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When Italian engineer Bonanno Pisano began construction on the the Tower of Pisa in 1173 I'm sure he wasn't expecting it to start tilting—before the third story was finished.  The best guess as to why the tower started to lean was that Pisano underestimated the weight of the 185-foot tower on the stone foundation of only ten feet.  The weak foundation combined with the soft sand, rubble, and clay underneath the almost 16,000-ton tower contributed to the uneven settling of the white marble tower.

Although the builders tried to compensate for the lean, by the time the tower was completed in 1350 it was leaning a full 4 feet, 7 inches from vertical.  What's more, by the late 20th century, the tower was leaning a full 17 feet.  (The tower has since undergone an intensive restoration project to keep the tower from failing completely.)

Whether you are building a 12th century bell tower or starting a new project, a firm foundation can help you achieve project success.  The following are three suggestions for building a solid foundation for your next project:

1. Make sure the project has a clearly defined business objective—and that everyone has a clear understanding of what it is.  It's important for stakeholders and project teams to understand the business value of what they're doing.  Keeping the project vision visible and accessible enables everyone involved in the project to stay focused on what's important—and helps keep scope creep to a minimum.
2. Make sure the project has executive commitment to see it through.  One of the quickest ways to kill a project is to pull its funding out from under it.  A committed executive can also help promote the merits of the project to others within the organization to build a broader base of stakeholder support.
3. Make sure there is a shared sense of determination to finish the project.  If the only member of the team committed to finish the project is the project manager, it's not likely the project will ever be completed.  Individual team members and executive stakeholders need to have the same determination.  Without a shared sense of determination to finish, projects languish and eventually fail.

Although the Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of the most recognizable buildings in the world, it is not a good representation of a successful building project.  I'm sure if Pisano had it to do again, he would have spent more time on the foundation and built a tower that stood straight.

Business project management software offers both experienced and inexperienced project managers a number of valuable tools to help them establish work management best practices and methodologies.  That being said, nothing can substitute for establishing a good project management foundation—or as my grandfather used to say, "Well begun is half done."

As a 12- or 13-year-old Boy Scout (many moons ago), I was on a fishing trip with my troop in a wilderness region of the Uintah mountains of Utah.  Our goal was to fish the isolated high-mountain lakes for fresh rainbow trout.  At the time, my father had a very nice four-piece fishing pole that I "knew" would be perfect for the trip, so I "borrowed" it.  We had a great time.  Until the morning I cast out into the lake and the two end pieces of my "dad's" pole shot off after my bobber and the bait.

The weight of the pole took the line right to the bottom, where it snagged.  No matter what I did, I couldn't free the line.  Normally, I would have jerked it free and just left the hook at the bottom—but it was my dad's pole, and I wanted to save it instead of explain why I only brought home half of it.  Panicked, I stripped down and jumped into the icy-cold water of the lake and tried to follow the line to where the snag was.  Within a few seconds, the freezing, snow-fed lake water took my breath and I started to struggle.

When my Scoutmaster noticed what I was doing he sharply told me to turn around and waded in after me.  He picked me up, blue and shivering, carried me back to camp and built the bonfire of all bonfires to warm me up.  Looking back, I'm sure he saved me from what could have been a disaster. 

Successfully managing project based work sometimes requires that project managers recognize when good projects have gone bad and possess the courage to "cut bait" before too many resources are needlessly put in jeopardy.  Jumping into the lake, hundreds of miles from a hospital, is a risk I probably wouldn't take again—and probably wouldn't have been encouraged by my Scoutmaster either.

Regardless of your particular work management methodology, project management best practice suggests that the criteria for pulling the plug on a DOA project should be determined prior to the project beginning.  What's more, the "firing squad" should be identified before the project begins too.  Sometimes in the heat of battle, it's difficult to dispassionately consider discontinuing a project in trouble.

I didn't want to explain to my Dad what happened to his fishing pole—but continuing down the path I was on lead to nowhere but disaster.  Mustering the courage to discontinue a project that has nowhere to go is difficult, but profitable portfolio management requires that we sometimes make hard decisions before we end up frozen and blue at the bottom of a nameless lake. 

Over the past few days, I've been writing about some of the characteristics that make a great project manager.  I don't think anyone disagrees that delivering projects on-time, on budget, and on spec are important.  I certainly think they are.  That being said, I was thumbing through some old notes last night and found these six leadership attributes.  I'm not sure where I stumbled across them originally, but they are leadership skills that can take a good project manager and make them great.

