Discuss your project with us:
As a leading Change Management consultancy, why are we so committed to project management (PM)? On the one hand, because we have our roots in project management and have supported our clients in more than 700 projects and a wide variety of project management topics over the past 25 years. On the other hand, because solid project management is the basis for every change project.
Without excellent project management, any investment in Change Management is useless. Because with every change measure, the project sponsors and employees would rightly say: "First of all, make sure the project runs properly". And as projects become ever larger and more complex - combined with shorter project durations - companies are more dependent on excellent project management than ever before.
But what actually makes projects successful? Three factors have emerged from the numerous PM projects we have carried out for our customers:
- The company's own project management methods do not just exist on paper, but are applied by project staff and demanded by management.
- The methods are neatly "married" to the process model, for example the product development process or the IT process model.
- There are experts - internal or external - who know exactly how to apply the methods in practice. They support the projects in various roles.
Would you like to establish your PM methods sustainably in your company? Or are you looking for project management experts who can lead mission-critical projects to success and at the same time bring your PM methods to life in practice? Then you've come to the right place.
01 What is project management?
Project management (PM) refers to the initiation, planning, implementation, controlling and completion of projects. The aim is to plan and control a project well, limit risks, exploit opportunities and achieve project goals in terms of quality, on time and within budget.
In the best-known project management method PMBOK® from the Project Management Institute (PMI®), project management is defined as the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to all activities within a project in order to achieve the project objectives.
Project management standards
Project management standards distinguish between project management methods and process models. Both are important for the successful implementation of projects in companies:
- The methods describe how a project is to be managed and contain all the sub-disciplines of project management in the form of knowledge areas. The methods of project management are well documented by institutes and associations. The two best-known method standards are
- Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®) of the Project Management Institute (PMI®)
- Prince2® (Projects in Controlled Environments) the former British Office of Government Commerce (OGC)
- Process models describe what is to be done in a project and by whom. They also define the sequence of activities, i.e. the processes. Examples of this are the V-model and the product development process (PDP).
Project management processes and phases
The Project Management Institute's best-known methodology standard PMBOK® distinguishes between five project management processes (or phases):
- As part of the initiation process, the feasibility of a project is checked before a great deal of effort is invested in project planning and implementation. The process includes all steps to properly propose, analyze, verify, roughly plan, review and finally approve or not approve a project. The aim is to start projects only when they are actually needed, are in line with the company strategy, are realistically planned, have sufficient resources and are supported by all divisions and departments involved. Proper implementation of the initiation process increases the probability of a project's success.
- As a result, the integrated planning process delivers the project plan with which the project is managed, executed and controlled. The so-called knowledge areas are planned step by step as the basis for creating the integrated project plan. These include the knowledge areas "Scope", "Time", "Human Resources" and "Suppliers". The first integrated plan forms the basis for the subsequent, iterative planning process. In further iteration steps, information from the knowledge areas already mentioned as well as additional knowledge areas such as "Cost", "Quality", "Communication", etc. is added and coordinated.
- The project plan is executed and implemented in the project plan execution process. The work packages are handed over to the team members. During the execution of the project plan, the work results to be delivered are produced. When processing the work packages, the project manager's task is to adequately support the team members and ensure that they are delivered on time. Ultimately, the project manager is responsible for the project outcome.
- The Integrated Change Control process controls all changes in all project areas. Change requests are checked and implemented when approved. A project without controlling is like driving a car without being able to see - an accident is inevitable. Project management monitors the project goals and the current status in order to keep the project on track. Compliance with delivery deadlines, progress in terms of content and cost planning must be constantly monitored.
- As soon as all delivery items have been completed, the closure process can be initiated. The project management conducts a meeting with the clients to achieve final acceptance of the project deliverables. The project resources that have completed their tasks are released and are now available to the organization again. All contractual obligations entered into by the various suppliers are formally terminated and the performance of the suppliers is evaluated by the project manager.
Project Management Knowledge Areas
The PMBOK® distinguishes between ten knowledge areas of project management:
- Integration Management
- Scope management
- Time Management
- Cost Management
- Quality Management
- Human Resources Management
- Communications Management
- Risk Management
- Procurement Management
- Stakeholder management
Discuss your project with us:
02 Introducing project management methods
We support corporate groups and medium-sized companies in the successful introduction of traditional project management methods.
To do this, we take one of the major standards, for example PMBOK® or PRINCE2®, and adapt it to the requirements of our customers. This keeps the conceptual part comparatively short and limits it to translating the standard methods from a rather academic language into the language of project managers and employees and taking into account the specifics of the company.
Advantages:
- Standardized terminology
- Possibility to make project situations measurable and tangible
- Consistent understanding of what is (and what is not) part of project management
- Only one source of information for good project management knowledge
- Standardized methods as a basis for lessons learned and improvements
From Prince2 to in-house project management methods
What does this look like in practice - from our customers' challenges to the actual implementation in practice?
03 CPC Compass Online Guide
As a project manager, it is a great help to have a practicable and reliable toolbox that has an answer to all possible questions. One such toolbox is our free
CPC Compass Online Guide.
SUCCESS STORY: Introduction of PM methods.
The introduction of binding project management methods throughout the Group in conjunction with the successful management of projects: How can methods not only exist on paper, but also become part of the company's DNA and create demonstrable benefits?
