Author: Linky

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Practical use for Social Media in Project Management – Part II: Blogging and Twitter

By Linky van der Merwe

For most Project Management professionals social media is already part of their lives.  This article will take a closer look at social media platforms, Blogs and Twitter and how they are adopted in project management.

Part I of this article, can be found here:

Practical use for Social Media in Project Management.

Practical use for Social Media in Project Management-Part II: Facebook Yammer

use of blogging in project managementBlogging

Blogs are made up of posts, which are short articles that appear in reverse chronological order on the blog. Blogs have an archive facility which will display historical posts by day, week, or month. In the project setting, it is the equivalent to a project notebook.

There are a number of ways blogs can be used to enhance the success of a project.

  • Project documentation – you can put all the project documentation on a blog.
  • Major milestone announcements – blogs are a great way to keep your team informed of the major phases that are coming up, as well as to recognize the good work your team has accomplished as milestones are passed.
  • Interesting pictures – keep blogs interesting by posting pictures of a product in various stages, or of people who are making a product that aren’t usually in the company newsletter.
  • Use of features – use comments fields, as well as tags and ratings features of blogs.

Decide early whether you want to use external blogging sites or internal blogs. Many products are available internally. SharePoint Workspace 2010 contains a blogging feature that your organization can use to create a blog that is private to your team.

Twitter for project managersMicro-blogging

Twitter is the most popular micro-blogging tool today. It allows you to send short messages to the internet, but limits the update to 140 characters and also permits your “tweets” to be protected. As with a blog, the tweets appear on your homepage in a long chronological stream, with the most recent comments at the top.

 

There are several ways to use Twitter to help you manage a project.

  • Project management articles – use search to find good articles about specific project management topics and best practices.
  • #Hashtags are used to help index the subject matter of your tweet. For example, the hashtag #pmot is used for tweets about “project management on Twitter”. When you click on the hashtag, you will immediately see a page full of the recent tweets that have used the same tag. This is a simple way that users can quickly filter for only tweets about specific subjects. You can also search for tweets by typing the hashtag in the Twitter search box. Other useful hashtags for project managers are: #projectmanager, #pmp, #project, #msproject, #project2010, and #pm. Also check #PMChat for Tweetups every Friday for an innovative way for project managers to get answers to project management questions and obtain different perspectives. Source:
  • Team hastags – a project team can decide on its own hashtags for the projects they’re working on. If your team is working on a business application project, you could decide on a hashtag to use across Twitter, such as #busapp. This will work for projects where security is less of a concern.

Twitter Lists

On the Home page of Twitter, your Twitter timeline can get cluttered very quickly. Twitter lists become useful as it allow you to group Twitter users. You can make a list of other users who are also in project management.  Every time you follow a person on Twitter who is also a project manager, you add them to your list. By following this process you will soon connect with project managers from all over the world who you can follow and collaborate with. Or create a list for your team relating to the project you are working on. Send them the URL of the list so they can see who you’ve added.

Consider  subscribing to other people’s lists. My Projectmanagement list contains 316 members and a number of subscribers. Now I can look at Tweets from project managers on my list and the lists that I’m subscribed to and see all the latest updates at a glance. I can retweet, share them with my followers or reply and collaborate.

Let us know in the Comments if you’re using Blogs or Twitter for your projects and how well that is working for you.

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Linky

Practical use for Social Media in Project Management – Part II: Facebook, Yammer

By Linky van der Merwe

For most Project Management professionals social media is already part of their lives whether they use it intentionally or not.  Let’s take a closer look at social media platforms already widely adopted in project management.

Part I of this article, can be found here: Practical use for Social Media in Project Management.

facebook-sm-projectmanagerFacebook

These days many project managers or project management companies have Facebook pages. On Facebook you can learn from experts about project management. You can create professional contacts to get questions answered or to jump to a suggested site.

When you perform a search for Pages on “Project Management”, you will find more than a 1000 Pages. A search for project managers, also give results for more than 1000 people, which can be refined to your own country or city to find people you may know.

