10 Tips for Project Success

Want to improve your project success? In this post we'll tell you how, by listing our Top 10 tips. So here they are...

10 Tips for Project Success

Starting out: Make sure that when you start out your customer defines their requirements in depth. You need to know exactly what it is that must be delivered, to who and when. Make it specific, write it up formally and get them to sign it off. This document will become the basis upon which to measure your success.
Customers: Involve your customers throughout the entire project life cycle. Get them involved in the analysis and planning, as well as execution. You don't have to seek their approval, just keep them informed. The more you involve them, the greater their level of buy-in and the easier it is to manage their expectations.
Timeframes: Keep your delivery timeframes short and realistic. Never agree to lengthy timeframes. Split the project into “mini-projects” if you need to. Keep each mini-project to less than 6 months. This keeps everyone motivated and focused.
Milestones: Break your project timeframe into "Milestones" which are manageable pieces of work. Add delivery deadlines to your milestones and try to deliver on every deadline, no matter what. If you're late, tell your customer about it as early as possible.
Communications: Make sure you keep everyone informed by providing the right information at the right time. Produce Weekly Status Reports and run regular team meetings. Use these Project Management Templates to save you time.
Scope: Only authorize changes to your project scope if there is no impact on the timeline. Get your customers approval to important scope changes first and then get their buy-in to extend the delivery dates if you need to.
Quality: Keep the quality of your deliverables as high as possible. Constantly review quality and never let it slip. Implement “peer reviews” so that team members can review each others deliverables. Then put in place external reviews to ensure that the quality of the solution meets your customer's needs.
Issues: Jump on risks and issues as soon as they are identified. Prioritize and resolve them before they impact on your project. Take pride in keeping risks and issues to a minimum.
Deliverables: As each deliverable is complete, hand it formally over to your customer. Get them to sign an Acceptance Form to say that it meets their expectations. Only then can you mark each deliverable off as 100% complete.
Your team: Great projects are run by great teams. Hire the best people you can afford. Spend the time to find the right people. It will save you time down the track. Remember, good people are easy to motivate. Show them the vision and how they can make it happen. Trust and believe in them. Make them feel valued. They will work wonders.

And that's it. With these 10 tips you can boost your project success. And here's one last tip that will save you time and effort - use Project Management Templates to produce deliverables faster and easier than before. Download the Project Management Kit of templates today.



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10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance.There are lots of different ways that you can boost your team performance. We’ve listed here our Top 10 Tips. We hope they help you… 

The Project Management Template – Guiding the Way to a Successful Project

Using a project management template not only saves time, money, and effort; it also ensures that all aspects and phases of a project are included in the project plan.

A good template includes the following:

• Defining Project Responsibilities
• Stakeholder Analysis
• Milestone Chart
• Milestone Report
• Variation Form
• Risk Log
• Business Case Form
• Project Definition Form or PID
• Project Reporting Form
• Highlight Report
• Change Control Form
• Change Control Log
• Actual Vs Planned
• Project management check sheet

Defining project responsibilities identifies two aspects of project management: tasks and team members.
A Business Case is a documented, structured proposal for business improvement.  It is prepared to facilitate a selection decision for a proposed project.  The Business Case:

• Illustrates reasons and justification in terms of business process performance, needs and-or problems, and expected benefits.
• Identifies the high-level requirements that are to be satisfied
• Provides analysis of proposed alternative solutions (with reasons for rejecting or carrying forward each option)
• Includes assumptions and constraints
• Details risk-adjusted cost-benefit analysis
• And has a preliminary acquisition plan.

It may seem like a daunting task to create a business case, but it doesn’t have to be an issue when using business case templates.  One of the best ways to evaluate the viability of a business model or to demonstrate the potential of your proposed business solution is to write a business case.


Business case templates take the stress out of developing a business case and are available pre-formatted for many industries and for grant proposals/applications.  Whether using a paid template or a free one, they help a project manager produce a well-organized and compelling business case.


Just as projects vary, templates are not “one size fits all.”  It is up to the project manager to identify the right business case template for the individual project.  There are internal and external, corporate and not-for-profit business cases.


