So you are a Project Manager – a job description

Congratulations, you have landed the job as Project Manager, ok so now what? As a Project Manager your Job description will be as varied as the projects that you will be managing.

Simply put, as a project manager you are responsible for the successful completion of you project. But in reality you are responsible for the planning a project and seeing that it is completed successfully, within the given deadline, using limited resources and money. You will need to have excellent management skills to coordinate with the entire team and also with the clients, stakeholders and management. Let us look at some of the key qualifications, skills and responsibilities required to become a project manager.

Qualifications
 
1 You will need tertiary education qualifications, usually in the field you will be acting as a Project Manager.
2 Several years experience as working for a project manager, including taking on some of the roles of a Project Manager.
Skills

1 Excellent organisational and planning skills.
2 Strong leadership qualities.
3 Excellent communication, verbal and written, skills.

Responsibilities

1 Overall leadership for the project while maintaining the focus on achieving results efficiently and safely.
2 Liaison with the Client with the development and presentation of project plans, progress reports and obtaining the client’s formal acceptance of the final product.
3 The development, maintenance and monitoring of project plans.
4 The coordination and efficient use of project resources.
5 Liaison with the management staff to ensure their performance is consistent with the aims of the project.
6 Reporting to the Client and Management of financial, technical and schedules.
7 Effective Issue and Risk management.
8 Management of subcontractors and suppliers.
9 Coaching and development of employees under your direct control.

Key Competencies and Skills

As the job of a project manager carries a lot of responsibilities, you need to have many key important skills. Two most important skills required to be a successful project manager are planning and organization skills. Along with these two, the project manager should have at least the following competencies as well.

• Financial management skills.
• Good communication (verbal and written) and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent business management and developmental skills.
• Leadership qualities and team management skills.
• Ability to resolve conflicting situations.
• Computer or technical knowledge.
• Effective problem solving skills.

Cost Management \ Tracking

You have won the project and it is time to start. You have all the documentation including the Estimating Spreadsheets, now what?

Regardless of scope or schedule, how simple or complex a project is, you need to track and manage the cost expenditure on your project. For example if you don’t and your project comes in on time but it has costed 50% more and this cost is not recoverable then your project has failed from the company’s point of view (not the clients). You have made a loss of the project and the money needs to come from some where and will usually the company’s overall profit.

So how do I keep an eye on my project?

How do we know what a project is costing us and how much we have left to spend? You have a number of different options.

On a small project that is for example only 10 days, you may elect to use a spreadsheet where you track labour and materials. On a major project you will most likely have regular contact with your Contracts Administrator. You can review project cost summary reports from Pronto to keep an eye on how much money you are spending.

But remember, these reports are only as accurate as the information you, the Project Manager, provide. All labour timesheets, material expenditure and any scope changes or variations need to be accurately kept in all instances.

Don’t forget to keep an eye on all those hidden costs, like smoko room supplies, the petty cash purchases and any sub-contractor costs. There is also the cost of IT infrastructure for the project as well that needs to be taken into account.

Did you know that one of the major reasons for project cost failure is undocumented scope changes or variations? By undocumented, I mean that you have not requested or received in writing from the client notification of the scope change or variation and that the client has agreed to pay for the extra work and materials. This simply means you are performing extra work without being paid for it. I will covering variations in the next couple of weeks.

So what about the maths?

Here are some basic calculations you can perform to get an idea on how you are tracking against the estimates. This is based the variance on estimated expenditure against actual expenditure and can be done on a weekly basis for a small project or on a monthly basis for large projects.  I have also included the calculations the total project as well.

Calculating a Monthly Variance:

Monthly Estimated Expenses – Actual Expenses = Variance
Variance Amount / Monthly Estimate x 100 = Variance Percentage

Calculating a Total Project Variance:

Project Estimated Expenses – Actual Expenses = Variance
Variance Amount / Project Estimate x 100 = Variance Percentage
 
So what do these variance figures mean anyway?

If you have a positive variance this indicates that you are under the estimate, but this is not necessarily a good thing. When project expenses are less than expected, this may be a sign that the project is not proceeding according to plan, and may be behind schedule. In addition, a positive variance may be a sign of ineffective cost capturing.  On the other hand, this under budget condition may be the result of legitimate changes, discounts, or other cost saving measures either case this should be highlighted in your next project status report.

If you have a negative variance this indicates that the project is over budget.  Depending upon whether the negative variance is at a monthly or overall project level, this variance may be the result of serious project problems, such as excessive changes, schedule delays or ineffective budgeting.  If the negative variance is on a monthly level, but the overall project is on track, there may not be an immediate cause for concern but should be highlighted in your next project status report.

Variations

Variations are any changes to a job where any works including minor modifications, materials etc that have not been included in the original contract price and need to be tracked and invoiced for. It does not matter how quick or cheap a change may be it needs to be documented, signed off by the client and once the work if finished, then invoiced.

