The value of project management

The value of project management

In 2009 Project Management Institute completed a broad research project that confirmed the value of project management when applied in companies worldwide. Although the results of the research were not a surprise to those of us who are involved with projects on a daily basis, we nevertheless often encounter companies in real life who do not embrace the value of project management and view project management as unnecessary bureaucracy. This article will present two examples of projects that were implemented each in a different environment: one where project management was highly valued and one where project management was rejected as an additional expense. Comparing the success of each of the two projects supports the research finding that project management has value. Using results of the comparison of success of each project we present arguments that may be used when trying to sell the value of project management to executive management. -- International Conference on Organizational Science Development, March 24 – 26, 2010...
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Introducing agile methodologies for project management

Introducing agile methodologies for project management

In traditional project management we should know the scope, cost and schedule of our projects. But in reality we often don't know all the details about scope, therefore we can't estimate the project cost in schedule. Agile methodologies have been introduced to deliver quick results and allow the project to address the real needs of the stakeholders. -- Paper presented at ZPM Forum June 3 – 5, 2009....
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Managing projects in Europe and Africa: What can we learn from each other?

Managing projects in Europe and Africa: What can we learn from each other?

Managing projects made up of international teams presents unique challenges in terms of communication, collaboration and managing stakeholder expectations. Being able to adapt to local custom is key in reaching successful outcomes, however, when a project team is made up of individuals from different parts of the world it is unclear which local custom to favor. -- Paper presented at PMI Global Congress EMEA Malta, 19.5. – 21.5.2008....
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Reducing the burden on IT developers

Reducing the burden on IT developers

  IT developers are often overworked, tired, stressed and required to work long hours. There are always new requirements to be implemented, bugs to be fixed and too many urgent tasks to be completed at the same time. Considering that developers must also take care of their professional development in order to keep up with current IT trends, accomplishing all of the above becomes mission impossible. This article looks at ways organizations can better plan developers' time. -- Article published in Sistem July-August 2007, str. 8-9....
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Understanding the success of conversion to Euro projects

Understanding the success of conversion to Euro projects

Lessons learned from conversion to Euro projects show that they were all successful, were completed on time and they achieved expected results without any major issues. Comparing this to the general perception that IT projects are always late, exceed budgets or run into trouble we have to wonder what was different in conversion to Euro projects to make them so uncharacteristically successful. -- Article published in Sistem June 2007, p. 22-23....
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Jan Korevaar Outstanding Paper Award

Jan Korevaar Outstanding Paper Award

I was the recipient of the 2006 Jan Korevaar Outstanding Paper Award at the 5th ICEC World Congress, held in Ljubljana, Slovenia in May 2006. The title of my paper was Implementing Earned Value Management on IT Projects. The International Cost Engineering Council initiated the Jan Korevaar Outstanding Paper Award to recognize the paper chosen by Congress delegates through their evaluations as the outstanding paper presented at each International Cost Engineering Congress. The award was created in memory of Jan Korevaar, Executive Director of the Dutch Association of Cost Engineers and Assistant Secretary of ICEC for many years....
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Implementing Earned Value Management on IT Projects

Implementing Earned Value Management on IT Projects

Many IT projects do not meet schedule, cost or scope constraints. Trouble is often not recognized due to insufficient procedures and non-existing control mechanisms. According to PMI, Earned Value Management (EVM) is one of the most effective performance measurement and feedback tools for managing projects, enabling the project manager to expose troubles. -- Paper delivered at 1st ICEC & IPMA Global Congress on Project Management, 23.4. – 26.4.2006. ...
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Risks in data warehousing projects

Risks in data warehousing projects

A data warehousing project is not much different from a typical IT development project, facing similar risks and potential troubles. In data warehousing we often face the risk of too loosely defined requirements, bad quality of source data or poor performance. -- Paper delivered at Dnevi slovenske informatike 2004, Portorož, April 14 - 16, 2004....
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