Project Plan
By Dick Billows, PMP Do you do your project plans like you were taking an order at a fast food drive-in window? The fast food approach to planning is focused on getting started quickly. This appeals to...
View ArticleProject Management Team
By Dick Billows, PMP Project managers need to set the performance expectation for every assignment they give to team members. As work progresses and the team produces their deliverables, you compare...
View Article3-Point Estimating
By Dick Billows, PMP Estimating is tricky for project managers because the customer wants the project to be done quickly and cheaply and you want your team to be committed to the numbers because they...
View ArticleWork Packages
By Dick Billows, PMP The assignment work package is a simple tool that improves the clarity of project assignments and at the same time increases the level of team member commitment to their estimates....
View ArticleDeliverables
By Dick Billows, PMP There are two options for managing a project and its team. The easiest choice is to manage with activities which are little more than “To Do’s”.; An example might be giving a team...
View ArticleProject Plan
By Dick Billows, PMP A good project plan lets us finish on time and deliver the scope as defined, which gives us a happy sponsor or client. Creating a good plan is a complex and political task. Follow...
View ArticleProject Sponsors
By Dick Billows, PMP Project managers routinely face high-pressure situations with sponsors trying to do things that will harm the project. If you let the intimidation get to you, the project will...
View ArticleNegotiation Techniques
By Dick Billows, PMP Project managers must negotiate every day; whether they’re asking for a change order to be approved, receiving a change request from a vendor, settling a technical dispute among...
View ArticleEffective Criticizism
By Dick Billows, PMP Summary: An important part of a project manager’s job is setting norms of behavior and conduct so the team works together effectively and efficiently. That requires setting and...
View ArticleFeedback
By Dick Billows, PMP Project managers need to deal with poor performing team members on a regular basis. If you are ineffective in these situations, the poor performance will repeat itself and your...
View ArticleProject Team Conflict – 4pm.com
By Dick Billows, PMP Project managers a number of project team conflict resolution techniques. The same technique does not work in all situations and you need to carefully analyze the people who are...
View ArticleProject Estimating – 4PM.com Video
By Dick Billows, PMP In this video, you’ll see that project estimating is not just a process involving numbers. It also involves the use of interpersonal skills by the project manager so that the...
View ArticleUser Relationships
User Relationships with Mistrust, Doubt and Fear Drain Your Team’s Energy and Creativity What does it takes to nail it down when it comes to delivering what you were asked, when your customer needs it,...
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Project Manager – 4PM.com
By Dick Billows, PMP There is no one skill what technique that makes a project manager successful. Rather, successful project managers have a combination of hard and soft skills in their project...
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Project Team Motivation – 4PM.com
By Dick Billows, PMP Project team motivation is every bit as important as developing a creative project plan, creating a tight schedule and spotting problems early. Too many project managers assume...
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Project Management Team
By Dick Billows, PMP Far too many project management team members work less effectively than they could cause the project manager does a poor job of making clear the performance expectations for their...
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3 Point Estimating – 4PM.com
By Dick Billows, PMP Estimating is tricky for project managers because the customer wants the project to be done quickly and cheaply and you want your team to be committed to the numbers because they...
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Work Package – 4pm.com
By Dick Billows, PMP Key success factors for project managers include making crystal-clear assignments to their project team members so those team members understand what’s expected before they start...
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Deliverables – 4PM.com
By Dick Billows, PMP Project management is a deliverables oriented professionFocus on end results not just the activities to produce them. Deliverables are defined with a metric or acceptance criteria...
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Remote Project Teams – 4PM.com
Over the last 10 years, technology has provided more opportunity for teams to collaborate remotely, whether working from home, varied offices, and to add, from another country, which brings potential...
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