Will Working on Projects Help You Be Less Stressed?

I was talking with a business manager the other day about organizing a presentation for her group. She said, "It's always so hectic around here, people aren't so organized. Let's see if they have time to attend the session."

I replied, "Well, there you go. Project management can help with that!"

How can working with a project mindset help with organization?

First, there's the defining of the project itself and its scope. What are we doing and not doing? Clarifying that will help keep focus and eliminate unnecessary efforts.

Then there's the schedule. What has to be done next? Can someone else do part of the work concurrently to save time? Knowing what is to be done when can help reduce the running-around-with-the-head-cut-off routine.

And there's risk analysis. What should we take care of now and what money can we put aside for in case uncertain events occur? Then we can rest assured we have taken care of the what-if's and what-may-happen and get on with the job.

These are just a few examples of how organizing work into projects can reduce stress. But let's not forget communications – lack of proper communications can cause many headaches in a project. That's why identifying who is interested in the project, who can affect it positively and negatively, and how the stakeholders want to be communicated with, is so important.

If we can define these things at the beginning of the project and keep an eye on them as we go along, we will have a stronger project.

Who Needs to Know?

Have you ever had someone say, "You don’t need to know that; leave that part to me," when working on a project?

After your first reaction ("Huh?"), if you are like me, you would be thinking, "Hmm, I asked because I needed to know."

What happened here? It seems as though clear roles and responsibilities have not been defined. One person thought it was their responsibility to do that part of the work and didn’t realize another person also needed to know.

What could have helped? A RACI chart would have been useful. RACI stands for responsible, accountable, consulted and informed. It would show who is:

• (R)esponsible for the work (to get the job done)
• (A)ccountable for the work (to report on it)
• Needs to be (C)onsulted on the work (their input gotten)
• Needs to be (I)nformed about the work (perhaps their part of the project depends on it)

Typically, a RACI chart is drawn with activities down the left-hand column, and roles or people’s names along the top row.

Here is an example of a RACI chart from raci.org:

It's a very handy tool indeed to prevent some conflicts from occurring.

Do All Project Managers Follow the Same Process?

In May, I am giving a talk at PDSummit 2017 in Halifax, comparing the project management processes used in the television and construction industries. Having taught project managers from many different industries, I have seen that the process is generally the same for all projects. The terms used may be different but, going from one industry to another, the five process groups (Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring and Controlling, and Closing) seem to be followed by project managers everywhere. But is this really true?

To test my theory I am conducting research, gathering input from project managers in the television and construction industries on their project management processes.

I have a request for you: if you work, or have worked, in either the TV or construction industry, would you please have a look at the questions and send me your input?

Individual replies will be kept confidential but I will be sharing a summary and highlights of my research. (If you really want your name stated, though, I will make sure to do so!)

Click here to answer this brief survey.

If you would like to give any other information on your projects, I would be glad to receive it - email me. Thank you very much!