Project Management Methods
There are various ways in which projects can be approached and a host of 'methodologies,' 'frameworks,' and 'processes' have been developed over the past 60 years or so. Some of these have their origins in academic research whereas others have grown out of proprietary methods developed by organizations that are highly project focused.
PRINCE 2 - Projects in Controlled Environments
PRINCE 2 is a project management method that has been used frequently within the UK, but also abroad. It is a process-driven method, and is based on seven specific principles. As you likely already know, project management is one of the key skills that a leader can have within any organization. Most companies regularly engage in a variety of projects to work toward their overall goals, and successful project management is one of the main ingredients to long-term success.
PRINCE 2 is a popular method that can serve successfully in many organizations and for many different kinds of projects. Thanks to the structured nature of the method, it is often a good fit for large projects which involve a great number of team members. However, its use for smaller projects might be limited. In order to decide if PRINCE 2 is going to be a good choice for your upcoming project, educate yourself on the complete methodology so you have a complete understanding of the pros and cons of this particular approach to project management.
COBIT - Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology
COBIT defines a set of generic processes for the management of IT. The framework defines each process together with process inputs and outputs, key process-activities, process objectives, performance measures and an elementary maturity model.
Thanks to its widespread use, COBIT is a framework that can apply to many different businesses. There are a great number of resources available to back up your use of this framework as well. If you feel like your organization could use a better roadmap to keep the IT department working toward its goals, and working to the benefit of the rest of the company, COBIT is something to strongly consider putting to use. Improvements made in IT can quickly be seen throughout the rest of the business, so COBIT stands to make your organization better as a whole.
The Systems Development Life Cycle
The systems development life cycle is a term used in project management and software engineering to describe a process for planning, creating, testing, and deploying an information system.
For a project manager tasked with leading the development of a new system, the Systems Development Life Cycle is a helpful model to get that project on track and headed toward a successful conclusion. Each of the steps along the way is important in its own right, and all of them combined together can lead the organization toward the development of a new system that stands to improve operations in some way. Regardless of what the system is intended to do, getting it right is a matter of paying attention to all the details along the way and making sure that the new system is an improvement over the old one in every way possible. Several systems development frameworks have been partly based on SDLC, but traditional life cycle approaches to systems development have been increasingly replaced with alternative frameworks like PMBOK, PRINCE2, and Agile.
The Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle
The Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle presents managers with a common-sense approach to problem solving. Often referred to as the PDCA Cycle, this tool is popular among organizations in many different fields. Regardless of what kind of problem it is that you are trying to solve, there is a good chance that this cycle can help you reach a positive outcome.
This is one of the simplest tools that can be used in business, but it is also one of the most-powerful. The companies that remain at the top of their fields do so because they never settle for 'good enough', and that is exactly the idea behind the PDCA Cycle. There is always room to be better, and using this tool will help you stay focused on long-term, continual improvement.
Six Sigma
Six Sigma seeks to improve the quality output of a process by identifying and removing the causes of defects and minimizing variability in manufacturing and business processes. As you certainly already know, constant improvement should be a goal for any organization.
The concept of Six Sigma is vast and far-reaching, and the information above only touches the tip of the iceberg. Six Sigma applies to a wide range of organizations and is used by many of the biggest companies in the world. For any business leader, manager, or owner, understanding the tools and techniques that make up Six Sigma is certainly something worth adding to your knowledge base.
Lean Six Sigma
Lean Six Sigma is a popular method for improving the performance of many organizations. Combining many of the features of both lean manufacturing and Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma was brought to the forefront in the early 2000's. Six Sigma is focused on continually improving processes in order to maximize efficiency and minimize the number of defects that occur in any process.
Lean Six Sigma combines ideas and tools from two of the most popular methods in business - Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma. The eight wastes above are a great way to understand what Lean Six Sigma is aimed at improving, but they are just the start of what is a vast subject. Educating yourself on Lean Six Sigma will give you an additional tool to help better make decisions and lead your own organization.
The Waterfall Model
As the name would indicate, the Waterfall Model is a method of software development in which the progress flows from the top to the bottom. This is a sequential project management method that lends itself nicely to orderly management and delegation of tasks. Because of the straight-line approach to development, each department or individual within the process can pass the project down the line when their role in the development is complete.
There is no doubt that the Waterfall Model has its limitations as it is relatively simplistic in nature. However, when getting started on a software development project, it does provide a nice framework on which to start thinking about the process. Most likely the model will need to be adapted and tweaked in order to fit exactly what you are trying to accomplish, but using this model as a starting point can quickly get you pointed in the right direction.
Agile Management
The idea behind Agile Management is that it can be adapted and adjusted as a project develops to reflect the changes that are happening all-around the organization. Since things like outside market forces and consumer interests can't necessarily be forecast at the start of the project, using Agile Management will give you the opportunity to change course as needed to make sure the final result of the project is something that will be of value to the organization.
Being adaptable is the name of the game when it comes to Agile Management. While this won't be the right approach to take for all organizations, it will be the perfect way for some businesses to manage their projects. Agile Management is especially well-suited to technology companies who are dealing in a space that changes at an incredibly fast pace.
The Rational Unified Process
The Rational Unified Process (RUP) is an iterative software development process framework intended to be tailored by the project team to suit their needs. As with any other project management method, the goal is to maximize the use of resources and lead a project that results in a successful conclusion.
Using the Rational Unified Process is a popular approach because it can put into place a framework around which the important decisions will be made. Challenges are going to come up along the way, but working within this method is a great way to help the members of your team handle those challenges and still arrive at the end of the project with a valuable and functional piece of software.
The Project Management Body of Knowledge
The Project Management Institute has established a guide known as the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) to identify global standards for the practice of project management. This guide is used by countless people worldwide and is something that any aspiring project manager should understand thoroughly. The guide dates back to 1996, with the most-recent version being the Fifth Edition, which was published in 2013.
Project management is a field that is extremely important to the success of countless organizations. Getting all of the various team members pointed in the right direction and working toward the goal that has been laid out for the project manager is a challenging and complicated task. That challenge is what makes the PMBOK Guide so valuable to so many people. Using this guide allows for a standardization that might not be possible otherwise. Anyone aspiring to work specifically as a project manager - or any leader who wishes to be better at the project management roles that they take on - will benefit from learning more about the contents of the PMBOK Guide.
