Projects - Perform - Executing http://www.projectmanagement.com/Projects/Perform/Executing// Copyright: (C) 2013 ProjectManagement.com Sun, 19 May 2013 02:05:05 GMT http://www.projectmanagement.com/design/logo.gif http://www.projectmanagement.com/Projects/Perform/Executing/ In the journey to PMP fitness, you have taken three decisive steps. But many PMs have not had the opportunity to participate in a suite of courses where most knowledge areas are explored from a combined approach of PMI theory and real-world application. While this can put you at a real disadvantage, it's still possible to be successful. In out latest installment, we cover Project Integration Management. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278701/The-Path-to-the-PMP--Part-4- Wed, 15 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT If the schedule only exists to track what happened, it is a fairly useless tool. It will be glad to talk to you about the project and tell you how horrible things are, but that is not what project managers need. Here are some ideas for using the schedule to help the project instead of just using it to document failure. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278702/Keeping-the-Schedule-on-Track Wed, 15 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT With the ever increasing use of technology, how are processes impacted? Our writer feels that technology should be an overlay to the process work--we should start with a solid process and then look for ways that technology could make life easier in the execution of the process. But a colleague doesn't agree... http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278601/Should-Technology-and-Process-Coexist- Mon, 06 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT While many projects may not have to adopt the elements of the Federal Incident Command System, some are set up to resolve a certain time-bound resolution of organizational priorities and can reap the benefits. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278602/How-Emergency-Response-Helps-Project-Execution Mon, 06 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT Every project has an issues log. But what about the PMO? Does your PMO manage issues and maintain an issues log? Do you look for trends across the issues of different projects and take proactive steps to address them? Do you attempt to prevent issues through good communication? In this article, we look at a model for PMO-level issue management and suggest ways that it can improve the quality of projects that your PMO is responsible for. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278305/PMO-level-Issue-Management Wed, 24 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT If governance is designed to ensure that project execution occurs appropriately, then who ensures that governance occurs appropriately? To try and avoid conflict, an organization needs to ensure that governance committees operate with a series of guidelines. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278280/Whos-Governing-Your-Governance-Committee- Mon, 22 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT Determining the nature and scope of a project is essential to refining how the resulting effort will accomplish business needs. A crucial component of this is having the knowledge of the business environment and the demands it must meet. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278284/You-Wanna-Be-Starting-Something- Mon, 22 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT Organizational charts can become a tangled mess of lines and overlapping boxes. The project manager must untangle this mess so the project can progress. Sounds like a little R&R is what we all need... http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278285/Untangling-the-Project-Organizational-Chart Mon, 22 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT While "blame" is not a constructive term to use in establishing where things went wrong, every element of a project should have clearly defined owners. If it isn't clear where that ownership lies, there's a fundamental problem in the way your project is structured. Here we look at how we can establish that ownership--and ensure that the model is applied effectively. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278105/Whose-Fault-is-This--Anyway- Mon, 08 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT Managing issues on a project takes strategic planning and a little finesse so that issues do not turn into show stoppers. Do you have an issue management plan that can handle any problems and still keep the project on track? http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//278020/The-Show-Must-Go-On Wed, 03 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT The PMO must have an easy time of annual planning, right? It's a service function that provides resources based on the overall project portfolio, and the organization determines which projects to approve. Based on those decisions, the PMO knows how it needs to adjust its resource model. But life's not quite that simple... http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//277649/Annual-Planning-in-the-PMO Thu, 21 Mar 2013 04:00:00 GMT We all know that process improvement is important, but who should deliver it? Whoever owns a process should also be accountable for the improvement of it--and when we are talking about PM processes, that frequently means the PMO. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//277414/PMO-Responsibility-for-Process-Improvement Mon, 04 Mar 2013 05:00:00 GMT Since it's the cold season, we wanted to share a list of maladies that will take your project down if you aren't paying attention or fail to keep your guard up. Each are preventable, and as the old saying goes: an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//277298/Five-Project-Management-Pathologies- Mon, 25 Feb 2013 05:00:00 GMT You won't get the right benefits unless you start with the right scope. As project managers are increasingly asked to become involved in the business side of project execution, many elements they previously didn't have to worry about are now becoming relevant. