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Showing posts with label Project Management. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Project Management. Show all posts

26 April 2010

8 project management steps Manager needs to follow by Jason Westland

“In every great endeavor we wish to achieve, twice as much hard work is needed for us to give”. I believe in this statement and every project manager would definitely agree. A project manager sees to it that everything goes well as planned and if problems may arise as they usually do, a resolution is immediately implemented. To be able to create a successful project, one must go through the project management steps carefully completing each and every project management phases.

Here is a guide of the project management phases:

Team Assembly

No man is on an island. Same is true in undergoing a project. It is a collaboration of different minds working together to come up with a cohesive idea and plan out the strategies needed to execute the project successfully. In creating your team make sure that you have different people from a variety of fields to have the most brilliant ideas on hand.

Project Initiation

Identification of the project definition, objectives and approach are discussed in this phase. It is important to have your goal in mind before starting to brainstorm into the scope and specifications of your project to serve as your guide throughout the duration of the project.

Project Planning

Among the project management steps, I would say this is very important since the foundation and backbone of the project will depend on the planning stage. If a complete and thorough planning is done the probability of setbacks and problems along the course of the project will be highly prevented. As a project manager you would need to use management-level planning to map out an overview of resources, acquisitions, subcontracts and costs. It is expected of you to estimate, plan and oversee all phases of the project management phase. As a project manager you need to include your team or set up a committee to execute project planning.

Project Execution

In this project management step the project manager needs to know the importance of delegation. Each task needs to be delegated to everyone to achieve efficiency in delivering results. It is also helpful since easy tracking can be done through small teams or groups working together as one to achieve a single goal identified on the Initiation phase. Use a project management software to give a constant overview of how the project is going in terms of scheduling, cost control, budget management, resource allocation, collaboration software, communication, quality management and documentation or administration systems especially in large scale projects. Then collaborate with your team to hold meetings and conferences to provide feedback solve challenges and aid in decision making. Communication is essential in making your project a success to determine degree of dependency among team members and to foster camaraderie.

Project Leadership

What sets apart a manager and a leader? Some might not even know the slightest difference. A leader leads by example by that it means he embodies in himself the values of providing quality service to others. He is passionate in helping his team members be productive and resourceful without demanding for results right away. A leader knows and understands his team members weaknesses and strengths which he works around to motivate them to do their best and work collaboratively to produce excellent results.

Project Monitoring and Controlling

In any project you need to be able to allocate your resources effectively. Project software is available to oversee your costs, resources and financial capability throughout the project. Highest quality is achieved by constant monitoring and project tracking. Standard Quality is the goal being obtained in this phase to be able to present a high quality result.

Project Presentation

This phase is close to completion of the project wherein majority of what was planned has already taken place. The client will have a preview of the project outcome before it is officially launched to be able to change, update or do some minor revisions. The project manager will have the responsibility in presenting to the clients since he is the head of the organizing team. Effective communication skills are needed to undergo this phase impressively.

Project Conclusion

At any project close there should be a complete documentation, audit and feedback. Regardless of the success of the project, proper transition of work processes and deliverables should be done. Proper documentation of processes should have been established with sufficient data for the operation of the system and to also provide basis for future projects and maintenance.

Being a project manager has a lot of work. You have to be passionate in helping your team to able to yield good results. It is not all theories and principles. Though there are a lot of resources on how to use project management steps wisely and effectively to help you along the way.


Jason Westland has been in the project management industry for the past 16 years. Click here to find out more about his new project management software.

26 February 2010

Earning Pdus is a Breeze

Earning Pdus is a Breeze

Earning Pdus is a Breeze

Many Project Management Professionals (PMPs) find it a challenge to earn their 60 Professional Development Units (PDUs) required every 3 years. This is not necessarily as challenging or daunting as many think! It is actually quite easy, and it can (and should!) fit into the regular routine as well as professional and personal goals that most professionals have. Here are some ideas on how PMPs can easily gain the required 60 PDUs in the natural course of business.

Having Personal & Professional Goals Is the Key
First, think about the goals of a Project Manager or Program Manager who needs to earn the PDUs. He or she has many responsibilities that require varied skills, much akin to the skills of a General Manager. In fact, many PMs aspire to become General Managers some day. So, really, the first step toward incorporating PDUs into the normal course of business is to determine personal and professional goals!

