February 7,
2010
Greetings {!firstname}!
I have posted two new articles on the
Project Success Tips blog. The first is on agile project management... and no, I am not referring to Scrum, a
methodology used for agile software development. I am referring to an approach to project management that is
agile and adaptive - and most definitely applicable to all types of business projects.
The second article is about the "ungrounded
middle" in projects and the need for project managers to pay attention to the team's emotional issues that may
arise in the middle of projects.
Project management today - on being agile and adaptive
by Raymond Posch
You’ve heard the term “business agility”, I’m sure. And I’m sure you have a
general sense of what it means… responding to the pace of
business change, being innovative and creative, responding to competition and other business
challenges…
Well, as part of business agility, I’m one who believes that the need to be
agile applies very much to business project management as well.
Read the full article
Projects and the ungrounded
middle
by Raymond Posch
Because continuous learning is more important than ever in our
fast-paced world, I read information technology and project management publications as often as I can. When
projects are demanding your time at nearly every moment, it can be hard to do - but you must make the time to
break away from the pressure and take in some input from others.
Project Success Tips of the
Week
Learn and Apply Agile Principles
Projects today, just like businesses generally, must be managed in ways that are agile and
adaptive. (Read the first article to learn
more.)
Practice Continuous Learning and Seek Input from
Others
Project managers need insights, ideas,
inspiration, and motivation. (Read the first few paragraphs of the second article to learn
more.)
Pay Attention to Team
Emotions Teams need motivation
and inspiration just like project managers do, especially at the project's emotional low point. (Read the
rest of the second article to learn more.)
February
14, 2010
The first article today is the
fourth in the series by Glen Alleman on programmatic risk management.
The second article is an article by
me about planning and making decisions based on facts instead of emotions and
assumptions.
Thinking Like a Risk Manager
Article 4 in a Series on Risk
Management
By Glen
Alleman
Now that we have a framework to speak
about risk management, how exactly are we going to “manage” the project? First, let’s revisit a quote
from Tim Lister:
Risk Management is How Adults Manage
Projects
My apologies for
restating this particular quote so often - but I’m wanting to make a point… Risk management is a
significant concern in almost all large projects today. Professional project managers on large projects
need to take the concern seriously.
Read the full article
Plan and Act Based on
Reality
by Raymond Posch
Part of the project manager’s job is to help the business understand the
reality of what the project will take in terms of the time and cost to produce a particular result (i.e.,
scope and quality). Just like when you shop for a new car, you may think you want all the best features and
top quality, but when you see the price tag, you (the customer) may decide that keeping cost below a
certain limit is more important than having all those features. Therefore, you decide that less power and
less luxury can suit you perfectly fine. You (the customer) adjust your requirements
accordingly.
During the course of the project, the project
manager must often make decisions based on achieving or
maintaining the right balance of scope (what is to be created and its level of quality), the schedule
(time), and the cost (resources). This must be done based on the information known to the
project.
Read the full article
Project Success Tip of the
Week
Plan and Act Based on Facts
During project planning and execution, plan and make
decisions based on known facts and agreed-to requirements. Beware of assumptions, guessing, and
seat-of-the-pants choices (usually emotional)... using those for project plans and decisions are
usually high risk. Instead make plans and choices based on solid information and rational
thinking.
February 21, 2010 - No issue - Instead I distributed the free special report,
How Projects Get Done.
February 28, 2010
See my blog post on "How to know you're adhering to core PM principles". If you want to greatly
increase project success, I strongly recommend that you begin paying more attention to
principles of project success rather than just project management techniques.
A great many project managers focus on tools and techniques, but when you
master the principles of project success, you will know what is most important and why in
successfully working with teams to achieve business goals.
----------------
Project Success Tip of the Week:
Focus on Business Results
During project initiation, focus on understanding
the desired business results. Then throughout project planning, execution, and monitoring and
control, focus on delivering those results.
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