Category: PM Tips & Ideas

Key Project Management Challenges

Handling Key Project Management Challenges by Setting Right Priorities

Key project management challenges are those obstacles that prevent successful completion of the project, and one of the efficient ways to remove the obstacles is to apply right PM priorities to tasks and objectives of the project. Key PM challenges do not allow moving the project forward and delivering expected results. An ability of the project manager to solve key PM problems and issues by defining right PM priorities will let the project to be accomplished on time and as expected. In this article we tried to break the myth of unsolvable challenges and show you what basic steps can be take to apply right priorities.

Project Dashboard and MS Excel – Developing Project Dashboard in Excel Sheets

Project Dashboard and MS Excel – Developing Project Dashboard in Excel Sheets

The term “Project Dashboard” refers to a project tracking tool that provides a project manager with a graph view of the project progress, so that the project manager can see at a glance whether project characteristics are on track. Basically, sample project dashboard is a set of project charts and diagrams that help you review the current status of your project in real time. On the software market there are special project dashboard software products that allow you to build project charts and diagrams as well as project dashboard templates either automatically or manually. An example of project dashboard software that lets manually build project charts and diagrams is MS Excel. Today many people involved in project monitoring and control use project dashboard and MS Excel to have the best chance of success.

In this article, we tried to depict several steps to create a project dashboard view in Microsoft Excel software. You can follow the steps listed below to build project dashboard charts and diagrams in Excel sheets.

Project Cost Management – Definition, Process and Software

How to Estimate Project Costs and Prevent Overspending

What is project cost management? It is a suit of activities for estimating, allocating, and controlling costs within the project. Project cost management allows determining and approving budget for the project and controlling spending. For example, in construction project cost management it is vital to estimate cost of building materials, equipment, salary of workers. In IT project cost management it is critical to estimate cost of software development, salary of IT staff and developers. Effective project cost management allows each project to be specific and unique because that project entails costs and requires specific funding. However, no matter whether you lead a software development project (IT project cost management) or construction project (construction project cost management), you should consider project cost management as a process that consists of the three key steps.

Project Charter As Agreement Between Project Stakeholders

Project Charter As Agreement Between Project Stakeholders

Project Charter is a primary document that states contains initial requirements for a project to meet the expectations of stakeholders. Formally, Project Charter is an agreement between an organization which is committed to producing a product/service and a customer which requests and receives the product/service. Practically, Project Charter is a planning tool that helps set obligations, rights and privileges for all groups and individual involved within a project.

sow

Statement of Work (SOW) – What It Means and Who Writes It

Writing a statement of work (SOW) is an arduous task, and many projects were failed because of too vague, broad or generic SOW. The failure to properly develop and execute a statement of work is also the reason why project parties end up in a dispute. Let’s try to understand what SOW means and how to develop it properly.