Making It Happen : A Non-Technical Guide to Project Management

by Mackenzie Kyle

• ISBN13: 9780470737927
• ISBN10: 0470737921
• Format: eBook
• Copyright: 2009-12-01
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

Making It Happen: A Non-Technical Guide to Project Management provides a fresh and clear approach to project management. Written in the form of a novel, it covers the basics of project management in a friendly, interesting, and memorable way.Will Campbell, a reasonably competent middle manager, is suddenly thrust into managing a high-profile project that could make or break his career. With no project management experience, and armed only with the guidance of his eccentric menror, Martha, Will learns the hard way. As Will navigates the rough seas of company politics, treacherous competition, and a project swirling out of control, he narrowly evades many pitfalls, and masters some indispensable project management tools along the way.Against the backdrop of this personal drama, a simple, rational approach to project management unfolds. Will's ability to grasp these principles is the key to his survival, and could be the key to yours. Making It Happen enables the reader to transform risky, real-life situations into success. Provides a simple, non-technical approach, useful to any business person involved in teams or managing projects Offers practical tools and principles that will make any project a success: from office moves to product roll-outs, systems implementations to training program delivery, and everything in between Boxes, definitions, and charts highlight key points and practical project management tips.

Table of Contents

Preface

Genesis

Sink or Swim

Grasping the Scope

What is a Project?

The Team Meets

Sifting Through the Mess

Asking the Right Questions

Writing the Objective Statement

The Project Manager Faces the Board

The Project Team

The Team's Roles

Company Politics

The Design Phase

What is Design, and How Long Does it Take?

Organizing the Design Process

The User's Needs

Charts, Costs, and Other Puzzles

More Problems with Schedules

Execution Planning

Tasks

A Dependency Chart

Finding and Fixing Mistakes

Execution

Altering Plans

On a Crash Course

A New Assignment

The Review Process

Assessing Assignments

The Project Manager's Survival Manual

Recording the Fundamentals

New Frameworks

Checking Assumptions

Epilogue

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.