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Organizational Structures, Advantages and Disadvantages

Each organization structure has its own set of advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage of functional organizations is that resources may find clearly defined career paths and achieve specialization and skill development in their respective fields. It will be a flexible work force since only one manager will be responsible, avoiding confusion.

The disadvantage of such organization type is that project work is hampered. Department work is always given higher priority than the project work. In addition, there is no career path in project management, which leads to lower interest in projects.

In the case of the projectized organization, one of the clear advantages is better communication within the projects. Since project work is the only work team members are doing, it also leads to loyalty towards the project goals.

The disadvantage of such organization type is the inefficient use of resources, because every project team has their own support function. Therefore, this might lead to the duplication of effort. It also leads to the resources being left with no work, since their roles are over once the project is completed. It also hampers skill development because the project requirements dictate what kind of work team members perform at different stages on a project.

Now, let us look at the matrix organization. It also has the advantage of better coordination and maximum utilization of resources. However, the disadvantage is the higher potential for conflict among the managers, which might lead to communication complexity and overhead management.

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Organization Structure: Matrix Organization

In a matrix organization, the resources report to the functional managers and are managed by the project managers as well. There might even be a function that represents all the project managers in the organization, which provides project management expertise.

The matrix structure has three variants commonly referred to as weak, balanced, and strong. In a weak matrix, the authority of the project manager is the weakest, and strongest in a strong matrix structure.

The titles given to project managers in functional or weak matrix organizations are project expeditor or project coordinator. They would be called project managers in a balanced or strong matrix structure and have slightly more authority over the time of the team members.

The advantage of the matrix structure is that resources can be optimally utilized, while preserving the capacity of the project managers to get projects executed efficiently. Resources can specialize in their functions and have stability in their careers, also contribute to the projects at the same time potentially.

The disadvantage of matrix organization is that the communication overhead increases significantly. This is because every resource in the organization belongs into a project and into a function, leading to a dual reporting structure.
In a matrix organization, project management happens at Project Resource Level.

Organization Structure: Projectized Organization

The projectized organization has all the resources aligned around projects.

The project managers have complete control over the resources working on their projects.

The biggest advantage of the projectized organization is that the resources have loyalty to their projects and project execution becomes easier. This kind of structure is suitable for organizations whose work is in the nature of projects.
There are few disadvantages in this structure as well. Firstly, the role of the resource is over once the project is completed. Secondly, highly specialized roles within a project may not be fully occupied all the time.

For example, a purchase executive may have work for selected periods on a project while purchase activities are going on. However, for the rest of the period, their capability may not be optimally utilized. There is less scope for functional specialization, as the project boundaries limit the kind of work for the resources.

Each project manager is in-charge of a project and its resources.

Organization Structure: Functional Organization

In a functional organization, the resources of the organization are grouped by “functions” – sometimes called departments. Examples of functions could be “sales”, “finance”, “administration”, “manufacturing”, etc.

Each function plays a definite role in the organization and is headed by a functional head or supervisor.
All the resources in such an organization report directly into their functions. Therefore, a sales person would report into the sales organizational hierarchy, a purchase executive would report into procurement, and so on.

You would notice that in a functional organization, the project manager’s role is not explicitly called out. When a functional organization embarks on a project, each of the functions that are involved may volunteer some resources to work on the project. One of these resources may end up playing the project manager’s role. The resource assignments may not even be full time and sometimes even the project manager is part time.

Since the project manager has no authority over any of the resources, they are dependent on the functional heads. This makes it more challenging for the project managers to coordinate in the team.

However, functional organizations provide an opportunity for specialization. For example, if a purchase executive was reporting into the purchase department, that executive would have exposure to all the purchasing that happens within the organization and has a well-defined career path.

In functional organizations, project management happens at the Functional Head level.

To download Free Project Management Templates you can visit www.managementproject.net

Organization Structure: Functional, Projectized, Matrix

Projects are performed in an organization and the functioning of the organization might affect the project.
The different organization structure types explained here are based on the level of authority that a project manager gets into those organizations.

In a functional type of organization, the organization is grouped by the area of specialization within different functional areas. For instance, marketing, accounting, engineering, etc., are departments within the organization. Each employee typically reports to a functional manager.

