4 ways to power up your project delivery in 2019
What are your 2019 project management goals? Improve your project and service delivery; complete more profitable and healthy projects, deliver more projects consistently, standardise your projects, lower your costs, have better team communication, gain more visibility? Whatever your goals and aims, whether you work in the IT, finance, legal or other professional sectors, our article below offers 4 ways to power up your project delivery in 2019 so that you can optimise your projects, deliver on-time and within budget and minimise project failures.
1. Improve visibility
The under-and over-utilisation of resources is one of the key challenges organisations face. In many cases, bottlenecks in projects can be caused when highly skilled resources are in demand and there’s a limited resource pool. Equally, some resources can be lost in the ‘white space’ that exists between project assignments.
In most organisations, resources are allocated to different projects for a certain amount of time. The difficulty is that many project managers don't have visibility of the skill sets or attributes of each resource, which often leads to miscommunication and delays.
With true resource visibility the best people can be allocated depending on their skills, cost and availability thus ensuring the earliest finish and the most cost effective delivery. This also allows project managers to identify potential issues early and prioritise and mitigate risks, thus preventing issues such as cost overruns, missed deadlines or a failure to meet business requirements.
2. PMO-as-a-Service
Not too long ago the Project Management Office (PMO) was an admin function that checked risk management reports, collated timesheets and even booked hotel rooms. Some organisations still use PMOs for these activities but more and more organisations are optimising their projects with ‘value-adding’ PMOs. While there are various types of Project Management Office, no two PMOs are exactly alike. They all serve their businesses in different, unique ways. That’s why it’s helpful to document what you PMO is going to do and what purpose it serves.
PMO trends are shifting again for 2019 and digital technology is a key driver transforming the role of the PMO. Organisations such as Searchlight Consulting are automating the mechanics of a project management office, giving them the opportunity to offer their customers PMO-as-a-Service as an alternative, flexible solution, freeing up their clients time so that they can focus on what really matters - delivering projects successfully.
3. Trust your remote workers
According to a 2018 Gallup report today's employees want flexibility to work remotely when they choose, or they are already working remotely because they can do their jobs anywhere. Additionally, employees want more control over when and where they work. More than half of employees (53%) say a role that allows them to have greater work-life balance is "very important" to them.
With the use of remote teams increasing, a project managers usual work-life has taken on a new guise; the shift from face to face meetings to conference and video calling and an increased dependency on trust and accountability are changing the project team’s landscape. Out of sight, out of mind, might be an adage that rings true in some parts of life, but when managing successful projects, you cannot afford to take your eye off the ball, particularly when you’re working and collaborating with remote project teams.
Whether it’s an outsourced team or company employees working remotely, you need to instill trust in your project team. As a project manager, if you start with a strong, dedicated team you have already won half the battle. You cannot babysit remote team members, so you want to work with individuals who are motivated and proactive in nature, and not those who need constant guidance to fulfil their role.
4. Embrace new ways of communicating
Project managers, especially those working with remote teams cannot simply stroll over to a desk or office to discuss the status of a task, but it’s still down to the project manager to maintain fluid communication to keep everyone updated and for teams to be able to feedback. The new breed of project management software offering document and file sharing as well as shared social spaces can really keep your team collaborating and up-to-date on the project status and task activity virtually anywhere with an internet connection. Other options to consider are project specific intranets, private & group messaging, video updates and podcasts or online ticketing and requests.
Do you want to power up your project delivery in 2019?
If you would like to learn how Hydra Cloud links together your project management and resource management to make things better for your project managers and power up your project delivery in 2019, download our brochure or get in touch.
Further reading
How to ensure consistent delivery by channnel partners
The value of standardisation in your PMO
Video: Execution control - transform your team into 'Supermen'
What to do after project failure
The main challenges of delivering the same level of service every time
