Method123

If you want to kick-start your career, then read this newsletter... How to Kick Start your Career If you’ve started the New Year and you’d like to kick start your career, then here’s how to do it... 1: Review where you’re at Start out by writing down what you wanted out of your career when you started. What did you want to achieve and by when? When look at your progress to date and what you have achieved, are you on track? If you’re not, then where should you be right now? Also, think about what you’re doing now and the parts of the job that you enjoy and don’t enjoy. Then work out what you’d like to change. 2. Set a goal, but only one! You now need to set a 3 year goal. Set only one goal, otherwise it will be too hard to remember down the track. Make the goal something that you be proud to have achieved and something that means a lot to you. Make the goal simple to understand, yet challenging to achieve. And where possible, make it measurable—not subjective. For instance, it might be:...

All of these events, and the work to revise the project management methodology, can be managed using the Project Management Methodology Maintenance Checklist. This checklist is the work plan for the PMO Methodology Expert during the routine PMO Execution Phase. The PMO Project Management Templates Expert maintains the maintenance checklist and completes this work by following these eight steps: 1. Make a copy of the Project Management Methodology Maintenance Schedule Template. Enter the general information at the top left. 2. Receive input from all users, and also check sources for the online project management methodology, such as internal and external standards, to identify proposed changes. 3. Enter each proposed change on one row. In the first column of the table, name the change. 4. In the Source field, enter the source of the change, including contact information. 5. In the Reason field, enter a short reason for, or benefit of, the change. See below for a sample list of reasons...

Method123 announces the release of their new Communication Plan template Method123 has once again upgraded their offering in their Project Management Templates by releasing the new Communication Plan template.  This new form is part of their Project Management Tool Kit available at method123.com. As Method123 indicates, the upfront Project Planning that happens as part of the company’s overall project management methodology is important as you are kicking off your projects.  Many company’s fail to see the need for a formalized documentation of how project communication will be handled and who will be involved.  However, studies have shown that organizations incorporating a formalized Communication Plan as part of their Project Management Methodology have customer satisfaction ratings that are up to 18 per cent higher than those companies who do not enforce such a plan.  Communication truly is key. “Establishing the chain of communication including what happens when, who is responsibl...

New Project Management Template Risk Plan released by Method123 to enhance their overall Project Management Kit offering As part of Method123’s never-ending effort to bring you the best and most efficient tools possible as part of their Project Management template Kit, they have just released their new Risk Plan template. “Managing risk on the project is one of the most neglected pieces of the overall project management life cycle puzzle.  Project managers tend to not spend nearly enough time on risk planning and mitigation.  The culprit is usually a lack of proper knowledge, experience and tools,” states Method123 CEO Jason Westland.  “By utilizing our new Risk Plan template, the PM will be able to document anything and everything they need to about risk on their projects.  Through the use of this tool, they’ll keep a good handle on risks throughout the entire engagement.” Method123’s Risk Planning template allows the Project Manager to capture all necessary information on: Risk ...

Maintenance Schedule Project Management Methodology The project management methodology is a living document. Each day, the PMO should be able to say, "This is the project management template methodology, the way this company does projects, as of today. Follow these standards and best practices to be compliant with the project management methodology and to have the greatest chance of delivering acceptable project results on time and within budget." At the same time, the project management methodology will undergo frequent small changes and occasional large changes. The frequent small changes, called continuous improvement, are included in the here routine of the PMO Execution Phase. Large changes are a part of the PMO Improvement Phase. There are many events that trigger changes to the project management methodology: - Changes to external standards. The methodology is linked to, or required to comply with, external standards such as the PMBOK®, PRINCE2®, and relevant indust...

Project Management Methodology Training Plan Providing training in the methodology is crucial to PMO success. Project Management Methodology training has these functions and benefits: - It is the framework that provides a place for all other training in tools, processes, and project management software . - It improves communication by giving every project stakeholder a common language and by defining roles for project reviews and other decision processes - It standardizes the way project work is done, increasing effectiveness and efficiency. The PMO Project Management Methodology Expert and the PMO Training Project Manager follow these eight steps to create and implement the methodology training plan: 1. Open a copy of the Project Management Methodology Training Plan Template. Enter the general information at the top left. 2. Copy the list of components from the Project Management Methodology Publication Schedule into the Components column of the Methodology Training Plan. 3. Copy the ...