As companies turn to project based work to help make and keep their organizations competitive and profitable, the need for skilled project leaders will continue to increase.  Regardless of your particular work management methodology or business project management software, do you take time to foster the following skills or attributes?

• The gift of foresight.  I'm not suggesting that membership in the Psychic Friends Network is required, but being able to look down the road and make some reasonable predictions based upon practical assumptions is an important skill.
• Organization.  I don't think this needs much explanation.  Keeping information, schedules, and team members organized is critical.  Fortunately, most project managers I know are very organized and detail-oriented people.
• The ability to lead.  Although there are some people who are natural leaders, basic leadership skills can be learned, practiced, and improved.  You might not read about it in the PMBOK, but there are mentors, leadership training, and books you can read if an honest evaluation of your leadership skills finds you lacking.  Leadership and people skills are, at the very least, as important as methodology and tracking tools.
• Exceptional communication skills. It's important to be able to communicate with everyone involved in the project from peers, to team members, and stakeholders.  Everyone needs different information couched in different terms.  This is a skill that is vital to a project manager's success.  Adam Michaelson is talking about project communication in his blog today, if you'd like to read a little more.
• Pragmatism.  A pragmatic approach to problem-solving is a skill that is essential for a discipline that faces the regular adjustments and changes that face project managers.
• Empathy.  In order to lead people, you need to understand them and what motivates them.  Everyone is different and a one-size-fits-all approach to leadership is seldom the most successful approach.  I'm not suggesting that project managers need to get all "touchie-feelie" and start tearing up in romantic comedies (not that there's anything wrong with that), but the old saw about "..walking in another man's shoes," might apply here.

It's not a secret that in my humble opinion, like any good leader, great project managers understand that successfully leading people is half the battle to successfully managing a project.

I've appreciated all the dialog on this topic over the past few days.  Please feel free to share some of your favorite leadership skills.

"To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others."

- Tony Robbins




As a project manager, do you ever feel like you spend most of your time just getting people to communicate—whether it be to give you information, share updates, or work with each other?  I've heard this from time to time as I've worked with, observed, and interviewed various project managers. If you're a project manager and struggle with this, I have some ideas for you.

Don't waste time coming up with a carrot or a stick to get people to communicate to each other or to you. As a project manager, one of your responsibilities is to create a good communication strategy—an information system that will capture updates naturally. Creating this plan is not simply a matter of you deciding what works best for you.  It may not even be following what is already in place. Everyone communicates differently. It's your job to find out how your team and stakeholders prefer to communicate and create an environment and system that will facilitate easy flow of good information.

Voluntary information is the best kind, and you need to find out what will generate the most of it. Too often I hear project managers say that their team (or some member of their team) is just not giving the information they need as project managers to forecast, manage, and report.  While there are instances where workers may be less effective team players, I find that in most cases, there are lurking variables.  Either the project manager has done nothing to understand what makes that team (or team member) tick, or there is something that is obstructing the flow of information.

Take some time to understand your team and stakeholders. What are their key attributes?  What do they care about? What bugs them? How do they communicate with their friends? When you understand the preferences and nuances of each individual on your team and the pool of stakeholders, you can look for overlap and commonalities that will help you create an effective communication strategy. This includes not only the systems you use, but your very approach to communicating with them individually. If you get this, you will be amazed at how much more effective you—and your team—can be.

Communication can be negatively impacted by cultural, geographic, or other conflicts.  If your team is international, there may be obstacles from the time difference to the way people say and interpret things. Further, there may be disagreements or friction among team members or with the way you communicate. As a project manager, you are expected to perceive these issues and deal with them accordingly. Step up to the plate, confront and resolve discord through understanding and openness. Set up an infrastructure that will efficiently facilitate timely communication and interactions. 

Oftentimes, communication problems are caused (or at least compounded by) project management tools. Executives and project managers love the idea of getting work into a system that allows them to forecast, report, and make more informed decisions. But when these tools are difficult to use and/or complicated, they can end up creating more problems than they solve. Newer approaches to work management software are getting closer to solving this problem. But as a project manager, it is your duty to remove obstacles to ensure smooth and successful project execution. If some heavy PPM software tool is impeding your team's ability to work efficiently, then you need to have the guts to make a change.

