Having a Project Management Office (PMO) is not a solution; having an effective PMO is. Studies show that PMOs can be effective…but that an alarming number of PMOs are not effective and are failed efforts. In fact, some studies show that as many as 60% of PMOs fail, and often when they fail, they fail …
The Project Management Office: The One Thing That a PMO Must Do Read More »
There are many project management software products, and many of them support the operations of project management offices (PMO) and the project portfolio management (PPM) function. Every organization is unique in terms of size, industry, complexity, culture, types of projects, and more. This article explores the aspects of project management that map to the software …
The Project Management Office: What to Look for in PMO Software Read More »
Project Management Offices (PMOs) partner, control, or serve the organization by providing structure in the form of project management methodologies. However, it gets more complicated when there are different project types – and different approaches to managing them. It is especially complicated when some approaches emphasize local, decentralized management – and need to support it …
The Project Management Office: Waterfall, Agile, and Hybrid Methodologies Read More »
There are many flavors of PMOs, according to many experts, but this article breaks it down to three main types. They involve emphasis on partnering, controlling, and serving within the community. Partnering means the PMO provides standards and educates and assists project managers to help elevate the practice of PM throughout the organization. Controlling sets …
The Project Management Office: The Three Flavors of PMOs Read More »
One area of social media PM that can have tremendous benefits is that of mining knowledge. Most projects are in a practice area that has a vast library of knowledge out there on the web, thanks to social media. It’s up to the project team to take the initiative to leverage knowledge from social media …
Social Media PM: Leverage Knowledge from Social Media Read More »
There are a number of effective social media tools that can help the process of project management. Effective social media PM is all about identifying the right combination of tools that will efficiently and effectively move the project forward. Even if non-optimal tools are chosen but used effectively, the project will benefit, but ineffective use …
Many people cringe at the thought of social media. After all, for all the goodness of connecting people and providing and open platform for sharing and expression, it also can be a tremendous time waster! It can be the same on a project! I think it’s a matter of attitude and approach as it is …
When I think of ‘Social Media PM’, I naturally first think about collaboration. It’s all about sharing information, making information open and available, and providing people with the opportunity to participate in sharing ideas and providing feedback. Collaboration is actually quite compatible with agile, which advocates for teams being ‘self-managing’. The only way teams can …
You cannot plan projects perfectly; the plan will be out of date by the time the ink dries! At the same time, you would never think about moving ahead on a project without some planning. Add to this the reality that, in today’s economy, speed is the dominant winning factor. How much planning should we …
Organizational Agility: Balancing Planning and Adaptability Read More »
Adaptability is a very admirable quality – for both individuals and organizations. However, both individuals and organizations LOVE predictability. We tend not to like surprises! These two characteristics – adaptability and predictability – are opposites, both admirable and desirable, and yet there is certain friction between the two. How do we find a balance between …
Organizational Agility: Adaptability vs Predictability Read More »
Can you think of an athlete or performer who is extremely agile? It’s easy to think about an individual being agile. Now think about work teams – for example for a team of software developers – that function in an agile manner. How agile are the individuals on the team? What agile characteristics describe how …
Organizational Agility: Team vs Organization Perspective Read More »
Organizational agility is a hot topic and a hot approach today. However, in many ways, it is a matter of unlearning some past organizational habits and practices! Could it be that you and I were each created to be naturally agile, but we have merely been trained over time by organizations and society to be …
Organizational Agility: Agile Instincts and Mindset Read More »
Devising business strategies is complex – but much easier to do than implementing the strategy. Strategy implementation in businesses entails addressing broad cross-organization issues – like organizational framework, culture, communications flow, and lines of responsibility. This article explores a few of the key factors that can make or break the successful implementation of a business …
Projects necessarily implement strategy, even if only at the most tactical level. Thus it is important that the PM have an understanding of strategy in general – and of the organization’s strategy in particular, especially the aspects that are driving the project. Understanding the strategic drivers of the project shapes the timing, quality standards, and …
In my opinion, government organizations are among the most complex – because they are driven by very specific yet often open-ended missions…where success may not be easily measured, where efficiency is a secondary objective, and where matrix organizations result in lines of authority and accountability that may not be so clear and consistent. Responsible spending …
Programs provide a ‘first front line’ for implementation of strategic objectives, as programs are by nature strategically defined and implement a subset of the strategy. As such, programs can also provide a ‘laboratory’ for implementing strategic objectives – for getting strategy implementation right before implementing elsewhere. Programs also provide the bridge to strategy implementation on …
You know what you’re going to measure to determine quality…but you know that the product won’t be perfect the first time out. You’re going to need a way to execute the measurement process multiple times – or at least enough to achieve a level of confidence that you have achieved the required level of quality. The …
Quality Measurement on Your Project: Measuring Quality in Quantity Read More »
Let’s get practical here: you’re going to need to measure quality in order to achieve a desired level of quality. It’s the most basic management principle: you can’t manage what you can’t measure. So you need to find a way to measure the quality being produced on your project in a way that is reliable, …
You may have a concept for the product of your project, but you need to understand and articulate the level of quality required of that product to make the project a success. The trick is to find the intersection of a quality level that will be acceptable while delivering the project on time and within …
How to Determine the Required Quality on Your Project Read More »
When you begin to think about quality management on your project, the first thing that needs to be done is to define what quality means on the project. Quality is not an objective thing, but there is a commonality among things that represent quality and how to manage them. Defining quality in terms that are …
Quality Management Step 1: Defining Quality on Your Project Read More »
