Project management is all about making things happen. It's about bringing successful completion to a project accomplishing predetermined goals and objectives. The main challenge for a project manager is to achieve all these goals and objectives while adhering to other constraints such as time and budget.
1.It is important that you begin with a clear set of objectives and a desired outcome. Write it down and keep it to hand, sometimes it is all to easy to forget about your core mission.
2.Organise the people who are required in order to successfully complete the project. Be nice to these people, and try to ensure they stay positive and enthusiastic about the project throughout.
3.Identify a project leader. This is incredibly important although sometimes very difficult to do. It's also important that this leader is accepted by all those involved in the project.
4.Brainstorm ideas with your associates, to try and get a plan which will achieve the desired outcome. Set a date to finish this brainstorming, write a draft and share it with the group.
5.Identify obstacles in two categories; those which you have no control over (economic, natural disasters, competition), and those which you do (budget, personnel, prices).
6.Make a list of the tools (capital, equipment, machinery), people (administration, sales, suppliers, maintenance) and the time you will need to complete the project and adhering to the determined objectives.
7.Organise the tasks and sub-tasks in chronological order.
8.Ask each participant in your project if they are committed to participating, completing their tasks on time and attaining the objectives. If there are any problems they need to be resolved.
9.Develop a list of initial actions which need to be taken. Identify the responsible persons, ensuring they completely understand the tasks.
10.Request specific and realistic dates for the completion of the tasks, sub-tasks and objectives. Document all this.
11.The project leader needs to follow-up on all dates and compromises. Make this information available to everyone involved in the project. Communicate all deliveries of tasks within the group so everyone's work is acknowledged.
12.Communicate the status of the project to the group involved at all times. Everyone should be waiting for the outcome of an activity or working on their own.
13.If a group member is unable or unwilling to complete a task on time or to your specification, find out why and take immediate action to rectify the situation and get back on course to achieving the established objectives.
14.When you do experience problems with the completion of tasks, get the entire group together to work out new plans and revised completion dates.
15.Ensure those who complete their tasks within specification and to time are rewarded and thanked accordingly. Thank the whole team together when certain milestones are reached.
S.M.A.R.T. Is the universal acronym understood by most project managers and their teams. It is often used at the preliminary stages of a project in order to set appropriate targets for the assignment.
Specific. Your goal or goals must be precise with an obvious end result that all members understand with crystal clear clarity. This point will focus you as a coordinator and the individuals in your team to take suitable action on the appropriate tasks throughout the project. Depending on the complexity of your overall task keep it simple, especially on a day to day basis. Dealing with one issue at a time is a good way to make focussed progress. However remember, as project manager you must always have your eye on the bigger picture.
Measurable. Also known as manageable and meaningful. As a project manager you will have to motivate your team members through the whole process and judge the development of the mission while considering your remaining time and resources. This is a lot easier to do if your group have an invested interest in the work and care about an accurate execution to achieve a meaningful end result. As project manager you must maintain a measured perspective over the proceedings as a whole.
Achievable. There is no point in getting disheartened when you have failed to achieve ridiculous targets. Aim high by all means, but before you even begin you must set yourself realistic objectives that are obtainable. Make sure the targets are agreeable for all the associates involved, when you're half way through a tense project there's nothing worse than mutiny.
Relevant. Delegating applicable tasks to the most pertinent person is an essential part of project management. You will have to prioritise your time and tasks so careful consideration of individuals strengths and weaknesses will have to be employed to maintain morale in the team and ensure that advancement towards the end goal is always evident.
Time-bound. Every brief has a deadline and no doubt yours will have to be adhered to, so effective time management is crucial for any project. Start as you mean to go on, at the beginning of a venture drawing up a timeline can be invaluable. Give yourself staggered targets throughout the time period you have been afforded for completion of your project. Make this timetable accessible for the rest of your team and remind each member that they must update each other on their progress according to their targets for that day, week or month.
The S.M.A.R.T. mnemonic is a good way to get started, but the key to any successful project manager is regular and transparent communication with your team. Without this you will struggle to achieve our main aims and your team will become disillusioned with the project, so stay talking and stay S.M.A.R.T.
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