Contents
Foreword
Introduction
Part One: Beginnings
- The Ten Steps to a Successful Project
- The Project Probability of Success Indicator (PSI)
- Why You Wouldn’t Cook Dinner Like You Do Projects
- Project Management is the Most Difficult Job in the World
Part Two: How To Run a Successful Project – Project Planning
- The One Thing You Shouldn’t Say When You Get Handed a Project [Step 1]
- If One Does Not Know to Which Port One is Sailing, no Wind is Favourable [Step 1]
- Boxes and Clouds [Step 1]
- What’s a Successful Project Anyway? [Step 1]
- Change Control [Steps 1 & 7]
- Work and Duration; Time [Step 2]
- Estimation – The Problem and How to Deal With It [Step 2]
- How to Estimate Anything Accurately [Step 2]
- The Project Budget [Step 2]
- Trail Bosses and Trail Bossing [Step 3]
- Supply and Demand Isn’t Just For Economists [Step 4]
- Availability – the Silent Killer of Projects [Step 4]
- What if Things Go Wrong? [Step 5(a)]
- Build a Plan in 6 Easy Steps [Steps 1-5(a)]
- Dealing with Constraints [Step 5(b)]
- Dealing with Impossible Projects and Irrational Stakeholders [Step 5(b)]
Part Three: How To Run a Successful Project – Project Execution
- Getting the Best Out of the Team [Step 6]
- Light Project Tracking [Step 7]
- Project Status Meetings (and How to Avoid Them) [Step 7]
- Light Status Reporting [Step 8]
- The 5-Minute Project Management Improvement Program [Step 10]
Part Four: The Incredibly Versatile Probability of Success Indicator
- The PSI Again or How to Assess a Project in 5 Minutes
- Use the PSI as a Project Dashboard
- Put the PSI on Status Reports
- Use the PSI for Project Status Meetings
- What to do if You Inherit a Project
- How to Rescue a Project
- 13 Signs That Your Project May be in Deep Trouble
Part Five: Running Multiple Projects
- The Problem
- Why Time Management Courses Don’t Work
- The Funnel and the Two Filters
- Filter #1 Learning to Prioritise Viciously
- Filter #1 Practising Prioritising Viciously
- Filter #2 A Little Planning Beats a Lot of Firefighting
- The Power of Doing Less
Part Six: How To Run Successful Projects in Half The Time – Fast Projects
- Days Are Different
- How Is It Possible?
- Why Don’t More People Do it?
- The Fast Projects Process and How It’s Different
- The Critical Path
- Three Simple Ways to Shorten Your Project
- How to Scope and Plan a Project – Even a Big One – in a Day
- The Ultimate Way to Shorten a Project – Use a Strip Board
- Mission Briefings
Part Seven: Project Management and Your Organisation
- Multitasking is Disastrous for Productivity – So Why Does Everybody Do It?
- Is This How Your Organisation is Run? – Capacity Planning