Identify Deliverable(s) and Outcomes

A deliverable is the actual product or service you will provide. For a class it may be a major paper or something you design like a webzine, etc. For a company it may be the product they sell or the service they provide to clients. Now that you have thought about how your project fits with the mission statement and/or objectives for the assignment, class, or company, etc., you need to think about the steps involved in creating your deliverable.

Let’s imagine you need to create a pamphlet for a nonprofit organization. You would need to do some research, write the text for the pamphlet, obtain or create the graphics, and design the pamphlet itself to name just a few of the steps involved. Each of these steps can be called outcomes.

Another way to think of outcomes is that they measure progress towards the goal of completing your project. Outcomes must be specific, measurable, and meaningful to the project. Writing the text in the above example is specific, can be measured, and certainly is meaningful to the project.

So as you plan your project also plan your steps, or outcomes that need to be finished in order to complete your project.