Method123

New Request for Information template release announced by Method123 Industry leader Method123 announces the release of their newest project management template – the Request for Information. The Request for Information document is a tool used to provide potential suppliers with an opportunity to take part in the Invitation to Tendor process or Request for Proposal process.  By issuing this document to potential suppliers, a company can hopefully get enough information to decide whether or not to include them in the overall process of seeking a supplier for the business or project needs. Method123’s new Project Management Template will help an organization complete the request for information process smoothly and get them ready to move into the actual vendor selection process with confidence. “All companies want to do everything they can to select the right suppliers for their needs.  No one wants the headache of contracting with a supplier on a critical project only to find that they ...

Outputs for the Improve Processes Service There are three outputs from the Improve Processes Service: - The List of Processes. This list ensures that everyone is using and checking against the same processes at all times. - The actual written processes themselves, which should be available to all customers and appropriate stakeholders on an internal web server. - The processes in use, and the benefits of increased standardization, compliance with the methodology, and improved project results. The processes in use are evaluated through the PMO's reviews, audits, and assessments. The List of Processes The List of Processes contains a list of process sets and the processes within them, identifying current versions and providing links to the actual Project Management Templates . Ideally, it is available on an internal web site, and all processes are accessed from it via HTML links. Each set of processes has a source. In some cases, a set of process may have two sources, internal and ex...

Establishing Project Management Goals Every project has goals, right?  In fact, without goals, you really don’t have a project.  Actually, there’s usually not a lot of work to setting up the goals for your project – it’s often taken care of in the formal statement of work.  However, it may not be clear in the statement of work exactly what the overall project goals are.  And the project manager can never assume that the customer or the project team fully understands the statement of work.  In fact, the project manager should not assume that even they fully understand the statement of work. Kicking it off In most online project management organizations, the creation of the statement of work happens outside of the project management organization (PMO).  It often happens as part of a sales-customer process, unless the project is an internal one, in which case there is usually a heavier involvement by project management in the statement of work development. Let’s assume, for the purpose o...

Several things can be noted about how this schedule was developed that will help with the development of the project management processes training plan: - The schedule is coordinated with the training dates set in the project management Processes Publication Schedule. - Sole-source purchase and risk assessment were pre-existing internal method picked up by the PMO. Training has been done before, so these trainings can be revised and deployed quickly. - An external vendor is being used to develop the training on MPMM™ processes. The schedule was coordinated with the vendor. - PMBOK® training is widely available. The PMO has pre-approved vendors, so training is already available. - The project review process is simple, and will be developed internally. Development is scheduled to begin after other internal classes are up and running. Because this training is only web-based, classroom <a href=http://www.method123.com>project management template</a>  schedules are not a problem...

Method123 has just announced the release of their new Supplier Contract template Industry leader Method123 has added yet another powerful project management template to their Project Management Kit offering with the introduction of the Supplier Contract template. Once you’ve chosen one or more suppliers to use for providing the goods and services you need on your project, you’ll need to put the Supplier Contract in place as the next logical step in your project management methodology.  The Supplier Contract, or Supply Contract as it is sometimes called, is your formal agreement with an outside vendor for the delivery of the items you outlined in the Request for Proposal.  It’s a legal agreement between the company and the supplier and used as the yardstick to measure supplier performance against. Generally, the Supplier Contract contains the following information: - Supplier performance review and acceptance criteria - Timeframes for deliveries - Definition of responsibilities for th...

Here are some suggestions for creating the project management processes publication schedule: - In determining the date that project management processes will be available to customers, pay attention to the size of the project management process set and whether or not project management processes acquired from external sources will be modified. - In determining the start and end dates for training, consider the size and complexity of training content, and the number of trainees. - In some cases, a process may be required for some projects, and optional for others. On this table, mark it as required, and enter the date it will be required. The details of which projects much use it will be entered on the List of Processes. The Processes Training Plan The PMO Processes Expert and the PMO Training Manager follow these eight steps to create and implement the Online Project Management Processes Training Plan: 1. Open a copy of the Processes Training Plan Template. Enter the general informat...

What to Do if Your Budget Eats Your Project Alive - Use Project Management Templates Speaking from experience, having the budget go completely out of line is one of my biggest fears as a project manager.  On most of our projects, it’s not a huge issue if you’re plus or minus 10% on the budget.  Especially if you deliver on time and the customer is happy and the project is successful.  However, every so often you have those projects that are handed to you where you’re told to be on or under budget or else.  You know the ones I’m talking about, don’t you?  Those are the ones you lose sleep at night over.  They usually have one or more of the following characteristics: - Are very large and very visible - Have a customer unwilling to spend a dime more than the original agreement - The CEO is watching closely - Are very small with a small budget - Scheduled for implementation close to fiscal year end That third one is always fun.  There’s nothing like having the CEO stopping by your office ...

