Balancing Optimism and Realism

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Balancing Optimism and Realism The pessimism of Eeyore, the gloomy donkey from Winnie-the-Pooh, would be an uninspiring project manager. But unchecked optimism comes off as unrealistic. The key is to be realistically optimistic! Here are ways to find that balance:  

  • Use risk management as your basis for optimism. It’s being realistic to acknowledge  that projects involve risk. So, foster a risk management culture within your project. You can build a sense of optimism by identifying project risks and developing effective response strategies for them. Promote optimism within your team by emphasizing that they can respond to risks. Encourage discussions about risk. Good risk management plans also give stakeholders reason for optimism. Best of all, this optimism increases confidence in the project.  
  • Back up your optimism with history. Use past successes to validate your optimism. Successes from your current organization are the most powerful. If the history of success comes from outside your organization, explain what your project has in common with your example.
  • Treat pessimism as a chance to improve your project plan. Pessimism typically comes from actual experiences. Pessimism can be draining, but you can learn a lot from it to help you deliver a successful project. Don’t dismiss the pessimists as problem stakeholders to manage. Instead, collect pessimistic comments and study them. That way, you can address the underlying issues to enhance or reinforce your project plan. 
  • Be authentic. Reflect on yourself. Do you tend to be pessimistic, optimistic, realistic, or, most likely, a combination of all three. Be mindful of how your outlook affects others. The tips in this article not only help identify and advocate realistic reasons for optimism, but also leverage pessimism to increase project success.

Most important: Never fake optimism! People see through this, and it will do more harm than good.

What do you do to achieve the nirvana of realistic optimism? Share with us in the comments section.

Coming Up

Join Tiffany Uman and me on Wednesday, Oct 25, 2023 1:00pm MDT for our live broadcast   “How to Provide Project Updates to Executives “.

Your leadership team is not out to get you. That said, communicating with them effectively is essential, especially when providing pertinent project updates to drive the business forward. In this live Office Hours, Tiffany Uman and I will dive into the key DOs and DON’Ts for presenting updates to your leadership team with confidence and getting the buy-in you need. I’m excited to hear her advice about communicating project information to executives. Post your questions in the event comments or bring them to the live event!

Tiffany is a career coach, workplace expert, and fellow LinkedIn Learning instructor. Check out her course, Nano Tips for Answering Common Interview Questions with Tiffany Uman.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 50,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Assigning Responsibilities in the Ideal Project Charter

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Assigning Responsibilities in the Ideal Project CharterA project charter defines project scope and describes the responsibilities of the sponsor and project manager. So, you might think the responsibilities section would be as easy as “cut and paste.” Think again! The responsibilities in an ideal charter depend on the experience and expertise of the sponsor and project manager. Here are areas and considerations that can affect the responsibilities in  the project charter.

  • Scope definition and refinement. Sponsors and project managers can bring different technical backgrounds to a project. Based on the nature of the project, the project manager or the sponsor might manage scope definition and refinement. When the sponsor takes on this role, the project manager needs to stay up to date, because understanding scope is vital for managing the project schedule and risk. The sponsor must ensure that they have time to perform scope management properly.
  • Stakeholder communication. Senior leader focus on the project could affect stakeholder management responsibilities. The sponsor may have more direct contact and stronger relationships with senior leaders. In that case, the sponsor may spearhead communication with senior leaders, while the project manager focuses on working with the project team and other stakeholders.
  • Resource management. The sponsor might handle resource management when there’s a shortage of skilled resources. Also, when the organization has many projects running simultaneously. Prioritization decisions will be crucial and need senior leader buy-in. So, this requires active senior-level management of personnel availability. The project manager still needs to be involved so they can manage the project schedule.
  • Risk management. The sponsor might manage high-risk items or risks that senior leaders will have to address. In this arrangement, the project manager typically manages other risk items and monitors the status of high-level risks for the sponsor.
  • Alignment with organizational strategy. Aligning a project with business strategy might sit with the sponsor. The PM focuses on tactical delivery of the project and aligns the project with other relevant projects and operational processes.
  • Personal strengths and preferences. The best sponsor-project manager relationships work like a partnership. The project manager and sponsor have different strengths and preferences. They can consider these when dividing project management responsibilities. The partners each take responsibility for things they are best at and enjoy. This leads to highly successful project delivery. Keep in mind, the sponsor needs to have enough time to manage their assigned project activities.

