Practical hints to successful project execution

1. E. Huszár‐B. Huszár‐M. Huszár‐J. Huszár
Never Be An
Underdog Anymore
U d d A
Practical hints for successful project
execution
© E. Huszár‐B. Huszár‐M. Huszár‐J. Huszár
2008

2. Introduction
While the evolution of the various project management methodologies resulted in a
scientifically established theoretical background and a vast array of professional
literature in the last few decades there is a very limited number of methodology
decades, there of methodology‐
independent works that focus on practical guidance. This is why we decided to write
this gap filling booklet in which we put emphasis on the practical aspects of project
work, based on our many years of extensive, worldwide experiences.
We hope that this study –which is illustrated with many pictures and presents
numerous practical examples‐ will be an equally useful companion for both junior and
experienced project managers.
p p j g
Endre Huszár ‐ Blanka Huszár ‐ Malacka Huszár ‐ Jenő Huszár
Érd, Hungary 11.12.2008
Acknowledgements
We thank Eszter Ruttner f h committed and professional h l in writing this b k
h k for her d d f l help h book.
The Authors
2

3. It’s always desirable to appoint the project manager prior to
composing th project team, so h she could actively
i the j t t he or h ld ti l
participate in the recruitment process of the team members
3

4. Apply competence‐based selection techniques for the
pp y p q
recruitment.
4

5. The team members should briefly introduce their professional
background at the kick‐off meeting.
5

6. During the
preparation phase
utilize various … and
tools… continuous
trainings…
6

7. … to maintain…
… the professional skills of the
team members…
7

8. … in order to ensure that
they would perform…
… equally well under the most
diverse circumstances and…
8

9. … their work would
meet the highest
standards...
… in the most
unexpected situations
t d it ti
during the execution
phase.
9

10. Don’t
D ’t spare th resources t dig d
the to deep t di
to discover th
the
problematic areas during the assessment phase.
10

11. Rely on the expertise of external
consultants when necessary during
the preparation phase.
11

12. Encourage the team members
to keep their ears open to new
ideas.
12

13. The best ideas often spring to life when the team members
lay their heads together so the opportunity should always
together, so
be open to these brainstormings.
13

14. Establish a team spirit that helps the participants to work shoulder‐to‐
shoulder to reach the project goals.
14

15. Make sure to tackle the issues caused
by distortion of information in the
co
communication chain and ask for
u ca o c a a d a o
regular feedback.
Announce the sanctions to
be applied in case of
inappropriate operations.
15

16. Make sure to quickly resolve
the internal conflicts within
the team,…
… as these would waste
valuable energy of the team
members and would di
b d ld distract
them from work
16

17. Bear in mind that healthy and
variegated nutricion is an
indispensable condition…
17

18. … of highly effective intellectual work.
18

19. In order to pre ent the accidents at work it is important …
prevent ork
… to provide a secure working environment and demand
t id ki g i t d d d
compliance to safety regulations.
19

20. Explore the internally accessible, existing background
materials and benchmarks.
20

21. The planning phase should be
started after the successful
completion of the user
interviews and a thorough
assessment of all
circumstances.
21

22. Pay attention to the smallest
details during the planning
phase…
… as these could greatly
influence the successful
outcome of the project.
22

23. Carefully examine the existing
infrastructure before the inception
of the execution and…
… chart the available facilities
chart
that can improve work efficiency.
23

24. Identify the external
contributors who could join
j
forces with the project
members…
… for the successful
for
accomplishment of the
project goals.
24

25. Don t
Don’t let the unforeseen difficulties ‐which often involve hard
and dirty work to rectify‐ break the team members’ enthusiasm
and dedication. 25

26. Make sure to provide
regular, short breaks
g
during work, ...
… because these will
significantly improve the
employees concentration
employees’ concentration and
their load tolerance even under
the most difficult and
demanding circumstances.
g
26

27. It‘s highly important to make it
clear to all beneficiaries of the
p
project that…
… the working processes
required to realize great visions
often demand the demolition of
the existing, obsolete
structures.
27

28. Make every effort ensure
that the test scenarios take
the widest range of
h id f
possibilities into
consideration.
28

29. Careful planning and tightly controlled, plan‐driven execution
p g g y ,p
will always result in deliverables of the highest quality.
29

30. When all project goals have been
successfully reached, don’t miss
to reward the team members,…
30

31. … celebrate the
achievements,…
achievements
… in order to ensure the
contributors sustained, high
contributors’ sustained, high
level motivation in the long
term.
31

32. Following the closing of the successful development, give the team members
g g p ,g
the opportunity to refresh themselves after the intense work and allow time to
get filled up with energy to take new challenges.
32