Let’s look at an example from a number of years ago where there a relatively minor problem with the year date field in most computer programs at the time. All that was needed to be done was to add 2 digits to the year field. Simple and cheap fix I hear you say. That fix costed over 1 Trillion dollars world wide.

Undocumented scope changes or missed variations are one of the major reasons for project cost failure and affects the overall company profit.

 So how do I go about this Variation thing?

Firstly as the project manager it is you’re responsibly to fully understand what is in the Scope of works that has been agreed to in the contract. Once the project manager has a good understanding of the scope of work, then they are in an excellent position to negotiate on any requests that the client will usually make, and in fact they’re probably be acting as if their request has always been included in the contract.

The project manager must ensure that their team understands that if anyone asks for anything that is not on their work instruction or is different to the construction drawings, then the team member needs to immediately referred the person back to the Project Manager. They must not say anything that may be construed as an agreement to undertake the work.

Should the client or a representative of the client make any request, then the Project Manager will inform the requestor to put that request in writing. This may be in the form of an email, fax or letter, but it must be in writing. The Project Manager should make a note of the request in their site diary as well.

 So how do I know if it is a Variation or not?

Well if you, the Project Manager, has a good understanding of the Scope of Works as agreed to in the contact then a request may be a relatively straight forward. If you are unsure, ask the client to put their request in writing anyway. Let them know you will then investigate if the request is a variation or not and you will get back to them in writing accordingly.

If the client pressures you to do the work there and then, the answer is “No, they first need to put your request in writing. Ensure you make a note of any conservation in your site diary.

Examples of Variations may include;

 Construction drawings different from the original tender drawings

Client requesting different locations of equipment

An extra cable run

A light in a Location Case

A single extra power point

Wanting to keep the left over materials

Trenching through rock

Hourly hire rate on machines outside of original contact conditions

I have the written instruction, now what?

Firstly, you will need to acknowledge receipt of the written instruction, stating that the variation will be undertaken at the agreed day rates for variation as per the Contract.

Next step is to schedule the work to be undertaken and then review the overall impact of the project. Typically any minor variation will have no impact on the overall delivery of the project. If the variation is significant enough, it may have an impact to the delivery of the project and as the Project Manager, you will need to let the client know immediately by submitting an Extension of Time due to the Variation Notification.

You will also need to record all labour hours and materials used in order to undertake the variation. Once the variation has been complete you will need to forward the hours, materials and any other costs to your Contracts Administrator. Your Contracts Administrator will add the variation to the monthly invoice to the client.

What is a project?

As a newly appointed Project Manager, you have now been handed a project by your organization. Your job is to effectively manage the project from start to completion ensuring your project is delivered on time and budget. But what is a project and how do you know if your project is successful or not.

 A project has a number of characteristics:

• A project is made up of a group of non-repetitive tasks or activities each of which have a definitive start and finish dates and when all complete the project is complete.
• Limited resources; (e.g. time, money, people, equipment and materials etc) used by the project. For example, to manage the building of a railway you will need a team of people (designers, engineers, project control etc) Equipment (heavy machinery and the like) and so on.
• An end result or outcome that is measurable, in the example of a railway, a complete track and associated infrastructure.

Project Management – Running an Effective Meeting

Running an Effective Meeting

As the Project Manager it is important you need to chair effective meetings that start and finish on time and don’t get off the purpose of the meeting in order for a meeting to be successful and purposeful. By following the steps listed below you will be well on your way to achieving this.

 Step 1 – Requesting the meeting 

 Send out a meeting request at least 1 week ahead of the meeting. Ensure you have the right people you need to attend the meeting. Clearly state the purpose of the meeting. If you are expecting reports or specific input from any attendees then state this in your meeting request so they can come to the meeting fully prepared.

 Step 2 – Setting the Agenda

 Send out the meeting agenda at least 2 days before the meeting, even better, send it out the agenda with the original request for the meeting. List out each topic to be covered, along with start and finish times for the entire meeting as well as the time allocated for each topic.

 Step 3 – Make sure the meeting venue is comfortable.

 Have you ever gone to a meeting in a site shed in the middle of winter where the chairperson has not even turned on the heating to get the room warm? Effective meetings can only take place if the people attending are comfortable. So ensure that the room is clean, at a comfortable temperature and that there are enough seats with plenty of room around the table wherever possible.

 Step 4 – Appoint a timekeeper

 A timekeeper is not the chairperson. The timekeeper makes sure that the agenda times are kept to according to the agenda. During the meeting the timekeeper should signal the chairperson on how time is progressing, this way the timekeeper can ensure the appropriate time is spent on the important topics and frees up the chairperson to actually manage the content of the discussion.

