Project Management Absolute Beginner S Guide Fourth Edition

This is the eBook of the printed book and may not include any media, website access codes, or print supplements that may come packaged with the bound book. Succeed as a project manager, even if you’ve never run a project before! This book is the fastest way to master every project management task, from upfront budgeting and scheduling through execution, managing teams through closing projects, and learning from experience. Updated with more insights from the front lines, including agile approaches, dealing with security and privacy priorities, and leading remote/virtual teams, along with the latest on Microsoft Project and PMI standards and certifications and a special bonus chapter on preparing for the PMP certification. This book will show you exactly how to get the job done, one incredibly clear and easy step at a time. Project management has never, ever been this simple! Who knew how simple project management could be? This is today’s best beginner’s guide to modern project management... simple, practical instructions for succeeding with every task you’ll need to perform! Here’s a small sample of what you’ll learn: • Master the key skills and qualities every project manager needs • Lead projects, don’t just “manage” them • Avoid 15 most common mistakes new project managers make • Learn from troubled, successful, and “recovered” projects • Set the stage for success by effectively defining your project • Build a usable project plan and an accurate work breakdown structure (WBS) • Create budgets and schedules that help you manage risk • Use powerful control and reporting techniques, including earned value management • Smoothly manage project changes, issues, risks, deliverables, and quality • Manage project communications and stakeholder expectations • Organize and lead high-performance project teams • Manage cross-functional, cross-cultural, and virtual projects • Work successfully with vendors and Project Management Offices • Make the most of Microsoft Project and new web-based alternatives • Get started with agile and “critical chain” project management • Gain key insights that will accelerate your learning curve • Know how to respond to real-life situations, not just what they teach you in school

Why learn project management the hard way? Absolute Beginner’s Guide to Project Management, Second Edition will have you managing projects in no time! Here’s a small sample of what you’ll learn: Key concepts and fundamentals behind best-practice project management techniques The mindset and skill set of effective project managers Project techniques that work in any industry, with any tools The common elements of successful projects Lessons from failed projects The value and importance of project leadership versus project management How to manage growing project trends and tough project types that first-time project managers are likely to encounter How to make better use of Microsoft Project How to respond when project reality does not match textbook scenarios Expert insight on key project management concepts and topics You’ve just been handed your department's biggest project. Absolute Beginner's Guide to Project Management will show you exactly where to start—and walk you step by step through your entire project! Expert project manager Gregory Horine shows you exactly what works and what doesn’t, drawing on the field’s proven best practices. Understand your role as a project manager...gain the skills and discover the personal qualities of great project managers...learn how to organize, estimate, and schedule projects effectively...manage deliverables, issues, changes, risks, quality, vendors, communications, and expectations...make the most of technology...manage virtual teams...avoid the problems that trip up new project managers! This new edition jumpstarts your project management expertise even faster, with all-new insights on Microsoft Project, challenging project situations and intriguing project management topics of the day.

[This book] sets up the general framework for our project management discussion and accelerates your project management learning curve, including an insightful review of successful projects and project managers. [The book] reviews the processes that establish the foundation for your project. [It] reviews the processes that allow you to effectively monitor, track, correct, and protect your project's performance. [It also] reviews the key leadership and people-focused skills that you need to meet today's business demands.-Introd.

Succeed as a project manager, even if you’ve never run a project before! This book is the fastest way to master every project management task, from upfront budgeting and scheduling through execution, managing teams through closing projects, and learning from experience. Updated for the latest web-based project management tools and the newest version of PMP certification, this book will show you exactly how to get the job done, one incredibly clear and easy step at a time. Project management has never, ever been this simple! Who knew how simple Project Management could be? This is today’s best beginner’s guide to modern project management... simple, practical instructions for succeeding with every task you’ll need to perform! Here’s a small sample of what you’ll learn: • Master the key skills and qualities every project manager needs • Lead projects, don’t just “manage” them • Avoid 15 most common mistakes new project managers make • Learn from troubled, successful, and “recovered” projects • Set the stage for success by effectively defining your project • Build a usable project plan and an accurate work breakdown structure (WBS) • Create budgets and schedules that help you manage risk • Use powerful control and reporting techniques, including earned value management • Smoothly manage project changes, issues, risks, deliverables, and quality • Manage project communications and stakeholder expectations • Organize and lead high-performance project teams • Manage cross-functional, cross-cultural, and virtual projects • Work successfully with vendors and Project Management Offices • Make the most of Microsoft Project and new web-based alternatives • Get started with agile and “critical chain” project management