Setting Up an Implementation Plan
With those goals in mind, the next question is "How will I achieve those goals over, say, a 3 year horizon?" Presumably those goals entail building skills, working on certain types of projects, gaining experience with certain types of problems and situations, building a professional network, and honing all-important soft skills. Given that a Project Manager must be a strong communicator and a leader, a big-picture strategic thinker, and inspirational team builder, a great approach is to design a personal program for achieving this while earning PDUs at the same time.

It's About Planning
First, it is good to not leave this type of personal goal-setting and personal strategic thinking to the last minute. This is actually Project Management 101! Professional goals are usually medium to long term in nature, so some planning is in order. The PMI recently changed the rules on dates for earning PDUs, all in favor of each and every individual PMP. In the past, there has been a "race" near the end of each year to earn required PDUs for re-certification. However, at least that has become balanced as the PMI has changed that, and each PMP must re-certify by earning those 60 PDUs by their anniversary date, allowing more time, at least for this current 3 year cycle.

And It's About Execution
So, what are the PMI's requirements, and how can PMPs leverage those best toward achieving their personal and professional goals? First, the authoritative source for PMP re-certification is the PMI's Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) Handbook in the PMI Career Development area. It outlines the five categories within which PMPs can earn PDUs, which are reviewed below in the spirit of making it easy and as a matter of the normal course of business.

Category 1: Formal Academic Education. This refers to education and training at accredited universities. Classes on project and/or program management qualify, as they need to map to the project management processes and knowledge areas in the PMBOK. PMPs need to speak with the university and PMI to clarify the number for PDUs that each course will earn.

Category 2: Professional Activities and Self-Directed Learning. This category fits nicely into the time and goal scheme for many PMPs, but there are some limitations on how many PDUs can be claimed in some cases. Here are some examples:

a. Author a book - up to 40 PDUs
b. Day to day project management work (i.e. any PMP's job, if it includes 1,500 hours per year as a project manager) - 5 PDUs per year.
c. Teach a project management course - up to 10 PDUs
d. Speak at a local PMI chapter dinner meeting - 5 PDUs.
e. Self Directed Learning (i.e. read a project management book, listen to a project management oriented podcast) - up to 15 PDUs per 3 year cycle, and requires 'proof'

Category 3: Registered Education Providers (REPs) of the PMI. This includes relatively expensive on classroom courses, or less expensive online project management training courses (1 PDU per course hour as per PMI rules). Other options, with networking as a side benefit, include PMI monthly chapter dinner meetings (1-2 PDUs) or special seminars and PMI Specific Interest Groups (SIGs) meetings.

Category 4: Other Providers. Project management related training by non PMI REPs also qualifies, a fact that is commonly misunderstood among PMPs. This includes seminars, project management training in-house, and online courses from non-REPs where the content maps to the PM Processes and Knowledge areas. Just like REP training, non-REP training qualifies for 1 PDU per course hour as per PMI rules. The PMI requires course descriptions and receipts or transcripts in case of audit.

Category 5: Volunteer Service. Service can be for a PMI Chapter or another volunteer organization where project management is clearly exercised. Elected officials earn 10 PDUs, and regular volunteer 5 PDUs per year. PDUs earned can easily total less than the hours spent, but other benefits include networking with peers, PM community involvement, and the personal growth that comes with volunteering.

A Call for Action for PMPs
The purpose of PDUs is to keep PMPs engaged and growing professionally. The simple call for action is for Project Management Professionals to assess their PDU needs and map them to their personal and career goals. Then it is a matter of finding the preferred methods, as outlined above and authoritatively listed in the PMI's "PMP Credential Handbook" at http://www.pmi.org/PDF/pdc_pmphandbook.pdf, and get into action on a regular basis toward achieving goals - and earning PDUs.

About the Author

John Reiling, PMP, MBA is a Project Manager and runs a web site, Project Management Training Online, that provides hundreds of online courses for PDUs in areas such as Leadership, Team Building, Six Sigma, ITIL, PRINCE2,.... See John's post "Earning PDUs and Maintaining PMP PgMP Status Is Easy" at PMcrunch.com.

