Five Tips for Managing Successful Projects
(Originally posted on LinkedIn)
Communication is Key
If you're responsible for leading a project, the success or failure of that project likely falls on your shoulders. However, there's a good chance you're depending on other people to execute on tasks and strategies that will lead to the projects' success, so it's important to keep everyone informed and united! By over-communicating with all project stake-holders, you reduce the risk of confusion and delays and will have a much better chance of keeping your project on track. Project kick-off meetings and consistent project update huddles are a great way to do this.
The Devil's in the Details
Communicating the overall project scope and timeline is very important, but it's just as important to clearly define each stakeholder's role and responsibility within the project. Get your team members engaged and make sure they're 100% clear and on-board with what is expected of them from the very beginning. Putting their responsibilities, milestones, and timelines in writing is a great way to do this as well!
Be Flexible
When taking on a large project, your desired result will likely stay firm, but the way you get to that result will likely shift as the project progresses. If the original plan isn't working, be flexible enough to look at alternative routes and communicate all changes clearly with those affected and/or responsible. If you set the stage with your project team early on, they will know to expect potential pivoting and your change-management challenges will be much less disruptive.
Manage Risks
Successful project management entails risk management. Foreseeing imminent risk is important so that corrective action can be taken. Identify project risks at the start of the project and you'll have a better chance of controlling them before they get out of hand.
Document Everything
Your project management strategies will often spring from your experience and knowledge. Having all project-related data in a single place can help you leverage this past knowledge to deal with future issues. Think of consolidating all project-related information into a centralized knowledge base. Anyone working in project management related roles should be able to freely access this information and add updates, notes, etc.