Project Health Check

AUGUST 8, 2017

Du ring the Project Start-up and planning phase, projects will execute detailed planning processes to produce a Performance Measurement Baseline of Cost/Schedule/Scope and an associated Project Management Plan. The project schedule will then steer the project through the foggy waters of its lifecycle and eventually help it to find its way to delivery and closedown. But what about the planning phase itself when the schedule doesn't exist yet?

Planning 177

Planning 2017 Performance Measurement Governance 177

Project Health Check

OCTOBER 23, 2017

PRINCE2 is a popular UK Project Management methodology, that continues to gain traction in other locations around the world. Now managed by Axelos, it is part of a comprehensive and integrated best practice suite along side other methodologies such as Management of Risk (M_o_R) and Managing Successful Programmes (MSP).

Prince2 198

Prince2 2017 Project Life Cycle Certification 198

Project Health Check

NOVEMBER 27, 2017

In part 1 of this article series, we accepted that Projects sometimes need to be cancelled. In part 2, we look at how sometimes the Project being worked on is no longer the right Project. In this part 3, we will look at the other cause of cancelling: the Project isn't being done right. A classic way to consider project performance is via the triple constraint of scope/cost/time, often with quality thrown in the mix.

2017 179

2017 Performance Measurement Initiating Estimate 179

Project Health Check

OCTOBER 9, 2017

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, Project Managers (PMs) live and die by the Plan. The entire purpose of the Start-up Phase of a Project is to produce a comprehensive Plan for the Project; consisting of an integrated Performance Measurement Baseline (Time, Cost, Scope) and an associated Project Management Plan to monitor and control it. Once the planning is complete, the Project shifts into the main Execution phase which will form the vast bulk of the timeline.

2017 192

2017 Prince2 Performance Measurement Influencer 192

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Project Health Check

MARCH 12, 2018

Delivering projects is a tricky business, achieved by skilled practitioners in their field – be it software development, events management, construction, oil & gas etc. It is the wonderful individuals who work on projects who deliver the output that will ultimately mean the project meeting its business case.

2018 156

2018 Construction Defining Software 156

Project Health Check

SEPTEMBER 25, 2017

Risk Management is one of the well established fundamentals of Project Management. Whatever system or tool you use, the basics of rating risks with some degree of severity and impact is well understood, and then doing something to stop it (because they usually are threats). But I have a challenge for you: look back over your last Project and consider - how many of the issues that occurred along the way were from impacted Risks that were identified on your Risk Log? I predict very few of them.

Risk Management 120

Risk Management Risk 2017 PMO 120

Project Health Check

NOVEMBER 20, 2017

In part 1 of this article series, we accepted that Projects sometimes need to be cancelled. In this part 2, we look at one of the two reasons we identified: it's no longer the right Project. Projects are often part of a Programme, a wider organisational structure that looks at the bigger picture and the long term business strategy across many years. Individual Projects on the other hand tend to come-and-go,the way, maybe lasting a couple of years at most.

2017 177

2017 Infrastructure Manufacturing Influencer 177

Project Health Check

OCTOBER 16, 2017

Agile is a methodology which is getting more and more traction in the IT industry, to the point where the word is agile is thrown around out of context and with incorrect capitalisation. There are many variants, but a feature now common to many is the idea of a daily Scrum meeting to manage the work. In our experience, how this meeting is planned and executed will set the tone for the entire project, and how effectively they embrace the true Agile approach.

2017 160

2017 SCRUM Agile Executing 160

Project Health Check

SEPTEMBER 4, 2017

When you're starting a new project, you of course identify staffing requirements as part of your estimating. You start to "put bums on seats" as you ramp up the project towards the Execution phase and on-board your project team. You hopefully even have a Team Management Plan that describes how you manage the team; how you on-board, train, mentor and recognise staff. You do all of that and think "phew! That's another job done!"

2017 120

2017 Executing Risk Planning 120

Speaker: Shannon Lietz, Director of DevSecOps Team, Intuit

The new DevSecOps team is up and running, and you feel ready to take on rising security threats while delivering quality software updates. But that leaves just one question: how do you monitor your new program as effectively and efficiently as possible? Join Shannon Lietz, Director of DevsecOps at Intuit, and award-winning innovator, to learn the answers to these questions so you can lead your DevSecOps team to the top!

Monitoring

Project Health Check

SEPTEMBER 18, 2017

Let's talk Dependencies. A Dependency is a relationship between two activities, and is most often encountered in the Project Schedule. In this case they are used to structure the order of tasks, to help you plan the Project. Logically, there are four type of Dependency relationship - shown in the diagram below: F-S: Finish to Start - When the first task finishes the second can begin.

