Category: Project management

The project status report is that particular document that the project manager is required to draft. These are regular reports that include information about the project aimed to update stakeholders on the progress of the work.

To ensure that these updates contain the essential information that stakeholders need, we will detail how to create this type of documentation in this article.

 What is a project status report?

It is a document that describes the progress of a project within a specific time frame and compares it to the project plan.

Project managers use status reports to keep stakeholders informed of progress and track costs, risks, time, and labor. This reporting can be either transmitted directly or communicated during a status meeting.

The project status report will generally include the following:

• The work that has been completed.
• The plan for what will follow.
• The summary of the project budget and schedule.
• A list of action items.
• Any problems and risks and what is being done about them.

The benefits of using the project status report are:

• Create and enable stakeholder consensus.
• Provide transparency on progress.
• Help identify problems and risks.
• Identify the status of the work being done.
• Provide an indicator of the health of the project.
• Preventing unpleasant surprises.
• Provide a method for holding project members and various stakeholders accountable.

How to create a project status report

A project status report can be weekly, monthly, or quarterly.

Regardless of the scope, the steps for creating this document are essentially the same. Here are which ones:

1. Name the report

A great option is to use the project name for clarity and progressive numbers and dates.

2. Indicate project status

This means indicating whether the project is currently on track, at risk, or off track. The health of the project can be shown visually rather than in narrative form, using a predetermined color code to represent the status of each element:

• Green = on track,
• Yellow = at risk,
• Red = off track.

3. Provide a summary of the status report

The summary of the project status report should be short, about 2-3 sentences. The goal here is to give readers who may not have time to read the most important information and essential facts.

4. Divide into key areas or milestones

Choose and divide the report into key areas; for example, you could break things down chronologically: what we’ve done, what we’re working on, and what will happen next, like a calendar. Or the report can be broken down into weekly, monthly, and quarterly segments. Another option is to group updates by role: marketing, design, IT, administration, etc.

5. Add a high-level overview for each key area

For each key area included in the project status report, it is crucial to add a few summary bullet points that provide a quick overview of progress, accomplishments, and upcoming work.

6. Adding links to other documents or resources

Even if you don’t want to include every little detail in such a report, some people will want to know more. For those interested parties looking for more in-depth information, provide links to documents or resources that allow a more detailed view.

7. Pay attention to any problem or challenge you encountered in the project

All projects face obstacles. Keeping stakeholders in the loop when issues arise will help everyone know what’s going on and adjust accordingly.

8. Include additional notes or highlights

These could be a list of next steps, compliments, and thanks to someone, or anything else worth highlighting in the report.

The foundation for effective project status monitoring and reporting is laid as early as project planning.

The project manager and stakeholders set clear goals and checkpoints to measure progress and on which project status reports will be based.

The actual value of a project status report goes beyond its use as a communication channel, as it also provides a documented history of the project.

This can provide historical data that, during a similar project in the future, can help avoid missteps or bottlenecks.

Because project status reports cover many critical topics in a summarized manner, they can take time to be created.

However, good project management software can speed up and significantly improve the reporting process by having instant access to all the most critical information and status of activities.

It is essential to keep in mind that stakeholders rely on the project status report to make decisions.

Therefore, project managers must provide complete and accurate information.

If you have not already done so, try TWproject for free.

Setting a standard of project reviews and when to do them can improve efficiency and help keep a project running on time and within budget.

The most common reasons why design reviews are not performed, we find:

• Fear of facing failure and its causes. If failure is regarded as something to be denied and hidden rather than an opportunity for growth, it is clear how revisions are avoided as much as possible.
• Blame. If the culture relies on blame and punishment to motivate behavior, there will be resistance and defensiveness to reviews – especially negative ones. Blaming will promote fear.
• Negative experience, such as when previous reviews were unhelpful or not followed up to implement changes based on lessons learned.
• Lack of qualified facilitators. Qualified facilitators are needed to make reviews effective by addressing the tendency of project managers and implementers to be action-oriented rather than introspective and reflective. A facilitator will allow participants to confront negative situations without falling into a defensive attitude directly.
• Lack of time. Stakeholders have already moved on to the next project or go back to their operational activities. The review is not considered a priority and valuable activity and is therefore left undone. If there is not a culture of continuous improvement, there is not enough motivation to sustain the effort of a review.
• Lack of a documented project management process. The absence of guidelines and templates results in unnecessary effort and the absence of useful information gained during the project.

However, it is now widely accepted that reviews are the key to improving future performance by learning from past performance.

Here are practical tips for successful design reviews.

Types of Design Reviews

Four types of reviews can be conducted during a project.

First Project Review: The first project review will determine if the project meets the requirements defined as necessary.

Completion Review: The completion review will determine if the project has met all requirements, approvals, and deliverables defined by the project scope and if the management process has met all required standards.

Special Reviews: Special reviews will determine if the project meets all requirements, approvals, and deliverables defined by the project scope at the time the special review is conducted. It will also determine that all project management processes are in place and meet all required standards. Finally, the special review may focus on a subset of activities, conditions, or work products highlighted as “at risk.”

Stakeholder Requested Review: A project stakeholder may request an “ad hoc” or “special review.” Reasons for this type of review may include, for example: a change in management, a significant issue that may affect the project’s ability to deliver the requested solution, a project that has been classified as “non-compliant” and requires a specific finding. The format of this review is similar to the standard project review.

Description of the review process

As seen above, there are different types of reviews. It tends to be a similar process for all cases and may vary slightly.

Introduction of design review

The review team initiates the review process by scheduling it with the project manager.

It is essential to schedule the review to be conducted in a way that is not disruptive to the project itself.

