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Project management templates… and more

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Kickoff Meeting

August 17, 2015 – 4:26 pm

Start Your Project with a Kickoff Meeting

The purpose of the kickoff meeting is to formally notify all stakeholders that the project has begun and make sure everyone has a common understanding of the project and his role. Like all formal meetings, there should be an agenda. There are a number of specific things you want to cover at this meeting:

    • Introduce the people at the meeting.
    • Recap the information in the Project Charter, including the purpose of the project, scope, major deliverables, risks, assumptions, etc.
    • Discuss the important roles and responsibilities of the project team, clients and stakeholders. If there is confusion about the role of any person or organization, it should be discussed and clarified now.
  • Go over the general approach and timeline of the project. This gives people a sense for how the project will unfold. In particular, you will want to ensure that people understand what they need to be doing in the short-term to support the project.
  • Answer any outstanding questions. The purpose of the discussion is not to rehash the purpose of the project, but to allow people to voice specific questions or concerns they have as the project begins.
  • Confirm that the project is now underway. If the project has not started yet, it should now be ready to start immediately.

In general, the project team, sponsor and major stakeholders should be in attendance. If this results in too many people for comfort, you can consider having only the major players attend. You can then meet with others in subsequent mini-kickoff meetings or you can send the relevant meeting information to the people who could not attend.

Although most kickoff meetings can be conducted in an hour or two, others might require a day or two. The longer kickoff meetings are especially important if the project is very complex or controversial.

It is said you never have a second chance to make a good first impression. This is true with the kickoff meeting. You are using the meeting to help set expectations for the project. If the meeting is unorganized, chaotic or a waste of time, the participants will probably carry those perceptions into the project as well. The project manager needs to make sure that he has prepared well for this meeting and that it goes smoothly.

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Using Project Templates

August 3, 2015 – 4:21 pm

By using project templates when you are planning your next business opportunity, you will bring speed and consistency to the process. This is what this project management tool can provide for you and your organization when you are in search of that next great revenue stream.

The modern project templates are in a digital format. This allows for them to be repeatedly used without any wear and tear on them. It also permits them to be changed or customized to fit the particular needs of your organization. This is not a tool where one is a fit all situations for organizations. This is why to begin with, there are 52 different templates in most project management office programs that are available to use.

There are nine different project templates that are specifically designed to assist the project manager in the documentation of the necessary process of a modern day project. Each one was created with all of the required components needed to succeed in the global environment. They are also formulated in the correct and most logical order for the data to be placed in. This allows for the document to be easy to use and review, either on the production floor or in the office of your clients.

Another advantage of using the project templates for your documentation creation process is that they will bring a consistency to this formal procedure. Consistency is one of the ways you can prove to your prospective clients you are organized and a professional organization. This is important in the global market place. By establishing this level of credibility, your word will carry more weight in the negotiations of the purchase of your products.

The use of project templates reaches beyond the project process. Today, there are 43 of them that are used in the supporting documents which are necessary for executing a project for the global market place. This brings even a larger level of consistency, and speed, in the creation of the required paper work when you are searching for that elusive revenue stream. The more professional our organization appears to be, the greater amount of revenue it will create.

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Benefits of Project Management Training

July 13, 2015 – 3:40 pm

Four Benefits of Project Management Training

The following are five reasons training is invaluable to you as a project manager.

#1 – Training Keeps You Engaged

Are you feeling a little sluggish on the job? Do you dread the ride into work each morning thinking about the long and boring day ahead of you? Training dispels the monotony. Take a course about an aspect of project management that really interests you. It may be risk management, agile methodologies, or root cause analysis. Deepening your knowledge in areas of interest will shake up your otherwise normal routine and get you excited about your job again.

#2 – Training Helps Your Career

Most professional certifications require an ongoing commitment to training and education. While this takes time, the upside is that it comes with real financial value. For example, a PMP certified project manager will make an average of $10,000 more per year than their non-certified counterpart. Keep your training current and an eye on your employment landscape and you’ll find yourself doing very well.

Current and potential employers like to see an ongoing pursuit of education. It helps them appreciate you as a lifelong learner who has followed a particular niche or specialty in your project management career.

