Project Leadership’s Post

If I had to manage a project with only one document, that document would be the project schedule. Think of the schedule as a map, a series of stepping stones leading you safely across a river. The key is to put all those stones in place BEFORE stepping out. The last thing you want is to find yourself stuck midway, realising you can't make it to the other side. That's when you're in the water! As the saying goes, if you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there. Take time to create the project schedule WITH THE TEAM, and remember there’s a right way and a wrong way to do it. Once it's ready, get it approved, display it prominently, communicate it widely, and keep it updated-it's a living document (there's a right and wrong way here too). Drill the next three weeks into your team’s heads, while keeping an eye on the bigger picture yourself, know the critical path, know the near-critical path, and understand that both may change. Use milestones and celebrate small wins when milestones are achieved, it keeps the team motivated and aligned toward the end goal. Remember, when others can see the plan, they can start making their own plans too! And easier said than done, but make sure it’s achievable. It’s unethical for a project manager to agree to a schedule they know can't be delivered.

Project management headaches? A strong brief could be the cure you’re looking for, especially when it comes to scope creep! Why it matters: Clear Vision: It captures the client's vision and minimises confusion. Alignment: Keeps everyone on the same page, ensuring a smooth workflow. On Track Delivery: Delivers projects on time, within budget, and meeting requirements. Want to ditch reworkings and project delays? Invest in a solid brief! Find out what else can be done to tackle scope creep - https://bit.ly/45PHWiD #projectmanagement #communication #scopecreep #brief

The Importance of Building Project Plans That Are Executable and Right-Sized Let’s face it: a project plan that looks great on paper but is impossible to execute in reality is worth nothing. When you’re leading a project, the plan has to be something the team can actually deliver—on time, within budget, and with the available resources. It’s not just about ambition, it’s about execution. Here’s why right-sized, executable project plans are critical: 🔑 1. Efficiency Wins Every Time An oversized, bloated plan drains time and energy. Focusing on what’s essential and trimming unnecessary complexities leads to smoother, faster execution. Streamlined plans get things done, and they get things done right. ⚖️ 2. Realistic Resource Alignment Plans need to be built around the reality of the resources at your disposal. If you’re pushing the limits of your team and budget, you’re not managing a project—you’re setting up a failure. Right-sized plans ensure that you’re using what you have wisely without burning people out or draining the budget. 🚀 3. Better Stakeholder Buy-In When stakeholders see a plan that’s realistic, they’re more likely to trust your judgment and commit. If your plan looks like a pipe dream, you’ll struggle to get their support, and worse, you might lose credibility along the way. A grounded plan gets everyone on the same page. 🛠️ 4. Flexibility for the Unexpected No project goes exactly as planned. If your plan is right-sized, you’ve left room for pivots and adjustments when the unexpected happens—without causing chaos. An executable plan includes margin for error, making it resilient under pressure. 🏁 5. Focus on Results, Not Paperwork The goal of a project isn’t to have a “perfect” plan—it’s to deliver results. By building plans that are executable, you keep your team focused on moving forward, not bogged down by tracking a mountain of tasks that don’t matter. 👉 Bottom line: A project plan is a roadmap, not a wish list. Get it tight, get it realistic, and make sure it’s built to be executed, not admired. In project management, execution is everything. Got a plan? Make sure it’s built to win, not just to look good. Share your thoughts. #ProjectManagement #GetShitDone #ExecutionMatters #ProjectPlanning #GSD #AerospaceCowboy

The first step towards project success begins with meticulous planning. Without a solid plan, a project's execution can quickly become chaotic and unmanageable. Plans must cover everything from tasks to be undertaken, resource allocation, scheduling, risk mitigation, and clear milestones.

What documents should you create for a project? Think about it this way: For any project, we only need the following basic information: - What do we need to accomplish? —> SCOPE - What are the steps to get there? —> TIMELINE - Who is on our team? —> PROJECT ORGANIZATION (Relevant document in ALL CAPS) That’s all we need to get started. Now, in the real world, things are a bit more complicated. People need to know how they are expected to contribute. So we define roles and responsibilities —> ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES People also want to know how many hours they need to put in in a given week/month. So we create a resource plan. To keep things simple, I just add the resource plan to a PROJECT BUDGETING SHEET. The budget also shows other project costs. So far, we have identified 5 documents to be created. Anything else to make our life easier? Yep. We should tell our team/stakeholders when we plan to meet and how often we'll share updates. People want to know how we'll stay in touch. Let’s put those details in a COMMUNICATION PLAN. As the project leader, we also need some way to track tasks and issues —> TO DO LIST We’re almost done, bear with me. As it is common for any project, we’ll have to deal with some extra requests. Stuff we didn’t originally plan to do. We’ll log that in a separate CHANGE LOG, so “on top” work and originally approved work is kept separate (also from a cost POV). Lastly, consider building a RISK REGISTER - it’s a fantastic tool for brainstorming potential risks and making your project bullet proof! So, if you count the documents I mentioned, we have 9 project docs in total. To keep things simple, we can integrate some of the documents in a PROJECT CHARTER, for example the scope statement. No need to use a separate document. ➡️ In the end, we have identified the following documents: - Project timeline - Project budget - Project charter (includes scope, roles & responsibilities, project organization, risks) - Communication plan - To-do list - Risk register - Change log These are the documents you should consider creating at the minimum, regardless of the project type.

