How Good Are Your Project Management Skills?

Project managers need a broad range of skills.

Whether or not you hold the official title of project manager, chances are you'll be called upon to lead some sort of project at some time.

This short quiz helps you determine how well you perform in the eight key areas that are important to a successful project.

How Good Are Your Project Management Skills?

Project Manager should have below PM skills.

Statement
1	When a project begins, I work with its sponsor to negotiate and agree specific deliverables.	Y
2	At the start of a project, I formally outline what, why, who, how, and when with a Project Initiation Document – so everyone can understand how the elements of the project fit together.	Y
3	I prepare a specific timeline and sequence of activities, and I use this schedule to manage the overall project to ensure its timely completion.	Y
4	I communicate what needs to be done by what deadline, and expect the people to whom I assign the work to be responsible for breaking down the work packages into smaller and more manageable pieces.	Y
5	I outline clear expectations for the project team, and I manage their individual and collective performance as part of the overall project evaluation process.	Y
6	I give people a deadline to complete their project work, and then I expect them to coordinate with others if and when they need to.	Y
7	I consider a variety of cost alternatives when developing my original project budget plan.	Y
8	I identify as many potential project risks as I can, and I develop a plan to manage or minimize each one of them, large or small.	Y
9	I routinely monitor and reevaluate significant risks as the project continues.	Y
10	I keep all project stakeholders informed and up-to-date with regular meetings and distribution of all performance reports, status changes, and other project documents.	Y
11	I define specifically what the stakeholders need and expect from the project, and I use these expectations to define and manage the project's scope.
12	Forecasting costs is more art than science, so I include extra funds in the budget and hope that I’m under cost at the end.
13	I present project status information in an easy-to-use and easy-to-access format to meet stakeholders' information needs.	Y
14	Delivering on time and on budget are the most important things for me.
15	When a project gets behind schedule, I work with my team to find a solution rather than assign blame.	Y

  

Project Integration

(Statements 6, 11)

·         Develop a solid understanding of the project's goals.

·         Start by producing a Business Requirements Analysis, and then develop a comprehensive Project Initiation Document, which covers the basic project needs and outcomes, so that everyone can understand the project's goals.

·         To prepare this critical, high-level document, you need to understand the phases and processes of project management. This overview will help you become better prepared for what's ahead.

  

Scope Management

(Statements 4, 16)

·         Projects have a nasty habit of expanding as they go along, making it impossible to hit deadlines. To control this “scope creep,” it's essential to define the scope at the very start of your project based on the Business Requirements Analysis, and then manage it closely against this signed-off definition.

·         For more on how to do this, see our article on scope control.

  

Time/Schedule Management

(Statements 1, 3, 9, 14)

·         A project's scope can easily grow, and so can the time needed to complete it.

·         For a project to be completed successfully, despite all of the unknowns, it's important to clearly define the sequence of activities, estimate the time needed for each one, and build in sufficient contingency time to allow for the unexpected.

·         With this information, you can develop a Project Schedule and then begin breaking it down into very specific pieces of work using a Work Breakdown Structure.

·         A schedule often isn't enough. To keep track of the various activities, Gantt Charts and Critical Path Analysis are often helpful.

  

Cost Management

(Statements 7, 17)

·         To determine what a project will cost, you must be systematic with your estimating, budgeting, and controlling.

·         Also, be aware that many project decisions will have an impact on cost.

  

Quality Management

(Statements 4, 12, 19)

·         To achieve quality, ensure that you actively manage project benefits. By continuously referring to the benefits that the project will provide, you keep client quality at the forefront – and you won't waste precious time and resources trying to achieve an inappropriate level of quality.

·         An effective project manager knows the importance of checking that project outcomes are consistent with needs. The Deming Cycle (Plan-Do-Check-Act) and Business Testing are important tools for this, as they both force you to consider the needs of the end users.

  

HR/People Management

(Statements 5, 8)

·         Right mix of interpersonal and political skills is just as important as the right technical skills.

·         To help your new team start working together effectively as soon as possible, develop a Team Charter and outline performance expectations.

·         Use well-informed task allocation and appropriate team management skills to keep the project team on track and working productively.

·         And be prepared to help people through the Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing stages that so many teams go through.

  

Communication

(Statements 15, 18)

·         As with most situations, effective project communication means communicating with the right people at the right time and in the right way.

·         To do this, Stakeholder Management is essential. When you analyze your stakeholders, you identify who must be kept informed in full, and who needs less intensive communication. This can save you a lot of time, and helps you maintain good relationships with people involved in the project.

·         Project Dashboards are great for presenting project updates in a way that people can quickly understand. For longer projects that require periodic status reports, Milestone Reporting is effective for capturing the essentials of a project's status.

  

Risk Management

(Statements 10, 13)

·         Project managers must understand which of the risks to their plans are significant. An Impact/Probability Chart will help with this.

·         From there, develop a plan for monitoring and controlling the major risks involved in your project.

·         Using your Risk Analysis, develop options to reduce risks, prepare Contingency Plans, and decide who is responsible for which parts of risk response.

  

Project Procurement

(Statements 2, 20)

·         Unless your project is in-house, external suppliers will generally have a large impact on your costs. Suppliers will also affect whether the project delivers on time and to specification.

·         Take the time to define your needs in a Request for Proposal document, and then use an appropriate Procurement Management approach to select the best supplier.

  

General Project Management Skills

(Statements 4, 9)

This quiz also highlights some general skills that you should be aware of while developing your project management skills.

·         Negotiation – specifically, Integrative Negotiation – is very important for dealing with suppliers and getting the in-house resources you need, when you need them.

·         Conflict resolution is another important general skill. From resolving conflict within your project team to managing conflict that arises during negotiation, this is a fundamental skill for project managers.

·         And, ultimately, your problem-solving skills are essential. They will not only improve negotiation and conflict resolution skills, but also help with risk management, time management, and quality management.

Key Points

Project management is a complex process that requires a wide range of skills.

Understanding client needs and meeting their expectations in a timely manner are universal requirements.

Reference: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newPPM_60.htm

Regards,

Arun Manglick