In such types of organization, normally projects are undertaken within the department itself. If a project requires any assistance from another department, the request moves from the head of the requesting department to the head of the concerned department. The team members do their normal departmental work in addition to the project work.

The next type of organization is projectized organization. In such organizations, there are no departments. The organization’s resources mostly work on projects. Team members report to a project manager. The project manager has complete control over the resources. When the project is completed, either they move on to another project, or they look for some job outside the company. They do not have a department for themselves.

The third type of organization is a matrix organization, which is a blend of functional and projectized organizational structure. A team member belongs to a department as well as they are part of a project team. In such organization, team members have two bosses, one, their department head and the second, their project manager.

Since there are two bosses here, this type of organization is further classified into three different types.
They are weak, strong, and balanced matrix organization. So out of the two bosses that team members have in matrix organization, if the project manager has more authority over the team member, such organizations are called strong matrix; where the functional manager has more authority, it’s a weak matrix organization. If they both share equal authority, than it’s a balanced organization.

There is another term that you might find in the exam, called “tight matrix”. This generally refers to a “co-located” team, i.e., a team that has been placed in the same location to enhance their performance.

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The Pros & Cons of PERT Analysis technique

What is PERT?

PERT stands for Program Evaluation Review Technique. PERT charts are tools used to plan tasks within a project – making it easier to schedule and coordinate team members accomplishing the work.

PERT charts were created in the 1950s to help manage the creation of weapons and defense projects for the US Navy. While PERT was being introduced in the Navy, the private sector simultaneously gave rise to a similar method called Critical Path.

PERT is similar to critical path in that they are both used to visualize the timeline and the work that must be done for a project. However with PERT, you create three different time estimates for the project: you estimate the shortest possible amount time each task will take, the most probable amount of time, and the longest amount of time tasks might take if things don’t go as planned.

PERT is calculated backward from a fixed end date since contractor deadlines typically cannot be moved.

The PERT technique focuses on the time and the cost each activity takes. This will hence influence the resultant time and the cost required for the completion of the entire project. This network analysis technique helps to understand the performance of the work throughout the course of the project.

The PERT technique possess many advantages that facilitate the project team and many disadvantages that have to be taken care by the project managers. The pros and cons of PERT are mentioned below.

Advantages of PERT

The advantages of PERT are mentioned below:

Planning For Large Projects
Visibility of Critical Path
Analysis of Activities
Coordinating Ability
The What – if -Analysis

Planning For Large Projects: The scheduling of project activities is done easily with the help of PERT system by the project manager. This technique is more active in large sophisticated project works. As PERT is event oriented programming technique, three elements are necessary to define an event. They are:

What is the time required to perform the event?
What comes after the event?
What is coming before the event?

The answers to the above question make the scheduling easier and clear.

Visibility of Critical Path: The PERT method will show the critical path in a well-defined manner. The critical path is the path with activities that cannot be delayed under any circumstances. A proper knowledge about the stack values with limited conditions of dependencies will help the project manager to bring fast and quality decisions that will favor the project performance.

Analysis of Activity: The activity and the events are analyzed from the PERT networks. These are analyzed independently as well as in combination. This will give a picture about the likely completion of the project and the budget.

Coordination: The various departments of the construction organization will deliver data for the PERT activities. A good integration is developed between all the departments which will help in improving the planning and the decision-making capabilities of the project team. The combination of qualitative and quantitative values from a large amount of data will help in improving the coordination of the project activities. This will also improve the communication between various departments of the organization.

What – if -Analysis: The possibilities and the various level of uncertainties can be studied from the project activities by properly analyzing the critical path. This type of analysis is called as what-if-analysis. For this various sets of permutation and combination is conducted. Among them, the most suitable combination is taken into consideration. This set chosen will be the one with minimum cost, economy and best result. This analysis helps to identify the risk associated with any activities.

Disadvantages of PERT

Various Demerits of PERT are mentioned below:

Time Focused Method
Subjective Analysis
Inaccuracy due to Prediction
Expensive
Other Issues

Time Focused Method: The method of PERT is a time oriented method, where the time required to complete the respective activity is of higher importance. Hence the time determination of each activity and its allocation is very much necessary. This is done based on an assumption and within this time the work will be completed. If this is not the case issues will arise.

Subjective Analysis: The activities for a project is identified based on the data available. This is difficult in case of PERT as these are mostly applied for a project that is newly conducted or those without repetitive nature. The project dealt by PERT will be a fresh project data that make the collection of information to be subjective in nature. This will bring less accuracy on the time and the estimated time.

There are chances to have inaccuracy and bias in the sources of data. This makes it unreliable. As this is not repetitive in nature, there is no sense in bringing the records from the past historical data.

Prediction Inaccuracy: As there is not past records or assistance to bring an outline for the project, predictions take their role. The overall project may move to total loss if the predictions and the decisions are inaccurate. No trial and error method can be employed.

Expensive: As this method is carried out based on predictions in overall, they find too expensive in terms of methods employed, the time consumed and the resources used.

To download Free Project Management Templates you can visit www.managementproject.net

Best free project management applications

Managing multiple projects at once, delegating tasks, and collaborating across teams is difficult on a good day — but can become downright impossible when unforeseen obstacles get in the way.

Miscommunication and inefficiencies in your project management process can lead to confusing and stressful experiences for your employees, and hinder your company’s ability to satisfy your clients’ needs or hit end-of-year goals. This can lead to major losses over time.

Fortunately, there are plenty of free project management software options to keep your team on-track without breaking the bank. To streamline your process and ensure everyone on your team is on the same page, take a look at these seven exceptional free project management tools.

1. Teamweek

Teamweek is an effective project management tool to automate your task delegation process, and visualize which project tasks have been completed and which haven’t. If your team often collaborates with other departments on projects, this could be a useful tool for you.

Features include:

Gantt-chart visualization to track important deadlines and projects
Integrations with Slack, Github, Evernote, and others
Team collaboration option through shared calendars and task notes

Cost: Free for an unlimited number of projects for up to five team members

2. Zoho Reports

Zoho Reports is easy to use and lets you create comprehensive dashboards and data visualizations to ensure your projects are on-track. You can import data from outside files, cloud drives, applications, and in-house apps, enabling you to create more accurate cross functional reports.

Features include:

Easy drag-and-drop interface with BI visualization tools
Ability to share and collaborate on reports and dashboards with colleagues privately.
Cloud BI reporting tool embedded within your own website or product
Integrations with Slack, Google Apps, and Dropbox, as well as mobile apps, making team collaboration easier.

Cost: Free for one project with multiple users, storage up to 10 GB

3. Asana

Asana, one of the most popular project management solutions used by millions of people across 192 countries, has a clean and user-friendly interface. The all-in-one tool lets you create boards to visualize which stage your project is in, and use reporting to keep track of finished tasks and tasks that need your attention.

Features include:

The ability to create templates to automate mundane tasks
The ability to collaborate and share information across the team, privately and securely
The option to set security controls and designate admins
Over 100 integrations for a more efficient start-to-finish process
Custom project fields, share documents, and filter tasks

Cost: Free for unlimited projects for teams up to 15 people.

4. Teamwork

Teamwork, a project management tool that specializes in bringing together remote workers, allows you to create team member status updates so your remote and flexible teams know their coworkers’ schedules. It also provides customer service functions, including the option to assign tickets or view customer emails in one place.

Features include:

Customizable navigation to prioritize your team’s needs
Gantt chart for visualizing due dates and project timelines
Private messaging, and option to make project details private
Team member status updates for remote or flexible team members

Cost: Free for two to five users

5. Wrike

Wrike stands out as an exceptional project management tool for teams who want the option to customize workflows and edit and revise projects from within the platform itself. The tool offers the ability to color code and layer calendars, and its mobile form allows colleagues to update project information on-the-go. You can add comments to sections, videos, or documents, and create custom fields to export data most relevant to your company.

Features include:

Security measures to ensure only authorized personnel can access information
Activity Stream to allow project managers to micromanage small tasks, see activities in chronological order, and tag team members
The option to unfollow activities to declutter your own personal Stream
Email and calendar synchronization
Built-in editing and approval features

Cost: Free for five team members

6. Paymo

Paymo’s free version only allows access for one user, but if you’ve got a small team or you’re a freelancer, this could be an efficient option for tracking billable hours and invoicing clients. Along with tracking finances, Paymo also allows you to organize project timelines, create to-do lists, and stay on top of your budgets for multiple projects at once.

Features include:

Kanban Boards
Time Tracking
File Sharing and Adobe CC Extension
Reporting
Three Invoices

Cost: Free for one user, one GB storage

7. ClickUp

ClickUp provides a few impressive features to customize the all-in-one project management tool to suit your team members, including the option for each user to choose one of three different ways to view their projects and tasks depending on individual preference. If your marketing team overlaps with sales, design, or development, this is an effective solution, as it provides features for all of those four teams.

Features include:

The ability to organize your projects based on priority, and assign tasks to groups
The option to set goals to remind teams what they’re aiming to accomplish
Google Calendar two-way sync
An easy way to filter, search, sorting, and customize options for managing specific tasks
Activity stream with mentions capability
Image mockups
57 integrated apps

Cost: Free forever, with unlimited users and unlimited projects, and 100 MB of storage

Source : blog.hubspot.com

The Best project management certifications for 2019

No matter what your IT role, a project management certification can add depth, breadth and value to your role. Here are the top project management certifications, their requirements and cost.

Behind every successful IT project, you’ll find a highly skilled project manager. From hardware and software upgrades to ongoing security patches, to application development and the rollout of software itself, project managers keep your teams on task and productive.

Almost any IT pro can benefit from adding a project management certification to their list of IT credentials; showing you have the know-how to plan, schedule, budget, execute, deliver and then report on IT initiatives. Here, are listed the most popular project management certifications that will add value and help you hone your skills this year.

Top project management certifications

PMP: Project Management Professional
CAPM: Certified Associate in Project Management
CSM: Certified ScrumMaster
CompTIA Project+ certification
PRINCE2 Foundation/PRINCE2 Practitioner
CPMP: Certified Project Management Practitioner
Associate in Project Management
MPM: Master Project Manager
PPM: Professional in Project Management
PMITS: Project Management in IT Security
Certified Project Director
CPM: Certified Project Manager (IAPM)

PMP: Project Management Professional

The gold standard in project management certifications, the Project Management Professional certification is a rigorous test that covers absolutely everything you need to prove your knowledge and skill in managing the “triple constraints”: time, cost and scope. The Project Management Institute (PMI) is this credential’s parent organization, and works continuously with businesses and academia to ensure relevance for the certification.

Organization: Project Management Institute

Price: Computer based exams are $405 for PMI members; $555 for non-members. Paper-based exams are $250 for PMI members; $400 for non-members.

Requirements: Four-year secondary degree plus three years of project management experience, 4,500 hours leading and directing projects, and 35 hours project management education OR a high-school diploma, five years of project management experience, 7,500 hours leading and directing projects, and 35 hours of project management education.

CAPM: Certified Associate in Project Management

The Certified Associate in Project Management is the precursor to the PMP certification and is also administered by the PMI. For professionals without a college degree, or with only rudimentary project management experience or those who want to achieve their PMP certification in steps rather than all at once, the CAPM is a stepping-stone to the more rigorous PMP.

Organization: Project Management Institute

Price: $225 for PMI members; $300 nonmembers

Requirements: High-school diploma, associates degree or equivalent and at least 1,500 hours of project management experience OR 23 hours of project management education.

CSM: Certified ScrumMaster

The use of agile methodologies has become the standard in IT organizations, so it’s not surprising that IT practitioners uniquely qualified to manage projects in agile environments are in high demand. While there are different Scrum master certifications available, the Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) from Scrum Alliance is a great jumping-off point for project managers getting started as Scrum practitioners. The Scrum Alliance, the parent organization for this credential, is a nonprofit organization that encourages the adoption of scrum and agile practices, promotes user groups and learning events, and provides resources for professional development. The organization boasts more than 450,000 certified practitioners worldwide.

Organization: The Scrum Alliance

Price: ScrumMaster training course cost varies by training provider, but is approximately $995 to $1,395

Requirements: General familiarity with scrum; completion of a two-day Certified ScrumMaster training course.

CompTIA Project+ certification

This entry-level certification is roughly on par with PMI’s CAPM credential, though the requirements are less stringent. CompTIA’s Project+ solicits feedback from the entire computing industry, government representatives, research institutions, academia and independent experts to design the certification.

