5 Project Management Trends shaping 2018

By Ashley Lipman

Project Management isn’t an industry that stays the same for a long period of time. It’s unpredictable, versatile, and subject to various trends at any given time.

Some of the trends influencing Project Management in 2018 may be old; others may have just emerged. However, the ones to look out for are those that are the most influential.

Want to know what these trends are?

Knowing about the emerging trends will help you manage your projects and get things done more efficiently in 2018:

1. Artificial intelligence is here to stay

AI, short for Artificial Intelligence, is no longer a concept dreamt of in science fiction. Technology like Siri, Echo, and Home are the most popular kinds, but AI is also the base of several PM applications.

Repetitive tasks have been automated and AI software has been applied to PM management more and more over the months.

Project managers are now making use of AI programs to enhance the efficiency of their projects. This includes dealing with resources, streamlining workflow, and giving valuable insights into future plans.

It’s also used in centralising data that could immensely help your team work together even from remote locations. Application performance management and server monitoring | AppOptics is just another example of how AI is becoming entrenched in this industry.

2. Embedded technology leads to faster project delivery

Source: Pixabay

We know that technology has become highly portable, even to the point where you can wear a smartwatch to replace your phone, computer, and tablet to some extent. As a project manager, wearable technology enables you to track and enhance your productivity at all levels.

Using smart glasses, head-mounted displays, and smartwatches can enhance the efficiency, safety, and the accuracy of any team. What’s more, the data from such wearable devices can help managers learn what makes team members tick.

Once project managers start paying more attention to what their team members need, they will better know how to motivate them and to create a culture that encourages and rewards high performance.

3. Remote workers are expanding the workforce

Source: Pixabay

Project managers don’t require the whole team to be co-located, in fact virtual teams and outsourcing specialist skills has become quite the norm.

With team members working from home or from remote locations, more flexible work hours make for a higher productivity level. Hence, project managers need to be aware of this and improve their skills around managing virtual teams.

4. Hybrid management is the next big thing

Project managers now have to embrace the fact that cookie-cutter solutions (read methodologies) are out of date. They may have followed a traditional waterfall type methodology in the past, but now, it’s time to tweak this according to their clients’ project requirements.

There are certain processes that can help with this kind of project management. One example of these is following an Agile approach, giving companies the ability for faster time to market.

Hence, a project manager who is comfortable with following a hybrid approach is definitely in order. You need to consider several methodologies for approaching different projects. This sort of personalisation and customisation continue to grow more important as time goes on.

5. Project managers with emotional intelligence are preferred

Gone are the days when solid, technical skills were adequate for a project manager. Soft skills and a high level of emotional intelligence are now highly valued in the PM industry, and with several good reasons.

In 2018, business owners are increasingly looking for managers who can keep their teams happy, satisfied, and motivated. This combination is one of the best ones for making up a highly productive workforce.

Find some more insights from the “Pulse of the Profession” PMI report here.

These 5 trends are by no means a comprehensive list, but certainly trends to acknowledge and consider for a project professional in 2018.

June 6, 2018February 14, 2022 Linky

Ongoing Value of the PMO

In light of the upcoming PMO Conference in London, UK, in June, I wanted to share some exciting information on PMO awards.

The PMO Global Awards is the PMO Global Alliance’s annual award for the most outstanding Project Management Offices in the world.

It intends to inspire organizations around the world to evolve their Project Management Offices and project management practices to achieve the best results.

Click here to find out more about PMO Global Alliance.

PMSA PMO Award

Locally, the Project Management South Africa or PMSA would like to introduce a PMO category as part of its Exceptional Project Management Awards programme. It will result in local recognition as well as nominations towards the Africa Region leg of the Global PMO Alliance Awards.

This programme will build on the requirements for the Global PMO Alliance Awards which examine the following components:

PMO’s journey
Client service
Best Practices
Innovation
Community
Value generation

The winners will be announced in November at the PMSA National Conference taking place from 14-16 November in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Renewing your PMO

Lastly, I want to refer you to a very insightful, researched article about improving the value of your PMO by Louise Worsley.

