Every organizational endeavor is based on project management. Projects range from simple to complex, with a definite beginning and a definite end. In manufacturing, as an example, the production of each unit of a product is defined as a project. The lifecycle goes from raw material to the product delivery stage, with steps in between managed as a rigorous project. This book covers the mechanics of project management and offers the requirements for executing a project using a systems-engineering framework and the project management body of knowledge, as advocated by the Project Management Institute. It includes the nuts and bolts for untangling the knots that often exist in project execution. Features Offers a unique guide to management projects, both big and small, in all spheres of human endeavor Presents the nuts and bolts of untangling the typical knots in project execution in a step-by-step format Applies to all types of projects, including technical, manufacturing, financial, science, engineering, and personal projects Provides a structured guide to the application of project management techniques Uses the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) framework from the Project Management Institute (PMI) as the platform for the topics covered, coupled with a systems view Addresses technical and managerial aspects of projects in every industry

Processes don't drive projects; people do. Successful project management is ultimately about effective communication, and more broadly, effective people management. Most books, however, deal largely with process - the mechanical, methodological side, and play down the human side. The Project Manageris a fresh approach to project management: it moves beyond the formal methodologies and techniques to shed light on the core skills that will make you a great project manager. It puts the project manager centre stage and provides you with an invaluable set of experience-based lessons, tips, and advice to help you consistently deliver the results you want. Whether you are a project manager yourself, or someone who works with or recruits project managers, this book will be essential reading. DISCOVER WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AND DO TO BE A GREAT PROJECT MANAGER

Imagine if we were using the same medical techniques today that were used during the Industrial Revolution, including the practice of bloodletting using leeches. Medicine has come a long way since then. So why do organizations and corporations cling to management techniques that are just as obsolete as the bleed-and-leech model? In a global workpla

The topic of project management is truly an evolution of art seeking science. This activity involves balancing project objectives against the constraints of time, budget, and quality. Achieving this balance requires skill, experience, along with the use of many tools, and techniques which are the focus of this book. This new edition provides updated content to incorporate examples from Microsoft Project 2016 and material from the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), sixth edition. The chapter structure includes step-by-step instructions regarding the basic mechanics and various software tools that can be used to assist in the processes. To reinforce the textbook’s learning objectives, extra material is provided on the textbook website. This includes mechanical tool examples and lab assignments representative of the chapter topics. An external video tutorial library is available to help with various mechanics related to Microsoft Project mechanics. An instructor manual is available for qualifying adoptions for classroom use. Features Illustrates the use of Microsoft Project throughout the project life cycle Offers templates as productivity enhancement tools Includes supplemental material for students and instructors Provides assignments for hands-on experience Follows the PMI PMBOK ® Guide model structure that will support a better understanding of the model and help prepare students for PMP and CAPM certification Illustrates both traditional and contemporary management techniques

Learn step-by-step instructions for managing any project in a clean sequence of five classic phases—initiating, planning, executing, releasing, and closing. This book sets out clearly and engagingly which tasks need to be done and when, how, and why they need to be done. Each chapter on one of the five phases walks you through all the steps in that phase’s workflow, which are laid out in a checklist attached to the chapter. The checklists are graphically supplemented by flow charts and swim lane diagrams. The master checklist serves as a map and tool for project managers to use in the real world to run projects and keep them on track. Senior project manager and PM mentor Melanie McBride understands the predicament of beginning and junior project managers: "You're at the edge of a tornado, bombarded by overly excited people offering you a Mission Impossible. Everywhere you look there are cool shiny things swirling around your head—the earnest coworker telling you to go agile, the software package promising a turnkey collaboration solution, the PMO with an arm-long list of required processes. So how do you avoid getting whacked in the head by that airborne Mac truck of a customer commit? Oh, and what exactly do you need to do to get those flying monkeys to shut up?" Project Management Basics slips the spinning project manager into the eye of the storm where things are quiet and it’s easy to figure out what to do next using the author’s detailed checklists and hard-headed advice. She shows that project management doesn’t have to be "a chaotic hot mess, leaving you with an egg-beater hairdo." With McBride’s book and checklists in hand, even first-time project managers can pull off controlled, flying-monkey–free projects. What You Will Learn See the essential duties of a project manager Master the project management life cycle in five phases Discover the what, when, how, and why of PM tasks presented in detailed steps Leverage checklists for optimum efficiency and throughput Adapt workflow controls to low-PM organizations Enhance PM with vogue methodologies without obscuring the basics Who This Book Is For Beginning and junior project managers seeking a concise, authoritative guide to the basics of project management, together with checklists, flow charts, and swim lane diagrams for immediate use in real-world projects.

