The Secret Lives of Project Managers… 31Jul2009 Ryan Endres, PMP
Dec 14, 2014
The Secret Lives of Project Managers…
31Jul2009Ryan Endres, PMP
What is a Project?A project is a temporary endeavor
undertaken to produce a unique product or service
Temporary – Definitive beginning and endUnique – New undertaking, unfamiliar ground
Temporary UniqueCharacteristics of Projects
What is Project ManagementProject Management is the application of
skills, knowledge, tools and techniques to meet the needs and expectations of stakeholders for a project.
The purpose of project management is prediction and prevention, NOT recognition and reaction
Role of a Project Manager
Process Responsibilities
People Responsibilities
• Project issues • Disseminating project information• Mitigating project risk • Quality • Managing scope • Metrics • Managing the overall work plan
• Implementing standard processes• Establishing leadership skills• Setting expectations• Team building• Communicator skills
Triple Contraint
Quality
ScopeScope
TimeTime
CostCost
Communications Management This process is necessary to ensure timely and
appropriate generation, collection, dissemination, and storage of project information
Communications SDLC process
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfgfnZZdMlI
Risk Management Risk identification and mitigation strategy Risk update and tracking
Tree – location, accessibility, ownership
Weather
Risk… POTENTIAL negative impact to project
Change Control ManagementDefine how changes to the project
scope will be executed
Scope Change
Schedule changes
Technical Specification Changes
All changes require collaboration and buy in via the project sponsor’s signature prior to implementation of the changes
Project Life CycleInitiationPlanningExecutingMonitoring & ControllingClosing
Initiation PhaseDefine the needSelect the PMDocument business needDevelop project charter
Planning PhaseDetermine goals, scope and project
constraintsIdentify members and their rolesDefine communication channels, methods,
frequency and contentRisk management planningCreate WBS and timeline
Executing PhaseExecute project plan and accomplish project
goalsSend and receive informationImplement approved changesContinuous improvementTeam buildingLessons learned (surveys)
Monitoring & ControllingScope verificationMeasure according to your planRisk AuditsUse issue logsMeasure Team member performanceCreate forecasts
Closing PhaseContractual CloseoutConfirm the work is done to requirementsLessons Learned (Survey)
Project Management Tools
PERT Chart- designed to analyze and represent the tasks involved in completing a given project
Work Breakdown StructureFor defining and
organizing the total scope of a project
First two levels - define a set of planned outcomes that collectively and exclusively represent 100% of the project scope.
Subsequent levels - represent 100% of the scope of their parent node
Gantt Chart
Project Status Dashboard view
How long does it take to build a house?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVcjMXhpfQw&feature=related
Project Success
Customer Requirements
satisfied/exceeded
Completed within allocated time frame
Completed within allocated budget
Accepted by the customer
Project Failure
Scope CreepPoor Requirements
Gathering
Unrealistic planning and scheduling
Lack of resources
What is a PMO?
All PMO’s must have:TemplatesPolicies and ProceduresCommon areas for project informationA person in the PMO that is an expert user of your PM process, including any applications you plan to use
All PMO’s do not necessarily need to have:Microsoft Project, or Project Server (it is not a PMO in a box)Microsoft SharePoint
New Project sign-offScope of the project?Do we have the resources (people and money)Estimate of the timeline?ROISign off on the project
Project Charter (you must have)Who is the PMScope? Out of scope?MilestonesWho is on the project?Project assumptions/constraintsCommunication StrategyRisk Management Plan/are there any known Risks?Project Team Sign off
http://www.pma.doit.wisc.edu/templates.html
WBS (must have)
Action Logs:
Actions from meetings need to come out of Meeting Minutes and into a Log
Keep it simple in Excel or utilized tasks in SharePoint
Updates
Build a plug and play timeline
Executive Reports
Executive Reports
Microsoft Project Server can help add more metrics to your reports
Project Management ManualDescribes from the start to the close of the project
which templates and processes to follow
Small companyCommon location in a folder on your server
Medium CompanyCreate your own website with project information
SharePoint
Communicate project plans and to distribute task assignments to team members
Great for large companies and worldwide projectsIt can interface with Outlook and Project
Easy to create your own databases (ie: help desk requests)Email notifications
Processes take away problems
With Processes you will spend less time fire-fighting problems
With Processes you will have fewer things that slip through the cracks
Process improvement: Review your program performance against established baselines, identify significant variances in program results, and recommends corrective actions.
Take one of your PM processes and review all of your organizations projects to make sure the PM is compiling with your policies.
Review the lessons learned from projects (lessons learned are done throughout the lifecycle of a project not just at the end).
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