Budget Management | The PM Journal

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EVM, KPIs for evaluation of staff, projects and company

In three of the startups I have worked, one of my responsabilities was to define performance KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for the employees. As an experiment, I tried to see in what degree the Earned Value Management (SPI and CPI) parameters can be used to evaluate the performance of the employees and the projects. I started with a pilot project where I have collected a series of informations for each team/resources/feature. Continue Reading →

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Risk Management

-What is this?

-It’s a new Risk, Andrew.

-We have only one month until deadline and do you tell me there is a new Risk?

-Andrew, a risk does not mean it is already happened. In addition, I cannot foresee all the risks of a project from the beginning. Some risks appear or disappear depending on the evolution of the project. What do you want me to do? To tell you that the project has no risks?

-We need to talk. There are a lot of grumpy people complaining you don’t have the project under control. Continue Reading →

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Agile Earned Value Management

Earned Value Management (EVM), described in PMBoK by PMI, is a technique for measuring project performance and progress in an objective manner. Although EVM involves three areas of knowledge in project management: scope, schedule and cost, when we talk about EVM, in general, it is about budget management. It is well known that EVM offers one of the most efficient method of control and forecasting during the project. Because of its complexity, EVM technique is usually used on large projects, managed “by the book”, in traditional way as in PMBoK. The question is: Can Agile framework offer the same methods and techniques of control and predictability as EVM from traditional project management? Continue Reading →

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Epilogue of a Startup

After our fearless Start-up has failed in the most lamentable manner, I wondered: What went wrong and what could I change in the sequence of events to avoid the failure? Bankruptcy has occurred so suddenly that many employees have not recovered from the shock even after months. Everyone has been felt cheated… the big shock was when management declared the reason of bankruptcy: “[suddenly] we realized the money were gone…” Continue Reading →

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Ups, We Are Fired!

9:00 AM. The most “pleasant” way of starting a new day of work is by receiving the following shocking email: “The shareholders of this company decided 109 employees will be disposed (meaning almost all employees will be fired). The board of directors will try to find solutions and provide alternatives for his employees“. And that’s all folks, the story of our parent company ends here. Continue Reading →

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A Fatidic Day

Today, I receive an email from shareholders. They express worries about the high costs of the F-Startup. With my natural disengagement, rapidly I reply: “Don’t worry, I know a method to reduce the costs… there is a tax deduction for software companies, if we match several conditions…” Continue Reading →