Program 'Practical Project Management'

About This Program

This training program is the result of over 10 years of experience in project management. It moves past textbook theories to deliver practical tools and actionable advice for creating real value from your projects.

This is a proposed approach that will be customized for your organization. We will begin with a diagnostic to understand your specific needs, objectives, and goals, and then tailor the program to best suit your team.

Topics

• Proactive Planning and Adaptability: Learn to anticipate project needs, embrace change, and balance meticulous planning with agile execution.

• Navigating Organizational Dynamics: Master the art of managing unspoken priorities, hidden agendas, and stakeholder relationships.

• Effective Communication and Influence: Develop the skills to communicate clearly, build trust, and lead teams without relying solely on formal authority.

• Mitigating Biases and Assumptions: Understand how cognitive biases affect decision-making and learn to challenge assumptions to ensure project objectivity.

• Delivering Strategic Value: Discover how to read between the lines of assumptions/requests/expectations, how to identify true sponsor needs, and how to deliver “augmented results” that exceed expectations.

Module #1: The Human-Centric Project Manager

This module focuses on the personal and interpersonal skills that define an effective project manager, emphasizing that the role is more about influence and adaptability than pure management.

Proactivity and Creativity

The project manager’s role requires a hands-on, curious, and creative approach. We will discuss why asking questions, running simulations, and exploring new methods are often more valuable than formal training.

The Myth of Flexibility

Debunking the idea that project management is a “flexible” career. We’ll explore how the work is tied to the schedules and needs of stakeholders and team members, requiring a different kind of discipline.

Manager as a Coach

The qualities of a great manager, including empowering teams, coaching for career development, and expressing genuine concern for team members’ well-being.

Navigating Conflict

Techniques for encouraging healthy, productive conflict and the various approaches to conflict resolution (e.g., confronting, compromising, avoiding).

Module #2: Unspoken Dynamics and Priorities

This module explores the hidden signals and political realities that shape project success, particularly in how priorities are set and communicated.

Understanding Priorities

Analyzing how real priorities often deviate from formal plans. We will cover how to read subtle cues from top management, such as a sudden increase in update requests or last-minute meeting changes, to anticipate and adapt to new priorities.

Meetings and Agendas

Every meeting has both an explicit agenda (the official discussion points) and a hidden agenda (underlying political or personal objectives). We will discuss how to track both to ensure all objectives are met and to navigate the project’s political landscape.

Meetings and Trust

Examining how a lack of trust can lead to inefficient, micromanaged meetings where no one can provide real value. We will discuss building a high-trust environment.

Module #3: Foundational Planning and Execution

This module covers the core tools and frameworks for project planning and execution, emphasizing a modular and proactive approach.

Think Slow, Act Fast

We will discuss how dedicating significant time and effort to thorough planning, followed by swift and decisive execution, helps deliver results more predictably.

Delegating Outcomes, Not Actions

A critical management skill is empowering team members by delegating responsibility for a desired outcome rather than just a specific action.

Modularity in Projects

Drawing on the concept from “How Big Things Get Done,” we’ll discuss the benefits of turning working procedures into documented, reusable “LEGO blocks” to improve efficiency and reduce turnover costs.

The Project Charter

A key planning document that defines a project’s purpose, scope, and objectives.

Stakeholder Management

A deep dive into identifying, analyzing, and engaging stakeholders. We’ll cover tools like the power/interest grid and the RACI matrix (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) to define roles and communication plans.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

The foundational planning tool for decomposing a project into manageable parts. We’ll discuss how to create a WBS that is detailed enough to be useful without becoming micromanagement.

Module #4: Advanced Prioritization and Documentation

This module provides an in-depth look at sophisticated prioritization techniques, behavioral biases, and documentation practices.

Behavioral Biases in Project Management

An overview of key biases such as optimism bias, the planning fallacy, and anchoring. We will discuss how to identify and mitigate them to make more objective decisions.

Prioritization and Decision Techniques

We will explore practical frameworks for making better decisions, including the 80/20 Rule, identifying bottlenecks, the 6-hats workshop, using ballpark estimates, and developing a “Theory of Change” to ensure your actions lead to your goals.

Documentation and Checklists

Exploring different documentation methods, such as Amazon’s 6-page narrative and the role of checklists. We’ll also challenge the conventional view of checklists, suggesting they can be a tool for growth by including tasks that push the team outside its comfort zone.

Quality Management

Defining and implementing a quality policy. This section will cover the importance of customer satisfaction, continuous improvement (Plan-Do-Check-Act), and management responsibility.

Lessons Learned

The importance of conducting a formal review at the end of a project to document successes, failures, and best practices for future projects.