Review By: Ann E. Drinkwater
12/07/2011The material in Tom Kendrick’s 101 Project Management Problems is very basic and geared towards someone just starting out. It is also a good refresher for someone well versed in project management practices. In the trenches of day-to-day management of projects and people, it can be easy to lose sight of some of the critical success factors Kendrick discusses.

The book covers many areas (101 to be exact), but I found the following topics most useful and pertinent reminders, regardless of practice area or skill level:

• Managing people and projects is about relationships. This really relates to all facets of business. In order to succeed in business, you must develop sincere relationships. Dining with others is a good way to build rapport and relationships. This should be something that is easy enough to do and can have a great impact.
• With many of us operating in global, virtual environments, we are aware of time zones. It is also important to be aware of International Date Line differences, which is more than just an hour difference here and there.
• Use your project retrospectives (aka post mortems) not only to review the metrics on the project, but also to allow your teams to put the not-so-pleasant memories and situations behind them. Allowing your teams to air their thoughts can go a long way towards shedding baggage.
• Regardless of the methodology used (agile or waterfall), set up the necessary review points and gain approval at each stage in the project. We are accustomed to this with agile, but it can and should be done in waterfall projects too.

Another thing I liked was that the chapters are very short and concise. Completing a chapter gave me an immediate sense of satisfaction. This structure provided quick takeaways.

Some of the ideas and statements presented are not the most practical or reasonable, but overall I think this material is a good reference for project managers and the general management community.