#3 – Training Introduces New Ideas

You will always pick up something new when you attend a project management training course, simply because the discipline of learning temporarily removes you from your situation and gives you an aerial, objective view. For example, even experienced project managers learn new ideas and techniques attending a fundamentals class. They learn new ways of doing things they are already familiar with.

Training allows your experience and new learning to come together and provide a more holistic perspective than ever before. These nuggets of wisdom may not always be groundbreaking or revolutionary, but they are new. When you go to a training course with this mindset, you will come back with faster, more efficient and profitable ways to complete projects to share with your peers.

#4 – Training Exposes You to Other People

Most classes allow you to interact with new people. Maybe it even allows you to interact with current co-workers in new ways. It’s valuable to get out of your office or cubicle every now and then and see what the rest of the world is up to, and talk to your peers. The relationships you forge with your instructor, the person sitting next to you, or even someone you meet in an elevator can help you throughout the rest of your career in project management.

Don’t be like the doctor who hasn’t taken a training course since medical school. Find training that interests you today and you’ll benefit for years to come!

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Determine Whether Full-Time or Contract Resources are Appropriate

June 29, 2015 – 1:47 pm

Perhaps the place to start is to understand whether there are employees available in the time-frame needed for your project. It usually doesn’t make sense to hire contract people when you have employees that are available and otherwise would have nothing to do (assuming the employees have “close-enough” skills).

Let’s assume that you do not have current employees available to staff your new project. Let’s also say you work for an organization that is open to utilizing contractors or hiring employees depending on the needs of the specific project. Let’s look at some of the criteria that you can use to make the hiring decision.

    • Urgency. If you need to get started very quickly, you may need to hire contractors. In most organizations you can put a call out to the local contract companies and be interviewing people in a couple days. Most organizations can’t (and don’t want to) hire employees that quickly.
  • Length of the need. If you need a resource for a short, finite duration, then a contractor may be the way to go. You can bring them in for a short contract and then release them when the work is done. If you have a full-time, long-term need, an employee would make more sense.
  • Strategic vs. non-strategic work. Many companies identify certain types of work to be more strategic that other types. For instance, many companies chose to staff the senior project positions, like the project manager, with employees, and are more willing to use contract labor to assist with project team members.
  • Skills and knowledge needed. Many companies make decisions about staff based on the type of skills needed. For instance, if you are moving into a new technology or new equipment, you may hire contractors that already have the expertise. If the skill is needed long-term you might want to transition in some employees so that they can learn the new skills before the contract staff leave.

 

  • Confidentiality. Many companies chose to staff positions with employees if the project team will handle confidential or proprietary information. There is a sense that the information might not be confidential once the contractor leaves the company.
  • Cost. With a contractor, you typically pay a higher hourly rate, but only for the length of time the contractor is needed. Employees may cost less in the short-term, but you are taking on a long-term cost commitment.

If you look at the decision criteria above, you can see that much of the answer for using employees of contractors comes down to risk. If a project is short, it might be risky to hire an employee since you may not be sure if you can keep the employee busy long term. If the project involves core skills to your organization, confidential information, or is strategic to your business, it may be too risky to hire a contactor.

Organizations tend to keep a leaner staff of core employees these days. The core staff stays relatively constant from year to year, while increases in workloads are staffed through contract resources.

 

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Ways to Judge Project Success

June 15, 2015 – 1:41 pm

Projects that nail the triple constraint are not necessarily a success. Conversely, projects may be deemed successful without satisfying the triple constraint. Ask yourself the following four questions to determine whether or not your project can rightly be judged a success.

#1 – Is the Client Happy?

One of the best indicators of success on a project is when a client is happy with the results, whether that client is internal or external to the organization. “But,” you may ask, “what if the project went over budget and we weren’t able to bring it in for the amount the client requested?” When that happens, it doesn’t mean the project failed. For example, I just had my house painted. Both the cost of paint and labor ran over budget. I’m still extremely pleased with the results and deemed the project a success.

#2 – Are You Looking Forward to Working Together on the Next Project?

Projects can get a little rough and tumble as people with different personalities, skill sets, expectations, and experience come together to complete a project. There are going to be moments of great exhilaration parallel to instances of deep despair. Does the sum total of these experiences net out to a positive vibe? If you, the team, and your client are able to see the project in your rearview mirror and stay excited about working on the next one – then it indicates that your project was a success.

#3 – Did You Get Paid for the Project?