I have found that the biggest obstacles I've come up against, as well as the most rewarding successes, have been closely tied to or a direct result of my communication strategy. The next time you have a communication problem, instead of blaming it on your team or circumstances, take a more proactive approach: consider your communications strategy.

I think Bob Dylan said it best, "The times they are a-change'n."

New communication tools including blogs, wikis, Twitter, and other social media are making knowledge-based collaboration more spontaneous and informative.  Just spend a day following the project management feeds on Twitter and you'll have access to some of the most respected experts in project management—all willing to engage in discussion and answer questions.

These new technologies have the potential to make capturing best practices and relevant experiences from around the world readily available to project and business leaders within a mouse-click or two.  Only time will tell.

I remember when the computer on my desk was a dumb terminal attached to a mini-computer in the phone closet.  I'm excited about the pace that technology advances to make my job easier.  For example, before cell phones, I had to know every payphone in my area to retrieve my messages—and, it was my secretary who gave them to me, not my voice mail.

My first cell phone, the size of a small brick, made it possible to be on the golf course with one client and answer questions from another—at the same time.  However, compared to my iPhone, I was living in the dark ages.

That said, according to Spiderman, "With great power comes great responsibility."

Can we afford to use the same work management paradigms that existed even ten years ago—with edicts filtering down from the top of a corporate hierarchy?  Like it or not, information technology has changed things.  The way we address project based work being one of the things that is changing.  Customers aren't shy about providing product feedback—both good and bad, and organizations that successfully engage the workforce in the project management process are finding more success than those that don't.

Companies are starting to realize that user groups, communities, forums, and even Twitter are not to be taken lightly.  Listening to your customers, and your employees, is important.  Don't do it, and you'll be sitting in the phone closet, alone and in the dark.

Organizations doing project based work focus a lot on creating repeatable processes and sustainable methodology—which is how it should be.  However, what separates the good projects from the great projects is not the particular project management tools they use or the work management methodology employed—it's often the soft skills that make the difference between a successful project and a project that struggles.  Yesterday, Cindi Smith posted a blog titled, Does a Successful Project Manager = a Successful Project.  It initiated a conversation or two on Twitter about the soft skills project managers need to successfully manage projects.  To continue the conversation, I thought I'd list five of the traits I thought were important for project managers to master:

1. A collaborative management style: Engaging the team and stakeholders in problem-solving and decision-making is a skill that helps ensure successful projects.
2. Adaptability: Project teams and individual projects are always different.  Successful project managers are able to adapt and overcome the challenges new projects present.  A fluid project management approach is a very effective method for successful work management.
3. "Figure-it-out" resourcefulness: This implies creativity and occasional out-of-the-box thinking to solve problems along with a tenacious, never-give-up approach to overcoming obstacles and resource-allocation issues.
4. Highly-developed communication skills: It's paramount that project managers are able to effectively communicate with stakeholders, project teams, and their peers.  If project managers are unable to customize their communication style to the appropriate audience, success will be elusive.
5. Flexibility: Adapted from a line in To a Mouse, by Robert Burns, "The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry."  No matter how well a project is planned, there will always be something or someone that throws a monkey-wrench into the works.  Flexibility is the genesis of creative thinking—which is critical for project success.

Are there any skills you'd like to add to the list?

Organizations that have a continual flow of overlapping projects may already have implemented a PMO (Project Management Office), if not, you might be considering one.  Because the statistics for PMO failure seem to be pretty high (I've heard as high as 50% in a casual conversation with an industry analyst) I have been thinking about what is the difference between a successful PMO implementation and one that fails.

I think it's safe to say that merely doing project based work isn't necessarily the determining factor as to whether or not your organization should start a PMO.  Companies need to evaluate their business processes to see if the need exists and where a PMO might fit.  That being said, a PMO that is aligned with the strategic objectives of the organization can be a valuable tool for making sure that projects don't get shortsighted and fail due to a lack of support.

Making sure the PMO doesn't become just another bureaucracy is critical to PMO success.  Some time ago I stumbled upon six best practices for implementing a PMO suggested by Jim Stroh, CEO of the project management consultancy Proggex, in an article for Projects@Work.  I like the list, what do you think?

1. Specify the purpose of the PMO in the organization
2. Commit to the major cultural change of implementing a PMO
   
3. Make sure the roles of the PMO are methodically defined
   
4. Support for the PMO functions must be obtained from stakeholders at all levels
   
5. Regularly conduct a PMO assessment
   
6. Find the right project management tools for your PMO

I don't think implementing a PMO is the answer to every project management problem, but under the right circumstances can be a powerful vehicle for implementing sound work management best practices and getting more of the right work done.

