05/12/2015 by Brad Egeland Tags: project checklist, project closeout, project lessons learned, project manager, project schedule
Working on the end of the project at the beginning is not the first thing on our minds. At least not mine – I have to make a deliberate effort because all euphoria and excitement is focused on getting the project going well for the customer and getting out of the gate on a positive […]
12/29/2014 by Brad Egeland Tags: fdd, functional design document, project charter, project documentation, project requirements, project schedule
In Part 1 of this two-part series, we looked at what I considered to be things that we absolutely need on every project, no matter what the size, dollars or length in duration the project may be. I look forward to your thoughts and input on this topic based on your experiences. And be honest…tell […]
12/17/2014 by Brad Egeland Tags: project documentation, project requirements, project schedule, statement of work
A project is a project, right? Well, sort of. But it does stand to reason that not every engagement needs to be managed to the same level of detail. Certainly a $5,000 two-week project doesn’t require the same up front planning and detailed documentation that a $5 million two-year project requires. It is true, however, […]
10/08/2014 by Brad Egeland Tags: Gantt chart, project plan, project schedule, project timeline
Here’s a mistake I make often….referring to the Gantt chart or project schedule as the project plan. And it may be that for a project plan that is all you have or need – especially if you’re running a fairly small project. And we aren’t the only ones making that mistake…it’s a common one. Especially […]
04/11/2013 by Brad Egeland Tags: end of project sessions, lessons learned sessions, project schedule, smart project management
So far we’ve covered four of my five topics on smart project management…the idea of working smarter – but not necessarily harder – on the projects we manage. In parts 1 through 4, we’ve covered: Make the customer work for you Let the team manage the budget Scale the deliverables Manage the meetings In this […]
03/13/2013 by Brad Egeland Tags: project communication, project customer, project kickoff, project schedule, smart project management
In this series we’re going to begin a five-parter on some things we can do on our projects to manage smarter, not harder. There are things we do as project managers that are definitely ‘chores’. Things we wish we didn’t have to put so much effort into like today when I’m trying to get a […]