Cost Variance – Earned Value Management
In project management, getting an early indication of problems is the silver bullet that allows the project manager to correct the problems before they start. Cost Variance, usually abbreviated as CV, is one of the fundamental outputs of Earned Value Management. It tells the project manager how far ahead or....
Steps in Project Scheduling
Project scheduling is to a project manager like landing an airplane is to a pilot. It is often the largest and most visible aspect of project management. In this article, I will develop a professional, resource levelled project schedule that provides tremendous confidence in the ability to meet the project....
Quality Control According to the PMBOK
A single poor quality deliverable can create a cycle of low performance, creating an environment where quality is not valued and people do not put in the extra effort to deliver high quality products. Likewise, controlling the quality of a project’s deliverables can be the silver bullet that makes everything....
Project Quality Assurance According to the PMBOK
Project quality assurance is one out of three parts of a larger project quality system that ensures the project deliverables meet the planned quality standards. The other two are the Plan Quality Management process and Quality Control. Notice that the goal is not to produce the highest quality deliverables, only....
Guide to Project Quality Management
It's not hard to find projects which were delivered on time and budget with stakeholders satisfied in every other respect except for the quality of the project's deliverables. Usually, this factor alone causes projects to be considered a failure. Thus, strong project management demands a strong knowledge of project quality....
The Elements of a Project Charter
Before a project even begins, a project charter is a document that incorporates the project and appoints the project manager. Many projects operate without a project charter, even multimillion dollar projects. But the formal authorization of the project by the performing organization can be important to ensure the lines of....
The PMBOK’s Project Management Documents
Many documents are created in the profession of project management. Some of these are critical to the successful completion of the project, and others are merely intended for organizing the work flow. But the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) outlines many documents that have an integral place within the....
The PMBOK’s Five Project Phases
The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) divides projects into five phases. Although the term 'phase' implies that they are carried out in chronological order, in practice they can be performed out of order. For example, when project changes occur the project manager would proceed back to the planning phase.....
Project Monitoring and Control
The Project Management Body of Knowledge, published by the Project Management Institute, contains five project phases (officially called process groups). One of these is called Monitoring & Controlling, which consists of those processes required to track, review, and orchestrate the progress and performance of the project. It also identifies any....
The Elements of Project Control
Assigning work is relatively easy, but how do you ensure that the deadlines will be met, the project will come in under budget, or that the quality level will be acceptable to the stakeholders? Fortunately, project management fundamentals contain techniques which are used to track and control the project. Earned Value....