What Executives Need to Know About Project Management

Preface ix

Acknowledgments xiii

International Institute for Learning, Inc. (IIL) xv

Chapter 1: PROJECT MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES 1

The Triple Constraint 2

Types of Project Resources 4

Chapter 2: THE EVOLUTION OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT 7

Evolution 8

Project Objectives 10

Definition of Success 12

Velocity of Change 14

Authority and Job Descriptions 16

Evaluation of Team Members 18

Accountability 20

Project Management Skills 22

Management Style 24

Project Sponsorship 26

Project Failures 28

Improvement Opportunities 30

Resistance to Change 32

Chapter 3: THE BENEFITS OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT 35

Benefits 36

Quantifying the Benefits 60

Chapter 4: THREE CORE BEST PRACTICES 63

The First Best Practice 64

The Second Best Practice 66

The Third Best Practice 68

Chapter 5: ROLE OF THE EXECUTIVE AS A PROJECT SPONSOR 71

How Executives Interface Projects 72

The Executive Sponsor’s Role 74

Chapter 6: SPECIAL PROBLEMS FACING EXECUTIVES 185

Pushing Sponsorship Down 186

Committee Sponsorship 190

Handling Disagreements with the Sponsor 192

Knowing When to Seek Out the Project Sponsor for Help 194

Types of Sponsor Involvement 196

Placating the (External) Customers 198

Gate Review Meetings 200

Sponsorship Problems 202

The Exit Champion 204

Should a Sponsor Have a Vested Interest? 206

Project Champions versus Exit Champions 208

The Collective Belief 210

Advertising Sponsorship 212

Working with the On-Site Representatives 214

Kickoff Meetings for Projects 216

Taking the Lead 218

Rewarding Project Teams 220

Enterprise Project Management 222

Executive Involvement (with Trade-offs) 224

Chapter 7: NEW CHALLENGES FACING SENIOR MANAGEMENT 227

Measuring Project Management Success after Implementation 228

Success 230

Types of Values 232

Four Cornerstones of Success 234

Success versus Failure 236

High-Level Progress Reporting 238

Validating the Assumptions 240

Accelerating Projects 242

Project Manager Selection 244

Delegation of Authority 246

Visible Support 248

Channels of Communication 250

Avoid Buy-ins 252

Budgeting 254

Working Relationships 256

Chapter 8: ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES FOR EXECUTIVES 259

The New Role for Executives 260

Activities for a Project Management Office 268

The Executive Interface 270

Expectations 272

A Structured Path to Maturity 276

An Unstructured Path to Maturity 278

Conclusions 280

Index 283