Risk Management 120

Risk Management 2017 Closing Risk 120

Project Health Check

JULY 29, 2017

On February 12 2002, US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld made a now famous remark that has since went on to be commented on widely by critics and thinkers. It would become so famous that it would become the title of his autobiography "Known and Unknown: A Memoir", and provides a superb basis to discuss our approach to Project Risk Management: ". because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know.

Risk 120

Risk Risk Management 2017 2002 120

Project Health Check

AUGUST 21, 2017

We all make Assumptions every day, mostly without thinking about it. The reason we don't think about it is because we are so confident they are true; be it how something will turn out, what someone will do or what something is like. They are the bedrock of day to day life, and we just don't notice them. Project Management is exactly the same; we make many Assumptions in planning our Project, things that we almost take for granted.

2017 131

2017 Risk Management Monitoring Risk 131

Project Health Check

AUGUST 2, 2017

Project Risk Logs are pretty well institutionalised, and we mentioned them in our last blog post. But what about Issue Logs? We've heard Issues defined as an impacted risk, an unknown question that needs answering, or just a general spanner in the works that will cause you to go off-plan. In our experience, Project Issues pop up so thick and fast that most never even get documented.

2017 120

2017 Risk Management Risk Budget 120

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Project Health Check

FEBRUARY 19, 2018

We’ve all been there, a manager taking far too much interest in our every action at work, micro managing our day to day lives. We may have even fallen accidentally into this trap ourselves, spending far too much time in the detail. Either way, it should soon become obvious that this micromanagement approach is unsustainable and ineffective; this is where the Principle of “Manage by exception” comes from.

Prince2 120

Prince2 2018 Defining Agile 120

Project Health Check

OCTOBER 2, 2017

Lean Six Sigma, a management buzzword that seems to persist and many don't understand. But what is it and how is it related to Project Management? Lean Six Sigma is an approach for Process Improvement Projects, combining many different conceptual tools depending on the situation. Essentially Lean Six Sigma is a fusion of two ideas: "Lean" and "Six Sigma": Lean Lean is a approach that seeks to eliminate Waste during a production process; it originated in Japan on the production lines of Toyota.

Lean 139

Lean 2017 Transportation Prince2 139

Project Health Check

DECEMBER 11, 2017

Agile is an approach which is extremely prevent in the IT industry, to the point where unfortunately the word “agile” tends to be thrown around everywhere, often out of context. Agile is strictly speaking a mind-set, with four foundational values and twelve supporting principles from the Agile Manifesto.

2017 120

2017 SCRUM Initiating Risk Management 120

Project Health Check

AUGUST 6, 2017

Here's the thing about Lessons Learned: you're not learning them. In our experience, most organisations at best identify them - but is anything actually learned? Is changed behaviour ingrained into the lifeblood of the organisation? We have our doubts. A few reflections we have on Project Lessons Learned activities: Does your organisation have a Lessons Learned repository? If not then how do you hope to record and implement them?

2017 120

2017 Agile Process Planning 120

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Monitoring

Project Health Check

AUGUST 24, 2017

There's lots of talking on Projects; too much really. And so little of value said. People lurch from meeting to meeting, telecon to telecon, wear out the carpet on their mobile phones. People proffer opinions, half baked viewpoints, analysis and hot air. Next time they do that, just stop them and ask "What's your data point?". They won't know what you mean of course; but then it is a phrase we basically just made up.

2017 120

2017 Finance Lean Planning 120

Project Health Check

AUGUST 14, 2017

In our Precious Blog entry we reflected generally on Project Lessons Learned. Now let us spell out a structured Process that we suggest: Plan Lessons Capture - Lessons Learned (L.L.) need to be pro-actively orchestrated by the Project Manager, they won't just happen by accident. A specific effort must be made in the same way as all other project activities.

Process 120

Process 2017 Monitoring Infrastructure 120

Project Health Check

MARCH 5, 2018

Ka nban is something that features in both Lean Six Sigma and Agile software development. It descended from the Lean improvements of the Toyota Production System, and is a proven approach to optimise effectiveness of a production line system. How then can it be useful for a project manager, if it’s about production lines for motor vehicles I hear you ask?

2018 120

2018 Lean Agile Software 120

Project Health Check

SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

This is a new one for us - Book Reviews! Continued learning and development is important not just for Project Managers, but for practitioners in any field; this development needs to be a combination of new in-the-field experiences, and the theoretical grounding it is based upon. This particular book is the "Project Management Pocketbook", by Keith Posner and Mike Applegarth, and stands out on my Project Management Bookshelf both physically and conceptually.