Are you part of a PMO?  What does your PMO do to ensure the successful implementation of project based work in your organization?

Change is hard.

Whether it's a new job, new responsibilities, moving to a new city, or even a new boss—change isn't easy.  The same is true for organizations implementing new work management methodologies.  The benefits of changing the way work gets done may be obvious, but that doesn't mean the change will be easy.  That being said, some of the most common implementation problems are excuses, not roadblocks. 

Knowing (and then educating everyone involved with the change) upfront about what to expect can make the culture shock a little easier to deal with.  I've found that "fear of change" is in most cases a fear of the unknown.  Here are some of the most common fears organizations face as they implement project management methodologies:

• It's different.  Realizing that there are some people who thrive on change, but most people don't, is important.  You may get some push-back simply because it's a change.
• Managers are uncomfortable with additional scrutiny.  Projects that might be important to one senior manager may not be as important to others.  This could make some managers a little nervous that their projects might not stand up to peer review.
• Some projects are more important than others.  Implementing a sound work management methodology will mean that only those projects that provide the most business value will get pushed forward—not the "pet" projects of influential stakeholders.  Because this might negatively impact some projects, those stakeholders may try to block the process.
• There are tough decisions to be made.  Best practice requires that some projects will get funded and others will not.  It's important that senior managers understand that they have a responsibility to the organization—not just their individual department.  There will be managers who don't like this fact.
• Implementation takes time.  Implementing a new methodology for project based work takes time.  Because it doesn't happen overnight, there will be those who will say they don't have time for this—but it's necessary to take the time to be successful.

Like any organizational culture change, there will be some who embrace the change and others who don't.  Be prepared for both, and your efforts will be a success.  What are some of the challenges that you have successfully faced when implementing project management methodologies?

Rear Admiral Grace Hopper of the U.S. Navy said, "No one ever managed men into battle."

Over the years I've noticed that the traits that make people successful leaders are not always the same traits that make people successful managers.  Is this also true in project management?

Method and process are important tools when used by a project manager who can communicate, motivate, inspire, and lead.  Unfortunately, sometimes the skills and attributes that make a good project leader aren't associated with the metrics that determine whether or not they are a successful project manager.

Typically, project managers are measured against:

• Methodology
• Process
• Project Plans
• Reporting
• Project Meetings
• Software Skills

I suggest the following attributes are even more important:

• Leadership
• Communication
• Focus
• Motivation
• Inspiration
• Energy

In an article published some time ago on www.projectsmart.co.uk, they suggest that "Success boils down to the character and talent of the person leading the project over and above the mechanisms used to deliver the project."

I agree.  There is a difference between leadership and management. 

Dealing with the minutia of work management can be accomplished with the right project management software.  Successful project leaders take advantage of available project management tools to make planning, reporting, and implementing process easier—allowing them to focus on "leading" the project team.

I believe successful project based work really is led, not managed.  What are you doing to improve your "leadership" skills?

Anyone who had the opportunity to watch Larry Bird play basketball during his 13 year career with the Boston Celtics can't argue with the fact that he was one of the greatest stars to every play the game.  Although there may have been others more talented, there wasn't anyone who worked harder or practiced more than Larry Bird.  It was Bird's dedication to the fundamentals and hard work that made him such an exceptional player.

Bird was obsessed with practice.  He was known to often come in early so he could work on every nuance of his game.  In fact, he was such a deadly shot from the three point line, he would practice three pointers with his eyes closed.  Usually the first to arrive at Boston Gardens on game day, Bird would dribble the ball up and down the parquet floor until he had identified every flat spot on the court—making him a formidable ball-stealer.

So what does this have to do with project based work?

Larry's play was never as flashy as Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson—but the guy focused on the things that were most important.  "A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses the skills to accomplish his goals," said Bird.

In today's economic climate, work management success depends on project managers and project team members understanding that the fundamentals of project management haven't really changed.  Project software is available to streamline reporting, improve efficiencies, and facilitate improved collaboration—but will never replace the fundamental best practices of getting work done.

