35 Powerful Quotes That Will Inspire You to Be Successful
Being a both a Christian and a leader can be an emotional ride, with ups, downs, joy, and disappointment. Words have power and these inspiring and motivating quotes are guaranteed to challenge the way you think and perhaps even change the way you live.
We hope they resonate with you as much as they have with us. Sometimes a little piece of advice or wisdom from a brilliant mind can help you motor through even the most difficult of times.
- I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. ’- Maya Angelou
- It’s not the load that breaks you down, it’s the way you carry it. ’- Lou Holtz
- What happened, happened, and it wouldn’t have happened any other way. Lewis Carroll
- Choose a job that you like, and you will never have to work a day in your life. ’- Confucius
- Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end. ’- Proverbs 29:11
- Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence. —Vince Lombardi
- Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve. ’- Napoleon Hill
- Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great. ’- Mark Twain
- The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers. ’- Ralph Nader
- As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. ’- Proverbs 27:17
- If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way. ’- Napoleon Hill
- What is not started will never get finished. ’- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
- When you cease to dream, you cease to live. ’- Malcolm Forbes
- Build your own dreams, or someone else will hire you to build theirs. ’- Farrah Gray
- Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. ’- Unknown
- Winners never quit, and quitters never win. ’- Vince Lombardi
- Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. ’- Unknown
- Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. —Charles Swindoll
- The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand. ’- Vince Lombardi
- Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes. ’- Maggie Kuhn
- It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently. ’- Warren Buffett
- Remember no one can make you feel inferior without your consent. —Eleanor Roosevelt
- When someone tells me “no,” it doesn’t mean I can’t do it, it simply means I can’t do it with them. ’- Karen E. Quinones Miller
- If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else. —Booker T. Washington
- You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do. ’- Henry Ford
- A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new. ’- Unknown
- I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions. —Stephen Covey
- Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere. ’- Unknown
- Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck. ’- Unknown
- I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination. —Jimmy Dean
- If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, don’t ask what seat! Just get on. —Sheryl Sandberg. — Proverbs 15:1
- A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger
- Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear. —George Addair
- The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. —Amelia Earhart
- A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold. — Proverbs 22:1
Bookmark this page and come back to it when you need some inspiration and motivation.
66% of IT Projects Fail
Only one in three software projects will turn out to be successful. According to Standish Group’s 2015 Chaos report, 66% of technology projects (based on the analysis of 50,000 projects worldwide) end in partial or total failure. More surprisingly, these statistics have been the same for the last five years, the report shows. Furthermore, 17% of large IT projects go so badly that they can threaten the very existence of a company.
On Average, Large It Projects Run 45% over Budget and 7% over Time, While Delivering 56% Less Value than Predicted
Despite such failures, huge sums continue to be invested in IT projects and written off. For example the cost of project failure across the European Union was ┚¬142 billion in 2004.
It Projects Always Come with an Element of Risk, but There Are Huge Gains to Be Had If We Can Just Avoid Some of the Factors That Contribute Frequently to Project Failure
What makes a IT project successful, though?
According to the Standish Group, a successful project is on time, on budget and has satisfactory results (value, user and sponsor satisfaction, and meets target requirements). Other measures of success are widely known and accepted as true such as getting requirements right, providing effective leadership, and having full support and engagement from sponsors and users. Without these, it’s unlikely that any project would succeed.
But there’s more to success than what is widely known and, apparently, rarely followed. To reduce the risk of failure for your tech project, here are six key actions to take on the road to success.
1. Executive Vision and Involvement
Without a Executive Senior Sponsor Its Easy for Projects to Fail with the Organizational Resistance That Accompanies Large Change
Executive involvement is a primary variable in predicting the success of an IT project. Having a leadership team aligned across an organization articulating the purpose, value, and rationale for a project goes a long way towards getting stakeholders and end-users pulling the proverbial rope in the same direction.
2. Have a clear view of scope and timetable
Oftentimes, a tech project flops because its developers fail to plan and rush forward with an idea. However, some project managers plan so meticulously that they end up falling behind and lose momentum. The best approach is somewhere in between.
Interviewing team members, documenting requirements, prioritizing what is “mission critical” versus “nice to have,” getting agreement across stakeholders can feel like a never-ending cycle. As a result, requirement gathering has fallen out of fashion with many organizations in the past few years.
