101 Project Management Problems and How to Solve Them: Practical Advice for Handling Real-World Project Challenges

273 Pages·2010·0.88 MB·English

by  Tom Kendrick

101
Project
Management
Problems
and How to Solve Them
Practical Advice for Handling
Real-World Project Challenges
Tom Kendrick
American Management Association
New York • Atlanta • Brussels • Chicago • Mexico City • San Francisco
Shanghai • Tokyo • Toronto • Washington, D.C.
Bulkdiscountsavailable.Fordetailsvisit:www.amacombooks.org/go/specialsalesor
contactspecialsales:
Phone:[phone]•E-mail:[email protected]
ViewalltheAMACOMtitlesat:www.amacombooks.org
Thispublicationisdesignedtoprovideaccurateandauthoritativeinformationinregardtothesubject
mattercovered.Itissoldwiththeunderstandingthatthepublisherisnotengagedinrenderinglegal,
accounting,orotherprofessionalservice.Iflegaladviceorotherexpertassistanceisrequired,theservices
ofacompetentprofessionalpersonshouldbesought.
‘‘PMI’’andthePMIlogoareserviceandtrademarksoftheProjectManagementInstitute,Inc.whichare
registeredintheUnitedStatesofAmericaandothernations;‘‘PMP’’andthePMPlogoarecertification
marksoftheProjectManagementInstitute,Inc.whichareregisteredintheUnitedStatesofAmericaand
othernations;‘‘PMBOK’’,‘‘PMNetwork’’,and‘‘PMIToday’’aretrademarksoftheProjectManagement
Institute,Inc.whichareregisteredintheUnitedStatesofAmericaandothernations;‘‘...building
professionalisminprojectmanagement...’’isatradeandservicemarkoftheProjectManagement
Institute,Inc.whichisregisteredintheUnitedStatesofAmericaandothernations;andtheProject
ManagementJournallogoisatrademarkoftheProjectManagementInstitute,Inc.
PMIdidnotparticipateinthedevelopmentofthispublicationandhasnotreviewedthecontentfor
accuracy.PMIdoesnotendorseorotherwisesponsorthispublicationandmakesnowarranty,guarantee,
orrepresentation,expressedorimplied,astoitsaccuracyorcontent.PMIdoesnothaveanyfinancial
interestinthispublication,andhasnotcontributedanyfinancialresources.
Additionally,PMImakesnowarranty,guarantee,orrepresentation,expressorimplied,thatthe
successfulcompletionofanyactivityorprogram,ortheuseofanyproductorpublication,designedto
preparecandidatesforthePMP(cid:1)CertificationExamination,willresultinthecompletionorsatisfactionof
anyPMP(cid:1)Certificationeligibilityrequirementorstandard.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Kendrick,Tom.
101projectmanagementproblemsandhowtosolvethem:practicaladviceforhandlingreal-world
projectchallenges/TomKendrick.
p. cm.
Includesindex.
ISBN-13:978-0-8144-1557-3(pbk.)
ISBN-10:0-8144-1557-1(pbk.)
1.Projectmanagement. I.Title. II.Title:Onehundredoneprojectmanagementproblemsand
howtosolvethem. III.Title:Onehundredandoneprojectmanagementproblemsandhowtosolve
them.
HD69.P75K4618 2011
658.4(cid:1)04—dc22
2010015878
(cid:2)2011TomKendrick
Allrightsreserved.
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica.
Thispublicationmaynotbereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedinwholeorin
part,inanyformorbyanymeans,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,orotherwise,
withoutthepriorwrittenpermissionofAMACOM,adivisionofAmericanManagementAssociation,
1601Broadway,NewYork,NY10019.
AboutAMA
AmericanManagementAssociation(www.amanet.org)isaworldleaderintalentdevelopment,
advancingtheskillsofindividualstodrivebusinesssuccess.Ourmissionistosupportthegoalsof
individualsandorganizationsthroughacompleterangeofproductsandservices,includingclassroom
andvirtualseminars,webcasts,webinars,podcasts,conferences,corporateandgovernmentsolutions,
businessbooks,andresearch.AMA’sapproachtoimprovingperformancecombinesexperiential
learning—learningthroughdoing—withopportunitiesforongoingprofessionalgrowthateverystepof
one’scareerjourney.
Printingnumber
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Toall thegoodprojectmanagersIhaveworkedwith,
from whomIhavelearnedagreatdeal.
Alsotoall thebadprojectmanagersIhaveworkedwith,
fromwhomIhavelearned evenmore.
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Introduction 1
Part 1: General 3
PROBLEM 1 What personality type fits best into project
management? 3
PROBLEM 2 What are the habits of successful project
managers? 5
PROBLEM 3 I’m an experienced individual contributor but
very new to project management. How do I get
my new project up and going? 7
PROBLEM 4 What are the most important responsibilities of a
project manager? 10
PROBLEM 5 What is the value of project management
certification? What about academic degrees in
project management? 12
PROBLEM 6 There are many project development
methodologies. What should I consider when
adopting standards such as the Project
Management Institute PMBOK(cid:1)? 14
PROBLEM 7 What are the key considerations when
developing or revising a project life cycle? What
should I consider when choosing between
‘‘waterfall’’ and ‘‘cyclic’’ (or ‘‘agile’’) life cycles? 17
v
vi Contents
PROBLEM 8 How can I efficiently run mini-projects (less than
six months with few dedicated resources)? 21
