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39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Basic to Intermediate Textbook on IT Project Management., August 1, 2003
As one can guess from the price, this book is geared to be used as a text book in a University setting. But almost anyone will find this book extremely useful because the book occupies a unique niche in the market on Project Management books. There are several project management books out in the market that mostly fall into the following categories - General Project Management, Advanced Project Management, PMP Exam Preparation, and PM Software books. The problem I have had with these books is that there are very few that address IT Project Management and even fewer that use Case Studies throughout. I am in IT Project Management and absolutely require Case Studies to learn any subject thoroughly. Especially a practical subject like Project Management. This book is perfect for an IT Project Manager because it - covers basic project principles, incorporates the IT view on every topic, has plenty of exercises to prepare for a PM exam (like the PMP or CompTIA's ITProject+), has a very decent section on using Microsoft Project 2000, a 120 day trial version of MS Project 2000 software in case you don't have it, plenty of mini case studies, a real-world running case study of the Northwest Airlines' ResNet project, and an excellent reference list at the end of each chapter. It is clear that the book was aimed at being the perfect reference for any IT Project Manager. The only downside of this book is that it is very light on all the topics and does not address any advanced topics. But that would have doubled the number of pages in the book and potential been a turn-off to anyone new to the subject. It might not have appealed to an Intermediate level Project Manager either. So I don't feel that this is such a big downside and is actually a positive. After obtaining my PMP, I came across this book when I was given the opportunity to teach Project Management Part-Time on a need basis at the Austin Community College. They use this book as the required text book for their comprehensive IT Project Management class aimed at those new to the field or those looking to gain a deeper knowledge of IT Project Management. I am glad I received a free copy of this book as I would have normally passed it up as too basic a book (since I already have my PMP). But I now realize that I will benefit tremendously by doing all the exercises in the book and strengthen/deepen my understanding of several Project Management concepts. So my immediate future is going to involve devouring this book. I hope you too benefit from this book and enjoy using it for any one of the many purposes!
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46 of 49 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect for the right audience, June 30, 2001
This book is a truly valuable resource if you meet all of the following criteria: (1) you are either a Project Management Professional (PMP), which is a certification bestowed by the Project Management Institute to individuals who meet rigorous screening qualifications for education and experience and successfully pass a comprehensive examination based on the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), or are seeking the PMP certification, and (2) you or your organization primarily uses Microsoft Project.For those PMPs and PMP candidates who use other tools this book will still be valuable, but not to the degree it is for the first group. The book's key strengths are: it completely adheres to the PMBOK, takes a teaching approach, and starts with a case study that is used and expanded as each of the nine PMBOK process areas are introduced and explained. This is a powerful approach to teaching because the PMBOK process areas are introduced in sequence and the exercises at the end of each chapter reinforces the material presented in that chapter. For Microsoft Project users this book also teaches some advanced techniques with that package, and does so in a manner that is wholly consistent with the PMBOK. Moreover, it takes into account the unique challenges imposed by IS projects. As an added bonus the accompanying CD ROM comes with a copy of Microsoft Project 2000 that is fully functional for a 120-day trial period (Appendix A also is a quick guide to this software). Weaknesses: Many IS shops have development methodologies, such as the Rational Unified Process, in place. Although most methodologies, including the Rational Unified Process, can be aligned to the PMBOK this book does not address how to do this in any detail. Another issue is IS in most of the larger enterprises, especially those with mature project management practices in place, use ABT Project Workbench, which is an enterprise-strength project management tool. This diminishes the value of this book to readers who are used to the more sophisticated features of tools designed for the enterprise. This book is an exceptionally well written and designed tool for teaching the PMBOK within the context of IS projects. If you fall into the primary audience I described above this is a "must-have" book.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good book in general with a few buts, March 13, 2004
By A Customer
I agree with most of the reviews in general. I have been using this book as a textbook for a class on Project Management. I enjoy reading the chapters and it gives you a good overview of Project Management and the terms used in it but, that is my issue, it's an overview. I like reading the case studies but frankly I think the assignments at the end of each chapter have many that ask for more detail then the overview content of the book gives. I find this to be an issue with many textbooks. They write the book concisely to cover a whole topic in one textbook hitting the highlights, but write the assignments to be done as if you had been studying the subject in depth.
Case in point: Chapter 11 Exercise 5 on page 357. Draft an RFP (Request for Proposal) for purchasing laptops for all students, faculty and staff at your college or university. use the outline provided in Figure 11-4. List all the assumptions you made in preparing the RFP.
Sounds like a great assignment, with the exception that an RFP is a very detailed document. In the outline it is also suppose to include a Statement of Work ( a document that should be prepared before an RFP) and schedule information. To do this assignment you basically have to dream up an entire project and do previous prep work in order to write an RFP. Also, this outline is the only example of an RFP in the whole book. There is no example of a completed RFP, after all, this is an "overview" book. I have been researching on the net for sample RFP documents. I have yet to find one that even remotely looks like this outline or follows the criteria in this book.
I spend hours and hours every week just doing the prep work to get my head around this random assignments.
This book would have been better had it just made the assignments a case study that built from Chapter 1 on, instead of bits and pieces of this kind of project or that. I think I read in the main review that the book uses NWA as a case study to teach, that doesnt even happen till like Chapter 12 or 13. Did this person really read this book??
I don't mind being taught principles of Project Management but don't just hand me terms and principles and sketchy outline examples and expect me to give you the full blown details of a project that I have to make up mostly out of my own head and hope it's right. Projects are team efforts and some of these things asked for would be the product of a whole team's input not just one person yet in assignments it is just the student doing it all as if they were the whole freaking team. This kind of thing annoys me to no end in textbooks.
I could give more examples but I am already a partially dissenting voice among reviewers. I guess I could sum it up as a good book to have and read but it is a LOUSY TEXTBOOK.
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