General versus Project Management

by Alan Tsuda

I’ve been asked by many beginning project management students about the difference between general and project management. My simple answer has been that the things that make a good general manager (GM) help a project manager (PM), and that the PM does a few additional things specific to projects. That seems to satisfy most, but it got me thinking about my experiences.

In many ways, I don’t see a real distinction. As a GM I’ve used project management techniques in many situations. For example, in the case of HR – specifically, developing people – I’ve often used project concepts and structures. Defining clear deliverables, acceptance criteria, timelines, progress reporting, and so on, lend themselves to good management.

Similarly, as a PM, I’ve had to use skills that are not specific to project management such as political and influencing skills.

So, from a management skills perspective, I see a vast overlap.

Maybe it’s on the leadership side of things that more distinctions arise? For me, I don’t think so. I’ve seen managers in both the general and project environments with no leadership attributes and those with great leadership (of course, there are those with management skills and those without). In my opinion, the best managers in both contexts have good management skills and leadership behavior (the next best are those with leadership and the ability to attract and motivate those with good management skills).

So, if it’s not management skills nor leadership behavior, is there a major distinction to be made?

For me it’s about the scope of responsibility. In my experience as a PM, I’ve always focused on making “it” happen. As a PM, I was more concerned about limiting scope to the extent that I could clearly define and measure success and thus increase the probability of project success. I was not so concerned about whether the project was actually the best utilization of resources in aligment with the initiatives and strategic position of the enterprise.

As a GM, I’ve been responsible for deciding what “it” should be. Yes, it can still be thought of as a matter of degree. As a PM, I’ve had influence over the strategic and tactical portfolio of projects; and as a GM, I’ve had to think about “doability.”

For example, I remember a state government-sponsored initiative where then out of work technology workers were to become teachers. As a PM, I was focused on defining a project with deliverables that could be clearly measured in a timely manner – we ended up with a 4 month project to recruit and enroll a specific number workers in teacher certification programs. As a PM, I was satisfied. I was not primarily worried about whether children would be better educated, or whether school districts would be able to hire new teachers, or whether parents would be more likely to keep their children in the public school system, or whether workers would quit as soon as tech jobs became available again.

As a GM, I did care about those things. I had significant issues regarding the usefulness of spending resources on this program. While a politically attractive initiative showing action in dealing with two issues of significant concern to constituents, it did not strike me as particularly effective in the context of improving schools or dealing with employment/job issues. It was my responsibility to decide to do it or not.
So, there’s my take on GM versus PM. Not so much about skills or leadership. Not a clean demarkation, but a difference in the scope of responsibility.

10 Questions to Ask Before Starting a Project

These questions are primarily intended for the web developer who is stepping into a new role at an organization that is already established. It is not necessarily suited to the entrepreneur web developer who is creating their own site for their personal usage.

The questions are intended for business web site development and enhancements. For example, a particular small business might already have a web site, but they want to take it to the next level.

That's why they hired you.

Now it's time for you to step up to the plate.

