Project Hero Blog - Weekly Best Practices and Tips
Project Management for Aspiring, New, and Accidental PMs
Search with The Project Management Search Engine by PMConnection. Search across only the Great Websites listed at PMConnection. See the list here.
Whether you are a project manager or a business analyst, these five open-ended questions posed to the project sponsor and other senior executives can get you vital information you need for project success in a short amount of time:
- What does success look like to you? – Learn what is most valuable to manage the triple constraints appropriately.
- What are your biggest challenges and...
Agile is popular, but good project leaders know that there is not a “one size fits all” method. If you are going to use Agile, consider how it may need tailoring to meet project goals better.
- List the 12 Agile principles and consider how each might impact project objectives, positive or negative
- Decide which principles to keep and which to reject
- Analyze the results and see...
As Agile and iterative methods grow in popularity, it is easy for those with a solid project management background to work in a new environment. These 5 tips will help:
- Question traditional PM practices: everything you know still applies, but question how to tailor and improve past practices for the new environment.
- Use pictures over words: lighter Agile documentation benefits from...
For over 10 years, stakeholders tried to make the Denver International Airport Automated Baggage Handling project work before giving up. The cost of continuing was around $120M, on top of an already over-budget project that was too complex to fix. Project leaders should know when to give up and cancel a project. Here are 5 circumstances that signal the necessity of cancellation:
- Project...
Decades of Project Management research shows that lack of user involvement/ executive sponsorship and requirements management are consistently high on the top 10 causes of project failure list. Over time, there has been a modest uptick in project success rates, but still, large percentages of projects fail to meet their goals. Why? Here is a short candidate list to consider:
- Not enough of the...
You have accrued far more than the required three years of experience, have taken some classes in project management, and just learned about the PMP® certification. This is the same roadmap I followed in 2001 and passed on the first attempt. It's inexpensive and you can "opt-out" at any step to pursue more learning if necessary, before investing too much time.
- Check eligibility. Download...
Seeking a leadership career? Embarking on a career in Project Management and earning a PMP® is a good path PMs typically earn more than "experts," and PMPs typically earn more than non-PMPs. The skills you learn will benefit any future management positions. You can wait to become an "accidental" PM or be proactive and follow this high-level roadmap:
- Gain minimal knowledge. Learn the...
The execution phase of a project, while not immune to issues, can be as effortless as possible if you follow these principles:
- Do the right amount of planning: too little and things "fall through the cracks", too much planning risks "analysis paralysis".
- Get the right team: people that want to do the work, have the skills and have a supportive network.
- Exercise key soft skills: delegation,...
Always do the right thing. It demonstrates integrity and ethics. You want to be known for this type of behavior - it builds trust, makes it easier for you to lead and negotiate, and creates project success.
What is the "right thing"? Here are some examples:
- When requesting an initial project budget, don't guess. Use your best estimating skills to get it right so the organization doesn't suffer...
Does the team put together the perfect plan with your facilitation? Even so, project execution is more than just checking progress and writing status reports. Here is where your leadership is most needed. These are some items for a project execution checklist to ensure you are leading:
- Manage team conflict. Stop negative conflict quickly and encourage collaboration for positive conflict (i.e....
Need expert help finding the right Project Management Software?
We’ve partnered with the software comparison portal Crozdesk.com to help you find the right solution. Crozdesk’s Project Management Software advisors can give you independent advice and shortlist software products that best fit your specific needs. Our partnership gives you free access to their tailored software selection advice and community negotiated discounts, taking the hassle out of the research process.
It takes just a minute to submit your requirements and they will give you a call at no cost or commitment. You’ll get custom product shortlists covering the top solutions that best fit your specific needs from their team of software experts (via phone or email) and they can even connect you to your choice of the selected vendors. To get started, please submit the form below: