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Instructor Q & A

Background

ESI e-training instructor, Carl Pritchard, an ESI project management instructor and recognized lecturer, author and researcher, has taught project management fundamentals and strategies at ESI for 10 years. He is considered a leading authority on risk management and has authored multiple articles and books about risk and project management. Pritchard began working as a consultant with ESI in 1988 and became an instructor in 1991.

We sat down recently with Pritchard and asked him about his experiences in the ESI classroom and his insights on teaching successful project management.

1. What's your approach to teaching in the classroom and online?

"In the classroom, I'm highly facilitative. I thrive on letting the students discover what they already know and then 'bounce' off that information. It's improvisation, and it's wonderful fun.

On the Internet, I find myself being more directive. The Internet is fun because it affords you the opportunity to sound "guru-esque" every time you share information in an e-mail. I find the Internet to be far more personal than the classroom. But I find the classroom far more energizing."

2. When you're teaching project management, what are the principles you hope your students will take away from the course?

"I hope they realize that consistency of practice is what really counts. I'd much rather they did things consistently than apply practices that don't make sense in their organizations and cultures. Best practices will win over time, but if you want to win hearts - at least initially - consistency is how it's done right."

3. What are some of the common project management mistakes you see?

"A mistake that organizations make is not being supportive of the project. A good example of this would be when management doesn't deliver or dedicate the team members it promised for a project. Resources and staff directly affect the outcome of a project, and the team and project sponsor need to agree and commit to the staff and resources necessary for a project before it even begins."

"As for managers, they need to see themselves as the public relations department for their projects. They need to tout successes, defend learning experiences. And don't be afraid of hard-core project management practices - things like earned value (EV). A lot of the time, organizations won't use EV because they're afraid of the administration overhead. I tell them that as long as they're breaking down the project into its logical components, then the overhead won't be a problem. I tell managers to use EV and put everybody's rate at $1 a day, and it will still calculate."

4. What are some concepts of project management that seem more difficult for managers to adhere to?

"The mundane administrative stuff that goes into project management like maintaining records and keeping good documentation. While not exciting, these types of details can make or break a project."

5.What are some of the major trends in project management?

"Everyone is looking for the "Web speed" answers right now. How can we expedite the process? I think what they'll find over time is that speed is not the answer, but consistency is. I also think the biggest trend over the next five years will be consultancy-mania. You'll see more and more organizations realize that they need only a handful of true professionals (project managers) with the insights about the organization, the culture and the customer base. Beyond that, more and more work is going to be outsourced. We are working toward becoming an economy based on individual (rather than organizational) performance."

6. What questions do you hear most in the classroom?

"I hear a lot of questions about future career paths, fear of technical obsolescence, concerns about project management being the "fad of the day." I always emphasize that there will always be jobs for those who can make others excited about the work that they do and the opportunities that lay before them."

7. What is the value of earning a master's certificate in today's job market?

"The master's certificate is more a function of keeping up your credentials. It is organizationally driven. It's good for getting jobs at organizations like IBM and Compaq, Fortune 500 and Fortune 50 companies.

But beyond that, what employers are looking for is people who have continuing education. What the master's certificate program shows is that a person took more than just a class somewhere. The master's certificate is a rigorous program [of classes] with a single focus of study that organizations recognize as being pertinent to today's business world."

8. What books or references do you recommend for project managers?

Keep the old PMBOKs. Other than that, the basics you have to have on your shelf including:

• Project Management: A Managerial Approach by Jack R. Meredith and Samuel J. Mantel, Jr.
  (students receive a special ESI edition of this book when they take the ESI classroom course Scheduling and Cost Control)
• Managing Projects in Organizations by David Frame (students taking the classroom course Managing Projects in Organizations receive a free copy)
• Risk Management: Concepts and Guidance edited by Carl L. Pritchard, PMP
• Precedence Diagramming by Carl L. Pritchard, PMP
• How to Build a Work Breakdown Structure - The Cornerstone of Project Management by Carl L. Pritchard, PMP

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