness before the project commences
• Hold Program Retrospectives at a regular cadence
• Work collaboratively to solve problems that have been identified
• Consider how the scenarios (risks and opportunities) you have roleplayed affect your existing plan