Gap Analysis [PDF]

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Identifying What Needs to be Done in a Project So ur ce: Mind To o ls (www.mi nd to o l s.c o m /pa g es/ar tic l e/ g ap - an a l ysis. h t m )



This simple tool helps you identify the gap between your current situation and the future state that you want to reach, along with the tasks that you need to complete to close this gap.



To conduct a Gap Analysis for your project, follow these three steps:



Note: Gap Analysis is useful at the beginning of a project when developing a business model, and it's essential when you're identifying the tasks that you need to complete to deliver your project.



First, identify the objectives that you need to achieve. This gives you your future state - the "place" where you want to be once you've completed your project. Example: Future State • Increase Diversity Week attendance to 500 per day.



Current Situation



Next Actions/ Proposals



For each of your objectives, analyze your current situation. To do this, consider the following questions:  Who has the knowledge that you need? Who will you need



to speak with to get a good picture of your current situation?  Is the information in people's heads, or is it documented somewhere?  What's the best way to get this information? By using brainstorming workshops? Through one-to-one interviews? By reviewing documents? By observing project activities such as design workshops? Or in some other way?



Future State • Increase Diversity Week attendance to 500 per day.



Current Situation • Approximately 75 students are present at any single time.



Next Actions/ Proposals



Once you know your future state and your current situation, you can think about what you need to do to bridge the gap and reach your project's objectives.



Future State • Increase Diversity Week attendance to 500 per day.



Current Situation • Approximately 75 students are present at any single time.



Next Actions/ Proposals • Develop an effective advertising and marketing plan to reach out to ALL students on campus. • Develop a system to get “continuous” feedback from students to know whether they have the information for Diversity Week. • More culturally representative; MiddleEast, Asian, etc.



 Pitch your Gap Analysis to provide an appropriate



amount of detail. If you present too much detail, people will be overwhelmed, but if you don't give enough detail, you won't tell them what they need to know to sign the project off.  When you analyze your future situation and current state, use metrics where information can be quantified (such as "costs of the product."), and general statements when metrics aren't available (such as "creativity is valued within the organization.")



Also remember that your assessment of the current situation and the desired future state can be both quantitative and qualitative. For instance: Current Situation



Future State



Quantitative



Total costs are $1,000.



Total costs will be $1,500.



Qualitative



Team members work in isolation.



Team members will work collaboratively.



 Gap Analysis compares your current situation with the



future state that you want to achieve once your project is complete. By conducting a Gap Analysis, you can identify what you need to do to "bridge the gap" and make your project a success. You can use Gap Analysis at any stage of a project to analyze your progress, but it's most useful at the beginning.  To carry out a Gap Analysis, first identify your project's objectives - this is your "future state." Then analyze your current situation, making sure that you gather information from the right sources.  Finally, identify how you'll bridge the gap between your current situation and the desired future state.



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