Visit some Pages, find out what is being shared, Like Pages, join Groups and become part of the communities where you can contribute or where valuable information is shared.

yammer-sm-projectmanager

Yammer

Yammer is like Facebook’s equivalent, but in the corporate world, focused on the company. With Yammer, you can share announcements, create a team calendar of milestones, create pages for different interests, and upload documents.

Also consider posting your team norms, latest screenshots of the app for team members to comment on, and sharing video updates or team photos.

Yammer allows for more in-depth updates and comments can also be grouped into a “thread” beneath each post, allowing for a more conversational tone.

Let us know in the Comments if you’re using Facebook or Yammer for your projects and how that is working for you.

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Practical use for Social Media in Project Management

By Linky van der Merwe

The purpose of this article series is to educate project management practitioners about the use of social media in the project management profession.

Part I will cover the benefits from using social media, as well as recommended best practices.

Part II will cover the platforms to consider and the value of each social media tool for the project manager. See links to Part II articles at the end.

socialmedia-bandwagonSocial Media Adoption

Social media is a reality, and its growth is destined to continue. The integration and adoption of social media into our personal and business lives is increasing.  There is no indication that it is going to stop anytime soon. If you are not currently involved with social media, either personally or professionally, and you have no plans to do so, you may find that you quickly get left behind.

Why Social Media

Managing relationships to build trust is especially important for projects managers, because it is becoming increasingly common for project team members to be distributed geographically while working on projects.

This increase in virtual teams makes the communication process more challenging; therefore more difficult to establish strong relationships and bonds that lead to high levels of trust.

Communications delivered through social media are potentially a valuable resource for developing trust between project team members.

Source: Herbert Remidez: Journal about the explosion of social media – the emerging practice of companies using social media to support project management.

http://www.ijbssnet.com/journals/Vol_3_No_3_February_2012/3.pdf

Benefits of Social Media

Social networks, both within and outside of companies, increase the value of collaboration by reducing the search and coordination costs of connecting parties who have related knowledge and interests. By developing and managing relevant formal social networks, organizations can facilitate communications that improve decision making and operations.

In a field like project management that depends on lessons learned and best practices to deliver repeatable results, the pool of resources you can tap into via social media is very powerful.

Best practices for Social Media

The best use of social media is to focus on building relationships. Make sure your team is in agreement with which social networking tools are to be used. You might want to document how the team should use the tools, when to use the tools, and what type of content should be contained, and not contained, in posts. There is a much stronger chance of the tools being used when everyone understand some fundamentals about them.

Privacy and security are valid concerns and must be taken into account when adopting social media into the workplace. You need processes and guidelines in place to ensure that social media is used responsibly and that care is taken when sharing information inside and outside of your team.

Social media is not a technology; it is culture, a culture created, supported and enabled by various technologies and applications that are constantly growing and changing. The true innovation is the cultural change that social media has bought about. People think, act, and communicate in a completely different way.

For example on Twitter, being able to discuss challenges with other project managers and hear from PMs in different sectors, provides an on-going roundtable that fosters continuous improvement.

http://workingwithoutwalls.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-use-of-social-media-in-project_19.html

Social media is an extraordinary opportunity to improve team collaboration at all levels. Social media is the way of the future. It will keep maturing, growing, and changing, but it is here to stay. Get on-board or be left behind!

Continue reading the series on the Practical Use for Social Media in Project Management:

Part II: Facebook and Yammer

Part II: Blogs and Twitter

Part II: LinkedIn and Google+

Part II: Webinars, Slideshare, Podcasts

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Best Tips to Pass the PRINCE2® Exams

By Simon Buehring

Tips for PRINCE2 examsIf you’re about to sit your PRINCE2 exam then here are some simple tips which will help you to maximize your score and increase your chances of passing. Of course, the tips below won’t guarantee you will pass, but they will give you a better chance of passing.

Tip #1: Prepare, Prepare, Prepare!

Make sure you are well prepared by having completed all pre-course reading and homework during the course. Thinking you can skip homework and instead go out with friends during the course, is a high risk strategy and should only be attempted by those who are already very familiar with PRINCE2.

Tip #2: Drink lots of water

Drink plenty of water during the exam. Your brain needs water to function properly. Don’t give it extra stress by consuming diuretic drinks (tea, coffee or coke) which are likely to dehydrate you and slow down your brain function.