May 22, 2018February 14, 2022 Linky

Project Management Insights from 2018 Pulse of the Profession Report

By Linky van der Merwe

“If your organization is not good at project management, you’re putting too much at risk in terms of ultimately delivering on strategy.”

Mark A Langley, President and CEO of PMI

The PMI’s “Pulse of the Profession” is the premiere global survey of project management practitioners which then charts the major trends for project management now and in the future. Based on research across different industries, some important insights came to light.

Watch the video or continue reading below.

#1 The future of value delivery is a spectrum of approaches:

Predictive
Iterative
Incremental
Agile
Hybrid

#2 Project professionals will learn in new ways and broaden their skills like:

Strategic advisor
Big thinker
Innovator
Communicator
Versatile manager

#3 Organisations will rely on their project professionals to take advantage of disruption – not just react to it.

The impact of digital transformation on project work is massive and some things you can do are:

Become a leader and true business partner in your organization
Ask the right questions
Deliver the business benefits of the projects you manage

Soft skills have become critical for project managers even more than 5 years ago and mature organisations who have invested more in their project management talent see strategic value from it.

Current state reveal trends such as:

Only 58% of organisations fully understand the value of project management
Only 41% or organisations with an enterprise-wide PMO report that it’s highly aligned to the organisation’s strategy.
93% of organisations report using standardized project management practices which reduces risk and leads to better outcomes.
72% of PMO leaders feel certification is very relevant for mid-career project managers as it requires ongoing professional development, allowing PM’s to evolve, enhance and grow a variety of skills including technical, leadership and digital skills.
71% or organisations report greater agility over the last 5 years which is helping them to stay competitive
1 in 3 organisations report high benefits realization maturity whereby tangible and intangible benefits should be considered.

According to the Pulse of the Profession there has been an evolution from ‘best practices’ to ‘next practices’ that encompass what is likely to come in future.

May 2, 2018May 2, 2018 Linky

5 Elements for Innovation through Projects

Project management often provides the ideal environment in which to harness innovation. A project manager’s skills need to include the ability to encourage and develop creative thinking to achieve results.

Watch this video to find out what will enable innovation through projects.

What will enable innovation?

#1 Listen

Listening creates a safe space and increases trust. In the context of listening we enter in a psychological state where we are more receptive to be creative.

#2 Find your flow

In sport they talk about getting into the zone, where they describe an altered state of consciousness, an increased mental state and even a heightened state of enjoyment.

We need to be in environments that are fun and innovative. Project managers need to enable that through conversation, having fun and giving meaning to work. Let people engage all their senses, because we think with our whole body. We’ll immerse ourselves in a state of productivity that can increase our productivity by up to 60%.

#3 Social sensitivity

Diversity is a core aspect of innovation. It helps to have different perspectives, to care about each other and to have authentic leaders.

#4 Building a community

The work of Peter Block, called Social Fabric, is centered around the need to belong. Building a community gives a sense of connectedness, where collaboration is a choice and people realise that they can create more together than on their own.

#5 Culture of appreciation

Encourage a culture of appreciation. Reward and acknowledge people by their name, give empathy that will increase the feeling of connectedness.

Where projects consist of self-organising teams, project managers need to build resilience in the system to handle the uncertainty. It’s important to remember that you cannot innovate without disruption.

April 16, 2018 Linky

Software Review: Wrike’s add-on to Gmail

With project management becoming more demanding because of higher expectations from clients, more efficient tools were made to help project managers. One such useful work management solutions, is Wrike which was introduced in a detailed software review before as a software that makes a difference. This article will take a closer look at Wrike’s add-on to Gmail.