This is not always possible; however, interruption caused by a review should be considered.

Design review initiation stage

The project review team compiles an input packet containing materials to help the project manager understand the review process and what they need to make available for project review.

Subsequent meetings will be scheduled with the project manager and designated project team members.

The input package will typically contain process documentation, a checklist, and sample questions.

Research phase of project review

The research phase is divided into two activities: documentation review and interview.

During the documentation review, documents are retrieved for analysis to ensure that the required project deliverables are in the designated location.

During the second activity, the review team will conduct informal exploratory interviews with the project manager and project team, or some members, and any other stakeholders.

The results and documentation will then be analyzed and compared to the approved project methodology.

This phase can take one to two business days, depending on the project’s size, scope, and complexity.

Final project review report stage

A project review report will be provided to the project manager at the end.

This document is to ensure that there are no communication issues about the results between the project manager and the review team.

If there is a difference of opinion, the project manager and review team can arrange additional meetings.

Upon completion, the review team will formalize the information gathered throughout the review process with any recommendations and changes that the project manager will be required to implement.

Based on these results, the project will be classified as red, yellow, or green, and this project status will indicate whether the project meets the standards or not.

If the project is determined to be red, i.e., “at risk,” a follow-up review will be scheduled.

 

Learning to evaluate projects, current or past, is one of the best ways to find out what sectors need improvement and do a better job in the future.

As organizations and their processes mature, effective performance reviews as part of continuous project performance improvement will become a standard.

Streamlining processes in projects prevents unnecessary complications. Obviously, excessive complexity is one of the biggest obstacles to completing a project on time and within budget.

Even well-planned, clearly defined projects can get out of control and become something they were never meant to be.

Fortunately, several strategies to follow allow you to streamline the processes in a project and stay focused on the end goals.

Let’s see what they are in this article.

Keeping an eye on the big picture

Project management is similar to a jigsaw puzzle: you need to take your cue from the image on the box cover to make the pieces fit together.

The project can stop if you get fixated on one or two pieces and don’t look at the final figure.

People often plan individual activities by focusing on the doing rather than on the end or intermediate results.

In this way, the focus shifts from planning the activity to planning project tasks based on desired outcomes. That’s a whole different story.

Take ideas from or follow already approved processes

When creating a project plan, and generally throughout its life cycle, don’t be afraid to follow methods that have worked for other similar situations.

If another team has successfully developed a process that completes similar tasks, you can either take a cue or copy it entirely.

Best practices are a storehouse of successful tools that can be applied to other projects and shared with other teams. You may find this article about “Lessons Learned” worth to check in this regard.

Assign names, dates, and consequences

Simplifying things doesn’t always require acting on activities. Sometimes you need to use clarity!

Example? When we assign a task, it’s often not enough to say that someone is responsible for this or that and let that person organize.

In most cases, the project manager must name an activity and provide information about the due date and identify any consequences that failure to meet those deadlines may bring.

This does not mean threatening the team with termination but merely letting them know what other tasks are subordinate to this particular activity and the potential cost or result of a delay.

In many cases, the people involved only receive one piece of the puzzle and do not have the opportunity to see the final image in its entirety.

Because of this, they may not be aware of the other moving pieces, and telling them what is involved, will help them better understand the importance of their actions, and ignorance will not be an excuse.

Use project management software

Project management software helps to bring together all the information of a project in one place, allowing you to know at all times its status.

By choosing project management software, we ensure that the project manager and the entire team are on the same page, even when working remotely.

In addition, this type of software is beneficial for daily, weekly, or monthly notifications that can help keep work on track, remind you of deadlines and due dates, and manage priorities.

By freeing team members from remembering their daily tasks, they will have more mental energy to focus on higher types of “non-automated” tasks.

Stay organized

The project manager is responsible for managing all the details that allow a project to progress successfully.

These details include tracking assigned and completed tasks.

To keep the project under control, you need to make the following actions standard to maintain order:

• Update task status in project management software on a frequent and regular basis.
• Tick activities as soon as they are finished.
• Assign tasks to team members at regular intervals but without overloading them to avoid reduced performance.

Maintaining order and always keeping an eye on the workload level of team members helps keep employee efficiency and morale high.

Manage priorities and reduce task size

Especially with multiple projects running concurrently, it is essential to manage priorities and choose an order of work that satisfies the law of diminishing returns.

When this does not happen, plans fail, and projects are not completed as quickly or efficiently as possible.

To simplify the process, the project manager should give more attention to a few projects rather than engage all of them, especially when you have to manage limited resources.

The same applies if you have more than one activity at the same time.

One of the keys to streamlining processes is understanding what’s important – and what’s not – and continually re-evaluating the priority list as new things are added.

In addition, reducing the size of tasks is also a strategy that helps streamline processes in projects.

 

Project managers must therefore develop process simplification as a critical leadership skill.

With a well-structured and organized approach and following the different strategies presented in this article, you will be able to eliminate unnecessary complexities and complete projects faster and more efficiently.

Finally, it’s essential to keep in mind that complexity is like a weed in the garden… even when you eliminate it, it can reoccur at any time.

Whenever this happens, you can revisit these strategies to streamline processes in your projects.

Project management implies a diverse mix of skills, know-how, time management and communication abilities.

To efficiently approach all these activities, it is very important for any project manager  to follow certain aspects to coordinate a project in the best possible way and to finish it successfully.

So let’s see what are the main aspects of good project management in this article.

Project management: Project scope management

This is the first step in the coordination of any project; this is where the objectives are established and the elements that are not included in the scope of the project are outlined.

This step is always executed at the beginning, before starting the practical work for a project.

All of this should be compiled into official documentation that will serve as a guide throughout the project life cycle.