Organization: CompTIA

Price: $285

Requirements: One year of experience managing, directing or participating in small- to medium-sized projects is recommended.

PRINCE2 Foundation/PRINCE2 Practitioner

Projects in Controlled Environments (PRINCE2) is most well-known overseas, especially in the U.K. and its government entities. The PRINCE2 certifications are delivered by the ILX Group and focus on directing, managing and delivering projects across all phases, pre-project, initiation, delivery and final delivery.

There are two primary qualifications, PRINCE2 Foundation and PRINCE2 Practitioner. The Foundation certification is an entry-level credential that tests basic project management terminology and methodology, while the Practitioner certification tests advanced project managers who have already achieved PRINCE2 Foundation.

Organization: ILX Group

Price: Foundation: $200; Practitioner: $340

Requirements: PRINCE2 Foundation requires a PRINCE2 Foundation course; PRINCE2 Practitioner requires one of the following: PRINCE2 Foundation; Project Management Professional (PMP); Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM); or an IPMA certification.

CPMP: Certified Project Management Practitioner

The EC-Council was formed after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to address issues of cyberterrorism and the information security of nations at large. The EC-Council’s Certified Project Management Practitioner course is for project managers who want to benchmark their skills through hands-on experience and across various management techniques and tools necessary to successfully manage complex projects efficiently. The objective of the CPMP course is to add value to management professionals by developing managerial, leadership and technical skills required to make any project, small or complex, a success.

Organization: EC-Council

Price: $199 for exam voucher

Requirements: No prerequisites, but it is recommended that candidates attend a three-day preparation course.

Associate in Project Management

The Global Association for Quality Management (GAQM), which administers the Associate in Project Management (APM) — as well as a Professional in Project Management and a Certified Project Director certification — is a global, not-for-profit certification body that offers credentials across a variety of IT specialties. The GAQM’s project management certifications are focused on a broad knowledge base and emphasize effective resource allocation, clear direction, adaptability to change, effective communication and assurance of quality deliverables at minimal risk. The APM program is designed for the entry-level project manager, or for those who want to start a career in the field.

Organization: Global Association for Quality Management

Price: $300

Requirements: GAQM body of knowledge study and e-course; no formal education or experience requirements.

MPM: Master Project Manager

The American Academy of Project Management (AAPM) has modeled the Master Project Manager (MPM) after the “professional licensure” model that many professions like pilots, engineers, doctors and lawyers follow. The AAPM focuses on professional project managers, but also includes those pros with business and technical management responsibilities.

Organization: American Academy of Project Management

Price: $300 for application, review, processing, review, initiation and certification.

Requirements: Three years of project management experience and training. Waivers are available for professionals holding a master’s degree, with other qualified training and experience, the military or project management instructors.

PPM: Professional in Project Management

The Professional in Project Management (PPM) is a mid-tier project management credential from the GAQM. The GAQM’s project management certifications are focused on a broad knowledge base and emphasize effective resource allocation, clear direction, adaptability to change, effective communication and assurance of quality deliverables at minimal risk. The PPM is targeted towards intermediate to experienced project managers who are involved in risk and crisis management, and who are involved in the day-to-day management of projects.

Organization: Global Association for Quality Management

Price: $300

Requirements: GAQM body of knowledge study and e-course; no formal education or experience requirements, but candidates should have at least some project management experience in order to pass the exam.

PMITS: Project Management in IT Security

The EC-Council’s Project Management in IT Security (PMITS) explores the complexities of managing an IT security project. The certification helps candidates reinforce their existing project management skills while tailoring them to the unique requirements of implementing and managing IT security within their organizations.

Organization: EC-Council

Price: $250 (PMITS courseware)

Requirements: At least two years of experience in information security and an educational background that shows a focus on security (bachelor’s degree or higher preferred). Candidates may also opt to attend an EC-council training program before attempting an exam.

Certified Project Director

The GAQM’s Certified Project Director certification is the credentialing body’s highest-level project management certification. This designation is designed for experienced project managers who are involved in directing multiple, complex projects and programs. The program focuses on managing, budgeting and determining scope for multiple projects, multiple project teams, and assessing and mitigating interdependent risks to deliver projects successfully. The CDP program is only for those who have significant project management experience.