However, the ideal starting point for a successful technology project is to have a set of fundamental requirements with sufficient detail to develop against.
Requirement Gathering Is Labour-intensive and Challenging but Remains the Roadmap and Measuring Stick for Software Projects
This approach allows you to maintain sight of the business benefits as well as engaging stakeholders and responding to their feedback. In combination with a clear business case, a well-defined set of requirements also simplifies design and testing, two areas where projects tend to go sideways.
Ensure that requirements for the project are clearly defined and agreed upon among stakeholders and that you have a way to track, measure, and manage changes in requirements as appropriate during the project.
3. Define how you will deliver
When it comes to delivering a major project, one size does not always fit all. All products are customizable to some degree, so what might have worked in one company may not work in another company.
That being said, why reinvent the wheel if it’s already proven successful? Sometimes it can be more beneficial to use an existing off the shelf solution. Whichever direction you take, choose the delivery mode that works best for your company.
4. Risk Identification and Management
Every project has risk and there are many factors out of your control. People leave the organization, for better or worse, leadership changes, budgets get cut, however, many risks to projects can be mitigated or even eliminated with some forethought and on-going management. For example, do you have the resources you need to deliver the project (resource risk). Are project goals clearly understood and requirements clearly defined (scope risk). Do you have a realistic project plan and timeline (time risk).
Mitigating Risk Is a Combination of Science and Art, and Always a Balancing Process
5. Test your product again and again
A technology project is something that should overall support your business. It should not be something that dictates and forces you to change your operations. If this is happening, you should shift gears and focus on tweaking the technology, rather than lowering expectations and adopting less ideal requirements.
Adequate testing is a must for any tech project. While some features may be fine with automated testing, the best approach is to have a dedicated testing team. Testing activities should mirror those with the development team throughout the project’s lifetime. With thorough testing, a project should deliver with less design flaws or missing requirements.
6. Prioritize simplicity and performance
Developers often leave the external look and feel of a product to the wayside thinking these things are not necessities for the consumer to enjoy. However, user experience is absolutely critical to the success of the project.
Developers must consider things like storage, network requirements, processing speeds and overall performance in order to satisfy the customer. If users are going to have to wait for an extended period to allow information to load, there must be a good reason for the wait, otherwise they won’t return for future products.
Simplification and Improved Efficiency Is What Adds Value
Ultimately, using the product should be a smooth and intuitive experience. Additionally, tools and alternative routes must be placed logically without being intrusive. The process can be complicated, but the finished product should emit simplicity. After all, that’s what makes companies like Apple so successful. Simplification and improved efficiency is what adds value.
A Day in the Life of a Project Manager
We all know that project managers are responsible for managing projects through to completion while remaining on time and within budget, but how exactly do they do it? What does a typical day look like for a project manager?
Here’s a sample of what a typical day might look like for a project manager.
The Early Bird Gets the Worm, Success Comes to Those Who Prepare Well and Put in Effort
8.30 am: Starting the day
After settling in for the day’s activities, it’s time to plan out the day. Start up the computer, email clients, draft team schedules, organize time sheets and create the to-do list.
To-do lists help managers and their teams stay on track. If a manager notices that one team member has yet to deliver an assignment, they can address this issue first thing in the morning; otherwise, delays can build up and affect the project. Likewise, lists help managers see the next course of action for projects.
9:15 am: Time to get moving
Efficiency is a must and there is no time to be wasted in project management. After a quick review of project plans and to-do lists, the manager must be prepared to get his team moving right away.
Round up team members, review the project’s current position and emphasize the next course of action. In order to get the team moving on assignments, strong project managers set deadlines throughout the day.
Morning team meetings are also necessary to make sure each member understands the project and their assignments. It’s also a time to answer any questions for clarity or to get feedback or concerns from individuals.
While daily group meetings can be important, they are not always necessary and can be counter-productive. If the team is on the same page and everyone is ready to tackle the tasks of the day, spend a short period re-grouping so that the team can get on and complete their assignments. There’s no need to spend hours planning and reviewing.
