Practical Project Management

Document templates - the project manager's 'Tools of the Trade.'
"What can we do without them?" Some ask. Others ask "What do we do with them?"
Well the answer maybe the project management template suite from Method123. 

Project management templates for Project Managers including plans, processes, forms and free tools.

A comprehensive collection of templates comprising:
1 MSProject template
10 excel based registers
1 excel based project plan
42 MSword based process documents and forms (11 forms + 1 checklist + 30 process documents).

The project management templates are standardised and formatted giving them the same look and feel. this gives consistency in presentation and makes the documents easier to use.
Although each document has the (c)Method123 mark, the guys over at method123 assure me that the documents can be modified without compromising their copyright. This modification will be necessary to replace the Method123 logos.
Documentation control is included along with section for revision history.

Each MS Word .doc has a 'template guide' giving the 'what', 'when' and the 'how' for the document.
In each section of the document there is a comprehensive description of the section's content and useful hints on completing the document.

MS Excel based documents are registers and are self-explanatory, with additional 'comments' describing the information to be included in each column of the form.

the MSProject generic plan is clean and uncluttered and logically structured with the summary tasks of initiation, planning, execution, closure. The individual tasks can be renamed with different durations to fit your project and only the execution phase would require significant change to describe your project

The MS Xcel based project plan is structured with same task hierarchy as the MSProject plan and includes budgetary/expenditure information.

In any one project, all the project management templates will not be used. Also with centralised computerised systems and tools in common use, maybe the expense register, procurement register and others will not be used at all.

Armed with this project management template suite, any project manager could enter into a new organisation and hit the ground running.

The big 'however' is the price.
You can surf the Net and find a multitude of forms, templates, guides which although not as stylish as the suite from Method 123, fulfills the same function. And are mainly free to download, including the complete set of recommended documents used in the PRINCE2 project management methodology.
Saying that, if you don't have the time, patience or inclination to make up a standardised set of templates complete with guidelines on how to fill them in, then paying $297 dollars for a zipped set of fancy document templates may be the way to go.

A sample Method123 template can be downloaded from our downloads page

You can buy the project management template suite here (affiliate link)

Method123 Project Management Template Suite achieves

 3 bananas out of a possible 5.

Jeb Riordan © 2005. All rights reserved.

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