Advanced Multi-Project Management: Achieving Outstanding Speed and Results with Predictability

Most tasks, when ready, wait either to start being worked on or wait for significant periods of time while actively assigned to a resource.

When implemented properly, the benefits must be: Removal of obstacles that any resource has in completing their task or completing it faster Skill transfer, to allow resources to learn, grow, and work in a way that is more productive for the organization Clearer entrance and exit criteria for tasks Less rework

Implement and sustain the project freeze until after synchronization. Resources that had been assigned to the frozen projects are now available to speed up completion of the remaining projects.

Resources must be modeled by skill sets, and then the project network must show the critical path which also takes resource skill dependencies into account (this is referred to as the critical chain of a project).

Use protection for non-critical paths in the project only where variability is either high or unpredictable.

When the signal is given that a project is in danger, project and resource managers must know how they can work together in case recovery is needed. If options are not identified in advance, the typical approach is to escalate, which can result in overreaction and chaos. The organization must have sufficient capacity and skills to recover from typi

Capture and examine statistics about what resource skill set you are waiting for when a project goes into a red zone. Remember that the resource skill set you are waiting for may be a resource that is NOT modeled in the project plan.

The more resources we can assign to a task, without causing unmanageable waste in executing the task, the fewer tasks we will have active. The fewer the number of active tasks, the more management and support group attention can be given to active tasks, and therefore the shorter each task will wait for decisions and actions by any other group in t

However, even when project managers suspect there is a problem, they don’t want to be accused of micromanaging, so they often find themselves in a conflict—call now for help or wait until the disaster is proven!