Can you think of other factors where project responsibilities might vary? Have you ever worked in partnership with your sponsor? If so, how did it go? Any tips for the rest of us?

For more about the project charter, check out my Project Management Foundations course.

Coming Up

Do you have questions about careers in project management? Will I like being a project manager? What skills do I need? What about education? How do I get experience? Are certifications worth it and what do I need to do to earn them? What are the possible career paths? Chris Croft and I co-authored the course How to Launch a Career in Project Management to answer all these questions – and many more. For this Office Hours event, we want you to watch the course FIRST. Then, if you still have questions, join us in this event , on Wednesday, October 11, 2023, 9:00am MDT.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 49,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Don’t Forget About Your Personal Growth as a Project Manager

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Don’t Forget About Your Personal Growth as a Project ManagerAre you so focused on your projects that you’ve been ignoring your personal growth as a project manager? You have to be proactive about growing or you’ll stagnate. Pursue challenges, feedback, education, and experiences that will expand your capabilities. Here are some ideas for promoting your growth and improving your project delivery.

  • Exchange ideas with project peers. Managing projects isn’t just about good project management. Sound business analysis (BA) and organizational change management (CM) are also important. To expand your toolkit, ask your colleagues in those disciplines what led them to that vocation.  Find out what approaches they use to succeed. Or follow BA and CM follow on LinkedIn or other channels. 
  • Get a mentor. An experienced mentor can help in so many ways. You can talk with them candidly about your challenges and concerns. They can provide insights from their career and help come up with solutions to issues. They can also help you deal with the emotions of getting through “those” days. For junior project managers, a mentor who works in your industry can help you expand your PM skills and insights in your area of expertise. For experienced project managers, a mentor with a different industry background can help expand your skills by sharing their business experience in another industry.
  • Dig into your organization’s strategy. Strategy pushes change from the current state to new capabilities and market position. That change is created through projects! You can gain new and valuable insights as a project manager by connecting your project objectives to your organization’s strategic objectives. For experienced PMs, you’ll be enlightened when you participate in the design of projects to support strategy. Better yet, participate in the development of organizational strategy.
  • Attend association events. The Project Management Institute (PMI), International Association for Project Management (IAPM), International Project Management Association (IPMA) and the Association for Project Management (APM) all have meetings that provide valuable insights for project managers. You can gain new perspectives with an hour a month attending an association event.
  • Take advantage of educational opportunities. There are so many places to study new skills: the associations listed above, LinkedIn Learning, websites, podcasts, and more. Many of these opportunities are short (1 to 3 hours or even less) so you can grow without interfering with managing your projects.

If you’re guilty of neglecting your personal growth, take a moment now to set goals for including growth in your schedule. For example, set aside an hour this week to draft a plan – which activities you’ll start with, how you’ll initiate them, and when you will do them. 

Coming Up

Do you have questions about careers in project management? Will I like being a project manager? What skills do I need? What about education? How do I get experience? Are certifications worth it and what do I need to do to earn them? What are the possible career paths? Chris Croft and I co-authored the course How to Launch a Career in Project Management to answer all these questions – and many more. For this Office Hours event, we want you to watch the course FIRST. Then, if you still have questions, join us in this event to ask questions we didn’t answer.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 49,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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The Surprising Benefits of Dedicated Resources

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The Surprising Benefits of Dedicated ResourcesOperational employees who come and go from a project are a common challenge for project managers. Due to their day-to-day business responsibilities, project tasks can become “when time allows” activities — which makes managing a project schedule difficult. Not only do dedicated project team members avoid this situation, they also come with these other surprising benefits:

  • Improved project bottom line. Dedicated resources often complete their tasks faster, which could shorten your project timeline. Dedicated resource might cost more per hour, but fewer hours could reduce your labor cost. Completing a project faster also delivers business benefits sooner, such as increased revenues or reduced operational costs.