If you’re starting a new project, then there are 5 steps that every Project Manager must take, to ensure it’s successful delivery. Read them here in this newsletter... 5 Steps to Starting a New Project Step 1: Get the Vision The first thing you need to do is to sit down with your Project Sponsor and agree on what needs to be delivered and by when. You need a hard and fast project end date. You need to understand why this end date is important to the business and the impact if you go past it. Only then, will you have a solid stake in the ground, against which you can measure progress. Step 2: Hire the Best Great teams deliver great projects. So it’s critical that you hire the best people you can afford to bring on board. Try and “borrow” experts from within the business, and “beg” your Sponsor for more cash to recruit the best in the market. Don’t fall for lesser skilled people that you can find more easily. It always takes time to find top people, but they will deliver better results...

Here are instructions for creating and using each of these Project Management Templates , with examples. Project Management Methodology Publication Schedule Follow these steps to create and implement the Project Management Methodology Publication Schedule: 1. Review the Methodology Adoption Schedule from the Project Management Methodology Execution Plan. 2. Open a copy of the Project Management Methodology Publication Schedule. Enter the general information at the top left. 3. Copy the first column of the Project Management Methodology Adoption Schedule into the Project Management Methodology Publication Schedule. Each milestone in the adoption schedule becomes a component in the publication schedule. 4. Enter the version number of each component in the Version column. 5. Copy the last column of the Project Management Methodology Adoption Schedule, the date the methodology is complete, and enter it as the planned date available to customers. 6. Plan the dates that training will be avai...

Managing Project Risks If all of our projects just smoothly followed our project schedule we’d have it made.  No issues, no budget overruns, no cranky customers, no scope changes.  But that’s not the case.  There are always going be some issues, the budget never manages itself, the customer always has a few demands, and scope is usually a challenge to manage and keep in check. What I haven’t touched on yet is project risk.  What is risk in terms of project management templates ?  One definition goes like this… “A possible event that could endanger the planned course or goals of the project.” Do we need to manage for these risks, these ‘possible’ events that may or may not happen?  Or can we just leave things to chance and worry about them if and when they happen?  You can, but the impact may be so great and blindside you so badly that the project can get knocked way off course or could come to a complete halt. As part of a sound and solid project management process , it is far better t...

Provide the Implement Project Management Methodology Service This section explains three aspects of the Implement Project Management Methodology Service: - Implementation Process. The process of implementation includes creating a publication schedule and publishing the Project Management methodology, creating and implementing a training plan, and maintaining the Project Management Templates . - Output: The Project Management Methodology. The output of the service is the project management methodology itself. The methodology will be available as a written document and embedded in standards, processes, and tools. It will guide the work of every project. - Relationship to other services. Project Management Methodology implementation is a framework for all online project management, and therefore interacts with many other services. Processes for the Implement Methodology Service: Implementing a methodology can be accomplished by creating these three items, then performing the specified wor...

Method123 just announced the release of its new Project Management Template for creating a Business Case for new projects. According to Jason Westland, CEO of Method123 Ltd, the Business Case document is a critical tool for getting your project funded and approved.  And by using the Method123 template for this, you’ll be able to identify your return on investment and other critical benefits of the project aimed at getting a swift go-ahead from your project sponsor. As Jason states, “It’s all about getting approvals.  Our template can help you do just that.  Our new template lays everything out for the inexperienced user – it’s very simple.  By filling out the information requested in the Online Project Management template , you will be able to present the best possible business case for getting your project approved and ready for the next phase.” With Method123’s Business Case template, you can easily perform the following functions: - Check the market and identify alternative possibl...

