Category

Courses

Search

Trending blog posts

Adaptive and Predictive Project Delivery - Challenges and Use Cases

Project managers should know how to strategize projects depending on the budget, client’s requirements, deadlines and specifications. Especially, in the software development projects managing the process with the right methodology and tools is significant in meeting your process goals.When it comes to choosing between adaptive and predictive project delivery, there has been a push towards adaptive (agile) methodologies over the more traditional predictive (waterfall) methodologies in the recent years. But the most common mistake is irrespective of the project requirements the project managers follow single project management strategy.In this e-book, we present an analysis by Dan S. Roman, an outcome-driven Senior Project Manager and Scrum Master. A champion of combining best practices to achieve results, Dan shares insights from over four decades of project management experience.The e-book is a report analysis on how the delivery approach, predictive or adaptive, can address some of the failure causes identified in the Chaos reports for enterprises to evaluate the best approach to choose between adaptive and predictive delivery for projects.Dan explains what the projects challenges are and how the right delivery approach can help. He quotes use cases on the approach and says what went well and what could have been different.In conclusion, to undertake these tasks Project managers must be aware of existing and emergent practices and gather deeper knowledge for the best suitable practices.
Adaptive and Predictive Project Delivery - Challenges and Use Cases
KnowledgeHut

Adaptive and Predictive Project Delivery - Challenges and Use Cases

Project managers should know how to strategize projects depending on the budget, client’s requirements, deadlines and specifications. Especially, in the software development projects managing the process with the right methodology and tools is significant in meeting your process goals.When it comes to choosing between adaptive and predictive project delivery, there has been a push towards adaptive (agile) methodologies over the more traditional predictive (waterfall) methodologies in the recent years. But the most common mistake is irrespective of the project requirements the project managers follow single project management strategy.In this e-book, we present an analysis by Dan S. Roman, an outcome-driven Senior Project Manager and Scrum Master. A champion of combining best practices to achieve results, Dan shares insights from over four decades of project management experience.The e-book is a report analysis on how the delivery approach, predictive or adaptive, can address some of the failure causes identified in the Chaos reports for enterprises to evaluate the best approach to choose between adaptive and predictive delivery for projects.Dan explains what the projects challenges are and how the right delivery approach can help. He quotes use cases on the approach and says what went well and what could have been different.In conclusion, to undertake these tasks Project managers must be aware of existing and emergent practices and gather deeper knowledge for the best suitable practices.
Adaptive and Predictive Project Delivery - Challenges and Use Cases
Blogs
1541
Adaptive and Predictive Project Delivery - Chall...

Project managers should know how to strategize pro... Read More

How to Choose Your Project Management Methodology (Use Cases & Challenges)

Project managers should know how to strategize projects depending on the budget, client’s requirements, deadlines and specifications. Especially, in the software development projects managing the process with the right methodology and tools is significant in meeting your process goals.When it comes to choosing between adaptive and predictive project delivery, there has been a push towards adaptive (agile) methodologies over the more traditional predictive (waterfall) methodologies in the recent years. But the most common mistake is irrespective of the project requirements the project managers follow single project management strategy.In this e-book, we present an analysis by  Dan S. Roman, an outcome-driven Senior Project Manager and Scrum Master. A champion of combining best practices to achieve results, Dan shares insights from over four decades of project management experience.  The e-book is a report analysis on how the delivery approach, predictive or adaptive, can address some of the failure causes identified in the Chaos reports for enterprises to evaluate the best approach to choose between adaptive and predictive delivery for projects.  Dan explains what the projects challenges are and how the right delivery approach can help. He quotes use cases on the approach and says what went well and what could have been different.In conclusion, to undertake these tasks Project managers must be aware of existing and emergent practices and gather deeper knowledge for the best suitable practices.
How to Choose Your Project Management Methodology (Use Cases & Challenges)
Blogs
6752
How to Choose Your Project Management Methodology ...