1. Determine who the powers-that-be are and who has a say in how the content appears on the site. It's best to get a sense of what is expected before you do anything at all. Of course, if the site is already online, study what was already done so you have a sense of what is currently taking place.
2. Determine the scope of the site. What purpose will the site serve? Will it be merely an online brochure? Do you want it to attract new customers? Will you publish company deliverables? Do you want to list your clients? How do you want prospective and existing customers to contact you? Will you be selling goods and services through the site? Now is a good time to create a list of features and functionality. You can break this down into Must Haves to Get Started, Nice to Haves if Time Permits, and Plans for Future Expansion.
   As you discuss the purpose of the site with the Powers That Be, start keeping a list of keywords that are essential to the business. This will help you later as you work towards building up strong search engine optimization (SEO) tactics.
3. Start thinking about the infrastructure of the site. Will you need a CMS, an image library, or is the site better suited as a Portal, or maybe a static HTML site is all that you need. This is also a good time to start asking budget questions and if the company can afford an expensive solution or if the budget is calling for a hand-built site. Also, will the site be hosted locally, or will a third-party host the site? This is also a good time to discuss the ways and means the site will be updated. How the site is built has much to do with current needs, future growth plans and available resources.
4. Ask who is going to provide the initial content and who will provide content on an on-going basis. Keeping the site fresh with new and relevant content is an important step to keep the site vibrant and gives existing customers a reason to check back on the site.
   This is also a good time to start thinking about procedures and guidelines. Having a straight forward approach to content publication is essential to a well-run website.
5. Now that you have an idea of the content and who is providing it, it's time to start thinking about how your visitors are going to find that content. How are you going to establish your navigation, menus, search functions and the home page?
6. Before you start creating any pages, it's important to set up a standard for the URLs. This is important for SEO. Also, if you are running a content site and you want your articles to appear in Google News, then you must follow Google's URL guidelines.
7. Now is a good time to start thinking about the common pages found on websites. Does your site need an About Us page, Contact Us page, Careers page, a listing of the current Staff, and/or Overviews of the company and the different departments?
8. Establish branding and identity into the templates, wire frames and CSS. Ask for any existing artwork, logos and fonts. This information will help determine the attitude of the site and the overall presentation.
9. After laying the ground work, start creating a few sample pages and format them in different ways. Use different functionality and test them. For example, on the home page, do you want visitors to rotate through different information (presenting information in a pseudo image gallery) or do you want them to click through to new pages? After you have a few versions prepared on your hard drive--before putting anything online for the world to see--get some feedback from the Powers That Be and listen to their ideas and suggestions.
10. Now that you have company approval and buy in, the last question to ask is, are you ready to do this? If so, get going!

[Source]

7 Questions to Gauge Your Project Team’s Potential

Today’s workforce is comprised of individuals forming a project team for a company or a certain project. Owner-managers need to make sure that their decisions will lead them to success. Business operations in a collaboration team should be treated hands-on. How? They can do it by performing proper project management.

Companies and businesses are aiming to be successful. They get workers that will help them achieve this goal. They form a productive team and eventually ask questions. Success depends on how the project manager performs proper team management. So, what are the important questions that every project manager should be able to answer?

1. As manager, are you leading the way to success?
Managing a project team means becoming a leader. Effective leadership is a part of project management where the manager should spend a considerable amount of time and energy. As a team leader, helping the team perform effectively is something that you have to decide on for the benefit of the team and the company as a whole. Team members will most likely to follow this good example, eventually creating a productive team in the process.

2. Does your team know the purpose, goals, objectives, and target?
Having a clear purpose right from the start is a necessary ingredient for team success. When forming project collaboration, the first question to ask is: What is our purpose? This purpose is the main reason why these individuals come together as a team. It is best that the collaboration team sticks to this all throughout the project duration in order to reach goals.

Once you all know the purpose, goals and objectives are listed down. Make sure that these goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely. As manager, you should be open to collaboration starting with this task of setting goals.

3. Are your team members delegated properly?
Teamwork is an important ingredient in every growing company or business. Every collaboration team has specific tasks to complete. These tasks must be properly assigned to the right person. Here is where task management comes in. Task management is an integral part of project management because it helps managers stick to a detailed and updated project schedule. Properly delegated team members would mean that there is potential for the team to succeed since there is good direction and it is sure that the project moves forward.

As manager, you should know your members well. Focus on their talents and strengths, as well as what they can contribute to the team effort. Managing tasks can help individuals achieve goals, as well as teams in terms of collaboration. Members should be delegated properly by assigning them familiar tasks that will enable them to become a productive team.

4. Is your team constantly developing ways of interacting and communicating effectively?
It is important to track the ways on how team members interact with each other over time. Especially in collaboration, it is important for everyone to be able to freely discuss team matters in a convenient manner.

Aside from availability of communication tools and processes such as open meetings and one on one interview, you should also conduct trainings and presentations to encourage interaction among the project team. As manager, you should proactively recognize team effort and individual contributions through regular meetings and appraisals. Keep in mind that how the productive team decides on matters, delegates tasks, and responds to accountability determines its potential.

5. Is your team virtually-equipped and ready to face technological advancements?
As the team leader, you have to make sure that you maintain an open-minded team. According to U.S. Office of Personnel Management a team should be open to the changes that happen internally and externally. Be it a change inside the team, inside the organization, or outside the business and even to technological changes, you should make sure that you have a team that is ready for the complexities that may happen in and out.