  • Reduced risk for the business. Operational personnel assigned to project tasks takes the most experienced eyes off the business. As a result, operational risks could be overlooked, resulting in business issues. On the project side, complex tasks require focus. And switching between project and operational issues shatters that focus. So, the quality of the project’s products could be affected.

  • Dedicated contractors have the right skills and reduce labor costs. Operational employees don’t necessarily have the best skillsets to create project deliverables. Consider contractors instead. Contractors with the right skills can improve and accelerate your project delivery. And because they join the project only for the time needed for their tasks, your project labor costs are less.

  • Operational knowledge is still available. Your dedicated team members can interview or shadow operational employees. That way, they can get first-hand knowledge of business operations and apply that knowledge to your project deliverables.

If you have used dedicated resources on your projects, have you received other unanticipated benefits? Or maybe you have questions about acquiring and using contractors. Either way, share with us in the comments section. 

For more about project resources, check out my Project Management Foundations course.

Coming Up

Do you have questions about careers in project management? Will I like being a project manager? What skills do I need? What about education? How do I get experience? Are certifications worth it and what do I need to do to earn them? What are the possible career paths? Chris Croft and I co-authored the course How to Launch a Career in Project Management to answer all these questions – and many more. For this Office Hours event, we want you to watch the course FIRST. Then, if you still have questions, join us in this event to ask questions we didn’t answer.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 48,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Analyzing the Feasibility of Aggressive Deadlines

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Analyzing the Feasibility of Aggressive DeadlinesBusiness pressures often lead sponsors to set aggressive deadlines. And meeting those deadlines may be exactly what your organization needs. It’s not an easy situation. As a project manager, your best survival strategy is to set stakeholders’ expectations for what it will take to deliver the project in that timeframe. Let’s look at how to analyze the feasibility of an aggressive project deadline and then communicate the results to your sponsor.

  • Determine whether mandatory overtime will help meet the project deadline. Analyze how long it took to complete past project tasks. This data can tell you a lot about whether an aggressive deadline is feasible. When regular work schedules won’t meet the deadline, mandatory overtime might be the answer. Determine what a reasonable amount of overtime is, given the type of work performed in your organization. Then, calculate how much closer that overtime gets you to the deadline. Share the benefits and what you consider a reasonable level of overtime with your sponsor. If your sponsor pushes for more overtime, talk about the risks that presents: errors, reduced productivity and/or increased absenteeism due to fatigue.
  • Determine the average percentage of work time operational personnel dedicate to projects. Many critical project team members also have daily responsibilities that are crucial to the organization’s day-to-day business. Projects are “extra work” they must handle without affecting their day-to-day responsibilities. Calculate how much closer you can get to the aggressive deadline with more time from operational personnel. One way to get more time is to find others to cover their operational duties. Or you can re-prioritize their day-to-day work. Meet with your sponsor and propose reasonable re-prioritizations or backfills for operational personnel and how much that helps reach the deadline. Important note: Talk to the people’s managers in advance to see if this approach is feasible. You don’t want them blindsided by a request from your project sponsor.
  • Investigate tools or specialist contractors that can help complete tasks earlier. It’s unlikely that you can deliver a project faster than before using the same people and tools. Look for different project- or product-related tools that might shorten your project schedule. Search for specialist contractors who can produce products faster. If you find feasible options, determine the effect they could have on your schedule. Talk to your sponsor about these options and potential outcomes. Involve your sponsor in the analysis process. They might have ideas on changes that could deliver in a shorter timeframe.
  • Determine if there are new, innovative approaches to completing tasks. If there are possibilities, talk to your sponsor about additional funding. You can use this funding to do research and/or proof-of-concept testing on different techniques. This might not only help achieve your current project deadline, but could be helpful for future projects as well.

