Project Management Tips: Is It a Task or a Project?

Project Managers: Learn about four steps that you can take to determine if a job is a task, that you should simply complete, or a project, which you should plan and manage. Following these steps helps you to prevent jumping 'feet first' without planning the work, enabling you to meet any deadlines that you're given by your customer, adhere to any budgets that you're given by your customer, produce an end product that meets your customers' needs, and improve the overall experience of everyone involved in the project.
OVERVIEW:
Jumping into a project without proper planning can cause a number of problems for the Project Manager to deal with, including:
* The project takes longer than planned
* The project costs more than originally budgeted
* An undesirable end product is produced
* The project participants experience a high level of stress and frustration
Many people are given projects to run, but they're not explicitly called-out as projects, so they're often not planned or managed as such.
There are four things that you can do to determine if you've been given a task to complete... or a project that should be planned and managed:
* Capture the request, including several of its key attributes
* Ask whether you're creating some sort of a change
* Ask whether the work involves a large or complex process
* Ask whether you're work within deadline or cost constraints
This is a structured process that requires you to stop, capture some information, and ask a few questions about a job or work request before starting the work, and there are several things to consider when following this process. However, if you follow these steps, this process should enable you to:
* Meet any deadlines that you're given by your customer
* Adhere to any budgets that you're given by your customer
* Produce an end product that meets your customers' needs
* Improve the overall experience of everyone involved in the project
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BACKGROUND:
Project Management author and trainer Tony Zink shares his insights on how to use tools and techniques to get better results on projects. Learn how to save time, save money, reduce risks, and provide a more stress-free and pleasant experience for everyone involved in your project. Other topics that Tony discusses include:
* Introduction to Project Management
* Resource Management
* Project Portfolio Management
* Risk Management
* Project planning
* Project scheduling
* Project tracking
* Project Management careers
* Project Management basics
* Project Management for beginners
* Project Management fundamentals
* Project Management tips and tricks
* Project Management tutorials
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* and much more!