The Main Functions of Wrike

The whole purpose of Wrike is to make task management easier, these are some of the main ways Wrike can help you:

Monitor Your Tasks

With Wrike, you can easily view all of your tasks, including their respective details. Other than that, you can also edit the tasks. You can change the details or the descriptions, and you can mark them as “done” or “in progress”, as well as add notes to your tasks and attachments.

Create New Tasks

Aside from monitoring and editing your existing tasks, you can also create new ones from your Gmail, and you can use Wrike to make emails as tasks. There is an add-on panel with which you can use to make your new tasks.

Make Wrike Comments

In order to make collaboration between you and your teammates easier, Wrike has a thread specifically for making comments. With the use of your Gmail, you can leave comments for your members and receive them too.

Work Using Different Devices

Since this is a Gmail add-on, you can use it across different devices by accessing your Gmail. Whether you’re using a computer or a smartphone, you’ll be able to use this tool.

Receive Task Notifications

Another way in which Wrike is helpful is through providing notifications whenever there is an update. You will receive notifications if there is a completed task or a change in the details of the project. This allows you to remain up to date on the progress of each of your tasks.

Other Ways Wrike Can Help You

Other than the main functions of Wrike, there are also other creative ways to utilize the CRM system. Here are a few other ways for you to use this tool to your full advantage.

Create Email Templates

This function allows you to create email templates, which are really important as they showcase your company’s branding. With an email template creation option, you can send customers emails that are consistent and those that help hold your brand.

Regulate Your Content Publishing

If you’re handling blogs or other platforms that make use of content, Wrike has a unique workflow publication feature that allows you to monitor and plan when content is published. You’ll also receive notifications when content is published and when they are edited.

Monitor Product Development

All products will go through a product life-cycle upon creation. With Wrike, you can create a product life-cycle and visually represent it with a graph that you can share to the rest of the team.

Create and Manage Subtasks

Aside from creating main tasks, you can also easily create subtasks. Usually, you would have to run through each of your main tasks to see what the subtasks are, however; with Wrike, you can easily access your subtasks and manage their details. You can even turn an existing main task into a subtask.

Create Private Folders

You can create private folders where you restrict the access to certain teams, members, or departments. This is very important if you are passing sensitive data amongst your team members. You can also change the permission settings in the event that any of your team members get transferred or resigned.

Create Tags for Your Folders

This is probably the most useful feature that Wrike offers. With the use of tags, you’ll be able to see the name of your folder at the top of the dashboard. If you want to access a report or file from a particular folder, you can just make a tag. From there, you can just click on the tag and all the information you’re looking for will be made visible.

Conclusion

As the review is showing, Wrike is a highly recommended work management solutions for project management. With its user-friendly interface and its wide array of features, Wrike can be a great additive to your Gmail and your office tools in general. With Wrike, you can track your tasks with utmost efficiency and communicate with your teammates effectively, while making your work easier and more impactful overall.

Let us know in the comments section if you have experience using Wrike or any other similar tools that you would want to recommend.

March 30, 2018February 14, 2022 Linky

Top Tips on How to Become a Modern Professional Learner

By Louise Worsley

Professional bodies such as PMI and APM are increasingly recognising the need for informal learning. PMI’s PMP Professional Development Units (PDU) scheme is split 70:30 Professional Development: Giving Back. “Giving Back” encourages social interactions with peers and the sharing of knowledge and skills. APM states that informal learning is a very important part of professional development and provides a list of the kinds of activities that project managers should get involved with.

How we should go about doing informal learning, and how organisations can support project managers in this process is less clear. Here are my four starting steps:

Step 1: Throw out the ‘I need to attend a course’ mentality

Don’t get me wrong – sometimes going on a course is the right thing, but it is not the first stop. ‘Going on a course’ is often an easy option for your line manager and for you. However, it takes much more than attendance on a course to create sustained changes in performance. Being more innovative in thinking about the best ways to grow your skills may result in you identifying you don’t need the course – or – and equally as valuable – ensuring you have considered how the experience on the course results in learning once you’ve complete it.

