Organizational interfaces
An organizational interface is a communication interface among organizational units. Communication between organizational units is affected by the:
- Individuals that make up organizational units - Good communication between individuals is essential to project success. Miscommunications and disagreements between individuals can cause delays in your project.
- Overall unit goals - When units within an organization have similar goals, everyone can work together to meet those goals. When the goals of organizational units conflict with one another, each unit's effort works against the others.
- Different managerial styles within each unit - Difference in managerial styles from department to department can cause confusion, frustration, and miscommunications.
- Decisions made outside the immediate organization - Decisions made by governments, interest groups, and competitors can influence your project and must be communicated.
Technical interfaces are the formal and informal reporting relationships among different technical disciplines.
Technical interfaces occur within and between project phases. They can occur in products, facilities, and hardware, in other words, in anything that is non-people related.
The technical interface falls into two categories: physical and performance. The physical interface is between interconnecting parts of the system. The performance interface is between various functional or product subsystems. These categories contain both good interfaces and problems with interfaces.
For example, MercuryRising has an excellent technical support team that is familiar with the hardware and software within the various departments. Quick response time to computer problems ensures little disruption time on projects and makes meeting deadlines easier.
The office supplier for MercuryRising has software to let them know what and how much of a product is being used daily. This tells them exactly when and how much to deliver. Such precision aids project delivery.
Project managers can help to ensure project success by managing technical interfaces.
Interpersonal interfaces
The interpersonal interface deals with formal and informal reporting relationships among different individuals working on a project.
Differences in personality, skill level, and communication style can create issues as a project team begins to work together. Typically, as the number of people involved in a project increases, so does the potential for problems with communication. A project may involve:
- different organizations
- organizational departments (Accounting, R&D)
- groups (special interest)
- subgroups
- individuals
For your project to succeed, you must remove barriers to communication through interface management—a constant juggling of communication issues.
A good project plan outlines individual, technical and organizational responsibilities and authority. It enables you to simultaneously manage the three interfaces and maintain the flow of communication.
If you effectively use the inputs to organizational planning, you can avoid most conflicts. Your projects will run more smoothly, and your project will have the best chance for success.
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Tag: PM201A57. Let me share all of you about #5 Tips for Project Management Success,, I hope you enjoy it
1. Plan your day using time management techniques
As a project manager, time management skills are essential because you are dealing with a wide range of tasks that demand a quick turnaround time. Planning your day will go a long way in keeping you organized and increasing your productivity. Assist your task planning by using project management software which helps you track the work of you and your team.
If you are not very tech savvy, a simple to-do list can also be a great organizational tool. Prioritize your most important tasks by putting them at the top of the list and less important ones at the bottom. Having a visual plan of your daily tasks helps to keep you on track and aware of time.
Related post: Free ebook 104 secrets to become a great project manager
2. Include stakeholders in important project conversations
While you will have plenty of responsibilities regarding the project, don’t neglect your clients.
Good communication is essential is keeping both parties informed of project progression, curtailing scope creep, and apprised of changing requirements. Some clients may have different expectations when it comes to communication, so make sure to establish the frequency and type of communication (like emails, phone calls, and face-to-face conversations) at the beginning of your project.
Establishing communication expectations early helps alleviate stakeholder uncertainty about communication frequency and delivery.
3. Regularly communicate with your team
Daily team communication helps keep misunderstandings and unclear requirements under control. Keeping your team informed in every step of the project is essential to project management success.
For example, a study published by Procedia Technology found that good communication skills were the cornerstone of project management. The study examined over 300 “construction project managers, architects, construction managers, engineers and quantity surveyors” and their successes and failures on various construction projects.
4. Anticipate project setbacks
Even the best-laid plans often go awry.
Remember that even with a high amount of planning and attention to detail, your project may still encounter some challenges. Pay attention to complaints from stakeholders or colleagues, and other warning signs, like a missed deadline or cost overrun, that there may be a problem.
Preventing a crisis will keep your project running smoothly, save you a lot of time, and keep you, your team, and your stakeholders confident in progressing with the project.
Unfortunately not every complication can be avoided. Crisis management skills are essential for dealing with the unexpected. Project managers need to be flexible and pragmatic. Improvise and make sharp decisions when needed.
Related post: 92 free project management templates
5. Stay focused on the details
A common problem project managers encounter is having the project aims not aligned with the organization’s objectives. A great project manager will strategize a plan for the project to lead back to the overall success of the business.
Know your project’s scope by heart and avoid wandering outside of the project’s requirements. It’s too easy to get lost in minor details and forget what your focus is, so a well-planned project scope is essential for success.
And final, you should use KPI to measure effectiveness of the project, here are full list: 76 project management KPIs
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