Project management: Priority management

It should be no surprise that good project coordination comes from good organization.

As a project manager, the main goal should be to make sure that processes run smoothly and are on the same page as the common goal for which you are working towards.

This skill of prioritizing tasks correctly, compartmentalizing the project in more manageable ways, and documenting everything in an orderly fashion is the essence of good project coordination.

Project management: Communication management

A large part of a project’s success depends on having effective communication.

When you improve it, you also maximize success while reducing risk.

A project manager must follow project requirements, so it is crucial that these are clearly communicated to the team.

Everyone needs to know exactly what needs to be done by when and any alternative solutions.

Good communication management is necessary in a variety of situations, including:

• Inform stakeholders about the project plan and scope.
• Keep team members informed about changes in the project planning.
• Be able to highlight project issues and risks
• To be able to provide clear and genuine visibility of the project status.
• To get consensus or support from senior management if something goes wrong.

Project management: Managing stakeholder expectations

Project coordination means working with many stakeholders.

From engineers to the marketing team, from the IT department to the finance and legal teams… a project manager will be required to work with all of them.

Engaging with the legal team ensures compliance with regulations and gives the project manager insights for strategic decisions on external services. For instance, when considering the hiring of fractional CFO services, the project manager can evaluate the financial needs of the project and communicate these requirements effectively to the outsourced service providers, ensuring that their expertise is leveraged optimally within the project’s framework.

Therefore, to coordinate a project in the best possible way, you need to ensure that not only team members, but also all stakeholders involved, are aware of what is expected of them.

This means having defined roles and responsibilities and clear time constraints. In addition, it is the project manager’s responsibility to keep everyone updated on a regular basis.

Building strong relationships and good communication with stakeholders promotes efficiency and reduces misunderstandings.

Professionally, but also personally, if you engage in creating positive interactions, you will create a more positive atmosphere and vision.

Project management: Change management

Even with a well-defined project scope and a solid plan in place, changes to the project may inevitably occur.

Developing a proactive change management process enables the team to get on with the work and not get stuck, moving forward confidently.

Obviously, not every change needs to be approved beforehand, but the issue or risk needs to be identified and the change and what it means for the project weighed.

If the change is approved, you will need to update your project plan and transparently present the change to the team and stakeholders.

Project management: Improving efficiency through software

Embedding certain project manager software to boost project management efficiency can be a great help.

This allows you to get all the information in one place that can be accessed by stakeholders.

Some features could help automate tasks, freeing up the project team to focus on other tasks.

Also, using project management software helps you track results and make sure the project stays within the tracks.

If you’ve never used project management software, try TWproject for free by clicking here

Bottom line, project management can be quite challenging, especially for more complex projects, but overcoming it with a structured plan and clear processes will help the project manager coordinate a project to the best of their ability.

With the tips listed above, the project coordinator will possess the knowledge and tools necessary for establishing a satisfying work environment, increasing productivity and, of course, achieving project success.

Eliminating waste in projects can help you achieve success more easily and increase productivity.

In project management, when projects become complex, cycle times become longer, resulting in several possible wastes.

If left uncontrolled, this waste can undermine not only the project, but also the entire company.

This is why it is so important to eliminate waste. Let’s take a look at how to do this in this article.

Types of waste in projects

To understand how to eliminate waste in projects and thus ultimately generate an improvement, it is essential to understand the types of waste that can arise. The most common are:

• Transport: startup processes and deliveries can often get too slow and tricky.
• Inventory: if work is not evenly distributed, production can be halted.
• Motion/Waiting – Simple actions such as moving from one department to another, as well as from one desk to another, can also play a role in wasting time. Waiting for colleagues, vendors, etc. can be just as time-consuming.
• Overprocessing/Overproduction: How much time should be spent on each production stage? Are some stages really necessary? Overprocessing, in the sense of doing something better than necessary, can lead to delays. Also, if you deliver more than requested or even get to deliver something that wasn’t asked for, you will end up with waste.
• Defects: Variations or defects in production can lead to loss of profit and waste build-up.
• Talent: talent wasted on meaningless work is not the best way to achieve an optimal process. Employee skills must be put to good use.

These are the areas that any successful Project Manager must never lose sight of.

Introduction to lean management

Each project involves different tasks and activities that each require different tools and resources to be completed successfully.

Some tools and resources, however, do not add any value to the project, thus resulting in significant waste.

Lean management in projects uses lean techniques that help organizations maximize value and minimize waste, thereby improving product/solution quality, customer satisfaction, and project margin.

By leveraging lean principles, organizations are able to understand the value that each tool and resource provides to the project, allowing them to embrace continuous improvement to maximize productivity and efficiency.

Lean project management benefits

Focusing on efficiency, continuous improvement and quality, lean management, or lean project management is becoming increasingly popular in many industries.

Here are some benefits of this methodology:

• Improved quality: Through continuous improvements, lean project management establishes the foundations for better quality. Through small, incremental changes, you can identify, resolve, and eliminate waste in your project, constantly working to improve efficiency and quality.

• Shortened completion time: lean project management helps project teams reduce cycle times. Faster feedback means teams can work on high-priority tasks first and cut down on completion times, while increasing customer satisfaction.

• Reduced costs: lean management focuses on productivity and efficiency, thus reducing project time, reducing inventory and eliminating errors. By improving quality, less defective products are produced, thereby reducing costs.

• Increased value: Lean project management helps to understand the real value of different tasks and activities, especially from the customer’s perspective. This helps teams to quickly pinpoint waste and ensure that all non-value-added activities, hence waste, are destined for removal.