For external projects, payment is a huge indicator that a project was successful. Let’s face it; if you or your company doesn’t get paid for a project for any number of reasons, it would be considered a huge failure. The client may not be satisfied with the project results (see #1 above). You need to be diligent to ensure this doesn’t happen to you!

#4 – Were the Desired Outcomes Met?

A definition of project success is found in the objectives listed at the beginning of the project. They provide guidance for judging when a project can be considered complete. The list will detail the end state of the project, i.e.,

“The time tracking software will be deployed to all employees across three company locations. All employees will be trained on the software and have a Quick Start Guide to assist. Additionally, the Call Center will be brought up to speed to handle any support issues.”

If the results of the project match the desired outcomes, then it can be considered a success.

There’s more to judging project success than just being on time, within budget, and in scope. The triple constraint is the foundation of project management, but not the end-all, be-all of project success. Ask yourself these four questions and you’ll find your projects reaching an even greater degree of success!

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Characteristics of Agile Iterations

June 1, 2015 – 4:25 pm

Most people understand that the days of the five-year, monolithic project are over – and have been for some time. The better approach is to break large projects into a set of smaller, easier to manage projects. Short projects are easier to manage than large projects. There are fewer things that can go wrong, fewer people involved, less time for scope changes, etc.

Characteristics of Agile Iterations

The Agile model takes this to an extreme by stating that even the days of the six-month development cycle is over, as is the three-month cycle and maybe even the one-month cycle. Partial solutions should be up and running in a very short time, with very short iterative cycles designed to deliver working code that is built up to a final solution.

Implement Complete Functionality

Agile iterations implement complete functionality for a set of selected customer requirements. This includes the complete mini-lifecycle of analysis, design, construct, test and implementation. The selected functionality within the iteration is not worked on simultaneously. Instead new functionality is worked on as team members are available, meaning at any given time there may be one or more requirements independently going through analysis, design, construct, test and implementation.

Implement Holistically

Each iteration is compressed to a few weeks or even a few days. Short iterations are the result of a holistic set of characteristics of the Agile model. It is not easy to deliver in very short cycles if you pick some of the Agile techniques and ignore others. For example, one of these characteristics of an Agile project is that the product owner is integrally involved in the project and is empowered to make decisions in short timeframes. Obviously you cannot run two week iterations if your product owner consistently takes a week or longer to answer questions and make decisions.

Create Short Iterations

Each team should determine the length of an iteration for its specific project. Shorter iterations are generally better than longer iterations, and 30 days is probably the longest that you want an iteration to last. Shorter iterations tend to squeeze out inefficiencies and overhead processes. For example, you may choose a 30-day iteration because you have a one week approval process at the end of the iteration. If you force the iteration down to two weeks, it will also force this review process to get shorter as well.

Keep Iterations Consistent

It is important that each iteration stay the same length so that your team can develop a steady rhythm of work. If you chose a 30 day iteration, for instance, you need to make sure that each iteration is delivered in exactly 30 days. You don’t want some sprints taking 35, 40 or 50 days. If that happens the Agile discipline breaks down and the project moves more toward a traditional model.

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Proactively Manage Project Resources Without Authority

May 18, 2015 – 4:23 pm

One of the frustrating parts of being a project manager is that it can be difficult to manage the project when you have no formal management authority over the members of your team. From an organizational perspective, if the people do not report to you as a functional manager, then you are probably operating in some type of matrix structure. The matrix makes the most efficient use of people resources, but it can also be very challenging on the part of project managers.

How do you hold team members accountable for their deadlines without this authority?

Proactively Manage Project Resources Without Authority

If team members are missing their deadlines you must first try to determine the cause. For example, if it is due to a lack of skills, this should be addressed through training or replacement resources. If it is because they do not fully understand the expectations you have, then you may have some changes to make as well.

Although the team members do not report to you functionally, their work on the project should still be input into their overall performance review.  You can try to hold people accountable by making sure they understand that you will be providing performance feedback into their review. This should also be reiterated and agreed to by the functional managers

From a process management side, there are project management techniques and processes that should be utilized. First of all, if the availability and performance of the team is in doubt, you should raise this early as a project risk. As part of risk management, you need to put a proactive plan in place to make sure that this risk is addressed. When people miss their deadlines and your deadline is in jeopardy, you may need to raise an issue and perform issues management. During issues management, you again look for the cause of the problem and try to resolve it.

