One of the toughest challenges for a PM can be juggling multiple projects. You’re trapped on conference calls all day while your inbox becomes cluttered with emails from internal partners, vendors and clients discussing any number of active projects. If you let it get out of control, you could become the bottleneck in your own project.
A common approach is to keep your inbox empty by checking email throughout the day and making some immediate decisions on the ever-growing list. If you’ll never need the email, you delete it. If you can resolve the issue in a minute or two, you take action then delete it (or file it), etc. There are a few versions of this approach, commonly referred to as Inbox Zero. It’s better than complete inbox chaos, but I worry you lose some efficiency by not having immediate inbox access to relevant materials.
I recommend finding a middle ground. I use my inbox like a to-do list. Every item in there needs my attention. If it doesn’t need my attention, I file it away. So it’s never completely empty, but it is also free of clutter. Here are few tips:
- Multi-task and Take Action
Don’t be afraid to let yourself get distracted. This is similar to Inbox Zero – but perhaps taking this one step further, I think you should multi task by checking email in meetings that don’t require your undivided attention. And if you are working on an important task that takes hours, force yourself to break away from time to time to check your email and resolve any issues that don’t require investigation or effort.
- Create a Filing System
If I’ve read the email and I don’t need to take action on it, I’ll file it away in a project-specific subfolder. I never delete anything that might need to be referenced later. Emails can be an excellent resource for historical information on a project. File your emails in such a way that allows you to easily search your subfolders for key information.
- Use Email Flags
If you can’t take immediate action on an email and you need it for future reference, keep it in your inbox and flag it. You can break out your flags by color so you can identify next steps at a glance. i.e. Red = top priority, Green = take action within a few days, Blue = file attachment that will be needed for reference in the near future. Set up the system so it is relevant for you.
- Clean House
Using this system instead of a pure Inbox Zero approach will allow your inbox to build up after a few days. You’ll have immediate access to urgent materials because they are in your top level inbox, but you’ll also end up with some unnecessary items. That’s why you’ll need to clean up every few days. Go through your flagged emails and file away anything that you no longer need for immediate reference.
With this approach, you should be able to keep your inbox down to 10 items or so, each of which need your attention in the near future. You’ll be better organized, which will help you work more efficiently. And if you have any ideas or recommendations, please add them in the comments.
This advice is a supplement to an article posted here recently by Chris McSpiritt.
Project Managers who earn their professional certification through the Project Management Institute (PMI) are required to complete ongoing training to retain the PMP credential. PMs are given three years to earn a required 60 PDUs. There are a lot of ways to complete the training, 12 of which are outlined at PMI.org, but many of these options are expensive. I’m hoping to get you started without breaking the bank.
Free Podcasts
The first thing you should do is start listening to Project Management-related podcasts. Every hour of content is worth one PDU. You can earn up to 15 PDUs this way, in category 2 SDL (self-directed learning). I recommend the Project Management Podcast which is hosted by Cornelius Fichtner, PMP. He provides great content that is worth your time. And there are plenty of free episodes. Listen to the PM Podcast here. And here are the instructions for submitting your PDUs to PMI.
Free Course Downloads
Another method for earning free PDUs is through self-paced online courses. IBM offers a full suite of courses that you can download for free. All together, you can earn 19 PDUs by completing the available e-kits. It’s a great option from a trusted company. You can download the e-kits directly from IBM.
Free Webinars
Certain trainers offer free webinars as an introduction to their service. For example, you can earn up to 8 free PDUs by watching the courses available from IAG Consulting.
Inexpensive Online Training
There are a lot of trainers who offer inexpensive training courses for those looking to earn PDUs in a pinch. PM Educate offers a package that would award you the full 60 required PDUs for $500 – or even less if they are having a sale. PDUs2Go also has a training suite that can earn you the full 60 PDUs for as little as $600.
Training Directly Through PMI
And of course PMI offers online training courses as well. For example, the course titled Project Movie: A Practical Application of the PMBOK will earn you 15 PDUs at a total cost of $500 for PMI members.
