A cost benefit analysis is a project selection method in which a common metric is used to compare a project's costs and the benefits it provides. It is used in public projects (like road building) or projects where the end product is not purely monetary. The cost benefit analysis is performed by computing the net present value of the project with the net present … [Read more...]
In some industries, risk analysis as a subset of project management is virtually non-existent. Project management is usually focused on cost and schedule, and delivering projects "on time, on budget" sometimes feels like the only criteria. But as a project manager, there's nothing that makes you sleep at night better than knowing you've got the risks to your … [Read more...]
Risk is inherent in all projects because projects, by definition, represent a one time improvement to an operational process. There is usually some sort of primary risk factor under which the project was defined, such as market risk for the development of a new product, or technical risk for an assembly line improvement project (will it speed up the line, etc?). After … [Read more...]
Could your projects use additional risk management? Experts agree that it is one of the most underutilized areas of project management. As project managers we like to think we know the primary risks to the project and know that we have them under control. But a small amount of risk management planning at the outset of every project will reap disproportionate dividends … [Read more...]
In a proper project risk analysis, once the risks to the project have been identified (step 1), their probability and impact given a value and an overall priority (step 2), risk responses are drawn up (step 3). For each response plan, trigger conditions should be identified. These are the conditions that warrant the implementation of the response plan. For example, an … [Read more...]
Risk analysis is an often omitted area of project management, probably because you can't see its results in a direct way. On top of that, small projects just don't seem like they have the time and budget to justify the time spent. But I would argue that analyzing risk is one of the easiest ways to prevent major headaches later on, and it pays for itself in costs that … [Read more...]
The first step in a good risk management plan is the identification of risks. The other phases of project risk management are built on this foundation. It involves developing a list of the potential risks to a project. This list is called a Risk Register. A good risk register might have the following six columns: Name/Description of … [Read more...]
Your project team is the single biggest factor in the successful completion of your project. When everything is stripped away, a project is nothing more than teams of people doing some work, and the quality of the final products will only be as good as the people producing them. So how do determine who to pick for your project, and what can you do to ensure the people … [Read more...]
A project manager's roadmap and guiding document is called a project management plan. It puts all the pieces of project management together into one coherent place. Rather than holding all the pieces of the project in your head (like alot of project managers I know) it's incredibly helpful to organize them on paper and to have a plan. To be a rock star project manager, … [Read more...]
Risk management,as a subset of project management, is not a new concept but has been growing momentum as of late. Project managers are expected to know the risks inherent in their projects, and give them the appropriate level of scrutiny. Definition Project risk is defined by the Project Management Institute as an uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a … [Read more...]
