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In this Issue:

*allPM Co-publisher, Judy Umlas

*From the Co-publisher's Desk, Frank Saladis, PMP

*Project Management Events

*allPM October Poll Results

*Feature:Top Ten Practical Tips in MS Project 2000, by Eric Uyttewaal, PMP

*Column: Positive Leadership in Project Management: Ninth in a Series: The Future's So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades! , by Frank Saladis, PMP

*Column: Get the Frogs off the Log, by Dr. David Hillson PMP FAPM

*Column: Modern IT Project Management Communication Tools, by Kevin Wegryn, PMP

*Column: The Zen of Project Management: Process Orientation and Project Management, by George Pitagorsky, PMP

*Column: Go Configure!, by Frank Saladis, PMP

*Column: Delivery is the Key to Successful Projects, Part three in the PRINCE2 Series, by David Whelbourn

*Column: Applying the Balanced Scorecard In Project Management, by Herbert W. Zagarow, Ph.D

allPM Newsletter Co-publisher, Judy Umlas

Here in the United States (and I know I have to qualify this, since our members are from 90 different countries!) we are heading toward the widely celebrated Thanksgiving holiday. Most of us express our thankfulness at this time - especially if we are a little lazy about doing it at other times - sitting around a laden and festive dinner table. We usually give thanks for our families, our jobs, our health, our ability to envision a bright future.

I see allPM.com as a kind of "virtual Thanksgiving feast" at which you are our perpetual and valued "guests." What we are serving is the juicy and delicious information and resources we provide you with every day, on the virtual "table" known as allPM.com. And all of us involved in creating, maintaining and improving this web portal want to thank you for many things at this time. They include your continued interest in what we are doing or should be doing; your contributions such as entries to the Tip of the Month contest, articles, Forum discussions in which you provide valuable information to each other; your ideas for new columns; your enthusiasm when we contact you about an idea you have submitted and much, much more!

I personally am thankful for the opportunity to have all of you involved, engaged and excited about the global PM portal known as allPM.com. It is immensely gratifying to hear form you as individuals. I adore it when I get an email from a member or visitor telling me we did something really great, or even letting us know we fell short in some way. Either kind of comment lets me know you are PARTICIPATING, and by doing that you are giving us the opportunity to RESPOND! And that is my personal vision for allPM.com - that it not be just another website for which you are a statistic, but that you feel listened to, welcomed and valued by us. YOU are the experts out there - experts in your own needs and how allPM.com can be most helpful to you. I want you to have and continue to use my personal email address so you can communicate directly with me and tell me what is wanted and needed or appreciated. So here it is again: judy.umlas@allpm.com. I try to respond to each and every one of you that writes in, as does Co-Publisher Frank Saladis, whose address is frank.saladis@allpm.com .

Now for what you will see in this well-packed issue of allPM Today: Co-Publisher Frank Saladis' excellent article, "Go Configure!" on the November theme for our daily PM Tips, Configuration Management. PM Tips Editor Linda Kretz Zaval, PMP states in her general intro to these tips, "Maintaining data integrity is at the heart of this month's topic. Project Managers who use the checklists (which, by the way, were provided in weeks one and two of this month) will be able to determine whether processes are in place that support configuration management and if not, build those processes into their IT projects." If you missed any of these important tips, click on the Articles and Tips section of the allPM.com home page, and you will find them all there.

This month we have a calming and focusing article by George Pitagorsky, PMP in his series on "The Zen of Project Management", this one on "Process Orientation and Project Management." And we have a very practical article by one of our readers, ";Modern IT Project Management Communication Tools" by Kevin Wegryn, PMP. Dr. Risk (aka David Hillson, PMP) is back with another article in his Risk Briefing Notes series, this one called "Get the Frogs Off the Log!" - it's fun to read and also filled with important tips for making your Risk Management efforts pay off. Then we have an article on "The Balanced Scorecard in Project Management" by Herbert W.Zagarow, Ph.D Executive Vice President Performance & Productivity Services at International Institute for Learning. We think you will find that hot topic as it relates to PM unique and very informative. Herb will be doing others on this subject in future issues. Dave Whelbourn is back with another article on PRINCE2, this one entitled "Delivery is the Key to Successful Projects." Frank Saladis has also provided us with another inspiring article on Leadership. There is more, too, in this issue, so please check it all out!

