Project Health Check Skill

Systematic assessment of individual project health across multiple dimensions.

Purpose

This skill provides a framework for:

• Comprehensive project status assessment

• Early warning identification

• Root cause analysis

• Recovery recommendation

• Stakeholder communication

Prerequisites

Before health check, ensure:

Prerequisite Required For Source

Project baseline Variance calculation Project plan

Current status data Health assessment Project manager

Stakeholder feedback Satisfaction assessment Stakeholders

Risk register Risk health Risk analyst

Health Check Dimensions

Dimension 1: Schedule Health

Metrics:

Metric Formula Green Yellow Red

SPI EV / PV

= 0.95 0.85-0.94 < 0.85

Schedule Variance EV - PV

= 0 -5% to 0 < -5%

Milestone Status On-time %

= 90% 70-89% < 70%

Assessment Questions:

• Is the project on schedule?

• Are milestones being met?

• What is causing any delays?

• Is the critical path protected?

Dimension 2: Cost Health

Metrics:

Metric Formula Green Yellow Red

CPI EV / AC

= 0.95 0.85-0.94 < 0.85

Cost Variance EV - AC

= 0 -5% to 0 < -5%

EAC vs Budget EAC / BAC <= 1.05 1.05-1.15

1.15

Assessment Questions:

• Is the project within budget?

• What is driving cost variance?

• Is the estimate at completion acceptable?

• Are there unplanned costs emerging?

Dimension 3: Scope Health

Metrics:

Metric Green Yellow Red

Scope Changes < 3 3-5

5

Change Impact < 5% baseline 5-10%

10%

Requirements Stability Stable Some changes Significant flux

Assessment Questions:

• Is scope under control?

• How many changes since baseline?

• What is driving scope changes?

• Is there scope creep occurring?

Dimension 4: Quality Health

Metrics:

Metric Green Yellow Red

Defect Rate Below target At target Above target

Rework % < 10% 10-20%

20%

Test Pass Rate

95% 85-95% < 85%

Assessment Questions:

• Is quality acceptable?

• What is the defect trend?

• Is rework manageable?

• Are acceptance criteria being met?

Dimension 5: Risk Health

Metrics:

Metric Green Yellow Red

Open Critical Risks 0 1-2

2

Risk Trend Decreasing Stable Increasing

Mitigation Progress On track Delayed Blocked

Assessment Questions:

• Are risks being managed?

• Are mitigations effective?

• Any new critical risks?

• Are issues being resolved?

Dimension 6: Stakeholder Health

Metrics:

Metric Green Yellow Red

Stakeholder Satisfaction Satisfied Concerns Escalations

Communication Effectiveness Good Gaps noted Major issues

Decision Timeliness Timely Some delays Blocked

Assessment Questions:

• Are stakeholders satisfied?

• Is communication effective?

• Are decisions being made timely?

• Any relationship issues?

Health Check Gates

Gate 1: Data Collection

Objective: Gather current project data

Actions:

• Collect schedule data (actuals, forecasts)

• Collect cost data (actuals, forecasts)

• Review scope changes

• Review quality metrics

• Update risk register

• Gather stakeholder feedback

Output: docs/pmo/{date}/project-{name}-data.md

Gate 2: Health Assessment

Objective: Assess each dimension and overall health

Actions:

• Score each dimension (1-10)

• Calculate overall health score

• Identify red flags

• Document root causes

Health Score Calculation:

Dimension Weight

Schedule 25%

Cost 20%

Scope 15%

Quality 20%

Risk 10%

Stakeholder 10%

Overall Score Interpretation:

• 8-10: Healthy

• 6-7.9: Manageable

• 4-5.9: At Risk

• < 4: Critical

Output: docs/pmo/{date}/project-{name}-assessment.md

Gate 3: Recommendations

Objective: Provide actionable recommendations

Actions:

• Prioritize issues by impact

• Identify quick wins

• Recommend recovery actions

• Define success criteria

Recommendation Categories:

Category Urgency Examples

Immediate This week Escalation, resource injection

Short-term This month Process change, replan

Medium-term This quarter Restructure, descope

Long-term Future Lessons learned, prevention

Output: docs/pmo/{date}/project-{name}-recommendations.md

Anti-Rationalization Table

See shared-patterns/anti-rationalization.md for universal anti-rationalizations.