Step 2: ‘Mash-up’ your learning approaches

You can’t just go to the PMBoK and list off the things you need to know about. It’s not just about what you learn but also how you learn, that matters. For example:

Collaborative activities such as mentoring, workshops and joint problem solving activities support growth of team skills and personality traits such as Emotional Intelligence. They also help form relationships and build better working practices
Reflective activities such as ‘lessons learned’, coaching and personal feedback sessions help us differentiate good strategies from less successful ones. When will this approach work and when should I try something else?
Professional-social activities within your company such as peer-to-peer discussions and forums promote the formation of local communities of practise – expertise and support you can call on when needed.
Professional-social activities in external forums, conferences and social networks broaden the network of expertise you can call upon and provide access to different ways of thinking and new ways of doing things.
Personal learning activities are driven by your needs, interests and curiosity. They can take many forms; reading books and blogs, following twitter feeds and dipping into the plethora of work-related and personal development MOOCs (online courses). Ultimately they fuel our on-going passion to be professional learners.

Step 3: Be social

There’s no better way of reinforcing your learning than sharing it. Consider the socialisation of your learning not as a knowledge-giving process but as a way of testing, growing and connecting your understanding to the knowledge networks of others.

Success Stories Shared

Step 4: Make it personal

If it is as easy as this, why aren’t all organisations doing it already? The real challenge is that this is not something you have done to you. It’s a learning journey that you have to plan and execute yourself. Creating your personal learning environment is more than just responding to immediate needs in the workplace. It’s a way of life, a way of becoming a modern professional learner to meet today’s ever changing challenges.

Personal experience

One of the most successful learning strategies for me has been the gathering and sharing of stories from project and programme managers. Listening to how project managers have dealt with extreme challenges has not only grown my understanding but also inspired me to continue to be fascinated by the field of project management. You will find some Success Stories here.

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About the Author: Louise Worsley is a PPPM consultant at PiCubed and a visiting lecturer in project management at The University of Cape Town. She has a Masters in Online and Distance Education. In 2017 she published the book: ‘Stakeholder-led project management, Changing the way we manage projects’.

March 20, 2018March 31, 2019 Linky

10 Pointers for New Project Management Practitioners

Please have a look at 10 excellent pointers for new projects managers.
Then share in the comments if you want to add more advice based on your own experience.

February 28, 2018March 6, 2018 Linky

Top 10 Tips to Prepare for the PMP Exam

Here are some great tips to help you prepare for your PMP exams – all the best!

February 21, 2018February 23, 2018 Linky

Project Success Story: Mix and Match Innovation

This is the story of an IT Project Manager, Shaun Oppel, who was responsible for a project to implement an innovative new concept called “Mix & Match” in Retail. It basically meant that customers could buy any 3 products on this promotion and then receive the cheapest product for free. Since the company was the first Retailer to bring this concept to South Africa, it was hugely exciting with high risk and high reward. Above all, it was envisaged that it would give them an edge on competitors.

The project complexity lied in the fact that it required cross-functional teams as well as impacting different systems across IT and Business. In this instance, Marketing was the main stakeholder and owner of the project. It consisted of a National roll-out to approximately 220 stores; of which 100 stores had Pharmacies.

Challenges

A large number of projects were running simultaneously thereby making it very difficult to assign the most senior and best resources available for the duration of the project. This led to resource conflicts and constraints as multiple projects pursued team members with significant expertise of various systems as well as that of the business.

Dedicated resources

Initially a Shared Resource Model was used, but it wasn’t working very efficiently. The Project Manager had to take corrective action by requesting dedicated resources. A recommendation was made to “ring-fence” the project team from BAU support resources so as to circumvent resource constraints. Some business as usual (BAU) work was then outsourced.