If providing business cases is a common occurrence it makes sense to develop a customized template.  A standard format for business case templates:

• Title
• Table of Contents
• Executive or Project Summary
• Mission Statement
• Objectives
• Needs Assessment
• Technical Analysis
• Project Work Plan
• Financial Plan
• Appendix

Typically, the Title, Table of Contents, Mission Statement, and Summary are added to the business case after the other sections are completed.  The information from the Objectives, Needs Assessment, Technical Analysis, Project Work Plan, and Financial Plan will help determine what goes into the other sections.
By developing a business case template, a project manager has full control over the layout and information, as well as the presentation of the case.


The Title, Table of Contents, and Mission Statement are one page each.  The Summary should not be longer than two pages; ideally, one page.


The other sections require detail and documentation, and so will generally be at least two pages each.
Using one or more business case templates can be of good use to the project manager, providing examples and guidance to ensure the manager’s final template is both easily to use and professional looking.


Developing business case templates means absolute control over the case document, with no need to modify or remove information that is not applicable to the project.


A customized business case template eliminates unneeded sections or text, making it easy for a project manager to utilize over and over again.

Other articles on Project Management Templates:

Project Management Templates and Their Benefits 
Project Management templates are an excellent tool for any project, large or small.  They reduce the time necessary for documentation, and can ensure no steps of the project are neglected.

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Managing Project Management Template Risks
If all of our projects just smoothly followed our project schedule we’d have it made.  No issues, no budget overruns, no cranky customers, no scope changes.  But that’s not the case. 

Why Project Management Templates are an Essential Tool for Project Managers
The reason why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers is simple. 

Why Project Management Templates Are Useful
Knowing why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects is the first step to a smoothly-running project.

Project Management Templates and Their Benefits

Project Management templates are an excellent tool for any project, large or small. They reduce the time necessary for documentation, and can ensure no steps of the project are neglected.

Project Initiating Process Group Templates

Project Charter Template: The Project Charter is developed during the initiation phase to formally authorize a project. The Project Charter is required before any work on the project can begin.

• Paragraph 1: Formally authorizes the project.
• Paragraph 2: Project Scope – Its deliverable, and what business needs, problems or opportunities the project addresses.
• Paragraph 3: Identify the Project Manager and give him authority to apply organization resources to the project
• Paragraph 4: Provide the summary milestone schedule
• Paragraph 5: Project Budget – state the budget for the project and identify funding sources

Preliminary Project Scope Statement: The Preliminary Project Scope Statement is created after the Project Charter has been signed. This Statement is completed during the Initiation Phase to ensure the successful planning of the project.


Project Planning Process Group Templates

Communications Management Plan Template: defines the communication requirements for the project and how the information is to be distributed.

Cost Management Plan Template: details how the project costs will be measured and reported upon. It indicates the control thresholds and the corrective actions to be taken if the thresholds are exceeded.

Procurement Management Plan Template: identifies the processes for evaluation, selection and management of procurements required for a project.

Scope Management Plan Template: ensures that the project includes the work and only the work necessary to successfully complete the project.

Project Management Plan Template: states how the project is executed, monitored and controlled and closed. These documents feed into the development of the project management plan.

Risk Register Template: a list of all project risks including their risk rankings, responses and risk owners.



Project Executing Process Group Templates


Expense Report Template: is designed for both domestic travel and International travel (a tab for each at the bottom of the spreadsheet).

Employee Annual Review Template: for conducting performance reviews. Useful as an annual review or as a tool for the Project Manager to perform an employee review.


Project Monitoring and Controlling Process Group Templates

Project Status Report

Project Change Request

Project Performance Report


Project Closing Process Group Templates

This document establishes formal acceptance of all the deliverables for the project.



Project Document Templates

Project Meeting Agenda Template: key to presenting a well planned and well executed meeting.

Project Meeting Minutes Template: clearly documents the discussion topics of the meeting, any decisions which were made and assigns new action items to individuals. Promptly distributing clearly written project meeting minutes is important to success in project management.


With so many project management templates available, it is easy for the project manager to find those that are the most applicable and useful for the project. The initial time investment that a project manager makes in finding the right templates will save time during the project itself.


