I believe my main motivator is reaching my full potential. If I am ever in an environment that requires me to put in work that does not utilize all of my skills that I’ve developed over the course of my academic, professional, and personal life, I feel out of place and demoralized. Even to this day, although I am certainly grateful for the…[Read more]

I can definitely see a correlation as many people have noted. Stepping up to the plate and reaching your full potential by taking on challenging tasks is both exciting and rewarding when you put the work in. But its the reward that makes it all worth it to almost everyone. I’m inclined to say that the “reward” for one’s hard work to complete…[Read more]

I absolutely appreciated this class and what its taught me. Particularly, the mini-sims really gave me a sense of what it’s like to work and think as an engineer. Even though I work in the field, I do not encounter such specific and troublesome issues and working with a team to brainstorm, research, and come up with solutions was an experience I…[Read more]

The specifications that are outlined for a product are the limits of that product. Any output of that product that is outside of those bounds is not supported and is not usually a liability to the company. To avoid customer frustration and risk of failures closer towards the limits of a product, buffers are often put in place which, although seems…[Read more]

If a second source is needed and does not meet the exact requirements of the product, an option is to revert back and modify the product requirements/specs so that the component from both sources meet the requirements. This of course requires more research from PD and must be justified/accepted by the stakeholders.

I was recently involved in a project where a team member was moving to a different company and had several critical tasks that the project depended on. We developed a strategy that ensured that we would minimize any potential delays due to the change when we replaced him. First, we made his incoming tasks as top priorities. All other team members…[Read more]

These 5 factors specifically ensure multiple things regarding a given project. They all emphasize organization, clarity, and accuracy. With factors such as communication, ensuring management support, and agreeing on project goals, the PM and other project team members all are clear on the project’s trajectory, potential, and limitation. This helps…[Read more]

As some already mentioned, it should be made clear before the project execution if all proposed project team members will have the availability needed for the project, especially for the start of it. Depending on which organization types, different actions could potentially be made in response to an unavailable team member. For instance, in a…[Read more]

I believe there are several key factors that need to be considered to ensure a successful project execution. First and foremost, meeting and getting to know each team member from the start is an excellent way to not only be aware of their availabilities, but also their preferences, limitations, and personalities. Communication is key for…[Read more]

Personally, I don’t see this strategy as an actual situation. In my company, each team posts each task on a virtual project management board. Some tasks depend on others and are therefore linked with yarn and stickers. By carefully developing this VPM board, the entire team comes up with a realistic estimate for the project completion. At the end,…[Read more]

I absolutely agree. I am a firm believer in proper execution, even if it means taking longer than expected. Therefore, going back to a previous phase for any legitimate reason is justified in my opinion. A legitimate reason, however, means that there was no simple way to avoid reverting back. This means that the PM acknowledged the schedules of…[Read more]

In addition to understanding the decisions made in the past, looking over the lessons learned provides invaluable insight that can be used to streamline a projects progression. The obvious reason as some mentioned is learning and avoiding past mistakes made. In addition, taking certain courses of action based on previous decisions in the past to…[Read more]

I would like to add my input on this topic, but it has to do with my experience NOT having a log of work to go off of. After starting my first job in the industry, I quickly learned each day how much I would need to pick up on in order to effectively do my job. And it was a lot. Much of my work is shared among the rest of my team so I would watch…[Read more]

In the case that a calm discussion does not easily resolve a situation and two or more parties are still in a disagreement, it is the PM’s responsibility to put his or her foot down and make a decision that would benefit the project the most. This is the reality almost all PM’s must face. In addition, from my experience, doing whatever it takes to…[Read more]

I agree revising the plan is not working backwards, it is just a response to new knowledge. However, it is important to discover that knowledge beforehand if possible. That is why extensive measures should be taken during the planning phase so that no revisions must be made unless absolutely necessary. In this case, it appears this could have been…[Read more]

This is a great topic to bring up. Many people, as you had mentioned, view missing milestones as a terrible thing that can occur in a project. Which is undoubtedly true. However, in my opinion, missing deadlines is significantly less detrimental than rushing to meet that deadline. I’ve personally witnessed many situations where we need to go back…[Read more]