So there are a lot of free or inexpensive options out there if you shop around a little. Please feel free to add any suggestions by submitting comments to this article.
The science of project management is obvious. Calculating resource needs against upcoming work, mapping the critical path for your project timeline, or managing your budget based on a fluctuating scope. But there’s also an art to project management. It’s an area that goes beyond what you learn from the PMBOK – it’s something that requires confidence and finesse.
The art of project management is all about managing relationships. You must ease your clients’ concerns, whether those clients are internal partners or external customers. You must push back carefully when your clients’ pipe dreams force scope creep. And you need to create a strong rapport with your internal project team in order to help prioritize your own project tasks when they may compete with other concurrent projects.
In my opinion, the art is far more important than the science. It’s also more difficult to master. You learn these soft skills over time. Your first project with a challenging client can give you invaluable experience. A dozen more, and you are on your way. And those skills translate beyond project management. They’re useful in nearly any profession.
My recommendation is to force yourself to balance your project management training with direct relationship management. Don’t expect your peers or clients to follow the rules of project management. People are unpredictable, and adding some art to your project management science can help you prepare for any challenge.
Here are the basic steps for earning Project Management Professional (PMP) certification from the Project Management Institute (PMI).
- Meet the minimum professional requirements such as a baccalaureate degree and 4500 hours of project management experience.
- Okay, I’ll admit the first step isn’t easy. But if you have come this far hopefully you have some project management experience under your belt. Keep in mind that your job title doesn’t necessarily have to be “Project Manager” for your experience to qualify for this requirement. For example, if you performed project management duties as a Project Coordinator you may list this experience as long as you can include the necessary details regarding your responsibilities for that project.
- Review the details of this requirement here.
- Complete the required 35 hours of project management training.
- Training may be completed in person or online. If you are attempting to complete this requirement while you maintain a full time job, you may want to consider the online option. I found that online training offered me the flexibility to complete the coursework at home during off hours.
- PM College is one of many online options. The PM Quick Track package allows you 6 months to complete your coursework.
- Apply to take the PMP exam.
- This process is somewhat time consuming, but it should not be difficult if you meet the requirements in step one. You will need to create an account with PMI to access the necessary application forms. Then you will gather the necessary information regarding your experience and references.
- Download and submit the application through PMI.org.
- Schedule your exam.
- Once you pass the application process, you may schedule the exam. The test will likely take you anywhere between 2-6 hours to complete. The exam is given in testing centers across the globe.
- You can find an exam location near you through Prometric.
- Pass the certification exam.
- Assuming you paid attention during your PM training, the exam should not be difficult. Study and prepare and you should do fine.
Keep in mind, there is a cost involved. You will likely spend several hundred dollars on the requisite training course (approximately $300). The exam itself is approximately $550. There are also fees associated with the application process and joining PMI.
Once you pass the exam, you may formally join PMI as a registered PMP, allowing you to complete continuing education.
Note: If you do not meet the PMP requirements or you cannot afford the time commitment, perhaps consider the CAPM credential.
Communication and documentation are the two biggest keys to Project Management success.
Your initial contract for a project may not include a clear set of requirements. Often, these details will come from conversations with your client or other stakeholders. Any time one of these conversations leads to a decision, follow up with an email to get that decision documented. These individual decisions can also be collected in a Client Requirements Document (CRD). This does not have to be formal, it’s just something to help you keep track by collecting all of the information in one central place.
As soon as you have a clearer picture of what the client expects, make sure to have a meeting with your internal partners. This meeting will ensure that everyone is on the same page in-house. And it will also provide you with some clearer expectations for your client.
During this whole process, follow up each meeting with at least a brief set of notes. These notes should capture any decisions that were made and any action items that remain.
These steps are especially helpful for projects with short turnaround times and vague requirements. At times it can seem challenging to set time aside for creating project plans/timelines, documenting requirements, and sending out follow-up emails after every conversation. What I would recommend in these situations is to at least get a high level list together. Your project plan might only include 10 tasks, and your requirements list might only be a list of a dozen bullets in an email – but it’s always best to have at least some high level documentation.