• Waste elimination: by constantly monitoring each activity throughout the project lifecycle and focusing on reducing non-value-added activities, lean project management helps eliminate waste faster. This elimination not only streamlines the project flow, but also helps ensure that the product or service reaches the customer faster, without interruptions, detours or delays.

Eliminating waste in projects: Lean management key principles

Lean project management focuses on 5 core principles, which are:

1. Identifying value for the customer. The starting point is to acknowledge that only a small portion of the total time and effort in any organization actually adds value for the end customer. As a result, all worthless activities – or waste – can qualify for removal.

2. Pinpoint the value stream and address non-value generating activities. This stage involves identifying all steps in the value stream for each product family, eliminating those that do not create value when possible. The value stream is the entire series of activities in all parts of the organization involved in the joint delivery of the product or service. Having understood what the customer wants, the next step is to identify how to deliver what they need in the most efficient way possible.

3. Create the value stream by eliminating waste. This means making sure that the value creation steps happen sequentially so that the product flows smoothly to the customer. Eliminating waste ensures that the product or service “flows” to the customer without interruption, deviation or waiting.

4. The value stream must be indicated by the customer. When flow is brought into place, you should enable customers to gain value from the following upstream activity. This is all about understanding the customer’s demand for the service and then creating the process accordingly. This should be done in a way that produces only what the customer wants when the customer wants it.

5. Pursuing perfection through constant improvement. After having recognized the value streams and removed waste, the process begins again and continues until it reaches a state of perfection where perfect value is created without any waste. As this happens, more and more layers of waste become clear and the process continues toward the theoretical endpoint of perfection where every good and every action adds value for the end customer.

 

Therefore, lean management is an endless process with the aim of achieving perfection.

Therefore, lean methodology can be a go-to strategy to eliminate waste in projects and achieve success through improved efficiency and quality.

Successfully completing a project is no piece of cake, even for the most experienced project managers.

Planning, execution and completion, as well as aggregating and separating activities by teams and employees into a cohesive entity are just a part of what this involves.

In this article, we would like to share 7 tips for successfully completing a project.

Successfully complete a project: Clearly define the project scope

We know that a problem – or, in this case, the project scope – well put forward is half solved.

No matter what, you have to be clear about the project goals, budget and methodology from the very start.

Too often it still is the case that when joining an organization and asking a project manager why they are working on a particular project, the answer is “Because that guy told me to do this.”

The power to understand why a project is critical to the organization and how it fits into the overall strategic plan is a core component of its success.

Being able to relate the success of the project to all organizational goals and strategies is an easy way to increase the dedication, morale, and sense of importance of team members, but also of the project manager themselves.

Successfully complete a project: Choose team members wisely

After defining the scope of the project clearly, it becomes easier to determine the talent required to achieve the intended goal.

The project manager must carefully select the people who will make up the team, so that they can be confident in delegating tasks and activities to the people best suited for each. he experience of the Project Team is critical.

Appropriate task delegation can be a sign of confidence in your team members’ capabilities, which in turn boosts morale and becomes instrumental in achieving the best possible project outcomes; a sort of domino effect.

Successfully complete a project: Outline goals and keep them SMART

To successfully complete a project, you must first have a clear picture of what to expect for a final output. This allows you to create intermediate and short-term goals and corresponding milestones.

After delegating the right activities to team members, the project manager can ask each of them to list the secondary activities that will act as milestones toward their final goal, then let them set their own deadlines for each milestone.

Naturally, the project manager can – and should – support team members in planning their work and identifying goals and milestones.

These deadlines, of course, must coincide with the overall time objectives of the project.

How many levels of detail are needed in the work structure will depend on the size and project complexity.

Successfully complete a project: Manage data

Storing data is becoming increasingly convenient and accessible, especially when using a good project management software.

However, with increased accessibility, security issues may arise.

Although most data management solutions do have data security at heart, sometimes things can slip through the cracks.

To be twice as safe, it’s imperative to manage file permissions, document properties, and monitor data versions on a consistent basis.

Successfully complete a project: Track progress every day

Being informed of deadlines, project, and team is a absolute must for successfully carrying out a project.

Sending regular status updates via face-to-face or virtual meetings, or through a centralized communication tool, ensures everyone has an overview of the project’s progress and how each individual’s contribution fits into the whole.

It is also wise to set up alerts for items that are approaching their planned completion date, as well as those that are behind schedule.

This is where a gantt like the one from Twproject comes in very handy.

Successfully complete a project: Keep everyone informed

Keep all stakeholders updated on progress throughout the project lifecycle.

Also, it is important to make sure that all team members understand what others are doing.

Particularly when changes are made, it is important to inform the team as soon as possible.

Many effective project teams hold short daily meetings; it is not enough to send occasional emails or wait to communicate when an issue arises.

Communication with the Project Team is key to the success of the project itself and keeping the flow of a project moving in the right direction.

Communication is even more important with employees working from remote.

Successfully complete a project: Motivate your team

When it comes to team motivation, rewarding team members for good performance definitely goes a long way rather than “punishing” those who underperform.

When a team member reaches a milestone, it’s important for the project manager to reward their accomplishments or give them recognition in front of the entire team.

This way, knowing that contributions are appreciated by the company makes people more motivated, focused and willing to put themselves out there.

 

With multiple moving parts and several people involved in the success of the project, it’s critical that project managers keep one step ahead of the game.

The ability to keep the scope, people and schedules on track can make or break a project.

Managing successful projects requires not only learning the tips included in this article, but also implementing them on the job.

Implementing lean processes in projects is becoming progressively more popular in multiple industries. The goal of such implementation is to fix issues and lessen inefficiencies.

Lean principles were first conceived and used exclusively in the manufacturing world, as they support streamlined processes and promote high quality production.