10 am: Meetings, meetings, meetings
More than one project manager will be more than likely in the office and they will all need to work together for the benefit of the programme. This is why meetings with other managers and higher ups are necessary in a project manager’s day.
Meetings allow each project manager to go through the status of their respective projects and to track the weekly schedule and other deadlines. It is also a time to address any business-critical tasks that might come up.
It’s worth considering that only 7% of communication is spoken. The other 93% is made up of tone (38%) and body language (55%). So although facts and figures are easily communicated via email, letter or phone, an actual discussion or negotiation is best handled where you can see the other person and therefore are able to see for yourself what their tone and body have to say on the matter.
10:30 am: Tackling the small stuff
Meetings will be on and off throughout the day for project managers, which is why it’s important to tackle the small tasks in between appointments. Small tasks include wrapping project reports, booking future meetings, answering correspondences with other colleagues, reviewing items and team reports among other things.
It’s also important to schedule post-mortem meetings with the project team to review the success of projects in order to apply any lessons learnt to future projects.
11 am: Project kick-off meeting
When one project ends, another begins, which means it’s time for yet another project kick-off meeting. Kick-off meetings can take on various forms, depending on the type of business. However, they all share the same basic needs.
Every individual involved with the new project should be in attendance and have the latest version of project specifications in written form. As project manager, it might be wise to send this to team members several days before the kick-off meeting to ensure everyone has time to review.
During a kick-off meeting, it’s important to review the overall goals for the project, both commercial and technical details, break down functional requirements, and spend time for discussion and questions. By allowing team members to communicate questions and share ideas, it opens the lines of communication and may bring up potential concerns that might have been missed in the initial planning stages.
Conclude kick-off meetings with a definition of the next steps and be sure individuals are aware of deadlines and their assignments.
11:30 am: Reviewing project specs, budgets and scheduling submissions
Other important tasks to tackle in between meetings include reviewing specifications and budgets and schedules for future projects. If a project begins that day, now would be a good time to apply the finishing touches to the project documentation before presentation and approval.
When it comes to establishing project estimates and budgets, a project manager must bring all of his experience into play in order to create a realistic budget that includes wiggle room for factors such as project complexity, team experience and skill levels, stakeholders involvement, time needed, third-party services needed, and contingency allowances among many other things.
It’s Not Easy to Squeeze in a Lunch Break, but It’s Often Necessary for the Project Managers Health and Sanity
12 pm: Lunch
In the midst of the seeming chaos that is project management, be sure to fuel up for the rest of the day’s work. Lunch is also a great span of time to check in with team members to make sure they are still on target for later-day deadlines.
2 pm: Launching the next project
After digesting lunch, it’s time to launch the next project. Get the whole team ready to go live and present the project to the client and begin testing aspects of the project in a live environment. It’s a time to spot problems and address them and review schedules and deadlines and other project needs.
3 pm: Time for everything else
The final two hours in the office are spent addressing everything else on the project manager’s plate. A project manager must be good at multi-tasking and whatever duties couldn’t be accomplished throughout the day are reserved for the final hours. Most of the time, lower priority tasks are reserved for afternoon hours. These tasks could include project update meetings with various departments, logging finances, reviewing monthly project schedules, approving time sheets, writing weekly reports, sorting purchase orders and communicating with suppliers. There are so many other small to-do list items that project managers are responsible for, but are often overlooked.
Spending Time at the End of the Day as Well as the Beginning to Review and Plan Will Only Help You Succeed as a Project Manager
5 pm: Review the day, plan for tomorrow
Before heading home, review the day’s list and what’s been accomplished. Anything that has been added or was left unfinished should be scheduled for the next day or sometime throughout the week. Reflect on your team’s work and clear the email inbox. Use a filing system that makes sense for you and be ruthless about deleting stuff. The beauty of an empty inbox is a thing to behold. It is calming, peaceful and wonderful.
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Project Management for Christian Leaders
It’s Monday afternoon at the office. The week has only begun, but you’re already swimming in a sea of memos, spreadsheets, and schedules. Just as you’re daydreaming about what leftovers you might reheat for a late dinner, your boss pokes his head into your office. He or she mutters something about quotas and deadlines before he or she drops the bomb about a “little project” he or she needs you to complete by the end of the week. And just like that, you know you’ve been handed a nightmare but for whatever reason accept the challenge.