Separating your activities into the following three distinct areas will help you manage projects like Larry Bird played basketball:

1. Those things that you still need to do.  These are the activities that absolutely can't be sacrificed.  For example, stakeholder communications have to happen—and it's the project manager's responsibility.
2. Those things that need to be done, but can be delegated to others.  Delegate the things you can—to a member of your project team, external stakeholders, or PMO resources.
3. Those tasks that can be eliminated.  It's just not possible to do the same amount of work with less time to dedicate to each initiative.  The secret to success is knowing what can be sacrificed.

Focusing on fundamental project management best practices will make you well-equipped to deal with the current economy and strongly position you for the future.

"First master the fundamentals," said Bird.

Regardless of whether or not you are a new or experienced project manager, there are some common challenges that need to be addressed in every project.  Regardless of your project management methodology or whether or not you even use project management software, if you neglect the following, the odds are against the success of your project:

1. Unrealistic Deadlines.  Sometimes the success or failure of a project depends upon a hard or "absolute" time constraint.  That being said, there are a lot of projects where there are ways to manage the schedule.  Creative and flexible planning can remove the stresses of unrealistic deadlines.
2. Scope Changes.  Without going into a lot of detail about how project managers need to manage change requests, let's all agree that you can't stop change.  However you can make sure stakeholders have a clear understanding of how changes will affect schedule, cost, and maybe even the quality of the product.
3. Ignoring or Failing to Manage Risk.  Acknowledging risk, evaluating the likelihood of problems, and then crafting a mitigation plan needs to be done before a project is started.  Addressing risk early eliminates, or at least minimizes, expensive issues later.
4. Team Collaboration and Communication is Ineffective or Non-Existent.  With all the communication technology available today, there is no excuse for project teams not to communicate.  The right PPM software makes team collaboration and communication easy—and online project management software tools make it possible from anywhere in the world.
5. Stakeholders Aren't Engaged During the Project.  Keeping project stakeholders informed and involved with regular status meetings is a good start, but don't forget to take advantage of the time to gather information that will ensure that your final project will meet expectations.
6. Project Vision and Goals are NOT Well Defined.  If we're doing it right, every project is tied to a strategic objective.  It's always been a puzzle to me why so many organizations neglect to make everyone aware of the strategic or business value of the initiatives worked on by project teams.  Most people want to be part of something bigger than themselves, getting everyone on board with the vision allows people to feel like they are contributing to something more than just a job.

What are some of the common challenges you face in your work management methodologies?  Have I missed anything?

Some time ago I read an article by David Hillson for Projects@Work on risk prioritization. Organizations often spend a lot of time laboring over different risk scenarios to determine the risk-to-reward ratio of potential projects.  "But perhaps we are tying too hard?  Maybe a simpler approach to ranking risks would work just as well," suggests Hillson.

In another life, I had the opportunity to contribute to a project for the U.S. Airforce.  The base I was working with did landing gear maintenance for a number of aircraft from around the world.  They wanted a quick and easy way to review individual landing gear parts and determine if they could be safely refurbished.  Basically it was an established measuring process to ensure that after machining, the parts would still fall within specifications.  After taking a number of very specific measurements to determine whether or not there was a possibility of successfully re-machining the part—if the part didn't meet pre-determined success criteria, it was scraped.  The Airforce didn't want to waste time refurbishing a part that didn't offer a reasonable possibility of being usable upon completion.  It was a very simple go-no-go method of measuring potential risk vs reward.  Hospital emergency rooms use the same kind of triage procedure when evaluating which patients are seen first and who can wait.

I agree with Hillson when he suggests that the importance of prioritizing risk is not to obtain a precise estimate of the exact likelihood of a particular risk, but to focus on those that require urgent management, then deal with other important risks, and monitor others.  A complex risk assessment isn't necessary to accomplish that.  Successful project management doesn't require us to seek for more detail than what we need for this purpose.

Successful work management methodologies identify and prioritize risk, but don't necessarily dwell on whether or not a particular risk has a 10 percent, 12 percent, or even a 15 percent probability of occurring.  "Even when generic scales are used," says Hillson, "people can spend a lot of time disputing between rating a risk as Low or Medium."

Project management software can help organizations evaluate risks, create mitigation plans, and successfully plan projects that fall into a predetermined success criteria.

Leonardo da Vinci wrote, "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."

When it comes to project prioritization maybe that is good advice.

