Guide: reprinted an article "10 Common Problems in Project Management! ", as a project manager, it resonates very much, so I also share it with you in combination with my personal interpretation.
1. Lack of maintenance documentation
Often times, when project work gets tight, documentation is the first thing to drop. Sometimes documentation is not created even if the project has the time; or documentation is created but rarely maintained over the course of the project.
symptoms
The product does not match the requirements document;
The technical documentation is outdated and cannot guarantee the continuation of the technology;
There is no documentation describing the decisions made on the project and the reasons for the decisions;
There is no audit trail of changes.
This is indeed a problem because documentation is for projects. Once the project is over, future projects and those who maintain the project need documentation to understand what the project created, why it was created, and how it was created. Otherwise, they fall into the same pitfalls as their predecessors—in this case, "whoever ignores the history in the document is doomed to repeat it."
【Interpretation】
Documentation is an indispensable carrier for continuation and inheritance. People in daily life have some understanding of the concept of archives. In fact, related project materials are also a kind of archives. From an academic point of view, archives have four characteristics: integrity, authenticity, usability, and security. Then relevant project data can also be managed in a four-in-one way for reference.
2. Bulge phenomenon
"What's the bottom line under the blanket?" is a question that's often asked at the end of a project. In projects, the main work usually gets special attention, but the fringe things are always forgotten or postponed until "later". By the end of the project, there will be several piles (swept from under the blanket) to deal with. We call this phenomenon "bulging" because project team members think it's all this "extra" work popping up before the end of the project.
symptoms
Anything that people think "will do later" but is not in the plan;
log of growth (issues, bugs, etc.);
Assume that documentation is done at the end of the project.
In most project plans, there is no "later" time. So these things were either canceled or finished in a crazy rush at the end.
【Interpretation】
This is unavoidable. Project resources are limited, and important and urgent matters are often limited to deal with according to the 28th principle. As a qualified project manager, you need to make reasonable decisions, and pay attention to and monitor which important and non-urgent matters, and return to deal with them when appropriate.
3. The source does not guarantee the quality
Project team members don't always agree with the term "quality at source." Sometimes they have this idea that "someone else will find my mistakes" instead of thinking that they are responsible for the quality. Project managers cannot review all work, so they must rely on other project team members. Therefore, project team members must take responsibility for ensuring that all work they sign for represents their highest level.
symptoms
Delivering work with errors without review;
does not test the developed code;
Does not focus on committing to work product.
The results of the entire study show that if the quality problem of the project is not found at the source, it will cost several times the cost to solve it later in the project.
【Interpretation】
Quality includes all aspects, the most obvious quality is the quality presented by the various project deliverables. But looking back, there are also quality requirements and evaluations in each link in the whole process of producing deliverables. Quality awareness, quality assurance, and quality control are required in all aspects of demand communication, design, coding, testing, and online release. At present, the earlier the identification of quality problems in the earlier links, the lower the cost of repairing quality problems in subsequent delivery. As a project manager and the first person in charge of quality, it is necessary to develop a variety of sensitive senses, and it would be better if we can prevent problems before they happen.
4. Improper employment
The tasks in the project need to be undertaken by people with matching skills and responsibilities. Sometimes a person's skills don't match the job he's given. In addition, work attitude is as important as skills.
symptoms
Project team members have the same performance;
Always miss the promised time;
Quality is always low.
As project managers, everything we have is our resource. Not having the right project members leads to unnecessary work and affects the rest of the team who have to help catch up. There is also a motivation issue here: if project team members are placed in the wrong role, they may not feel challenged and feel that they are not fulfilling their potential. These people are affected by not working to the best of their ability, not being able to show the usual solid work ethic, feeling underused etc.
【Interpretation】
How dependent project success is on people cannot be overemphasized. It's up to people, but things and people have to match. As a project manager, the first task is to form a team, build a team, identify human resource risks, and request relevant support as soon as possible.
5. The right people are not involved
Only the members of the project team know how to make the project successful. Failure to involve the right team at the right time can doom a project before it even begins.
symptoms
having to revise work already done;
Ongoing project scope changes from clients;
The project team lacked approval for the estimate;
Lack of accountability for decision making.
