No matter the industry or size of the project, every project manager is tasked with juggling multiple day-to-day operations. Even small-scale projects can be complex, comprised of hundreds of cross-functional activities that need to be executed under tight timelines with budgets at stake. As a project manager, you’re a change agent working with your team….

1999. October 29. A super cyclone measuring 160 mph hit Gopalpur in Odisha, a coastal state of India, with horrifying fury. It resulted over 10,000 people losing their lives and over $US4 billion in damages. The devastation caused was barely reported. In fact, little is known about the event, but it changed the way India…

Dear Elizabeth: I’m in a bit of a pickle. The project I’m currently managing is not going to make the delivery date because a handful of developers got moved to another project. But my boss has told me not to say anything to the client—yet. Well a week has gone by, and the client keeps…

Imagine the following scenario. You are in charge of managing a big match in a stadium. The venue can hold over 100,000 people. The audience is as passionate about watching, as their favorite players are about playing. Any untoward incident can create problems. You want to have the security, monitoring, and all other aspects of…

Dear Elizabeth: I work on a project team for a manufacturing company. For the last year, we’ve been using ranged estimates to build out our schedules. For the most part, our customers love it. We have one customer who is putting up a fight, saying they want a hard deadline. How do we convince them…

Project Management Institute (PMI)® Professional Development Units (PDUs): This Webinar is eligible for 1 PMI® PDU in the Technical category of the Talent Triangle. Event Description: Many clients are now demanding proposals include a schedule risk assessment and the more savvy are requesting forecast dates be presented at, for example, 80% levels of confidence.  What…

Introduction Many clients are now demanding that proposals include a schedule risk assessment, and the more savvy are requesting forecast dates be presented at, for example, 80% levels of confidence. What does this mean? And how much effort will be involved to produce these deliverables? The following article will focus on how to satisfy these…

Project Management Institute (PMI)® Professional Development Units (PDUs): This Webinar is eligible for 1 PMI® PDU in the Technical category of the Talent Triangle. Event Description: Join MPUG author Daryl Deffler as he journeys through his latest series of articles on Resource Leveling. Slide Deck: MPUG Project 2013 Resource Leveling Part I Watch Part Two Read Daryl’s articles…

Project Management Professionals and Microsoft-certified individuals are committed to the quality and continuity of a project’s process and progress. While we must salute their passionate tenacity during the most complex challenges, we must also acknowledge that the health of any project may well be determined by the enthusiasm (or lack thereof) from supervisory or executive…

Welcome back to our series on Resource Leveling! Thus far, we’ve been focused on the technical aspects of leveling, concentrated on establishing a core understanding of the leveling hierarchy, the leveling options and leveling limitations. With this foundation in place, the series will now change gears and cover the leveling process. Preparing to Level How…