Do you know the seven deadly sins of approval - whether you are approving a project to proceed or signing off a deliverable, make sure you know how to get solid approval.

1. The Seven Deadly Sins of
Approval
An extract from my new book -
Kick-Ass Project Management by Kevin McAleer

2. The Seven Deadly Sins of Approval
Projects require approval at various points along the way
to ensure people agree and commit to decisions.
Its therefore really important that approval is defined and
agreed before it is asked for.
APPROVAL MUST BE BY ACTIVE
AGREEMENT.

3. Approval cannot be:
 By proxy
 By default
 By time out
 By silence or lack of reply
 In absentia
 By word of mouth only
 Without evidence of agreement

4. Approval cannot be by proxy
Because the delegated person
may not hold the same view as
the actual approver

5. Approval cannot be by default
Because this may be a straight
forward mistake

6. Approval cannot be by time out
The approver may be on leave,
sick or otherwise unavailable –
they may still have a valid view on
the thing being approved.

7. Approval cannot be by silence or lack of
reply
How do you know they actually
approve if they haven't responded.
Maybe they emailed reasons to
reject the approval and you haven't
received it yet.

8. Approval cannot be by In absentia
They may not have been able to
make the approval meeting, but
have a very good reason to object
to the approval that you do not
know about.

9. Approval cannot be by word of mouth
only
People often forget what they
agreed to.

10. Approval cannot be without evidence of
agreement
You got that in writing, right?

11. Positive Agreement
Approval is by positive, present
agreement between the parties
involved.
It is also recorded and stored in a
location where people can find it
and refer to it.

12. For more Kick-Ass Project
Management advice,
tips and tricks - Visit:
http://www.kickasspmbook.com
By Kevin McAleer, Copyright 2014 Advice Factory Ltd