Provide the Improve Project Management Methodology Processes Service This section explains three aspects of the Improve Processes Service: - The Processes for the Improve Process Service, including procedures for publicizing and maintaining processes and providing process training - The Outputs of the Improve Processes Service are: - The List of Project Management Templates Processes - The processes themselves - The processes in use, and the beneficial results that show up in project reviews and project results - The Relationship between the Improve Processes Service and other services, including project management methodology implementation, training services, controlling services, and others. Processes for the Improve Processes Service The processes for improving processes are similar to those for implementing the project management methodology, promoting standards, and standardizing tools. The three processes are: - The Processes Publication Schedule, which lists when each set of ...

Method123 continues to strengthen their Project Management Kit product offering with this latest Tender Register template release In their ongoing effort to supply the best and easiest to use templates in the industry to project managers, Method123 has just added their new Tender Register template to their overall Project Management Template offering.  The Project Management Kit, which boasts more than 50 important templates for the project manager, is fast becoming the industry standard.  Indeed, more than 1 million units have been sold worldwide since its initial release. “What we’re about at Method123 is using our cumulative knowledge and experience to create useable tools for the overworked project managers who are out there running projects,” states Jason Westland, CEO and co-founder of industry leader Method123 Ltd.  “There are a lot of critical one-time documents that need to be created as part of a company’s Project Management Methodology and we want make that process as easy...

Identify Stakeholders of the Improve Project Management Processes Service Customers of the Improve Processes service are those who use the project management processes. Stakeholders are those who interact with process users, or who benefit from project success. Typical Customers -If the PMO offers only core <a href=http://www.method123.com>project management template</a> processes, then its only customers are project managers and team leads. As the PMO adds a wider set of processes, more customers are added. Here are some examples: - If the PMO adds estimation processes, then project team members become customers and use the project management processes to estimate their own work. - If the PMO adds project review project management processes, then the project sponsor and other project stakeholders who approve project phases become customers of this service. - If the <a href=/>project manager</a> adds requirements definition processes, then customers of the proje...

Impossible Project Management Template Targets What do you do if you’re handed a Project Plan with impossible targets or goals?  Ok, it’s not often that you’re truly handed ‘impossible’ targets for your project, but sometimes they’re impractical.  Or you know from experience that some of the project goals will be nearly impossible to achieve.  Has this ever happened to you?  Well, it’s happened to me. I was handed a major enterprise-wide software implementation project for a major player in the airline industry.  Great nice visibility, new industry for the company I was working for.  Loved the responsibility, the chance to lead us down a path the company had never gone before.  One problem – the customer wanted a 90-day implementation! First, our company had never done a 90-day implementation before (and this type of Project Management Software implementation requires much customer configuration…90 days is unheard of).  Second, it’s in an industry we had never touched before requirin...

Define Stakeholders, Processes, and Outputs When the Key Service Features and Benefits and Activity Matrix sections of the Online Project Management Service Plan are complete, the team that will provide this service is ready to complete preparations for launching the service. To complete preparations, the team: - Identifies customers and other stakeholders for the Improve Project Management Processes Service and puts the information into section two of the Service Plan. - Defines the specific processes and outputs of the Improve Project Management Processes Service using the schedules, checklists, and Project Management Templates provided for this service. These documents can either be kept as separate files or incorporated as section three of the Service Plan. - Defines how the Improve Processes Service will be evaluated and improved, and places this information in section four of the Service Plan, and also in the Service Evaluation Schedule and the Service Improvement Schedule.

Method123 has just announced the release of their latest template – this one is the Project Review Form template for the Planning phase of your projects. The Project Phase Review is performed at the completion of each separate phase of the project during the overall project management life cycle.  These phase reviews are critical to the overall project management methodology.  During this important project management review activity, the Phase Review Form is filled out describing all project progress completed to date allowing the reviewer to make a decision on whether or not the project is prepared to move on to the next phase of activity. “The project phase review is critical.  It’s the stopping point where key project decisions are made,” says Jason Westland, CEO of online project management template leader Method123 Ltd. “The project manager prepares this form with as much progress information as possible so the right go, no-go decision can be made for the project.  Our tool gives...

Define the Improve Processes Service Follow the four steps shown in this diagram to define the key features of the Improve Processes Service: 1. Decide to Offer 2. Define Key Features 3. Prepare Activity Matrix 4. Define Stakeholders, Processes, and Outputs - Decide to offer. Decide whether or not to offer this service, and when to launch it. - Define key features. Define the administrative information, key features, and benefits of the Improve Online Project Management Processes Service. - Prepare activity matrix. Define the activities that each team member will perform and assign the work. - Define stakeholders, processes, and outputs. After key features are defined, continue to develop the service by completing the remaining sections of the Service Plan and additional Project Management Templates. Which PMOs should provide the Improve Processes Service? All PMOs should provide the Improve Processes Service. Indeed, it could be argued that improving project management processes is t...