Project Management - 10 things you should know

1. Project Management - 10 things you should know Presented by Levent YıldızgörenTTC Language Services Ltd & Learnproject

2. Introduction Associate member of ITI Member of PMI (Project Management Institute) Qualified PRINCE2 Practitioner

3. LearnProject is a member of: And accredited to run training courses TTC is a member of:

4. Contents What is a project? Distinguishing projects from operations What is project management? Project manager key skills Why projects fail? 10 things you should know Conclusion Q&A, discussion

5. Objectives At the end of the workshop we should be able to find out: • What is the main reason for project failure? • Who is responsible for project success? • What are project success metrics?

6. Definition of project A temporary organisation that is needed to produce a unique outcome or result at a prespecified time using predetermined resources. Temporary – each project has a definite beginning and a definite end. Unique Product – the outcome of a project must be unique product, service or result

7. Distinguishing projects from operations An operation is a function that performs ongoing tasks: It does not produce a unique product or it does not have a beginning and an end. Project and operations share some characteristics: Both require resources, including human resources (people)Both are managed – that is planned, executed and controlled

8. What is project management? Project management is the usage of knowledge, skills and tools to manage a project from start to finish with the goal of meeting the project requirements. It involves using the appropriate processes.

9. Project manager key skills Communication Negotiation Problem solving Influencing Leadership Cultural awareness (absolutely essential for translation industry)

10. Projectstakeholders Keystakeholders • Client • Project manager • Customer/users • Project team members • Influencers (Consultants/Contractors/Suppliers )

11. Why projects fail? The goal of the project is not defined properly Lack of change management (changes to project are not controlled) The ‘moving goalposts’ syndrome.

12. Why projects fail? Cont… Poor or non-existent planning A solid plan is one of the key steps of the effective project management. The project is not resourced as planned (resources were not available at the time, or were not booked in advance)

13. Why projects fail? Cont… Lack of coordination of activities The project is not led properly The project reporting is inadequate or does not exist

14. Why projects fail? Cont… Quality criteria is not defined or measured Lack of ownership - It is not clear who is responsible for the project outcome The progress is not monitored and controlled properly.

15. 10 things you should know 1 - You need to define the project clearly 2 - You need to plan the project (not to be mixed with project schedule) A good plan should include scheduling as well as many other points 3 - You need to provide a way of including contingency plan 4 - You need a communication plan

16. 10 things you should know 5 - You need a quality plan Getting a clear and reliable definition of what constitutes fit-for-purpose on your project is crucial for its success. 6 – You need to make it clear project managers are responsible for projects 7 - You need the manage the project plan

17. 10 things you should know 8 - You need to manage risks and issues A good project manager revisits risks and issue management throughout the project lifecycle 9 - You need to monitor quality 10 - You need to be prepared that no matter how well a project is planned something may go wrong at some point

18. Question 1 - The project is going according to the plan and it is nearly completed. Client calls and says their marketing department had to make ‘a very small change’ in the source file. - It is a corporate brochure translated and typeset into 10 languages. - And you are new to the company.

19. Answers 1 Say yes in order to keep the client happy Work out the extra cost & time and try to meet the deadline. And inform the client accordingly Refuse to undertake the change as this is not your fault and your team is scheduled to start another project right after this one Check your contingency plan to see if you can absorb the request

20. Question 2 You are a project manager assigned to run a localisation project. You have never run a localisation project before. The engineers tell you that there is no way that they can estimate how long it will take them. Do you: Accept this Enrol a night course in localisation Insist that the project need to be estimated, making assumptions where necessary Ask to be assigned to another project

21. Question 3 You are a running a project for a corporate client. Jobs that need to be done by the client’s people are always late or not done as previously agreed. Whose responsibility is this? Yours personally Your company’s The client’s people The client’s management

22. Answers A 1 – b or d is the right answer A 2 – ‘c’ is the right answer. ‘d’ could be an option as well. A 3 - ‘a’ or ‘b’ is the right answer

23. Conclusion Projects mainly fail due to management problems Project manager is responsible for the outcome of the project Success metrics: On time, on budget and as defined BUT the project manager must also focus on the expected results and benefits

24. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or suggestions: Levent Yildizgoren levent@ttcltd.com 01245 216 931 www.ttcltd.com www.learnproject.co.uk

25. Bibliography PRINCE2 Manual Fergus O’Connell - Successful Projects in Web Time Brian K. Willard – Project Success: Looking Beyond Traditional Metrics Stephen Barker & Rob Cole – Brilliant Project Management