Language differences

Since some work was outsourced to India, it created difficulty among team members to understand one another due to different accents. People had trouble understanding what was being said especially due to the fact that the Meetings were being facilitated via conference call. In order to address this issue, a Manager responsible for that Account who was based on-site, would be present on conference calls and would help translate and minute what was being said.

What worked well

Due to the very strategic nature of the project, and it being managed as the highest priority in the overall portfolio, the resources had to be dedicated which helped to create a strong project team.

Good project governance was applied through-out and the mature PM methodology was followed consistently. Risk Management worked well; through keeping a detailed Risk Log and consistently reviewing it. All risks were validated with the respective Systems Managers. Risks categorised as high Impact were raised at Steercom and addressed appropriately.

Members of the Audit Team were assigned to various projects as team members in order to provide steer, guidance, and adherence to standard practices and good governance. The project was well supported by Business and IT from a Steercom and Management perspective. As a strategic project it had a strong Business Case with good ROI and clearly defined Metrics in order to track benefits.

A RACI matrix was produced at the start of the project which ensured that roles and responsibilities clearly defined. It was agreed upon, clarified with resources involved and it remained a living document.

Change Management well executed

The project required a good Change Management strategy and delivery, because of the touch point in Stores. It followed an approach of Train the Trainers. The Trainers had an exam to pass; then they would be allowed to train their own staff and subsequently they would be required to pass the assessment as well. The staff had to be familiar with what the changes were and they had to be enabled to answer any questions posed during the National roll-out.

Testing and Quality Assurance

Key to the successful delivery was to have an experienced Test Manager assigned. The Test Cases were clearly defined, well understood, and well executed. There were separate Development, Test and Production Environments which were refreshed quarterly so as to ensure Data Alignment.

Handover to Operations

After implementation a 6-week period was allowed for handover to the support function. The longer period helps to build up history of typical issues and how to address them.

Key learnings

Governance: One team member cannot make decisions without the others. Apply good governance and facilitate regular Steercoms whilst encouraging and ensuring good attendance. It helps significantly to keep and maintain the focus.

Stakeholder Management: Have consideration for all stakeholders that are impacted by the project. The RACI matrix produced and the exercise of work shopping the details thereof was key in getting people to understand what was expected of them. Regular communications to all business stakeholders, eliminated “corridor talk” and the scenario of “broken telephone” syndrome as people were informed about the progress and the go live details. It’s important to keep Management (Business and IT) on the same page; as it takes much more effort and time to get everyone re- aligned.

Team management and performance: Alignment with the whole Project Team around all Deliverables, Milestones and dependencies is very important and will ensure that team members are kept accountable. A Project Manager needs to escalate if a person is struggling or not performing and also let the Systems Managers understand this. Don’t hesitate to request and obtain help from Leadership to support the team if and when required.

Emotional Intelligence: Give greater attention to Emotional Intelligence (EQ). Make time to understand the people, what makes them tick and work with each person as an individual. Appreciate the culture, the dynamics at play and how to get the very best out of them.

Team motivation: Keep team members as motivated as possible. It will uplift their spirits and the team as a whole if you bring a positive attitude to meetings. Don’t bash individuals but rather see what can be done at all times to lend a hand and how best to move forward and resolve the issue being encountered. Ask if there are obstructions that would prevent them to deliver. As a Project Manager stay positive, remain optimistic and keep a similar approach of having a good attitude. Do take the time as a Team to celebrate successes and major milestones on the project. It motivates the team and makes them look forward to meetings.

Have regular conversations and verbalise frequently with regards to yourself as the Project Manager being approachable. Let team members know that they won’t be in trouble if they fall behind. Keep supporting the team members to be better at what they do. Encourage your team to have conversations with one another; don’t wait for meetings to raise problems. Be pro-active. The PM is there to help, support, but you don’t want to micro-manage the team.

Cost management: Build in Budget contingency for example, you have to make provision for Exchange Rate fluctuations. It can blow the Budget if you don’t mitigate the risk.