2017 120

2017 Certification Planning 120

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Project Health Check

JULY 30, 2017

We regard Processes as the bedrock for successful Project Management. I think W. Edwards Deming said it best: " If you can't describe what you are doing as a process, you don't know what you're doing" Our Project Plans should describe how we intend to leverage and operate our organisation's Standard Processes - which should (hopefully) exist above and beyond the Project. And not just our Project Management Processes (Schedule/Cost Management etc) but the technical delivery aspects also.

Process 120

Process 2017 Prince2 Certification 120

Project Health Check

NOVEMBER 15, 2017

Work in Project Management long enough, and eventually you will come across everything - this will include having a Project you were working on cancelled. This can be a difficult process because we are often personally invested in Projects, and seeing all that hard work being seemingly be in vein can be difficult. In this article series I give some considerations to cancelling projects, discussing if it should be done, why it should be and how.

2017 171

2017 Leadership Process 171

Project Health Check

DECEMBER 4, 2017

In part 1 of this article series, we accepted that Projects sometimes need to be cancelled. In part 2, we look at how sometimes the Project being worked on is no longer the right Project, and in part 3, we looked at the other cause of cancelling: the Project isn't being done right. In this final part 4, we will look at how Projects should be cancelled.

2017 152

2017 Infrastructure Controlling Software 152

ProjectManager.com

FEBRUARY 26, 2021

When you start the planning process for a project, one of the first things you need to think about is: what can go wrong? It sounds negative, but pragmatic project managers know this type of thinking is preventative.

2021 401

2021 Risk Risk Management Process 401

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This report is designed to help readers select an embedded analytics product. It provides 12 criteria to consider when evaluating embedded capabilities. It also comes with a companion spreadsheet that enables users to score and compare products along these 12 dimensions and others they may add.

2021

ProjectManager.com

DECEMBER 2, 2020

Risk is always present. This is true in life and projects alike. If we were to try and avoid all risks, it would be paralyzing—not to mention impossible. We couldn’t step out of the house, let alone embark on a project. There’s just too much that could go wrong!

Strategy 371

Strategy Risk 2020 Planning 371

ProjectManager.com

MARCH 1, 2021

Getting goods to customers involves a lot of coordination. There are demands to meet and raw materials to procure—not to mention scheduling the manufacturing of the commodity to deliver it in time and meet customer needs.

2021 248

2021 Manufacturing Planning Construction 248

ProjectManager.com

FEBRUARY 22, 2021

To start your small business journey off on the right foot, download our small business plan template and break down your idea into actionable components. Before you can start your business, you need to find your niche, seek out financial backing and create a plan to bring your idea into fruition.

2021 243

2021 Planning Logistics Executing 243

ProjectManager.com

JANUARY 6, 2021

Planning a project involves a lot of coordination of time, tasks and costs. It can feel like an insurmountable job, but just remember that plenty of projects are planned and executed every single day. You can do it too!

2021 303

2021 Planning Risk Management Risk 303

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2020

ProjectManager.com

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

A project isn’t complete until all the work is done. But what do you do when there are straggler tasks that fall outside of the boundaries of the contract? How do you keep track of these items and ensure they’ll be completed? That’s where this punch list template comes in handy.

2021 252

2021 Construction Risk Management Closing 252

LiquidPlanner

AUGUST 14, 2018

Let’s say you’re well-qualified in your technical skills—be it Java, programming languages, infrastructure, networks or system administration. Qualifications take time and effort, but as well as learning useful skills, you’re also building confidence—your own and the others’ confidence in your ability to do a great job. But what if you’re switching from a purely technical role to one that involves managing projects?

Certification 708

Certification 2018 Risk Management Infrastructure 708

ProjectManager.com

NOVEMBER 23, 2020

Projects create deliverables, which are simply the results of the project or the processes in the project. That means a deliverable can be something as big as the objective of the project itself or the reporting that is part of the larger project.

2020 325

2020 Risk Management Project Life Cycle Planning 325

ProjectManager.com

OCTOBER 15, 2020

When managing a project, one is required to make a lot of key decisions. There is always something that needs executing, and often that something is critical to the success of the venture. Because of the high stakes, good managers don’t just make decisions based on gut instinct.

2020 405

2020 Risk Management Risk Consulting 405

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How can project planning that stretches over months or years remain relevant and account for new ad-hoc activities that arrive every day?

2020