Posts by Kevin Lonergan
How to create a work breakdown structure (WBS)
Purpose of a WBS A work breakdown structure is one of the most useful ‘tools’ you can have when managing projects. It has an initial purpose in the planning phase: to enable the definition and capture of the complete scope of work of a project, so that estimating and planning are effective. In the delivery…
Read MoreHow to really learn project management lessons
Ways to transfer and share lessons successfully: You hear the expression “lessons learned” all the time, but what does it mean? Sadly, too often it means a single meeting, followed by the publication of a set of minutes, capturing the ‘lessons learned’. Job done ! Really? Actually ‘learning’ from lessons is really hard. This post provides the basis…
Read MoreProject Manager’s role and responsibilities: in-depth view
Why we need to make a project manager’s role crystal clear: If you gather 10 random project managers (PMs) and ask them to define their roles and especially responsibilities, you will get very different views and even disagreements on what they are responsible for. What follows in this post is what we have seen delivers…
Read MoreRole and Responsibilities of Project Managers – Lessons learned
Going well beyond “on time & within budget”: Far too many organisations appoint project managers with far too little definition of what the specific role and responsibilities of project managers are. Too often, you see little more than “to deliver the project on time and within budget”. While those words are true, they are no…
Read MoreHow to become a Project Manager
Firstly what does a Project Manager do? They are responsible for ensuring a project is delivered successfully by actively planning and managing their project. That’s the very short version. In truth, the role can be complex and challenging. What demand is there for their skills today and in future? Project Managers are in increasing demand, and in…
Read MoreThe challenge with Project Dashboards
The negative ‘behaviour‘ they encourage and the damage they do to real data: In recent years, Project Dashboards have become very popular in major businesses engaged in large-scale projects. The principle behind them is simple and fine (in theory). It is to give visibility to senior managers and executives of the performance of individual projects.…
Read MoreChoosing the right people to be Project Managers
How do you select the right people to be project managers? Most people who end up being a project manager do so more through circumstances rather than by choice. Here’s an example: I was talking to a manager in a large-scale business only weeks ago, who had just been appointed the project manager of a…
Read MoreWhy Benefits Realisation is not Return on Investment!
Why defining ‘benefits realisation’ through ‘investments’ does real damage: Benefits Realisation is a new concept, having only come about in the last decade or so. As such its application and definition are not yet mature. It is applicable to all aspects of public and private sector activity where any form of change is being sought that is…
Read MoreWhy it should be called ‘benefits realisation’
What we call things really matters and here is why: Over the past decade, the topic of benefits realisation has emerged and is gaining much interest. In some circles, it is referred to as benefits management. We do not agree with this and here’s why. The goal of the concept is to provide a real…
Read MoreBenefits Realisation – context drives the terminology
This is not semantics: it is critical to deliver benefits There are discussions on LinkedIn etc around the slow rate of take-up of benefits realisation and why this may be. Some argue that language does not help and may contribute towards the rate of take up. Within these discussions some are suggesting what it could…
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