Over time and with experience, a Project Manager will rely more and more on soft skills like leadership and emotional Intelligence (EQ); as in the end, that is what helps to be successful at project delivery.

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About the Project Manager:

Shaun Oppel has been in Project Management for more than 20 years. He started his career in Project Management at an Internet Service Provider (ISP), and continued to build skills in Project Management at different Blue-chip Companies. He’s Education includes an Electrical Engineering Degree, a Master in Science (MSc) Degree, an MBA Degree, a PMP Certified and Prince II Certificate.

He may be contacted on Shaun.Oppel@gmail.com or on his Mobile: 083-5055983.

February 12, 2018April 26, 2019 Linky

4 Reasons Why Waterfall isn’t a Fit for your Team

By Joel Roberts

Even though the Agile method is now being increasingly adopted by organizations worldwide, especially for software development, too many organizations still cling to Waterfall. The existing processes are probably influencing the decision of what methodology is used.

Your organization’s current processes are likely to determine the way you run your project, regardless of its nature. But, this shouldn’t be the case. Project managers are more than able to assist their organizations and suggest effective ways of implementing projects while reducing risks at the same time.

For this, you need to have a deeper understanding of how each project management methodology may impact the project and its success. Choosing the right methodology can be key to successful completion of a project. So, if your organization still uses the waterfall methodology, read on and see for yourself why this needs to change.

Waterfall Method and its flaws

As you know, the Waterfall method is a sequential approach, separating a project into different phases, where one phase has to be completed before starting the next one.

So here are the 4 crucial flaws caused by this:

#1 No Flexibility

The Waterfall method in its core means following a predetermined set of steps, as the methodology, in its traditional form, leaves almost no room for unexpected changes or revisions. You have to be clear with all the development requirements beforehand and just keep your team always moving forward.

A probable and highly undesirable scenario is that your team will carefully follow the steps nearly to the end of the project but, they may face an unforeseen obstruction that requires a change in scope or goals. Since the used methodology doesn’t welcome change, proceeding with the initial plan won’t be easy. As you’ll have already put a considerable amount of work into a project, under very specific and fixed assumptions, an unexpected change to any parameter of the project may render much of the finished work useless.

This may have severe consequences and even throw off the entire timeline. Another aspect of Waterfall that reduces flexibility is that Waterfall projects are highly integrated and not an object-oriented approach.

#2 Uncertain and Time-consuming Preplanning

When using this method, you must produce a detailed and thorough requirement definition in one of the earliest phases of the project. But, in such an early phase of the project, trying to define the requirements is often very difficult.

Therefore, many of the requirements are subject to change throughout the project. Specifying requirements in advance means that a lot of the requirements are based on assumptions. You may come across many difficulties to validate those assumptions since the first builds are not available until late in the development phase.

Even the client has to outline all their preferences upfront, without seeing a working version. Once the first builds are available, it’s often too late to change requirements without substantial delays of the project. Also, when planning everything up front, very often you can overlook certain changes due to business plans or market influences. Since change is unwelcome and difficult to carry out, any new developments or changes of requirements which may occur after the initial agreement could raise serious concerns.

#3 Delayed Testing Period

Testing is a very important phase of a project as the results have an impact on all the work that has been done. The best practice would be to integrate testing as a fundamental and continual process throughout development. This has been the case with more recent SDLC models, whereas the waterfall model largely differs, leaving the testing until quite late into the life cycle.

This means quality and security issues or integration problems with existing products are typically discovered quite late in the process. Fixing such issues requires a lot of effort. What’s worse, sometimes testing may be short-changed in order to stay on schedule, and that means that bugs will be discovered by the customer only after the delivery of the product.

In turn, this makes fixing the code expensive and time-consuming. It has been shown that a bug identified at a later stage can cost up to 60 percent more to get fixed, as compared to its cost when identified at an earlier stage.

Another issue related to the testing is the possible appearance of careless coding practices. Testing teams often have less time to complete test execution and since more time is spent during the initial stages for detailed documentation, not enough attention is paid to testing.

