Project Communication

What are the “project management basics”? According to PMI, “Project management, is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and practices to project undertakings to meet the project requirements.” It focuses on planning and organizing a project and its resources. A project is always and will be temporary in that it …

The “software development silo” is the phenomenon where software development, as a vertical, is insulated and disconnected from the organization as a whole. Silos hurt organizational integration, can cause costly delays and cost overruns, and create “dark corners” for management which are issues for transparency and future planning. No one …

I read all the books. I watched my previous managers do it. And then it happened. I was given my first project to manage. All the excitement and all the fears, mixed into one emotion. Doing it for the first time. As they say, “You will never forget your first.” …

Scope creep is, at its most basic, changes which made over the course of a project that eventually result in a different outcome than what was intended in the beginning. It refers to the uncontrolled growth in project scope after the project has begun, usually caused by stakeholders adding requirements …

What is the project manager’s role? Take a poll at work. Ask people who aren’t project managers – what do you think a project manager’s role is? You might be surprised at the varied answers you receive! Above all, you might be surprised at how many of those answers don’t …

Isn’t it funny how the same problems seem to come up again and again? Murphy’s Law of Project Management might best be stated as “the more common the problem and the more it is planned for, the more likely it is to come up anyways and threaten a project’s success.” …

The race for resources is a zero sum game. Whatever resources are allocated elsewhere are resources you will not have. If you’re going to have what you need to get to successful delivery, you’ll need to sell your project to top management. Selling your project is more than a straight …

Agile is the trendy project management method of today. More and more companies are adopting agile methods and projects, either outright or as a part of the playbook. Whether you’re an agile project manager or just looking for an edge, here are some tips for agile project management. Don’t Manage …

A good project manager is more than a manager – they’re a leader. Besides being proficient at the technical skills of project management, project managers also need to grow their leadership skills in order to be effective. In order to manage a project team to finishing a project, it isn’t …

There are a lot of people out there touting secrets for better project management. Acronyms abound. Websites offering courses all over the internet promise you a better skill set, for a price. Here’s the secret. Empathy. Your team is not a cluster of machines. They’re people. With human foibles, shortcomings, …