Archive for the ‘Project Management’ Category

A Fast Way To Book Project Meetings

24 January 2011

Project Schedule ManagementYou know how challenging it is to schedule meetings with other individuals.

It is not that bad if the meeting attendees work for the same organization because you can usually view their availability. However, trying to book a meeting with individuals outside of the organization is a totally different ballgame. You can exchange a dozen e-mails with the project team and still not achieve a consensus.

Thanks to Doodle, you can now easily send meeting invitations to different individuals and have them vote on their preferred time(s) based on their availability. With just two e-mails, one to send the poll and the other one to book the meeting, you can schedule meetings in no time at all.

Doodle charges a small annual fee but you can easily get it back through increased efficiency and reduced aggravations!

Connect with Dr. John A. Estrella via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Risks and Rewards of Virtual Project Teams

7 January 2011

Virtual Project ManagerAlthough it is challenging to manage a virtual team within a company, it is even more challenging to manage an international team of independent contractors (e.g., elance, oDesk, etc.).

In the past ten days, I quickly assembled a project team of 11 independent contractors (assistants, researchers, writers and testers) from the USA, India, Philippines and Romania to help my business grow. The speed at which I hired (and fired) them was unbelievable!

One contractor went AWOL. The other decided to end the contract. And, the third one had an emergency. So far, I’m fairly happy with the remaining eight in my team and they completed tasks that would have taken me hours to do by myself. I am still exploring this unchartered territory but if there is something I learned so far, I need to “hire slowly and fire quickly”.

Connect with Dr. John A. Estrella via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

What’s new in project management for 2011?

24 December 2010

What's new in project management for 2011?The Project Management Institute (PMI) has been launching several programs lately. It is so hard to keep up so here is a quick summary based on implementation dates.

Practice Standard for Project Estimating – It will be available starting on January 1, 2011 but you can place an advanced order now.

Registered Consultant Program (RCP) – Join the RCP if you run a project, program and/or portfolio consulting firm. PMI is accepting applications now and the directory will be available during the first quarter of 2011.

Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) Program – If you hold a PMI credential (CAPM, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-RMP and/or PgMP), the CCR category structure (PDU) will be simplified starting on March 1, 2011.

Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification – Based on the most recent Role Delineation Study (RDS), changes to the PMP exam will be reflected starting on August 31, 2011.

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Easy Enhancement to Project Dashboard Reports

28 November 2010

Project Dashboard IndicatorA typical project dashboard includes a RAG status (Red, Amber [Yellow] or Green) either at the overall project level or for each key deliverable.

Green means the project is progressing as planned; Yellow serves as a warning for potential problems; and Red indicates actual problems. However, the RAG status does not show if the project will get better or worse by the next reporting period.

To address this issue, add a RAG indicator (steady, up or down). A Green “steady” indicates that the project is on track and you expect it to be on track in the foreseeable future. A Green with a “down” RAG indicator indicates that the project is trending towards problems. In contrast, a Yellow status with an “up” RAG indicator indicates that things are getting better and the project status may soon turn to Green.

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Small Successes Perpetuate Progress in Projects

2 September 2010

Project SuccessThe biggest challenge that managers face in a large project is how to get started.

How am I supposed to overcome what appears to be an insurmountable challenge? It is easier to give up, procrastinate and make excuses.

Although a work breakdown structure (WBS) provides a formal approach to subdividing a project into manageable tasks, it is far easier to ask the question: What is the next step? Don’t worry about the monster project holistically. Simply ask yourself, what is the next step?

If you can achieve a small success on that next step, you can ask the same question again, and again, and again. Before you know it, your project will be well on its way because success, no matter how small, breeds success. Go ahead and perpetuate progress in your projects. Turn small successes into a big success!

Connect with Dr. John A. Estrella via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.