Managing Projects in the Real World provides clear and actionable advice to project managers for recognizing, anticipating, and overcoming challenges associated with the human component of leading others. The mechanics of project management are rational and straightforward to learn. The art of project management is irrational and complex to learn. Project managers need to develop a repertoire of soft skills that are typically hard for them, since they rose through the ranks to that position by virtue of superior reasoning skills. But if a project manager cannot adjudicate the clash of personalities, finesse the friction between assigned and preferred roles, steer clear of hidden hazards, and diplomatically resolve overlapping assertions of competing authority—that project manager is in a world of trouble. From the human perils of project management, nobody is better qualified to rescue beleaguered project managers than Melanie McBride—veteran PM and author of the Intel blog, The Accidental Profession. She sheds light on those dark, dusty places that fall between the cracks of theory and best practice out in the real world where irate colleagues, unrealistic product launch dates, and virtual meetings reign supreme and run amok. In this book you’ll find targeted discussions and specific techniques to empower you to meet the challenges that project managers face every day. The book is structured into project phases to help any project manager on any kind of project jump right to the tried and true solution for the challenge at hand.

Essential project management forms aligned to the PMBOK® Guide—Sixth Edition A Project Manager's Book of Forms is an essential companion to the Project Management Institute's A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge. Packed with ready-made forms for managing every stage in any project, this book offers both new and experienced project managers an invaluable resource for thorough documentation and repeatable processes. Endorsed by PMI and aligned with the PMBOK® Guide, these forms cover all aspects of initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing; each form can be used as-is directly from the book, or downloaded from the companion website and tailored to your project's unique needs. This new third edition has been updated to align with the newest PMBOK® Guide, and includes forms for agile, the PMI Talent Triangle, technical project management, leadership, strategic and business management, and more. The PMBOK® Guide is the primary reference for project management, and the final authority on best practices—but implementation can quickly become complex for new managers on large projects, or even experienced managers juggling multiple projects with multiple demands. This book helps you stay organized and on-track, helping you ensure thorough documentation throughout the project life cycle. Adopt PMI-endorsed forms for documenting every process group Customize each form to suit each project's specific needs Organize project data and implement a repeatable management process Streamline PMBOK® Guide implementation at any level of project management experience Instead of wasting time interpreting and translating the PMBOK® Guide to real-world application, allow PMI to do the work for you: A Project Manager's Book of Forms provides the PMBOK®-aligned forms you need to quickly and easily implement project management concepts and practices.

The one primer you need to launch, lead, and sponsor successful projects. We're now living in the project economy. The number of projects initiated in all sectors has skyrocketed, and project management skills have become essential for every leader and manager. Still, project failure rates remain extremely high. Why? Leaders oversee too many projects and have too little visibility into them. Project managers struggle to translate their hands-on, technical knowledge up to senior management. The result? Worthy projects are starved of time and resources and fail to deliver benefits, while too much investment goes into the wrong projects. To compete in the project economy, you need to close this gap. The HBR Project Management Handbook shows you how. In this comprehensive guide, project management expert Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez presents a new and simple framework that will increase any project's likelihood of success. Packed with case studies from many industries worldwide, it will teach you how to manage your organization's projects, strategic programs, and agile initiatives more effectively and push the best ones ahead to completion. Timeless yet forward-looking, this book will help you win in the project-driven world. In the HBR Project Management Handbook you'll find: Everything you need to know about project management in practical, nontechnical language A definitive taxonomy of project types, from product launches to digital transformations to megaprojects A road map for becoming an effective project leader and executive sponsor A new, simple, and universal project framework, the Project Canvas, that breaks down any project into essential building blocks that can be easily understood by all project stakeholders Original concepts and exclusive case studies from public- and private-sector organizations worldwide You'll learn: A common language for project managers and executives to run successful projects across your organization When to use agile, traditional, or hybrid methods in your projects The twelve principles of successful projects, including purpose, agility, and a focus on outcomes Techniques for selecting and advancing the best projects and managing a strategic and balanced project portfolio How today's projects will help address some of the most pressing global trends, including automation, sustainability, diversity, and crisis management Why project management needed to be reinvented and what the future holds HBR Handbooks provide ambitious professionals with the frameworks, advice, and tools they need to excel in their careers. With step-by-step guidance, time-honed best practices, and real-life stories, each comprehensive volume helps you to stand out from the pack—whatever your role.

The Oxford Handbook of Project Management presents and discusses leading ideas in the management of projects. Positioning project management as a domain much broader and more strategic than simply 'execution management', this Handbook draws on the insights of over 40 scholars to chart the development of the subject over the last 50 years or more as an area of increasing practical and academic interest. It suggests we could be entering an emerging 'third wave' of analysis and interpretation following its early technical and operational beginnings and the subsequent shift to a focus on projects and their management. Topics dealt with include: the historical evolution of the subject; its theoretical base; professionalism; business and societal context; strategy; organization; governance; innovation; overruns; risk; information management; procurement; relationships and trust; knowledge management; practice and teams. This handbook is of particular relevance to those interested in the research issues underlying project management.