What drives a “Want to get away?” moment in our industry? Perspective matters. In the dynamic world of project management, a deliberate pause with your team to check on the fundamentals can be critical to project success.
Charged with upgrading a 150-year-old Scottish water-and-waste treatment facility while maintaining the area’s natural beauty, a project team focused on collaborative transparency with stakeholders and even incorporated sustainability into its own day-to-day practices.
As organizations grow, senior leadership inevitably asks for more aggregated reporting; there is too much going on for them to know all the details. A popular version of this reporting is the stoplight: red, yellow, green. But when you reduce complex efforts into a single color, there can be a shocking loss of fidelity.
Like project managers, weather forecasters predict, or forecast, what will happen in the future. But they have an advantage over most PMs when it comes to estimating future uncertainties. Weather forecasters forecast the future more than they predict the future, and forecasts are superior to predictions for aligning stakeholder expectations and improving stakeholder decision making.
If perception is reality, a project client’s perceived value of what you deliver will be even more important that the actual delivered value. And yet unmet expectations are a common occurrence that frustrates project leaders who feel they have executed according to plan. So how do you close the gap between expectations and perceived value?
Having an integrated understanding of customer and business needs, a command of technical components, a keen eye for upcoming technology trends, strong communication abilities and a tight grip on the ramifications of change are critical. Here are some steps you can take to help.
The most important question that should be asked before a project is approved is rarely considered. That’s an issue we need to address—that we tend to think of projects as solutions to specific problems.
… or where’s a work breakdown structure when you need one? Some fundamental lessons were learned the hard way on a complex datacenter consolidation project that failed to meet one urgent (but ultimately undefined) objective. Here’s the first-hand account from a veteran program director.
…and why giving someone the title doesn’t just make the magic happen. Thе асt оf partnering relies оn a delicate balance оf mutual support and purpose. In great aspect, thе success оf thе business partner depends оn hоw effectively thе business partner assimilates with, аnd into, thе core business team.
Active and honest communication targeted to relevant stakeholders will foster alignment and help meet expectations to achieve project objectives. This article outlines key steps for strengthening the relationship between the project manager and the project participants.
