Australian project management goes global

As reported at Dynamic Export

The International Project Management Association (IPMA) has accepted the Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM) as a member, making it the peak Australian representative body for the profession.

The IPMA will recognise AIPM membership under the new agreement. “We will also be working closely with IPMA to achieve international recognition of the RegPM certification that our members have under AIPM’s Professional Competency Standards,” added AIPM president Dr Bill Young.

In addition to the new membership, the AIPM also secured the rights to host the association’s 2011 World Congress, which will be held in Brisbane.

“Hosting the World Congress will allow AIPM to showcase the world class skills of Australian project managers,” said Young. “These two decisions made by the IPMA put Australian project management on an international footing second to none, giving us a strong voice within the international project management community.”

The IPMA has 48 members, of which the AIPM is the second largest.

The Attributes of a Successful Project Manager – Part 3

In the finale of this three-part series we will look at further at Jason Chravat’s presentation of the attributes of a project manager from his book entitled “Project Management Nation: Tools, Techniques, and Goals for the New and Practicing IT Project Manager.”

In this segment, we’ll discuss the need for the project manager to be able to:

• Make timely and critical decisions
• Effectively select and manage a team of skilled IT resources
• Have a professional approach when dealing with management, the team, and the customer

Ability to Make Decisions

An important attribute of any project manager is the ability to make decisions on a project. In meetings, project managers are often challenged to make decisions that are crucial in moving the project forward. If the project manager cannot effectively make decisions, the project surely fail.

Ability to Select and Manage a Project Team

It is important that the project manager be able to draw up a preliminary list of people who will be needed on the project. He or she can be do this by selecting those individuals who are available within the organization and who possess the relevant skills and experience required by the project. The project manager should be able to guide and initiate the external hiring process for those team members who are unavailable. Key factors or selection criteria that should be kept in mind when selecting team members are:

• Candidates have the skills and expertise for the project
• Candidates are available to remain for the full duration required on the project
• Candidates are team players
• Candidates are results-orientated and can set goals
• Candidates are optimistic about the project and outcome
• Candidates are trustworthy
• Candidates are able to work on multiple tasks in isolation

Remember, once the project manager has selected the team members,the success of the project will depend on the manager’s ability to keep the team focused, optimistic, and committed to achieving the overall project objectives. However, it is not uncommon for personal problems to arise while working on a project, and the project manager should be able to identify many of the symptoms ahead of time. The project manager should have the experience and ability to work with all people, irrespective of any individual’s race, religion, nationality, age, or gender. The project manager and the individual should immediately deal with any conflict that arises, and the manager should use the most appropriate course of action to resolve the problem. Additionally, the ability to praise and recognize the project team is important. It is essential that when the team has worked hard to meet objectives, often under difficult circumstances, that they are awarded the recognition.

Having a Professional Approach

Project managers should want to be considered as professionals. The status affects the quality of life for all people on the project, organization, and even in society. Therefore, it becomes vital that a project manager conducts work in a professional manner in order to earn and maintain the confidence of team members, colleagues, employees, employers, clients, and the public. The following is a code of ethics that project managers should use to help maintain their professionalism:

• As project manager, I will strive to maintain high professional standards in the preparation and delivery of my projects, and I will be held accountable for the success or failure of those projects.
• Regarding the actual work aspect of my project, I will strive to provide the leadership, trust, tools, and support to ensure all projects are completed on time, within cost, specification, and to my clients’ requirements.

Professionalism refers to being able to encourage respect and honesty in all business-related matters and during the course of any project. It is important that project managers ensure that all client or employer information be kept confidential and not lead to a situation where there is a conflict of interest.

Project managers also have a duty to their respective communities, by ensuring that no project be implemented in any location where it could possibly place lives and property at risk. An appropriate quotation from one of history’s famous project managers can be used to describe ethics.

The general must be righteous. If he is not righteous, then he will not be severe. If he is not severe, then he will not be awesome. If he is notawesome, then the troops will not die for him. Thus righteousness is thehead of the army. —Sun Tzu

Attributes of a Successful Project Manager – Part 2

In Part 2 of this three-part series we will look at further at Jason Chravat’s presentation of the attributes of a project manager from his book entitled “Project Management Nation: Tools, Techniques, and Goals for the New and Practicing IT Project Manager.”

In this segment, we’ll discuss the need for the project manager to have:

• General knowledge of project management
• Understanding of technology and some technical background
• Ability to work successfully as a problem resolution professional

These are just a few more of the key areas of expertise that the project manager needs to possess. Read on for further discussion.

Knowledge of Project Management

The first step for a newcomer to become qualified in project management is to complete a program of education. Meeting with others who are learning about project management is helpful, but it takes time. Alternatively, a prospective project manager can gather the information on his or her own. Those new to the profession don’t always need degree programs or pay large sums of money just to learn project management. Many of the world’s leading project managers learned their skills and techniques from experience and on-the-job training. That’s where the best secrets lie, and that’s why I thought sharing my experiences with project management would be helpful.

