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Member You - Successful Projects: It's Not Rocket Science
In the rush to entrepreneurial success, many people make a tragic mistake. They are certainly entrepreneurial. It's success they just can't seem to grasp! Therefore, they make decisions intended to prop up their images so people will assume them to be successful. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, their business is struggling and collapse is just around the corner. The scenario is so common, it seems normal. But is being normal such a good idea?How can an entrepreneur achieve business success without drowning in a sea of debt? Maybe the following ideas will help.1. Have a plan! It is easy to start a business. That's the good news... and the bad news! It's good because people with the spirit of an entrepreneur can get started witho
The Solution:
Make sure you have the top down backing from senior management. There must be direct communication from the sponsor to the st
Technical competence alone does not make you ‘referable’, no matter how good you are.My friend Treva recently experienced a car breakdown in Los Angeles. Her vehicle was towed to a nearby service station where the manager put her at ease with his comfortable style and obvious expertise. He promised to call her the next morning with an evaluation and an estimate.She took the bus home. The next morning, he did not call. She called him in the afternoon. He apologized and agreed to call her back by the end of the day. But he didn’t. She reached him again the next morning. This time he promised to call back within 45 minutes. Two hours later, he still had not called.In the end, Treva’s car was very well repaired. The manager gave her a clear expl
The trouble with these projects is that often you are doing something that hasn't been done before, is unproven or cutting edge. Customers expect a good result not excuses, even though these projects are frequently a journey into the unknown. If we take the construction industry, building a new bridge for instance, we have been building bridges for hundreds of years and know how to do it. We understand how things are going to happen, in what order and the expected result. This is rarely the case with IT projects.
Avoiding the common pitfalls of IT project management is not rocket science, it is simply a case of taking some sensible measures. Identified here are five killer mistakes of project management:
Who Owns the Project?
The Mistake:
The nature of projects is change and change often encounters resistance. People don't like change so they need to know it is necessary and what benefits it will bring. In order for a project to deliver change it needs the backing of senior management. Without it the project will proceed very slowly. The sponsor (senior management) is the person that drives the change forward and the project is the mechanism for change. A project without support from senior management will struggle.
The Solution:
Make sure you have the top down backing from senior management. There must be direct communication from the sponsor to the sta
Armed with knowledge of your industry, market and audience, a media plan and schedule, your product or service's most important benefits and measurable goals in terms of sales volume (number of units sold), revenue generated or other criteria, you are ready for action. The first step is to establish the theme and, if appropriate, the specific tagline that identifies your product or service in all of your advertising. The theme of your advertising reflects your special identity or personality as well as the particular benefits of your product or service. For example, cosmetics ads almost always rely on a glamorous theme. Many food products opt for healthy, all-American-family campaigns. Automobile advertising frequently concen
Avoiding the common pitfalls of IT project management is not rocket science, it is simply a case of taking some sensible measures. Identified here are five killer mistakes of project management:
Who Owns the Project?
The Mistake:
The nature of projects is change and change often encounters resistance. People don't like change so they need to know it is necessary and what benefits it will bring. In order for a project to deliver change it needs the backing of senior management. Without it the project will proceed very slowly. The sponsor (senior management) is the person that drives the change forward and the project is the mechanism for change. A project without support from senior management will struggle.
The Solution:
Make sure you have the top down backing from senior management. There must be direct communication from the sponsor to the st
Whether you are looking for a job, new clients or feel the need to expand your list of professional contacts, networking is the answer.So what are you saying to yourself right now? “Yuck, I hate networking. I’ll go to a networking event one of these days, if I can figure out where the REALLY good connections are.”Hello? These are all excuses that keep you in the same place and move you no closer to your goals!Guess what? We all hate networking. It’s just that some of us have gotten better at it because we actually force ourselves to do it!For all of you first time networkers, or those that have to be pushed out the door or accompanied by a friend, here are tips to get you started:The TipsExtreme se
Avoiding the common pitfalls of IT project management is not rocket science, it is simply a case of taking some sensible measures. Identified here are five killer mistakes of project management:
Who Owns the Project?
The Mistake:
The nature of projects is change and change often encounters resistance. People don't like change so they need to know it is necessary and what benefits it will bring. In order for a project to deliver change it needs the backing of senior management. Without it the project will proceed very slowly. The sponsor (senior management) is the person that drives the change forward and the project is the mechanism for change. A project without support from senior management will struggle.
The Solution:
Make sure you have the top down backing from senior management. There must be direct communication from the sponsor to the st
At a recent tourism industry conference, the participants explored how effective partnerships could help boost travel to their region.A long chain of ‘travel partners’ was involved, including national tourism boards, wholesalers, travel agents, airlines, hotels, taxis and transport companies, restaurants, tourist attractions, shopping malls, medical facilities, media representatives and even banks.The panel discussion was lively. The airline suggested the media should lower advertising rates. The journalist said national tourism boards should provide more up-to-date information. Restaurants asked travel agents to pre-book special meals. Transport companies wanted to tie-in with tourist attractions to ensure all-day bookings.And everyone want
Who Owns the Project?
The Mistake:
The nature of projects is change and change often encounters resistance. People don't like change so they need to know it is necessary and what benefits it will bring. In order for a project to deliver change it needs the backing of senior management. Without it the project will proceed very slowly. The sponsor (senior management) is the person that drives the change forward and the project is the mechanism for change. A project without support from senior management will struggle.
The Solution:
Make sure you have the top down backing from senior management. There must be direct communication from the sponsor to the st
Like it or not, the reality of running a business in today's world is that you will always have some people leaving to take up other job opportunities - no matter how great your staff retention strategies.But the way you handle a resignation can have a direct impact on how much staff turnover you experience thereafter. Handled the right way, a resignation is in fact a golden opportunity for you to actually reduce staff turnover. In the same way you that can profit from a customer complaint by handling it well, you can profit from a staff resignation by following the 10 tips below:1. Treat the individual in the same way you would want to be treated throughout.2. Don’t take it personally. They are
The Solution:
Make sure you have the top down backing from senior management. There must be direct communication from the sponsor to the stakeholders. The message must be, "we are serious, this thing is going to happen so you are either with us or you are not" and beware those that are not.
Be careful as project manager to make sure the sponsor does not take the project over and become the de-facto project manager.
Getting Users Involved
The Mistake:
Lack of user input and involvement is the recipe for a bad project. This can either be because of the "we know what you want" mentality from the IT department or lack of interest from the customer. Either way it must be avoided.
The Solution:
The IT department must take time to understand the customers requirements before proposing any technical solution. Often IT is blinded by the latest, newest thing available and try to shoehorn the requirements into it. On the other hand, customers must devote the time and effort necessary to ensure a successful project by interacting with the IT department and making sure all requirements have been fully defined. Ensure you have spoken to all stakeholders to gathered their requirements and that they continue to work with you for the duration of the project.
Stopping Scope Creep
The Mistake:
Scope creep is the cause of more project failures than anything else. Not knowing exactly what a project is aiming to deliver or setting off in a fit of enthusiasm but little
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