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Project Management in Any Industry Software teams in niche industries may think they require a project manager with expertise in their domain. Good project managers can anticipate and address the primary considerations for any project, regardless of industry, but if you encounter a skeptic, here’s a generic template you can use to pitch any project. |
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Be Careful What You Ask For: Contract Considerations for New Projects In a new project, there are always going to be challenges and delays, and when the end date is looming, you may be tempted to rush through the contracting and procurement process. But that can have dire consequences down the line if roles, responsibilities, and expectations aren't clear. Take the time to communicate. |
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The Risk of Overemphasizing Risks We are trained to identify and evaluate risks. This prevents teams from making decisions that are unlikely to work, saving time and money and helping the team move forward. However, a risk-avoidance mindset can also stop progress. Successful agile teams see risks as ways of starting a conversation, not stopping it. |
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Refining Your Scrum Planning Meetings Scrum events are meant to be productive opportunities for collaboration that replace more tedious, wasteful meetings. If you find your planning meetings becoming passive events where no one is asking questions or actively seeking to understand the backlog, the problem might be in the execution or the preparation. |
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A Checklist for Managing Go-Live Decisions and Risks If you have to replace a complex existing data system in production, decisions about when and whether to go live should be treated with gravity and care. One process that can help keep you honest is developing checklists that describe very clearly what is expected to be accomplished and verified at each milestone. |
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A Primer for IT Project Sponsors: 10 Steps for Success Much time has been spent examining the project manager’s role in IT project success, but the role and duties of project sponsors are often overlooked—even though sponsors are an essential element of success (and failure). Here are ten rights and obligations a project sponsor should perform to improve project success. |
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Stress and Project Management: 5 Ways to Relieve Project Pressure Project managers have many sources of stress. They are responsible for the performance of their team members, and often for whether a project is successful or fails. Keep the pressure off with these five tips for reducing your stress and ensure a smoothly functioning team. |
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Slow Down to Speed Up Have you ever heard someone say, “How is it we never have time to do it right but we always have time to do it over?” When we rush to complete work, that's often when errors happen. It may seem counterintuitive, but slowing down may be one of the best ways to get the job done quickly—and right the first time. |