Ten steps to successful project management

T O SUCCESSFU L

Project TJ

Managemen t H

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Includes CD-ROM

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L o u Russell

1 0 STEP S T O SUCCESSFU L

PROJEC T MANAGEMEN T

Managing projects (and your personal

life for that matter) is not easy.

Despite best efforts, not everything goes

exactly according to plan. According

to author Lou Russell, president and CEO

of Russell Martin & Associates, project

management is nearer art than technical

skill and requires effective communica￾tion and a collaborative spirit to get the job

done. With her pragmatic yet lighthearted

approach, she presents dozens of checklists,

diagramming techniques, models,

and processes to help you along the way.

In addition to these useful tools, Russell

provides you with a proven project

management model—the Dare model

(Dare to Properly Manage Resources) —

that will enable you quickly to assess,

plan, manage, and learn from every project

you do. In the end, Russell counsels that

no foolproof and reproducible method

exists for project managers at any

experience level. "Every project is unique,"

she writes, "and every one will present you

with something you've never had to deal

with before."The message is clear for any￾one charged with managing a project￾plan well, but above all, be flexible.

That, according to Russell, is the formula

for guaranteed success.

1 0 STEP S T O

Successfu l

Projec t

Managemen t

L o u Russel l

DAI HQC THAI NGUYEN

TRUNGTAM HOC LIEU

VAST D

PRESS

Alexandria , Virginia

®April 2007 by the American Society for Training & Development.

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CONTENT S

Preface v

Introduction 1

STEP ONE Decide If You Have a Real Project to Manage 15

STEP TWO Prove Your Project Is Worth Your Time 31

STEP THREE Manage Scope Creep 45

STEP FOUR Identify, Rate, and Manage Risks 65

STEP FIVE Collaborate Successfully 89

STEP Six Gather Your Team and Make a Schedule 117

STEP SEVEN Adjust Your Schedule 151

STEP EIGHT Embrace the Natural Chaos of People 177

STEP NINE Know When You're Done 197

STEP TEN Follow Up to Learn Lessons 213

Conclusion 231

Appendix 235

Resources 242

Index 245

About the Author 248

1 0 STEP S T O SUCCES S

Let's face it, most people spend their days in chaotic, fast-paced, time- and

resource-strained organizations. Finding time for just one more project, as￾signment, or even learning opportunity—no matter how career enhancing or

useful—is difficult to imagine. The 10 Steps series is designed for today's

busy professional who needs advice and guidance on a wide array of topics

ranging from project management to people management, from business

planning strategy to decision making and time management, from retum-on￾investment to conducting organizational surveys and questionnaires. Each

book in this ASTD series promises to take its readers on a journey to basic

understanding, with practical application the ultimate destination. This is

truly a just-tell-me-what-to-do-now series. You will find action-driven lan￾guage teamed with examples, worksheets, case studies, and tools to help you

quickly implement the right steps and chart a path to your own success. The

10 Steps series will appeal to a broad business audience from middle man￾agers to upper-level management. Workplace learning and human resource

professionals along with other professionals seeking to improve their value

proposition in their organizations will find these books a great resource.