Starting from Gersick’s research, stating that groups don’t develop in a universal sequence of stages as suggested by the five-phase model. Her research, which is based on the systems concept of punctuated equilibrium group development, found that the timing of when groups form and actually change the way they work is highly consistent. The Punctuated…
Category: Project Management
The Five-Stage Team Development Model
The Forming – Storming – Norming – Performing team development model was first proposed by Bruce Tuckman in 1965, who maintained that these phases are all necessary and inevitable in order for the team to grow, to face up to challenges, to tackle problems, to find solutions, to plan work, and to deliver results. This…
I Care About Project Stakeholders, How About You?
First-time project managers are eager to implement their own ideas and manage their people to successfully complete their project. What they soon find out is that project success depends on the cooperation of a wide range of individuals(stakeholders), many of whom do not directly report to them. For example, during the course of a system…
Managing versus Leading a Project
I will begin with a brief discussion on managing versus leading a project. Then in a subsequent article I will move to tackle the importance of managing project stakeholders. I couldn’t wait to be the manager of my own project and run the project the way I thought it should be done. Boy, did I…
High Performance Project Team: Pitfalls
A high-performance project team can produce dramatic results. However, like any good think, there is a dark side to a project team that a manager needs to be aware of. I referred to this phenomenon as projectitis in this article. Now I would like to examine in more detail some of the pathologies that a high-performance…
Bottom Up Estimates, Future Proof Your Project
Since estimating efforts cost money, the time and detail devoted to bottom up estimates is an important decision. Yet, when estimating is considered, you as a project manager may hear statements such as these: Rough order of magnitude is good enough. Spending time on detailed estimating wastes money. Time is everything; our survival depends on…
Top Down Estimates
Since estimating efforts cost money, the time and detail devoted to estimating is an important decision. Yet, when bottom up or top down estimates are considered, you as a project manager may hear statements such as these: Rough order of magnitude is good enough. Spending time on detailed estimating wastes money. Time is everything; our…
Influencing time, resources and cost estimates quality
A typical statement in the field is the desire to “have a 95 percent probability of meeting time and cost estimates.” Past experience is a good starting point for developing time and cost estimates. But past experience estimates must almost always be refined by other considerations to reach the 95 percent probability level. Factors affecting…
Organizational Culture Implications on Projects
Project managers must be aware that their actions will have some organizational culture implications. First, they have to interact with the culture of their parent organization as well as the subcultures of various departments (e.g., marketing, accounting). Second, they have to interact with the project’s client or customer organizations. Finally, they have to interact in…
Project Plan, is it important to have one?
Well, every course, article and training provider out there is stressing about the importance of having a project plan. It’s as simple as that. A project plan will help you plan, execute and control your project, at least that is the official definition. I will like to state my personal view on the subject as…