101 Project Management Problems and How to Solve Them: Practical Advice for Handling Real-World Project Challenges

Contents......Page 6
Introduction......Page 14
PROBLEM 1 What personality type fits best into project management?......Page 16
PROBLEM 2 What are the habits of successful project managers?......Page 18
PROBLEM 3 I’m an experienced individual contributor but very new to project management. How do I get my new project up and going?......Page 20
PROBLEM 4 What are the most important responsibilities of a project manager?......Page 23
PROBLEM 5 What is the value of project management certification? What about academic degrees in project management?......Page 25
PROBLEM 6 There are many project development methodologies. What should I consider when adopting standards such as the Project Management Institute PMBOK®?......Page 27
PROBLEM 7 What are the key considerations when developing or revising a project life cycle? What should I consider when choosing between ‘‘waterfall’’ and ‘‘cyclic’’ (or ‘‘agile’’) life cycles?......Page 30
PROBLEM 8 How can I efficiently run mini-projects (less than six months with few dedicated resources)?......Page 34
PROBLEM 9 How rigid and formal should I be when running a small project?......Page 36
PROBLEM 10 How do I handle very repetitive projects, such as product introductions?......Page 38
PROBLEM 11 How should I manage short, complex, dynamic projects?......Page 40
PROBLEM 12 How do I balance good project management practices with high pressure to ‘‘get it done’’? How do I build organizational support for effective project planning and management?......Page 43
PROBLEM 13 How does project management differ between hardware and software projects?......Page 46
PROBLEM 14 How many projects can a project manager realistically handle simultaneously?......Page 48
PROBLEM 15 How do I handle my day-to-day tasks along with managing a project?......Page 50
PROBLEM 16 How do I develop and maintain supportive sponsorship throughout a project?......Page 53
PROBLEM 17 What can I do when my project loses its sponsor?......Page 55
PROBLEM 18 How can I secure and retain adequate funding throughout my project?......Page 57
PROBLEM 19 Can the project management function be outsourced?......Page 59
PROBLEM 20 How can I ensure good project management practices during organizational process changes?......Page 61
PROBLEM 21 What is the best structure for program management for ensuring satisfactory customer results?......Page 63
PROBLEM 22 How do I effectively manage customer expectations?......Page 66
PROBLEM 23 How can I reconcile competing regional/crossfunctional agendas?......Page 69
PROBLEM 24 How should I effectively deal with contributor hostility or reluctance during start-up?......Page 72
PROBLEM 25 When is a project large enough to justify investing in a two-day project launch?......Page 75
PROBLEM 26 How do I establish control initially when my project is huge?......Page 77
PROBLEM 27 How should I initiate a new project with a new team, or using a new technology?......Page 80
PROBLEM 28 How should I evaluate and make ‘‘make vs. buy’’ project decisions?......Page 82
PROBLEM 29 How can I quickly engage good contract workers?......Page 85
PROBLEM 30 In a large project, when should I seek commitment for overall funding?......Page 87
PROBLEM 31 When working with extremely limited resources, how can I get my project completed without doing it all myself?......Page 89
PROBLEM 32 How should I initiate a project that has a relatively low priority?......Page 91
PROBLEM 33 How should I organize my project management information system (PMIS) to facilitate access and avoid ‘‘too much data’’?......Page 93
PROBLEM 34 How can I organize my team for maximum creativity, flexibility, and success?......Page 96
PROBLEM 35 How can I work effectively with other project teams and leaders who have very little project management experience?......Page 98
PROBLEM 36 How can I help team members recognize the value of using project management processes?......Page 100
PROBLEM 37 How do I keep people focused without hurting morale?......Page 103
PROBLEM 38 How can I involve my team in project management activities without increasing overhead?......Page 105
PROBLEM 39 How can I manage and build teamwork on a project team that includes geographically remote contributors?......Page 108
PROBLEM 40 How do I secure team buy-in on global projects?......Page 110
PROBLEM 41 How can I best manage project contributors who are contract staff?......Page 112
PROBLEM 42 How do I cope with part-time team members with conflicting assignments?......Page 114
PROBLEM 43 How do I handle undependable contributors who impede project progress?......Page 116
PROBLEM 44 How should I manage informal communications and ‘‘management by wandering around’’ on a virtual, geographically distributed team?......Page 118
PROBLEM 45 When should I delegate down? Delegate up?......Page 121
PROBLEM 46 How can I best deal with project teams larger than twenty?......Page 124
PROBLEM 47 What can I do to manage my schedule when my project WBS becomes huge?......Page 128
PROBLEM 48 How can I get meaningful commitment from team members that ensures follow-through?......Page 131
PROBLEM 49 As a project manager, what should I delegate and what should I do myself?......Page 134
PROBLEM 50 Who should estimate activity durations and costs?......Page 136