This approach is of particular value to manufacturing goods, but it has been proven so successful that it has been introduced in other industries. Last but not least, research project managers have also benefited from it.

Still, lean project management is not the best solution for every organization.

In this article, we will take a closer look at what lean production is, what the basics of this methodology are, how to implement it, and some pros and cons of using it.

What is lean project management?

The expression “lean” does not apply exclusively to project management, but is a general mindset that focuses on lean operational management based on efficiency.

Although this concept is a mix of Western and Japanese cultures and practices, its origins can be traced back to the Toyota Motor Corporation during the post-World War II era.

Struggling with poor productivity, Toyota implemented the Toyota Production System (TPS) to effectively eliminate problematic elements from its processes, including inefficient processing, long wait times, and inventory issues.

One of the core principles of TPS was what was known as just-in-time, or JIT.

For Toyota, JIT meant

Obtain the right amount of raw materials and manufacture the right amount of products to meet customer demand.

In other words, production was strongly correlated with demand.

The adoption of TPS and JIT thus represented a “lean” approach to production, and this tactic has made Toyota one of the most successful companies in the world.

When Western manufacturers realized in the 1980s that Japan was outpacing them, these principles began to migrate westward.

The name “lean production” was created around this time, first applied to manufacturing and later to project management.

Lean project management principles. The Lean Method

Now, lean project delivery means maximizing value while minimizing waste, which involves using a minimal amount of materials, equipment, labor and space.

Specifically, lean methodology optimizes resource utilization by eliminating waste in seven areas:

• Overproduction: Excess production is unnecessary and causes high inventory levels;
• Inventory: excess materials increase storage costs and are rarely used;
• Time: Backlogs in any area that lead to a general waste of time;
• Transportation: unnecessarily moving materials from one location to another causes inefficiency;
• Defects: quality issues can only be fixed by spending additional time, money, and resources;
• Transportation: too many unnecessary steps in a process lengthen production time;
• Excess processing: work that does not add value to a product or process is wasteful and increases costs unnecessarily.

Lean Project Management

The methodology that the lean approach employs to identify and remove waste in these areas can be broken down into the following steps:

• Identify value: The concept of value needs to be rethought from the final customer’s perspective.
• Value Stream Mapping: Analyze the process of creating the product or project to identify areas of waste, such as unnecessary steps or actions.
• Process optimization: Develop an improvement plan to eliminate waste identified in the value stream.
• Establish pull: This means to carry on the project or create the product based solely on the customer’s request. In other words, it is the customer who “pulls” the production.
• Continual improvement: Regularly re-evaluate project process aiming to eliminate waste and maximize productivity and efficiency.

Lean project management implementation

Even though implementing lean processes in projects is a methodology used in organizations of all types and sizes, it works best – at least at first – with small projects and small teams because it requires strong communication.

As an organization grows, it can continue to nurture the lean mindset among new members.

Here’s an overview of the major steps involved in the implementation of lean project management:

1. Creating a corporate culture

The classic top-down approach doesn’t fit the lean project management philosophy.

Although management bears full responsibility for products, processes and business requirements, it is also important that everyone feels an ownership, and therefore a sense of equality, when it comes to improving the way an organization works.

Establishing a standard of openness and transparency helps create an environment where everyone is actively supported in identifying problems and testing solutions.

2. Having a well-trained team

There is no lean management model that works for every single project; the implementation of the principles may not look exactly the same in every case.

That’s why it’s important to create a well-trained team that possesses a strong understanding of the values of lean project management and is capable of keeping everyone focused.

One way to increase the team’s knowledge of this methodology is to provide in-house training sessions that shed light on the procedures and methods related to lean principles.

 3. Make lean improvements part of the corporate culture

There should be a culture of improvement which permeates throughout the organization, encouraging and enabling teams to strive for continuous improvement everywhere.

Team members should be able to evaluate a process and take the necessary actions to make improvements.

Sticking with lean requires continuous focus.

Lean project management benefits

The implementation of lean project management is a long-term proposition that should ultimately change an organization’s culture for the better.

Lean project management benefits include:

• Streamlined processes: Continuously fine-tuning your workflow means getting rid of unnecessary tasks, and the end result is a simpler, easier-to-manage process.
• High-quality output: By getting rid of worthless activities, the team can focus more on activities that bring better quality and fewer errors to the output.
• Dedicated employees: Employees who spend time on significant work have higher motivation. Also, employees who feel they are working together on an equal footing naturally take more initiative and are more dedicated to quality production.
• Smarter processes: Lean enables employees to work on the right tasks at the right time.
• More value for the customer: Focusing more on value-added work naturally produces a better product.

Lean project management challenges

When properly done, lean can offer all of the benefits mentioned above, but many organizations struggle to implement lean project management over the long term.

The main problems that can be found are:

• Lack of time. Lean involves forward planning and time. Mapping key product flows, creating improvement plans, running daily meetings to discuss completed and pending work, and identifying problems are just a few of the tasks that need to be undertaken regularly to maintain flow. Perceived as interfering with normal work activities, these tasks often get overlooked as time goes on, making it impossible to apply a lean methodology.
• Lack of strategy. Some companies focus so much on lean production that they lose touch with their overall strategic plan. To get the most out of this methodology, you need to intentionally implement its principles to existing business goals and not neglect them.
• Insufficient buy-in. Lean methodology is considered a radical way of thinking that requires complete consensus from teams. It takes a lot of effort to change people’s behaviors and incentivize them to work more independently. If you don’t have enough time to train people on the new way of working and how everyone will benefit, it is unlikely that they will agree. To help gain consensus, it is important to invest in training programs that teach people about lean and improve their communication skills.