Project management is comprised of 90 percent communication. While managers still rely on personal contact to communicate and build trusting relationships with team members, it is most important for virtual project teams to keep communication lines wide open. Modern technology found ways to support virtual teams. The advantage of being virtually-equipped is their readiness to face modernization. The workplace is becoming fast-paced and it is important to maintain confidence among members. Virtual readiness means that the productive team can work independently while still being accountable for their tasks.

Communication tools include internet access, email, instant messaging, web meetings, conference calls, video conferencing, social media, shared files or directories, and availability of collaboration software. As project manager, you need to understand how to use project management tools such as Podio, Trello, Zoho and Binfire as well as the proper approach to team members.

6. As manager, are you monitoring the progress and collaboration?
Even if this is project collaboration, it does not necessarily mean that it’s okay to just wait for the project to end. As manager, it is your responsibility to form the right team, start the project and monitor the progress until it is done. You can find out if there is effective teamwork or proper use of communication tools. Part of team management is keeping track of constantly finding ways on how to improve the project, how to strictly follow the schedules or deadlines, and ironing out minor problems as well as pointing out.

7. As manager, do you value your committed team member?
The project team’s unity is crucial in maintaining the formed collaboration. If you have put together a group of dedicated, talented and capable individuals that perform well, it is best to let them stay long enough to know how the whole productive team works. When the time comes that they become highly competent and efficient team members, you are assured of achieving more for your company or business.

Valuing a committed member is a significant part of team management. A dedicated individual can contribute alone and perform well in a collaboration team.

As project manager, these seven questions are just a few to gauge the potential of your team. You can keep your team productive so that your company can benefit from their performance. You can do this by being a leader, building trustworthy relationships, creating job satisfaction, and rewarding your team members.

[Source]

OPM3

by Dennis Stevens

Last week I became an OPM3® Certified Consultant. After spending almost three years as the Deputy Project Manager with the volunteer team developing OPM3 Second Edition, I spent a week taking the OPM3 Certified Consultant course and passed the final exam. I have received a lot of questions about what that means and whether there is any value in it. There are about 100 OPM3 Certified Consultants in the world. I want to talk about OPM3, project management standards, getting organizationally mature, and what being an OPM3 Certified Consultant means. This might not sound exciting, but hang with me. There are very few organizations that won’t benefit from getting better at implementing strategy.

What is OPM3?

OPM3 is a standard that was first published in December of 2003 by the Project Management Institute. OPM3 stands for Organizational Project Management Maturity Model. Per PMI, “Organizational project management is the systematic management of projects, programs, and portfolios in alignment with the achievement of strategic goals. The concept of organizational project management is based on the idea that there is a correlation between an organization’s capabilities in Project Management, Program Management, and Portfolio Management, and the organizations effectiveness in implementing strategy.”

[There is some conflict in the terms process and capability. I will use the term capability consistently through my discussion. A capability describes “what you do and why you do it”. A process describes “how”. PMI doesn’t describe “how” in their standards even though they call them processes.]

To put this simply, organization’s have to implement changes in their structure, processes, management practices, and/or technology to implement a strategy. This is difficult but there are some capabilities that have been show to support them in consistently implementing these changes.  These capabilities can be categorized into effectively and efficiently executing projects, the coordination of multiple projects to optimize resource utilization and project performance, and deciding which projects are the best ones for the organization to invest in based on the organizations strategy. These are Project Management, Program Management, and Portfolio Management respectively. OPM3 uses the capabilities identified in PMI’s Project Management Body of Knowledge-4^th Edition, The Standard for Program Management-Second Edition, and The Standard for Portfolio Management-Second Edition. More on standards in a minute.

OPM3 wraps a continuous process improvement approach around these capabilities. For example, when implementing a project you probably want to manage the scope of the project. Within most organizations -most of the time, that means you have to gather requirements, define the scope of the project, and create a work plan when planning a project. There are a lot of different ways to do this. It may make sense on some projects to do this once at the start of the project and on other projects, you should do it iteratively and in progressively more detail. What organizations that are good at executing strategy do is they define how they are going to manage scope. Then they pay attention to how well this works continue to improve their method over time. This is organizationally mature.  OPM3 breaks the capabilities down into Standardize, Measure, Control, and Improve.

OPM3 also includes a set of Organizational Enablers. These are the capabilities that must exist in an organization to support the implementation and ongoing existence of Project Management capabilities. These include things like project management training, project management sponsorship, and other structural, cultural, technological and human resource practices.