Project managers should know how to strategize pro... Read More

One Size Does Not Fit All: How to Choose Betweeen Adaptive and Predictive Project Methodologies

Since the publication of the Manifesto for Agile Software Development in 2001, adaptive approaches to project delivery gained momentum challenging the traditional predictive approaches, especially for software development projects. Over the past decade, agile project management has gained popularity as a means of effectively dealing with today's project uncertainty. Quite successful for small software development teams, Agile frameworks caught the attention of Project Managers as a way to improve the likelihood of a successful delivery and Agile project management is often touted as the de facto standard for executing projects. However, using Agile practices to manage projects, especially for large and complex non-technical projects in conservative environments like government and highly regulated business domains remains a challenge.  The nature and characteristics of the project must dictate the type of project management approach to be taken. In this ebook, we present an analysis by  Dan S. Roman, an outcome-driven Senior Project Manager and Scrum Master. A champion of combining best practices to achieve results, Dan shares insights from over four decades of project management experience.  The ebook is a guide for enterprises to evaluate the best approach to choose between adaptive and predictive delivery for projects. Looking at the history of project management, it is obvious that neither predictive nor adaptive delivery approaches are silver bullets. They are not generic delivery frameworks even in a specific domain, like software development.  To choose the optimal delivery approach, companies must pay heed to the company culture, project characteristics and the team’s maturity, says Dan. Every framework was developed for a certain project, environment, and team. Just because it worked for them, does not mean that it will work for you, he emphasizes. In conclusion, when an organisation must choose between adaptive and predictive delivery, the focus should be on practices rather than frameworks. 
One Size Does Not Fit All: How to Choose Betweeen Adaptive and Predictive Project Methodologies
Blogs
6575
One Size Does Not Fit All: How to Choose Betweeen ...

Since the publication of the Manifesto for Agile S... Read More

Project Manager Salary Guide 2020

Project management skills and expertise are in demand globally, and earning potential remains promising. The Project Management Institute (PMI)regularly runs a salary survey to find out what kind of salary project managers draw across industries and across geographies. This is probably one of the most comprehensive salary surveys conducted for any job type. Earning Power: Project Management Salary Survey—Eleventh Edition (2020), the latest salary survey from the Project Management Institute (PMI) equips practitioners with the most comprehensive view of project managers’ earnings from 42 countries around the world.  Greater awareness of how skill level, experience and certifications impact salary can give practitioners considerable earning power in a dynamic job market. And this critical data can help recruiters, human resources and compensation professionals establish fair and equitable salaries for project management roles within their organizations. Some of the data you will discover in this PMI report might surprise you. In this article, we give you the complete lowdown on the findings of the survey.Data gathered The scale of the PMI salary survey is vast: over 32,000+ project managers across industries and verticals, across the globe. This sample size is a good representative of the population and provides a realistic representation of salary figures. Quite a wide variety of information is collected by PMI’s team – position, years of PM experience, highest formal education, degree in project management, PMP® status, training per year, type of project, avg team size, project budget, and many more – from the sample size from each of the 42 countries. The report is of about 360 pages long, with quite a detailed information segregated by countries.One can thus slice and dice the figures to extract an amazing amount of insights into how project management in general and PMP certification can impact the salary of employees across industries, verticals, positions, and geographies. The top3 countries The top 3 countries on median salary figures were: Switzerland ($132,086) United States ($116,000) Australia ($101,381)The verdict “There’s never been a better time to be a project manager”, states the PMI Salary Survey, Eleventh Edition (2020).But what the report truly indicates is that there has never been a better time to be a PMP® certified project manager. The final verdict? Here it is: Respondents with PMP® certification report 22% higher median salaries than those without PMP® certification. Project Manager salary ranges Candidates with a PMP certification are prioritized over non-certified candidates. They are also more likely to get better compensation. However, the median salary depends on several factors such as their country of residence, years of experience, position or role and the average size of projects managed, including average project budget and average project team size. Project Manager salaries by countryCountriesMedian SalaryUSA$116,000India$28,750Singapore$71,279Hong Kong$76,607United Arab Emirates$81,665Project Manager salaries by years of experienceYearsUSAIndiaSingaporeHong KongUnited Arab Emirates
Project Manager Salary Guide 2020
Blogs
6472
Project Manager Salary Guide 2020