Other articles on Project Management Templates:

The Project Management Template – Guiding the Way to a Successful Project
Using a project management template not only saves time, money, and effort; it also ensures that all aspects and phases of a project are included in the project plan.

10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance
10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance.There are lots of different ways that you can boost your team performance. We’ve listed here our Top 10 Tips. We hope they help you…

Managing Project Management Template Risks
If all of our projects just smoothly followed our project schedule we’d have it made.  No issues, no budget overruns, no cranky customers, no scope changes.  But that’s not the case. 

Why Project Management Templates are an Essential Tool for Project Managers
The reason why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers is simple.

Why Project Management Templates Are Useful
Knowing why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects is the first step to a smoothly-running project.

10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance

As a Project Manager, your success depends on how well your team performs. So if you want to improve your team performance, then read these:

10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance
There are lots of different ways that you can boost your team performance. We’ve listed here our Top 10 Tips. We hope they help you…

Tip 1: Show them the vision
People only perform well in a role if they understand what it is that they need to deliver and why. For this reason, we suggest you get your team together to reinforce the project vision, objectives, timeframes and deadlines. Make your team feel wanted and needed by showing them that the project is critical to the success of the business. You will gain their buy-in and their commitment going forward.
Also, use these Project Management Templates

Tip 2: Meet them individually
After your meeting, take each team member aside and tell them what it is that you need from them to help you deliver the project. Make sure they have a clear Job Description and they know how you are going to measure their performance. Ask them how they like to be managed, what motivates them and how you can support them in their role.

Tip 3: Give them room
At this point, you need to back off a little and give them room to perform. And if the pressure increases in your project, you need to give them more room than less. It’s hard to do this, but you mustn’t over-pressurize them or their performance will reduce, rather than improve.

Tip 4: Count the goals
As you back off, you need to put in place checks to measure their performance regularly. Meet with them individually every month to discuss their achievements, what’s outstanding and how they can improve. Make sure you don’t “bottle up” your concerns. Instead speak to them openly, keeping constructive at all times.

Tip 5: Be positive
If you’re stressed and weary, ease off on your staff. Shouting or being negative will only rub off on them. It’s incredibly difficult but you need to be positive, reassuring and supporting them at all times, even if the project is delayed.

Tip 6: Shake hands and pat backs
It’s easy to forget to praise your team’s successes. So every time you deliver a great quality product, finish a difficult task on time or get great feedback from a customer—congratulate those responsible in your team.
Also, use Project Scheduling Software

Tip 7: Meet at half time
Get your team together regularly to build a strong team spirit. Get them socializing together, so that new friendships are formed. The stronger the bond your team have with each other, the more likely they will work together as a single cohesive unit and achieve the objectives you have set.

Tips 8: Take time out
Don’t be afraid to give team members time off for working hard. By taking time out, it will reduce sick leave, improve motivation and increase efficiency.

Tips 9: Give them what they need
Everyone is motivated by different things. You need to know what motivates every different member of your team. Get to know them well. If you can reward each person differently based on their motivations, then you’ll improve their performance every time. This is the hardest trick in the book, but the one that pays the biggest dividends.

Tip 10: Celebrate your wins!
Staff all too often finish a project and move straight onto the next one without celebrating its success. When they do this, they carry their stress and pressure into the next project they work on. So help your team to “start afresh” by celebrating your success at the end of the project.
By taking these 10 tips seriously, you will improve the performance of your team and boost your chances of success.


Other articles on Project Management Templates:

Project Management Templates and Their Benefits 
Project Management templates are an excellent tool for any project, large or small.  They reduce the time necessary for documentation, and can ensure no steps of the project are neglected.

The Project Management Template – Guiding the Way to a Successful Project
Using a project management template not only saves time, money, and effort; it also ensures that all aspects and phases of a project are included in the project plan.

Managing Project Management Template Risks
If all of our projects just smoothly followed our project schedule we’d have it made.  No issues, no budget overruns, no cranky customers, no scope changes.  But that’s not the case. 

Why Project Management Templates are an Essential Tool for Project Managers
The reason why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers is simple. 

