Project management and other news from your pals at Journyx
{ Monthly Archives }
Summary: We follow the evolution of an organization from the initial stages of doing projects, through a performance crisis, to consistent success.
Read more at: http://www.4pm.com/articles/Organzation_PM_evolution.pdf
Statement of work. As straightforward as it sounds, getting one right is no easy task. But nothing is more fundamental to the success of a project. If the statement of work is too vague, too broad or too generic, it can leave room for various interpretations, which can lead to trouble down the road. That’s true for an internal project, and it’s doubly true when there are vendors involved.
“The failure to properly execute a statement of work is often the reason parties end up in a dispute,” says David M. Greenberg, an attorney in the technology, media and telecommunications practice group at Greenberg Traurig LLP ’s New York office.
To get your project right the first time, follow these guidelines for writing an effective statement of work, or SOW, as it’s affectionately called.
Read more at: Computerworld
Get these great tips and more at:
http://www.journyx.com/rss/support/tips/
The continuing worldwide broadening of software development organizations — either with internal employees dispersed geographically or through the use of offshore outsourcers — is further forcing IT operations to improve requirements management processes.
Lufthansa Systems, for example, a Kelsterbach, Germany-based maker of revenue management systems for airlines, turned to a requirements management tool to overcome problems with communicating software requirements to internal developers working in Budapest, said Rainer Bartholdt, head of service management.
Bring it all together at:
http://www.journyx.com/rss/redir/cworld-dispersed.html
Journyx has identified a potentially serious issue with versions of Timesheet prior to the current releases (7.1 and 5.6m3). The issue is related to scheduled emails & reports in Timesheet and clock resetting related to the switch from Daylight Savings Time back to Standard Time.
But, like the good soldiers that we are, we’ve got a fix for you months before you’d be affected by this. So follow the link to learn exactly what you need to do to make sure your Timesheet installation keeps on ticking without burying you under a pile of approvals emails and scheduled reports.
Check the time at:
http://www.journyx.com/rss/support/tsdst.html
Recently, a number of the world’s leading project management organisations have taken major initiatives to enlighten executive management about the strategic importance and benefits of project management.
The focus is to move from individual project management to organisational project management, which these organisations maintain is a strategic advantage in a competitive economy.
In this article, Ed Naughton, Director General of the Institute of Project Management and current IPMA Vice President, asks Professor Sebastian Green, Dean of the Faculty of Commerce and Professor of Management and Marketing at University College Cork (formerly of the London Business School), about his views of strategic project management as a vehicle for competitive advantage.
Get a leg up at:
http://www.journyx.com/rss/redir/webpro-stratprojman.html
Journyx is excited to announce that our founder and CEO Curt Finch will be featured at this year’s PMI Global Congress this October in Seattle, Washington. Come see Curt as he presents “Project Management: Using Data to Increase Profitability and Reduce Risks” between 4:00-5:15 on Monday, October 23, 2006.
In addition to Curt’s presentation, Journyx will also be present in the Exhibition Hall. So stop by booth 1811 October 22-24 to visit with Journyx representatives. We’d love to see you there!
Find out more at:
http://www.journyx.com/rss/events/index.html
There are three main areas to estimate before your project starts–effort, duration, and cost. Of the three, you must estimate effort first to understand the total amount of work. The duration can be estimated once you have the effort and the resources that you can apply. For example, if you have a project that you are estimating to be 800 effort hours, the duration will depend on the resources that you can apply. If you only have one person, the duration might be six months. If you have three people, the effort might be three months or less.
Once you understand the resources that you can apply to the project, you are in a position to create the cost estimate. At a high-level, project costs are estimated by looking at labor and non-labor items.
Read more at: http://techrepublic.com.com/5100-10878_11-6080089.html
Summary: Organizations evolve through five tiers in their project management maturity. Knowing what tier your organization is in can help you be consistently successful with your projects.
Download the PDF at: http://www.4pm.com/articles/pmtiers.pdf
1) Identify current project success rates and publish those metrics to your IT staff so they’re aware of shortfalls.
2) Set and communicate your new expectations for good project management. This may include redefining project success.
3) Provide leadership training to all managers to boost their confidence, improve their credibility with the business and prepare them for the challenges that come up over the course of projects.
Read more at: http://www.cio.com/archive/060106/ag_edwards_sidebar.html