Project management is in everything we do, from our personal lives to our professional careers. It is the fastest-growing profession in the world, and the skills learned in this book can be used for any sort of project, large or small: setting up a small business; planning a wedding, family vacation, company picnic, or other event; and organizing projects of any scale. This beginner’s guide will teach you real-world project management skills for any project and will help prepare you to become a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) or Certified Associate Project Manager (CAPM). This fourth edition provides up-to-date information on how to effectively manage projects, programs, and portfolios to achieve organizational success. It includes tips and sample questions at the end of each chapter as well as a mock exam to help prepare you for the Project Management Institute (PMI) certification exams. This text follows the three PMI domains: People, Business Environment, and Processes. A case study with detailed real-world examples, sample templates, and actual project documents guides you through your own projects, from charter to close, using all five project groups (initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing projects). This edition takes the standard processes and framework for traditional projects introduced in PMI’s sixth edition Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) and adds the new focus on Agile (adaptive) project management methods, tools, and techniques in PMBOK’s seventh edition to enhance your knowledge and ability to handle a wide range of projects.

Succeed as a project manager, even if you've never run a project before! This book is the fastest way to master every project management task, from upfront budgeting and scheduling through execution, managing teams through closing projects, and learning from experience. Updated with more insights from the front lines, including agile approaches, dealing with security and privacy priorities, and leading remote/virtual teams, along with the latest on Microsoft Project and PMI standards and certifications and a special bonus chapter on preparing for the new PMP certification. This book will show you exactly how to get the job done, one incredibly clear and easy step at a time. Project management has never, ever been this simple! This is today's best beginner's guide to modern project management--simple, practical instructions for succeeding with every task you'll need to perform! * Master the key skills and qualities every project manager needs * Learn how to lead projects, not just "manage" them * Avoid 15 most common mistakes new project managers make * Learn from troubled, successful, and "recovered" projects * Apply agile, hybrid, and traditional project management approaches * Learn the differences between a project manager, Scrum master, and product owner * Learn how DevOps and DevSecOps impact the project manager * Set the stage for success by effectively defining your project * Build a usable project plan and an accurate work breakdown structure (WBS) * Create budgets and schedules that help you manage risk * Use powerful control and reporting techniques, including earned value management * Smoothly manage project changes, issues, risks, deliverables, and quality * Manage project communications and stakeholder expectations * Organize and lead high-performance project teams * Manage cross-functional, cross-cultural, and virtual projects * Get started with agile and "critical chain" project management * Gain key insights that will accelerate your learning curve * Learn how to respond to real-life situations, not just what they teach you in school

If you're new to project management or need to refresh your knowledge,Project Management Essentials, Fourth Edition is the quickest and easiest way to learn how to manage projects successfully. The concepts presented are not rocket science. They are all common sense. Yet they require knowledge and discipline - a framework to manage projects right and the will to adhere to it. If you consistently use the simple tools and templates provided you'll succeed. It's as simple as that. In this book you'll discover: The key skills and knowledge you'll need to be an effective project manager How to create an effective charter to start your project off right Guidelines for building a usable project plan Tips for breaking your project work into manageable pieces Techniques for accurately estimating project cost and schedule Help in building a team and different leadership styles you might apply to manage them Strategies to deal with conflicts, change, uncertainty, and risk How to report on the progress of the project and keep everyone concerned happy Project Management Essentials is purposefully written in short, clear chapters to make project management more easily understood. The authors, all valued senior faculty of PM College, bring both their business experience and their academic background to make these chapters come alive. This updated edition offers even more templates and content than the widely used earlier editions and complies with the latest project management standard, thePMBOK® Guide Sixth Edition.