1. By Mark Phillips CFUNITED 2009
GET MORE DONE! By
Mark Phillips
CFUNITED 2009

2. WHO AM I

3. WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT

4. EFFECTIVE PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Effective project management allows you to get more done. It is project management that is Just Right.

5. Classic Definition PROJECT MANAGEMENT
A discipline that plans, organizes and manages resources to bring about the successful completion of specific goals and objects.

6. Why does one need management?
Constraints! Scope Cost Schedule All Centered Around Quality

7. However…
Project management itself often becomes a huge constraint and burden on management. It believes it is an end to itself.

8. Make it all about facilitating. And less about “the discipline.”
So, Let’s Redefine It
Make it all about facilitating. And less about “the discipline.”

9. Waste Resource Bloat Silos Obscurity Frustrated Team
Too Little Management
Waste Resource Bloat Silos Obscurity Frustrated Team

10. Too Much Management
Increased Costs Multiplicity of dashboards Multiplicity of politics Silos Obscurity Inaction

11. HELP MAKE GOOD THINGS HAPPEN
BE A FACILITATOR
HELP MAKE GOOD THINGS HAPPEN
“The only thing in abundance is mediocrity”
-Peter Drucker

12. BE A FACILITATOR
Solve Problems Build Solutions Deploy Solutions Support Solutions HELP ACCOMPLISH GOALS

13. With these glasses you are?
Developer & member of a team. You solve and facilitate solutions for your client.

14. With these glasses you are?
Manager who’s job is to get people of different skills and backgrounds to work together. You are judged by the results you deliver for your client.

15. ITS ALL ABOUT THE CLIENT.
NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE
ITS ALL ABOUT THE CLIENT.

16. “The only results that matter are
TIP NUMERO UNO
“The only results that matter are
EXTERNAL”
-Peter Drucker

17. WHAT IS EFFECTIVE PROJECT MANAGEMENT?
Effective Project Management Is a set of habits for making the best use of OTHER PEOPLE’S TIME so that the team can GET MORE DONE.

18. Incidentally, what is time management?
Time Management Is a set of habits for making the best use of YOUR OWN TIME so that you can GET MORE DONE.

19. One Story

20. PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
COMMUNICATION
EXPECTATIONS
ESTIMATES

21. PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
help your client

22. COMMUNICATION

23. CONTEXT MATTERS
The only problem worth solving is the one the client defines. Let the client frame the problem and then solve that problem.

24. TIP NUMERO DOS
Listen to your client

25. GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if it is focused on solving your client’s problem. (and your client will happier)

26. COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY
When you communicate, the only thing that matters is what is understood by either party.

27. COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY
When you are talking, it’s what the other person hears. When you are listening, it’s how much you understood.

28. Cater Communication to Context
TIP NUMERO THREE
Cater Communication to Context

29. EVERY PROJECT HAS 3 PHASES
PLANNING ACTIVE WAREHOUSE Cater your communications to each phase.

30. PLANNING PHASE
Is where you define a project’s goals, the time table, budgets, resource allocations and risks.

31. SUPER GRANDE TIP NUMERO 4
DON’T EVER WRITE A SPEC FOR A CLIENT

32. WHAT IS A SPEC?
A spec document is an extremely useful document for your INTERNAL team. It is the wrong tool for a client.

33. Tastes better. Less filling. Exactly the right tool for the client.
BULLET POINT SPEC
Tastes better. Less filling. Exactly the right tool for the client.

34. Answered in one or two sentences.
BULLET POINT SPEC
All bullet points.
Only a few questions.
Answered in one or two sentences.

35. Discussions?
Consider them issues (not endless) Threaded message board with due dates or an issue tracker Meeting as a last resort -> only when necessary

36. Budget & resource allocation Risks
BULLET POINT SPEC
Project goals
Time table
Budget & resource allocation
Risks

37. Two Stories

38. GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if you are using the right tools with your client.

39. Political Tip –Set to Autopilot
Use the planning phase to get sign-off from higher-ups. OR
Use it to sign-off and empower the people who will run the project.

40. ACTIVE PHASE
Is where the deliverables are worked on and the plan is put into action.

41. Its where everything that can go wrong does.
ACTIVE PHASE
Its where everything that can go wrong does.

42. Make Sure You Communicate.
TIP NUMBER 5
Make Sure You Communicate.

43. For Communication
Automatic s when something changes. Wiki, software, s, message board, calls and even meetings. How often? Depends on length of the project.