#4 Lack of Client or Stakeholder Interaction

At times when communication seems to be one of the crucial factors that can impact project’s success, you cannot afford to leave the client or stakeholders out. In the Waterfall method a lot of time is spent with the client at the outset, with an attempt to document all the perceived requirements.

After this has been done, the implementation team usually take over and the client has no say until the project is nearly done. However, the feedback that arrives late into the development cycle can present a significant issue.

Due to the strict sequential process enforced by the waterfall model, an unforeseen requirement or request for a change, although not impossible to be done, will be both costly and time-consuming for everyone involved in the project. So, this method is definitely not suitable for projects with moderate to high risk of change of requirements.

If you are still not completely convinced with these reasons, add the high amounts of risk and uncertainty, longer delivery time, and other challenges that project schedulers might face to the list.

Considering the shortcomings of the Waterfall approach, which method do you prefer? Which factors made you decide?

Please provide some feedback in the comments section.

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About the Author:

Joel Roberts is a Project Management Consultant and an established author with more than 12 years of experience in working for PrimaveraReader – Primavera P6 companion tool for viewing and analyzing project plans by the project team.

She is passionate about Mind Mapping and innovation management and her articles have been featured in more than a hundred project management and business websites.

February 7, 2018July 2, 2024 Linky

Staying relevant as a Project Manager in today’s world

By Derek Smith

In today’s digital and disruptive world, executives and organizations are faced with fierce competitive challenges that require them to continuously adapt, or else face the consequences and the stark possibility of not being around for much longer. The same goes for project managers who need to keep abreast with what is happening with Agile methods and philosophies in Project Management in order to keep themselves relevant and employable.

Agile and Lean Practices

Flexible Agile and Lean practices, such as Scrum and Kanban which were once the sole domain of software developers, are uniquely positioned to create business success, and are making significant inroads outside of IT and finding acceptance and support by C Level executives. Organizations need to quickly sense and adapt to external and internal changes to deliver results productively and cost-effectively, without losing sight of the fact that governance is still required.

The quest for success also starts with the right approach to support project delivery, and specific project characteristics and organizational needs should form the basis of selecting the correct approach.

With everyone hopping on the bandwagon to capitalize on training and adoption, combined with so many choices when it comes to approaches, it can be daunting to try and keep abreast of how these practices are evolving, and how and what to choose. PMI have a series of reports which have been geared towards thought leadership, and it is pertinent to note that six reports deal with achieving greater agility.

The reports cover topics such as focusing on the customer, frequent feedback, choosing the right approach and transforming the organization by focusing on people and monitoring progress. Evolving the collaboration between lines of business, changing the culture and assessing the need for cross-functional support are other key aspects to consider when seeking to achieve greater organizational agility.

Career advancement

From a career standpoint, project managers need to keep themselves relevant to be employable and earn a decent wage. PMI’s Pulse of the Profession® research has indicated that stakeholders are pushing to adopt agile practices. Organizations that are agile and responsive to market dynamics, complete more of their projects successfully than those that are not — 75 percent versus 56 percent, according to the research.

It is for this reason that they have included information on agile practices, alongside traditional approaches in the PMBOK® Guide – Sixth Edition, and partnered with Agile Alliance® to create the new Agile Practice Guide. The PMI-ACP® is currently the fastest growing PMI certification, and spans many approaches to agile such as Scrum, Kanban, Lean, extreme programming (XP) and test-driven development (TDD.).

Sources:

PMI.org

Achieving greater agility

Project management.com

Agile certifications

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About the Author: Derek Smith has over 24 years of experience in the technology and ICT industry. He has been a CIO for 2 listed companies, and has also managed some of the top outsource operations for 2 of South Africa’s leading service providers. He is currently a Projects Portfolio Manager, Mentor and Coach, and is an advocate and evangelist for Agile philosophies and methods.