 Step 5 – Appoint a note taker

 It is important that the minutes of the meeting are recorded especially any decisions or agreements that are made at your meetings. The Note taker needs to be a separate person so they can concentrate on capturing all the important and relevant parts of what is being discussed at the meeting.

Step 6 – Starting the meeting

Open the meeting by welcoming all attendees and stating the purpose of the meeting. Go around the table and introduce the attendees to ensure everyone knows who is attending. This is also a good point to remind everyone that only one person may talk at a time, that there are no side conservations and the importance to keeping to the topic and time limits.

 Step 7 – Keep to the current topic

It is your job as the chairperson to ensure that the discussion is kept to the current topic. Also that no one interrupts or talks over the person talking and that there are no side conservations. If a particular topic requires a detailed discussion requiring only a few of the attendees, you should stop the discussion there, recommend another meeting to discuss that topic in details and then present a summary and any decisions at your next meeting.

 Step 8 – Let each attendee talk

 As you have the right people at the meeting, make sure you hear what they all have to say. Avoid having a few people dominate the discussion by using names and gestures to invite specific people to speak. Be equally specific in asking others to stay quiet and listen to the contributions.

Step 9 – Keep it clear

 Summarise as you go along. It keeps the discussions on track and ensures that all attendees are clear about what has been discussed and agreed to. As the meeting progresses, summarising helps build up “small yes’s” of understanding and commitment that you can consolidate at the end of the meeting.

Step 10 – Keep handouts and \ or presentations to a minimum

Having mountains of unnecessary handouts at the meeting can be a waste of time. If handouts are needed ensure they are kept to a one page summary. If more detail is needed then arrange to email a copy to the attendees.

 If a presentation is given, keep it brief as possible and to the point. A 2 hour 50 slide presentation will lose everyone’s attention, and not provide the desired result. Ensure everyone gets a copy of the presentation after the meeting.

 Step 11 – Make sure the physical environment is comfortable.

 Have you ever gone to a meeting in the heat of summer where there is no air conditioning and the person chairing has not even thought about having ice cold water available? Effective meetings can only take place if the people attending are comfortable, so take care of this the best you can.

 Step 12 – Finalising the meeting

 Finalise the meeting by summarising what was agreed to in the meeting. Thank the attendees for attending the meeting and ensure that the meeting minutes are typed up and sent to all attendees as soon as possible.

Follow these simple steps and you will have an effective meeting that has not been a waste of time and will actually achieved the purpose of the meeting.

Project Management – Site Diaries

Site Diaries

Site Diaries are a daily written record on what has happened on your project each day. The site diary is one of the more important documents a Project Manager needs to keep.

Why is a site diary important?

While the site diary is your record of what has happened each day on a project, it is more than that in reality. It is a document that you as a Project Manager will need refer back to many times throughout project on what happened on a particular day. You may even need it after the project is complete.

Let’s look at the following example:

On the 1^st your client verbally stated, that you would get the final design on the 10^th. It is now the 11^th and still no design. You can confidently talk to your client regarding their original comments, as you have this information in writing in your site diary. But I can remember what was said 10 days ago. Maybe…

Now what if it is 2 years after the event and you are in arbitration against your client over the project. I don’t know about you but I would have trouble remembering what was said back then. But you don’t have to remember as it is all in writing in your site diary; everything you have written is all there.

Yes while this may be an extreme example, but there will be many times where you will need to refer back to your site diary when dealing with your client, this is why your site diary can be so important to the overall success to the project.

So what do I need to record in my site diary?

This will depend on the size and cost of the project; that is the larger and more costly a project then the more details you will need to keep. You do not need to write a novel each day, using point notes is acceptable and as a minimum, you should keep record of the following;

• Brief description of works undertaken for the day
• Meetings attended
• Any delays that occurred
• Note Client Visits to site or client communications, including any verbal communications
• Any incidents or near misses
• Any major materials or free issue materials
• Receipt of important documents and drawings
• Weather conditions

You will also need to make it a habit of filling out your site diary every day on the day without exception. Try and have it with you at all times, that way you can just open your site diary up and make your notes then and there.

So what type of diary do I use?

Any A4 diary or a notebook will make a good site diary. I have also included a template that you can print out, bind and write as well. I would not recommend an ‘electronic’ site diary. It is far easier to carry around your diary than your computer.

Also you will need to write in your site diary in blue or black pen only. This is one of those legal things that only become important if you are in arbitration or under investigation.

Hello world!

This blog is aimed at first time Project Managers \ Team Leaders. The most common question I get asked is, I have just been appointed the Project Manager \ Team Leader but what do I do now? How do I do this Project Manager thing?

If you are asking these questions then this Blog is for you. Even if you have been a Project Manager for a while this Blog can be for you as well.

Project Management Made Easy, is a blog on practical how to it, not just the theory of being a Project Manager.

Mark