Managing Difficult Projects

Managing Difficult Projects pulls together the principles and practice of project management and presents useful diagnostic approaches, tools and structures in a clear and practical way. The book focuses on the diagnosis and resolution of "difficult" problems whether in large or small complex projects. The intent is to help corporate executives and project management practitioners apply proven processes, methodologies, systems, structures and tools to rally the information and the resources required for better decisions, faster delivery and improved results.This essential book shows how to plan effectively and to reduce risk at every step of project delivery, particulary vital during project implementation when 90% of project funding is spent.It covers new ground by proposing the use of the project management process as an integral part of setting and updating corporate strategy. In projects, context is everything! The text is amply illustrated with international case studies, charts, photos, graphs and data tables. * Enables project managers to identify root causes and to apply the right solutions * Shows exactly how to identify project opportunities and then how to apply clear methodologies to set corporate strategy * Case Studies the learning process - the reader can skip forward to solutions and help resolve problems at work Managing Difficult Projects pulls together the principles and practice of project management and presents useful diagnostic approaches, tools and structures in a clear and practical way. The book focuses on the diagnosis and resolution of "difficult" problems whether in large or small complex projects. The intent is to help corporate executives and project management practitioners apply proven processes, methodologies, systems, structures and tools to rally the information and the resources required for better decisions, faster delivery and improved results. This essential book shows how to plan effectively and to reduce risk at every step of project delivery, particulary vital during project implementation when 90% of project funding is spent. It covers new ground by proposing the use of the project management process as an integral part of setting and updating corporate strategy. In projects, context is everything! The text is amply illustrated with international case studies, charts, photos, graphs and data tables. * Enables project managers to identify root causes and to apply the right solutions * Shows exactly how to identify project opportunities and then how to apply clear methodologies to set corporate strategy * Case Studies the learning process - the reader can skip forward to solutions and help resolve problems at work. Managing Difficult Projects pulls together the principles and practice of project management and presents useful diagnostic approaches, tools and structures in a clear and practical way. The book focuses on the diagnosis and resolution of "difficult" problems whether in large or small complex projects. The intent is to help corporate executives and project management practitioners apply proven processes, methodologies, systems, structures and tools to rally the information and the resources required for better decisions, faster delivery and improved results. This essential book shows how to plan effectively and to reduce risk at every step of project delivery, particularly vital during project implementation when 90% of project funding is spent. It covers new ground by proposing the use of the project management process as an integral part of setting and updating corporate strategy. In projects, context is everything! The text is amply illustrated with international case studies, charts, photos, graphs and data tables. * Enables project managers to identify root causes and to apply the right solutions * Shows exactly how to identify project opportunities and then how to apply clear methodologies to set corporate strategy * Case Studies the learning process - the reader can skip forward to solutions and help resolve problems at work Discovering a project; Setting multi-year corporate strategy; Defining a project; Mobilizing the project; Managing people; Managing contracts; Scheduling work; Managing costs; Commissioning and closing out the project. Discovering a project Setting multi-year corporate strategy Defining a project Mobilizing the project Managing people Managing contracts Scheduling work Managing costs Building quality and commissioning Concluding remarks Appendix A: Correspondence between the Z value and the probability of occurrence Appendix B: Alternative PERT-type distribution estimation formulas. Focuses on the diagnosis and resolution of difficult problems whether in large or small and complex projects. The intent is to help corporate executives and project management practitioners apply proven processes, methodologies, systems, structures and tools to rally the information and the resources required for better decisions, faster delivery, and improved results