Project management is the process of managing a group of people involved in completing one or more tasks.
Types of Project Management Techniques
Any different project management techniques can help make a product better as well as improve your productivity. These techniques will vary depending on the situation, but here are seven that work.
Waterfall Planning
When using this method, a company must complete one step before moving on to the next step until it has met all actions. Some examples of tasks include:
- Creating a scope for the product
- Gathering requirements
- Validating assumptions
- Testing a solution
This waterfall planning process usually moves linearly because one cannot move on to another step until the previous one is complete. However, if the current phase takes too long, other tasks can be fast-tracked to improve the product.
PERT Chart Planning
PERT stands for Program Evaluation and Review Technique. A PERT chart is a network diagram that helps manage different tasks within a project. PERT charts shows each task’s start and end time and any dependencies between them, so people know what they need to finish first.
Through Pert Chart planning, an employee can see where roadblocks may occur in the product development process and plan around them if possible.
Critical Path Planning
The Critical Path Method (CPM) makes it easier to understand each project’s process and duration and identify critical activities to meet project completion deadlines. Critical Path Planning is ideal for complex tasks that have numerous steps but are still linear.
Integrated Project Planning
IPP is a process used in project management to integrate the entire project development process. It unites all aspects of projects throughout various departments in an organization, working toward the same goal from beginning to end.
Using this method, there are no black-and-white distinctions between who does what and when; instead, everybody involved works cohesively to bring the product or service from the idea stage right through launch into global distribution.
Critical Chain Planning
One of the most important things when managing any project is time management. It’s tough to get one thing done if nobody knows how long it will take. The Critical Chain Planning technique aims to solve this problem using “The Critical Chain.”
This chain uses projects and their tasks linked together with dependencies, deadlines, costs, and resources. The process sounds complicated at first, but it’s pretty simple.
Lean Management Planning
As the name implies, this technique is all about streamlining and eliminating unnecessary steps in the product development process. The objective is to quickly get the product into customers’ hands so they can use it and give feedback that will help improve it.
More than just a way to do business, Lean Management represents a mindset: an approach to business that offers a great customer experience by building products right the first time.
Of course, this doesn’t mean getting it perfect on the first try, but it does mean creating a process where everyone works together to create high-quality products at each stage of development.
Agile Planning
Agile planning is good because it enables an organization to quickly react to new information and change the way they do business to meet customer needs. It helps companies work with customers, vendors, and employees in real-time by working in short sprints that produce results at regular intervals.
Wrap Up
Companies use many different project management techniques to ensure their product is the best it can be, and you can too. Keep these seven planning techniques in mind if you find yourself feeling overwhelmed at work – the better we plan, the better we succeed.