You can pick up a copy of the OPM3 standard from PMI’s website for about $100. This standard describes the approach in detail, lists all the capabilities, and includes a nice Self Assessment tool in the appendix.

Project Management Standards

The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK) is a catalog of capabilities (called “processes” by PMI)  related to the management of projects. When the first OPM3 standard was published, PMI had not published standards for Portfolio Management or Program Management.  These first versions came out in 2006 and have been significantly updated with the simultaneous release of new Editions of the standards for Project, Program, Portfolio, and OPM3 in December of 2008.

The new standards provide a comprehensive catalogue of the capabilities that cover Project, Program, and Portfolio Management. These standards show the capabilities that will work in most organizations most of the time. They are based on years of research and the input of thousands of volunteers. They give examples of existing practices within the capabilities.  Despite what some critics claim, they don’t tell you “how” to implement those capabilities, just “what” you should be thinking about. They also don’t tell you to do all the capabilities whether they make sense for you or not, follow a high ceremony waterfall process, or make the purpose of the organization about project management.

Getting Mature

Maturity is an interesting concept. It has a lot of meanings. Mature can be a show you wouldn’t like your kids to watch, a bill of exchange that is due, or a ripe or fully aged piece of fruit. The definition of maturity I am using here is fully developed. What makes organizational project management maturity an interesting concept in business is that fully developed is different in almost every business. It can also change over time within an organization as the needs for project management change.  The key to organizational project management maturity is not to try to implement every capability with a robust set of process maturity. But to implement the capabilities that are right for helping a specific organization implement their specific strategy. This includes implementing an appropriate level of continuous improvement and only the necessary organizational enablers.

I have written about this focused approach to improving project management performance here and here. Invest when it improves the organizations ability to drive value. The goal is not to get better at project management, it is to get better at profitably delivering value to your customers. Project Management maturity efforts should be tied directly to business results.

 OPM3 Certified Consultant

An OPM3 Certified Consultant isn’t just someone who understands the OPM3 standard. Just to get into the course OPM3 Certified Consultant course you must demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of the OPM3 standard through completion of a SAM assessment or an OPM3 fundamentals course. An OPM3 Certified Consultant has demonstrated significant program or project management experience, since a PMP or PgMP is an eligibility requirement. An OPM3 Certified Consultant also has significant assessing and/or consulting experience.

Once in the course, the consultant is trained on the OPM3 assessment methodology and tool set, and the improvement methodology and tool set. This is during an intense four day training course. The consultant must successfully complete an exam.  The handbook that walks you through this process can be found at the PMI website.

The Value of OPM3 Certified Consultants

Most businesses can benefit from getting better at executing their strategy. Improving Organizational Project Management Maturity is a method of improving the organization ability to execute their strategy. OPM3 provides a systematic approach to identify and implement Organizational Project Management improvements appropriate to each business. Project Management Maturity is a tricky thing – it requires insight and experience to focus improvements in project management so it improves the organizations ability to deliver value to its customers. An OPM3 Certified Consultant has an assessment and improvement methodology, a robust tool set, and has demonstrated the experience with identifying and implementing improvements based on PMI’s standards.

For me, the value of the certification includes the assessment and improvement methodology training I received, the time I have spent with other experienced Organization Project leaders, access to the assessment and improvement tools provided by PMI, and some branding. I can combine this with my experience in software development and IT Operations excellence and cost optimization to rapidly deliver value to organizations. For organizations looking for a way to rapidly improve the performance of thier projects, an OPM3 certified consultant with proven experience and expertise in your domain is a good option. Guided by a proven systematic approach, they can perform an assessment and create an improvement roadmap and tie the improvements to your business results. 

The Pros and Cons of Remote Project Management

You’ve got to love technology. It wasn’t too terribly long ago that everyone thought faxing was amazing. The image came across on the other side on a long, scrolling piece of thermal paper that looked similar to a big roll of toilet paper. Plus, you needed to read the fax pretty quickly because the image seemed to fade and disappear in just a matter of weeks. Regardless of minor inconveniences, it was remarkable that documents and images could be transmitted from one side of the world to the next within seconds.

Now, faxing is so 1990. Think about what we have now: webinars, video conferences, the ability to take control of someone else’s computer remotely, remote whiteboard sessions, and long distance phone calls that don’t cost a thing! All of this new technology is NOW amazing (think about what we’ll have in the next 20 years) and extremely affordable for everyone.

