Green Project Management Tips

Green Project Management Tips of the DayTips / Project Management Tips & TechniquesDate: May 01, 2008 - 08:23 AM
Green Project Management Tip of the day
#1by Steve BlaisConsider staggering work hours for your project team wherever possible so that they are not commuting during rush hours.Green Project Management Tip of the day
#2by Steve BlaisConsider adding “environmental impact” as an element in your project charters (adapted from an idea by Tom Mochal, PMP).Green Project Management Tip of the day
#3by Steve BlaisAdd a section on “environmental concerns” to your RFPs to potential vendors and subcontractors. While the responses might not be the deciding factor in awarding the contract, what each bidder has to say about their concern for the environment might be a good indication of how they will perform on your contract, and the responses might give you a few good ideas of things you can do. Green Project Management Tip of the day
#4by Steve BlaisMake an effort to estimate projects and execute them so that everyone on the team works a 40-hour week. Reduce overtime and reduce energy consumption.Green Project Management Tip of the day
#5by Steve BlaisDuring project close include a specific analysis of the equipment and supplies that are left over from the project to determine if it can be reused or donated rather than trashedGreen Project Management Tip of the day
#6by Steve BlaisConsider the possibility of letting the project team work from home one day a week on a rotating basis. If that works and there is no negative impact on communication and progress, consider increasing the amount of telecommuting on the team, which will save energy. Green Project Management Tip of the day
#7by Steve BlaisTry to reduce the number of written authorizations and approvals to get things done. Each one is a potential bottleneck and energy waster.Green Project Management Tip of the day
#8by Steve BlaisEvaluate all documentation tasks (especially those needing paper) by weighing the cost of creating the documentation and the loss of productive project work with the value that the documentation provides. (from an idea by Ron Jeffries)Green Project Management Tip of the day
#9by Steve BlaisWhen determining the cost of project documentation, estimate not only the cost of creating the documentation in the first place, but also the continuing cost of keeping the documentation updated and synchronized with all the other project documentation. The energy cost of documentation maintenance increases with every new document created. (from an idea by Brad Appleton)Green Project Management Tip of the day
#10by Steve BlaisInclude in all project requirements templates or formats an “environmental impact” along with “business impact” and “technical impact” to encourage thinking about ancillary project impacts. Green Project Management Tip of the day
#11by Steve BlaisGet rid of old reports, papers, manuals, historical documents, etc. They really aren’t going to be used again. Unless there is a regulation requiring document retention put a short fuse on the lifetime of your project documents. If we all got rid of documents and manuals we keep around “just in case” (after all, the day after we throw it away someone will want it), we’d probably create enough space for our whole project team to be co-located, and that would save more in reduced communication energy. (from an idea by Dr. Steven Covey) Green Project Management Tip of the day
#12by Andrea Krasnoff & Tom Mochal When creating your Project Charter identify all deliverables, including deliverables related to the environment and/or your organization’s environmental policy. Green Project Management Tip of the day
#13by Andrea Krasnoff & Tom Mochal Conduct project audits to confirm a consistent use of your organization’s GreenPM (green project management) processes. Green Project Management Tip of the day
#14by Andrea Krasnoff & Tom Mochal Many companies are currently certified within the ISO14000 set of standards. A component of this is an Environment Management System, a holistic approach for a company to achieve its environmental policy. Verify that the overall application of GreenPM (green project management) supports your organization’s Environment Management System.Green Project Management Tip of the day
#15by Andrea Krasnoff & Tom Mochal Organizations have more potential projects than they can work on in any given year. The potential projects should be prioritized and authorized based on business value as well as alignment to business goals and strategies. You should be sure that environmental considerations are part of the goals and strategies so that the selected projects are aligned to your environmental policiesGreen Project Management Tip of the day
#16by Andrea Krasnoff & Tom Mochal Business Cases are written for proposing projects for the upcoming year and used as input for prioritizing the work that gets authorized. As a part of your Portfolio Management process, incorporate a section rferent decisions regarding prioritizing and approving proposed projects could be made for a given year, if environmental factors are considered.Green Project Management Tip of the day
#17by Andrea Krasnoff & Tom Mochal Add a section on Environmental Impact to your Issues Form. Consider the environmental impacts when identifying alternatives and recommending a resolution to an issue. For example, let’s say you encounter a problem and identify two potential resolutions – one is to have the team work all night, and the second is to delay the project one day. The sponsor might initially opt for working all night. However, if the sponsor understood the extra electricity, heating and other natural resources required to keep the facility open for the night, he might make a different decision.Green Project Management Tip of the day
#18by Andrea Krasnoff & Tom Mochal With “greenthink”, you may evaluate your risks and assumptions differently. Something that was an assumption previously may now be considered a risk if we consider environmental factors that had never been applied. For example, you may identify a schedule risk if your project team cannot work overtime in the event that the schedule falls behind. Previously, overtime may have been a viable option. Now, your Sponsor may determine that the project team should not work overtime because aligning with the environmental policy prohibits the use of additional natural resources.
© 2008 allPM.com
About the Authors
Steve Blais is a consultant and educator living in Sarasota and Key West Fl. He has worked for 40 years in the field of computing. He is currently working with companies to create and improve their business analyst processes. He is the lead author of the IIL Business Analysis series of courses, and the forthcoming book, "The Beginning and End of Software Engineering: a guide for the Business Analyst.
Tom Mochal, PMP is President of TenStep, Inc., (www.TenStep.com) a company focused on methodology development, training and consulting. Mochal is an expert instructor and consultant on project management, project management offices, development lifecycle, portfolio management, application support, people management and other related areas. He was awarded 2005 Distinguished Contribution Award from the Project Management Institute (PMI). He is author of numerous books and has over 600 columns published on project management, people management, organizational process management and the development life-cycle. Prior work experience includes Geac Computers, The Coca-Cola Company, CapGemini and Eastman Kodak.
Andrea Krasnoff, PMP is Director of TenStep Consulting Services. Andrea has more than 17 years experience in project management, program management, and PMOs. She has managed and delivered projects of various sizes, including rescuing and successfully delivering troubled projects for several clients. She has been responsible for development groups and consistently delivered business-related systems to meet strategic business needs. Prior work experience includes Andersen Consulting, CAP Gemini, The Coca-Cola Company, and Network Communications Inc.