Failure to involve the right people early in a project will always result in job changes. Failure to involve project team members in project estimates and decision-making deprives them of control over their work and the project's output.
【Interpretation】
This tests how the project manager utilizes and reasonably arranges human resources. Demonstrate professional management in front of client A, make overall arrangements, and rationally allocate and utilize resources. As a project manager, it is especially necessary to make full use of the strength of the project team to find the optimal solution for project advancement.
6. No proper delegation mechanism
The project needs the internal senior management delegation mechanism and the client senior management delegation mechanism to be successful. The project principal acts like a bell-breaker, removing organizational politics or obstacles that prevent the project from proceeding.
symptoms
Insufficient support from different aspects of the organization and insufficient support from customer stakeholders;
Problems take a long time to resolve;
Inability to efficiently make decisions.
Without a proper client mechanism, the project will be held back. Moreover, when it comes to work on project changes, there is no proper client mechanism, which will prevent employees from continuing to approve the project.
【Interpretation】
Corresponding communication and negotiation guarantees are required at all levels, and beyond the project team and project manager, the company's senior management needs to come forward to coordinate. But no matter what, project deliverables are often the most powerful support for user support and trust.
7. The execution process is not strict
Almost all companies have a method for implementing projects. The success of these methods depends on whether they can be strictly implemented in the project. In many cases, the project goes astray if the process is not adhered to.
symptoms
incomplete or non-existent deliverables;
inconsistencies in the project;
Lack of understanding of the project landscape;
Lack of repeatable processes.
Processes are only valuable when strictly enforced. Some companies use too many project management system methods. Some of these methods are necessary due to the different nature of the work, but some basic project management practices and principles that should be easily standardized are not. This adds another layer of complexity when one manager is handing off work to another manager because they don't have a common language.
【Interpretation】
Strengthen project team building and lead by example. Company-level processes can be cut according to the actual situation of the project, after all, each project is unique. The process of best practice needs to be strictly implemented, which will greatly reduce project risk.
8. No group plans
Project managers spend a considerable amount of time planning, estimating, and scheduling tasks. If these results are not shared by team members, they will not know what they are working on and will not be able to manage their own progress. This also includes the communication of project goals and the big picture.
symptoms
Not knowing what is due and when;
delayed the promised time;
no sense of responsibility for deliverables;
Forget about what should be delivered.
Lack of group planning leaves teams uninformed. Having a shared plan and goals helps strengthen the cohesiveness of the team and helps people better understand where individual work fits into the overall project work.
【Interpretation】
Project planning, milestone nodes, effective update of project information and sharing among all staff are the daily implementation of the project manager's continuous follow-up. That way the team doesn't lose their way.
9. Lack of a rework plan
Estimating techniques often focus on the time required to create project work, while the time required for rework is often missed. The rework here does not refer to project scope management, but refers to those tasks that are done wrong the first time and require a second review. Rework either takes up other work time, causing delays in those jobs, or it pushes the rework back.
symptoms
Delay in the promised time;
low quality.
Never assume that anything can be done right the first time.
【Interpretation】
Follow up the list of items, review and review regularly.
10. Deadlines are just paper
Schedule is the main driver of project success. However, some feel that the time committed is just a suggestion, not a deadline. Because of the interdependencies in the project, missed commitments early in the project can spill over into the rest of the project's schedule.
symptoms
Continuing to delay the promised time;
Some problems cannot be solved for a long time;
incomplete, nonexistent deliverables;
The project team lacked a sense of urgency.
Without structured management of committed deadlines, it takes considerable effort to achieve project success. Another issue is communication - to communicate these dates clearly, everyone has to agree that these deadlines are their goals. And they must understand which tasks are on the critical path and which tasks can have float. That way, if they delay a task on the critical path, they know it will affect the entire project, or other projects in the program.
【Interpretation】
The vicious circle is often caused by the project team's continuous low performance. As a project manager, you must do everything possible to lead your partners to get the results, to get the affirmation of the users, and to get the incentives from the company leaders. High performance is not only reflected in progress, but also in terms of quality and cost. As a project manager, you have to weigh and make favorable decisions based on your own experience. Still the same sentence, lead by example, lead to success and get results.