This month we want to officially welcome members of the PMI® Government Special Interest Group to allPM.com. We are looking forward to sharing tips, white papers, research, and other resources between our combined memberships, which together are rapidly approaching the 20,000-member mark. We urge allPM.com members to visit the GovSIG website (http://www.pmi-govsig.org/). You can also write to Lee Lichtenwalner, Director of the PMI GovSIG at Director@PMI-GovSIG.org and to me if you have any ideas for our new collaboration.

I can't end this "Just Before Thanksgiving" edition of allPM Today without expressing my thankfulness and gratitude to those who have worked so hard with me this past year to make allPM.com what it is today: my Co-Publisher Frank Saladis, PMP who contributes so much simply for the love of it; our daily PM Tips Editor Linda Kretz Zaval, PMP who has provided us with a fresh new and valuable tip every business day for over a year; our wonderful allPM.com Administrator whom many of you have cited as a big help in our Forums, Carolyn Osborn; our regular contributors Bob Umlas for his Excel tips; George Pitagorsky for his Zen of PM articles; Dr. Al Zeitoun, PMP for his articles on global project management; Dr. Ginger Levin and Dr. Steve Flannes for their articles on "People Skills for Project Managers"; David A. Schmaltz for his articles on the Myths of Project Management; Dr. David Hillson for his Risk Briefing Notes; David Whelbourn for his well thought-out articles on PRINCE 2 and the PMBOK®; Dr. Harold Kerzner for his Consultant's Corner, Crossword Puzzle and Best Practice Tips; Eric Uyttewaal for his Microsoft® Project Tips and to all of our other contributors! We are indeed grateful.

I also want to thank two allPM.com members who jump in on practically every Forum topic with great energy, advice and expertise, Bernard Ertl and Harry Waldron. In addition, we give our thanks and appreciation to Michael Lines, the original Founder of allPM.com for having the vision to create this wonderful portal, and for sticking with us as a "Professor Emeritus" as we have needed him. We also are thankful and grateful to International Institute for Learning for giving us the resources to continue to grow and continuously improve allPM.com (watch for the exciting upgrade of this website that is coming within the next few months). And of course, we are grateful to our sponsors who have believed in us and gotten value from advertising on allPM: Replicon, PMI®, Wiley Publishers, Global Conference Call, Rational Concepts, Inc., STI, EF Development Corporation, PSECTS and Project Kick Start. Our thanks to allPM.com's Account Managers Jennifer Sabine, PMP and Cameron Kohler for capably communicating the value they would and did receive.

So as you partake in the wonderful "feast" of allPM.com at this special time and at other times of the year, know that we are grateful and thankful to all of you - and that we wish you all the blessings in your lives that can possibly be bestowed upon you. Have a great Thanksgiving!

Judy Umlas
Judy.Umlas@allPM.com

From the Co-publisher's Desk- Frank P. Saladis, PMP

allPM.com is on a continuing mission to bring you the latest and best information available to help you manage your projects successfully. The state of the profession of project management is changing rapidly, and staying up to date on the latest issues, tools, lessons learned and other information is a real challenge. I recently saw a cartoon in a Sunday Magazine that showed two people returning to their office. The computer equipment that was being used had been shut down. The caption read “See! I told you we shouldn't go to lunch, now our technology is obsolete.”

Things may not change as fast as in the cartoon, but I think we can all agree that the rate of change is picking up speed in technology and in how we manage our projects. Change is the focus of this month's issue, specifically, configuration management. Most project managers know what configuration management is and how important it is to manage changes, but actually developing a process for change and then sticking to the process becomes a real challenge.

At allPM.com, our goal is to provide information to practicing project managers that will facilitate project planning and execution by exploring issues, seeking new tools and techniques and then reporting through the use of subject matter experts who use their experience and skills to provide information in a useful, down to earth format. As you review this issue of the allPM Today newsletter, consider how the information can be used to change the way you manage your projects. Compare what you are doing with the techniques and suggestions provided by our contributors. You are also invited to send your comments about the articles in the newsletter.

