Project Management Gone Wild

Project Management Methodologies  

So many methodologies to choose from you can't go wrong. Right? We have Critical Path Method (CPM), Waterfall, Agile, Scrum, Kanban, and Prince2. There are many more out there. The point I'm stressing is that you select the right methodology. Go wild with a hybrid if you feel constrained. Remember that you have a budget to track and a delivery date to meet. 

Flexibility might look good, but too much flexibility will come at a cost if you are not careful. Keeping within the scope of the project is key when you deviate from traditional methodologies. Keeping the stakeholders in the loop is imperative so they are fully aware of where you are at in the project. 

   
Tracking The Project

No matter what methodology you use, you better track your approved budget all the time or you will have some explaining to do later if you happen to go over it. It's better to explain along the way and justify that you need more money for unforeseen bumps in the road. 

Update your project plan to make sure your target dates will be met. If the dates are sliding you need to meet with the stakeholders to present options to them. Time for you to work some magic now. Throw some bones to those stakeholders to keep them happy.

I suggest you track your budget on a weekly project status report. Include key tasks that have been completed and tasks planned for the next week. Always have weekly targets, don't just wing it because you see some flexibility in your schedule. Always keep your eye on the finish line.

The Light Between Oceans - Movie Review

Now playing The Light Between Oceans at a theater near you.  

The movie is 2 hour & 13 minutes with Michael Fassbender (Tom), Alicia Vikander (Isabel), and Rachel Weisz (Hannah). The story takes place in Western Australia. The story is about a returning veteran from the First World War in Europe. He accepts a lighthouse keeper job on an island to have solitude. He meets his future wife when he returns to the mainland for a short visit. She proposes to him. He latter accepts her proposal and she lives with him on the island. Just the two of them. She has multiple miscarriages. She really wants a baby.  

I give it (5) *****

One day an infant is seen floating in a rowboat. Tom rescues the infant and wants to report the baby to the authorities. Isabel begs Tom to not report the infant so she can become a mother. They raise the child as their own and are very happy. One fateful day on a visit to the mainland Tom discovers their child's mother when he passed by a cemetery. Tom sees Hannah visiting a memorial for her husband and daughter lost a sea. The time frame that Tom and Isabel claimed the baby matches the dates on the memorial.

Tom and Isabel are now faced with a moral dilemma that will rip out their hearts. What should they do? So many lives are affected by the lie they have been living.

• I highly recommend seeing this movie.

The Project Management Horse Blanket Report

Project Portfolio Management (PPM) - Reporting

Having the ability to capture valuable metrics from your project management software and report on it is the key to successful project management. Delivering projects on time within the budget is what all Project Managers work for. 

Reporting via The Horse Blanket 

What is a Horse Blanket? It's a large sheet of continuous paper that is used in plotter printers. You can drape the paper over a horse. The plotter printer will produce quality graphic prints from the large paper that lets you create a masterpiece of any size. Create a collage of various reports and screenshots to tell the story. A visual picture of various reports and screenshots that are all displayed at the same time will open eyes. All the dots should connect. The key is selecting the right reports and screenshots that tell the story. This is a continuous work in progress to keep evolving the reporting. Keep designing reports and screens with valuable information.

Wrike Screenshot 

Wrike Screenshot

Project Portfolio Management (PPM) - Software

To accomplish your reporting you will need a robust project management software that supports PPM. Monitoring the progress of projects is very critical to spot deficiencies so that they may be addressed with the appropriate remediation to get the project back on track. 

Pokemon Go time in Hawaii

Everywhere you go you see people glued to their phones. Take a closer look and you will see that they are on a serious quest to catch that virtual Pokemon. 

Beach Walk - Waikiki 

Tourists and locals are chasing down that Pokemon. 

Waikiki Aquarium 

The September Sunset in Hawaii

Hawaii sunsets just keep on delivering every month. Hurricane Lester is out there somewhere. The hurricane took a turn to the north missing the Hawaiian Islands on the Labor Day Weekend. 

A big Aloha to Hurricane Lester for deciding to pass on Hawaii and not visit us.

Blessed! 

Ala Wai Boat Harbor - Oahu

What's going on in the world?

We have the President of the United States claiming the dubious honor of the biggest liar ever for telling Americans you can keep your insurance and doctors with a convincing speech maintaining a straight face while promoting his Obamacare. What a good role model for our children.

Our Schools and Colleges. What is going on with all these crazy shooters. Our children are not safe getting an education. We have to teach lock downs in our schools.

Going to the Malls we have crazy shooters. We need to be on guard wth an action plan if an active shooter situation occurs.

Our Airports are not safe. Home grown terrorist uses his clearance to sneak a bomb in to cause harm to innocent people. 

The World is not a safe place. I'm sad that our children have to grow up in a dangerous world now. We have to turn it around one day at a time. 

I remember as a child going to the Airport and all the way to the boarding gate to say goodbye to a loved one. Going to the Mall was safe.

I wrote this post two years ago. Not much has changed since then. It's 2016 now.

Peanuts kept the tradition in The Peanuts Movie (2015)

I'm impressed with the new movie on the peanuts gang. It's not a re-boot type of movie to modernize the characters and make the storyline to reflect 2015. The movie preserved all the peanut characters personalities. If you are a fan of Peanuts it will bring back memories. If you are not familiar with Peanuts you will love them and follow them after watching the new movie. 

Go see this movie it's for all ages. It's on DVD now.

Budget Creep a Project Manager's Nightmare

Going over budget within the scope of a project can happen. You think you covered all the possibilities that could occur in the project. You submitted a budget with padding so you can avoid a budget overrun. You are now at the one third milestone in the project and your funds are being depleted faster than anticipated. How did I not see this happening?

Reporting any budget variances on a monthly Project Stop Light Report will expose your budget creep. You will see how your monthly expenditures keep going up for the project. That is your cue to stop the project and revisit the budget. Are the projected estimates accurate or grossly underestimated? The faith of the project is in jeopardy now. Will the project be shutdown or will additional funds be allocated for it? A big decision needs to be made based on an accurate big picture on what the new realistic funding will be to keep the project moving.  

Project Managers need to always keep an eye on the budget and raise the red flag when the project funds are depleting ahead of time. Avoid what I call Budget Creep.