Cutting's Edge Project Management | PMToolbox :: Tools and Resources for Project Management

May 12, 2008 – Stop Wasting My Time

May 11, 2008

May 5, 2008 – Keeping Junk and Throwing Valuables

May 4, 2008

April 28, 2008 – Them’s Fightin’ Words!

April 28, 2008

Choosing the wrong words can start a fight. I vividly remember conducting a PMO status meeting with upper management in which I nearly started a brawl without meaning to. While reporting the results of a recent project audit, I made the observation that... Read more...

Volunteering: Good for Credibility, Bad for Blogging

April 21, 2008

Volunteering has been on my mind lately. This is partly because I am now a member of the Board of Directors for the Orange County Chapter of the Project Management Institute (www.PMI-OC.com). Volunteering is a great way to:Get involvedMeet people who... Read more...

April 14, 2008 – Surviving the Project Review Firing Squad

April 14, 2008

Companies have this crazy idea that they want their projects to be successful. To ensure this they modernized the firing squad and changed the name to “Project Review Meeting.” A recurring meeting is scheduled where the project managers stand up... Read more...

April 7, 2008 – Scope Creep in Tent City

April 7, 2008

The city of Ontario, California had a problem: a large number of homeless people. To address this, the council decided to create “Tent City” using the land around the airport. They supplied tents, water and toilets. Government agencies supplied... Read more...

March 31, 2008 – Estimating Lessons Learned – Communicating the Results

March 31, 2008

Back in December my 1997 Plymouth Neon was totaled when someone rear-ended me, forcing my car into the next one. It is an odd feeling to look into your rearview mirror and know that the car behind you isn’t stopping. The insurance company sent me... Read more...

March 24, 2008 – Estimating Lessons Learned – Estimate Creation

March 24, 2008

No matter which estimating type you use, there are common steps to creating one. Lesson 6 - Include your Team. Don’t estimate in a vacuum. Using the team sets you up for success on two fronts. First, the estimate will be more accurate. They know the... Read more...

March 18, 2008 - Estimating Lessons Learned - Agile Methods

March 18, 2008

One of the most pathetic looking sights on the highway is a man walking, head down, with a gas can. He represents the ultimate in poor estimating practices. It is bad enough that he ran out of fuel, but he was probably already late or he would have stopped... Read more...

March 10, 2008 – Estimating Lessons Learned Part 2

March 10, 2008

Estimating is probably the hardest part of any project. My wife will attest that my ability to estimate when I will leave work is inversely proportional to the importance of me getting home at a specific time. The plan will be for me to only work until... Read more...