13
votes
Refactoring in Agile development
TL;DR
Part of any project management framework, but especially agile frameworks like Scrum, is the necessity of continuously managing stakeholder expectations. People want what they want when they ...
- 48.9k
8
votes
Accepted
What does it mean to 'crash a project'?
Crashing is simply the concept of throwing more resources--be it money, tools and machinery, humans, etc--at a work package in an attempt to decrease its overall duration. The general idea is, if you ...
- 37k
7
votes
How can I plan for contingencies in Scrum?
TL;DR
Like any project, things happen. I am looking for feedback on how to plan for the contingency in a scrum based project. [sic]
This is an X/Y problem. In Scrum, you have estimates rather than ...
- 48.9k
7
votes
Accepted
How to deal with scheduling/control when task insertion (vs task duration) is primary risk
This is why I prefer a product oriented WBS. Except when the deliverable is a service, the WBS should be based on the product itself, broken down to its components, and then underneath add activities ...
- 37k
6
votes
What is the process of schedule management with clients who aren't very responsive?
The simple answer to "What does the PM do when the milestone passes" is:
Re-schedule the project plan to take the delays into account then report on milestone changes back to the project sponsors and ...
- 4,424
4
votes
Documenting diversions or delays from a schedule?
Funny to read my name in the question. The documentation of this type of purposeful deviation could happen anywhere you normally document. For example, if an issue was identified and documented in ...
- 37k
4
votes
Accepted
How to minimize scope creep?
I've been dealing a lot with a scope creep over the last 2 years. I created a list of things that is a must to keep in mind in order to minimize the negative impact on the project.
At first - you ...
- 1,151
4
votes
Accepted
Task estimation and probable risks
I'm a little bit worried about the way you phrased your question. From what I gather, you want some sort of formula or process to account for the risks, then use that formula to get the perfect ...
- 14.5k
3
votes
Accepted
How to manage consulting resources to deliver ahead of delivery dates?
Lets assume that the consultants are working in good faith and their estimates are correct.
Now delays must be caused by the usual things:
external task needs to be completed by someone else.
extra ...
- 926
3
votes
How can I plan for contingencies in Scrum?
The short answer is that the project plan is more emergent than that - allow me to elaborate.
In scrum I have a constantly evolving backlog. I work with the team to identify what work will be done in ...
- 16.8k
3
votes
How can we prevent project professionals from sabotaging the project schedule?
One of the best solutions is to build in incentives and penalties tied to the schedule. You can have a T&M, Cost plus, or fixed price and still have a part of their fee at risk. If they finish ...
- 37k
3
votes
Accepted
Documenting diversions or delays from a schedule?
Documentation is a Communication Aid
Where is information such as deviations to be documented?
There isn't a single answer for this, as it depends on what you're trying to document and the purpose ...
- 48.9k
3
votes
Accepted
Scheduling for Calendar Time when availability is variable?
When possible, make it visible to the stakeholders why the release date is being pushed back.
If it's in order to fix their own products, then they should naturally be less frustrated. It's even ...
- 14.8k
3
votes
Scheduling for Calendar Time when availability is variable?
If you are using a tool to keep the tasks such a Jira, try to setup your project in a way that stakeholders understand the capacity and the type of activities that your team is working on.
Also, if ...
- 1,113
3
votes
Refactoring in Agile development
Are you producing a deployable increment of product each sprint? If so then agreed delivery dates are already being met and that is the best way to minimise risk and give the customer confidence in ...
- 6,021
2
votes
What is the process of schedule management with clients who aren't very responsive?
Managing the potential delays in advance through communication are very important. However, there should be one or more contractual requirements laid in advance to mitigate any delays on the client's ...
- 41
2
votes
Is planning software necessary?
Yes, Software Planning is important. and most important is to use any tool for it. because of some times, any changed that managed somewhere. and everyone discussed and track it.
Then every task is ...
- 21
2
votes
time management
if the distribution of duration values is symmetrical (+- sigma), then the expected value will be the actual estimate without this variance, so you can use it simply for critical path estimation.
if ...
- 389
2
votes
How to calculate Critical Path including Std Dev for each activity estimate?
I think there are a couple of misconceptions in this question - at least from the way I learned the topics.
First, estimating the duration of activities is not done with an duration +/- sigma. Sigma ...
- 8,738
2
votes
What does it mean to 'crash a project'?
There are 2 strategies for compressing project schedules; crashing and fast tracking.
Crashing refers to adding more resources to critical activities in order to reduce the duration and save time ...
2
votes
Accepted
How can I produce more reliable estimates for technology refresh projects?
I don't have enough experience to confirm or rebut this hypothesis. That said, if I were in the position, I would propose the minimum possible refactor project (kind of like my academic colleagues ...
- 8,738
2
votes
How to manage consulting resources to deliver ahead of delivery dates?
Sounds like working in a more Agile-structured way would be beneficial. If you require being able to see incremental versions of the software every so often (say, every two weeks), then you will not ...
- 14.8k
2
votes
How to minimize scope creep?
Focus on customer value.
Just because the client thinks of a new function doesn't mean the one you are writing right now has lost its value.
I try to follow these guidelines:
- Slow down. Do not ...
- 211
2
votes
How to deal with a client who does not respect PM practices, yet wants a PM?
Due to the history, it does not sound like you will ever convince her of the need for a more sophisticated PM approach. At this stage, if I were in your shoes, document and publish to as many ...
- 37k
2
votes
How to deal with a client who does not respect PM practices, yet wants a PM?
My experience has been that when the client refuses to accept your advice, the best approach is to focus on highlighting the pain.
By that, I mean you use information radiators and reporting to make ...
- 19k
2
votes
How to Handle a Funding Overrun on a Time and Materials (T&M) Contract
What would be your course of action with the client?
Ans :
1) Share the current status with client
2) Revisit the project plan and re-prioritize the scope.
3) Based on the updated scope realign the ...
- 21
1
vote
How to manage consulting resources to deliver ahead of delivery dates?
I suggest we share the observation with the manager of the consultants, agree with him or her the expectation gap, brainstorm the probable motivation or ability root causes (for example, Start Late, ...
- 11
1
vote
How to track and manage project progress & opportunities?
I would add:
The important thing is to have a way to track all the details you need, in order to get to completion.
Make sure to update your tracking frequently (could be every day, if not every few ...
- 4,532
1
vote
How to track and manage project progress & opportunities?
And while I wouldn't recommend using Traditional Development (Waterfall), if you do then you want to pull on the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK). Chapter 6 of the PMBoK covers Project ...
- 12.4k
1
vote
How can I produce more reliable estimates for technology refresh projects?
In my observations working in this industry over the years, I do not opine that IT projects suffer from anything different than any other project in other domains. What I see is an industry specific ...
- 37k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible