Welcome to The Project Management Blueprint
Hopefully, you’ve found this blog because you’re a project manager and you would like to pick up advice, best practices, inside tips, and general knowledge on how better to manage your next project. Or maybe you’re new to project management altogether. Or perhaps you have some experience, but you’re struggling with your current project. Or, maybe, like me, you’re an old hand at this profession, but are constantly trying to improve, to learn, and to master the art and science of running successful science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) projects. If any of these things are true, you’ve come to the right place.
Who Am I and What is the Blueprint?
My name is Mark Warner. I’m a professionally-licensed engineer and a certified project management professional. I’ve been in the engineering world for nearly forty years. For much of that time, I’ve been a manager of projects. I’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. I’ve made painful mistakes and I’ve celebrated amazing successes. And through it all, I’ve slowly but surely come to the understanding that there is an underlying system to managing engineering projects. This is true whether those projects are simple or complex. There is a tried-and-true basic framework for successfully planning and executing any engineering project.
I call this systematic framework the Project Management Blueprint.
None of what I’ve assembled herein to the Blueprint is actually new or cutting edge. In fact, the majority of the system has been known by professionals for decades. The problem is that the information is hard to find and/or often hidden from the view from newcomers. Further, it’s often confused by acronyms and jargon and (seemingly) conflicting advice on how to organize and run a project.
Worse, most of the books and information available today on the topic of project management have been written by academics who haven’t ever truly been out in the real world, slogging through the trenches of day-to-day project management. They write about project management without actually having experienced firsthand what does and doesn’t actually work.
Those few authors that do have actual hands-on experience often don’t present their knowledge or processes in a step-by-step manner; instead, they talk about project management as a discrete set of individual topics and disparate issues that don’t necessarily tie together. The PM Blueprint addresses these concerns; I’ve seen firsthand what works and what doesn’t. I’ve worked on dozens of engineering projects, ranging from simple and low-cost, to highly complex, expensive, and long-duration in nature. And I understand how all of the various issues and knowledge areas tie together into a cohesive whole.
The Bottom Line:
I’m here to help and offer advice. I will never claim to know it all. I’m always learning and searching for ways to improve, and I will pass along everything I do know about project management to you. In return, I hope for the same openness and willingness to learn. Project Management is not rocket science (I know because I’ve worked on actual rocket systems). It is, however, a discipline, with definitive do’s and don’ts. It does take work to get right. And it isn’t always easy; in fact, it can be frustrating at times.
But it’s worth it. Project Management is an often unsung and unglamorous profession, but it’s vitally important. It’s also deeply satisfying when done right. It can fill your professional career and life with gratifying accomplishments of project successes. There is no better feeling than to bring a new engineering system to life--on time, on budget, and within all of its required technical specifications. The PM Blueprint is intended to do just that.
If you keep an open mind, study, ask questions and keep your eye on the ball, you too can succeed in this rewarding and stimulating field. Project Management isn’t for everyone, but I sincerely hope it is for you.
Cheers as always!
