The success of a project can be dependent on quite a few factors. However, the most important among them is the project team who are in charge of executing the work. This is where the role of the project manager is extremely crucial. While keeping the project on track at all times is of prime importance; effective communication, continued project delivery and sustainable profit margins are also critical attributes of a project manager.
But how do you ensure your project is a success every time? While there is no rule book for executing a flawless project, the following ways can ensure your projects are executed smoothly every time. Let’s look at some of the ways project managers can ensure project success.
Learn All About the Project Details
Every project has a purpose, and once you know what this purpose is, you’ll be better able to devise a strategic plan. You can align the purpose of the company’s plan, which helps to contribute better to the project.
While a detailed brief with meticulous project planning is required, you should also plan regular discussions among team members so that concepts are always clear. For remote teams and real-time updates, investing in a resource management tool can set you apart from other project managers. Not only do you easily track your resource allocation, but other project and non-project details can also be maintained, helping you get an overall insight into the work.
Invest in Project Management Certifications
Being a successful project manager would mean remaining aware of some of the tips and tricks of the profession. While your work experience is crucial for leading the team, a qualification would help you take control of any emergencies in a better manner. Not just that, you would also be able to allocate work efficiently to your staff based on their competencies.
You can choose a professional qualification that would be suitable for your line of work and experience. The years and relevance of experience would be a crucial factor to assess your suitability for the certification. The Project Management Professional (PMP) certification from the Project Management Institute is well-known for offering certification for experienced employees. Similarly, IT project professionals can benefit from a Scrum certification. These certifications are also great additions to your resume, and offer recognition from the industry.
Initiate the Due Process at Every Step
Once you know why you are working on a project and how it affects the company in terms of benefits realization and financial returns, it is important to define processes for smooth operation. Divide the project into different phases to begin with, such as initiation, planning, execution, and closure.
For each of these phases, specify the different milestones in a project for easy goal-setting purposes. It makes the project tangible and puts benchmarks which are easy to track for managers and resources alike. It will also help you get early warnings for any project discrepancies for easy mitigation. A workforce management system is a good way that keeps the team aligned with company goals.
Know Your People Well
It helps a great deal to know the people you are working with. From stakeholders, executives and resources actually delivering the work, it makes sense to know what their capabilities are. Knowing their strengths and weaknesses will help you stay better prepared for projects.
To execute a project well, you need to have a well-rounded effective team. From problem-solving criticalities to carrying out due diligence in all processes, it is important that skilled resources are assigned to the right aspects of each project phase. Invest in your team members’ personal growth, and try to keep it as diverse as possible. Only then can your team truly prosper in the future.
Keep Communication Clear
Communication is key to the delivery of almost all projects. So much so, that in the Agile methodology, communication is made a part of the project cycle with rotating review cycles from time to time.
Whether you have a remote team or are working with a large number of members, effective communication on a regular basis helps develop a closer connection among your team members. Your staff will also have a sense of belonging and may even go out of the way to get critical tasks done. Arranging regular feedback and discussion sessions will help identify project issues and get ideas on how to resolve them faster as well.
Double-Check Your Deliverables
A critical project management process should be testing the project output at every milestone. This way you can plan the success of your project at all stages. Testing, in addition to regular feedback sessions, would clarify any doubts about where the project is headed. A good way to start would be to decide the types of project deliverables required from a project, and what are the processes to be followed. This can be followed by regular review cycles at important stages of the project, where important stakeholders evaluate the said deliverables.
Deliverable testing is already an established process in IT projects. But if your company doesn’t have the process already, you can take the call to initiate it in your next project. Having a collaborative deliverable testing process with the client would also confirm that you are achieving their expectations every time.
Plan for Regular Reviews
Cyclical feedback sessions and employee recognition programs help build an inclusive environment for your team members. Feedback sessions on a regular basis will help you understand the issues your colleagues are facing, and also how to resolve them. You may also have valuable insights on how to resolve common bottlenecks since your resources are working closely on the ground.
A well-set rewards and recognition program helps boost the morale of your employees. Non-recipients are also motivated to work harder and prove their mettle to the company. From the manager’s viewpoint, it also helps establish the importance of key project deliverables and helps your team members focus on important aspects of the project.
With the above tips, you can ensure that you build a team that will be a dependable support structure for all your projects.
project team -DepositPhotos
