Seth's PhD Blog » Project Management

PMBOK® Guide – Fourth Edition Changes

phdblogmeister — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 01:36:31 +0000

http://www.pmhut.com/pmbok%c2%ae-guide-%e2%80%93-fourth-edition-changes

- from PM Hut

Posted in Project Management

Risk Rating Matrix

phdblogmeister — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 19:47:26 +0000

Qualitative Risk Analysis and the Risk Rating Matrix
By Joseph Phillips

Once you’ve identified your risks, it’s time for qualitative risk analysis. Qualitative risk analysis qualifies the risks for in-depth analysis. Basically, you and the project team discuss the identified risks, the probabilities of those risks occurring, and their impact if the risks actually do occur.

The most common approach to this process is to create a risk rating matrix. Here’s a quick sample of a risk rating matrix using an ordinal scale:

Risk	Impact	Probability	Score
Vendor	Very high	Medium	High
Developer skills	High	Medium	High
Firmware changes	Medium	Very low	Low
Asteroid	High	Very low	Low
Travel delays	Low	High	Medium

Within your project, you have to determine which of these risks deserve additional analysis. Typically you’d say the risks with a medium score or higher should be taken seriously and are promoted to quantitative risk analysis.

Posted in Project Management

How to cope with information overload

phdblogmeister — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 06:07:30 +0000

How to cope with information overload

Dealing with information overload isn’t easy, because it requires changing the way you live and work. It takes hard work and discipline, but it can be done. Here are several things that you can do at work to break free from the shackles of information overload.

Alter your work routines. It’s very easy to become a victim of your routines. The insatiable need for more information is one of them.
Plan your day and prioritize your time. This is often an impossible goal, for many people. But it’s an important first step that can help you focus your energy on what’s most important.
Cut your phone time. The average worker would be shocked if he knew how much time is wasted on the phone. And a relatively small amount of time is spent on important calls. A Reuters survey said that 20 percent of all voice-mail time is spent fumbling through menus.
Manage e-mail. Respond only to important e-mails. Get rid of all junk e-mails. Simply respond by indicating your wish to be removed from the mailing list, and make sure you have a good spam filter.
Monitor your Internet time. Most of us waste hours on the Internet. It’s very easy to get lost and distracted when searching for something. Stay focused so that your Internet searches are targeted. It wouldn’t be wasting time to learn Boolean search terms. This will narrow your searches, and cut your Internet time dramatically.
De-clutter your desk. Regardless of where it comes from, the average worker is still drowning in paper–most of which he doesn’t need. Look around your desk and office, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised when you discover that a healthy percentage of the paper that’s been piling up can be trashed, and the rest can be filed for future use. Ideally, your desk should be clear. It should contain only what is pertinent to what you are working on at the moment or during the next couple of days. If you tend to let things pile up, it’s a wonderfully cleansing feeling to see only what’s important at the moment in front of you.
At home, try to disconnect from the office. If possible, try not to take work home. For most career builders, work becomes an obsession–and it’s often not necessary to take work home. For many compulsive overachievers, it’s hard to disconnect from the office and its routines and change your rhythms so you can focus your energy and attention on fulfilling non-work related routines.
Pursue a hobby, sport or interest–anything that’s not work-related.
Shut off your cell phone or Blackberry when you get home. If your job doesn’t demand that you be on call 24 hours a day, make it a rule to shut off your cell phone or Blackberry at a certain hour, say, 7 or 8 p.m.

from: http://www.gantthead.com/article.cfm?ID=246092&authenticated=1

Posted in Project Management Tagged: information, information overload, to much information

what is scrum! in under 10 minutes!

phdblogmeister — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 02:41:10 +0000

Posted in Project Management Tagged: scrum, what is scrum

Effective Meeting Basics

phdblogmeister — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 00:43:38 +0000

A successful meeting begins with understanding its anatomy and we begin by doing an overview of its major components:

Meeting Setup and Logistics
Meeting Preparation
Meeting Facilitation
Meeting Follow-Up

Meeting notes should contain:

Meeting attendees
Discussion points
Issues list
Action items with due date
Confirmation that meeting objectives (exit criteria) were met.