Tip #3: Read the question

This sounds like stating the obvious, but it’s amazing how many students fail to follow this simple tip. If you don’t read the question properly, then you are more likely to provide the wrong answer. Just missing out one word can change the entire meaning of a question.

Tip #4: Don’t hang around

Spending too much time answering one question is going to leave you with less time to answer the remaining questions. A good time-management strategy is therefore essential. Work out the average time available for answering each question and stick with it during the exam.

Tip #5: Tab your manual

This tip only applies only for the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam which is an open book exam. If you don’t know your way around the manual easily then you will spend too much time trying to find an answer in the book. That time might be better spent answering a question that you do know the answer to. So, before the exam, ensure you have put a coloured tab into the most important pages/sections. If needed, write your own table of contents for quick indexing of important pages.

Conclusion

I’ve highlighted the top 5 tips for helping to pass the exam, but for a deeper understanding of how to pass the exams, I suggest that you read these free ebooks Passing the PRINCE2 Foundation exam and Passing the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam.

About the author: Simon Buehring, is an approved PRINCE2 trainer and the founder of Knowledge Train, which is an accredited PRINCE2 training organization based in the UK.

PRINCE2® is a registered trade mark of AXELOS.

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What Makes a Good Dynamics AX Project Manager

The success and failure of a Dynamics AX project is directly related to the quality of the project manager leading it.  A recent survey by PwC showed that over 85% of Dynamics AX projects failed to achieve their core objectives – poor project management was one of the root causes.

Implementing Dynamics AX has been compared to performing open heart surgery on an organisation, where the stakes couldn’t be higher, and so the ‘physicians’ that are entrusted to give the ‘patient’ it’s new lease of life, need to be masters in their craft and highly experienced.

So what makes a good Dynamics AX project manager?

Let us find out with the help of this infographic by Cognitive Group, a dynamics ax recruitment agency in the UK.

Dynamics AX project manager-small

 

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Project Management Skills: Languages of Appreciation

5 Languages of appreciation

Good project managers always look for ways to improve their leadership skills.  Excellent project managers will apply these skills to become better leaders. One such tool to improve your skills, is the book: “The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace: Empowering Organizations by Encouraging People” by Gary Chapman and Paul White.

While being familiar with the “5 Love Languages” I was curious to know how the love language concept is applied to the workplace. Then more specifically I wanted to understand how words of appreciation can help a project manager become better at leading his/her project teams.

The book is aimed at helping managers effectively communicate appreciation and encouragement to their employees, resulting in higher levels of job satisfaction, healthier relationships between managers and employees, and decreased cases of burnout.

It helps to identify an individuals’ preference in the languages of appreciation. Understanding an individual’s primary and secondary languages of appreciation can assist managers in communicating effectively to their team members. It also relates to the power of acknowledgement – see “The Power of Grateful Leadership” for more.

Languages of Appreciation

According to the “5 Languages of Appreciation” there are five ways to show your appreciation in the work-place:

  1. Words of affirmation
  2. Acts of service
  3. Tangible gifts
  4. Quality time
  5. Touch (language of touch is less important in the workplace than in personal relationships)

Benefits

The languages of appreciation in the workplace have shown to significantly improve relationships among co-workers (team members) and to make workplace environments more positive for all who work there.

Motivating through action

For each language of appreciation, there are specific actions that could be taken. Here are some good examples: (focusing on the first 4 languages only) 1

Words of Affirmation

  • Write me an email and acknowledge when I have done a good job.
  • Acknowledge my effort of a project, in the presence of my teammates.
  • Tell me “thank you” or give me a specific compliment.
  • Give our team a group compliment when we have done well.
  • Send me a text message after I have completed a task well.
  • Let me know when others have commented positively on my work.

Quality Time

  • Go to lunch together and not talk about business issues.
  • Invite me to go to lunch with project team members.
  • Stop by, sit down or have a weekly “check in” meeting to see how things are going.
  • Debrief a recently completed project with me.

Acts of Service

  • Help me get my computer to work correctly/more efficiently.
  • Assign someone to answer the phones so that I can complete reports tasks that require undivided attention.
  • When working on a time-sensitive project, protect my time from additional requests.

