Service Level Management is an important process in the ITIL Service Design phase of ITIL Lifecycle for Services. During this process, the expectations of the business will be evaluated. Based on the expectations of the business, the IT division determines the outcomes it can deliver. This is then signed off by IT and the business….
Month: August 2022
Service Continuity Management: Ensure the Quality of IT Services
IT Service Continuity Management (also known as Service Design Stage) is the final step in the ITIL Service Lifecycle. It can also be found online in free ITIL courses. It is important to understand the overall purpose of IT Service Continuity Management, its objectives and processes in relation with the business’s vision and mission. IT…
Scope Management: Transforming the Requirements into The Scope
Scope management is the second area of project management knowledge after project integration management. It is a key component of the project lifecycle. A quality PMP certification training will help you learn more about scope management. Take part in our 100% online & self-paced 1-hour PMP training. Scope Management: What is it? Scope Management is…
Scope Management: The 5 Steps to Control Scope Process
Scope Management Knowledge Area’s final process is the Control Scope process. This is a crucial process in Scope Management and you may see questions about it in the PMP exam questions. You may already be enrolled in a PMP training program and have some knowledge about the Control Scope Process. You may also consider taking…
How to measure the timing of your project?
Monitoring and controlling are crucial components of project management. Monitoring and controlling activities are used to determine if the project’s expected outcomes have changed. These monitoring and controlling activities can be done by using project baselines. One of the three project baselines is the schedule baseline. In PMP Training, the scope and cost baselines are…
Project Managers: Understanding Technology is a Value Image by $ydney via Flickr BRIDGING THE COMMUNICATION GRAP THROUGH TECHNICAL AWRENESS Many project managers are very successful by simply managing a project plan, and then checking off tasks as they become?100% complete?. They can manage teams, budgets, and assess risk. They can perform all the essential and complex tasks of a project manager. They can do this without needing to dig too deeply into technical details. They can rely on the technical lead to resolve all technical issues. Inventory SoftwareBut what if the same project manager went one step further and understood how all the technical pieces fit together. What if they took the time and understood the technology in relation to the project they manage? This would add value to the entire project. Would the project team feel more respect for the manager? Is it easier to manage the expectations of upper management? Yes, Yes, and yes! I believe that understanding the technology behind a project you are managing will elevate you from task manager to a?real’ manager. I believe understanding technology can make you a?real? project manager. What does “understanding technology” really mean? What does it really mean to “understand technology?” Some might argue that you are not a true ‘technologist. You can’t call yourself a technologist unless you have spent countless hours learning, writing millions of lines of code, and surviving a prolonged outage lasting more than 30 minutes. Only then can you be called a technologist. After those battle wounds, you can run a data centre out of your cube, or hang endless quantities of network cables as victory medals. Wait, I’m not trying to be a system architect, a technical leader, or a developer. I’m just trying to deliver a project on time and within budget. So why is being technical an advantage to my abilities as a project manager. I apologize for the offense, but haven’t you ever spoken to a techie? It’s like trying to understand what Chewbacca was saying throughout all those Star Wars films. That may be it, Folks. You must be able communicate with people you manage. You can’t manage a project if you speak two languages. This will cause frustration and lead to lost productivity. I’m not suggesting that every PM should become a Chewbacca. I’m just suggesting that it is worth your time to fully understand the project you are managing. Understanding the technical issues and how they impact each other and the project as a whole. Understanding what it means when an app can start on a physical piece or hardware but does not show signs of life on VMware. You may be receiving error messages or warnings about the need to?increase file descriptor size. Your Web servers. These technical issues can be understood and recited if you are able to take the time to understand them. How?
To improve communication with vendors and escalate the right service requests when necessary Effective communication with the project team is key to understanding status, technical issues, and helping prioritize their tasks Competently assess the risks and develop more precise mitigation plans Give management the information they need about their infrastructure. Ask the right questions when…
Stress is your spice, Project Managers. It’s possible to use it well.
Stress is like spice. When used in the right amount, it can enhance the flavor of a dish. Too much can make a meal bland and boring. Too little can lead to a dull, uninteresting meal. You can have a little stress. Stress can actually improve your performance and productivity. You can think about studying…
Positive Politics for Project Managers
Jim asked, “Alright, Jim, if you lend two of my most valuable testing resources to you next Monday, then you will add you to the Project Methodology Council.” Lisa replied, “Ok Jim. I really do require two of your strongest testing resource to get us back on the right track. So if you and/or your…
Project Managers: Change Control is a Key to Your Success! As a new project manager, it was obvious that my success was dependent on customer satisfaction. I understood that I needed to build strong relationships with my customers. I needed them to trust me and respect me in order to complete the job. They were essential to keep the project’s priority high, provide financial support, and be subject matter experts. I loved to give them good news, but I hated to give them bad news. I came up this equation for some reason: Announce new requirements (or any change of direction) = Bad news. This is when I discovered that my amazing customers, with whom I had a great rapport and respect, had no idea why the project was delayed or why it cost more money. It was almost as if all those conversations and agreements about adding five days to development for more detailed error messages had never happened. How could this happen? My customer was delighted; the final result was exactly what they wanted. There were no changes; everything was as it was from the beginning. This was another example of Information Technology taking too much time. I had also learned a new formula: Skipping change management = Undocumented Overages + poor customer perception. I moved on determined to be a better project manger and to maintain a great working relationship. You can bet there was change management on my next project. It was documented in the project plan, and I shared it with the entire team. When the first change was made, I assisted my customer by filling in the change request. This was great customer service! All my customer had to do was read and approve the form, and then we were off. This was not an easy task, as you may have noticed. This was perceived to be a form that Information Technology had to fill out in order to keep the project moving. I still had to get customer buy-in. So I discovered: Change management without customer participation = Documented Overages and poor customer perception. I didn’t give up on change management, but I realized that my customer was my partner in the process of change management. They had to support and understand the process. They had to understand the value of tracking changes. I had to understand that customer service is about getting their support and participation. These are some of the lessons that I have learned along the journey:
As part of your project, you should consider a change management process. Introduce a process if your current environment doesn’t have one. You can invite input and let others help you improve the process. This will allow you all to take ownership of it. Don’t over-engineer your change management process. Establish rules and guidelines that…
Project Managers Doubling as Client Executives
We have already discussed the article by Breakthrough Performance Management titled?Tying Performance Metrics and Business Strategy?. It is about tying business strategy to performance metrics. We now look at the role of project managers as an individual in this series. We are grateful for all your comments and intelligence on the previous posts. Webber and…