Organization: Global Association for Quality Management

Price: $300

Requirements: GAQM body of knowledge study and e-course; candidates must be familiar with principles and methodologies of project management and pass the PPM or equivalent exam.

IAPM Certified Project Manager

The International Association of Project Managers (IAPM) is a global professional association and certification body focused on the project management profession. The IAPM’s purpose is to promote research, development and practical applications of project management, develop standards and guidelines for both beginner and advanced project management training, and review and approve project management competencies within the profession.

There are four levels of certification within the IAPM, split into two disciplines, traditional project management and agile project management: Certified Junior Project Manager and Certified Junior Agile Project Manager; Certified Project Manager and Certified Agile Project Manager; Certified Senior Project Manager and Certified Senior Agile Project Manager; and Certified International Project Manager. IAPM’s Certified Project Manager certification is for candidates with a foundational knowledge of project management, including the basics of planning, organization and implementation of various projects. The exam covers both the hard and soft aspects of project management.

Organization: IAPM

Price: The certification and examination fee depends on a candidate’s nationality; pricing is gauged based on country-of-origin’s GDP to ensure that any candidate can afford the training and testing. In the U.S., the certification and exam cost is $650, with a 20 percent discount for students, job seekers and active aid organization personnel, according to the IAMP.

Requirements: There are no prerequisites, but IAPM offers workshops through global training partners, or recommended literature for self-study. Once a candidate has completed the workshop or feels adequately prepared, they can take a self-test to benchmark their knowledge. Candidates must achieve a 65 percent on the exam to pass.

Source : www.cio.com

The Best Project Management Conferences of 2019

New year, new opportunities to advance your project management career. There’s always room to better oneself, make connections and get a picture of the industry: all good reasons to take time to visit one of the many project management conferences held in 2019.

As you start to plan your calendar for the year, we’ve offered a rundown of the best project management conferences in 2019. See you there.

March

RICS Valuation Conference 2019

March 26, London, UK

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), which accredits professionals in land, property and construction industries, offers this full-day conference designed for valuers. This event features topics relevant to professional development, with industry speakers.

April

Change Management 2019

April 28 – May 1, Orlando, FL

The Association of Change Management Professions (ACMP) holds its annual conference, which is one of the largest in the industry and offers a chance to meet with colleagues from around the world. It supports professional growth, with many sessions to focus on your personal interests.

May

Global Scrum Gathering

May 20-22, Austin, TX

The Scrum Alliance offers its annual networking and learning opportunity, with new solutions and tools to help deepen your knowledge of Agile. It features over 1,000 Scrum and Agile practitioners coming together to discuss new ideas, create community collaboration and make connections.

Project Summit Business Analyst World

May 27 – 30, Toronto, Canada

Part of a series of national conferences for project managers and business analysts accredited by both PMI and IIBA, where participants can earn PDUs/CDUs. There are industry experts and education sessions, workshops and keynotes. Check the website for more conferences.

April

8^th International Scientific Conference on Project Management in the Baltic States

April 25-26, Riga, Latvia

Organized by the Research Institute of the Project Management of the Faculty of Business, Management and Economics, University of Latvia, in cooperation with the Professional Association of Project Managers, the aim of this conference is on scientific research. There is an opening plenary session, parallel sessions, and all abstracts have been double-blind reviewed. The conference is in English.

deliver:Agile 2019

April 29 – May 1, Nashville, TN

This must-attend event for the Agile community speaks to new Agile tools and techniques, patterns and practices emerging in the field. Participants learn how to support and evolve their Agile engineering practices as they relate to advances discussed. The three-day conference explores topics such as DevOps approaches, UX design and cloud computing.

May

APM Project Management Conference

May 2, London, UK

“Delivering Value in a Transforming World” is the theme of this year’s APM Project Management Conference. The one-day event has a program of influential speakers who will discuss how project management can better deliver value with innovative methods, tools and techniques.

PMI EMEA Congress

May 13-15, Dublin, Ireland

Hosted by the accrediting agency PMI, the EMEA Congress gathers project, program and portfolio managers from around the globe. They are there to discuss best practices, identify new trends and reinforce core industry skills.

