Strategic Project Management Made... | Buy

Summary

When Fortune Magazine estimated that 70% of all strategies fail, it also noted that most of these strategies were basically sound, but could not be executed. The central premise of Strategic Project Management Made Simple is that most projects and strategies never get off the ground because of adhoc, haphazard, and obsolete methods used to turn their ideas into coherent and actionable plans. Strategic Project Management Made Simple is the first book to couple a step-by-step process with an interactive thinking tool that takes a strategic approach to designing projects and action initiatives. Strategic Project Management Made Simple builds a solid platform upon four critical questions that are vital for teams to intelligently answer in order to create their own strong, strategic foundation. These questions are: 1. What are we trying to accomplish and why? 2. How will we measure success? 3. What other conditions must exist? 4. How do we get there? This fresh approach begins with clearly understanding the what and why of a project - comprehending the bigger picture goals that are often given only lip service or cursory reviews. The second and third questions clarify success measures and identify the risky assumptions that can later cause pain if not spotted early. The how questions - what are the activities, budgets, and schedules - comes last in our four-question system. By contrast, most project approaches prematurely concentrate on the how without first adequately addressing the three other questions. These four questions guide readers into fleshing out a simple, yet sophisticated, mental workbench called "the Logical Framework" - a Systems Thinking paradigm that lays out one's own project strategy in an easily accessible, interactive 4x4 matrix. The inclusion of memorable features and concepts (four critical questions, LogFrame matrix, If-then thinking, and Implementation Equation) make this book unique.

Acknowledgements
Introduction
Why I Wrote This Book
Getting the Most from This Book
Three Logical Parts
Are You Strategic?
Thinking Outside the bar Chart
Tackling the big Hairy Issues
Mastering Strategic Project Management
Start Smart
Lessons Learned Along the Way
Why Read This book?
Beware These Six Dangerous Planning Mistakes
Key Point review
Building Strong Project backbones
Asking the Four Critical Strategic Questions
Concepts from the Cornfield
Making Strategy Simple
Test Your Strategic If-Then IQ
Sorting Out Your Objectives
Organizing Multiple Objectives Into Trees
Key Points Review
Introducing the Logical Framework
The Best Solutions Tool You'll Ever Find
Systems Thinking: Conceptual Foundation o the Logical Framework
Tackling the Four Critical Strategic Questions
Grab a Front-Row Workshop Seat
Ingredients of the Grid
Key Points Review
Aligning Projects With Strategic Intent
Strategy in a Nutshell
Juggling Portfolios and Programs
Managing Multiple Bottom Lines
Quick and Clean Strategic Planning at Any Level
Eight Logical Planning Steps
Key Points review
Mastering the Four Critical Strategic Questions
Question #1 - What Are We trying to Accomplish and Why?
Shoot for the Moon
Linking Objectives Into Logical Levels
Turning a Problem Into a Set of Objectives
Terry's Tips for Clear Objectives
Exploring Distinctions Among LogFrame Levels
Sculpting Your Project Masterpiece
Key Points review
Application Step #1
Question #2 - How Do We Measure Success?
Winning The peace After Winning the War
Four Tips for Meaningful Measures
Measures Sharpen Vague Objectives
Managing Complex Enterprise-Wide Change
Special Situations Demand Special Measures
Key Points Review
Applications Step #2
Question #3 - What Other Conditions Must Exist?
The Whoops Hall of Shame
Spotting Trouble Before It Comes
How the Log Frame Accommodates Assumptions
Three Steps for Managing Assumptions
Making Fine Point Distinctions
Key Points review
Application Step #3
Question #4 - How Do We get there?
The Ancient Project that Saved the World
Chunking 101
Organizing Inputs: Nitty Gritty Project Planning
Clarify Resource requirements
Make Responsibility Clear to All
Applying Schmidt's Law of Planning Density
Defining the Next Action Step
Key Points Review
Application Step #4
Putting The Concepts Into Action
Managing the Strategic Action Cycle
Taking a "Cycle-Logical" Approach
Three Types of Assessment
Type One Assessment: Project Monitoring
Type Two Assessment: Project Status review
Type Three Assessment: Project Evaluation
Celebrating Success
LogFrame Limitations and Best Practices
Key Points review
Managing the People Dynamics
The Heart and Soul of Projects
Engaging Your Key Stakeholders
Building Your Own Dream Team
Creating Shared Norms for High Performance
Sharpening Your Emotional Intelligence
Techniques for Increasing Your Emotional Intelligence
Key Points Review
Applying These Ideas In Your World
Exploring a Dozen Dynamic Directions
Terry's Tips for Doing the Project RAP (Rapid Action Planning)
Facilitating by Yourself
Taking Strategic Action Now
Appendix : reference Tools and Resources
Blank Logical Framework Grid
Logical Framework Quality Checklist
Logical Framework Application Case Studies
Ongoing Support and Services
Glossary and Usage of Terms
About the Author
Index
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