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Help for Project Managers
We sometimes feel sorry for project managers. They are seen either as the saviours or fall–guys of their projects. Everyone seems to be hanging their hopes on ‘better project management’ to deliver the goods and improve their project success ratings. By itself, this is a mis-placed hope.
Project management, as a discipline, can deliver a useless result as effectively as a worthwhile one. Projects hailed as a ‘success’ by the project management fraternity can be seen as ‘disasters’ by the organization. Why the disconnect?
There are two different sets of skills required for effective project success:
Into this challenging situation are allocated project-inexperienced business managers as either project managers of the whole project or ‘business project managers’ with accountability for the hard part — implementing change into the business.In the former case they need both sets of skills; but in the latter case they can often rely on a ‘technical’ project manager to handle the bulk of the project management tasks, releasing them to focus on solution and benefits delivery.
Many organizations exist to support the adoption and use of project management methodologies and approaches.
Although project governance has existed for more than 25 years it is still not well understood. This Guide takes you through the top 24 dimensions of governance explaining their importance and what happens when they’re not performed well.
More information
Understanding Benefits
Although all projects seek to deliver benefits, the nature and dimensions of ‘benefits’ are not well understood. This Guide discusses the nature of benefits and how they need to be managed to optimise their value and how conventional approaches fail to deliver. Essential reading for all people interested in delivering benefits.
More information
Understanding Risks
There are eight types of project-related risks, yet most risk management approaches only look at two or three if you’re lucky. This Guide explains the nature and need for the different types of risks and what you need to do about them.
More information
How to manage project specific risks
Each project has its own set of risks that need to be identified, classified and managed where required. This Guide takes you through the end-to-end risk management process so that you spend your time and effort on the risks that count.
More information
How to manage your project delivery risks
These are the risks to the delivery of the project itself and its benefits — two sets of standard risks that can be evaluated to both generate this project’s delivery risk profile and allow its comparison with other project’s risk profiles. This Guide, and its accompanying workshop guide, allows you to quickly identify the standard risks to delivery, your current and target risk position and what needs to be done to reduce any outstanding risks.
More information
How to manage your business profile risks
Projects have an impact on the business both during their execution and on delivery — these risks need to be known and managed. They can’t be ‘mitigated’ because they’re planned outcomes of the project, but their implications can destroy the project’s value if not managed. This Guide enables you to identify them, plan your management action and generates a comparable risk profile for portfolio management.
More information
What to expect from your project sponsors
If your Sponsor doesn’t understand and ‘own’ their project, your job as project manager is made more difficult. Your likelihood of success diminishes significantly. You need their active support, involvement and ownership for your success.
Download free audio
Below is a selection of these organizations with their speciality (where relevant). This information is provided on a best intentions basis and the provision of a link to a third party site does not, however, constitute any sort of endorsement of that site or recommendation of that organisation.
Prince2 — Project Management Methodology
PRINCE2™ is the UK Office of Government Commerce’s Project Management Methodology. PRINCE® (’Projects in Controlled Environments’), is a project management method that deals with the organisation, management and control of projects.
Originally developed for IT projects, the latest version, PRINCE2™, incorporates substantial feedback and now claims to be a generic, best-practice approach for the management of all types of projects.
IT Governance Ltd We are official TSO distributors of OGC publications, including all official Prince2 texts.
http://www.itgovernance.co.uk/page.prince2
Other reference sites will follow shortly
Project management, as a discipline, can deliver a useless result as effectively as a worthwhile one. Projects hailed as a ‘success’ by the project management fraternity can be seen as ‘disasters’ by the organization. Why the disconnect?
There are two different sets of skills required for effective project success:
- How to plan, manage and deliver a project. This skill is provided through project management methodologies such as Prince2. There are also numerous project management software solutions to support the project management tasks.
- How to define, deliver and sustain the solution, change and benefits. This skill is provided through solution delivery programs such as Business Simplification, Transformation and Benefits Management.
Into this challenging situation are allocated project-inexperienced business managers as either project managers of the whole project or ‘business project managers’ with accountability for the hard part — implementing change into the business.In the former case they need both sets of skills; but in the latter case they can often rely on a ‘technical’ project manager to handle the bulk of the project management tasks, releasing them to focus on solution and benefits delivery.
Many organizations exist to support the adoption and use of project management methodologies and approaches.
Guides
Understanding Project GovernanceAlthough project governance has existed for more than 25 years it is still not well understood. This Guide takes you through the top 24 dimensions of governance explaining their importance and what happens when they’re not performed well.
More information
Understanding Benefits
Although all projects seek to deliver benefits, the nature and dimensions of ‘benefits’ are not well understood. This Guide discusses the nature of benefits and how they need to be managed to optimise their value and how conventional approaches fail to deliver. Essential reading for all people interested in delivering benefits.
More information
Understanding Risks
There are eight types of project-related risks, yet most risk management approaches only look at two or three if you’re lucky. This Guide explains the nature and need for the different types of risks and what you need to do about them.
More information
How to manage project specific risks
Each project has its own set of risks that need to be identified, classified and managed where required. This Guide takes you through the end-to-end risk management process so that you spend your time and effort on the risks that count.
More information
How to manage your project delivery risks
These are the risks to the delivery of the project itself and its benefits — two sets of standard risks that can be evaluated to both generate this project’s delivery risk profile and allow its comparison with other project’s risk profiles. This Guide, and its accompanying workshop guide, allows you to quickly identify the standard risks to delivery, your current and target risk position and what needs to be done to reduce any outstanding risks.
More information
How to manage your business profile risks
Projects have an impact on the business both during their execution and on delivery — these risks need to be known and managed. They can’t be ‘mitigated’ because they’re planned outcomes of the project, but their implications can destroy the project’s value if not managed. This Guide enables you to identify them, plan your management action and generates a comparable risk profile for portfolio management.
More information
What to expect from your project sponsors
If your Sponsor doesn’t understand and ‘own’ their project, your job as project manager is made more difficult. Your likelihood of success diminishes significantly. You need their active support, involvement and ownership for your success.
Download free audio
Below is a selection of these organizations with their speciality (where relevant). This information is provided on a best intentions basis and the provision of a link to a third party site does not, however, constitute any sort of endorsement of that site or recommendation of that organisation.
Prince2 — Project Management Methodology
PRINCE2™ is the UK Office of Government Commerce’s Project Management Methodology. PRINCE® (’Projects in Controlled Environments’), is a project management method that deals with the organisation, management and control of projects.
Originally developed for IT projects, the latest version, PRINCE2™, incorporates substantial feedback and now claims to be a generic, best-practice approach for the management of all types of projects.
IT Governance Ltd We are official TSO distributors of OGC publications, including all official Prince2 texts.
http://www.itgovernance.co.uk/page.prince2
Other reference sites will follow shortly