Agile & Beyond

May 30 – 31, Detroit, MI

Agile & Beyond is a grassroots and volunteer-run event that serves to educate on Agile principles and practices. It also covers topics related to Agile. There are approximately 100 sessions packed into the two-day conference, suitable for those new to Agile and the Agile experts.

June

Project Management in Practice

June 13 -14, Boston, MA

The 13th annual conference caters to newcomers and certified practitioners alike. Topics range the gamut, from Agile to strategic project management, including soft skills and behavioral competency. The two-day conference is also available online, and PDUs are available for attending.

July

23rd International Congress on Project Management and Engineering (ICPME)

July 10-12, Málaga, Spain

An international forum for the discussion and debate of all project management and engineering companies and professionals, the conference is geared towards experts, researchers and trainers who are focused on educating future professionals in the field. However, all interested persons are encouraged to attend.

October

PMI Global Conference

October 5 – 7, Philadelphia, PA

This PMI-hosted event focuses on the evolving role of project management, this conference is open to project, program and portfolio professionals and will discuss new ideas and approaches, while giving participants the opportunity to make new relationships and strengthen existing ones.

Future PMO

October 17, London, UK

This PMO conference is created by Wellingtone, a PPM consultancy that works with clients across the UK. The organization is both a Microsoft Gold Partner with PPM Specialization and an APM accredited training provider. This one-day conference is for practitioners at all levels and brings together leading project management experts from across the industry.

The Digital PM Summit

October 20 – 22, Orlando, FL

The Digital PM Summit is a three-day conference of presentations, breakout sessions and talks. It welcomes all methodologies and approaches, from Agile to waterfall and hybrid, offering new perspectives in a social networking-friendly environment.

November

PMO Symposium

November 3 – 6, Denver, CO

The PMO Symposium gives participants access to executive-level networking, workshops and discussions. Learn actionable insights for organizational executives, PMO leaders and senior decision-makers. The details for the 2018 event have yet to be posted.

Source: www.projectmanager.com

What is Kanban?

Most projects can be viewed as a process – a series of steps or tasks that achieve some desired result. There are all kinds of processes – simple and complex, individual and team, quick and time-consuming. Sometimes large or over-arching processes consist of a series of smaller pro-cesses.Kanban is a tool for managing the flow of materials or information (or whatever) in a process. Not having the materials, whether it is a part, a document, or customer information, at the time you need it causes delay and waste. On the other hand, having too many parts on hand or too much work in process (WIP) is also a form of waste. Kanban is a tool to learn and manage an optimal flow of work within the process.

There are three basic rules to implementing Kanban:

01. Visualize Workflow

A visual representation of the process lets you see exactly how tasks change from being “not done” to “done right”. The more complex a process is, the more useful and important creating a visual workflow becomes, but kanban can be used if there are just a few steps (do, doing, done) or a lot of steps (plan, design, draft, approve, schedule, imple-ment, test, integrate, deploy).

However complex the project may be, creating a kanban board allows you to see the status of the work being done at a glance.

02. Limit Work in Process (WIP)

Get more done by do-ing less. It may seem counterintuitive, but it is a powerful idea that has been proven time and time again to be true. There is a limit to the number of things you can be working on and still do them well, and that limit is often lower than you think. Whether a project is simple or complex or whether the team is small or large, there is an optimal amount of work that can be in the process at one time without sacrificing efficiency. It’s not uncommon to find that doing ten things at once takes a week, but doing two things at once takes hours, resulting in twenty things being done by the end of the week. Kanban metrics lets you find that optimal number.

03. Measure and Improve Flow

mprovement should al-ways be based on objective measurements, and kanban is no different. Finding and applying good metrics is usually a difficult step, but a few simple measures automatically generated by an application like Kanbanery can give you the information you need to tweak your process to optimize flow and maximize efficiency.

One of the great things about kanban is that you apply it to your existing process. You are simply identifying ways to improve what you are already doing, so you don’t have to start from scratch and you don’t have to worry about “throwing the baby out with the bath water” – meaning that you won’t lose the things you are already doing well. No sudden changes means there is minimal risk in apply-ing kanban as part of your improvement journey.