PROBLEM 9 Howrigid andformal shouldI be when runninga
small project? 23
PROBLEM 10 How do I handle very repetitive projects, such as
product introductions? 25
PROBLEM 11 How should I manage short, complex, dynamic
projects? 27
PROBLEM 12 How do I balance good project management
practices with high pressure to ‘‘get it done’’?
How do I build organizational support for
effective project planning and management? 30
PROBLEM 13 How does project management differ between
hardware and software projects? 33
PROBLEM 14 How many projects can a project manager
realistically handle simultaneously? 35
PROBLEM 15 How do I handle my day-to-day tasks along with
managing a project? 37
PROBLEM 16 How do I develop and maintain supportive
sponsorship throughout a project? 40
PROBLEM 17 What canI do whenmy project losesits sponsor? 42
PROBLEM 18 How can I secure and retain adequate funding
throughout my project? 44
PROBLEM 19 Can the project management function be
outsourced? 46
PROBLEM 20 How can I ensure good project management
practices during organizational process changes? 48
PROBLEM 21 What is the best structure for program
management for ensuring satisfactory customer
results? 50
Contents vii
Part 2: Initiation 53
PROBLEM 22 How do I effectively manage customer
expectations? 53
PROBLEM 23 How can I reconcile competing regional/cross-
functional agendas? 56
PROBLEM 24 How should I effectively deal with contributor
hostility or reluctance during start-up? 59
PROBLEM 25 When is a project large enough to justify
investing in a two-day project launch? 62
PROBLEM 26 How do I establish control initially when my
project is huge? 64
PROBLEM 27 How should I initiate a new project with a new
team, or using a new technology? 67
PROBLEM 28 How should I evaluate and make ‘‘make vs. buy’’
project decisions? 69
PROBLEM 29 HowcanIquicklyengagegoodcontractworkers? 72
PROBLEM 30 In a large project, when should I seek
commitment for overall funding? 74
PROBLEM 31 When working with extremely limited resources,
how can I get my project completed without
doing it all myself? 76
PROBLEM 32 HowshouldIinitiateaprojectthathasarelatively
low priority? 78
PROBLEM 33 How should I organize my project management
information system(PMIS) to facilitate access and
avoid ‘‘too much data’’? 80
Part 3: Teamwork 83
PROBLEM 34 How can I organize my team for maximum
creativity, flexibility, and success? 83
viii Contents
PROBLEM 35 How can I work effectively with other project
teams and leaders who have very little project
management experience? 85
PROBLEM 36 How can I help team members recognize the
value of using project management processes? 87
PROBLEM 37 How do I keep people focused without hurting
morale? 90
PROBLEM 38 How can I involve my team in project
management activities without increasing
overhead? 92
PROBLEM 39 How can I manage and build teamwork on a
projectteamthatincludesgeographicallyremote
contributors? 95
PROBLEM 40 How do I secure team buy-in on global projects? 97
PROBLEM 41 How can I best manage project contributors who
are contract staff? 99
PROBLEM 42 HowdoIcopewithpart-timeteammemberswith
conflicting assignments? 101
PROBLEM 43 HowdoI handleundependablecontributors who
impede project progress? 103
PROBLEM 44 How should I manage informal communications
and ‘‘management by wandering around’’ on a
virtual, geographically distributed team? 105
PROBLEM 45 When should I delegate down? Delegate up? 108
PROBLEM 46 How can I best deal with project teams larger
than twenty? 111
Part 4: Planning 115
PROBLEM 47 What can I do to manage my schedule when my
project WBS becomes huge? 115
Contents ix
PROBLEM 48 How can I get meaningful commitment from
team members that ensures follow-through? 118
PROBLEM 49 Asaprojectmanager,whatshouldIdelegateand
what should I do myself? 121
PROBLEM 50 Whoshouldestimateactivitydurationsandcosts? 123
PROBLEM 51 How do I improve the quality and accuracy of my
project estimates? 126
PROBLEM 52 What metrics will help me estimate project
activity durations and costs? 130
PROBLEM 53 How can I realistically estimate durations during
holidays and other times when productivity
decreases? 134
PROBLEM 54 How can I develop realistic schedules? 136
PROBLEM 55 How can I thoroughly identify and manage
external dependencies? 139
PROBLEM 56 How do I synchronize my project schedules with
several related partners and teams? 142
PROBLEM 57 How do I effectively plan and manage a project
that involves invention, investigation, or multiple
significant decisions? 145
PROBLEM 58 How should I manage adoption of new
technologies or processes in my projects? 148
PROBLEM 59 How should I plan to bring new people up to
speed during my projects? 151
PROBLEM 60 How can I resolve staff and resource
overcommitments? 153
PROBLEM 61 How can I minimize the impact of scarce,
specialized expertise I need for my project? 155
PROBLEM 62 Whatisthebestapproachforbalancingresources
across several projects? 157