Tangible Gifts

  • Movie tickets.
  • Gift certificate for a bookstore or outdoor / sporting store.
  • Allow me to come in early and leave early that day.
  • Provide a special luncheon to celebrate an accomplishment by our team.
  • Register me for a conference or event.

How to apply on projects

In the book: The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, you will find a questionnaire to discover your language of appreciation and the specific actions that uniquely encourage you.

In addition to the book, you will find on the website:  www.appreciationatwork.com more resources to use. One such resource is the “Motivating by Appreciation (MBA) Inventory” tool to assess your team members in order to understand how to express appreciation that resonates with each individual. Each book purchased also comes with a code inside for one free MBA inventory.

If you take the time to discover your language of appreciation, as well as that of your team members you can create a group profile showing the team members’ primary and secondary language. See example below: 2

5-languages-of-appreciation

Then you create Action Items for the Group serving as a reminder of what to do to make your team members feel appreciated for their hard work and efforts.

There are some signs that will tell you when team members need a message of appreciation or encouragement: 3

  • Discouragement
  • Irritability and resistance
  • Increased absenteeism
  • Apathy
  • Social withdrawal.

Problems with Language of Appreciation and how to overcome them

There are some problems with appreciation like when you genuinely appreciate some-one, but they don’t believe you are sincere. To get past a perceived inauthenticity, it is important to only communicate it when it’s true and to state your desire to be viewed as genuine. An example: “In spite of not saying this enough in the past, I wanted to let you know that I appreciate ….”.

You also need to be communicating appreciation consistently over time. When you team members feel valued and appreciated, good things will happen. There will be loyalty and commitment to the project, to the stakeholders, and to a successful outcome.

Sources:

  1. http://www.appreciationatwork.com/resources – Action Template
  2. http://www.appreciationatwork.com/resources/articles/ “Picking up cues”
Linky

Project Manager Personality Types – Infographic

This Infographic from Zoho Project Management provides an interesting perspective on some essential characteristics of project managers. Then the scorecard shows how the characteristics are combined in different personality types. 

Have you noticed a connection between the PM’s personality traits and the outcome of a project? Understanding a PM’s personality type, specifically how he/she communicates and interacts with others, can be very helpful to ease interpersonal relationships.

Can you relate to any of these personality types? Please let me know in the comments what you think!

PMinfographic

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5 Things to Evaluate When Choosing Project Management Software

By Ben Beck

PM software selectionWho said choice is a good thing? Today, there are so many different Project Management Software (PMS) solutions in the market, offering a host of features. Everyone seems to have their own opinion on which is the best, and asking around can leave you more confused than ever. However, here are 5 things you absolutely need to consider when choosing a PMS solution for your organization. They are not in order of priority.

#1 Adaptability and Scalability

Cutting your coat according to your cloth doesn’t only imply that you look at cost, it also implies you look at need. The software you choose needs to be able to satisfy the requirements of your project. However, it would be much better if it could be spread out over several projects that your organization will carry out1. In this case, your PM software needs to be adaptable to whatever situation.

It also needs to be scalable: it can be used for different sized projects and needs2. You need a software solution that can handle heavy project management requirements such as Gantt charts and heavy resource allocation as well as catering for the needs of small projects that just need a task organizer. Will the software handle the requirements of 350 users with the same aplomb as it does with 15 users? An adaptable PMS will save you the hassle of getting two systems for different sized projects happening within the same organization.

If you’re managing software development projects, finding good agile project management software is key. The main feature of agile planning for development teams is adaptability.

#2 Ease of use

No matter how nifty, powerful, and feature rich your PMS is, if it can’t be understood, then it is useless. An easy and friendly interface, and colorful UI add much more value than most think. If the users associate the software with tedious, hard to understand procedure, then they will not adapt it. As a result, you won’t reap the benefits of your powerful software. Make sure you pick a software that is intuitive to use, easy to understand, and works in line with how your organization generally operates3. Take advantage of free trials, test runs, and images as you decide on which software to settle on1. In order to reap full benefits, consider taking your project members through training on the PMS you settle on before adopting it.

