Measure It – Manage It
We all know the saying “if you can measure it - you can manage it”, but how can we apply that to the concept of managing the quality delivered to the customer at the end of a project? Well the initial clue to solving this problem has already been said - that the project will be assessed according to the things it delivers, rather than any of the activities and events that lead up to the completion of the project. Read the rest of this entry »
Is Quality Negotiable
Last time we introduced you to the notion of quality in Project Management. In that article we said that quality should be the norm, but also that the standard of quality you can work to will, to some extent, be determined by the budget available to you to make the job fit for purpose. Read the rest of this entry »
Quality For Project Managers
As a Project Manager you undoubtedly already feel under enough pressure to deliver your project on time and within budget. Add to those two things the often dreaded term - quality of delivery and it conjures up all sorts of customer expectations that could seem beyond all sense of realism. So what should your approach to the ‘quality’ of the delivery be? Read the rest of this entry »
Risk And Issue Management
Wondering if you can cut the mustard as a Project Manager? Well, just ask yourself which of these three types most closely matches you, are you the sort to: make things happen, have things happen to them or just sit around wondering “what happened”? If you’re not in then first category - forget a life as a Project Manager as you’ll never be prepared to take risks nor, indeed, be capable of managing risks or dealing with their issues. Read the rest of this entry »
Plan Or Schedule
Any Project Manager will believe that they are only as good as the plans that they make. They seem to live by the motto “he who fails to plan - plans to fail”. This is, of course, a piece of advice that any manager would do well to heed, not just Project Managers. However, if asked to show a plan of how a Project Manager envisions the work progressing they will invariably produce a schedule, probably using a Gantt Chart, as they simply don’t understand the difference between a plan and the schedule they’re working to. Read the rest of this entry »
PM – In The Beginning
In the beginning was the project - and then came the Project Manager! If you’re not already aware - becoming a Project Manager does not necessarily mean being involved with a project from its inception. Invariably Project Managers are brought in to take control of a project after it has begun. Read the rest of this entry »
Successful Meetings
As a busy project manager the last thing you need to happen is being involved in meetings that are unsuccessful to you, in terms of their outcomes. Going in to any meeting you have to know exactly what you need to achieve in it, and take away from it, in order for it to be a successful meeting. So, what can you do to ensure that you achieve your meetings objectives? Read the rest of this entry »
Know Your Employment Law
If you’re just starting out in your career as a Project Manager or are perhaps working as a Project Manager on a relatively small project, then you’ll invariably find yourself being directly responsible for more and more things, including directly recruiting, managing and trouble-shooting staff yourself. Whilst you will of course want to recruit the best staff and treat them all fairly - are you confident that you know about US employment law and how it could affect your recruitment and managerial procedures and styles? Read the rest of this entry »
Definition of leadership
It is often argued that leaders are born they are not made Read the rest of this entry »
Business Leadership Coaching
In various professional courses like MBAs, business schools, the syllabus is incorporated with techniques of business leadership coaching Read the rest of this entry »