Project management skills and expertise are in dem... Read More

Lessons in Project Management from the COVID-19 Disruption

COVID-19 has been one of the most disruptive events mankind has faced in generations. Not once in the last 100 years have governments had to seal borders or ask companies to shut down non-essential services. For project management practitioners, “safety first” has taken a new direction, a big change from delivery “on time and on budget”.Many projects are being put on hold, not because they were not needed or because there was no funding available, but because of uncertainty and market volatility. Worldwide, governments are collaborating at an unprecedented scale and for a while political differences and old rivalry are forgotten.At a smaller scale, organisations, teams, and individuals are adapting to the crisis and the savvy ones are learning from the impacts of actions taken at a larger scale.As industries adapt to the new normal, what should organisations be asking themselves to ensure that they can embrace a new and more effective way of delivering projects over the long term? How can project management professionals adapt to the post COVID world and maintain or even increase their employability?In this ebook, we present an analysis by Dan S. Roman, an outcome-driven Senior Project Manager and Scrum Master with over four decades of project management experience. Dan is a pioneer of Agile delivery, using light documentation, incremental and iterative development since 1990 and formal Agile Frameworks (XP, Scrum) since early 2000.A champion of combining best practices to achieve results, Dan reflects on possible changes that the project management profession may see in the future due to the disruption brought about by COVID-19.Dan makes his projections on four key aspects in the delivery of projects and programs in response to the COVID-19 crisis are examined, namely: project delivery disciplines, the role of project leadership, management of project phases and the need for increased focus on upskilling.
Lessons in Project Management from the COVID-19 Disruption
Blogs
2541
Lessons in Project Management from the COVID-19 Di...