Every project manager has a story to tell about aggressive deadlines. Share your experiences, successes, failures, and questions in the comments section.

For more about deadlines, check out my Project Management Foundations: Schedules course.

Coming Up

Do you have questions about careers in project management? Will I like being a project manager? What skills do I need? What about education? How do I get experience? Are certifications worth it and what do I need to do to earn them? What are the possible career paths? Chris Croft and Bonnie Biafore co-authored the course How to Launch a Career in Project Management to answer all these questions – and many more. For this Office Hours event, we want you to watch the course FIRST. Then, if you still have questions, join Chris Croft and me on Wednesday, Oct 11, 2023 at 9am MT for this live Office Hours event to ask questions we didn’t answer.

No excuses! Here’s a link to watch the course for free: https://tinyurl.com/how-to-launch-career-in-PM

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 48,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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What If You Feel Lonely as a PM

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What If You Feel Lonely as a PMIf you’re feeling lonely or isolated as a project manager, you aren’t alone (pun intended.) Overcoming that feeling is a balance between professional effectiveness and personal relationships. You also have to be intentional and apply some practical steps. Here are a few things you can do:

  • Leverage the decision-making process. Decision-making and resolving issues are often done alone in your office. But there’s an opportunity to connect and interact with others in the decision-making process. You need to consult with key stakeholders. You have to collect information and then analyze it with your team and/or sponsor. This big picture view of decision-making will remind you that other people contribute to the process – you don’t have to handle decisions completely on your own.
  • Be a part of your team. As project manager, you don’t have to stand apart from the team. Yes, you do need to be impartial and not favor one team member over another. But you can work closely with team members. Develop strong relationships with the team and figure out how you can help them grow. Collaborate with them in a supportive way when that will help get tasks done. Invite them to collaborate with you on project management tasks. (That will save you time, allow you to delegate if you’re behind on your work, and help you overcome that feeling of being disconnected.)
  • Take pride in the products you’re producing. As project manager, you contribute to products that help your organization. You might not get attention while products are being produced, which is a good thing. It means you’ve earned independence! The lack of attention might make you feel left out, ignored. Do some soul searching. Do you feel isolated when you think about the products you’re working on? If so, you need to get feedback or validation. Schedule a progress review with your sponsor and/or key stakeholders.
  • Work on your team environment. Work doesn’t always have to be toil. Include short social events in your project environment. This not only helps the team work better together, but it can also address the disconnected feeling. Virtual coffees, lunches as a team, or small award ceremonies when milestones are reached. You’ll feel more connected as you improve team dynamics.
  • Network with other project managers. There is no need to deal with everything alone! You aren’t the only project manager, and not the only one feeling isolated at times. Find a mentor. Talk to other project managers. You’re bound to find people who understand what you’re going through.

If you have tips, anecdotes, or questions about building connections, share with us in the comments. And if you’re looking for a community of project managers, join one or more of the project management-related groups on LinkedIn.

Coming Up

Do you have questions about careers in project management? Will I like being a project manager? What skills do I need? What about education? How do I get experience? Are certifications worth it and what do I need to do to earn them? What are the possible career paths? Chris Croft and Bonnie Biafore co-authored the course How to Launch a Career in Project Management to answer all these questions – and many more. For this Office Hours event, we want you to watch the course FIRST. Then, if you still have questions, join Chris Croft and me on Wednesday, Oct 11, 2023 at 9am MT for this live Office Hours event to ask questions we didn’t answer.

