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chris.vandersluis

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How do you get management, the project management office and the line-project managers to take seriously how much effort it will take to implement enterprise project management? We’re often asked for “easy enteprise project management” which, I think, is an oxymoron. Project management concepts are challenging and all the moreso when they’re organizational in nature. Perhaps the “E” in EPM should stand for “Effort required” instead of “Enterprise”.

It’s easy to want enteprise project management, it’s a little harder to get it. We talk to so many organizations that initially call for a project solution to their organizational problems but, when they find out what will be required of them to get it become less enthusiastic in a hurry. It makes us ask our prospective clients: Are you sure you want the cure for what ails you?

When you look at Olympic athletes, you can see how dedication and doing the work required can produce remarkable results. The same is true for those who take on creating an enterprise project management environment. Those who hope that results will just arrive at their door mostly miss out on the remarkable achievement that is possible when you accept the work that has to be done. Here’s a short article on acknowledging the work required in creating a project management environment.

Microsoft has packaged a number of hot-fixes and other cumulative updates for Project Server 2007.  I’ve listed the updates on the Project Server Update page along with some other key information.  Since you have to consider not just the Project Server bits but also all the supporting technology, you’ll find also some updates for other elements of hte technology stack including the following: Guidance on loading Project Server 2007 Cumulative Hotfixes Description of March 2009 Project…

 My firm, HMS Software, has released a major new upgrade to the Industrial version of TimeControl.  This product is an organizational timesheet designed to serve both back office and field personnel simultaneously.  The TimeControl Industrial timesheet is ideally suited to heavy construction, offshore oil and gas or plant shutdown and turnaround situations.  As a timesheet, it can aid both owners and contractors in being more efficient and capturing both the financial billing and costing information…

I’m working on the Return on Investment of Project Management this week and I’ve come across a fascinating reference to how expectations can have a remarkable effect.  Freek Vermeulen notes that just the expectation of better performance seems to be able to deliver it – up to 6% worth!  That’s serious money when you’re talking about project management improvements.  If we add this to the well-documented Hawthorne Effect which I’ve written about here before which can improve…

Not every organization has a Chief Project Officer but it’s a movement that is gathering momentum. When the economy is challenging, organizations take a newfound look at how projects can be managed and it is perhaps no surprise that many large companies have decided this can be best done when there is a coordinated approach that starts at the top. This article looks at the benefits of having an executive in the boardroom who will champion the project management cause.

Over the years, one of the most challenging changes to the success of project management software has been the lack of training and training materials that are included in any deployment. I wrote about this time ago in an article entitled “Batteries not included”. Organizations used to allocate a portion of their implementation budget to training and, as the price of project management software has dropped to a fraction of it used to cost in…

I’m not sure how we managed to delete it but I have re-added the ability to search through the site.  The way we’ve organized the EPMGuidance.com site, every new article, or addition to the site is associated with a blog post which points to it.  So, using Search will list all blog posts which meet the search criteria.  The links from the post to the appropriate page within the site brings you to what you’re…