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A Survival Guide for Project Managers [Hardcover]

James Taylor (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)


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Paperback $19.95  

Book Description

January 26, 1998
More and more companies (even those that aren't project driven) are turning to project management to take advantage of the highly disciplined process that focuses on achieving results on time, on schedule, and on target.

"A Survival Guide For Project Managers" is a practical, hands-on guide that gives project managers all the skills they need to move a project through its complete life cycle, including how to:
-- develop the behavioral and business skills required of a project manager
-- resolve conflicts and improve negotiation capabilities
-- understand and apply the various technical tools of project management
-- improve speaking and writing skills
-- establish project teams, and more



Editorial Reviews

Review

"Praise for the first edition of A Survival Guide for Project Managers:

""Jim Taylor has provided the working project manager with an invaluable tool kit for effectiveness in challenging work environments."" -- Thomas S. Myerchin, National Director of Education Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service

""This book provides a refreshingly lively and personal presentation of what could be a dull topic. It provides an excellent presentation of the technical aspects of project management, and, more important it provides an equally excellent and much needed description of the human qualities required in management."" -- George W. Menzer, Ph.D., Vice President - Training Systems,

Frontier Applied Sciences"



“The book is written in clear and concise language that moves the eye across the page, even when the subject matter is very technical and replete with mathematical equations. Mr. Taylor knows his subject matter and knows how to make it flow naturally….Emphasizing that many of the problems of any project are ‘human problems’ created by people and solvable by people, Mr. Taylor does a masterful job of making his point.”

-Primavera Magazine



“… written in clear and concise language that moves the eye across the page, even when the subject matter is technical."

-Primavera Magazine

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Book Description

"While the technical side of project management is important, it's often ""people problems"" that derail even the most meticulously planned of projects. A Survival Guide for Project Managers gives you a complete understanding of what it takes to successfully finish a project, giving you not only valuable tools like Work Breakdown Schedule, Gantt Charts, and Network Analysis, but also tools to communicate, negotiate, listen, and lead.

This practical, user-friendly guide walks you through the entire project life cycle, and shows you how to:

* Develop the managerial and business skills required of a project manager.

* Resolve conflicts and improve negotiation capabilities.

* Understand and apply the technical tools of project management.

* Establish project teams, and foster collaboration among team members, and more.

Now in its second edition, the book has been revised to reflect the latest version of the PMBOK® Guide, and includes new material on topics including project risk, cost-schedule index, the project management office, and emotional intelligence as it applies to project management. Packed with useful forms, charts, and other tools, this is the ultimate resource for project managers."

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

  • Reading level: Ages 17 and up
  • Hardcover: 256 pages
  • Publisher: AMACOM (January 26, 1998)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0814403379
  • ISBN-13: 978-0814403372
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #593,794 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Takes PMs to the next step in their professional development, April 4, 2001
This review is from: A Survival Guide for Project Managers (Hardcover)
When I am asked to recommend a good book on project management I always recommend Visualizing Project Management by Forsberg, Cotterman and Mooz. That book teaches project management the right way, in my opinion, by laying a solid foundation. However, at some point you will master the material through application and experience, and you'll want to go to the next level. That is where this excellent book will take you.

As you mature as a project manager you eventually discover that the technical aspects are a great foundation, but the 'soft skills' are essential to success. The book starts with these. The author provides some excellent material on how to make effective oral and written presentations, negotiation skills and leadership.

Don't get the impression that this book does not cover technical material. It does, and it goes pretty deep into some advanced techniques. For example, the author provides a very comprehensive discussion of work breakdown structures (WBS) and how to develop them. In my opinion the biggest failure of projects is the fact that a WBS is never developed before the estimating and scheduling is performed. I really liked the network analysis chapter. It presented in clear prose how to risk-adjust a critical path, which is something I learned over a decade ago, but am met with blank stares when I mention this to most project manager. Indeed, most project managers don't know what a critical path is (they use the term often enough, they just don't know what it means), much less how to perform a critical path analysis. This book will provide this information and a few easy-to-learn techniques as well. I thought that the chapter on earned value was adequate. I was glad to see it included in the book and give the author credit for his comprehensive treatment, but I almost fell asleep here. I recommend that serious project managers augment the earned value knowledge in this book with Earned Value Project Management, 2nd Edition by Quentin Fleming and Joel Koppleman. That book was written by authors who developed the 32 earned value criteria for the Project Management Body of Knowledge (2000 version).

The part of the book that covers managing a project is filled with great advice. I thought the chapter on project selection was particularly valuable because it is objective and based on financial formulae that should be applied to these kinds of decisions. The sample reports are also good templates that should be in every project manager's tool kit.

Overall, this book will give a seasoned project manager much sound advice and provide him or her with an array of advanced techniques. It is truly a project manager's survival guide earning it a solid five stars and a place on the list of the handful of books that I always recommend.

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction to project management., February 13, 2000
This review is from: A Survival Guide for Project Managers (Hardcover)
This book is exactly what I was looking for. I took a Project Management Course back in College, but did not remember much of it. I needed a book that would give the basics of this subject, without being too involved in particular software.

This book does exactly that, and also lists some of the most frequent pitfalls for projects, with half the book emphasizing the human side of Project Management.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Read it and SURVIVE!, April 11, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: A Survival Guide for Project Managers (Hardcover)
An excellent "survey" book on project management. It will be especially useful to new-comers to project management, both individuals and companies. Unlike other books, it shows how to adapt to the realities around you, rather than jumping a rigid "analytical" approach. His emphasis on the human element is refreshing.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
Project management is a specialized approach to managing business, yet most project managers have never had any training, other than on-the-job training, about the art and science of project management. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
facilitative listener, variance worksheet, wise project manager, core project team, dummy activity, murder board, earned value analysis, successful project manager, many project managers, project management plan, project charter, conceptual phase, zero slack, dummy activities, behavioral commitments, functional managers, critical listener, work package, schedule variances, kickoff meeting, schedule length
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Davidson Frame, San Francisco, Englewood Cliffs, John Wiley, Department of Defense, Managerial Approach, Harold Kerzner, Human Centrifuge Trainer Contract, Prentice Hall, Systems Approach, Van Nostrand Reinhold, Ann Arbor, Deborah Dumaine, Free Press, Major Project Subsystem, Microsoft Project
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