No excuses! Here’s a link to watch the course for free: https://tinyurl.com/how-to-launch-career-in-PM

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 47,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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PM Power Tool: Leveraging Delegation

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PM Power Tool: Leveraging Delegation Do you want to expand your capability to manage more projects? You can by delegating! But delegation can be scary, because you’re releasing control to others. With the right attitude and activities, delegation can become your go-to tool that isn’t so scary. Here are the best ways to make delegation work for you as a project manager.

  • Pick the right team member. Sure, it’s easy when a team member is experienced in what you want to delegate. Usually, you have to decide whether a team member has the skill and judgment to perform the delegated responsibility. Consider their desire to grow, their ambition, and the stakeholder relationships needed to complete the task. When your team member has good relationships and the right attitude, delegation goes better. 
  • Clearly define the assignment and completion criteria. Determine exactly what you want from your team member. This includes the deliverables and your definition of successful results. Successful delegation might mean saving you time or it could be applying more specific technical expertise than you have. Keep in mind, you might be able to tackle the task more easily or faster, but that isn’t the point. Determine what you need, which is not necessarily the same level of quality you yourself would produce. Also, decide what you would like your team member to learn or experience from the delegation. Communicate all this with your team member, and you’ll increase your probability of success.
  • Discuss the approach to completing the task, while allowing flexibility. In some cases, delegated responsibility requires a specific process. In other instances, you may have a preferred approach. Share that approach in your delegation conversation. If there is flexibility in how to accomplish the assignment, then encourage your team member to take the approach they’re comfortable with and/or learn as much as they can from the delegation.
  • Provide necessary resources and authority. Think about what your team member might need or benefit from for the assignment. This goes beyond access to tools and data. For example, introduce your team member to key stakeholders. Notify the team and stakeholders about the authority you are delegating to your team member. And finally, arrange for access to key experts.
  • Allocate time to support your team member. Delegation isn’t a “set it and forget it” exercise. The best delegators prepare to guide their team member to help them succeed. Schedule frequent check-in meetings with them and reserve the time in your calendar. Review their progress and examine any interim deliverables. You can reduce the meeting frequency if they make suitable progress. Be responsive to impromptu questions and provide tips along the way. This not only increases the success of the delegation, but also increases your team member’s confidence in their ability to complete their responsibilities to your satisfaction.

Follow these tips and delegation will become your PM power tool to expand your accomplishments and those of your team!

Delegation is both powerful and scary. What techniques have you used to make delegation work for you – and to make it less scary to apply?

For more about working with team members, check out Daniel Stanton’s Project Management Foundations: Teams course.

Coming Up

Do you have questions about careers in project management? Will I like being a project manager? What skills do I need? What about education? How do I get experience? Are certifications worth it and what do I need to do to earn them? What are the possible career paths? Chris Croft and Bonnie Biafore co-authored the course How to Launch a Career in Project Management to answer all these questions – and many more. For this Office Hours event, we want you to watch the course FIRST. Then, if you still have questions, join us in this event to ask questions we didn’t answer.

No excuses! Here’s a link to watch the course for free: https://tinyurl.com/how-to-launch-career-in-PM

____________________________________________________________________________

This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 46,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Recognize Constructive Conflict

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Recognize Constructive Conflict

Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash

Conflict isn’t fun for most people. Emotions are high and substantial outcomes could be at risk for both business and stakeholder relationships. Constructive conflict can be beneficial and should be used, instead of being suppressed. Here’s how to recognize constructive stakeholder conflict. 