44. Goals update Schedule Budget Need information? Risks What to Cover

45. When Things Go Wrong!
Don’t Hold Back

46. OTRO SUPER GRANDE TIP (NUMERO 6)
>30% =bring it up as a risk >70% =bring it up as a fact =100% =too late =death spiral of despair

47. -This page intentionally left blank-

48. WAREHOUSING PHASE
Is when the project moves to a different phase in the lifecycle. It is no longer being built but rather maintained, archived or shelved.

49. WAREHOUSING PHASE
Lessons learned and final comments. Fresh, but not blaming. Record immediately. Wait two days to share them.

50. PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
COMMUNICATION
EXPECTATIONS
ESTIMATES

51. Expectations
Make a good project feel bad. Make a bad project feel even worse. Or, a bad project can be a “learning experience”

52. Here comes another tip (7)
Manage expectations

53. Use that asymmetry. Trust your expertise.
You Are The Expert
Use that asymmetry. Trust your expertise.

54. The Master of Management

55. “Captain, we have a problem.”
Is not a knock on you. You are sharing your expertise. You are helping your client.

56. GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if you communicate and change the plan to reflect how the client’s problem is being solved.

57. PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
COMMUNICATION
EXPECTATIONS
ESTIMATES

58. Let Experience Guide You
Estimates allow you to measure perception against reality so you can improve pricing, scheduling, expectations management and productivity.

59. “Everything measured improves”
TIP OCHO
“Everything measured improves”
-Dan Gilbert

60. Where do good estimates come from?
Tracking Time

61. Dimensions in Time Tracking
Track time on tasks
Track against calendar dates
Compare estimates to actuals
Keep a record of the estimates

62. Track Time on Tasks
Create a task list (doubles as spec). Buckets of at least 20 hours. Consistent descriptions and/or work types.

63. Track Time Against Calendar Dates
Effort DOES NOT = Duration. Track start dates and end dates. Learn what times are most productive for which activities.

64. Duration = 2x effort + (1 day/2 days of effort).
Rule of Thumb
Duration = 2x effort + (1 day/2 days of effort). or
Duration = 4 x Effort

65. Always include management time.
As a line item or As additional hours or As a proportionate increase in rate.

66. Combo Rule of Thumb and Tip 9
1 hour of pm per 5 hours of production time. 1 hour of am per 7 hours of production time.

67. Compare Estimates to Actuals
Monitor your time profitability. It’s a window into how long it really takes to do things. It can be brutal.

68. Keep a Record of Your Est. & Actuals
It is a goldmine of information for you or for any organization. It is the key to visibility and process improvement.

69. One Last Story

70. GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if you can learn how to solve your client’s problems better.

71. GET MORE DONE
Results are on the outside Listen to your client Cater communications to context DON’T EVER WRITE A SPEC Communicate Manage Expectations TRACK YOUR TIME

72. PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
help your client

73. EL ULTIMO TIP
Make it a habit.

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75. Use 1-2-3 to Prioritize Tasks
Other Tips
Use to Prioritize Tasks

76. Let Your People Know
Let your people know what it is they should be working on at any time and what tasks are more important than others.

77. 1-2-3 Method of Prioritization
When assigning out tasks via or other tool preface the subject line with 1, 2 or 3. 1 –do it soon 3 –do it when you can 2 –do it before 3 and after 1

78. GET MORE DONE
Your resources are spent most effectively when they are working on the right things at the right time.

79. Use the Launch Countdown method
Another Other Tip
Use the Launch Countdown method

80. MANAGE YOUR OWN PROCESS
To be effective you need to manage your own work. That means using some structure to define how you produce creative deliverables.

81. WHAT IS THE METHOD
The Launch Countdown Method is a simple naming convention to help you keep track of where you are on all your assets.

82. HOW IT WORKS
Every asset goes through three phases. 3 –needs to be started 2 –asset is in progress 1 –ready for launch

83. HOW IT WORKS
Put the number 3, 2 or 1 ahead of every asset’s name. You’ll know what stage its in. You can juggle your work. You can give information on its state. And it creates a super handy list on your computer’s file systems.

84. Prioritize tasks Use Launch Countdown Method
GET MORE DONE
Prioritize tasks Use Launch Countdown Method

85. VERTABASE.COM/BLOG TWITTER.COM/MPMOBILE
THANK YOU
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86. WHAT ITS NOT