COVID-19 has been one of the most disruptive event... Read More

Cost Benefit Analysis for Projects: A step by step approach

Organizations, both for-profit and not-for-profit ones, often contemplate the need to take up new initiatives, develop new policies, bring about changes or create new capabilities to improve their current state of business-as-usual and create new benefits for the organization and stakeholders. All such new initiatives will be taken up as new projects by the organizations. These projects are expected to create new business value or in some cases social value. Every new project or initiative will require fresh investments of efforts and money to be made. Organizations will need to make such decisions prudently by creating a clear justification.  Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA): What is it? Understanding Cost Benefit Analysis Conducting a cost benefit analysis (CBA) or a Benefit-Cost analysis (as may be referred alternatively) is one of the most fundamental methods used to compare the financial cost to be incurred for such new initiatives and benefits to be generated from them.  Origins of Cost Benefit Analysis To undertake new initiatives is an integral part of the evolution of mankind, at a personal level, at a social level or at a business level. On the social front, it may involve initiatives like developing new townships, new buildings, new schools, new hospitals, new monuments, new social infrastructures, and new offices. On the business front, it may involve developing new products, new services or new production capabilities. There has always been a need to make sound and clear decisions. As the accountability of leaders on financial matters continues to rise, the need for doing a cost-benefit-analysis also becomes inevitable. CBA as a practice becomes part of policy matters in government projects in the US dating back in 1936, when Corps of Engineers started doing CBA for Federal Waterway Infrastructure projects. Approach to Cost Benefit Analysis A fundamental approach to do CBA includes estimating all the costs to be incurred in doing the project and carefully evaluating and estimating all the benefits to be garnered from the project. Benefits can include both quantifiable financial benefits and non-quantifiable benefits such improvement in quality of life, ease of living, ease of doing business etc. The purpose of Cost Benefit Analysis We already discussed that every new project needs investments to be made with the expectation of returns from the investments. There are two main applications of conducting a CBA: To determine if an investment decision is sound, calculating if its benefits outweigh its costs and by how much. To provide a basis for comparing alternative investment options, comparing the total expected cost of each option with its total expected benefits, thereby creating a basis for selecting the most desirable/viable option. Costs and Benefits Estimating costs Estimating all costs to be incurred in doing a project is the first important part of CBA. It will involve carefully estimating and listing the required quantity, quality and duration of material, labor, equipment and facilities to be used for completing all the activities of project work. Then we can estimate the costs for each of the above categories of resources. There will also be a need to include cost for contingency, inflation, cost of financing (if needed) and cost of any other services (such as training, liaison etc.) which may be required to complete the project activities. Cost estimation can be done with a considerable amount of accuracy level if all the activities of the project can be identified and all resource quantities can be estimated as stated above.  Estimating benefits Estimating all benefits to be garnered is the second important part of CBA. Every project or investment done is expected to deliver benefits in future. Benefits can include financial benefits by means of increase in profit margins and increase in efficiency of doing things. Benefits can also include non-financial benefits such as increased comfort and ease of doing things, improved moral of people, increased satisfaction levels, more peace, social benefits etc. Financial benefits can be estimated with considerable amount of accuracy, while it will be somewhat challenging to estimate and quantify the non-financial benefits. Comparing costs and benefits After careful and diligent estimation of costs and benefits as stated above, we need to compare the costs to be incurred with benefits to be garnered. If the benefits outweigh the costs considerably, such proposals will be taken up for further consideration by the organizations. Organizations may lay down clear guidelines regarding minimum expected difference between benefits to cost for the projects to be selected for implementation. Organizations may also lay down clear guidelines for evaluating the social benefits (mostly non-financial as explained above) for clear decision-making after doing a CBA. How to do a Cost Benefit Analysis  To conduct cost benefit analysis, we need to estimate and enumerate all costs to be incurred and all benefits to be generated. Then one needs to compare the costs with benefits for arriving at suitable decisions and recommendation about whether the project is worthy of taking up or not. There are two broad methods for doing cost benefit analysis: Non-discounted method (does not consider the effects of interest and time period). Discounted method (considers the time period, interest, inflation etc. while calculating the costs and benefits) We can take a simple example below to illustrate some of these methods.  Analyzing using non-discounted method These are very simple methods without considering the effects of interest and time period.The below illustration shows the costs incurred and benefits over a period of six years.  