As Andrea pointed out in her response to you (and I in a similar post to Stella), Greer (2010) stresses the importance of involving all stakeholders in the project right from the beginning and throughout all other activities. He further cautions that “if you don’t involve all stakeholders in an active and engaged fashion from the beginning, you are likely to suffer the consequences…”.
In project where event planning at this scale is involved it is expected that many changes will occur and as Portny et al (2008) stated: “project managers must expect change and be prepared to deal with it”. Portny et al (2008) suggests that the best approach “is to set up a well-controlled, formal process whereby changes can be introduced and accomplished with as little distressed as possible” (p. 346).
In most of the worksheets I saw as part of Greer’s (2010) The project management minimalist: Just enough PM to rock your projects!, items such as “project updates”; “status reports” and “communication plan” appeared regularly. Greer (2010) spoke of creating a Communication Plan and I believe this is what this particular project was lacking. This plan would have enable the project team to effectively use the communication process whereby each member of the team would be kept update, not only of the message and who sent or received it, but in what way it was sent. Most often, team members do not check their email inbox as they should; while others are unaware as to what type of medium is suitable for a particular type information; while other are not sure if by reading the email if they are being provided with information or with a directive.
I can also see the issue of respecting the chain of command for the project. Who is really in charge and whose directives should be followed? This problem would have been clearly dealt with, if as Greer (2010) suggested roles and responsibilities were clearly established form the beginning of the project.
How you have describe your project I can see the steps of Greer’s (2010) The Nuts and Bolts: 10 Steps to Project Success being followed. However, I am still skeptical about what factors you used to consider the project as being successful. From what you are describing I am seeing the event as being a very successful one due mostly to ingenuity and initiative on your part, but the process or the management of the project, I would not have considered as being a success story. My conclusions are based mainly of what our resources the last two weeks, consider as a successful project. For instance, Portny, (2008), spoke of it being vital that those involved in the project (the stakeholders) remain informed as well being an active participant in the project from start to finish. This was clearly not the case with your project team. However, I do applaud you for the great job done.
References
Greer, M. (2010). The project management minimalist: Just enough PM to rock your projects! (Laureate custom ed.). Baltimore: Laureate Education, Inc.
Lockitt, B. (2007). Putting the Q into quality project management. London: Learning and Skills Network. Retrieved from www.learningtechnologies.ac.uk/files/Quality_Project..
Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J., Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., Sutton, M. M., & Kramer, B. E. (2008). Project management: Planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Thanks for the personal comment space. It's a good idea. Smart! I look forward to working with you throughout the course.
ReplyDeleteRenee
Hi Lisa!
ReplyDeleteI'm here too!
Hollis
Hey, this is Nathan following...
ReplyDeleteLisa:
ReplyDeleteAs Andrea pointed out in her response to you (and I in a similar post to Stella), Greer (2010) stresses the importance of involving all stakeholders in the project right from the beginning and throughout all other activities. He further cautions that “if you don’t involve all stakeholders in an active and engaged fashion from the beginning, you are likely to suffer the consequences…”.
In project where event planning at this scale is involved it is expected that many changes will occur and as Portny et al (2008) stated: “project managers must expect change and be prepared to deal with it”. Portny et al (2008) suggests that the best approach “is to set up a well-controlled, formal process whereby changes can be introduced and accomplished with as little distressed as possible” (p. 346).
In most of the worksheets I saw as part of Greer’s (2010) The project management minimalist: Just enough PM to rock your projects!, items such as “project updates”; “status reports” and “communication plan” appeared regularly. Greer (2010) spoke of creating a Communication Plan and I believe this is what this particular project was lacking. This plan would have enable the project team to effectively use the communication process whereby each member of the team would be kept update, not only of the message and who sent or received it, but in what way it was sent. Most often, team members do not check their email inbox as they should; while others are unaware as to what type of medium is suitable for a particular type information; while other are not sure if by reading the email if they are being provided with information or with a directive.
I can also see the issue of respecting the chain of command for the project. Who is really in charge and whose directives should be followed? This problem would have been clearly dealt with, if as Greer (2010) suggested roles and responsibilities were clearly established form the beginning of the project.
How you have describe your project I can see the steps of Greer’s (2010) The Nuts and Bolts: 10 Steps to Project Success being followed. However, I am still skeptical about what factors you used to consider the project as being successful. From what you are describing I am seeing the event as being a very successful one due mostly to ingenuity and initiative on your part, but the process or the management of the project, I would not have considered as being a success story. My conclusions are based mainly of what our resources the last two weeks, consider as a successful project. For instance, Portny, (2008), spoke of it being vital that those involved in the project (the stakeholders) remain informed as well being an active participant in the project from start to finish. This was clearly not the case with your project team. However, I do applaud you for the great job done.
References
Greer, M. (2010). The project management minimalist: Just enough PM to rock your projects! (Laureate custom ed.). Baltimore: Laureate Education, Inc.
Lockitt, B. (2007). Putting the Q into quality project management. London: Learning and Skills Network. Retrieved from www.learningtechnologies.ac.uk/files/Quality_Project..
Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J., Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., Sutton, M. M., & Kramer, B. E. (2008). Project management: Planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.