Brightmoon Consulting & Training

After a presentation to a group of secretaries, they love this feature. Hope you can benefit from the awareness on this feature in our email clients.

Time is always not enough for project personnel. Many of us used calendar to schedule meeting, set reminder and etc. There is one simple function in any email clients that we have undermined - multiple calendar. This feature can be found in both Microsoft Outlook and Gmail.




Benefits of Multiple Calendar

• Group relevant events, which allow easy hide/ show (e.g. different project, different department)
• Easily share relevant events to respective people without worrying sharing too much details
• Allow delegatee to co-manage relevant events

Feel free to drop your comments/ suggestion below. And, I will love to share more details with everyone.

Signing-off, Tai Choo Tack

On 1st of April 2015 (exactly one year from today), Malaysia is going to implement GST (Goods and Service Tax). It is known as VAT (Value-added Tax) in some countries. 

Many SMEs (Small, Medium Enterprises) are waiting for enactment of the act. This strategy could save the hassle at the beginning, and pay dearly price toward the end. For medium-sized companies, the recommended project duration is 12 to 18 months. Any duration shorter than this is inviting unnecessary chaos.

The potential issues SMEs could end up with when they do nothing now:-

1. Penalty on Late Registration
2. Penalty on inaccurate GST calculation
3. Penalty on incomplete GST reporting
4. Lost of profit due to previous contracts are formed without GST
5. Lost of business when unable produce tax invoice as some customers may want to claim input tax

The summarized effect is cash flow problem.

While waiting for the enactment of the act, SMEs can start the following:-

1. Understand more on GST implications to their business and industry, and aware what need to be prepared for GST
2. Form internal task force to oversee GST implementation related activities, and allocate a budget for GST implementation
3. Craft project management methodology to monitor deliverables from both tax consultants and internal departments - to ensure the GST proejct progresses are visibile to the management team
   

On the extreme end, what will happen when GST implementation get postpone (again). After the preparation steps above, SMEs are able to:

1. Make informed decision on future contract negotiation - GST clause will be included whenever the act is enacted
2. Disband the internal task force can disband and recall them when needed
3. Channel the allocated budget back to other usage or carry forward as management reserve for GST project
4. Use project management methodology crafted to gain visibility on other projects.

Conclusion
Ignorant is not a bliss now! It is better start the preparation now then later. Many large companies have started GST implementation projects. And big-4 audit firms are fully-booked with GST implementation projects for 2014. Large companies make informed decision from various sources. The GST is going to be here and this is an obvious sign that SMEs cannot ignore!

Have you ever questioned why so many large software projects failed one over another?

The main reason is they are using SDLC/ waterfall, which is widely known as Software Development Life Cycle. SDLC dictates the sequential steps in gather requirements, design, develop, testing and implementation. Each step must be completed before commencement of next step. When something goes wrong, the particular step is reworked and wasted. Thus, it means Software Dooming Life Cycle.

Doom Grooming Ground
SDLC has been part of college education syllabus, and many has showed the success stories. Many happy students scored distinction in their final year project by using SDLC. It gives further assurance the usefulness of SDLC in software project. Therefore, many projects nowadays are wholeheartedly adopt SDLC without second question. When the project size is still small, they tasted the sweetness of SDLC success.

Dooming Life Cycle Started
The dooming life cycle starts when the complexity and uncertainties of a software project getting higher. The obvious complexities are stakeholder and communication. Human always struggle to express themselves 100%; and unable 100% decipher the message. Such situation contributes to misunderstanding. This is primarily due to individual perception, exposure, personalities and education. Such cycle is endless and many projects are trapped in there.

The Realization
Many have noticed the risk of using SDLC in large project. Even the creator of SDLC, Dr. WInston W. Royce cited the usage of SDLC in large software project is inviting risk and failure. Such realization can comes from painful experience or learned from others. Some wise men have proposed two approaches in handling large software project:

1. Divide & Conquer - Split one large software project into several smaller software projects
   Pro - continue use all-time favorite SDLC
   Con - need to manage dependencies of these smaller projects
2. Be Agile/ Scrum - have smaller SDLC cycle (i.e. iteration cycle)
   Pro - able to adapt changes faster
   Con - need to adjust traditional way of planning & working

Recommendation
After knowing the risk of SDLC in large software project, my recommendation is to Be Agile/ Scrum:

1. The rate of uncontrollable changes is getting higher and more frequent. The more adaptive a project team is, the better chance of a project success.
2. Small projects can grow big after several phases. It's advantageous to be agile now than later.
3. Knowledge and experience of agile can be adapted to different projects or industries.

We wish your projects are successful since day-1 with the right foundation.

