Improve Your Project Schedule
2 years 21 weeks agoLet’s be honest, most project schedules disappoint. They are unrealistic, complicated, and do not help guide execution. For decades, Gantt charts, network diagrams, and the critical path method have been the standard practices. Even with these powerful tools, only about half of all projects are completed on time, as reported in the
Making Ethical Project Decisions
2 years 26 weeks agoProject managers rarely face ethical dilemmas. We generally do not make life-or-death decisions or need to choose between “right” and “wrong.” However, we need to be prepared and have a framework for confronting these circumstances when they arise.
My career is probably more colorful than most:
I managed the United States Treasury securities’ auctions when the
How to show Primavera P6 dates in month-year (mmm-yy) format
2 years 29 weeks agoThe date formats available in Primavera P6 are very limited and to best of my knowledge, you cannot get the mmm-yy (month-year) format straight out of the box. You might want to display dates in mmm-yy if you don't want to show exact dates in issued schedules.
This P6 video outlines a workaround using UDF that can be used to achieve mmm-yy date format.
Project Assumptions & Risks
2 years 31 weeks agoAssumptions and risks are embedded in our daily lives. We expect the day will unfold as planned, and risks will not materialize. Most of these assumptions are benign, like thinking the weather report will be accurate; or no major calamities will occur.
Projects are built on assumptions. Without them, it would be impossible to proceed.
Project Portfolio Management & The Theory of Constraints
2 years 35 weeks agoLarge enterprises struggle to manage their project portfolios effectively. They fall prey to the fallacy of optimizing resource allocation. Or simply stated, they focus on making sure everyone is busy rather than getting things done.
Team members are allocated at least 100% to project work, if not more. As a result, people are working on multiple projects—more than
Microsoft Project Quick Tip: Assign Actual Start & Finish Dates to Tasks
2 years 37 weeks agoWhile one can update Actual Start and/or Actual Finish dates in Microsoft Project by displaying these columns, my preferred method is using the Task Details Form which is very similar to the Activity Details Form in Primavera P6.
In this short video, I show how to enable and use the Task Details Form to update actual dates for project tasks.
Project Frameworks: Understand the Choices
2 years 39 weeks agoSelecting a project management approach and framework is complicated. Not that long ago, it was like buying a Model-T Ford; you could have any color you wanted, as long as it was black—our only option was Waterfall.
Today Waterfall is still a choice. There are also multiple Agile frameworks, or you can mix-and-match and go Hybrid. So many choices.
Flipping the Triple Constraint
2 years 44 weeks agoProject management theory established the Triple Constraint (aka, the Iron Triangle) as the key to project success. If the scope is known and fixed, then the schedule and cost must adjust to accommodate scope changes.
The simplicity of this proposition is appealing. At the beginning of the project, all requirements are documented, the design is approved, and
How to use Lumpsum cost in Primavera P6 to generate S-curves data
2 years 48 weeks agoBusy, But Not Productive
2 years 48 weeks agoEveryone tells me they are busy. They are on video or conference calls from morning until evening. On average, workers receive over 100 emails per day and send at least 40. A common complaint is, “I spend my entire day meeting and doing email; and have no time for my
