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The Project Management Techniques Used by Large Corporations Can Help Home-Based Entrepreneurs

Major corporations place great emphasis on continual training of their leadership resources in the principles of project management. Large successful corporations recognize that complex business processes require not just time management and basic business skills, but a broad skill set that includes a balance of priority setting, resource identification, and schedule discipline.

A successful project manager is able to set priorities, identify and assign the right resources to the job, and develop a disciplined schedule to drive forward and measure progress. You can benefit from the following project management principles of large corporations by applying them to your own home-based business.

Priority Setting
Strong project managers constantly weigh the important from the merely urgent in setting the priorities for getting things done.
Paul LoNigro, Principal Architect for his own architectural firm in Southern California, says, “’Important,’ is what I need to get done. ‘Urgent,’ is what other people think I need to get done. It is critical to understand the difference between important and urgent. Urgency is dependent upon one’s point of view, and it typically comes from a lack of understanding of the issue — if it’s urgent, someone didn’t plan it.” It’s clear that the potential implications of any issue demand careful consideration before responding.
Priority setting can be as basic as making a list of the important issues that need to be addressed and determining how much each issue impacts your home-based business. Is it more important to get the package to your long-term client on time, or to spend that time in a meeting with a potentially new client? You must decide.

Bob is a financial analyst for an engineering/construction company, and he deals with competing priorities almost hourly. “Maintaining your focus on my top priorities and the required schedule dates allows me to complete the important tasks and respond to those important, urgent tasks that pop up all the time.”

Resource Identification
Once the important priorities are set, it’s necessary to get resources identified and assigned to the tasks that need attention. Resources can be those things that help you to accomplish your tasks: your own time; your business staff; the FedEx® guy; or even your answering machine. The right resources assigned to the job are as critical as all other aspects of your home-based business. The successful project manager identifies and assigns resources early on, anticipating the priorities that are expected. You can’t hire and train a person on the day that you need him or her. You can’t plan on negotiating and setting up a critical supplier agreement in one day, either.

Schedule Discipline
After identifying and assigning resources to the job, it’s essential to develop a disciplined schedule to drive forward and measure progress. The following illustrates this project management principle at work in two different businesses.
Brenda manages major marketing projects for a healthcare organization, and she relies on schedule discipline to keep her projects on track. “I have multiple vendors, and each of them has scheduled deliverables that are critical to subsequent tasks and priorities. If one of them falls behind schedule, that will ripple throughout my projects.” She tracks each of her vendor’s schedule progress daily and can identify early on when there is a potential problem. This allows her to work directly with the vendor to determine options for getting back on track. “I look at my entire project and work backwards to create my schedules. When I know my end date, I can build in some extra time in my schedule before I negotiate with my vendors. I know they build in extra time as well, so this discipline works well for me,” says Brenda.

Stacy runs a small salon and knows that it’s critical to maintain schedule discipline. “Some new clients call me at the last minute, but it’s more important for the health of my business to accommodate my long term relationships and honor those excellent clients that understand the need to make and stick to appointments.” Making and communicating her appointment policies at the early stages of her business (such as cancellation fees) were actually well received. “I was pleasantly surprised,” says Stacy, “but most of my clients are highly successful business women and appreciate the fact that when they arrive for their appointments, I can seat them immediately. That’s schedule discipline, and it’s good for my business.” HBM

Previously published in the April 2007 issue of HOME BUSINESS® Magazine, an international publication for the growing and dynamic home-based market. Available on newsstands, in bookstores and chain stores, and via subscriptions ($15.00 for 1 year, six issues). Visit www.homebusinessmag.com