Assigning work is relatively easy, but how do you ensure that the deadlines will be met, the project will come in under budget, or that the quality level will be acceptable to the stakeholders? Fortunately, project management fundamentals contain techniques which are used to track and control the project. Earned Value Analysis Any discussion of project control … [Read more...]
When you, the project manager, need to make sure a project finishes on time, there is a science as well as an art form involved. But the science tends to enhance the art, in other words, if you know the science you will be that much better at practicing the art form. In yesterday's post we outlined the critical path method which is the professional project manager's … [Read more...]
Planning is the single most important thing a project manager can do to ensure a successful project that meets its goals. The Project Management Institute suggests that planning should ideally consist of about 20 – 30% of the time required to perform the project work. This is substantially more than most project managers actually spend on project planning. … [Read more...]
According to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), the foundation of project management rests upon the five phases that every project goes through: Project Initiation Project Planning Project Execution Monitoring & Controlling Project Closure Project Initiation This process group includes the basic groundwork necessary to create … [Read more...]
Putting out fires is rarely a good project management strategy, even though most project managers have so much experience with it that they could take it up as a second career. Suffice it to say that project control is where the project manager earns their wages. Project control is the tasks required to ensure the project is completed on time, on budget, … [Read more...]
A baseline is defined as a time-based standard against which performance is measured. A project baseline is a time-based, progressive plan as opposed to one, single target value. Projects will often have a single, target value, but it is important to know if the project is in good health at any given intermediate project control point. The baseline … [Read more...]
Project managers have one of the most important jobs around. Projects make a one-time improvement to a business process, therefore the end products or services almost always represent an important focal point to the organization. In addition, projects are by definition unique and have little repetition to draw from, hence project managers have little choice … [Read more...]
Staying within budget and schedule is one of the project manager's most important jobs. It is not an understatement to say that if you master this one thing, most other things will fall into place. The secret to doing this well is called earned value management. It is one of the foundational processes of project management, as well as a central component of … [Read more...]
Everybody has heard of a project whose cost spiralled out of control. Even big megaprojects where the difference measures in the billions are not immune to cost pressures. In fact, they are even more likely to go over budget. What is the official project management methodology for controlling project costs? To answer this question, we consult the … [Read more...]
The earned value method is the project management standard for cost control during a project. Whether you are a practicing project manager or studying for the PMP exam, you need to know how to calculate earned value. Fortunately, it involves nothing more than basic high school math. The more difficult part is knowing what each of the variables means and how … [Read more...]