The accessibility and affordability of technology has made working remotely not so remote anymore. It’s commonplace for teams to be spread throughout the state, country, and even world and still collaborate as if they are right in the same building. This has brought with it new found freedoms as well as challenges for you as a project manager.

The following are some of the practical pros and cons of working remotely as a project manager.

The Pros of Working Remotely

There is definitely an upside to working remotely. The following are some based upon my own experience as well as those of other colleagues that have an office in their home.

• HUGE Timesaver – Working remotely is a HUGE timesaveron so many fronts. I know for those who work in any metropolitan area (like Atlanta for instance), it can easily take 1+ hours of commuting to get into the office and home at the end of the day. Now, we’re not talking about 1+ hour for getting to the office AND home at the end of the day.
  We are talking about over an hour to get into the office and then ANOTHER hour to get home at the end of the day. That’s over two hours each day spent on the road.
  Do the math on that one. Two hours per day, five days per week is 10 hours per week. There’s a little over 4 weeks each month (4.3 to be exact) for a total of over 43 hours that someone is in their car per month. Over one work week per month is spent behind the wheel!
  Then, think of the morning rituals that people need to go through in order to decompress once they’ve made it into the office. It may consist of a stop at the coffee machine on the way in, a quick chat with a friend on way to their desk, and then 30 minutes of aimlessly clicking through email to take your mind off the frustration of the morning rush.
  Ah, finally, work can crank up about 10:00 AM.Working remotely can save over 500 hours per year that would otherwise be spent on the road battling traffic and losing your sanity.
• HUGE Money Saver – Another very practical benefit to working remotely is the substantial reduction in expenses. Do you know what it takes to drive an hour each way into and home from work? Gas. And, gas costs money, and lots of it.
  Plus, despite the best of intentions of wanting to bring your lunch into work…it’s oh so tempting and easy to just grab a quick bite out with your friends. It may start out as only a twice a week thing, then it becomes three times per week, and next thing you know the days are few and far between when you bring your lunch in from home at all.
  You can quickly save $400 – $500 or more each month by working remotely. Wouldn’t it be better to put that money toward YOUR 401(k) instead of the retirement plan of some executive at BP or Exxon each time you filled up your car?
• Great For Your Health – Another surprising benefit of working remotely as a project manager are those related to health. A colleague of mine lost 30 pounds in 6 months simply by swapping out being on the road for two hours each day for the treadmill 45 minutes each day. Plus, he was in more of a position to control what he ate from home instead of the calorie-laden choices that beckoned him each day around his office.This still requires a bit of discipline on your part. You can’t just sit at your desk all day eating potato chips and expect to derive some health benefits. Get your exercise out of the way first thing in the morning and you’ll feel better for the rest of the day!

The Cons of Working Remotely

Yes, there is a darker side of working remotely. You may or may not hear this from your colleagues that telecommute, but, there are some things you need to be conscious of if you have the choice of being able to work remotely.

• Camaraderie Suffers – Remember your morning routineof battling the traffic, grabbing a cup of coffee and chatting it up on the way back to your desk each day? Two of those three things are gone when you work remotely. You won’t battle traffic and you can still grab your cup of coffee, but you won’t have that friendly banter you used to have.
  You may think it’s not a big deal to lose that friendly conversation with your workmates, but it does have a downside. With friendly banter comes insight. Insight into what is going on with the company. Insight into what the other person overheard somebody else say after a meeting late yesterday afternoon. Insight into a change in the direction of the company. Insight into the fact that a new project is starting up on the other side of the building and it’s something you will want to be involved with.
  You’ll still get bits and pieces of this information when you work remotely, but it will be just bits and pieces and it will be somewhat outdated and stale by the time you receive it.
• It’s Hard to Turn Things Off – You know you’ve got to be out of the office by a certain time or your stay in traffic will be even that much longer. So, you shut things down, pack it up, and hit the road.
  You don’t have that concern when you work remotely as a project manager. You can just keep working and working and working.
  The next thing you know the clock says its 9 PM. You missed dinner, the kids are getting ready for bed, and your spouse is ticked. Or, you may trick yourself and say you’ve wrapped things up around 6 PM, which still gives yourself plenty of time to head downstairs and have dinner with the family.
  But, you don’t turn things off.
  Lights are flickering, all your gear is running, and files are downloading while you hurry through a rushed and distracted meal. Then, you come up with an excuse to head back into your home office (“I need to get my keys,” for example) and hunker down for another hour to really wrap up your day.
• Other People Live In Your Office – Here’s the catch…it’s called a home office for a reason. The reason is that your office is in your home…along with your family, spouse, kids, pets, delivery guys, neighbor’s dogs, mail people and others that will ring your doorbell at inopportune times throughout the day. You’ll find yourself interrupted more often than expected, loud noises and ringing phones sneaking their way into conference calls more often than you’d like, and the buzzer going off on the dryer right when you are about ready to speak. I haven’t quite figured this one out yet…but will let you know when I do!

