If managing projects is a significant element of your business, consider the following 5 Golden Rules that will help you deliver your project successfully...
Rule 1: Time Management is Critical
To deliver your project on schedule, you need to manage your time carefully. To do this, make sure every task is listed in a Project Plan.
Every week, update your plan and identify whether each task is ahead or behind schedule. If it’s falling behind schedule, then get it back on track by assigning more resource or reducing the scope of the task.
Rule 2: Track Costs and Manage Finances
Every element of your project incurs a cost. You need to identify all of the planned costs upfront and get them approved by your manager.
Then record every expense as it occurs - including people, equipment and materials. Check that your actual expenditure does not exceed your planned expenditure. And if it does, then you need to cut back.
Rule 3: Ensure Quality Targets are Set
You need to specify upfront exactly what it is that the project will deliver (i.e. the "deliverables"). Then set targets for the quality of these deliverables. Get your quality targets agreed by your customer.
Then every week, review the quality of each deliverable produced by the project. If it's not up to standard, fix it immediately. Never wait until the end of the project before fixing up quality issues.
Rule 4: Control Scope at the Micro Level
Your scope is defined as "the set of deliverables that need to be produced by the project". So make sure that you know what your scope is and try not to let anyone change it.
Check every week that your team is working on "just" the set of deliverables agreed, and nothing more. Check that every deliverable being produced exactly matches the specification you've defined for it. Note: An increase in the scope of your project will make it harder to deliver on time and in good quality.
Rule 5: Resolve Issues Early
If issues arise during the project, then resolve them early. Pounce on every issue before it delays your project. Record it formally and then track it until it's resolved. Unresolved issues lead to delays which lead to project failure.
To help you implement these 5 Golden Rules for Projects, use Project Management Templates that include all of the documents you need to follow these rules and achieve project success.
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