Why Project Management Templates Are Useful
Knowing why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects is the first step to a smoothly-running project.

Managing Project Management Template Risks

If all of our projects just smoothly followed our project schedule we’d have it made.

No issues, 

No budget overruns, 

No cranky customers, 

No scope changes.  

But that’s not the case... 

There are always going be some issues, the budget never manages itself, the customer always has a few demands, and scope is usually a challenge to manage and keep in check.

What I haven’t touched on yet is project risk.  What is risk in terms of project management templates?  One definition goes like this…

“A possible event that could endanger the planned course or goals of the project.”

Do we need to manage for these risks, these ‘possible’ events that may or may not happen?  Or can we just leave things to chance and worry about them if and when they happen?  You can, but the impact may be so great and blindside you so badly that the project can get knocked way off course or could come to a complete halt.

As part of a sound and solid project management process, it is far better to plan for risk and look for ways to avoid a specific risk even happening or ways to work through an risk event should it actually happen.  Basically, every company with a formalized project management methodology should have a risk management component.

Risk items are likely to come up on nearly every project you manage.  Training yourself to recognize potential risks as they arise is a critical piece of your overall project management process and something you and your project team need to work very hard with the customer to do well.

Sometimes you have to think out-of-the box – think in terms of what-if scenarios.  And as you identify potential risks associated with tasks and milestones in your project plan, document them and revisit them every week with your team and your customer.  Above all, be proactive.  Approaching risks in this manner will help you to better recognize the event should it occur and be much better prepared to deal with it.  And in the long run that means your project has a far greater chance for success.


Other articles on Project Management Templates:

Project Management Templates and Their Benefits 
Project Management templates are an excellent tool for any project, large or small.  They reduce the time necessary for documentation, and can ensure no steps of the project are neglected.

The Project Management Template – Guiding the Way to a Successful Project
Using a project management template not only saves time, money, and effort; it also ensures that all aspects and phases of a project are included in the project plan.

10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance
10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance.There are lots of different ways that you can boost your team performance. We’ve listed here our Top 10 Tips. We hope they help you…  

Why Project Management Templates are an Essential Tool for Project Managers
The reason why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers is simple. 

Why Project Management Templates Are Useful
Knowing why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects is the first step to a smoothly-running project. 

Why Project Management Templates are an Essential Tool for Project Managers

The reason why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers is simple.  Using a template saves time and ensures uniformity of documentation.  Of all the tools available to project manager, templates are likely the most important and essential tool for project managers.

Tools are the means that help managers and the team members successfully plan, manage and execute the different tasks involved in each project.  The best project management tools are not very sophisticated. They include primarily templates, check-lists (milestone reviews) and planning software.

Given the wide range of project management tools available, the keys to selecting the right ones are understanding that different tools are needed along the different stages of a project life cycle, and knowing why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers.

During all phases of the project, Milestones Reviews and Business Plans take a leading role.  In the Initiation phase, the Project Charter, Business Plan, Project Framework (or Overview), and Business Case Justification are essential.  In the Execution and Control phases, an update of Risk Analysis and Score Cards prevail. During Closure, no special tool is needed.

Project Templates are available for:

• Business Plan
• Milestones Check-list Scheduling Tools and Methodologies:
• Gantt
• Pert
• MS Project
• Business Case Justification
• Project Charter
• Project Framework or Overview
• Risk Analysis
• Score Cards
• Team Building
• Project Communication Plan
• Project Management Templates
• Project Management Software Packages

The above list is only a small sample of the tools and templates a good project leader uses.
Templates can be used in almost every phase of a project.  From the initial brainstorming stage to the successful closure of the project, templates simplify the management of the process.
Using templates can help the project manager with:

• Communicating the requirements of the customers to the project team without any ambiguity.
• Discussion on the requirements gathered and acceptance of the goals that must be achieved to satisfy the customer.
• Documenting the scope and feasibility of the job.
• If the plan is a worthwhile venture, it is documented. A part of the document goes to all the stakeholders to understand the scope of the project.
• Defining the project scope and goals
• Division of the plan into tasks and sub tasks
• Drawing up a project schedule to allocate work for each person and the deadlines for each of the tasks
• Determining if the cost predictions are comparable with the actual cost incurred
• Determining the effectiveness of the job, which can be measured by earned value or activity float statistics
• Identifying areas of potential concern to the plan; the findings along with the solutions are added to the reports
• Adjusting and modifying the plans and schedules to overcome the problems that exist and those that are forecasted
• Completing the documentations that were maintained throughout the assignment

Successful project managers know that templates are not just time-saving.  Templates provide a uniformity to the project’s documentation.