We’ve all come a long way from the fax machine. The flexibility, freedom, and opportunity afforded to us as remote project managers is unprecedented. Look at the ability to work from home with eyes wide open and you’ll do just fine as a remote project manager.

[Source]

Playing the Blame Game

The Blame Game sounds like fun, doesn’t it? The words even rhyme. We’ve all played it before and some of us are much better at it than others. There are really not that many rules to The Blame Game other than to make sure that, when something goes wrong, attention is diverted away from your desk, department, or company as quickly as possible. The more reasons you can come up for why it’s somebody else’s fault, the more points you get.

This can be done in oh so many creative ways. It could be somebody else’s fault for not following up on the information you gave them. Or, it could be somebody else’s fault that they didn’t give you the information you needed to get the job done. Or, you could always blame technology for breaking down, processes for not working the way they should have, or just plain old incompetence on the part of a vendor that should have known better.

How Much Fun Can the Blame Game Be?

As a matter of fact, there are teams that have taken blaming others to such new heights they have coined the expression ‘blamestorming session.’ We’re all familiar with the brainstorming session that involves sitting in a room and coming up with as many ideas as possible to solve a problem. There are no bad ideas and judgment is not passed on any of the ideas proffered. A blamestorming session is similar in the fact that everyone sits around the room and comes up with ideas, but the problem they are looking to solve is how to divert blame away from themselves. There are no bad ideas on how to blame others and suggestions are offered up freely. The one or two most viable ideas will then be picked and circulated in the corporate ecosystem.

What a blast!

Here’s the problem…

Blaming others for a project’s woes is only a short-termsolution to a long-term problem. It gets even more complicated if you find yourself pitted against your client. When something goes wrong on the project and it runs over budget, is delayed by a couple of weeks, or the scope didn’t come in as anticipated, the first thing everyone does is subconsciously and instinctively start to think about who else’s fault it is.

C’mon, you know you do it too.

You cycle through all of the who-knew-what-and-when-did-they-know-it scenarios. It wouldn’t have happened if this person (who knew the information) had done something about it at this time (when they got the information). You fastidiously compile a chronological list of events complete with email date and time stamps and precise versions of documentation. There’s no way they are going to pin this one on you, your department, or your company. No way, you’re not going down for this mistake!

When it comes to problems, misunderstandings, and confusion between companies…guess what? In the early stages of trying to get to the root of the problem, the blame could go either way. I’ve seen it happen way too many times. For example, when a technical issue surfaces on a project that prevents it from moving forward, you, your team, and your company immediately think it’s on the client’s side. The client immediately thinks it’s on your side.

A barrage of semi-polite, yet accusatory email ensues.

“Can you please take a look at what is going on here and let us know what you find?” the client asks. Translation? We think it’s your fault.

“We did, everything is fine on our side. You may want to double-check what is happening with the changes you made last night to the server,” your company replies. Translation? We think it’s YOUR fault.

This may go on for a day or two until things get desperate, escalations to upper management begin to occur, nerves get rattled and people really start to stress out.

Whose fault is it? The truth is that there is a 50/50 chance it could be you or them. That’s why I encourage you to take a new view of things until the problem goes away. Take the view that BOTH of your companies have the problem until it’s resolved.

