Not everything goes right....at first

Critical Reasons Why Quality Project Management is Important

It was very apparent after the first few sites; the scope was undefined and there were a lot of loose ends to tie up with no project management on the customer side. That said, it was a rough and rocky start to the project for the first couple of weeks. Anyone knows in the project management world, once you fall behind, it’s so difficult to get ahead. 

So, what we did was modify the schedule and called a timeout for 3 days. During that time, the dedicated PM and the 24x7 support team regrouped and drafted an accurate scope of work and swiftly got it in front of the customer for stakeholders' buy-in and approval.  All the time they planned and scheduled the duration of the project while creating a new technical playbook to disburse to our techs in the field. 

NET believes there are some main reasons why project management is so important.  Below are a few:

1. Strategic Alignment

This is where we align the goals of the project to match the goals of the customer. It ensures the right thing is being delivered, risks are identified and mitigated, and ROI is being achieved. 

2. Leadership

Project Management brings leadership and direction to the project. Without it, the team is like being on a boat with no captain. We believe the best project managers not only remove known and unknown roadblocks but provide leadership, motivation, and coaching for the team.

3. Clear Focus

Rather than leaving the project management to the team to ‘figure out as they go’ the PM provides focus and clear objectives for the team. They all know what they’re doing and why. The foresight into the project by the PM enables the team to focus on the tasks and objectives.

4. Realistic Planning

Without Project Management, a proper plan, and a budget, a realistic timeline isn’t feasible. Effective PMs create clear processes with achievable deadlines that allows the team to work within reasonable expectations.

5. Subject Matter Experts

With years of experience under the Project Manager’s belt, they begin to know a little about a lot of things. Moreso, they know who to call and what to do to find out all the details needed to properly plan and execute a project. This is for both technical and practical skills alike.

6. Quality Control

This is a crucial part of Project Management because quality is what we’re delivering. Having a dedicated PM, as we do for every project, ensures we have the time and resources to deliver the outcome with quality results.

7. Closure

It is equally important to close a project as it is to manage one. Particularly the lessons learned portion of the closure. This is important to gather all the information of what went right, as to repeat it; and what went wrong, as to learn for next time.