#3 Tracking and Reporting

When looking through project management reviews you need to keep tracking and reporting on your short list. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. Project management is meant to make the management process much faster, and thus reporting is of paramount importance. This should be a make or break feature for any serious project manager.

Take a look at what kind of reports your software has to offer, and ensure that you can use them. Good reporting structure can facilitate great management. If it can offer reports that reflect the performance of different levels of the project, the better: whether team level or overall project management.

#4 Collaboration

In today’s world, communication is so much easier with a host of easy to use applications. Ensure that the PMS you choose integrates seamlessly with communication facilities such as email and chat3. This is even more important if you are working with large and/or scattered teams.

Using a cloud-based solution that allows you to email or chat with members directly from the software will prove very handy. What’s more, if you can edit documents centrally, it will make collaborative work even faster. It doesn’t make sense to email around collaborative documents if you can handle them from one central location in real time. Therefore consider a PMS that integrates with Google Docs or some other form cloud based storage.

#5 Customization

Every organization is unique: some follow classic PRINCE2, others use hybrid methods, and others create their own project management modules to follow. Whatever your organization subscribes to, the software needs to be able to adapt to those specific needs. Customization allows you to create the features you really need, while getting rid of those that are not particularly useful in order to create maximum efficiency.

Bonus Evaluation Tip: Templates

When working in an organization that runs several projects, Project Management Templates are key. They allow any project manager to quickly set up a project, fill in the required fields, and generally create a standard operating and reporting procedure for the organization2.

Your PMS should be able to easily and intuitively create and modify templates to suite the organization, program, or project being run. Future project managers will surely appreciate this long-term feature.

  1. http://www.ganttic.com/blog/3-important-things-in-pm-software
  2. http://www.projectinsight.net/white-papers/what-to-look-for-in-project-management-software.aspx

About the Author:

Ben loves all things technology. From his early youth of command prompting into bulletin board systems (before the Internet) on his Comodore 64, to his current gig managing marketing projects for several large tech companies, he has learned the value of good project management. Despite his near addiction to tech and project management, he also loves to get away from it all and spend time in the mountains hiking, rock-climbing and off-roading. Ben and his wife Celeste live in Lehi, Utah with their two boys. Follow him on Google.

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Big Question: When Are You A Project Manager?

By Michael O’Brochta

When are you a project manager? A simple question; yet it’s being asked and answered by an increasingly large number of people. Indeed, project management was ranked in 2009 by U.S. News and World Report as the third-most valued skill by employers, behind only leadership/negotiation skills and business analysis.

More than 600,000 people from 184 countries are members and/or credential holders in the world’s largest project management professional association, the Project Management Institute. It is a question being asked increasingly by individuals striving to adopt the practices in the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) and the International Project Management Association (IPMA) certification.

So, how do you know when you are a project manager?

Why It Matters

The questions about being a project manager speak to core qualities associated with project management and project managers. These core qualities are far more significant than certification, or title, or position, or job classification. Indeed, it’s these core qualities that distinguish the great project managers from the remainder of the pack.

A survey of over 5,000 project managers and stakeholders conducted by Andy Crow and documented in his book ‘Alpha Project Managers: What the Top 2% Know that Everyone Else Does Not’ has provided an extraordinary insight into what the top project managers know and do that everyone else does not.

Alpha Project Managers

Alpha project managersThis study focused on identifying the best project managers (referred to as “Alpha project managers”) and then on determining what they did that made them the best. Opinions about these project managers were obtained from their team members, their customers, and their management. The results were quite pronounced. Although both the Alphas and Non-Alphas had similar beliefs, both believed in the value of planning and communication; the Alphas actually dedicated double the amount of time to do planning and double the time for communication. Alphas also acted as if they had authority, even when it was not officially bestowed on them.

Other characteristics have been identified for “real” project managers as well. Jeff Pinto in his research-based book titled: ‘Successful Project Managers: Leading Your Team to Success’ distinguishes between incidental project managers who hope to return to their technical fields and career project managers who which to remain in project management as a career. He reports that the career project manager will more likely have, or seek, a formal project management education, and have, or seek, experience in management and organizational skills. Attitude seems to be a distinguishing characteristic as well. Both Crow and Pinto found that career project managers actually enjoy their work more than their counterparts and that they make decisions to increase their opportunities to advance as project managers. They think and act as goal oriented, not only for the project tasks, but for their careers as well.

