I’m going to start adding steps in my hastily conceived project life cycle that I have missed. That should keep me busy. One major project management cycle step that I missed is: to save your baseline schedule. Project baselines are snapshots of your project schedule at a specific date. This is important because you want to see how your schedule changes over time and why it changes.
How to save a project baseline in Microsoft Project: http://www.epmcentral.com/msproject/baselinesave.php
How to use Microsoft Project Baseline Information: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/project-help/view-baseline-information-HP001119045.aspx
Baselines can be an incredible source of information. As a matter of fact, I think project baselines could the focal point for tracking changes in the project.
I suggest you save the baseline every time you update your schedule or a least weekly. This will give you a chance to graph progress over time.
Need help building a scheduling and tracking it? Email sterg@lamda-alpha.com.
Three books and how they relate to project management:
Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives the Economy, and Why It Matters for Global Capitalism: project managers need to know what motivates people and how our animal spirits shape our perceptions: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/069114592X?ie=UTF8&tag=businfolli-20
The Little Book of Behavioral Investing: How not to be your own worst enemy. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470686022?ie=UTF8&tag=businfolli-20 I think the title says it best: this book will help project managers take a more objective look at their decisions and ways to confront your animal spirits.
Create Your Own Economy: The Path to Prosperity in a Disordered World. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XULWOS?ie=UTF8&tag=businfolli-20 Yes, the title will mislead you. This book will give the project manager some insight into the patterns and behaviors of the people on your project.
