Successful project managers juggle three core aspects of every project — cost, time, and scope — to move everyone toward the next big deadline. The triple constraintproject management triangle is a model that helps you visualize this process and make it a reality. Much like the three sides of a triangle, these three factors, also known as “constraints,” have to be balanced if you want to cultivate a successful project.
When most professionals hear the term “project management,” the first thing that comes to mind isn’t exactly a great image. Pedantic planning meetings. A never-ending sea of task completion emails. The project manager stopping by (yes, again) to ask about task status, interrupting the person from actually working on the task. Before the project managers boycott us, we’re secretly on your side.
Project management trends are a big part of what you pay attention to as a successful project manager. There’s a lot on your plate, from resource management to data analysis and proving the ROI of your strategies. It can all become overwhelming pretty quickly. Thankfully, the latest project management trends provide solutions that help take a load off and increase your chances of success. Below, we discuss some of these trends and give tips for implementing them effectively.
It’s tempting to think that only credentialed project managers with that dedicated job function need to worry about project management styles, but that isn’t the case. Planning and organizing are two of the four main functions of management, so people managers also need to know the right way to plan and manage projects, not just specialized project managers. With that in mind, let’s walk through an overview of the seven dominant project management methodologies.
Who’s the first person you call when you have a busted pipe? Maybe your dad. Maybe your spouse. Most likely a plumber. Imagine that plumber walking into your home without his toolkit. He gives you a charming grin, stands in the Superman pose, and tells you that everything will be okay. That’s not comforting to you because you know that the busted pipe won’t be fixed without his tools. Your digital marketing team can’t do their jobs effectively without the right tools.
Running a business may have been your life’s dream. Being your own boss, making the decisions, and seeing your vision come to life is exciting and satisfying to say the least. However, properly growing a company can be challenging no matter how solid your product or service is. Maybe you need help with setting up the framework of fledgling departments, creating social posts for a major campaign, or meeting an unexpected client need.
If you’re a leader, you’ve hit a “leadership roadblock” at some point: Whether you’ve been in leadership for a long time or have just recently transitioned into a leadership role, leadership walls or roadblocks happen to everyone eventually. As one of the four key functions of management, leadership is an integral part of every manager’s job. Leading well requires finding new tactics and strategies to overcome even the most complex leadership challenges.
Remote work is growing at a rapid pace. According to the latest research from McKinsey & Company, 58% of the U.S. workforce has the opportunity to work from home at least one day a week, while 35% have the option five days a week. This data holds true across all industries and job types, including both “blue collar” and “white collar” jobs that traditionally required on-site work.
How you lead and interact with your team can be a balancing act even on a good day. It’s no surprise when there are so many factors at play. Some management styles may be more effective for particular team members, departments, or workplace cultures. Others may come naturally to you based on your personality, talents, or industry experience. Whichever approach you lean toward, it’s worth understanding all the common management styles.
Whether we like it or not, a recession is brewing. You may wish you could bury your head in the sand and wait for it to pass, but the best thing you can do as an agency owner is to take deliberate action and create a plan to protect your business now. This way even if you can’t completely shelter your agency from the impact of a recession, you can stay profitable and avoid a total wipe-out.
Wouldn’t it be great if we could be as productive as possible without causing burnout? We call it “working smarter, not harder.” Among many working professionals, working smart is a key to greater productivity. It can save you time and energy for the things that matter, like your life goals, personal growth and health, and relationships. The fact applies at work, too: Working smarter at the office keeps team members engaged and less overwhelmed.
In today’s project-driven business landscape, project managers are an indispensable part of completing projects successfully. But a closely related and equally important discipline receives much less attention: project leadership. Maybe it’s because one is a fairly standard job title and the other isn’t.
You can’t fix what you can’t measure. (You can’t bill for it very well, either.) That’s the key principle behind employee time tracking. It helps managers and organizations understand how long it takes, on average, to complete various tasks, aiding in the baselining and project scheduling processes. But doing this in a way that generates the data you need without feeling like micromanaging can be a challenge. Time-tracking software is a compelling solution.