Identify Stakeholders of the Implement Project Management Methodology Service The online project management methodology is the overall framework for how project work will be managed, and everyone involved in projects or concerned with on-time delivery of project results within budget is a stakeholder. Anyone who's work is defined within the project management methodology is a customer of the methodology. Typical Customers The initial implementation of a project management methodology may have a smaller set of customers than later, more advanced implementations. Since everyone who's role is defined by the project management methodology is a customer of the methodology, a simple project management methodology focused on the core of the project will have few customers. Typically, this list would include a project manager, team leads, and project sponsors. However, a more developed methodology might have many customers. Typical Other Stakeholders There are several groups of stakeh...

How to Deal with Customer Indecision - Project Management Templates Indecision is human nature.  You and I experience it every day…so why shouldn’t our customers?  After all, they’re just human, too.  But when you’re working on a critical project, that indecision that you’re feeling on the part of your customer can become frustrating.  And it can become hard to manage. Fear not…don’t pull your hair out.  There are things you can do to help you and your customer along the way when you’re sensing too much indecision: Communicate well. Effective and frequent communication will serve two purposes here…it will maintain your customer’s confidence that you’re on top of things and it will keep you in constant tune with your customer’s needs. Revisit requirements. If you’re sensing uneasiness from your customer it could be that certain project requirements weren’t well thought out.  Take some time to revisit requirements with the customer at this point and add detail or clarification whe...

In this case, the PMO has chosen that the Communications Manager will have overall responsibility for the communication of the project management methodology to stakeholders, but that the training manager will oversee training. The project management methodology expert will perform most of the work. This is essential, because only the project management methodology expert has the knowledge to predict consequences of changes to the project management methodology. Because such experts are expensive, costs will be reduced by having the methodology expert work closely with administrative support throughout the process of deploying, providing training for, evaluating, and improving the Project Management Templates . Define Stakeholders, Processes, and Outputs When the Key Service Features and Benefits and Activity Matrix sections of the Service Plan are complete, the team that will provide this service is ready to complete preparations for launching the service. To complete preparations, th...

New Change Request Form Project Management Template Released Change on a project is inevitable.  It happens whether you are adequately tracking it or not.  In the long run, it’s critical to your project’s timeframe and budget success to do the best job you can tracking any and all project changes, and Method123 can help you do that through the use of the Change Request Form. As Jason Westland, CEO of Method123 Ltd states, “The Change Request Form is the mechanism by which you and your team can easily and seamlessly document all project requests.  Change happens and change request forms should always be part of any Project Management Template.  Whether or not they get used, is another question.  With Method123’s Change Request Form template you will now have the tool you need to track all changes and your team will have no excuses documenting all change requests because it’s so easy and built right into the Method123 Online Project Management process.” The Method 123 Change Form not on...

Build & Publish Project Management Methodologies Your team can then start building project management methodologies for projects. When you are ready to publish your methodology content, click on "Tools" (in the top level menu), then "Export" and "Export to Web". Then select a Project Management Template to export. When you've completed this function, it will allow you to export your entire project management methodology as a website (i.e. a group of interlinked HTML pages) - to load onto your corporate intranet. Q: What is a budget? Why is cost and estimation important in online project management planning? A: A budget is an amount of money that is allocated to the project. Estimation is important, because without it, it's impossible to set the budget. Q: What is planning, monitoring and control important in projects? Please explain its importance and application with examples of the tools and techniques relating to a chosen project. A: You a...

If you’re involved in Projects, then there are 5 Golden Rules that will help you deliver your project successfully... The 5 Golden Rules of Project Management Rule 1: Time Management is Critical To deliver your project on time, you need to manage time carefully. To do this, make sure every task is listed in a Project Plan and that it’s scheduled to occur precisely when it needs to. Every week, update your plan with the time spent completing tasks and identify whether each task is ahead or behind schedule. Track the % complete of each task and if it’s behind schedule, then get it back on track by assigning more resource or reducing the scope of the task. Don’t let tasks slip. Be vigilant. Rule 2: Track Costs and Manage Finances Every element of your project incurs a cost. You need to identify all of the planned costs upfront and get them approved by your Manager. Then record every expense as it occurs - including people, equipment and materials. Check that your actual expenditure does ...