Technical Authority

Project managers often tell me that, as project managers, they do not need to understand the technology or technical issues because the technical resources working on the project will be responsible for the technical detail. Unfortunately, in the IT environment today, it is important for all project managers to be well-versed in the relevant project technology (including its applications and processes) and be able to communicate on technical issues with the “techies.” The majority of organizations that employ project managers insist that the project managers be able to take technical decisions and that they possess the necessary technical skill sets to be on a similar level as the technical staff.

I have heard many IT resources complain bitterly about project managers who haven’t got the foggiest notion of what needs to be done technically. The result is often that many of these resources simply carry on with their own development process and view the project manager only as an administrative manager who coordinates time sheets and ensures the delivery of status reports.

Project managers who are not well versed on the technical level find themselves (1) isolated, (2) lacking in credibility, (3) not consulted technically on major development issues, (4) not taken seriously, and (5) possibly even provided with false information. Project managers who understand the technology and can use it practically can apply such knowledge with outstanding results. Project managers also need to be certain that they have obtained the necessary project authority from the project sponsor and then communicate this to all stakeholders. This senior executive involvement often does the trick!

I always encourage project managers to make technical decisions if and when an opportunity arises, or to be involved in any way possible, by playing the role of facilitator or negotiator with the staff.

Sun Tsu said…

If the general’s employment of his mind is not in harmony with the army, even though the formation’s lightness and heaviness are correct, and the front and rear are appropriate, they will still not conquer the enemy.

Ability to Identify and Resolve Problems

Problems will arise on any project, no matter how much planning and effort have been made to avoid them. Recovering from any such problem means that the earlier the project manager can address the problems, the better. Identifying problems may require the project manager to review tasks with resources in order to find the real causes of these problems. If the causes are not within the manager’s own control or authority, then he or she must go to the project sponsor and seek advice there.

As alarming as this may seem, it may mean stopping the project until a solution is found, which is a good suggestion. Remember, the earlier you make the input to correct things, the smaller the input required.

Continuing to let tasks and milestones go off track will make it more difficult to correct the situation.

In Part 3, we’ll look at the project manager’s need for an ability to make timely and critical decisions, effectively select and manage a team of skilled resources, and to have a professional approach when dealing with management, teams, and the customer.

PBworks Project Edition and Legal Edition Now Features Social Collaboration Update

As reported on TMCnet

PBworks, a provider of hosted collaboration solutions for business and education, has announced its Social Collaboration Update for PBworks Project Edition and Legal Edition, which integrates social media-style user profiles and micro-blogging functions.

2009 Project Resource Management Survey Reveals Surprising Insights

From the CT Media Room.

Cognitive Technologies – a consulting firm specializing in project management, collaborative processes, and organizational effectiveness for the federal government and Fortune 1000 companies – today releases the findings of its 2009 Project Resource Management Survey®, which reveals how resource management tools and processes are being used in organizations across the United States.

The 2009 Project Resource Management Survey points to a surprising lack of tool and process usage dedicated to resource management, an area the Center for Business Practices has recently classified as the number one challenge to organizations that practice project management.

The survey found that Microsoft is an overwhelmingly popular provider in project resource management tools, with  67 percent of respondents stating that they use Microsoft® Project–Desktop for managing project resources while 60 percent use Microsoft Excel.

“What is interesting in these findings is that while Microsoft Project and Microsoft Excel are the most popular programs among organizations, neither program allows for mature resource management,” explained Bruce A. McGraw, PMP and executive vice president of Cognitive Technologies.

Organizations that use the more mature resource management tools Microsoft Project Server and Oracle Primavera show they are better able to track and status their projects at the task level, and are more likely to agree that their resource management tools supply sufficient information for making project-related decisions.  Furthermore, organizations using MS Project Server and Primavera are also more likely to undertake greater numbers of projects each year, and employ greater numbers of people on each project in their organizations.

When looking at the current challenges that organizations face regarding resource management, Cognitive Technologies found that many organizations face severe challenges in project resource allocation. Sixty-seven percent (67%) of respondents agreed that their organizations‘ key project resources are consistently over allocated.  And an overwhelming 71 percent of respondents indicated that internal competition exists between managers for project resources.

“Our data reveals that not only do many organizations face resource management problems, but that senior management is often failing to recognize it,” McGraw said. “The survey found that many senior level managers are simply unaware of the resource management problems within their organizations.”

The2009 Project Resource Management Survey sponsored by Cognitive Technologies surveyed both C-level executives and senior project management professionals within the United States. The top six most represented industries were: Insurance, IT/Technology, Healthcare/Pharmaceuticals, Financial Services, Energy & Utilities and Consulting.

The entire report can be downloaded at www.cognitive-technologies.com