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//277121/Matching-Scope-and-Benefits Mon, 11 Feb 2013 05:00:00 GMT Sometimes the corporate priorities change unexpectedly, and the projects that were approved at the start of the year are no longer appropriate for what the organization is trying to achieve. How can an organization cope? http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//277012/Dealing-with-Shifting-Goal-Posts Mon, 04 Feb 2013 05:00:00 GMT Project failure is inevitable, and failing to deal with it is inexcusable. Many projects fail to deliver against the plan that the approval of the project was based on. But few projects are ever actually cancelled--projects are delayed, costs are escalated, scope is cut...but ultimately the project is delivered, even if it bears little resemblance to what was originally approved. Stop the insanity! http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//276268/Recognizing-Failure Tue, 11 Dec 2012 05:00:00 GMT Project management involves creating, facilitating and improving processes. But no process is perfect, and improvements can always be made. These five steps will help make sure that the process is carefully evaluated and corrected. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275857/Five-Steps-to-a-Better-Process Mon, 12 Nov 2012 05:00:00 GMT CI programs within PMOs aren't doomed to failure from the outset; they just need to be well managed. If an organization does not improve the way that it executes projects, then it will simply repeat the same mistakes over and over. In addition, as the organization evolves, if the PMO's processes and methodology remain unchanged, then they will become less and less effective. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275772/Continuous-Improvement-Can-Work--Honest-- Wed, 07 Nov 2012 05:00:00 GMT Many different strategies exist to deal with stakeholders involved in the management and execution of a project. But one group can be particularly challenging: What can a project manager do to engage a reluctant stakeholder? http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275544/The-Reluctant-Stakeholder Tue, 23 Oct 2012 04:00:00 GMT Integration management is the glue of your project, making sure that all of your work connects. It has two key elements--the project plan and change control. Is your glue strong enough? http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275420/Project-Glue Mon, 15 Oct 2012 04:00:00 GMT Quality analysis and quality management can be a full-time occupation for an entire team of people on a project. Unfortunately, not all projects have the scope or resources available to hire a quality team to work on a project. This article explores some basic guidelines for using analysis to manage quality on a project. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275362/Quality-Analysis-in-Project-Management Wed, 10 Oct 2012 04:00:00 GMT How do you decide which PPM tool is right for you, and then make it work? In this article, we identify a few of the things to consider when selecting a tool. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275220/PPM-Tool-Selection-and-Deployment Mon, 01 Oct 2012 04:00:00 GMT It's one of the oldest debates in project management, and now there are a whole new set of arguments. What type of project manager should an organization have? http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275124/Business-PM-vs--Technology-PM--The-Battle-Continues Mon, 24 Sep 2012 04:00:00 GMT With the steady industry shift away from custom code applications to more commercial software packages and services, IT project management practices are necessarily changing to adapt to the new conditions. Is this a glimpse into what the future holds? http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//275125/The-Big-Chill Mon, 24 Sep 2012 04:00:00 GMT It's inevitable--organizations will change the way that planning cycles are executed. For many organizations, this is a natural extension of the commitments that they are already making--EPMOs, strong and executive supported portfolio management, and results-focused execution. For others, this is a major shift. Here we explore some of the ways that annual planning can be improved. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//274854/The-Evolution-of-Annual-Planning Mon, 10 Sep 2012 04:00:00 GMT Projects are risky business, and sometimes risk mitigation is about not being stupid. Here are a couple of suggestions that might help avoid doing something unintentionally stupid to spoil your project. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//274856/Mitigating-Risk---and-Stupidity Mon, 10 Sep 2012 04:00:00 GMT There are many different methods a project manager can use to rebaseline the project plan. Unfortunately, the one most often used is reactive instead of proactive. Approach your rebaselining event in a careful and methodical manner to make it worthwhile and benefit the project. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//274776/Flashlight-or-a-Flood-Lamp- Tue, 04 Sep 2012 04:00:00 GMT To really get environmental awareness to stick in an organization, you have to be prepared to go beyond setting an example and start to define green-aware policy and create a culture of sustainability. Here, we look at some practical, easy-to-implement ways that you can start to have a smaller environmental footprint when you execute on projects. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//274600/Project-Process-and-Culture-Goes-Green Wed, 22 Aug 2012 04:00:00 GMT Throughout the project lifecycle, the project management team will constantly refer to the project plan to determine the health and progress of the project. The project plan's usefulness to the project team and the stakeholders depends on two things: data collection and data analysis. Both of these activities must happen correctly and timely during project execution to make the project plan something more than just a pretty Gantt graph. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//273748/Project-Plan-Analysis Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:00:00 GMT As project managers, we often reinforce the importance of proper PM in our professional projects. However, when it comes to our personal projects, do you apply the project management mindset and tools? One writer has found project management useful for a few significant personal projects. http://www.projectmanagement.com//articles//273869/Personal-PM-in-Action--Building-a-House-with-Asana Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:00:00 GMT