• Advantages of The Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)

  September 8, 2008

  
  

• The Whac-a-Mole Model of Bad Project Management

  September 7, 2008

  
  

• Getting and Estimating Resource Requirements - People

  September 7, 2008

  
  

• Inch-Pebble Project Scheduling: Managing Concerns

  September 7, 2008

  
  

• Governance Thinking - Structure of Program Management Governance

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Effects of Project Risks on Organization

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Risk Management Process

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Initiating Phase - Feasibility Study Request and Report

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Build Training Time Into The Schedule

  September 5, 2008

  
  

• Powering Past the Post-PMP® Syndrome

  September 5, 2008

  
  

Put a Stake in the Ground

March 10, 2008 | Author: admin | Filed under: Change Management, Project Management Musings

Put a Stake in the Ground
By Ray W. Frohnhoefer

Change management is an often neglected and misunderstood area of Project Management. I don’t mean change at the micro level (as in scope changes), but change at the macro level. Many times our projects create change which isn’t readily embraced or is difficult to gain.

I once worked on a PeopleSoft Financials project in an accounting department which had only known “green screen” applications. The Windows OS was a new concept for them. There was a lot of fear and distress, not to mention concerns about being replaced by computers. But change was inevitable, and as a team, we sent them home with computers to try out games of solitaire and get accustomed to using a mouse.

That one was easy, but often change is more elusive. There can be lots of discussion and “socializing” a change, but there is a lot of resistance and inertia to overcome. Projects may even resist initiation because of the change they suggest. This resistance can be hard to overcome. One way to get some traction is to document your idea, build a model, paint a picture — let everyone know what you are thinking. Now, instead of just words, there is something to visualize. What’s more, an idea on paper is more tangible. So next time you are stuck getting acceptance of an idea or don’t know how to move forward, just put a stake in the ground to start the discussion.

Ray W. Frohnhoefer, MBA, PMP is the Director of the Project Support Office at EDmin as well as a consultant, speaker, writer, educator, and mentor on Project Management. Ray is also the Component Mentor for PMI Region 7 (Southwest North America), a Past President of PMI, San Diego Chapter, Inc., and an adjunct faculty member at three San Diego universities. You can find out more about his professional roles at http://www.edmin.com/company/index.cfm?function=showBioDetail&id=80 and through his blog, Tales from the Project Notebook, at http://projectnotebook.blogspot.com.

This entry was posted on Monday, March 10th, 2008 and is filed under Change Management, Project Management Musings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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