Yr. 0Yr. 1Yr. 2Yr. 3Yr. 4Yr. 5Yr. 6Discount rate at 10% (0.1)Cost100000000000Benefits250002500025000250002500025000Example of CBA using Non-Discounted MethodTotal Cost = 100000; Total Benefits = 150000 Benefit Cost Ration (BCR) = Total Benefits / Total Costs = 150000/100000 = 1.5 (> than 1) Profit = Total Benefits (Revenue) – Total Costs = 150000 – 100000 = 50000 Payback Period = Time taken to recover the total cost (investments) = 4 years ROI = Return on Investment = Profit/Investment = 50000/100000 = 50%  Using the above simple non-discounted methods we can see that this project looks good with benefits being more than the cost, with positive profits and lower payback period.  But these calculations are too simplistic, and do not account for the time-value of money based on interest rates, inflation. Analyzing using discounted method In the above example, the costs are incurred in the present time, while the benefits will be received in future. These values of money are in different timelines and hence their values cannot be compared directly as it is. We need to bring down all the future values of benefits and costs to their corresponding present values and then we can do a comparison of present values of benefits and costs. The below formula can be used to understand the relationship between present value (PV) and future value (FV) of money. PV = FV/(1+r)n(where r stands for rate of discount of money, n stands for time period) In the below example, the cost and benefits value mentioned are in specific period in time. We need to bring all costs as well as all benefits to their corresponding present values (PV) using the above equation and assuming an interest (discount) rate of 10% for ease of calculation.   Yr. 0Yr. 1Yr. 2Yr. 3Yr. 4Yr. 5Yr. 6Discount rate at 10% (0.1)Cost (FV)100000000000Benefits(FV)250002500025000250002500025000Cost (PV100000000000Benefits(PV)0227272066118782170751552714112Example of CBA using Discounted MethodPV of all costs = 100000 (as it is happening in year 0 only) PV of all revenue = 25000/(1.1) + 25000/(1.1)2 + 25000/(1.1)3+ 25000/(1.1)4+ 25000/(1.1)5 +  25000/(1.1)6 = 22727+20661+18782+17075+15527+14112 =108884 Net Present Value (NPV) = Sum of PV of all benefits – Sum of PV of all costs = 108884 – 100000 = 8884 (> 0)  Hence this project investment will lead to a profit after discounting the effect of interest and any other inflationary factors which are taken as 10%) If NPV is > 0, then the project investments will lead to profit. NPV is one of the most practical methods for doing cost benefit analysis by considering the time-value of money.  IRR (Internal Rate of Return) – IRR is the rate of discount at which the sums of PV of all benefits equals sums of PV of all costs. Or in other words IRR is the rate of discount at which NPV equals 0.  Calculating IRR is a more complex affair. In simpler term IRR denotes expected rate of return from the investments. According to a general guideline, higher the IRR from an investment, the better the opportunity.  How to establish a framework As we discussed above, there are various methods for undertaking cost benefit analysis. Different financial parameters such as Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR), ROI, Payback Period, NPV, IRR etc. need to be calculated for arriving at decisions and making necessary recommendations on whether a specific project should be taken up or not. Every organization is unique in their capabilities to invest and take risk. Organizations can define their specific guidelines or framework for project selection taking into account the above financial parameters, the risks involved in doing the project and most importantly specific nature of the investors. A framework for project selection will include all above factors.  Below are some basic guidelines which are used for decision making during cost benefit analysis (CBA) NPV should more than 0. Higher the NPV, the better is the project. BCR should be more than 1. Higher the BCR, the benefits outweigh the cost more. ROI should be high. Higher the ROI, the better is the investment opportunity. IRR should be high. Higher the IRR, the better is the opportunity. Payback period should be lower. Lower the payback period, the better seems the opportunity. Challenges and considerations while doing CBA How accurate is Cost Benefit Analysis? Cost benefit analysis can be reasonably accurate if these are done by technical and financial experts. Experience and availability of real data about costs and benefits of similar projects from past can greatly enhance the accuracy of cost benefit analysis.  Are there limitations to Cost Benefit Analysis? Since cost benefit analysis requires estimating costs and quantifying future benefits accurately, it requires solid maturity in terms of knowledge and availability of past data. In the absence of experience and data availability, CBA may fall short in its accuracy.  The risks and uncertainties in Cost Benefit Analysis While doing cost and benefit analysis, it will be important to understand risks and uncertainties involved in doing the project. It will also be equally important to understand the uncertainties involved in realizing the benefits once the project is done. Cost benefits analysis need to consider the implications of uncertainties to make it realistic. It may require doing statistical simulations and modeling as well.  Cost Benefit Analysis in the real world We saw that CBA became a formal and mandatory practice as early as 1930s in the US government departments, for numerically evaluating if the benefits will outweigh (and by how much) the costs of doing the project.  Organizations have become highly knowledgeable, experienced, and matured. Availability of past data coupled with ability to process the data using modern mathematical and statistical techniques and computerized tools exists in abundance within organizations.  In today’s world the need for doing CBA has become necessary. Businesses and governments are held more and more responsible and accountable to their citizens and investors for justifying their investment decisions. They can do this only by conducting a thorough cost benefit analysis.  
Cost Benefit Analysis for Projects: A step by step approach
Blogs
7949
Cost Benefit Analysis for Projects: A step by step...

Organizations, both for-profit and not-for-profit ... Read More