Painless Project Management: A Step-by-Step Guide for Planning, Executing, and Managing Projects [Paperback]

Pamela McGhee (Author), Peter McAliney (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0470117214 | ISBN-13: 978-0470117217 | Publication Date: July 9, 2007 | Edition: 1

A detailed guide to successful, efficient project management, written by two pros with a combined 55 years "in the trenches!"

Project management is a vital and growing component of many organizations and can literally make or break a company. In this step-by-step guide, two project management consultants present a comprehensive guide to effective project management, complete with real stories and case studies from actual project managers. This straightforward guide cuts through the technical jargon to present an easy-to-follow, easy-to-learn approach to executing any project from beginning to end. Project managers, as well as those who want to learn more about project management, will find this guide to be an indispensable resource for all their projects.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

A simple system for managing even the most complex projects

Project management can be a real pain, but doing it right can mean the difference between a business that soars and one that sinks. Painless Project Management makes it simple by cutting through the jargon, formulas, and needless complexity with an easy, step-based approach for managing virtually any project, big or small, from beginning to end.

Veteran project managers McGhee and McAliney present a comprehensive guide to effective project management, complete with real stories and case studies from actual project managers. The authors reveal how the complexity of project management is not in the process itself, but in the people and organizational relationships that must also be managed. They boil down the basics of project management so you can design a simple, effective plan for any project and follow it through to a successful completion.

Once you do that, they show you how to handle the people and issues that make project management such a challenge, including:

• Communicating project plans to colleagues and top management

• Delegating, organizing, and coordinating duties

• Tracking and reporting on project status

• Managing resources, budgets, and timelines

• Changing tacks and goals on the fly

• Dealing with project disruptions

Includes downloadable forms at www.painlessprojectmanagement.info

About the Author

Pamela McGhee, PMP, President and owner of McGhee Enterprises, a project management and IT consulting firm, has consulted with thousands of project managers at Fortune 500 companies. She is a long-standing faculty member at the American Management Association, where she conducts project management and IT seminars. Ms. McGhee is also an adjunct instructor at Baruch College in New York, where she teaches basic and advanced project management.

Peter McAliney, PMP, CMC, is President of Chenery and Company, Inc., which specializes in strategy implementation and project management. He has worked with such corporations as Coca-Cola and GM, as well as with several academic institutions. He is currently developing online project management education programs and assists organizations with cross-cultural communications challenges on virtual team projects.

Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (July 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470117214
• ISBN-13: 978-0470117217
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,394,651 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical Guide to Project Management, August 23, 2007

By 

A. R. Wasson (Pittsburgh, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Painless Project Management: A Step-by-Step Guide for Planning, Executing, and Managing Projects (Paperback)

This new text by McGhee and McAliney is very readable and straightforward. It is a great resource to introduce practically-oriented project management into an organization, especially one that is adverse to complex textbooks. Interspersed within the text are very good and illuminating case studies that reinforce key teaching points within the text. Clearly, this text is an excellent resource for the inexperienced project manager and a good refresher for the experienced project manager.

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Product Management Book, August 6, 2007

By 

G. Schwartz (NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Painless Project Management: A Step-by-Step Guide for Planning, Executing, and Managing Projects (Paperback)

As a management consultant, McGhee and McAliney's presentation of project management makes sense - very simple, straight forward and, most important, jargon free. This can be the best friend for front line and mid level managers who have been tasked by their organizations to manage a project - or multiple projects - and need a place to start. Painless Project Management is the playbook they can use to be successful.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Successful Project Management, October 24, 2007

By 

Camille Rinato - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Painless Project Management: A Step-by-Step Guide for Planning, Executing, and Managing Projects (Paperback)

This excellent book, written by experienced professionals, presents trusted and proven project management techniques, real-life cases, and astute risk management insight. It instills confidence, brings clarity, direction, and momentum to your mission, and ultimately guides the project manager to deliver successfully to satisfied clients. It includes a bonus set of valuable tool templates.