No project management methodology is perfect, which is why many organizations employ some mix of methodologies.

Lean methodology, given its radical nature, may not be suitable for everyone, but its core principle – minimizing waste while maximizing value – can still be applied to some extent even if you are using a different project framework.

Procrastinating issues in projects is by far the deadliest of sins a project manager can commit.

Procrastination is nothing like being lazy and not wanting to work. Procrastination means undermining the entire project if not even the entire Organization that focuses on that project.

Let’s dig deeper into this in this article as well as giving you valuable tips to address this habit.

What does procrastinate mean?

Procrastination is the act of waiting until the last minute to do those tasks that have a relatively high priority and typically require more effort than others.

You procrastinate when you work first on those tasks that are easy to do or are of a lower priority.

Procrastination can be related not only to how you perform tasks or solve problems, but also to how you make decisions.

Although it is considered normal for people to procrastinate to some extent, it becomes a problem when procrastination impairs the normal operation of projects because they are not completed on time.

Impact of procrastination on issues in projects

Within project management, the effects of procrastination can be extremely detrimental, not only to the project manager and their team, but to the project as a whole and, in the most serious cases, to the organization itself.

Here are the impacts that procrastination can have on project management:

Low morale

Morale is how employees feel about their work, their coworkers, and their supervisors.

When it is high, work ethic is enhanced and employees will work harder, longer, and happier. Conversely, when it is low, employees will not be motivated to work, which can lead them to procrastinate even more.

Procrastination also creates a stressful situation where you have to “rush” to meet task deadlines.

This means, for example, that the team is forced to work overtime and work much longer hours.

This is made worse if the project manager himself procrastinates.

Stress

Putting things off for a later time or at the last minute can actually raise your stress levels.

If you procrastinate for a long time, work assignments begin to stack up until eventually you will have several hours or weeks of work to catch up on in a short period of time.

For some people, the adrenaline rush of waiting until the last minute can be exciting, but for most, this will only mean an increase in stress levels which, in some cases, can be detrimental to your health.

Increased procrastination

The underlying cause of procrastination is being forced to do something that you find boring or unpleasant, which is why you shy away from it in order to do something fun and exciting.

The problem with this is that when you avoid the activity the first time, you tend to keep doing it, making it more and more unpleasant.

Procrastination can then lead to negative consequences such as stress, guilt, and decreased personal productivity, as well as social disapproval for not meeting responsibilities or commitments.

These feelings, combined, can lead to further procrastination.

Solving procrastination issues in projects

Determine why you procrastinate

To get things to improve, you need to understand why you are procrastinating.

It could be, for example, poor organization, or maybe fear; they could be overburdened with work or aiming for over-perfection.

It is therefore vital to pinpoint the cause and then find the appropriate solution.

Devise a plan

If procrastination is already a habit, you can still improve the situation.

However, as with most things, you cannot expect improvement overnight.

Firstly, you have to accept the current situation. Science suggests that procrastinators usually feel guilt and anxiety about not doing their job.

Here, then, is where you should focus on finding solutions, motivating yourself by finding ways to improve your time management skills.

Focus on doing instead of avoiding. A simple written list of tasks to be done, perhaps with a specified time, can do wonders for morale.

Set up a reward system

When you succeed in completing a difficult task on time, a small reward for a job well done might be a good idea that helps beat procrastination.

Peer pressure

While this may put some pressure on people, it is a well proven method of preventing procrastination.

Whenever possible, asking a peer to keep an eye on tasks that need to be done and to remind them of work when it hasn’t been done yet can be a good solution for some people.

Keep distractions to a minimum

If possible, you should create a distraction-free area in your workplace.

This will help you focus on your tasks and get things done quickly, thus preventing the need for procrastination.

Prioritize

Sometimes, making just a list isn’t enough to improve time management and to actually be productive; you need to prioritize.

This means establishing which tasks are time-sensitive and which can be postponed; this way, you’ll have a clear picture of your workload, but more importantly, you won’t be able to do the easier tasks first if they’re not a priority.

Find the most productive time

Everyone works differently. Some of us are more productive in the morning, others in the evening, but what is common to all is that you have a peak time during the day when you are most productive.

Pinpointing this time of productivity is great for time management and this is where you can focus on the more difficult tasks.

On the other hand, when you need to take a break, you can switch to working on something easier.

Don’t push for perfection

You don’t need to constantly demand perfection every time; some tasks can be satisfactory even without being perfect. Demanding excellence over and over again puts a lot of pressure on everyone.

 

Of course, this doesn’t mean agreeing with a half-hearted result or a job done poorly, but if it’s within the standard, it’s acceptable.

Procrastinating issues in projects: conclusions

Beating procrastination can be difficult, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be stopped and even prevented.

The first step is to acknowledge that you are a procrastinator, find the main cause, and try to solve the problem.

Different people will have different reasons, so it’s important to follow a strategy that works.

Whatever the reason, the steps listed in this article can be implemented to improve the situation.

One thing you need to remember is not to put too much pressure on yourself: procrastination will not vanish overnight.

Being a project manager is not an easy job and what makes a good project supervisor is efficiency in managing projects, people, time and money.

In all of this, procrastination should have no place and it is desirable to prevent it as much as possible.

Evaluating projects to prevent disasters is extremely important. That’s why Project Manager is critical, and we often find serious challenges that if addressed poorly can derail programs.

This means knowing a project’s weaknesses through strategic project analysis, effective planning and a proper work management system.

Generally speaking, there is not just one way to ensure project management success, but there are some effective tips that, when included in a management style, can help avoid disasters.