Understanding why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers is a first step toward a successfully completed project.


Other articles on Project Management Templates:

Project Management Templates and Their Benefits 
Project Management templates are an excellent tool for any project, large or small.  They reduce the time necessary for documentation, and can ensure no steps of the project are neglected.

The Project Management Template – Guiding the Way to a Successful Project
Using a project management template not only saves time, money, and effort; it also ensures that all aspects and phases of a project are included in the project plan.

10 Tips for Project Management Templates
10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance.There are lots of different ways that you can boost your team performance. We’ve listed here our Top 10 Tips. We hope they help you…  

Managing Project Management Template Risks
If all of our projects just smoothly followed our project schedule we’d have it made.  No issues, no budget overruns, no cranky customers, no scope changes.  But that’s not the case. 
 
Why Project Management Templates Are Useful
Knowing why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects is the first step to a smoothly-running project.  

Why Project Management Templates Are Useful

Knowing why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects is the first step to a smoothly-running project.  There are numerous templates available for different project management tools, like Gantt Charts or Risk Analysis, and a manager should take advantage of any template solution found to be applicable to the project.  Templates can save time and money and help the manager avoid mistakes.  A good template is adaptable to a specific project and future ones as well.

Save Time
Why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects is because of the time saved in developing a project plan from scratch.  There is no reason for a project manager to redo work that is already done, and simply needs to be filled in on a template.
Although it might take some time to find the right template or templates, once they are found the investment of time is a once and only investment.  A project manager will see the value added to the management process.  Instead of being caught up in the paperwork and planning, a manager can simply fill in forms as needed and focus on getting the project delivered

Save Money
By saving time, the project manager learns why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects: they also save money.  Many templates can be found for free or no cost online.  By reviewing a few of them side-by-side, the project manager can select the best template for the current project.  This method avoids the high prices associated with outside consultants developing the documentation a project needs to run smoothly.
Developing a large project of course does not mean unlimited funding.  So by using free project management templates little or no money is needed to begin the documentation process for the project.

Avoid Mistakes
When using a project template, most of the hard work of trial and error has already been done: done by the template creator and also other project managers that used it.  A template typically follows a point-by-point method, allowing the manager an overview of the entire project process.
Following a template when planning a large project eliminates much of the guess-work and forgotten steps or tools.  A project manager working on a large project can see where mistakes or skipped steps or tools might occur.  This allows adjusting the plan accordingly before the active phase of the project begins.

Adaptability
A good template that can easily be altered for the type or size of the project is another reason why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects.  There is not one-size-fits-all template, but a project manager can customize the template or templates to suit the project and ensure they have all the steps and tools needed to complete the project on time and under budget.

Conclusion
Understanding why project management templates are useful when carrying out large projects helps the project manager maintain the scope and complexities demanded by large projects.


Other articles on Project Management Templates:

The Project Management Template – Guiding the Way to a Successful Project
Using a project management template not only saves time, money, and effort; it also ensures that all aspects and phases of a project are included in the project plan.

10 Tips for Project Management Templates
10 Tips for Boosting Team Performance.There are lots of different ways that you can boost your team performance. We’ve listed here our Top 10 Tips. We hope they help you…

Managing Project Management Template Risks
If all of our projects just smoothly followed our project schedule we’d have it made.  No issues, no budget overruns, no cranky customers, no scope changes.  But that’s not the case. 

Why Project Management Templates are an Essential Tool for Project Managers
The reason why project management templates are an essential tool for project managers is simple.

Project Management Templates and Their Benefits 
Project Management templates are an excellent tool for any project, large or small.  They reduce the time necessary for documentation, and can ensure no steps of the project are neglected.