“According to the Cranfield School of Management in the Uk, 68% of Projects Are Destined for Failure Before They Even Start.”
The lack of project management training or experience of many Christian leaders can be an enormous stress factor for them. Whilst natural organizational ability is enormously helpful, in itself it is no guarantee of any project being both successful and low stress.
What is a nightmare project? It’s something we’re all familiar with. The boss assigns us some vague task and a deadline but leaves the means to a solution up to our creative intellect.
So how do you solve the problem of this dreaded “project”?
1. Understand the scope of the project
First things first, create a list to layout your ideas on how to go about the job at hand. Write out questions you might have that need to be answered, people you might need to work with or talk to in order to understand what work must be done.
Without fully understanding what work must be done, it is impossible to accurately estimate a project’s schedule or budget.
After creating a list, share your ideas with colleagues. Work with peers who have the same goal and share the same work ethics as you. Too often, when faced with an unrealistic project, we tend to work with just about anybody who wearily agrees to have their name on board. The enthusiasm of a new project quickly fades when actual work is needed. Instead of “How can I help?” were met with “I’m busy right now” and “Can it wait until next week?” The sponsor, project manager, and project team must share a common understanding of the scope of the project.
2. Get estimates from the people who will be doing the work
To avoid the stress of friendly fatigue, create a solid plan of action with your co-workers. Assign duties and responsibilities and set a deadline for each task.
4. Re-estimate as soon as you realize an estimating assumption was wrong
Don’t get discouraged if people and other things fall through. Even though it’s frustrating with the broken promises, missed deadlines, mistakes, and poor quality outputs. As soon as you realize a mistake was made, assess the impact and re-estimate the project.
“Unfortunately When Project Managers Spend the Majority of Their Time Trying to Achieve the Unachievable, the Result Is Frustration and Potential Burnout.”
But say you’ve followed those steps and were able to remain positive throughout this grueling week. You completed the assignment, whether enthusiastically or completely drained of all energy, only to be told the higher-ups decided to go a different route and don’t need the results of your project after all. “Good effort, though,” your boss tells you as he or she hands back your laminated report.
If you find yourself in this situation, just remember to never say “yes” to a “little project without first taking a look at what you’ve been handed.
Yes, You Are Called to Be a Leader for Christ
Times are changing, and so are the ways people work and collaborate. The idea of being a leader can be daunting.
When you consider the word “leader who and what comes to mind, perhaps your Pastor? The BBC show the Apprentice? Your manager? A colleague at work in another team perhaps or an individual who literally has “Project Leader” on a business card or email signature?
Well, it may not be part of your job title, and you may even struggle to find the words in your job description, nevertheless, the call to follow Christ is a call to leadership.
In the Oxford ditionary a project Is defined as “an individual or collaborative enterprise that is carefully planned to achieve a particular aim”
When you think “project”, you typically think about big things, such as:
- Church building developments
- Developing a new product
- IT system integration
- Writing a tender
But actually, many smaller activities can also be classed as a project, such as:
- Creating and delivering an internal training course at church
- Creating and sending a church e-newsletter
- Creating new team processes
In fact, according to David Allen, pioneer of the productivity system Getting Things Done (GTD), a ‘project’ is any multi-step action. In other words, creating
t may seem glaringly obvious, but someone needs to own a project, and not every church organisation or team has a certified project leader to call upon.
2. Create an action plan
“Make a List of the Actions It Will Take to Get You to the End Goal”
It’s very easy to jump straight in and get moving on a project. Spending time planning can seem like wasted time, but in fact, without good planning, you could be wasting your time and energy on things that just aren’t needed. In other words, skipping the planning phase of a project is a sure-fire way of encountering problems down the line. The basics of what you’ll need to establish include your project vision (or guiding light), what your project will deliver, the risks to the project as well as your budget, resources, and timescales Prayer is the portal that brings the power of heaven down to earth. It is kryptonite to the Enemy and to all his ploys against you. Pray in the Spirit at all times and at every stage of the project.
3. Set a realistic deadline
Without a Deadline Your Project Will Sit at the Bottom of Your To-do List and Will Go Nowhere
When it comes to assessing your timescales, you need to figure out what is realistically achievable, while not padding out your timelines too much.