Health Check-Specific Anti-Rationalizations

Rationalization Why It's WRONG Required Action

"PM says project is green" Self-reported status often optimistic. Verify with data. Validate with metrics

"One dimension is off, overall is fine" One critical dimension can sink a project. Address all yellow/red dimensions

"Wait and see if it improves" Delays compound problems. Early intervention is cheaper. Act on warning signs

"They're aware of the issues" Awareness ≠ action. Verify mitigation progress. Confirm corrective actions

Pressure Resistance

See shared-patterns/pressure-resistance.md for universal pressure scenarios.

Health Check-Specific Pressures

Pressure Type Request Agent Response

"Make the status green for the exec report" "Status must reflect reality. Will provide accurate status with context and recovery plan."

"Don't dig into that dimension" "All dimensions must be assessed. Selective assessment misses problems."

"The PM has it under control" "PM optimism is natural. Independent assessment provides balance."

Blocker Criteria - STOP and Report

ALWAYS pause and report blocker for:

Situation Required Action

Overall health < 4 (Critical) STOP. Immediate executive escalation required.

Multiple dimensions Red STOP. Recovery intervention needed.

Data unavailable for assessment STOP. Cannot assess without data. Request information.

Stakeholder loss of confidence STOP. Relationship repair needed before project work.

Cannot Be Overridden

The following requirements are NON-NEGOTIABLE:

Requirement Cannot Override Because

All six dimensions assessed Partial assessment misses critical issues

Data-driven scoring Opinions without data lead to wrong conclusions

Root cause analysis for Red Symptoms without causes cannot be fixed

Evidence-based status Feelings don't predict project outcomes

Stakeholder feedback inclusion Project health includes perception, not just metrics

If user insists on violating these:

• Escalate to orchestrator

• Do NOT proceed with incomplete assessment

• Document the request and your refusal

Severity Calibration

When assessing health check findings:

Severity Criteria Examples

CRITICAL Project viability at risk Overall health < 4, sponsor withdrawing, budget frozen

HIGH Significant intervention needed Any dimension Red, schedule slip > 2 weeks, cost overrun > 15%

MEDIUM Active management required Dimensions Yellow, minor variances, stakeholder concerns

LOW Normal monitoring All Green with minor improvements possible

Escalate CRITICAL immediately. Address HIGH this week. Monitor MEDIUM bi-weekly.

Output Format

Health Check Report

Project Health Check - [Project Name] - [Date]

Overall Health Score: X/10 - [Green/Yellow/Red]

Dimension Scores

Key Findings

Red Flags

1. [Finding with evidence]

Yellow Flags

1. [Finding with evidence]

Positive Signs

1. [Finding with evidence]

Root Cause Analysis

Recommendations

Immediate (This Week)

1. [Action] - Owner: [Name]

Short-term (This Month)

1. [Action] - Owner: [Name]

Decisions Required

1. [Decision needed with options]

Execution Report

Base metrics per shared-patterns/execution-report.md:

Metric Value

Analysis Date YYYY-MM-DD

Scope [Project name]

Duration Xh Ym

Result COMPLETE/PARTIAL/BLOCKED

Health Check-Specific Details

Metric Value

health_score X/10

schedule_variance X%

cost_variance X%

scope_changes N

When Health Check Is Not Needed

Condition Verification

Recent check exists (<14 days) Reference existing health check

No reported issues Confirm no new risks or blockers

Project in maintenance phase Verify no active development

Stakeholders satisfied Confirm no escalations or concerns

MUST: Full health check REQUIRED for the following conditions:

Condition Why Required

Project status changed Yellow/Red requires immediate assessment

Milestone approaching Risk assessment needed before milestone

Stakeholder escalation received Must diagnose the concern

Project phase transition Entry/exit criteria must be validated

Periodic review cadence Regular health monitoring required

MUST: When in doubt, conduct the health check. Undetected issues become crises.