Discipline and Willpower

project manager characteristicsKnowing what to do is not the same as doing it. All project managers know about the value of planning, yet according to the Alpha study, only 2% do enough of it. Why? I think the answer has something to do with discipline and willpower.

It is interesting to note that recently published research by Kelly McGonigal in her book titled: ‘The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do To Get More of It’ supports the view that discipline and willpower can be learned and strengthened, much the same way a muscle can. This is great news for project managers who believe, as I do, that “project management is about applying common sense with uncommon discipline.”

For more about the essence of being a project manager, please read a fully referenced 6-page paper at: 

 

About the author:

when are you a project managerMichael O’Brochta, ACP, PMP has managed hundreds of projects during the past thirty years. Also an experienced line manager, author, lecturer, trainer and consultant and he holds a master’s degree in project management. As Zozer Inc. President, he is helping organizations raise their level of project management performance.  As senior project manager at the Central Intelligence Agency, he led the project management and systems engineering training and certification program to mature practices agency-wide. Recently he led the development of standards and courses for the new U.S. Federal Acquisition Certification for Program and Project Managers. He also serves at the PMI corporate level on the Ethics Member Advisory Group where he led the development of an ethical decision-making framework.

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How to Prepare for Project Management Internships

By Rene Williams

project management internshipsIf you are a non-traditional student, which is someone who has returned to college over the age of 25, it can be difficult trying to organize your life. Attending college/university for an education in project management means you will have a variety of career options to choose from, but it is important that you find a way to do an internship before graduation. Whether you complete paid or non-paid internships, the position will not only provide you with valuable experience, but an internship will help you decide if this is the career for you.

If you are considering a career in project management, the following tips will help you find an internship, what to do during and after the internship.

Finding an Internship

The first step is to decide what type of internship you are interested in.

  • Whether you attend a traditional college or are earning your degree through an online college, the first place to research information about a project manager internship is through the school. Many colleges have an established relationship with a variety of companies that offer internships. There is an advantage to applying for internships through the school you attend, because the internship is already established and the company will understand what the goal of your internship is.
  • If you are working at a company that provides additional training and you want to expand your career options with the same company, talk with the personnel manager about an in-house internship. In some situations, applying for an in-house internship means you may get paid for the experience. It is also beneficial in helping to secure a promotion following your internship and graduation.
  • The internet is also a great place to find internships. Simply do a search for companies in your area that pertain to what you want to do, either search their website for information about internships or call the personnel department directly for information. This is the perfect opportunity to contact a specific organization or company you have always wanted to work for. Do not be intimidated about contacting them, in fact, your determination will make you stand out.

During the Internship

If your goal is to turn your internship into a position with the company, here are a few things you can do to improve your chances. The first rule for turning an internship into a full time job is to be remembered for your professionalism and impressive work skills.

  • Work hard, come early and stay late. You will make a difference by working harder than the employees who already work there.
  • Pretend you’re not an intern. In other words, be mature and responsible. Do not discuss your weekend at the local club or how much you dislike working in general. Act like a member of the company and you will be seen as one.
  • Dress appropriately. During the initial interview, ask about the dress code and follow it. Never break the rules.
  • Seek out a mentor. Observe how the other employees work, notice who is dedicated to the company and who is not and ask a seasoned employee to help guide you through the company expectations. Ask how you can improve your skills and what you are doing wrong.
  • Impressions are gold. Hand in all assignments before the deadline, come up with fresh ideas and be excited to accomplish assigned tasks.

After the Internship

Once your internship has ended, send an email to each person in the department in which you worked thanking them for the experience. It is also beneficial to alert the team you have been working with on when your last day will be and offer to help tie up any loose ends with projects they have before leaving. Regardless of how you felt about your boss during the internship, it is vital that you personally thank them for the opportunity. Schedule an appointment to meet with your supervisor and not only thank them, but to let them know what you have learned and how valuable it will be for your career. Remember to mention that you would like to keep in touch.