When the subject of "change" comes up in a discussion, you will probably find most people agreeing that change is resisted by many, but at the same time agreeing that change is necessary and it's how we actually make progress in anything we do. If change is introduced through effective communications with the rationale for the change provided during the discussion, change can occur faster and with less resistance. When you think about configuration management you realize that it is not a process to block change, it's simply used to control change, to make sure that the change really is beneficial and serves a purpose. Configuration management helps keep our teams safe from injury, keeps customers happy, and allows us to understand what really happens during a change and how to prepare for it. It also ensures good record keeping.

allPM.com is "configured" each month with the project manager in mind. New ideas are presented along with some new tools or templates and some fresh thinking about how we conduct the business of project management. This latest configuration of articles, tips and techniques, and expert advice is all part of our plan to provide you with useful information in a way that will help you continuously improve and re-configure your approach to project management.

Frank P. Saladis, PMP
Frank.Saladis@allpm.com

	Partial Listing of Upcoming Project Management Events For a complete listing of events, or to add your own event for free, please visit the Online Calendar at allPM.com Managing and Leading Projects Across Organizational Boundaries in Atlanta, GA November 19, 2003 http://www.allpm.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Calendar&file=index&type=view&eid=585 MSP(Orange Belt) Washington, DC November 21, 2003 http://www.allpm.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Calendar&file=index&type=view&eid=376 Project Management for IT Professionals in Chicago, IL November 28, 2003 http://www.allpm.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Calendar&file=index&type=view&eid=512 Project Management Certification Program in Sterling Heights, MI December 1, 2003 http://www.allpm.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Calendar&file=index&type=view&eid=323 Project Management for IT Professionals in Toronto, CAN December 3, 2003 http://www.allpm.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Calendar&file=index&type=view&eid=531

	October Poll Results The greatest benefit of attending a convention is… A. Gaining contacts 18.75 % (3) B. Education 31.25 % (5) C. Getting out of the office 18.75 % (3) D. Finding new resources 31.25 % (5) Total Votes: 16 ********** November's poll question is**: Does your organization use a formal configuration management process? A. Yes B. No C. If no, is it considering using one? If you have not already done so, please stop by allPM.com and add your opinion today.


	allPM Today Tips Feature Top Ten Practical Tips in MS Project 2000, by Eric Uyttewaal, PMP Tip # 2 In the Network Diagram it can be difficult to see which detail tasks belong to a summary task. The view does not show the hierarchy of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). In order to see which detail tasks belong to a summary task, hold down the SHIFT-key and click on the border of a summary task (parallelograms); this will select all its detail tasks in once. You can now move the family of tasks around as a group. SUBMITTED TO MPUG, Sep 2001 Eric Uyttewaal (BS, Engineering; MS, Business Administration; PMP) is Director, Microsoft Project Certificaton, International Institute for Learning, Inc and author of "Dynamic Scheduling with Microsoft Project � 2000." This tip appeared in the 3/2001 MPUG eZine.

	Column: Positive Leadership in Project Management – Ninth in a Series - The Future's So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades! Written by: Frank P. Saladis, PMP You may recall the song title if you think back a decade or two. The song suggested that we prepare ourselves for the great things we can expect to happen. It was upbeat and created a positive outlook. We need to think the same way about project management and the business environment. We have had some rough times in the recent past and for a while it didn't look like things would change much. There are lots of global issues, economic problems, unemployment, deceptive leadership, and lack of trust. These issues are not new, and generally we cycle through them into new phases that are more encouraging and uplifting. Frank P. Saladis (PMP) is Senior Consultant with International Institute for Learning, Inc. He has been involved in the development of standardized Project Management Guidelines (PMGs) for the AT&T Corporate Information Technology Services (Corporate ITS) organization and is the author of the Project Evaluation Review Process (PERP). He is the former President of the NYC PMI Chapter.

	Column: Get the Frogs off the Log Written by: Dr. David Hillson PMP FAPM Which is the most difficult step in the risk management process? Where do most businesses and projects fail to gain the benefits of their attempts to manage risk proactively? If your organisation is typical, there's one particular step where it all seems to go wrong, and the risk management process becomes just another frustrating hoop to jump through, with no tangible benefits. So, is it the initial risk management planning step, defining project objectives and setting the context and scope for the risk process? Although many try to start identifying risks without first defining their objectives, this is not inherently difficult to do. Dr. David Hillson PMP FAPM FIRM MCMI is an international risk management consultant, and Director of Risk Doctor & Partners (www.risk-doctor.com). His specialty is risk technology transfer, assisting organizations to develop in-house risk processes, and he is a popular conference speaker and author on risk, winning several awards for his papers. He is recognized internationally as a leading thinker and practitioner in risk management, and his recent emphasis has been the inclusion of proactive opportunity management within the risk process, which is the topic of his latest book "Effective opportunity management : Exploiting positive risk", published in 2003 by Dekker of New York.