Shared Responsibility

Think about the benefits of why this is a better approach:

• It CAN go Either Way – Technology is a funny thing if you’ve worked around it for any amount of time. It’s like building a house of cards. Just the slightest breeze could cause the whole thing to tumble to the ground. Someone could fat finger the wrong web server or database address and bring the entire system to its knees. A seemingly innocuous piece of software could be installed that unknowingly conflicts with a production system and everything comes to a grinding halt.These are honest and simple mistakes to make on either side of the fence. The bottom line is that the project is at a standstill or at the very least crippled for all parties until the situation is fixed. So, work on the problem in good faith TOGETHER until the problem is identified.
• You Won’t Look Like an Idiot – I’ve worked with guys that are alwaysadamant that things are not their fault. They’ll stake their job, reputation, and whatever else they have of value on the fact that there’s no way they could have caused this problem. Their vociferousness is rivaled only by the exaggerated hand gestures they use to emphasize their righteous indignation at being accused of making a mistake.You guessed it. It was their fault. They had to eat crow and retract all of the sound and fury.
• You Will Be Vindicated – Like I said a number of times, it can go either way. There’s going to be those times when it’s NOT your fault and the other guy, team, or company is the one that made the mistake. You’ll find that you will be quietly and graciously vindicated if you handled yourself professionally during this time of discovery. Everyone will know if your team is not to blame. They may not come right out and say it, but you know that they know that you know the issue was on their side…this time.The gracious part is up to you. You can choose to say “I told you so” or some variation thereof. Or, you can rise above it and understand that mistakes happen to the best of us. I recommend the latter. It’s better to rise above the issue and let it go.

Sure, The Blame Game is always fun to play and we’re all probably a bit hard wired to play it. Remember though, when it comes to getting your projects done, there are no winners in The Blame Game. Focus on solutions and breaking through obstacles and your projects will always come out on top.

[Source]

Comparison between PMBOK 4 and PMBOK 5

by Saqib Javed John

Successful Project Management: Procurement Management Planning

Procurement management, organization, and planning is yet another crucial element to project management. You must be thinking, “what isn’t an important element to project management? This is true. Project management comes with its peaks and valleys, its rewards and its challenges. While project management is a challenging role as a whole, regardless of industry or organization size, it is possible to achieve success for stakeholders and as a professional. Here are some things to consider when implementing a successful project procurement plan.

When project managers consider project procurement management, they need to think of the “what”, “when”, and “how”. Are we going to “make” or “buy”? What are we going to “make” or “buy”? When are we going to make a “make” or “buy” decision? How are we going to “make” or “buy” something? Basically each of these questions pertain to a particular phase in the project procurement management plan process.

Procurement Definition – The “What”: When analyzing a new project in the beginning, there are many things to look at, analyze, organize, and manage. In addition to identifying risk and reviewing stakeholder requirements, a project manager must also define procurement. This involves analyzing project specifications—like we would for any project—and be sure to include any examples or supplemental material that will correspond or be used as evidence in project procurement.

Depending on the industry or project, this could include drawings or technical specifications, a statement of work (SOW) or work breakdown structure (WBS) or model contract. Anything that accurately and clearly explains what a project will involve will adhere to procurement or project scope definition. The WBS will also clearly identify any “make” or “buy” choices and outlining each as such. After the “buy” items are identified and noted, each item will be classified as a “major buy complexity”, a “minor complexity”, or routine costs (also known as COTS).

Seller Selection – The “How”: Once everything noted above has been identified and addressed, the seller selection process can begin. This often involves project managers requesting proposals or RFPs, bid packages, and evaluating everything. Often times a supplier criteria table is necessary and even helpful to some project managers during this phase. A supplier criteria table is basically a chart that identifies each supplier that sent in a bid, and a score for each type of criteria noted by the project manager. This could include cost, schedules, experience, customer service, etc.

Once a seller or supplier is chosen, then this is typically submitted for management approval and an appropriate contract type is agreed upon.

The “When”: When each of the phases above has taken place, then project managers can focus on wheneach procurement phase should happen. It is pertinent that each procurement phase line up with the project’s master schedule. Even though the project schedule may be separate from procurement, they really go hand in hand. The “make”/”buy” relationship is dependent on one another and each party is responsible for their parts.

In addition, adhering to the appropriate project procurement phases in a timely fashion will also minimize risk down the line with meeting schedules, deliveries, and even buyer/seller relationships.

