Project Management for Small Business - by Joseph Phillips (Paperback)

About the Book

For leaders struggling to make cumbersome project management methodologies work for small business, this step-by-step guide offers a straightforward and streamlined approach to getting more things done--and producing better results.

Book Synopsis

Project management can help companies become more efficient and profitable. But as a seasoned project management consultant, educator, and writer, author Joseph Phillips teaches that the how of successful project management looks different for every business. Grounded in years of his real-world experience, Project Management for Small Business introduces readers to the core principles and techniques of project management adapted and simplified to be most effective for smaller enterprises. With repeatable practices for planning, executing, and controlling projects in an environment where one team member may be wearing multiple hats, this practical how-to helps you avoid the potentially devastating effects of wasted time and materials. Among many other useful skills, you'll learn how to define project requirements and scope; create a project schedule based on resource availability; estimate and budget for project costs, identify and minimize project risks; manage workflow; communicate effectively; and control project change. Classic project management models often prove too cumbersome for smaller businesses with limited staff resources, tight budgets, and next to no time to devote to learning a complex new system. Project Management for Small Business skips the complicated theory and goes straight to the heart of what it really takes to make a project--and your business--a success.

From the Back Cover

You have an important project that if completed successfully (and on time!) will generate profit for your business and keep your company running smoothly. What you need are the benefits that come with proper project management methods to ensure that things get done efficiently and on schedule. But unlike a larger corporation, you don't have the resources, the people, or the time it takes to learn and institute a complex project management program.

Skipping the complicated theory and going straight to the heart of what it really takes to make a project a success, Project Management for Small Business gives you straightforward, repeatable practices for planning, executing, and controlling projects in smaller environments. Whether you're a manager, business owner, or just someone faced with completing a project, this easy-to-understand guide provides you with the simple project management techniques you need to:

Define the scope of your project and its requirements

Create a project schedule based on the availability of resources

Estimate, budget, and control costs

Identify and minimize risks associated with your project

Manage the workflow

Communicate effectively with others

Control project change

And more

Do you want to know five immediate ways to improve your projects? Are you curious what the six hidden costs are associated with most projects? What actions should you always take when closing out a project to ensure--beyond a doubt--that it's brought successfully to completion? This easy-to-understand book, grounded in real-world experience and simplifying the proven thinking behind project management philosophy, gives you bulleted lists, quickly instituted techniques, and down-to-earth systems you can use no matter what industry you're in or how many different hats you're wearing.

Smaller businesses need the core principles and powerful strategies of project management just as much as big companies. This book delivers all the streamlined, simple guidance you need to achieve project management success with flying colors.

JOSEPH PHILLIPS, PMP, Project+, is a project management consultant, instructor, and owner of Project Seminars, Inc. and Instructing.com. He is the author of several project management books, including PMP Project Management Professional Study Guide and IT Project Management: On Track from Start to Finish.

About the Author

JOSEPH PHILLIPS, PMP is a project management consultant, instructor, and owner of Project Seminars, Inc. and Instructing.com. He is the author of several project management books, including PMP: Project Management Professional Study Guide and IT Project Management: On Track from Start to Finish.