The Daily PM Blog
What is a Portfolio Office?
May 22, 2013
If you work in a large-ish company with many projects and project managers, you may find that you have a Portfolio Office. Typically, this is a department or team that sits alongside the work on projects. The people there don’t always directly manage projects, but they can be really helpful to you in your work as a project manager. Portfolio Offices in their current guise haven’t been around in the industry that long and they can be a bit of a mystery. So what does a Portfolio Office actually do? Let’s start with looking at portfolio management, which is essentially what the Portfolio Of...
Controlling Project Change Requests
May 21, 2013
Without a clear process for managing change, project managers can quickly lose control of a project. Watch this project management video to learn from an expert about the process for controlling project change requests.
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Improve Time Management with Timesheets
May 20, 2013
Ever felt that there aren’t enough hours in the day? We talk about managing time as if we can somehow control it, but time is fixed. You can only manage yourself to get the best out of the available time, and this is something that many project managers struggle with. It might seem like completing employee timesheets is yet another task to fit into your already busy day, but a timesheet can be a valuable tool in making the most of your working time. Timesheets can help you identify where your time is being spent and with a bit of analysis you can use the data to work out how you could carve ...
How to Identify Project Stakeholders
May 17, 2013
Project management is about getting things done through other people. As the project manager, you will end up doing some of the ‘doing’ work yourself but a lot of what you do is actually organizing the work of others. Those others are your project stakeholders.
When you are asked to work on a project, you may already have an idea of who needs to be involved. Your project sponsor (the person who is championing the project and who is generally the one who benefits from whatever it is that you are delivering) may also have had some thoughts about who would be the best people to work on it. Ho...
How to do a Project Review
May 16, 2013
So you’ve been asked to do a project review for a colleague? Congratulations! You’ve made it in the eyes of your colleagues, as another project manager considers you a great choice to comment on their project in an objective and constructive way.
However, far from being considered an honor, many project managers find it daunting to be asked to review someone else’s project. A project review is like a mini audit, but more informal. What if you miss something and get blamed for it later? What if they don’t like what you have to say and it’s difficult to work with them in the future? Ye...
Would You Like to Make a Statement?
May 15, 2013
Our actions speak volumes whether we know it or not. Team members, management, and clients are watching us all the time and making judgments based upon our actions and speech. What kind of statements do your speech and actions make about you as a project manager? A colleague of mine made a statement that almost backfired on him; from his experience, we can learn what to do as project managers to make the right statement.
I had lunch a few weeks ago with a former coworker. We’ll call him John. John and I haven’t worked together for over 10 years, but have kept in touch through email, the ...
Tips on People Management
May 14, 2013
Watch this project management training video to learn people management skills. Advice from a PM expert to help you be a better leader and project manager.
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The Necessity of Early Adopters
May 13, 2013
The cutting edge of technology is usually a pretty dangerous place to spend your time. It’s sharp, uncertain, and many times results in some blood-letting. But, it’s also a very important place for certain members of your project team to spend their time. Find out why early adopters are important and how your next technology project can benefit from their involvement.
Brett was a cool guy. His office was a treasure trove of electronic knick-knacks. Partially assembled hard drives were stacked on top of each other in the corner. Countless smooth metal objects identifiable only to the techn...
Breaking a Control Addiction
May 10, 2013
I had a terrible addiction to control. It became more insidious and obvious to me as each year passed, but I didn’t know what to do about it. The following article sheds some light on how far I went and what I did to break free from the clutches of what was a debilitating habit.
I have a confession to make. I’m a recovering control-aholic. There, I finally said it. Now everybody knows! For years I hid this terrible addiction to control and I was pretty good at it too. I would blend in with everyone else in the office and smile and laugh right along with them. But, deep down inside I wanted...
The Anatomy of a Great Client Presentation
May 9, 2013
Project managers are called on to do presentations all the time. Some are routine and don’t require a great deal of preparation. Others are vitally important to the success of your project and need a lot of extra attention to make them wildly successful. The following are some ideas on how you can spend that extra time making sure your next important presentation hits the mark.
Does your audience just hear blah, blah, blah when you are standing in front of them and delivering your presentation? Hopefully, that’s not the case. You’re audience should be engaged, intrigued, and walk away wi...