[Source]

How To Escalate Project Issues

“I’ve found a little problem,” said one of my project team members the other day. “Can I take you through it?” As it turned out, it wasn’t a little problem at all. It was a big issue with the product design and even though we spent a long time working out how to solve it, we couldn’t come up with an action plan that didn’t involve more time, more money or a dip in project quality. So it wasn’t something I felt comfortable with taking the decision on – it’s my role on a project to implement the sponsor’s wishes, not to approve a budget overspend. The issue needed to be escalated so that my sponsor could make the best decision.

Here are the steps we took in order to escalate the issue, so that you can follow this straight-forward approach if you need to escalate issues on your project.

Establish The Problem

What has actually gone wrong? Getting to the bottom of the problem is the most important first step. This could be relatively easy to work out, or you may have to call a number of meetings to fully understand what’s happened. You have to know everything about the problem in order to be able to fix it, and it’s really embarrassing if your project sponsor asks you a question about the issue and you don’t know the answer! Remember to also log the issue in your issue management software at this point.

Establish The Impact

What impact is this problem going to have on the project?

Maybe it means you’ll be running late and miss a deadline. Or perhaps your quality targets won’t be hit. Or a relationship with a major supplier is in jeopardy. Issues can have multiple impacts on projects and they aren’t always obvious.

Let everyone on your team know about the problem and check how it will impact each of their activities and responsibilities. One of them may be able to tell you about an impact you didn’t expect.

Establish Who To Escalate It To

Most often, you’ll be escalating issues to your project sponsor. But from time to time you may have to raise the problem to someone else, such as the line manager of a resource who is not behaving appropriately, or maybe your Finance department. If in doubt, start with your project sponsor and they can advise you about who else to talk to.

Consider Solutions

Now that you understand the whole problem and the impact it will have on the project, it’s time to think about potential ways to fix it. You need a plan to take to the project sponsor, as you’ll look unprofessional if you turn up with a list of worries but no strategies for solving the problem. Work with your project team to come up with some potential solutions that would resolve your issue.

Decide On A Recommendation

There are normally a few ways to solve problems on projects. You could, for example, spend your way out of trouble. Or bring a few more resources on to the team. Or find a third party supplier to procure a solution from if your in-house options don’t look that good. However, you should decide which would be your preferred strategy. This is the recommendation that you will put to your project sponsor. Ultimately, they will decide on the route forward, but make it easy for them by preparing the details about your proposed solution including the impact on the project schedule, budget and resourcing.

Book Time With Your Sponsor

Don’t spring a problem on your sponsor at a chance meeting by the water cooler. You want the time to discuss it with them properly, presenting the background and discussing the alternatives for resolving it. Book some time with them, so talk to their personal assistant if you need to in order to get a slot in their busy diaries.

You could wait for one of your regular meetings but if the issue is urgent it will be better to have a separate, dedicated discussion with them so that you can get the solution agreed and make a start on fixing the problem. If it is difficult to find time to meet them face to face, for example if they (or you) spend a lot of time travelling, then see if you can go through it over the phone. If you can, send them the details of the problem and the recommendation in advance so that they have time to look it over before the meeting.

Present Your Proposals

At your meeting with your sponsor, run through the problem and your recommended solution. You can also mention the other solutions you have considered and rejected and the reasons why they aren’t the best way forward. Most of the time you’ll find that your sponsor will agree with your recommendation and authorize you to take that forward, but don’t rely on it! Sometimes sponsors have information about the business that you did not have at the time you put together your solutions and this may change the solution that you agree on. They may even have a completely different option that they suggest themselves!

Implement Your Plan

Once you have got a decision from your project sponsor, make the relevant changes to your project schedule and plans. Make sure to update your issue log with the approved solution and action plan. Then it’s just a case of working towards your new tasks and ensuring that everyone knows what has been agreed. Soon that project issue will be a distant memory!

Escalating issues is something that every project manager has to do, so don’t feel bad about taking problems to them. That’s what they are there for – one of the key roles of project sponsors is to unblock difficult situations and make it possible for you to move the project forward. If you present the problem and your solution recommendation in a professional, clear way, it will make it easy for your project sponsor to make the best decision so that you can get on with managing the project to a successful conclusion.

[Source]

Agile or Traditional: How to Choose

by Saqib Javed John

Agile vs Traditional Project Management

by Saqib Javed John

Agile Project Management: Part 2

by Saqib Javed John

Agile Project Management: Part 1

by Saqib Javed John