In 2018, when the Flemish Waterways Authority (FWA) devised a project for a refuse-catching barrier on the Scheldt, a tidal river in Belgium’s Flanders region, the primary objective was clear: to solve a severe environmental and shipping hazard on the heavily navigated river.
In 2017, I took a year-long career break — it gave me the time and breathing space to reflect on my career and skills and figure out what I really wanted to do next.
It is difficult to envisage how a modern project would be managed without at some point creating a chart of tasks to be done in delivering the project’s declared benefits.
Relationships are essential in delivering projects, but what do you do when you’re starting a new role in an unfamiliar organisation where you know no one? Where do you start, particularly when COVID-19 restricts who you can meet face-to-face? Networks take time to build, and in this period of online meetings, there is limited opportunity to build your connections informally by bumping into people, as might happen in the office or on-site.
Eddie Obeng issues a warning that his ideas might terrify you and send you in search of a safe room.
We love our project customers sitting on the other side of the table, video conference call or phone, right? And they could never do anything to make us feel otherwise, right? Wrong! It's ok to say they drive you crazy from time to time - maybe even all the time.
To be successful in project design and delivery, we need to think about how we build a capability I call ‘Organisational Readiness’.
Vicki Griffiths is a Chartered Project Professional, and senior project manager at Fugro, a geo-data specialist.
As the economic recovery begins, there’s hope infrastructure projects will provide a major boost.
Project managers have a lot to think about over the coming decade.