Congratulations - you made it through the dark hours. You have accustomed with the new role. Many of you have started or completed a project. It is just the beginning and more to go...


We are going to discuss on how to sustain the momentum, and bring your career to greater height.


1. Fabricate Pain Points

• Purpose: avoid all the hardships and struggles going down the drain for good.
  
• To-do: Start imagining the worst things it could happen to you when fall back to former role. For example, the peers start questioning you in doing new things.
  

2. Get a Mentor

• Purpose: They provide encouragements for you to move.
• To-do: list down who can provide advise to you when you needed one; experienced project managers are good candidate. If you unable to get project manager as mentor, any good friend will do.
  

3. Find a Devil's Advocate

• Purpose: Keep you alert level at constantly high with brutal (and hostile) feedback.
• To-do: Whoever hate or dislike you is good candidate for this. You just need to regularly share your thoughts and news with him/ her. He/ she will hammer you for no good reason. Take the heat to build your endurance.
  

4. Write Own Diary/ Journal

• Purpose: Keep a trail on your development. When self-doubt kicks in, read all the breakthroughs done in the past.
• To-do: You do not need to write everything. Focus on the significant events and key lessons learned.

5. Reflect Regularly

• Purpose: Embrace continuous improvement via reflection.
• To-do: Giver gains more by giving. Share your experiences and achievements with others; inspire and help others to go through such transition.

Concluding Remark
Project Management roles are filled with excitements and surprises. Every project is unique by its own. By repeating the steps above, you will find yourselves immersed with abundant of wisdom to share with others.

Wish you have a successful Project Management profession.

Welcome to 2014. What is your new year resolution? This blog is specially for you, if one of your goals is to make career transition to project management. This post is a personal experience sharing from Tai Choo Tack.

The First Step - Not for Fainthearted
The future is lucrative if he was to stay in existing role. However, he decided to conquer another peak. The very first step is to coming down from existing peak. It is like letting go all the fortunes and start from ground zero, and this is not for fainthearted!

The Second Step - Search for the Bullet
Since he was in employment, he started lobbying for project management opportunities within the company. At the same time, he took MBA specialized in Project Management. With hope, he has sufficient knowledge to jump-start a new role. Unfortunately, the luck was not on his side. His superior and department head unable provide such opportunities. Thus, he started to look out for new job.

The Third Step - Bite the Bullet
This is common step in any career change - find new job elsewhere. Five points below can give you a good start:-

1. Read A Lot of Job Requirements - familiarize yourselves with what other companies are looking for, and gaps can be easily identified early. And, you can focus on those close to your heart and personality. For example: Project Director, Project Manager, Project Controller & etc.
2. Transferability - List out the experience or skill you can "transfer" to project management role. Try focus more on those in relation to job requirements. For example, transfer "conduct end-to-end user acceptance test with relevant stakeholders in accordance to test cases" as "engage key stakeholders in UAT sign-off."
   
3. Rewrite Resume/ CV - invest your time here to come out new resume/ CV. All the gaps you identified are highlighted here. Remember, take your time to identify all transferable experiences & skills - in relation to project management job requirements. Please focus on highlighting your accomplishments.
4. Job Application - start depositing the completed resume/ CV to any potential companies. You might get call for interview. Interview is great an most effective way to validate one's readiness for new role. It's perfectly okay to be rejected. Remember - you are going to a new peak from ground zero.
5. Revise Resume & Close Gaps - go back to your resume to note down the weaknesses/ gaps surfaced during interview. Remember to close the gaps or find ways to mitigate the weaknesses. Repeat from step 1 to make your mind clearer.

Concluding Remark
A quick reflection, Tai Choo Tack took 6 months to land him on a new role. He was going all-out to make the transition happen, and ready for pay-cut. What kept him moving is the analogy of two peaks - he needs to go all the way down from where he stands, before he can go to a new peak.


Please comment here if you are ready to bite the bullet to venture into project management role.

Typical project success criteria mentioned previously are on-time, on-budget and within scope.

This article is to shed some light on 10 Critical Success Factors (CSF), which have empirically proven in contributing directly and indirectly to success criteria above. However, without proper measurement, it would be challenging to have these CSF serve as a reputable benchmark.


The History
Two renowned experts (Pinto & Slevin) conducted this research over 400 projects across industries. They came out a diagnostic instrument to measure these 10 CSF - Project Implementation Profile (PIP). This is 360-degree approach to solicit feedback from all project stakeholders. Over two decades, it has been proven on its practicality and usefulness.

The Wake-up Call
There was on product development project in one multinational organization. Everyone was excited about the project, including the technology partner. However, something does not feel so right, and no-one is able to tell the exact.