As covered wagons made their way along the Oregon Trail headed for the gold fields of California or the lush timber of Oregon, whenever the wagon wheels started to squeak the wagon driver knew it was time to stop and grease the squeaking wheel—before it failed.  Along the trail there wasn't the equivalent of a Firestone or Goodyear to get a replacement.  A failed wheel was inconvenient at best or a matter of life and death at worst.

Originally, I think this phrase was intended to imply that problems need to be fixed as soon as they are identified.  But over the 100 plus years since the western migration, the term is often associated with "the person who complains the loudest gets what they want."

In my opinion, this is not the way to determine which projects get started and which ones don't.

Portfolio management best practice suggests that potential projects should be evaluated on their merits and only those that align with corporate strategic and financial goals should be pursued.  However, there are still a lot of organizations that determine which projects in the queue to work on with a "first come, first served" mentality, or even worse the, "whoever screams the loudest," method.

Using these decision-making methods might get projects out the door, but are they the right projects?

Regardless of the project management software you use, it's not always the squeaking wheel that should get the grease. (Unless it's squeaking because it provides the greatest value.)

Anyone doing project based work understands that there always seems to be more work to do than there is time or resources enough to do it.  Effectively managing demand is critical for organizations who want to do more than merely keep people busy.  Demand management is the process that allows organizations to collect ideas and make decisions based upon an individual projects merit.

I believe there are three things project management tools should support to make managing demand successful:

1. The ability to gather and organize ideas throughout the organization
2. Support for common analytical criteria such as risk, benefit, cost, and alignment
3. Support for project life-cycle elements of request, review, approve, and plan

Effectively managing demand is a critical component to project management success and helps organizations focus on projects that will provide the most value and a competitive edge.

If you'd like to see what @task does to help organizations evaluate and prioritize projects, click HERE.

I was pleased to read in a recent Project Times article (Top 10 Project Management Trends for 2010) that "The Implementation of New PPM Solutions Will Soar." Of course, representing a portfolio project management software developer it makes sense that I'd be happy to see more companies adopt a PPM software solution. But to be honest, I'm pleased that people in the know (in this case, J. LeRoy Ward at ESI International) are convinced that "Program and project managers, under pressure from senior management to demonstrate project portfolio performance and its impact on the enterprise, will make the pitch for - and win - resources to implement project portfolio management solutions. This will provide the fact-based decision-making senior management needs.

I believe this trend to adopt comprehensive software tools, combined with the skills of trained project managers (see Ty's blog post "Six Keys to Successful Project-Based Work") will go a long way to improve the success rate of projects. Right now, about 66% of all project fail. I can't imagine anyone would complain if that failure rate dropped significantly.

Ward listed a number of other preditions for 2010 (metrics, governance, risk management, etc.) ... what are yours? What do you see changing and improving in project management in the next year or two?

"Wax on, right hand.  Wax off, left hand.  Wax on, wax off. Breath in through nose, out the mouth.  Wax on, wax off.  Don't forget to breathe, very important."

In the 1984 movie The Karate Kid, Mr. Miagi, an apartment complex maintenance man, becomes an unlikely karate teacher for Daniel Laruso, a high-school kid in trouble with a bunch of local karate-bullies.  With an unorthodox teaching style, Daniel-san's first karate lessons includes waxing Mr. Miagi's cars—all four of them. 

So what does this have to do with project based work?

Without giving a play-by-play of the whole story, Mr. Miagi taught Daniel the basic techniques and skills that would allow him to defend himself.  I've observed that there are some basic project management fundamentals that are common to any successful project and portfolio management methodology.

Successful project managers focus on what matters most.  Here are six suggestions:

1. Make sure the project has a strong sponsor.  Every project needs a sponsor who will evangelize the value of the initiative throughout the life of the project.
2. Make sure the project is adequately funded.  The temptation is to take whatever funding is offered, but without adequate funding—it's usually the project manager who ends up in hot water when the project fails for lack of financial resources.
3. Pick the right team.  Make sure the team includes all the skills that will be needed for success.  Just because someone is available, doesn't always mean they are the best to work on your project.
4. Plan.  Planning is more than just preparing to deliver the final product.  It should involve a continual process of evaluation and adjustment.
5. Know the end before you begin.  Make sure you know what the outcome of a successful project is before you start.  What does "done" mean?  Financial experts call this an "exit plan."
6. Prepare for change.  The very nature of projects create change.  Whether it's a new product or an improvement in process or technology.  Makes sure to prepare for the change.