PROBLEM 51 How do I improve the quality and accuracy of my project estimates?......Page 139
PROBLEM 52 What metrics will help me estimate project activity durations and costs?......Page 143
PROBLEM 53 How can I realistically estimate durations during holidays and other times when productivity decreases?......Page 147
PROBLEM 54 How can I develop realistic schedules?......Page 149
PROBLEM 55 How can I thoroughly identify and manage external dependencies?......Page 152
PROBLEM 56 How do I synchronize my project schedules with several related partners and teams?......Page 155
PROBLEM 57 How do I effectively plan and manage a project that involves invention, investigation, or multiple significant decisions?......Page 158
PROBLEM 58 How should I manage adoption of new technologies or processes in my projects?......Page 161
PROBLEM 59 How should I plan to bring new people up to speed during my projects?......Page 164
PROBLEM 60 How can I resolve staff and resource overcommitments?......Page 166
PROBLEM 61 How can I minimize the impact of scarce, specialized expertise I need for my project?......Page 168
PROBLEM 62 What is the best approach for balancing resources across several projects?......Page 170
PROBLEM 63 How can I minimize potential late-project testing failures and deliverable evaluation issues?......Page 172
PROBLEM 64 How do I anticipate and minimize project staff turnover?......Page 174
PROBLEM 65 How can I avoid having too many meetings?......Page 176
PROBLEM 66 How can I ensure owner follow-through on project tasks and action items?......Page 178
PROBLEM 67 How do I keep track of project details without things falling through the cracks?......Page 181
PROBLEM 68 How can I avoid having contributors game their status metrics?......Page 183
PROBLEM 69 What are the best ways to communicate project status?......Page 186
PROBLEM 70 How can I manage my project successfully despite high-priority interruptions?......Page 189
PROBLEM 71 What are the best project management communication techniques for remote contributors?......Page 191
PROBLEM 72 How do I establish effective global communications? What metrics can I use to track communications?......Page 193
PROBLEM 73 On fee-for-service projects, how do I balance customer and organizational priorities?......Page 196
PROBLEM 74 How do I survive a late-project work bulge, ensuring both project completion and team cohesion?......Page 199
PROBLEM 75 How do I coordinate improvements and changes to processes we are currently using on our project?......Page 202
PROBLEM 76 How much project documentation is enough?......Page 204
PROBLEM 77 How can I ensure all members on my multi-site team have all the information they need to do their work?......Page 206
PROBLEM 78 How can I manage overly constrained projects effectively?......Page 208
PROBLEM 79 How do I keep my project from slipping? If it does, how do I recover its schedule?......Page 212
PROBLEM 80 What are the best practices for managing schedule changes?......Page 214
PROBLEM 81 How can I effectively manage several small projects that don’t seem to justify formal project management procedures?......Page 216
PROBLEM 82 What are good practices for managing complex, multi-site projects?......Page 218
PROBLEM 83 How do I best deal with time zone issues?......Page 220
PROBLEM 84 How can I manage changes to the project objective in the middle of my project?......Page 222
PROBLEM 85 How should I respond to increased demands from management after the project baseline has been set?......Page 225
PROBLEM 86 How can I avoid issues with new stakeholders, especially on global projects?......Page 227
PROBLEM 87 What should I do when team members fail to complete tasks, citing ‘‘regular work’’ priorities?......Page 230
PROBLEM 88 What is the best way to manage my project through reorganizations, market shifts, or other external changes?......Page 232
PROBLEM 89 How should I deal with having too many decision makers?......Page 234
PROBLEM 90 How should I manage multi-site decision making?......Page 237
PROBLEM 91 What can I do when people claim that they are too busy to provide status updates?......Page 239
PROBLEM 92 How can I effectively manage projects where the staff is managed by others?......Page 241
PROBLEM 93 How can I minimize unsatisfactory deliverable and timing issues when outsourcing?......Page 243
PROBLEM 94 How should I manage reviews for lengthy projects?......Page 245
PROBLEM 95 What should I do to establish control when taking over a project where I was not involved in the scoping or planning?......Page 247
PROBLEM 96 What should I consider when adopting technology-based communication tools?......Page 250
PROBLEM 97 How should I select and implement software tools for project documentation, scheduling, and planning?......Page 254
PROBLEM 98 What should I consider when setting up software tools I will be using to coordinate many interrelated projects?......Page 256
PROBLEM 99 How should I realistically assess the success and value of my project management processes?......Page 260
PROBLEM 100 What are good practices for ending a canceled project?......Page 262
PROBLEM 101 How can I motivate contributors to participate in project retrospective analysis?......Page 264
C......Page 266
F......Page 268
M......Page 269
P......Page 270
S......Page 271
T......Page 272
W......Page 273