After PIP was conducted, the shocking and ugly truth revealed itself. At the quick glance on its CSF rating (see figure below), this project is at the brink of extinction. They have been experiencing unnecessary fire fighting, chasing unreasonable deadlines and stressed working atmosphere.

The Priority of Remedial Actions
With the insights of CSF rating, there is always a chance to salvage the project.

1. Top priority is given to those CSF rating below 50
2. Second priority is given to those CSF rating below 80

Usage of PIP

1. Identify early indicators of project failure
2. Objectively benchmark across project performance
3. Facilitate in strategically and tactically thinking in entire project lifecycle

Concluding Remark
The success of adopting PIP in entire organization requires openness and higher project management maturity. Without that, PIP may be wrongly used as a political weapon. An independent third party could be invited in conducting PIP to ensure all project stakeholders are comfortable in voicing their honest and brutal feedback - anonymously. This third party will compile all feedback into one CSF rating (as seen in figure above).

Towards year-end, all successful individuals/ organizations will have a reflection on how they performed in 2013. Subsequently, they can plan how to increase/ elevate their success to new height in 2014.

Back to project management, the usual success statements are on-time, on-budget and within scope. These three are often used because they are easy to measure. And, this is how a project be profitable.

On the flip side of this success definition:-

1. Can a project deemed as a failure despite it met three criteria above? 
2. Can a project gauged as a success when it burst the time, budget and scope? 

These two questions are highly debatable. Nevertheless, the answers are absolute when we take into consideration of the behavioral aspects.


Critical Success Factors outlined by Pinto & Slevin provides holistic overview on project success.

1. Project Mission - Initial clearly defined goals and general directions.
2. Top Management Support - Willingness of top management to provide the necessary resources and authority/ power for project success.
3. Project Schedule/ Plan - A detailed specification of the individual actions steps for project implementation.
4. Client Consultation - Communication, consultation, and active listening to al impacted parties.
5. Personnel - Recruitment, selection, and training of the necessary personnel for the project team.
6. Technical Tasks - Availability of the required technology and expertise to accomplish the specific technical action steps.
7. Client Acceptance - The act of "selling" the final project to its ultimate intended users.
8. Monitoring and Feedback - Timely provision of comprehensive control information at each stage in the implementation process.
9. Communication - The provision of an appropriate network and necessary data to all key actors in the project implementation.
10. Troubleshooting - Ability to handle unexpected crises and deviations from plan.
    

All these factors are good on paper. Without proper quantification, they serve no purpose in project benchmarking. Next article we will share a way to translate qualitative inputs into numbers.

Till then, have fun reflecting now.

When you sign-up this HRDF claimable training, Mysterious Gift (worth more than RM 50) is yours:-

1. Mention Brightmoon Consulting & Training during registration
2. Email a copy of your registration to [email protected]
   

This is our programme market under Comsystem Solutions, and hope to see you there.

Many companies do not have Project Management Office (PMO). The primary reason is they enjoy various games in their projects. The actual list of games is extremely long and only few popular ones are highlighted here.

Hide & Seek
This is known as "sweep under the carpet." When the project sponsor asking for statuses, the Project Managers present a heavenly report. Everything is on track and on budget. Their plan is perfectly planned and executed. All stakeholders love the project. After project status meeting, the Project Managers will step out from the heaven and go back to the reality - chaotic hell. Everything is totally opposite on what the report says.

Without PMO - the visibility is manipulated and impaired.

Duck, Duck, Goose
This game is also known as "back stabbing." When something goes out of hand, the group of Project Managers will start solving the problem by finding the "goose." The identified "goose" will start finding another "goose." This cycle continue endlessly. Thus, the fun is endless as everyone is living in an illusion that they are working very hard to solve the problem. In actual fact, nothing is solved.

Without PMO - nothing is really get solve at its root cause.

Skipping Rope
Time is cost, and cost affects profitability of a project. To increase profitability, time has to be reduced. Thus, this game is famous and known as "fast and furious." When Project Managers need to follow a recommended practices, time is wasted in documentations and thinking; nothing really get done on the ground. To accelerate the whole cycle, they assume every projects are the same and copy-and-paste from other projects. When the documents are ready, they happily executing the real work. In reality, they have buried countless mines in their projects - from other projects.

Without PMO - good practices are skipped at the expense of project success .

Conclusion
When one day your Organization decided to be a grownup. That's the time PMO can answer that call. With right PMO, all these childish games will come to an end - for good. Other children will soon realize they cannot continue be childish and decided to grow with your Organization. At that very moment, your Organization has stepped up in its maturity level. Congratulations!

Now the decision is yours - you can decide to continue playing these games or otherwise.