Here, then, are the 7 key tips for evaluating projects:

Evaluating a project: Knowing the project inside out

Before you begin, consider your project as a whole. The first and most important thing you need to do to make a project successful is to ensure that it is based on a solid foundation.

To do so, you need to find your clients and stakeholders stakeholders and understand their interests and expectations for the project.

The following step is to devise a solid project plan in which roles and responsibilities are clearly defined.

In addition, to make planning more effective, you need to establish measurable and traceable success criteria to assess, as you go along, whether the project is on track or not.

Evaluating a project: Determine the right project team

Having developed your project plan, the next step is to build a team that can effectively implement the plan and bring it into place.

This begins with defining roles and assigning the right set of tasks while taking into account each individual’s personality, strengths and skills.

After all, project management resources are the key factors in delivering a successful project.

Evaluating a project: Finding a skilled project manager

To ensure that the project is heading in the right direction, knowing that it is being led by a qualified project manager is essential.

In fact, a good project manager will leave no stone unturned to make the project a success.

They must know how to manage a team of different personalities by assigning the work to the right person and making sure that the process is productive and motivating.

Moreover, they must know how to win clients’ trust and communicate their expectations to their team to work as one to achieve a shared goal.

Evaluating a project: Defining critical milestones

When evaluating a project, don’t forget that its success depends on pinpointing the defining moments during the project lifecycle.

This can be achieved by including the main phases such as initiating, planning, executing and closing a project, but it doesn’t end there.

Every single phase must be segmented into those events, milestones, which constitute an important milestone and are considered a kind of “check point” for the activities carried out so far and in the future.

If you find errors, you can immediately take action to get the project back on track.

Evaluating a project: Communication is key

To run a project smoothly, you need to have effective and consistent communication with stakeholders and consistent communication with stakeholders and clients, but more importantly, in the event of changes, perfect communication with team members to avoid misunderstandings and “sudden attacks.”

For the project manager, it is important to ensure that communication lines are always open so that anyone can reach others without hassle and second thoughts.

Also, regular project status reports are a good way to keep everyone on the same page by keeping them updated on new developments.

Remember that ineffective communication is one of the main reasons why projects fail.

Evaluating a project: Capitalizing on team members’ strengths

A project’s success depends heavily on team members’ skills.

A good project manager will always make an effort to know the strengths and weaknesses of their team members so that work can be allocated accordingly.

Since someone’s strength is somebody else’s weakness, a capable manager will ensure that the work is given to the individual who is inherently competent and quickest to get it done.

Drawing on the strengths of team members will definitely ensure faster task completion and better time management.

With the team performing at its best and whose strengths are utilized to the fullest, the project can only be a success.

Evaluating a project: Using a project management tool

Technology brought many benefits in so many domains, also in project management, thanks to  project management software.

A good software serves as a centralized platform for all relevant project information that not only won’t be lost, but will also be accessible to all project stakeholders.

These project management tools allow teams to effectively collaborate and deliver impressive results with powerful features including Gantt charts, custom reports and workflows, and kanban charts.

If you haven’t done so already, you can try Twproject for free by clicking here.

Bottom line, a good project manager will always examine the project as a whole, as well as analyze the different project components listed in this article so as to prevent disasters.

At the end of each project, it is also vital to evaluate every aspect and weakness of a project, write down successes, what went wrong, and what could be improved for future projects.

Through experience and skill, a good project manager will be able to predict when risk is imminent and when corrective measures need to be taken.

The Precedence diagram, especially when created through a project management software, can be the greatest asset for a Project Manager.

Having many challenging responsibilities involved in project management, possessing the right tools to assist in the successful execution of tasks becomes critical.

The precedence diagram for establishing dependency relationships between tasks is one of them. Let’s look at it in detail in this article.

What is the precedence diagram method?

The precedence diagram method is a charting technique that is used to develop a network diagram of the project schedule and uses so-called “nodes” to represent activities.

These nodes are connected through arrows to represent a sequential progression of dependencies between activities in the plan.

The precedence diagram method quickly provides the project team and stakeholders insight into all planned activities, its affiliates, and node dependencies.

How to create the precedence diagram

To create a precedence diagram and thus to establish the dependency relationships between tasks, the first stage of planning is to focus on the work breakdown structure.

The whole project becomes more convenient and manageable when the various tasks are broken down into smaller parts.

At this stage you will have a table with three columns, the first column listing the tasks and the second with their sequence, while the third will show the duration of each task.

This way you have all the information you need to design a simple precedence diagram.

To start creating the precedence diagram, each activity is represented as a node.

Each box should have an arrow connecting it to the next step: the first activity will start on the left followed by the second, which will be connected by an arrow.

If the next two activities have the same predecessor, they will be stacked on top of each other with two arrows coming from the same starting point.

Conversely, when an activity has two predecessors, the arrows from those predecessors will both connect to the given activity.

In this way a basic precedence diagram is created.

What are the four dependencies in precedence diagrams?

To create a precedence diagram, you must master dependencies.

A dependency is an activity that depends on another task to be completed.

More specifically, there are four types of dependencies:

1. Mandatory dependency

A mandatory dependency is an obligatory dependency, such as adding water to the pool after it is built. You cannot add the water first and build the pool around it.

2. Discretionary dependency

A discretionary dependency helps in optimizing resources. Using the previous example: there is no strict logic for building the sides of the pool. Starting with one side is just as likely and important as another. However, there may be a reason to start with one rather than the other.

3. External dependency

An external dependency is beyond the project team’s control. Again, using the pool example, there could be bad weather that prevents digging from starting or a approval process that takes longer than expected.

4. Internal dependency

An internal dependency is a controllable dependency. If there is only one shovel, two people cannot dig the hole for making the pool. In this case, the program must include a way to split the work between the two people or purchase another shovel.