  • The issue and intended outcome are clear. Conflicts that improve project outcomes have a common characteristic: the issue and desired outcome that are the source of the conflict are well-defined and understood by all parties. Only in that case can discussion lead to an agreeable and lasting resolution. I’ve seen a conflict where a marketing director was arguing for more money to boost sales and the CFO was arguing to reduce costs. When the discussion started, neither senior leader was focused on what was better for the business. When they finally agreed on the best outcome for the business (overall profit), they were able to make constructive progress on resolving their conflict. 
  • People share and respect truths. The best outcomes come when people involved in a conflict recognize and respect the viewpoints of all parties. Constructive conflicts are an opportunity for people to share their experiences in an open and non-judgemental way. If anyone in the discussion ignores others’ opinions or experiences, conflict resolution isn’t likely. Make sure that everyone can share their specific experiences and explain how they relate to the issue under discussion. Provide time for questions to ensure that everyone understands the context of others’ experiences and viewpoints. The best outcomes come about when stakeholders spend time collecting experiences and viewpoints to consider and then use that combined experience to make a decision .
  • Emotions are recognized but aren’t the focus of the conflict. It’s important to recognize that stakeholders’ emotions could be triggered during the discussion. Recognizing and acknowledging those emotions (without making them the central theme of the discussion) leads to the best outcomes. It also ensures the discussion focuses on the appropriate issues, not personalities. Here’s an example of a statement that recognizes emotion while guiding the discussion toward the central issue. “I sense that this situation is making you nervous, and that’s understandable. What is the business situation that concerns you the most so we can focus our discussion on a solution that addresses that situation?”
  • The conflict resolution has no strings attached. Constructive conflicts produce a resolution that is agreeable to everyone without anyone owing anything to anyone else. Everyone can walk away satisfied, knowing that the next time an issue arises, a level playing field exists for all stakeholders involved. Here’s an example of an attached string: “Ok, I’ll agree to this, but next time we discuss something I want more funding for my budget.” That doesn’t close the conflict, is not really constructive, and will lead to less than ideal outcomes.
  • A process to measure success considers all viewpoints and is agreed to by everyone. Constructive conflicts end with an agreed-to resolution and a method for measuring whether the resolution was successful. The metrics should be focused on the issues or concerns stakeholders brought to the conflict. For example, a stakeholder agrees to a resolution but is concerned that it might increase costs for a part of the project. You should include separate cost tracking measures to focus on those expenditures. This demonstrates support for the stakeholders and confirmation that their concerns are valid.

Extra credit if you realize that this article includes hints for ways to turn an unconstructive conflict into a constructive one. Share your examples of the constructive conflicts you’re experienced – or tips for making discussions more constructive.

For more about dealing with conflict, check out the Develop Conflict Management Skills learning path.

Coming Up

I finished recording the update to my Advanced Microsoft Project course and I’m really excited about it. The videos are more to the point, and the course has a new, more substantial example project. It should be out in a few months!

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 46,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Make Your Project a Positive Place to Work

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Make Your Project a Positive Place to Work

Photo by Zach Lucero on Unsplash

You’ve probably heard “the leader sets the tone.” This tone is all about the environment you create for your project team. Here are things you can do – TODAY – to make your project a positive (and attractive) place to work. And that helps you make your project a success.

  • Receive news, both good and bad, with a constructive attitude. Managing a project means understanding the news: task completions, delays, stakeholder conversations, new ideas, and conflicts. To understand the news, you need to hear about it. And that happens only if you support your teams. Make it difficult or unpleasant for team members to share news with you (think of the phrase “shooting the messenger”) and you won’t know what’s happening on your project. Thank people who share information, whether it’s good or bad. That way, you can respond proactively to project issues, instead of reacting to the truth bomb a key stakeholder drops in your office because your team didn’t share the issue with you.
  • Build a team. Yes, even for a short project. Come up with a team name — not the project business name. (Nobody wants to work on the Amalgamated Velcro Production and Efficiency Management Project…but they might enjoy being on the “Better Rip and Stick” team!) Act as if YOU are part of the team (because you are) and promote teamwork to get tasks done. Share accountability. Celebrate little victories. You’ll get dedicated team members who will want to work with you…now and in the future.
  • Make sure team members understand the business relevance of their tasks. Team members will be more engaged when they know how their work packages fit into the big picture. The work is more meaningful and more satisfying to them! Talking about the purpose of tasks can also decrease errors. Team members will raise potential issues more readily when they understand the context of their work. You’ll get better deliverables and more dedication from your team.
  • Help team members feel like they belong. A diverse team is good, but that’s only step one. Include all your team members in decision-making and planning your project. Beyond that, take time to understand who they are, what goals they have, and what project experiences will be most meaningful to them. Help them achieve those goals when possible.

