This blog was written by Michael Burns Although I have provided consulting services for a long time and should know how to prevent problems, there is always a risk that they will occur. In this article/blog, I am going to share with you a problem I recently encountered. A client needed a new ERP system and I helped them through the process. The client had a number of unique requirements and I did my best to be precise about them in the RFP. The vendor claimed that could handle the requirements without any customization. I basically told them I did […]
IT projects are ticking time bombs
August 21, 2011 from the Toronto Star – “Ambitious IT projects are ticking time bombs that can bring down corporations if they’re not carefully managed to come in on time and on budget, warns a study in the Harvard Business Review. The Oxford University researchers examined 1,471 information technology projects, in private and public sectors, comparing budgets and estimated performance benefits with actual costs and results. They had expected to find IT projects incur large average cost overruns, but they were surprised to see fully one in six projects — nearly 17 per cent — were so mismanaged that they […]
Don’t Bother Building Consensus
June 2011 from Project Times – “There is a problem with building consensus. First of which is it may never happen. I often hear people referring to consensus as trying to get everyone to agree on a decision. A common definition of consensus is “An opinion or position reached by a group as a whole”. Here are negative scenarios that can result with consensus building as defined: A decision never gets made or is delayed – By trying to get everyone to agree, stubbornness can kick in and individuals can stall or stop decisions from being made. A weaker solution […]
Common Estimating Mistakes
May 16, 2011 from gannthead.com – “Here are some common estimating issues that can often negatively impact your project… Padding… Being overly optimistic… Bad requirements… Omission… Different levels… Being put on the spot… Forgetting the risk factor… Pressure from above… Failure to involve the “do-ers”…” 180 View – Estimating is tough and we ask for it all the time from the vendors when assisting our clients in a system selection project. The vendors don’t have enough information when responding to an RFP so they rely on past experience based on similar sized projects and what they think the market will […]
Project Management Approach for Business Process Improvement. – 180Systems
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Top 10 Leadership Qualities of a Project Manager
February 2010 from ProjectTimes – “What qualities are most important for a project manager to be an effective project leader? It’s a question often asked and one that makes us sit back and think… Over the past few years, the people at ESI International, a leader in project management training, have looked at what makes an effective project leader. They quizzed some highly-talented project leaders and compiled a running tally of their responses. Below are the top 10 qualities in rank order, according to their frequency listed…” Read more The article’s list is Inspires a Shared Vision A Good Communicator […]