Each dependency, in turn, can be defined in four ways:

Finish to start : The activity cannot start until another one is finished. The most common dependency type used among activities.

Finish to finish: the activity cannot end until another one is finished.

Start to start: the activity cannot begin until another activity has begun.

Start to finish: The activity cannot end until another one has begun. This is the least used type of dependency.

Pros and cons of the precedence diagram method

This method offers a number of advantages to project management:

• Helps in finding relationships and dependencies between activities. This thus supports planning and risk prevention. If an activity is missing, it is easier to identify it.
• Helps pinpoint the critical path and critical activities and focus on them. Any delay in critical activities will delay the overall program.
• A precedence diagram is a great communication tool. Stakeholders can review activities at any time and get an understanding of the overall program.
• Helps to identify a potential bottleneck and implement appropriate changes.
• Provides a graphical representation of milestones, overall project duration, and the end of the project.

As for the cons:

• For large, complex projects, there will be thousands of tasks and dependency relationships. Without a project management software that features the appropriate functionality, it can be very difficult to manage them. To make matters worse, if the plan changes during the project lifecycle, the precedence diagram will need to be reviewed and redesigned, and again, without the appropriate software, this could become very cumbersome.
• One of the pros of having a project precedence diagram is that it allows the team to stay focused on the project activities and the stakeholders to keep an overview of the entire process. However, in case of large projects involving thousands of activities, it may be difficult to visualize the precedence diagram of the entire project without having to break it down into smaller parts.

 

The fine art of using precedence diagrams, therefore, is to find the appropriate level of detail.

The more tasks are presented, the greater the project overview will be, yet the more dependencies will be resulting and the more difficult it will be to manage the precedence diagram over time.

This is why the use of proper project management software becomes crucial.

This provides the foundation for determining the critical path of the project, predicting shortcomings, and understanding the possible reallocation of resources to solve problems.

Proper use of the precedence chart will provide the project manager with information about the status of the project and make it easier to control activities and schedules.

In all organizations, projects are a key means of building value, and planning activities to help the team di progetto becomes a critical step.

Managing an organization while lacking ideas and without proper planning undoubtedly leads to failure. No matter the scale or scope, project planning articulates when each task should be performed and the order to follow.

In this article we will look into this topic down to the detail.

Project activities definition

Activities do not stand for a project’s deliverables, but for the individual units of work that must be completed to meet those deliverables.

The definition of activities uses everything you already know about the project to break down work into tasks that can be measured.

Examining lessons learned from similar projects can give you an idea of what the tasks will be on the current project.

Also, the feedback from those who have been on similar projects in the past can also help define the tasks.

However, if the project is completely new, one option is to ask for support from experts in that particular field to help define the activities.

Project activities list

After the tasks have been determined and the work packages have been completed, the task list is completed.

A project task list is a list of everything that needs to be accomplished to complete the project within a reasonable time frame and cost.

Then, you would define the attributes of the activities. In other words, you describe each activity by including all the information needed to understand the work order.

Milestones

All of the major checkpoints in the project are marked as milestones.

For example, some of these milestones might be listed in the contract as requirements for successful completion, others might be notable items in the project that the project manager wants to keep track of.

The sequencing process of project activities

Now that you know about the tasks, their details and milestones, you need to focus on the work order.

Here is where you use the process of sequencing or scheduling activities. Basically, this is where you consider what comes first and what follows, the activities that are dependent on each other, possible alternatives, etc.

Creating a Gantt Chart

A Gantt chart is a type of bar chart that shows graphically a project schedule.

Gantt charts are easy to read and are commonly employed to display graphically planned activities.

These charts show the start and end dates of a project’s activities as well as dependency relationships between activities.

Milestones are set sequentially on the bar chart, starting in the upper left corner and ending in the lower right corner.

A Gantt chart can be drawn easily and quickly and is often the first tool used by a project manager to provide a rough estimate of the time required to complete key activities.

You can add additional information to a Gantt chart, such as:

• Milestones can be marked using a symbol such as a diamond or triangle.
• Meetings could be noted using a different symbol such as a circle.
• Progress checks could be marked with a square.

For a complex project, a project manager might also opt to create a separate Gantt chart for each core phase.

This type of chart provides a convenient tool for monitoring and controlling as the project progresses.

Network chart creation

Many project managers use network charts in project planning.

A network chart is a great way to visualize inter-relationships of project activities and provides a graphical representation of the activities and how they relate to each other.

The activities in the network are, specifically, work packages.

The network chart provides key data to the project team, including information about how the activities are related, where the risk points are in the schedule, how long it will take to complete the project, and when each activity should begin and end.

Critical path to planning activities

A critical path describes what sequence of activities would allow the project to be completed in the shortest possible time and is based on the idea that some activities must be completed before others can begin.

To determine your critical path, begin with the network chart to find the longest path in the network, i.e., the longest sequence of activities.

You must make sure to consider the longest path in terms of time and not the path with the most nodes.

Planning a project is considered risky if the critical path is prone to changes once the project begins.

Allocating resources

The last step is to allocate resources to begin the actual work and to execute the planning made.

Resources must be allocated to the right tasks based on their knowledge, skills and availability.

Onboard a project management tool

Regardless of how detailed the project plan is and how well prepared a project manager is, there are still plenty of challenges in project management.

Thankfully, project management software like Twproject can greatly help in planning tasks to assist not only the project team, but also the project manager themselves.

Twproject can help you in every steps mentioned before, setting milestones, creating your Gantt chart, balancing resource workload and creating a network for your project team.

Try it for free now by clicking down below.