What tips do you have for building a positive project environment? What benefits have you gained from offering team members a positive environment to work in?

For more about working with teams, check out Daniel Stanton’s Project Management Foundations: Teams course.

Coming Up

Join Chris Croft and me on August 22, 2023, at 9am MT for our live broadcast “Do You Need Project Management Certifications, and If So, Which Ones?”

One of the most frequent questions Chris Croft and I get is “Do I need project management certification?” quickly followed by “Which certification or certifications should I get?” Everyone’s journey is different, just like Chris and I took very different paths. So, we’re going to explore whether project management certifications are valuable, what else you can do to make yourself stand out, and finally, which certifications to look at if you decide you need them. Bring your questions to this informative and fun session. By the way, this topic is just one that we explore in our new course, How to Launch a Career in Project Management. 

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 45,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Learning to Love Project Constraints

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Learning to Love Project Constraints

Photo by Kevin Ku on Upsplash

Limited budgets, required scope, hard and fast deadlines, and quality standards. These constraints make project delivery challenging! Wouldn’t it be great to manage projects without the pressure of constraints? Not so fast. Here’s how constraints help us deliver our projects. 

  • Budgets drive perceived value. A non-profit I volunteered for used to hold an intro training session free of charge. People would sign up and then no-show. When we began charging $5 for the session, the same number of people would sign up and show up! Likewise, an unlimited budget for producing project deliverables might lead to stakeholders taking what we deliver for granted. We would get endless change requests to add more functions and capabilities to our deliverables. Completing a project would become a minor miracle!
  • Scope guides us to the finish line. Without a well-defined scope, we would never know when we were finished. New business demands could lead to endless mandatory requirements. Sure, we want to be responsive to new business demands. We also need to deliver and stabilize products before addressing additional requirements. In an agile environment, you can do this promptly, but not if delivered features aren’t yet working as intended. Scope definition and management helps us ensure business capability moves forward in a stable fashion. Leaps in capability are limited to what stakeholders can absorb, and organizational change management can be effective.
  • Deadlines drive priorities and project staffing. How many times have you had staff start working on tasks at the last minute? When operational personnel step out of their day-to-day roles to work on projects, the organization struggles to deal with their absence. So, managers try to avoid that stress as long as possible. Without managed schedules and deadlines, getting staff for project work would become even more difficult than it already is. We need deadlines to set expectations for when business change will occur and to prioritize staff assignments.
  • Quality standards guide task definition and testing criteria. The quality needs of stakeholders helps define project activities. And those activities vary based on the quality required. Without quality standards, we can’t be confident that we have appropriate tasks and test plans. For example, word-processing software doesn’t require perfection. A glitch in a word processor isn’t likely to cause significant risk or expense. In contrast, an anomaly in air traffic control software could be devastating on people’s lives. Therefore, an air traffic control systems requires more testing and performance verification tasks, driven by the need for quality. 

What other reasons have you found to love project constraints? Share with us in the comments section.

For more about project constraints, check out my Project Management Foundations course.

Coming Up

Join Chris Croft and me on August 22, 2023, at 9am MT for our live broadcast “Do You Need Project Management Certifications, and If So, Which Ones?”

One of the most frequent questions Chris Croft and I get is “Do I need project management certification?” quickly followed by “Which certification or certifications should I get?” Everyone’s journey is different, just like Chris and I took very different paths. So, we’re going to explore whether project management certifications are valuable, what else you can do to make yourself stand out, and finally, which certifications to look at if you decide you need them. Bring your questions to this informative and fun session. By the way, this topic is just one that we explore in our new course, How to Launch a Career in Project Management. 

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 44,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

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