What are some of the common traits you have observed in successful projects or successful project management?  What project management tools have been most beneficial to you?

Does a successful project management professional guarantee a successful project? Well, we all know there are no guarantees in life, but generally speaking I believe having a strong manager goes a long way toward ensuring the success of your project based work.

When a company takes on or initiates a new project, there's more to it than just setting a goal and throwing some resources at it. A project manager is not there just to gather data, create spreadsheets, and/or deliver reports. Anyone could do that. Successful project managers know that it's having the right people and implementing the right processes that leads to success.

Let's look at the key criteria that make a project manager successful:

1. They have a realistic understanding of the project objectives—what "success" will look like. They make sure the objectives are correct for the project and for the customer, and also line up with the overall company strategy. They have read and understand the entire project spec, and know what it will take to complete it.

2. The successful project manager will involve all the right people right from the start to determine the best path to achieving the objectives laid down in (1), and translate that into the right deliverable(s). They will involve all the project stakeholders and insure each one has the same understanding of the project goals and objectives as the people performing the individual or group tasks that make up the project.

3. They are able to hang tough, no matter what. When change requests come through (and they will) the successful PM can be strong and just say "no" when the next great idea for an improvement comes along that will add to the 'coolness' but not to the value or the project objectives. If it doesn't add to the value or positive ROI it's a no-go. Easy to say; hard to do. But necessary to keep on schedule, on budget, and on target.

4. The successful PM has the ability to learn from others' and their own mistakes. They are able to keep the timeline and the project clean and simple, choose quality over everything else, and deliver exactly what's been asked for; no more and no less.

5. They gather the best and the brightest team members available and set each to work doing what they do best. Building a good team and getting to know them creates a positive and effective working relationship as well as a strong and cohesive team dynamic. Keeping the lines of communication open—with the team, up the line, and across other teams and departments—practically guarantee the project will succeed.

It's clear to me that the experience, character, and leadership abilities of the project manager (ideally, combined with the best available project management tools) will lead a team to deliver a project successfully, not the reports, charts, and presentations he or she prepares along the way.

Has this been your experience? Do strong leaders deliver successful projects? Or are there other variables that factor into the equation?

I was in high school when Nadia Komenich scored the first perfect 10 at the 1976 Summer Olympic Games in Montreal.  As a young gymnast, her three gold medals and perfect score vaulted her to a place in Olympic, gymnastic, and sports history.  Like most young high school athletes at the time, I was inspired by her performance and the obvious dedication to her sport.  When she returned to the Moscow Olympics in 1980 to win two more Olympic Gold Medals, it was no surprise to anyone.

I think it's only natural for results-driven professionals to strive for perfection.  But I question whether or not that is a driver for project success.

I once worked with a young graphic designer who was driven to make every design perfect.  Although I admired her desire to push herself and obtain what she considered perfection—it often made our projects late and over budget.  A good project leader understands that there is a point when incremental gains don't provide enough benefit to justify the associated cost.

Sometimes "good-enough" allows teams get more work done because they not only understand when to start, but also when to stop.

However, don't confuse the "good-enough" mindset for an acceptance of sloppy work management.  It isn't.  Successfully managing project based work is more about spending time on the right things—and not wasting time on those with a marginal payback in value.

Let me share four traits that will help you determine when "good-enough" is really good enough:

1. Set Guidelines—Before a project begins, make sure everyone knows where the "good-enough" line is.  Make sure that the line is clear enough to avoid misunderstanding.
2. Set Realistic Stakeholder Expectations—Make sure stakeholders see the value of how the "good-enough" mindset keeps projects on track, reduces costs, or enables more projects to get done.
3. Help the Team Avoid Fixating or Obsessing About Any Particular Task—Encourage the team to watch out for each other and keep everyone on track.  A good mindset will allow team members to identify when a coworker is obsessed with something.  Be open to team members who challenge you with "Is this good enough?" questions.
4. Never Sacrifice Quality—Remember, "good-enough" is not an excuse for sloppy work.  Regardless of the project, it must meet the objectives, the specifications, and comply to all quality standards.

Ultimately, spending time working on the right things and not obsessing about the wrong things helps project teams get more done.  The right project management software can help, but it's really all about the mindset.

I stumbled across Peter Taylor's book, The Lazy Project Manager, and would like to share some of his insights into successful project communication.  Taylor suggests, and I agree, "Reporting is not about communicating."  In my conversations with executives, very few have ever really wanted to get into the "nitty-gritty" of a detailed report—they want the Reader's Digest condensed version or the 20,000 foot view.