(ArticlesBase SC #568523)


24 February 2010

My Newsletter: PMP Certification: The Five W's *Update*

I wrote an article about PMP certification in August last year ( Read it all here ) but just found this blog post defining further down that motivations of people taking the exam, %, and much more if you browse the pages of this blog found at:

http://pmtips.net/february-2010-pmp-survey-results/

21 February 2010

Am I managing Projects or are the Projects managing me?

I have just read a comment on a discussion posted in the "Project Management Professional' group of LinkedIn, a group I have joined a while ago.

This text was written by a project manager who have issues with scope changes, SME expertise and lack of sponsors support on his projects and don't really know what to do to adress the situation.

I appreciate the courage of willing to post this text on LinkedIn to get some input from other PMs, as well as the way it was written. I enjoyed reading this and recognized myself surely couple years ago on a particular project I was managing ...

So I though it would be great to share it on my blog, and would really appreciate to know your own opinion, feedback and experience if you would be in the same situation than the writer of this article, that you can read by clicking on this link :

LinkedIn - Project Management Professionals group : Am I managing Projects or are the Projects managing me?

15 February 2010

Free PDU's

** Update made on Feb 26 with more links to sites offering free PDUs**

You can read these articles to get more details about the various categories of PDUs you can look for to complete your 60 PDUs per 3-years cycles to keep your credentials.

** End of update**


Here are a few links to get more details about earning your PDUs (Professional Development Units [1] ), all FREE!

Free Webinars - 1 PDU each :

[1] PMI Professional Development Unit (PDU) Qualifying Activities

10 February 2010

Risk Management Models: Creating Value Through Risk Management Podcast

Its always good to read about best practices in project management, to keep up-to-date with evolving and changing market, or in plan an activity that you did not performed recently. This Accenture's podcast abour Risk Management was a good refresher but I think that it could be improved slightly by adding more animation, images, or anything else to keep our interest until the end of the video.

See by yourself and let me know what you think by posting your comments on my blog!

http://www.accenture.com/Global/High_Performance_Business/High_Performance_Business_Podcast_Series/value-risk-management.htm

9 February 2010

You Learn Something New Every Day: Get More Done with Less Effort: A Systems Story

I have just read this article, an interesting subject on its on (time management), but also well written. I recommend you read it too ;-)

You Learn Something New Every Day: Get More Done with Less Effort: A Systems Story

23 November 2009

My Portfolio: Bilingual website for financial advisors (current)

To see the previous color scheme that we presented to the client, click here.
Click on image for a larger view / Cliquez sur l'image pour agrandir.

Click to enlarge/Cliquer pour agrandir


12 November 2009

My Portfolio: SharePoint-PMO Workspace, Library and Forms

I have structured a workspace on SharePoint for a Project Management Office, which included libraries, online forms, and project process documentation.

Click on image for larger view

My Portfolio: Methodology & interactions between key roles and clients

The workflow of corporate processes required at minimum between key roles and clients, in providing instructional design services combined with project management services. This was ultimately used as a marketing collateral, and enclosed into each proposal as an Appendix.

Click on the image for a larger view

Click for a larger view

11 November 2009

My portfolio: Portal Development Process Charts

Learning Portal Development Process chart :

The illustration of different resources involved in the development of a Learning management portal, interactions between each resources, approval process, and by project phase.

Cliquez sur les images pour agrandir / Click on images to view larger

Portal Development Process Charts

Learning Portal Registration Process chart :
The workflow of registration process between end-users, managers, and administrators of a Learning Management Portal, web-based, accessible with a username/password provided by administrators.

Cliquez sur l'image pour agrandir / Click on image for a larger view

Learning Portal Registration Process chart

22 September 2009

Évaluez votre leadership!

Un manager doit diriger son équipe tel un chef d'orchestre. C´est sur lui que repose la coordination des talents et l'avancement des projets ! Profil Manager vous apporte une évaluation complète de vos aptitudes et de votre style de management (entrepreneur, gestionnaire, stratège, leader …). Utilisé par les professionnels RH pour le recrutement ou le développement personnel, Profil Manager vous permet de connaître vos points forts et vos axes d´amélioration. Ce test et les conseils de notre coach vous aideront à exercer plus efficacement votre leadership.