In addition, make sure your team members are communicating proactively with you. In many cases, it is not the fact that people miss their deadlines that gets you frustrated; it is that the team member does not tell you ahead of time. If the team member communicates proactively, you can see the problem beforehand while you still some ability to help. If he just misses the date and does not communicate, then he is not managing expectations as should be done. By the same token, the project manager needs to communicate proactively as well. Communicate well with your team and make sure they understand dates and expectations. Also communicate proactively with the functional managers and make sure they know when there are resource sharing issues or people performance issues.

Matrix management involves a complex and delicate balancing act between project managers and people managers. The project manager usually has limited people management authority in these situations. Even so, it is possible to complete your projects successfully. There are many project management processes and techniques that can help. Utilize them to raise risks and issues when needed. Also, make sure you utilize the project sponsor. The sponsor can help you generate urgency and focus, and can also have an impact on the functional managers to make sure that you have the resources you need to be successful.

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Assumptions and Risks

May 4, 2015 – 11:08 pm

Assumptions are statements that we believe to be true. You “assume” it to be true, but if it turns out not to be true there could be a detrimental impact to your project.

The key point about an assumption is that you are not 100% sure if it true. You believe it to be true, but you are not certain. This means there is some risk that the assumption will not come true.

Because of this uncertainty assumptions are very much related to risk, and in fact are simply low-level risks. They have the same characteristics as a risk – probability of occurrence and impact to your project.

Assumptions and Risks – Two Sides of a Coin

Let’s take an example of a common statement that is included in many Project Definitions – that the resources needed for this project will be available when needed. What kind of a statement is this? Most people would say it is an assumption. After all, when a project starts, you always assume you will get the resources you need.

However, is it really an assumption? Can you imagine starting a project where the people and equipment were not available and there was a realistic possibility that they would not be ready when you need them – perhaps because another project needed to finish first? It is not too difficult to imagine that scenario. In that case, the same statement would definitely be a risk – not an assumption.

The same statement might be an assumption or a risk depending on the circumstances of your particular project. There is some degree of uncertainty to an assumption. If the event is negative and there is a low probability that it will happen, it can be stated as an assumption. If the event is positive and there is a high likelihood it will happen, it is also an assumption. One way to identify important assumptions is to perform a risk assessment and look at all the low-risk items. Most of these low risks are not worth mentioning, but some will have significant implications if events do not turn out as you think. These are the ones that you can document as assumptions.

There are two key characteristics of risks and assumptions. First, there must be some uncertainty to the event. If there is 100% chance of an event occurring, it is simply a fact. If there is a 0% chance of the event occurring, it is fiction. Neither are risks or assumptions.

Second, assumptions and risks are both outside the total control of the project team. If the event is within the control of the project team it is neither an assumption nor a risk. It should simply be managed to make it happen.

Review the following examples for more clarity on assumptions and risks.

Statement

Assumption, Risk or Other?
We will have strong support for this initiative from our executive sponsor. Can’t tell if it a risk or an assumption. Depending on the project, there could be a high degree of risk in this statement (risk) or very little (assumption).
We will complete requirements before we begin design work. This is part of the project approach. It is not a risk or assumption because it is within the control of the project team.
Our vendor will complete their installation by October 1 Can’t tell if it a risk or an assumption. Depending on the project, there could be a high degree of risk in this statement (risk) or very little (assumption).
We must go to the moon to get the supply of meteor fragments that this project requires. This is not a risk or assumption because there is no risk involved. It is a fiction (0% true).
It is 60 miles from one project team location to the other. This is not a risk or assumption because there is no risk involved. It is a fact (100% true). (If it were not true it would be a fiction (0% true), but it would still not be an assumption or risk statement.)
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Six Reasons You Need a PMO

April 20, 2015 – 11:00 pm

We all have many wants in our lives but only a handful of needs—food, clothing, and shelter being the top three. Similarly, companies may want many things, but really only find a few things absolutely necessary for survival. A Project Management Office (PMO) should be at top of that list of priorities, along with sales, profits, and growth. Read on for the:

Six Reasons You Need a PMO

  1. Consistent Methodology – The bane of many organizations is when departments and groups develop home-grown ways of completing projects. Some processes may work beautifully, some may work terribly; the point is that none are consistent with each other or across the organization. You need a common project management methodology. A PMO allows everyone in the company to speak the same language and follow consistent processes.