Allow Mr. Taylor and myself to make a couple of suggestions that will help communicate the important information in a manner that will be easily digested by stakeholders and members of the project team:

1. Separate Push and Pull Communications.  Detailed reports are important and should be made available for people who require a deep dive into the data.  This information should be someplace where it can be easily retrieved (pulled) and reviewed.  Information sent (pushed) to stakeholders and team members should be the highlights and include anything that requires future action.
2. Separate History from Future.  I was in a meeting with our CEO a few days ago and he suggested that reporting on what happened last week is only of value if it points to action that is going to take place this week.  Although historical data is important, business leaders, project leaders, and team members need forward-looking information that focuses on future required actions.
3. Focus on the Needs of the Information Receivers.  Everyone on the team doesn't need the same information.  Executives and project teams have different needs.  Don't waste stakeholder's time getting too granular about the details or neglect to give team members what they need to get their work done.  When sharing information determine what information each team member needs to help them make the project successful—no more, no less.

This type of communication might not come naturally to everyone at first, but with a little focus, anyone can become a more efficient communicator.  As we've talked before, these are the types of skills that the project management professional of the future will need to be successful.

Do you think managing project communication like this makes sense?  What do you do within your organization to encourage effective communication?

"The most important thing about goals is having one."
- Geoffrey F. Abert





Sometimes we forget to take a step back and consider the big picture: objectives, goals, the point of what you're working on. Getting something done gives immediate gratification. But finishing something that wasn't driving toward the right goal can be a waste of time. And there are so many distractions along the path to success that can lead you off-course.

Scope creep is the classic example of a time-waster and distraction. Nice-to-haves and specials sneak into work all the time, and before you know it, you've overloaded your work with unnecessary baggage and sent yourself down a rabbit hole.

One of the keys to successful work management (in any setting) is to define your goals and keep those goals in mind as you work. This is especially true with project based work. Project and portfolio management are all about setting and achieving goals.

I have found enormous value in creating a charter for the projects I've worked on. A charter is a short document (I like to keep it to a page) that defines the purpose, constraints, and deliverables of a project. The charter acts as a guide for the project, setting boundaries to avoid scope creep and keeping everyone focused on what is most important.

As soon as I'm given a project, if a charter has not already been defined, I like to sit down with the key stakeholders and discuss the objectives, the constraints, and the deliverables. The discussion should not be too detailed. A rule of thumb that I follow is that the charter should be high-level enough that you should never have to change it throughout the project without calling into question the validity of the project as a whole.

Once we have agreement on the charter, I make sure that everyone (and I mean everyone on the team) has a copy of it and/or access to it through a share. Some agile teams keep their sprint goal at the top of their scrum board. In their daily meetings and throughout the sprint, that goal is right there in front of them. This helps keep everyone focused on the purpose of their work, and to guide discussions about scope. 

Applying these principles to product management has been helpful, too. Our team invests a lot of energy and time into making sure we have an agreed-upon, formal, and clear product vision. The overall product should have a driving vision, as well as each development effort as the product is expanded/improved. Having such a vision helps to avoid discord, waste, and scope creep — it keeps us on the path to success.

If you're doing this already, keep it up. If you're not, give it a try. I know it will make a big difference.

For any organization doing project based work, the need for leadership and collaboration is critical.  Unfortuntely, for many organizations, developing leadership is a challenge—there are never enough leaders in an organization and getting people to collaborate is often a challenge.

Here are three leadership principles that can help you effectively manage project teams in today's complicated business climate:

1. Lead Yourself First.  My collegues and I used to call this walking the talk.  If you don't practice what you preach, how can you lead others.
2. Encourage Ownership.  The more people feel of sense of ownership, the more responsibility team members will feel for the outcome.  Identifying what a positive or negative outcome means to the team will encourage a sense of ownership.
3. Follow-Up.  I don't think it's any secret, but leaders get the behaviors they reinforce.

It really doesn't matter what type of project based work you do or your particular work management methodology, project managers who spend time learning and implementing leadership skills are more successful than those that don't.  As more and more organization turn to project and portfolio management best practices to make their organizations more efficient, the need for skilled project managers—those who know how to lead people as well as manage process—will continue to grow.

What are you doing to improve your leadership skills?