"Project management is as exciting as a phone book," says our customer at the start of the project. The head of one of the largest project organizations in the automotive industry wants and needs to create the conditions for sustainably improving project performance with a group-wide project management standard. But actually, like most employees, he sees project management as a necessary evil.
The project management methods are completed within 3 months. The PMBOK® serves as a template and is "translated" into the language of the employees. We attach particular importance to the link with the process models of the specialist departments, e.g. the development processes of IT. A pocket guide for Agile & Scrum is developed in a second step. Right from the start, experienced project managers from the customer are on board to "review" the method modules and "tune" them to their own corporate world.
All employees and managers are taught the relevant components of the methods in role-based project management training courses. However, in order to ensure the successful application of the methods in practice, we also focus on so-called "project services".
Project Services offer project teams concrete assistance in applying PM methods in practice. The services range from temporarily taking over project management to support in setting up and planning projects, speeding up conditionally successful projects and planning and implementing rollouts. In this way, we give the teams more and more confidence in dealing with the methods and at the same time create operational added value.
Standing ovation from top management - the very first project develops into a successful lighthouse project. Our client would never have dreamed of this before.
Discuss your project with us:
04 Start-up project planning
Most companies are well positioned when it comes to project management. They have well-founded and standardized methods as well as well-trained and experienced employees. Nevertheless, many projects reach their destination with considerable restrictions. For companies, this ultimately means considerable additional financial expenditure.
The reasons for undesirable developments are complex. Increased demands on projects and project managers, complex framework conditions in the area of conflict between line and project or between different departments, unclear project assignments and objectives, lack of involvement of those involved, resource overload, constant project changes, non-transparent operational resource planning, insufficient consideration of different cultural backgrounds and much more. These factors typically lead to the planning taking longer and costs rising as a result.
On the right track right from the start
It is essential for the success of a project that it is planned appropriately and sustainably. This is precisely where CPC comes in: Our "Project Planning Start Up" solution deals with the professional set-up of projects - in terms of content, structure and process. The aim is to give projects the right framework in their start-up phase so that they can later be successfully completed within scope, time and budget.
The initial challenge is to formulate the project proposal precisely and define the next steps. Among other things, the following questions need to be answered and put into context:
- What is the specific need for action and what are the objectives and content of the project?
- What are the acceptance criteria?
- Which deliverables are to be provided and how can these be represented on the timeline?
- Which stakeholders are affected by the project, what are their expectations and requirements?
- How time-consuming, costly and resource-intensive is the project?
- What approach does the project require so that the objectives are achieved within the defined time and cost framework?
- How are the different responsibilities distributed?
Involve stakeholders
In addition to these formal issues, there are also communication aspects that affect management and other stakeholders:
- Project management must ensure that sponsors and the steering board are behind the objectives and content of the project and expect the same results. Transparency is one of the most important levers for success right from the start.
- Opportunities and risks of the project must be identified and evaluated. In this context, the project managers must recognize the fears, expectations and motives of the various stakeholders. Based on this, appropriate measures must be derived to ensure the success of the project.
- It is also important to check which areas of the company are affected by the project. Differences of opinion can only be resolved if representatives from all areas involved are appropriately involved in the project at an early stage. Agreement on the intended project results reduces the need for adjustments right from the start and thus prevents a cost explosion. In addition, employees identify with the project across the board.
The result of Start-Up project planning is formal project approval and targeted project planning. Because Start-Up takes formal and social aspects into account, our clients avoid typical omissions. This is all the more important because mistakes that are made and not recognized during the initiation and planning of a project are magnified at a later stage. The later they become apparent in scope, cost, time and resource planning, the more difficult they are to correct.
An investment in "Project Planning Start-Up" pays off many times over. This is all the more true the more complex the project is.
Discuss your project with us:
05 Project implementation Speed-up
Projects are not always set up in an exemplary manner. For example, the reason for this may be that the complexity was underestimated. As a result, the planned results are a long way off.
This is precisely where CPC comes in with "Project Implementation Speed Up". Our solution concept focuses on advanced projects that are lagging behind their goals or may have fallen completely off track. These projects run the risk of no longer fulfilling their original mission. In such situations, CPC takes on the active role of driver and gets the project back on track reliably and quickly.
Project Implementation Speed-Up starts with a comprehensive project review. In it, we analyze the project structure and status. We also determine the causes of the problems. These can be manifold: they range from incorrect planning, new or changed requirements, lack of transparency, poor project and supplier management, underestimated risks, lack of involvement of the departments and stakeholders involved and the loss of important key personnel through to unrealistic expectations on the part of the client.
On the basis of the project review, CPC makes transparent the causes of problems that stand in the way of success. We then identify the necessary countermeasures and coordinate these with the project managers in order to finally complete the turnaround.
Corrective measures can include
- Specification of the project content
- Creating more transparency
- Process optimization in collaboration
- Optimization of project planning and control
As a rule, a task force takes over the implementation of the speed-up. This is made up of the project team and consultants from CPC and operates for a limited period of time - until the project is running smoothly again.
"Project Implementation Speed-Up" is therefore a sensible alternative to stopping a project and makes it possible to get projects that are in a bad way back on track.