Evaluez votre leadership de gestionnaire

31 August 2009

Project Management Sayings

We all have to deal with difficult issues in our busy life, so we hope these will help make your day!

How Projects Go Wrong-Click for a larger view
  • It usually makes the gentlemen in the room a tad uncomfortable
  • The famous Parkinson's Law is often quoted to highlight the work psychology of poorly motivated project team members.
  • Work expands to fill the Time. Cost expands to meet the Budget
  • A goal without a deadline is only a dream
  • Dates on the calendar are closer than they appear.
  • Take ownership of your failures and document the missteps you tryed to prevent.
  • If it is not measurable it is not meaningful. If you can't measure it you can't manage it.
  • Write your deadlines with erasable markers... keep the permanent ones for the pristine whiteboard.
  • There are only 24 hours in a day.
  • The best chef can do a great meal with some eggs, a tad of oil and a pan, but he cannot get the same result with nothing at all.
  • Execution without planning is like putting the horses the horses behind the cart.
  • Today you idiot proof it...tomorrow a new and improved idiot arrives
  • Launching a project without a plan, is like climbing a tree to catch a fish
  • Never confuse enthusiasm with competence.
  • Never confuse motion with progress.
  • The first 90% of a project takes 90% of the time. The last 10% takes the other 90%.
  • The more ridiculous the deadline the more money will be wasted trying to meet it.
  • Too few people on a project and they can't solve the problems - too many, and they create more problems than they solve.
  • Any project can be estimated accurately (once it's complete).
  • A badly planned project will take three times longer than expected - a well planned project only twice as long as expected.
  • The sooner you get behind schedule, the more time you have to make it up.
  • When the weight of the project paperwork equals the weight of the project itself, the project can be considered complete.
  • For a project manager overruns are as certain as death and taxes.
  • If there were no problem people there'd be no need for people who solve problems.
  • If everything is going exactly to plan, something somewhere is going massively wrong.
  • Never underestimate the ability of senior management to buy a bad idea and fail to buy a good idea
  • All project managers face problems on Monday mornings - good project managers are working on next Monday's.
  • Projects happen in two ways: a) Planned and then executed or b) Executed, stopped, planned and then executed
  • There's never enough time to do it right first time, but there's always enough time to go back and do it again.
  • It takes one woman nine months to have a baby. It cannot be done in one month by impregnating nine women (although it may be more fun trying).

30 August 2009

My Newsletter: PMP Certification: The Five W's

***** Note added on Feb 24, 2010 *****

I found a blog containing further details about the PMP certification, Read all here...

***** End of Note *****

I’m reading a lot on my business and profession, and using different methods to receive notifications when new interesting articles gets published on the web, such as newsletters and RSS feeds updates. Recently, I’ve seen lots of discussions and questions about PMP: What is the benefit of having PMP certification (for the employers or for the employee/consultant), what does it takes to become PMP certified, etc. So, I’ve decided to provide a little summary here of what this is all about and where to find additional information from official well documented sources. Feel free to post comments at the end of this post, or to contact me by email.

For Who & Why??

Growth of PMP’s since 1995
  • Growth of PMP’s since 1995
  • PMP is 7th on the 10 best IT certifications – December
    2008
  • Better salary. PMPs typically have attractive salaries, which are 10-20% more than the uncertified counterparts.
  • Employers who use PMPs are assured that they have
    hired Project Managers who have a core competency in Project Management and the requisite experience to perform as a project manager.
  • Studies have shown that projects managed by people who are not certified Project Managers have only a 25% chance of success, whereas projects run by those who are knowledgeable in Modern Project Management tools and techniques - as are people with the PMP certification - have a 75% success rate.

The Value of Credential per PMI

Click here for the PDF format of this chart

More information here

What is PMP certification?

The PMP Credential was established in 1984 in order to recognize practitioners’ skills and knowledge in the field of Project management. Passing the Project Management Professional
(PMP®) Certification Exam,
along with experience and education, is key to achieving the PMP Credential.

What is PMP about and its requirements?

Candidates must complete Project Management Experience Verification Form(s). The Experience Verification Form is used by candidates to properly document and report project management experience. There are two sets of experience requirements depending on whether or not an applicant holds a baccalaureate degree:

  • For candidates who hold a baccalaureate degree:

4,500 hours minimum PM experience gained within the last 8 years prior to application and covering at least 36 unique, non-overlapping months are required. At least 35 contact hours of specific instruction that addresses learning objectives in project management.

