What’s holding you back from starting your home improvement project?.

Hi.. i 've been doing project management for years. Moved from project management to product management to program management. Managed lots of projects, software and non software stuff.. I worked on CMMI / Agile ( Scrum , XP ...etc) and also on PMI schemes. Although you are working under Agile, I HIGHLY recommend you attend the PMP courses, for the PMP exam. Even if you are not interested in sitting for the PMP exam. PMP gives you tons of knowledge on time management and cost management , which you don't have in this way in scrum master certification. PMP gives you the high level broad spectrum helicopter view of projects, also project valuation and business perspective.. Once you get familiar with these concepts, you can then apply with the Agile approach. Which, I believe is a tweak of the concepts to match an agility needing environment, mainly used on software projects. But the solid foundation you will have from PMP will give you more confidence when you apply Agile. Coz, in agile, the whole advantage is you don't need to apply the process by the book. You can still tweak it to tailor something specific for your team and project. So moving from a too-strict approach ( like CMMI or PMP) to Agile ( which is more flexible ) will be good for you. The strict approach in PMP will also give you the alarm you need to see when something go beyond control. And remember.. Be a result oriented person. There is no point applying any process if it doesn't improve the performance, reduce cost and achieve the targeted result. So you will hear a lot about the illusion that Agile is the best which is not true. Agile is IDEAL for the projects that need Agile. Widening your project management schemes will help you always make the best decision for what to use to manage a project. Let me know if you have more questions. Good Luck!

As you can imagine this is a vast question. The key elements are to be able to pay attention in 4 different ways simultaneously: 1. Diffuse Focus: You must keep an open mind to give you a global vision of what is happening within and outside of your business. This means keeping up with industry news but also knowing what is going on outside of your normal frame of reference. Keeping this global vision helps you take better mid & long term strategic decisions without being overwhelmed by daily pressure. 2. Narrow Focus: You must keep a very narrowly focused set of priorities and short term action points based on your mid & long term strategies. Having a precise laser focus of activities helps increase day to day performance and return on investment. This is the way to grow in a lean way as well as to manage employees successfully. Having a clear narrow focus is the key to get things done. 3. External Focus: Being able to take distance from your business and taking unemotional decisions helps you take the right strategic decisions. You must be able to step away from your baby and do what is best for the business rather than holding on to the past. It is easy to become to attached to certain aspects of our business that is detrimental to the well being of the business. Taking an external focus helps you get distance and take the right decisions. 4. Immersed Focus: By being in touch with your personal vision, values and goals, your business becomes more than simply a cash cow. Knowing why you believe that your business adds value to the world and communicating it with your employees gives a meaning to their work. The best way to inspire others and to keep motivated through the difficulties of running one's own business is to be in touch with the meaning of what you do. If you can pay attention to your business in these 4 different ways simultaneously, you will stay on top of all the moving parts. This means you will be able to simultaneously understand what is going on in your industry at a macro-level, as well as how to manage employees, deal with customers, keep track of finances, and update your strategies to maximise success.

I ran a web design agency for 6 years, despite of studying PMBOK for advanced project management (for Engineering projects). I used "Web Redesign, Strategies for Success by Kelly Goto" Courser Link: http://www.lynda.com/Web-Design-tutorials/webredesignstrategiesforsuccess/316-6.html as a basis for building our project management model. 1) Breakdown the project into milestones for your team and for your client example (Finish Wireframes, Confirm on Design Palette and colors, Confirm on Content, Functionality Testing) 2) Include all expected tasks/hours from the beginning, should be increasing with your experience, especially you are focusing on specific platforms, let customer see the different dates in which they are required to provide feedback, even schedule calls with clients on these days 2) Use a robust Project Management tool like BaseCamp, where you can give client direct access to the platform preferably with a Skype/Telephony functionality to schedule calls. If you need any more help designing and deploying your PM system, I would be glad to help.

Hi, I've worked with start-ups, SMEs and corporates serving both the public and private sectors. I have 25 years of experience managing projects, programs, operations, engineering and technology-driven change and have served in both leadership and advisory roles internationally. Here are some essential things to think about when prioritising ideas: Why do it? | Does it align with vision, goals & values? | is it the most sensible next step (thinking holistically)? | is there something else with a better ROI | what's the opportunity cost (ie what can't be done if you do this)? | does this help remove critical uncertainties ie reduce risk? | is there an associated health, safety or environmental issue | when does it need to be completed? | will this help build momentum and commitment? | what are the dependencies? | can it be properly resourced? | are there clearly defined, measurable success criteria? | does this have the required level of executive support? | how well does it align with other initiatives? | do all key stakeholders agree on the emergent priorities? Feel free to come back to me with questions. Also, if you have a particular context I can get more specific. Cheers, Trevor

I tried Basecamp, Jira, Unfuddle, Trello and PivotalTracker before for different projects which were developed with agile approach. All of them worked fine to me and I needed some time to setup my framework and processes there. I think it would be worth checking Trello or PivotalTracker which I personally like more than Basecamp because of better agile oriented structure.