Every project is different and every project needs a plan that reflects its various challenges. To shepherd a project from ideation to completion requires a skill set that is varied, extensive, and flexible.
There’s more to project management than just planning. As the father of Modern Management Theory Peter Drucker said, ”Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work.”
It may seem like the CEO of Williams-Sonoma ought to be afraid of online retailers like Amazon, but Alber has a forward-looking plan. She noted that the problem is not that retail is dying, but that service is dying. Fully aware of the potential and challenges of home delivery, Alber noted that “Moving large-scale furniture is difficult, which is why it’s a huge differentiator. If you can do something hard, well that’s an advantage.” Based on that insight, Alber developed and rolled out Williams-Sonoma’s end-to-end delivery service, enabling the company to deliver their furnishing products and services directly to customers.
Never one to let the grass grow under her feet, Hewson’s leadership as CEO of Lockheed Martin has been all about expansion and growth. Hewson describes her “job is to make sure that as our customers’ priorities change, as the environment changes, we shift that portfolio of products to meet them.” Since she took the reins of the company in 2013, it has doubled its market cap, branched out into commercial airport information technology, acquired competitor Sikorsky, and secured contracts to build payloads for NASA to go to the moon.
As CEO of Xerox, Burns saw a company that was growing increasingly outdated; no one wanted more and more photocopiers and fax machines anymore. They needed to find a new plan for the company, changing focus radically. “If you don’t transform, you’re stuck,” she said. Xerox now has jumped industries completely and runs E-Z-Pass and traffic cameras.
Whether it is people, material, money, or time, there are a lot of variables that have to be considered when managing a project. Performance and efficiency all come down to how resources are managed and allocated.
A goal without a plan is just a dream. Project management is about planning and execution. Most companies fail not because of strategy, but poor execution.
Great project managers know how to inspire their teams during difficult times. They’re amazing at troubleshooting and removing roadblocks that empower people to do their best work.
A project may have one manager, but there are a lot of plates that have to keep spinning, and many hands are needed. One person can’t do it all on their own.
There is no easy way to go about project management. It’s a constant struggle, despite the best-laid plans. Hard work and awareness are key to effective project management.
The only constant is change. The best project managers are able to navigate the ever-changing landscape, knowing that plans may be disrupted in one way or another. Being able to find solutions to blockers is key to delivering on time.
From leading a team to keeping stakeholders in the loop, project managers tend to have a lot on their plate. By being organized, you will boost your ability to keep things on track and achieve your project’s goals.
To run a project smoothly, consistent effective communication needs to take place with the stakeholders. Any changes then need to be communicated to the team members to avoid ‘surprises’.
The success of the project depends upon the identification of the defining moments throughout the project known as milestones. This can be done by providing the life cycle of a project which includes the main phases such as initiation, planning, execution, and completion.
Delegation skills are essential for project managers. Some managers avoid delegation because they think they can perform the task better. Ultimately, mastering delegation skills is important for two reasons: to make the best use of the project team and to give the project manager the capacity to focus on the project’s overall goals.
It is essential for project managers to properly collect a project’s requirements. Collecting requirements is the process of determining, documenting, and managing stakeholder needs requirements to meet project objectives. For any project success, project result must meet stakeholders needs and expectations.
A great project manager is someone who motivates the team to do the best work of their lives. Project managers make people feel they have a real stake in the project. They empower their teammates to explore what the vision will mean to their jobs and their lives, as well as to envision their future as part of the vision of their organization.
