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Effective Project Management for Technical Communicators: A Comprehensive Guide

This presentation explores the importance of project management for technical communicators. It covers essential topics such as project planning, scope, scheduling, and the role of quality control in ensuring project success. Attendees will learn the basics of project management, the significance of a project baseline, and strategies for controlling project parameters like time, resources, and budget. Through a deeper understanding of project management processes, technical communicators can enhance collaboration, reduce conflicts, and deliver quality projects on time.

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Effective Project Management for Technical Communicators: A Comprehensive Guide

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Presentation Transcript

  1. Project Management for Technical Communicators Tim Bombosch, PMP bombosch@hotmail.com San Francisco STC June 16, 2004

  2. Project Management for Technical Communicators • Why project management • Project management basics • Planning your project • Next steps • Resources

  3. Why PM? Core TC Skill • How do we define ourselves? • Writers • Technology • Tools • Design • Project Managers?

  4. Why PM? A Few Questions How often do you experience • Quality concessions late in a project? • Delays and other changes because of unplanned changes from your development team?

  5. Why PM? More Questions Are these changes due to poor • Tool or technology skills? • Project management?

  6. Why PM? Sustainable Quality • The best staff and tools do not guarantee quality. • Project shortcomings result most often from poor project management.

  7. Why PM? Project Control Sound project management promises better control over: • Quality • Schedule • Budget

  8. Why PM? Organizational Power • Outsourcing • Negotiation • Strategic value to enterprise • Less conflict, less stress

  9. Basics: Triple Constraints Time Resources Scope/Quality

  10. Basics:Five PM Processes Execute Plan Activity Control Close Initiate Time

  11. Phase Initiate Plan Output Broad plans, specs, estimates, resources Project plan, supporting detail, plan approval Basics: Project Life Cycle

  12. Basics: Project Life Cycle

  13. Basics:Project Baseline Project Baseline is Your Bible • Detailed plan for who, what, where, when, how long, and how much • Requires sign off from all necessary stakeholders • Changes to baseline must be approved by relevant stakeholders

  14. Basics:Project Baseline • Project Baseline is Your Bible • Measure progress against baseline • Variance from baseline requires corrective action

  15. Basics:Project Baseline Project Baseline is Your Bible • Quality = Conformance to requirements. • No gold-plating!

  16. Basics: Projects are Iterative Initiate Plan/Baseline Control Execute Close

  17. Basics:Five PM Processes Execute Plan Activity Control Close Initiate Time

  18. Basics: PMI vs. Hackos

  19. Plan: Info Plan vs. Project Plan

  20. Information Plan • Preliminary budget, schedule, resources • Project goals • Descriptive, not prescriptive

  21. Information Plan Analyze: • Audience • Needs • Tasks

  22. Information Plan Decisions to make: • Media selection • Deliverables

  23. Project Plan: Main Components

  24. Project Plan: First Draft Info Plan Sequence Schedule WBS Duration Est. 1st Draft Resource Planning Cost Est. Budget

  25. Project Plan: Second Draft Other Planning Factors: • Risk • Quality • Change Control • Outsourcing

  26. Project Plan: Approval • May go through several iterative phases before all parties approve • Once approved • Move on to execution and control • Plan is declared the project baseline, requiring strict change control for further amendments

  27. Next Steps: Major Activities Plan Execution Project Control • Status reports • Change control • Approve baseline changes

  28. Next Steps: Major Activities Quality Control • Measure results against requirement quality standards • Qualityassurance testing Risk Management • Monitor risk factors • Make contingency plans

  29. Resources • Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) • www.pmi.org • UC Santa Cruz Extension • JoAnn Hackos: Managing TechnicalDocumentation Projects

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