  • For candidates who do not hold a baccalaureate degree:

7,500 hours minimum PM experience gained within the last 8 years prior to application and covering at least 60 unique, non-overlapping months are required. At least 35 contact hours of specific instruction that addresses learning objectives in project management.

How?

Candidates must complete a PMP Certification Examination Application. Once the application and fee have been processed, PMI will electronically send the Examination Scheduling Instructions, confirming that the applicant is eligible to take the exam. The exam cost is:

  • US$ 555.00 ( Non-PMI® Member )
  • US$ 405.00 ( PMI® Member )

Most people require the following amount of time at minimum to complete the credential applications:

  • 10 days/weeks for PgMP
  • 8 hours for all other PMI credentials

When & Where?

Once eligible to take the exam, you have one year to prepare for the test and schedule the date & location of the exam at a Prometric centre. The exam is made of 175 multiple- choice questions to complete in 4 hrs maximum; which is around 1.4 minute per question, and get your score results printed immediately. The exam may be taken three times within the eligibility period should applicants not pass on the first attempt. PMP Prep students should expect to spend around 40-50 hours studying for the exam in addition to the time spent in the classroom.

How to maintain PMP credentials?

To maintain the PMP qualification a number of 60 professional development units (PDUs) must be earnt over a three years cycle, from activities such as researching, authoring articles or speaking on Project Management related topics or being engaged full time in a project management.

References

  • Wikipedia: To get a short description of CCR, relation with other accreditations and training programs, references and links to useful sources available on the web, read this page on Wikipedia.
  • Project Management Institute (PMI): To read details about CCR from the official source, read PMI’s information about CCR here.
  • PMP® Password – June 2008: The June 2008 publication
    (sent to PMP exclusively) is about overcoming challenges in participation to
    professional development activities for PMP who are required to complete their
    CCR to maintain their accreditation.
  • PMP versus CAPM exam
  • Project Management Institute Publications:
  • PMP® Passport: This e-newsletter is distributed
    exclusively by PMI to PMPs, quarterly, and focuses on the needs of individuals
    who have attained the PMP credential and the project management community.
  • PM Network®: Award-winning monthly magazine that
    covers trends, tools, techniques and best practices
  • PMI’s Career Track: Biannual publication delivered
    with PM Network that helps practitioners plan and advance their careers
  • Leadership in Project Management: Award-winning
    publication that helps readers build leadership skills; features advice and
    lessons learned from top executives
  • Project Management Journal®: PMI’s quarterly
    peer-refereed academic and research journal
  • PMI Today®: Monthly newsletter delivered with PM
    Network that keeps members up-to-date on Institute news and events
  • Continuous Credential Requirements - CCR

24 August 2009

Deliverable Review Template

The deliverable review template can be used to capture reviewer comments. It can be used to capture :

  • Code review comments
  • Test case review comments
  • Design review comments
  • Architecture review comments,etc.

Each review comment can be addressed by the team and fix them and mark it to closure. It is a useful tool for the project manager/team to pull out some metrics on the quality of review or the quality of the deliverable. Please download it here .

(please donate to PMTools if you find it useful).

PM Boulevard - Pros & Cons of Peer-to-peer project management?

I think that the best advantages of managing projects in organizations promoting participations from all members is a) these users will most liklely be more accoutable of their workb) when facing new issues, scope changes or different techniques/technologies, involving as many people with different knowledge & knowledge is the best way to find a solution that will have the least impact on time, scope, budget.

In other words, I strongly believe this methods provides the better return-on-investment, but I totally agree with the previous comment on this page; this can be achieved only with strong leaders, who have experimented this method of managing projects. Otherwise, you can lead to problems in communications, conflicts resolutions, unmanaged egos, of egos, just to mention these.

Here is a link to a very good publications on user involvement, describing advantages, disavantages, what is user involvement, etc.:"Good Practice Guide - User Involvement" :

http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/er_res_good_practice_guide_user_involvement.pdf

And I also found this other website you might find interesing:

"The Importance of Peer to Peer Communication" : http://pmtips.net/importance-peer-peer-communication/