Projects and Programs

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Scope creep means the changes in the project scope which are uncontrolled and it should ( read scope creep) be avoided . A very important project management term the “Scope creep ” as all of us know is also popularly called focus creep, requirement creep or feature creep. If the project scope is not defined properly or controlled then the problem of project scope creep may arise. If you have the project scope which is clearly identified and associated to the timeline and the project budget, you can begin to manage the project resources like the people, material and the equipment required to complete the project. Read the rest of this entry »

Project scope is a very important aspects of the project but whenever we talk of important aspects of a project  we often talk about men resources ( read people ) , money and time and tend to ignore project scope . As a project manager you need to define the project scope correctly in order to achieve better project success rate .In the context of project management the formal definition of the project scope can be :
“project scope is the sum total of all of its expected products with their requirements or features “

in other words the project scope is what ( read objectives ) the project is supposed to achieve with the budget  that has been allocated to achieve these objectives. Remember if there is any change in the project scope , mostly then there will automatically a change in the budget also.All this  will be clear with this easy example: Read the rest of this entry »

Time and again i have said that a good and proactive project manager is must for any organization who wants to avoid project failures and achieve a higher percentage of successful projects. Project manager is the one who is going to take the responsibility for all the important processes of a project like the initiation, planning, execution and closure .

As you can understand with such great responsibility on the shoulders , the project manaager has to have some qualities to fullfil the expectations that the senior management has from the project manager .The qualities of a project manager include the ability to analyze the situation , management skills including handling the project team well. The biggest responsibilities amongst the other duties are the effective Planning /scheduling ,communication skills and effective management of risks which includes early warning of risk , impact analysis and deciding the actions to be taken to minimise or completely remove the risks ( whichever is appropriate and possible !) in order to make the project a success. Read the rest of this entry »

Well  whenever we speak of project success we always put blame on project managers for the failure of the project . But do  you seriously feel the project manager alone is responsible for the success or failure of the project ?.  I don’t think the same and as a matter of fact it can never be true . while we are talking of a project we are talking of the team effort right from the top  to the bottom.It is not an individual who can decide the fate of the the project alone, though the level of influence on the project can be different but only one man can not be blamed for the project failure   I mean ..the scapegoat. we always look for the scapegoats and the poor project manager is the one who is always supposed to bear the burnt .Yeah !! the easy target is always the project manager but we need to understand that the  projects do consistently well if the organizations  have a very high level of competency at several levels and not just the good project managers which is actually not the case in most of the cases. Lack of which has resulted in higher project failure rates like 70-80%. Read the rest of this entry »

Adopt PRINCE2 for better projects success rate !!. I recently read an article on   British Computer Society website . A recent study giving  the reasons behind project success and failure at  image University College, London which was conducted over a period of three years , says Out of the total of 377 IT projects 40 per cent failed to meet the original objectives.
According to the study , there are many factors which affect the project outcome . but the most interesting one , according to the study , was:

“78 per cent of projects which adhered to Prince 2 were a success compared to 38 per cent where Prince 2 was not used.”

I am a big fan of PRINCE2 and recommend it strongly and this study endorses my views and gives enough reasons to adopt PRINCE2 for the successful completion of projects.

Yes!! PRINCE2 in 5 days is very much possible. Infact as per the training method adopted by most of the ATOs , the one of the most popular  IT project management certification ( read PRINCE2 ) takes just five days for both Foundation and Practitioner levels of PRINCE2 .Offcourse.. if you pass both the exams ( PRINCE2  foundation as well as  PRINCE2 practitioner ) .Though it is a tough training format for the one’s who are new to the project management field , it is little easier for those already having experience in the field of project management and are aware of the basics  of project management as well as the terminology. Read the rest of this entry »