  2. Economies of Scale – It’s not uncommon for a company to have a half dozen or so timesheet or project management applications within a company, each with its own financial cost for implementation and training personnel. A PMO implements affordable and sustainable enterprise-wide solutions.

  3. Objective Opinions – Departments running their own projects can sometimes be compared to a fox watching a henhouse. Project sponsors may be looking for the current status of a project, but a departmental project manager may stretch the truth just a bit so that their department is viewed in a favorable light. A PMO provides an unbiased and objective opinion regarding the status of a project. This is invaluable to project stakeholders and executives.

  4. Perpetual Improvement – A PMO is always on the lookout for new and better ways to get things done. They have the benefit of aggregating lessons learned from previous projects and the missive of implementing those best practices across the organization. Additionally, there are countless opportunities for project managers to continue their education and bring newfound knowledge back to their companies.

  5. Transcends Departments – “Why can’t we all just get along?” is a common refrain in many companies. One department may go head to head with another department over unrealistic demands or unreasonable timelines. A PMO can mediate their heated conversations and keep everyone focused on the bigger picture. Members of the PMO can facilitate sessions between departments for the purpose of identifying root cause and coming up with alternatives.

  6. Reduces Cost – All of the benefits of a PMO as described above are realized at the bottom line. As unnecessary tangible expenses are uncovered, such as paying for multiple versions of the same software, they are removed from the income statement. Real savings derived from resources being able to do their work faster will appear as net income. The value of everyone getting along better? Priceless!

You can benefit from a PMO regardless of the size of your company. Even though larger companies are likely to benefit in greater ways exponentially, a small but growing company needs to at least foster the spirit of a PMO. It’s easier to put the foundation in place while small rather than go back and implement a PMO later.

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Project Quality Review

April 6, 2015 – 5:06 pm

Seven Steps for a Project Quality Review

In some cases, such as a government project, periodic audits may be called for as a part of the overall contract. This “outside party” could be any qualified person outside of the project manager. In some cases, your organization may have an internal project audit specialist. It is possible that the Project Director or the Project Sponsor could also perform this audit. The outside party could be an outside contractor or consultant, but they do not need to be.

The audit itself focuses on whether effective project management processes are being utilized and whether the project appears to be on-track. A project audit asks questions about the processes used to manage the project and build deliverables. The audit can follow this process:

  1. Notify the parties (Auditor) – The auditor notifies the project manager of the upcoming audit and schedules a convenient time and place. Other key stakeholders are notified of the audit as well.
  2. Prepare for the audit (Auditor) – The auditor may request certain information up-front. The auditor might also ask the project manager to be prepared to discuss certain aspects of the project. This ensures that the actual meeting time is as productive as possible.
  3. Perform initial interview (Auditor, Project Manager) – During the initial meeting, the auditor asks the appropriate questions to ensure the project is on-track. If there are any areas that are not on track, the auditor notes them as such.
  4. Perform as many other interviews as necessary (optional) (Auditor, Project Team) – On many projects, the audit might culminate in the initial meeting. If the project is large or complex, the auditor might need to perform follow-up analysis. This includes meeting with other team members and clients, and reviewing further documentation.
  5. Document the findings (Auditor) – The auditor documents the status and the processes used on this project against best practices. If the organization has standards and policies in place for managing projects, the auditor determines whether any of these are not being followed on the audited project. The auditor also makes recommendations on things that can be done to provide more effective and proactive management of the project.
  6. Review draft audit report (Auditor, Project Manager) – The auditor and the project manager meet again to go over the initial findings. This auditor describes any project management deficiencies and recommendations for changes. This review also provides an opportunity for the project manager to provide a rebuttal when necessary. The initial audit findings might be modified based on specific feedback from the project manager.
  7. Issue final report (Auditor) – The auditor issues a final report of findings and recommendations. The project manager may also issue a formal response to the audit. In the formal response, the project manager can accept points and discuss plans to implement them. The project manager may also voice his disagreement with certain audit points, and explain his reason why. In these cases, the project sponsor and the project director (manager of the project manager) will need to decide if the project manager should comply with the recommendations or not.
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