Part 5: Advancing Your Practice of Project Management

There is always a new way to improve our project management ability. At a personal level, we can learn to use the technology that's been designed to apply the techniques presented in Chapters 3 to 13, and we can pursue the Project Management Professional certification. Organizations can improve their project management ability by creating consistency in their approach to selecting and managing projects.

Part 5 contains six chapters that each address a different opportunity for individuals and organizations to extend and improve their practice of project management.

Chapters 14 and 15, on enterprise project management (EPM) and project portfolio management (PPM), highlight the most current improvements that organizations are making in the way they select and manage projects. EPM and PPM magnify the benefits of good project management on individual projects by creating standards that align all projects and all project resources. Chapters 16 and 17, on requirements engineering and Lean project management, expand the suite of techniques available to manage projects successfully.

Passing the Project Management Institute's Project Management Professional exam is a milestone in a project manager's career. Chapter 18 provides advice on how to prepare for this challenging exam.

Microsoft Project is the most commonly used software application specifically designed for planning and managing projects. Entire books and training courses are available to learn about this tool. Combined with the techniques in Parts 3 and 4 and downloadable tutorials, the advice in Chapter 19 will help you get a strong start in using Microsoft Project.