Let's Be Careful Out There

Home
[ Login/Subscribe ] 
Features Departments PPM Tools Executive Report Resources About Us

Home  >  Departments  >  Opinion
Let's Be Careful Out There
Daniel Starr   (October 25, 2007)




When it comes to formal processes to manage risks, many organizations go no further than a mandate with spotty enforcement. And so project managers are like motorcycle riders: some protect themselves against accidents that probably won't happen (today), while others won’t be bothered. But accidents will happen. Is your project team ready to ride?

A couple years ago, I wrote an article (“Choosing Your Armor”) that used the metaphor of a soldier's armor to look at the tools and processes we use to protect our processes and selves from the various attacks the world throws at them. It's a useful metaphor, but it's got a problem: the matter of urgency. Soldiers going into battle expect to be attacked, so you don't have to tell them twice to put on their armor. Project work is different. In a project, most things work most of the time. A project's "armor" is there not to give protection from enemy attacks, but to guard against accidents and mistakes, which, if the project is well planned and the team is skilled, are pretty uncommon. In this respect, a project's armor is quite different from that worn by a soldier.
 
Maybe it's more like the protective gear worn by a motorcycle rider.



Please login/register to read the entire article.





Sponsored Announcements and Special Offers
Clarizen Project Management Software allows businesses to easily manage all of their work, projects, resources and budgets in a single, simple to use online environment. Clarizen’s work management tools facilitate team collaboration and project execution, ensuring data is always up-to-date and aligned with business objectives. Sign up for your 30-Day Free Trial TODAY!

New On-Demand Webinar "Driving Product Strategy From The Top Down". If you manage or are involved with project and product decisions for multiple products, this webcast will provide practical insights and tools to make your job easier. Learn how multiple projects "fit" together, the value customers receive from a portfolio approach, and successful methods in PPM tools. Learn best-practices, communicating strategy, what to consider when making multiple product decisions.

You hear about them in trade journals, boardrooms and the PR of your competitors. What are smarter products and how does your organization make them better than your competition? Learn how-to turn product development in competitive advantage. This new IBM whitepaper explores the best practices for product development and highlights essential techniques to be employed to build/ drive innovative technologies.

How can your company increase efficiency and maintain a competitive advantage in the PM marketplace? Learn how Oracle's Primavera project portfolio management solutions can help your organization succeed in these tough economic times. This free whitepaper paper highlights important elements and benefits of standardizing business processes and how PPM can help your business and technology succeed throughout the company.




Clarizen
IBM
Jama Software
Keller Graduate School
Management Concepts
Microsoft
Oracle
PMI
PM War Stories
PowerSteering Software
PPM Executive Newsletter
RMC Project Mgmt
Stanford University

February 2010:

How much do your tools, processes and PMO help or hinder you?



Copyright © 2010 projects@work  All rights reserved.

Privacy Policy    Contact Us    User Agreement