One Size Does Not Fit All

Tom Mochal, PgMP, PMP, TSPM is the president of TenStep, Inc., a methodology development, consulting and training company. Tom won the Distinguished Contribution Award from the Project Management Institute for his work spreading knowledge of project management around the world. He is a speaker, lecturer, instructor and consultant to companies and organizations around the world.

  ProjectsAtWork  

Scale your project methodology to match your project needs.

When you mention methodology to many project managers, their eyes roll upward as if saying, "Oh no, something else to get in the way of getting my project done on time." The term methodology often brings to mind an unwelcome image-maybe partly because the word itself is a bit ponderous and self-important. But all project managers use processes, procedures, templates and practices to manage a project. In other words, all project managers use a methodology, whether it is a personalized one based on experience or a formal one defined by an employer, purchased from a vendor or taught by a consultant.

The important issue is: How effectively are you using your methodology? Very often, the answer depends on the ability to scale the methodology to suit the needs of your project.

Getting Formal

Poor scalability-that is, not using the right amount of structure and process based on the size of the project-is one of the reasons why project management methodology is not used as effectively as it should be. On small projects, you might be able to get by with very reactive project management. You might manage scope loosely, because the chances of receiving a scope change request are small, and the impact to the project is typically incremental. Many project managers are not very good …

Please log in or sign up below to read the rest of the article.