Absorb any information presented to you throughout the internship and learn from it. Interning is a great opportunity to make sure you have chosen the right field or not. If during the internship you learn that a particular company is not the type of work you want to do, try a different company next year, but do not give up on your goal of being a project manager, just keep trying and you will eventually find the best company for you.

About the Author: Rene Williams is a freelance writer who regularly contributes to DegreeJungle, an online resource for prospective college students and their parents. She suggests you visit their website to learn more information about the best online colleges.

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Project Management and Soft Skills

project manager soft skillsWhen a project manager starts a new project, it is important to do a check-point of both the Project Management Methodology and templates that will be used, but also the soft skills that will be required. This article highlights some essential soft skills to ensure that a Project Management Professional can effectively manage, collaborate, and influence as needed to drive a project to successful completion.

According to Joanna Durand, Managing Director of the Citigroup, effective leadership consists of a balance between both “hard skills” and “soft skills” that act as the conduits for success.

Hard Skills versus Soft Skills

Soft skills, also called behavioral skills, is a sociological term relating to the cluster of personality traits and behavioral competencies that characterize relationships with other people. Soft skills complement hard skills, also called technical skills, which are the occupational requirements of a job and many other activities.

Soft skills are essentially people skills – the non-technical, intangible, personality-specific skills that determine your strengths as a leader, listener, negotiator, and conflict mediator.

Hard skills, on the other hand, are more along the lines of what might appear on your resume – your education, experience and level of expertise.

Essential Soft Skills

Effective communication serves as the foundation by which all other soft skills are derived.  Mastery of communication skills will ensure broader success with rounding out your soft skills.

Communication skills include Oral, written and non-verbal communication.

  • Oral: presentation, audience awareness, listening, body language
  • Written: presentation of data, critical reading, revision and editing, writing
  • Non-verbal: personal style, tone, body language and audience awareness

For communication to be effective remember the five “C’s”:

  1. Clarity
  2. Completeness
  3. Conciseness
  4. Concreteness
  5. Correctness

Stakeholder Management

Project success is often determined by the ability to successfully manage stakeholder expectations.   These interactions all begin with the basic communication process and an understanding of stakeholder objectives.

Some recommended best practices to communicate effectively with project stakeholders are:

  • To know your audience and to customize your message according to their needs
  • To have a professional presence
  • To summarise the top 3-5 key messages
  • To acknowledge personal communication styles

 How can a Project Manager’s soft skills be developed?

  • Set clear expectations – the team needs to be aligned as to what is being delivered. This will help with accountability and to manage changes to the scope.
  • Stage your delivery by creating interim deliverables.
  • Think ahead of what can go wrong. Anticipate problems (risks) and work with the client to find mitigation strategies.
  • Speak up and escalate when help is needed. This is a sign of confidence.
  • Skip the jargon and speak to clients in the same language they use.
  • Leverage the strengths of the team. Take time to know the team and their strengths as your project will run more effectively if the right people are working on the right things.
  • Don’t steal the limelight when things are going well and give credit to other people’s ideas.
  • Be realistic when setting deadlines. Promise what you know you can do and finish on time.

It is important to understand how the basic communication process works and to appreciate the communication styles of different personality types. To grow as a project manager you need to consistently try to close the gap between “hard” and “soft” skills.

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What is PRINCE2 and How Popular is it?

For a better understanding of PRINCE2 in the Project Management context, please refer to this article:

Understanding PRINCE2 in the Project Management Context

For more information about PRINCE2 and how to implement it in your organisation, please refer to:

Understanding PRINCE2 and How to Implement

Today I would like to share an Infograpic from Knowledge Train, a PRINCE2 training provider. It is about the popularity of PRINCE2 as the preferred project management qualification of choice.

The most recent annual figures released by APMG-International for 2012, show the number of PRINCE2 examinations taken globally rose 5% compared with 2011. The figures show more than 144,000 people sat PRINCE2 examinations in 2012 compared with 136,000 the previous year. By the end of 2012, more than 1 million candidates had taken PRINCE2 exams since 1996.

In fact, the total number of exams taken in 2012 was the highest on record,  and also saw record numbers of candidates take both Foundation and Practitioner examinations.

PRINCE2 exam popularity statistics – An infographic by the team at Knowledge Train PRINCE2 training