Quang Regan

To get the desired result from a business project, you need to know exactly what you want to achieve. It often helps to break down larger projects into smaller manageable stages to ensure effective project management. A Project Manager must see to it that the sponsor's aspirations are fulfilled while ensuring the customer satisfaction within the prescribed time limits and budgetary allocation. Outcome of a project is no doubt important but so is the journey towards it. Effective utilization of the resources on hand and balancing the risks involved all contribute to the end-result. There are the important factors for the effectiveness of project management.   Communication... project staff do not know what their tasks are, or how to accomplish them, then the entire project will grind to a halt. If you do not know what the project staff are (not) doing then you will be unable to monitor project progress. And if you are uncertain of what the customer expects of you, then the proje...

What is Project Management?   There are two types of projects - cynical ones and genuine ones!   The cynic in me has seen projects that are nothing more than ways of deploying surplus staff - creating cult De sac 'projects' where they can do no damage - a direct result of cowardly performance management. I have also seen projects created for the glory of their creator - business as usual events that are magnified to create an impression of dynamism and as a way of empire building. Watch out for these and run a mile!   Cynicism aside, generally project management is used for managing a specific change which is outside the normal day to day activities with a fixed timetable. This is the approach defined in most methodologies. There is usually a specific budget to manage and a specific objective to deliver.   What It Is Not:   Despite all the sophisticated tools and techniques available, it is definitely not a black art. It is common sense and u...

A failed project can lead to loss of revenue and opportunity; failure to achieve business goals; diversion of resources from other activities; sapping of staff morale and, perhaps, even business failure. So, as projects become more complex and critical to business performance, how do you improve your chances of success?   Follow these eight simple steps to achieve great results in your projects.   1. Get management and stakeholder commitment   In the first instance, you need to have the real commitment of management and stakeholders -- the people who will benefit from the project. Be sure that your project has a sustainable business case and that it can deliver real business benefits, so understand both its business and technical objectives. You must maintain business focus to avoid the common pitfall of projects that deliver a technically correct solution but one that does not meet business requirements.   You must also have a strong sponsor-- someon...

In this article we will discuss organizational influences on project management   Every organization has its own culture, style, leadership approaches, and employee personalities that make it unique. These organizational characteristics greatly influence how projects are performed and managed.   This module will focus on different organizational cultures and styles and their impact on projects. In addition, we will discuss communication within the organization and how different styles can impact how projects are conducted, next we will review the impact that organizational structure has on how projects are performed and finally, we will examine organizational process assets and enterprise environmental factors.   Organizational Cultures and Styles   Organizations are unique and create their own cultural norms and styles for performing their operations. The norms and styles also impact project management, especially influencing the initiating and plann...

It is true that the structure of an organization can have a major impact on project management.   Think about your own experience. Is it difficult to get traction on your projects? Are there numerous layers of authority that you have to navigate to get approvals for basic tasks? Does your budget get cut because of competition for limited funding? Do your projects lose out in favor of day-to-day routine operations? And you thought it was something you were doing, or failing to do! Well it may have been, but it's more likely that you are feeling the effects of the organizational structure within which you work. Understanding your working environment better will help you to rise above organizational issues and smooth the way to successful project management.   By looking at three different organizational structures - functional, matrix and projectised - we will discover how each distinct organizational style affects project management.   Functional Organizational...

"The nice thing about not planning is that failure comes as a complete surprise rather than being preceded by a period of worry and depression." -- author unknown   If you get in a car in Chicago with the intent of driving to Los Angeles, the GPS rarely plots the California portion of the map while you are in your driveway. Rather, the GPS methodically and sequentially plots each road to take in order to reach the desired location. Project Management follows the same logic of a series of key tasks or steps that have to be completed in a systematic process in order to meet the desired outcome. Traveling to Los Angeles from Chicago can only happen if the tasks of traveling through the Midwest and the Rockies are met first.   This type of thinking seems elusive when it comes to business project management. Ask someone to "map" out the many steps required to achieve a desired result of managing a project and many times you get resistance as in "overkill...

Private companies and government organisations involved in running large projects, or many smaller projects at the same time, already recognise the benefits of formal project management but as the amount of experience and knowledge gleaned from such tasks has increased so project management has become more complex. And as it has become more complex so the tools and methodologies have had to evolve to keep pace.   Formal methodologies are commonly used for software development, manufacturing, engineering, and construction projects to plan, schedule and control all of the tasks and activities required. More and more they are also being used by services and solutions companies in order to add discipline and control to their projects.   Consequently, managing projects is now a fundamental part of many businesses and the role of project manager is now a professionally recognised one, which involves not only planning, scheduling and controlling activities but also expertise ...

Introduction   Large business and Government have been using project management for years as a way to deliver critical business outcomes. But project management is not just for the big end of town. Small business can also benefit by using project management tools and techniques to drive the achievement of their objectives.   What is a project?   PMBOK defines a project as "A temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product or service". A project, like business, requires the use of scarce resources to achieve a pre-determined set of objectives. Large or small, most organizations now refer to key actions, activities or tasks as 'a project'.   But what is project management all about and how does it apply to small business?   Project management, is exactly that: the management of a project. It requires the identification and management of a number of key elements. You need to determine:   What you need to do (the scope) Why y...

Project management skills are becoming increasingly sought after by managers across all fields of business. Employees are increasingly being called upon, in this competitive business world, to ensure that time spent is productive, realistic and cost effective. Training and knowledge can add value to any worker seeking to develop new skills and talents. Therefore attending high-quality project management training is imperative for anyone whether they want to be a project manager who seeks to go on to advanced training or for those who just want to hone their skill set. Public training courses are very convenient as they can fit in with student's schedules.   Essential Training Topics   What is a project?   Often we can make assumptions about people or situations and it is the same with projects, everyone can have different ideas about what is a project is or is not. This in itself is worth defining and it can vary from company to company depending on the size a...

Project management is a system of knowledge, skills, and tools that a manager can make use of to deliver his projects effectively. Projects often take place in an unstructured environment where the involved parties have to deal with new information every day. Clashes with outdated information further complicate the matter because of miscommunication.   Projects also often require the manager to deal with a wide range of challenges which can include solving technical issues, making sure that it complies with regulations and conducting sufficient stakeholder engagement. An untrained manager could probably survive one such project and manage to deliver satisfactory results. When the number of projects and/ or complexity increases, sending an untrained manager for the job might jeopardise the projects. Managers equipped with proper skills can deal with such unstructured environment, by ensuring that proper systems in place.   As a project professional, I personally find th...