Is my Business too small for Project Management?

You may be thinking that your business is just too small for BIG Project Management techniques, but that is simply not the case. Don't let all of the fancy terms like Network diagram, Gantt chart, and Work Breakdown Structure scare you. And don't worry if you don't know how to use Microsoft Project or Primavera or any other PM software application out there…you don't need it.

Project Management is about organizing your data for a specific project and updating it as the project progresses. You can use a Word document or an Excel spreadsheet if you like, as long as you have something documented for your project, you are contributing to the success of that project.

Let's review the definition of a project…a project has a beginning and an end date with defined resources. So if you have a project that must start tomorrow and end by next Friday with a set budget of $1000 and 2 contractors working on it…You have a project! And you can manage it effectively by starting with a pen and paper. Not convinced yet? Okay, let's review how we can accomplish this...

First you have to determine how many working days you have to complete the project, minus Holidays, Weekends (unless you are a workaholic like me), and scheduled Vacations. So get your calendars out and start counting. Next, jot that number down for future use.

Now to breakdown the tasks. You can easily create a Work Breakdown Structure because it is nothing more than a highly glorified detailed outline. Level 0 is the main project goal, Level 1 is the first task, then you can add sub-tasks underneath it and move onto adding your next level(s). For example, here would be a sample WBS for making French toast. *my personal favorite*

Level 0 Make French toast
Level 1 Gather ingredients (or materials)
(it is okay to list ingredients underneath level) ie spatula, pan, eggs, bread, cinnamon, etc…
Level 2 Preparations
Preheat pan
Add butter to pan
Beat egg into bowl with cinnamon
Level 3 Cook
Dip bread in egg mixture on both sides
Add bread to pan
Flip when one side is brown
Remove when other side is brown
Level 4 Clean Up
Wash pan and spatula
Rinse dishes and put in dishwasher
Put away ingredients
Clean table

I opted to not include the task of Eating, although it was tempting. ;-)

So now you have your tasks broken down in levels with sub-tasks, now you simply assign them. Next to each task put a person's name, one of your resources. Then have them estimate how many hours, days or even minutes it will take to complete each task. Always involve your staff in this process.