PM ADVISORY:

The Curse of “It’s How We’ve Always Done It”
Transcending negativity to turn previous failures into current successes

By Laura B. Moore

I often find that informal projects often lend insight into how to tighten the organization of formal projects, and that even the smallest of projects work the best when basic project management skills are applied.

This was recently highlighted for me again through my daughters’ school and approaches taken to events. Keep in mind however when I list these scenarios, that the organizers of any volunteer organization are to be commended, regardless of the outcome! It takes a lot to pull off an event for over 150 families and therefore while there are areas for improvement, each and every volunteer is a treasure and deeply appreciated! That said, let’s see what we can learn from them!

Scenario:

So that the examples make sense, I thought it would be good to give a scenario. Remember, although the scenario is an event at an Elementary school, it is to highlight how every project, regardless of size, benefits from project management principles… there is no project too small for at least some of the skills we have honed.

Every year my daughters’ school has a talent show and historically, it has been pretty successful. However last year we lost the organizer due to her son moving to the next level of school, and all of her meticulous notes were handed off to the new organizer…

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About the Author Laura Bollinger-Moore Author Laura Bollinger-Moore, PMP, M.A. Social Psychology, MOM, has an eclectic background that includes not only her work in the Telecom industry in such fields as Project Management, Regulatory, Human Resources, Customer Service and Operations, but also outside of Telecom as a Clinical Psychology Researcher and a Social Worker. Currently, Laura is an analyst in Consumer Competitive Intelligence at AT&T, managing multiple simultaneous research projects and providing foresight into, and analysis on, trends and fads, as well as cutting edge upcoming technology. Laura lives in California with her husband Lorin, and their two amazing daughters Lily Faye and Layla Blue. Laura can be contacted at Laura.b.moore@att.com