Your Guide to Project Management Best Practices

Author: Jack Grabovski

Agile Process: Iterative Product Development Aligned with Client Needs

IT & Software

Agile Process: Iterative Product Development Aligned with Client Needs

While Scrum, XP, DSDM, Lean Software Development and other Agile methodologies have caught on in the software development industry, many organizations see achieving agility in project management as problematic, to a certain extent. For those organizations, the traditional project management approach appears to be most effective in managing long-range business plans and creating enterprise-level forecasts. However, at the team level the traditional approach fails as it doesn’t allow the development team to react to rapidly changing circumstances in the project environment and to align with client requirements. In contrast, Agile-driven projects are enabled to effective and efficiently manage changes through iterative product development.

PM Framework

Key Benefits and Common Mistakes of Project Scheduling

Right project scheduling makes it possible to determine when a planned activity is best to start and finish in terms of the resources and objectives this activity relates to. An accurate and complete schedule template captures durations, dependencies (predecessor tasks and their relationships), resource availability, and target completion date of the project, so it becomes easier for the team and other stakeholders to get a clear idea of what work items are to be done, in what sequence and when. The benefits of good scheduling can be also derived by the project manager who is enabled to review work progress, comply the activities with business policies, and reach efficiency in program management. Meanwhile, there are several common mistakes in scheduling that often cause project failure. Let’s find out more about the key benefits and mistakes.

Tips Managing Programs Successfully

PM Tips & Ideas

Tips on Managing Programs Successfully

Success in managing a program greatly depends on how well each related project is performed and whether all possible conflicts with other related projects are resolved early. In my experience in managing programs successfully I see that today’s normal business environment requires team leaders to carry out multiple projects in parallel, while those individuals should also take care of superior customer service and acceptable team performance. And a company that succeeds in managing parallel projects will outpace the competition. Thus, successful program management is a competitive edge and essential for business growth. Here I suggest you 5 tips on how to manage a program successfully.

Create a meeting agenda

PM Tips & Ideas

Creating a Meeting Agenda

A good agenda helps improve the effectiveness and the efficiency of any meeting; however it is frequently one of the most overlooked parts in the event planning process. Creating a meeting agenda can be compared to passing an examination when you need to complete all the tests in order to get the highest grades. In case one or more items are not completed you get lower grades; the same way, if you fail to include all necessary items in your agenda template the meeting is likely to be held ineffectively, with no expected results achieved.

Faclitation in managing projects

Teamwork & Leadership

Project Facilitation – Definition, Role and Skills

I can hardly image effective project management (PM) without good facilitation. As my experience proves, project performance considerably depends on how the team is facilitated to make decisions, solve problems and respond to risks and changes. PM facilitation provides a teamwork improvement mechanism that constitutes attitudes, performance, abilities, cultural patterns and results of the team.