Need inspiration when planning a project? We’ve collected the best planning quotes from experts as varied as Winston Churchill and Henry Gantt to Yogi Berra. https://hubs.ly/Q02MYzvb0 Here’s a sample: “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” – John F. Kennedy. Project managers will know what he’s talking about. #projectmanager #projectmanagement #planning

Project assumptions can rear their ugly heads and derail your project timeline or budget at any time. Here's how to get out ahead of them by asking the right questions to your clients and stakeholders.

Do you usually have a project plan when kickstarting your project? or you usually just kickstart your project. The importance of having a project plan cannot be over-emphasized. A project plan helps you to properly conceptualize a project, define the scope of the project, and ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page concerning the project. What is a project plan you may ask? A project plan answers the Who, What, why, how, and when of a project. All these guide the execution and ensure the project does not go out of scope. For better understanding; You are about to embark on a journey, you do not just start the journey, right? You plan the trip, your destinations, and possibly what you need to do. It is the same with project management. The Who explains who the stakeholders in the project are. The what explains what the scope of the project is. The why explains the objectives and goals of the project. While the when explains the timeline of the project. These elements ensure on-track execution and prevent scope creep, or any other issues that may arise during the execution of your project. #Projectmanagement #Projectplanning #Projectassistant

How do you Turn Around a Project That Isn't Going as Planned As project managers, we always strive to ensure that our projects run smoothly, meet deadlines, stay within budget, and align with the original scope and goals. However, the reality is that despite our best efforts, projects can sometimes go off course. The question then becomes, how do we bring them back on track? Some issues that crop up include 🔺Scope Creep: Adding new features or tasks not originally accounted for. 🔺Budget Overshooting: Unexpected costs pushing the project beyond financial limits. 🔺Resource Crunches: Shortages in staff, equipment, or other key resources. 🔺Incorrect Assumptions: Misjudging risks, timelines, or other project elements. 🔺Poor Risk Monitoring: Failing to manage risks early on, allowing them to escalate into issues. As a project manager, you do not stop there, when you start seeing the above issues cropping up, it's time to act and to act first. Here are some tips to help you ✅Reassess and Revisit Planning Start by going back to the basics. Review the project plan, baseline, and overall strategy. ✅Control Scope Creep New ideas and additions can be tempting, but they can also throw your project off balance. Sometimes these suggestions come from stakeholders, so it’s crucial to manage your project scope carefully and communicate effectively with them. ✅Optimize your Resources Check and see what part of the project might have to be cut. If the work is going slower than planned, and the project is a mission critical project, then add more resources. ✅Review Risks and Assumptions Revisit these assumptions and  risks ✅Monitor and Adjust Regularly review the project's performance and make timely decisions to keep it on track. ✅Communicate Effectively: Maintain clear and regular communication with all stakeholders throughout the process. ✅Learn and Improve: Conduct a post-mortem analysis once the project is back on track. Identify the lessons learned I hope this helps👆 As project managers, it's crucial to stay adaptable and proactive when things don't go as planned. The next time your project ,If you are stuck and do not know what to do kindly reach out. P.S. Have you ever had to turn around a project that wasn’t going as planned? I’d love to hear how you handled it—share your experience in the comments! Or P.S.S Have you ever been asked this question in an interview? How did you respond? Share your answers in the comments! #ProjectManagement #ScopeCreep #ProjectManagersTips #BudgetManagement #ResourceOptimization #RiskMitigation #StakeholderCommunication

Project objectives vs. project plan Your project plan is a blueprint of the key elements your team needs to accomplish in order to successfully achieve your project goals and objectives. However, your project plan should include several additional key elements, like your project stakeholders, deliverables, timeline, and more. Plan to create your project objectives before working on your project plan, since your objectives will likely drive other elements of your project plan, like deliverables and success metrics. But once your project objectives are written, you’ll likely share them with stakeholders by way of the project plan. Example of a project objective: Increase click through rate (CTR) engagement on email by 10% by the end of Q3.