Send out Meeting Notes – Make sure to email the meeting notes to all of the original invited attendees directly afterward (same day is best) and ask people to read and send corrections as needed.

from: http://www.cprime.com/news/Effective-Meetings.html

Posted in Project Management Tagged: meeting notes, meetings, notes

10 things I’ve learned in the last 10 years…(related to Project Management)

phdblogmeister — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 21:26:19 +0000

Be gracious with people, but be ruthless with your time.
There is no greater waste of time then spending extra effort on that which does not need to be done at all.
It is not about working longer, or harder, it is about working smarter and more strategically that counts.
Ask yourself, why am I doing what I’m doing right now?
1 minute of planning saves (at least!) 10 minutes of reworking (and even hours, days or weeks).
It is sometimes smarter to ask for forgiveness then to ask for permission - BUT not always!
Seek first to understand the other point of view before you explain your side (active listening).
With tempestuous clients, ground rules for meetings should be made together up front and agreed upon by all parties; and last don’t be shy to exercise these agreements.
Be clear on delegation and what authority that has been granted to you; use it or lose it.
Goals in your head are but daydreams; if you want them to become real one day write them down. Now!

Posted in Project Management

Effective Project Management Interview Questions

phdblogmeister — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 03:20:01 +0000

Question 1: Describe a recent project where you were responsible for managing multiple people or teams. What were some of the key challenges and how did you handle those challenges?

This question demonstrates a result-oriented leadership behavior. Project managers need to demonstrate delivery and a desire to attain the end goal. Staffing project managers who simply point out problems but do not help resolve them will not drive the project to completion. Effective project managers demonstrate how they’ve managed a project, coordinated across multiple teams, overcame obstacles and delivered the project’s goals.

Question 2: Describe a time when you implemented a new idea without being asked or pursued a new opportunity that could improve the project or company.

Demonstrating courage and a willingness to take action without being asked is a key delivery characteristic of effective project managers. Project sponsors entrust the project’s goals, budget and their own reputations on their project managers. Project sponsors don’t have all the answers and need intelligent and motivated people to solve problems, identify new opportunities and take action without being prompted.

Question 3: Describe a scenario where you had to balance competing customer demands with project constraints. How did you ensure customer satisfaction while maintaining the goals of the project?

Maintaining a customer focused approach while ensuring the project deliverables are completed on time is a delicate balance. Business partners don’t understand all the technical details required to turn business processes into software solutions. They just want the system to work and accommodate their changing business needs. Effective project managers build rapport with their business partners, seek to understand the underlying needs and proactively address their concerns. It is a difficult balance as project managers commit to delivering the project scope while addressing a business customer’s changing requirements.

Question 4: Describe a time when you had to balance quality management with a challenged project schedule.

As projects execute and schedule variances occur, there is a tendency to shorten the quality testing cycle to maintain a project end date. In some projects, the end date can be extended, and in other projects the end date must be maintained. Effective project managers recognize the importance of quality management in the software development cycle and prioritize the test cases and test cycles that deliver the project’s critical functionality. These project managers successfully commit to a quality mindset and ensure defects are resolved or mitigated.

The project manager should also recognize the challenge of managing the triple constraint and maintain a commitment to quality. Recognizing delays in the schedule early will help project managers adjust testing schedules so the support team isn’t called in from a day off or a holiday.

Question 5: Describe a time when you had a difficult situation working with a vendor or another peer? What was your approach to resolve the issues while maintaining a positive relationship?

Without a cohesive team, a project manager can not be effective. Projects often depend on vendors and supplier team members to provide services. The nature of the client-vendor relationship emphasizes mutually beneficial goals. However, the vendor doesn’t always prioritize the client’s interests as heavily as their own. The ability to effectively develop teams across corporate borders is critical to project delivery. Clients will always try to maximize services at a minimal cost while vendors are motivated to increase costs for additional services.

In a challenged project with strained vendor relationships, it becomes even more important to focus on the critical issues to work together and deliver the end goal. The same skill is needed when working with other peers who are not necessarily motivated to help the project team. Strong relationships help solve problems and support project delivery. The best project management system, tools and techniques cannot replace the power effective relationships have across multiple teams.

From http://www.gantthead.com/article.cfm?ID=245817

Posted in career tools, Project Management Tagged: interview questions, Project Management Interview Questions

PMBOK – Visualized

phdblogmeister — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 03:32:18 +0000

from http://blog.budzier.com/2008/10/21/graphical-representation-of-the-project-management-body-of-knowledge

Posted in Project Management, visualization Tagged: PMBOK, visualization

great (project management) job search sites:

phdblogmeister — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 00:18:04 +0000

Indeed.com has an RSS feed while careerbuilder has an iPhone application. In general, but in your key workds (like project manager, or pmp) and then zip.

Why not try them both?

Posted in Project Management Tagged: jobs, pmp, Project Management, project management job, resume

the magic triangle

phdblogmeister — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 05:22:29 +0000

from http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/project/HA102352381033.aspx

Posted in Project Management Tagged: Project Management, the magic triangle