Information: The Key to Project Management Success
Posted by Brad EgelandThis document is another key piece of information that came out of PMXPO 2009. I found it very insightful and informative and wanted to share it with the PMTips readers. Genius Inside published this white paper in April 2009. I’ve shortened it somewhat, but here it is mostly in it’s entirety….
According to sources at Genius Inside, never has the concept of lean management been more important than in this difficult economic climate. Smaller teams, fewer resources, tighter budgets and shorter lead times mean that Project Management becomes ever more critical and the decision-making process becomes even more demanding. CIOs, Managers and project managers need to have access to not just the right information, but the right amount of information when they need it.
The global economic downturn has had a significant impact on how we do business and many companies are looking to optimize costs. The best way to ensure your company’s survival is through strategic planning. This document focuses on the challenges that high-level managers (CIOs, PMOs, IT Managers, Project Managers) face and how they can succeed by managing risks, tracking project progress and budgets. In essence, the key to success is in having the information needed at the right level, in the necessary detail and at the right time.
Why is information so important? Beyond the concept of information being power, information is the heart and soul of effective Project Management. It is the one string that runs through every aspect, every step of a project, creating a continuity. Information comes in the form of Requests, Planning, Budgets, Resources, Risks, Invoicing, and much more. How much information, at what level, what type of information is needed depends on your role in the process. The higher your role, the higher-level of information you need.
We all know that information is the key element to Project Management, but what information is critical and to whom? Managers need a global view of all projects: This is essential to determine which projects are at risk, which are falling behind or which are over budget. In tough economic times, the most important aspects of a project are Budget, Resources and Planning and Collaboration.
Tracking Costs and Managing Budgets
Tracking costs and budget overruns are an essential part of ensuring success. If you have multiple project budgets to track, you need a comprehensive view that includes all the separate budgets. With the right information, you are able to make the decisions that are best for the company (does the budget need to be reviewed, resources reassigned or should the project be tabled?). Optimizing costs is imperative to project success.
Managing Project Resources
Resource management comes under the heading of Cost savings and is another key component of effective Project Management. Being able to manage resources across departments or across projects – centralized resource management – allows managers to ensure that information is shared with all project members and across all projects.
The ability to consult resource availability, to match skills with tasks, to balance workload with capacity ensures the most efficient use of resources, thus reducing costs and optimizing resource assignments.
Risk Management
Every project has risks; some minor, some major, but all have the potential to impact your projects negatively. In today’s competitive environment, managers must assess the risks for all projects, determine the possible impact and assign resources to resolve the risk issue or mitigate its impact.
Timely access to accurate information is the best way to quickly identify and resolve risks or, in certain circumstances, table the affected project. When you are able to make informed decision, you are able to generate optimal results and possible substantial cost savings.
Collaboration
Collaboration is a broad topic that covers all aspects of collaboration activities and project management and its related knowledge areas. It is technically defined as a joint work toward a common end. Cross project or even cross portfolio collaboration brings together information from team members, both internal and external that lets you make accurate critical path calculations.
Effective collaboration uses all the tools at its disposal to connect with any member of the project team and share information, to plan the project, to produce master schedules, manage time and cost as well as resources and equipment. Information sharing means fewer delays, more efficient problem solving and an increased value to the company.
Please visit Genius Inside at www.geniusinside.com.
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Carolyn Urban says:
Couldn’t agree more – accurate information has always been critical, but in this economy it is paramount. In our software implementation projects, we try to use typical IT project ‘governance’ (in a lightweight way) to direct focus on these key elements:
·Continuous review and enhancement of the project documentation
·An explicit governance schedule
·Clear roles and responsibilities for decision making, issue escalation, and dispute management
·Allocation of resources and expenditures in response to prioritized needs
·Continuous evaluation of performance, cost, satisfaction and effectiveness
·Ongoing communication among all stakeholders