	Column: Modern IT Project Management Communication Tools Written by: Kevin Wegryn, PMP Project Managers need effective communication tools to be successful in the business world today. They need to master the use of e-mail, telephones, face-to-face meetings, videoconferences, conference calls, and instant messages. Many of these tools are new to the business world and all Project Managers need to be expert users of these tools. The best Project Managers are the most effective communicators. Kevin Wegryn, PMP, MA is a seasoned Project Manager of complex projects, which have ranged from $4 Million to $73 Million. In his years as a Senior Project Manager, he has lead teams of project managers.

	Column: The Zen of Project Management: Process Orientation and Project Management Written by: George Pitagorsky, PMP Problems and Solutions Problems such as the chronic late delivery, over-budget projects, project-cancellation, poor product quality and runaway projects are common in many settings. For the most part, these problems persist because people do not take the time to evaluate their process and make the changes in it that will resolve the underlying causes. George Pitagorsky (PMP) specializes in project management, information technology, productivity and quality improvement, systems requirements and organizational change management. He is listed in Who's Who as an expert in Quality Operations & Quality Improvement, and is the author of IIL's IT Project Management System, and developer of IIL's PM BASICS (TM).

	Column: Go Configure! Written by: Frank Saladis, PMP The topic Configuration Management is found in the PMI® 2000 PMBOK® Guide under the heading of "Integrated Change Control." It is a technique associated with change control and, according to the PMBOK®, is any documented procedure used to apply technical and administrative direction and surveillance to identify and document the functional and physical characteristics of a system or deliverable. Configuration management also includes the control of changes, record management and reporting of changes, and audits or reviews scheduled to ensure conformance to agreed upon specifications. Basically it is a change control system in itself and could be a subset of a higher level change control process established by the project team or key stakeholders. Frank P. Saladis (PMP) is Senior Consultant with International Institute for Learning, Inc. He has been involved in the development of standardized Project Management Guidelines (PMGs) for the AT&T Corporate Information Technology Services (Corporate ITS) organization and is the author of the Project Evaluation Review Process (PERP). He is the former President of the NYC PMI Chapter. Column: Delivery is the Key to Successful Projects, Part three in the PRINCE2 Series Written by: David Whelbourn This is a statement of the blindingly obvious: weakness in delivery is one of the key problems for project managers. Senior management hear the complaints about lack of delivery and wonder why experienced professionals seem to screw-up! This article will not tell you how to deliver, but in examining the process-groups of Executing and Controlling as the primary project management means to delivery of projects, we hope to offer some insights into how you can improve your delivery of the key deliverables within your organization. David Whelbourn is the Co-Lead of the Quality Team on PMI's OPM3 (Organizational Project Management Maturity Model) and a volunteer on their Program and Portfolio Management Standards project. He is also a Programme Manager with over thirteen years experience in project management after serving twelve years in the British Army. He has over five years experience in managing projects with PRINCE2 within Information Technology Projects combined with Rapid Application Development. He is a certified PRINCE2 practitioner and has implemented PRINCE2 in three companies, tailoring it to fit their culture and structure. Column: Applying the Balanced Scorecard In Project Management Written by: Herbert W. Zagarow, Ph.D Introduction: For well over a decade organizations in both the manufacturing and service industries have been working arduously at trying to bring the power, discipline and rigor of performance measurement into their organizations. These efforts have been partially driven by the fact that anywhere from 20% to 35% of a manager's time is spent in collecting, monitoring, evaluating or reporting out data, much of which is of dubious value to the running of the organization. These efforts are also being fueled by the desire on the part of many executives to convert the concept of “managerial accountability” from a much abused, tiresome slogan, which often receives lip service at best, into an integrated cultural expectation. Over time, it has become both recognized and accepted how a clear, valid, functional performance measurement system can serve as a powerful vehicle to develop and communicate expectations and priorities, align strategies with goals and enhance planning, decision making and evaluation efforts. Herbert W.Zagarow, Ph.D Executive Vice President Performance & Productivity Services International Institute for Learning

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