Root Cause Analysis
Sometimes when you try to resolve a problem, you find that what you thought was a root cause is really a related symptom, not the actual cause of the problem itself. Consider the following classic example. …
PMP Hints
skills
PMP Hints
Project Approach
The project approach is a section in the Project Charter that describes in words the thinking that goes into the creation of the project schedule. There are two benefits to creating an approach section. First, this information will help the client and stakeholders understand how the project will progress without having to interpret the actual schedule. …
PMP Hints
Collect Requirements
Most project team members like to follow the Nike creed – Just Do It! The client has a business need and the team immediately wants to move into problem solving mode. There is no better feeling than completing the solution and showing the client. Until, of course, the client informs you that this is not quite what he or she had in mind. …
PMP Hints
Ensure Traceability
Traceability refers to the ability to trace, or track, requirements throughout the lifecycle and into the final solution. Tracking requirements through the project ensures that all requirements are considered as a part of design, all requirements are built into the solution, all requirements are tested and all requirements are implemented in the final solution. Likewise, the process also ensures that features and functions are not designed and built into the final solution if they are not a part of the agreed-upon requirements. …
Construction Industry
Results from the Chartered Institute of Building’s (CIOB) third annual skills survey show that the industry is still suffering a skills shortage despite the recession and downturn in construction demand. …
Construction industry still suffering from skills shortage despite the recession
Results from the Chartered Institute of Building’s (CIOB) third annual skills survey show that the industry is still suffering a skills shortage despite the recession and downturn in construction demand. …
Construction industry still suffering from skills shortage despite the recessionRead More »
PMP Hints
Write Project Charter
The Project Charter holds the information that you uncovered in the project definition process. The Project Charter is written by the project manager and approved by the project sponsor to show that there is an agreement on the work to be completed. …
PMP Hints
Always Assign One Person to Be Primarily Responsible for the Work
A common mistake is to assign two or more people to an activity without designating who has the primary responsibility to ensure the work is done correctly and completely. A lack of primary responsibility may make some people defer to each other and end up delaying work that needs to start quickly. You can also run into a problem when multiple people miss portions of work that each person thinks the other one is working on. If an activity has only one person assigned, it is pretty clear who is responsible. But if two or more people are assigned to the same activity, make sure one of them is designated as primarily responsible for coordinating the work to ensure it is done completely, correctly and within quality, effort and duration estimates. …
Always Assign One Person to Be Primarily Responsible for the WorkRead More »
PMP Hints
Think of Positive Risk as a Way to Gain Benefit
Risk is usually associated with potential events that have a negative impact on the project. However, there is also a concept of opportunity risk or positive risk. In these instances, the project manager or project team may introduce risk to try to gain much more value later. For instance, a team may decide to utilize a new technology on its project because they think it will result in dramatic effort and cost savings. …
General Management, Project Management
Help Your Project Team Escape Meeting Hell
Written by Josh Nankivel
Meetings. Meetings. Meetings. The end of another week. I didn’t get the design finished like I had wanted to this week. It just seems like there is so much to do, and so little time! This has been happening a lot lately. What is going on here? Why am I not getting things done? …
PMP Hints
Create Detail and Summary Activities
If you look at a WBS activity and determine that it needs to be broken down to another level, the original activity becomes known as a “summary” level. A summary activity does not have any work or hours specifically associated with it. It represents a logical roll-up of the activities that are under it. …
PMP Hints
Collecting Metrics Using Surveys
One way to supplement quantifiable metrics is with client satisfaction surveys. For instance, instead of trying to measure the exact response time of an application against some service-level standard, you could simply ask your main users how satisfied they were with the application response time. …
PMP Hints
Attack a Team Morale Problem on Many Fronts
Morale problems don’t happen overnight, and they cannot be resolved overnight. Typically, the complete causes and remedies are out of your control. However, as the project manager, there are some things that are within your control. Regardless of how much you can do, if the group sees you trying to help, they will feel better as well. …