Project Management Advice for Start-Ups or Small Businesses (aka the basics for getting started)

Here is a quick outline of the advice I would give to start-ups intimidated by all out project management but know they need something.

1. Define your projects- Start with a simple list that includes what you are delivering, when you want to deliver it by and who is responsible for it.

2. Understand tasks- Once you have a solid list of projects start thinking about what high level tasks are required to complete the projects. Identify who is responsible for each task. Also note which tasks have to happen before another or tasks that can occur simultaneously.

3. Analyze your staff- Look for names that show up a lot on your lists or areas where you don't have a name assigned.

4. Analyze your dates- Look for periods of time where there is a lot going on for everyone or just one person.

5. Check your budget- Make sure the above analysis matches your budget or what you are charging for the project.

The steps above should really give you a good idea of where you stand with your projects and how you balance them. It should also help you discover where and what your risks are. Being aware of your risks is very important and the first step in preventing them from becoming problems.

To improve your application of project management, there are two additional things I recommend doing.

6. Analyze how your team works- Observe how your team gets stuff done. You have a current process, no matter how informal it is. Watch for how things go wrong and right. Listen to what people directly and indirectly say about the process.

7. Learn about project management software and practice- At least read a bit about it and think about how it could help you. And start using it when you find that you need it and are ready to adopt it in your process.

There is a ton of information out there about project management as a discipline. However, I find that bringing it down to these simple steps not only helps someone unfamiliar to it, but also helps to prevent practitioners like me from turning it into a mindless bureaucracy.