4. Communicate regularly
Developing a Project in a Bubble Will Result in Problems Later On
Regular communication is vital. Meetings, emails and even a quick trip to your colleague’s desk are all needed to make sure you have not missed anything important and that everyone in on the same page.
5. Faith is not a spectator sport.
The Opportunities are Endless and Harvest is Plentiful.
Finally, please remember aside from managing projects that faith is not a spectator sport. It’s easy to come to church to be entertained and not invest time in serving the church community. But Jesus isn’t here for our amusement. He didn’t die so we could experience cool sermons alone. The Christians we remember throughout history were the men and women who did not wait on the sideline when there was work to be done.
There are many places to lead. The opportunities are endless and harvest is plentiful.
19 Inspirational Quotes to Create a Wise Leader
Some of the most inspirational quotes ever uttered to stir you and get you moving through the day. Whether you feel stuck or just need a good dose of inspiration from great minds. Be sure to feed your brain inspiring quotes and phrases daily.
- For the wise person, there are only two types of experiences on life’s road: winning and learning – Greg Henry Quinn
- Successful people are EXTREMELY self-disciplined. When they set their mind to something, they do it. No questions asked –
Jacob Reimer - To those who retain their zest, old age has much to offer. From them the world has much to gain – Lord Beaverbrook
- You must be the change you wish to see in the world – Gandhi
- Success is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm – Winston Churchill
- Dream big and dare to fail – Norman Vaughan
- Make each day your masterpiece – John Wooden
- Once you choose hope, anything’s possible – Christopher Reeve
- Every moment is a fresh beginning – T.S. Eliot
- Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear – George Addair
- A year from now you may wish you had started today – Karen Lamb
- It is never too late to be what you might have been – George Eliot
- There are no traffic jams along the extra mile – Roger Staubach
- If there is no struggle, there is no progress – Frederick Douglass
- If you can’t outplay them, outwork them – Ben Hogan
- The best way to predict the future is to invent it – Alan Kay
- Always make a total effort, even when the odds are against you – Arnold Palmer
- If you aren’t going all the way, why go at all? – Joe Namath
- Choosing a goal and sticking to it changes everything – Scott Reed
5 Secrets to Successful Project Management for Christian Leaders
42 Masterful Quotes to Inspire Healthier Relationships
Conflict is part of our working life and is often used as a way to work out our differences and reach a conclusion. It’s usually the approach you take that tends to exacerbate the issues and cause undue stress. How you deal with conflict reveals your character.
- The wise man doesn’t give the right answers, he poses the right questions — Claude Lvi-Strauss
- A crisis is a turning point — Anne Lindthorst
- Conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional — Max Lucade
- Don’t be afraid of opposition. Remember, a kite rises against, not with, the wind — Hamilton Mabie
- There is no way to peace. Peace is the way — AJ Muste
- The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing in the right place but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment — Dorothy Nevill
- The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood. The best way to understand people is to listen to them — Ralph Nichols
- The more we sweat in peace the less we bleed in war — Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
- To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong — Joseph Chilton Pearce
- A man convinced against his will”¦is not convinced — Laurence J. Peter
- My problem is I say what I’m thinking before I think what I’m saying — Laurence J. Peter
- Discussion is an exchange of knowledge; argument an exchange of emotion – Robert Quillen
- You can’t influence somebody when you’re judging them — Tony Robbins
- Quarrels would not last long if the fault were only on one side — Duke François de La Rochefoucauld
- It is astonishing how elements which seem insoluble become soluble when someone listens. How confusions which seem irremediable turn into relatively clear flowing streams when one is heard — Carl Rogers
- If it’s mentionable, it’s manageable— Mr. Rogers
- Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today — Will Rogers
- The best way to persuade people is with your ears, by listening to them — Dean Rusk
- The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution — Bertrand Russell
- It is with the heart that one sees rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye — Antoine de Saint-Exupry
- Human beings love to be right. When a person is willing to give up being right, a whole world of possibilities opens up — Pete Salmansohn
- The test of a successful person is not an ability to eliminate all problems before they arise, but to meet and work out difficulties when they do arise — David J. Schwartz
- Why not go out on a limb? Isn’t that where the fruit is? — Frank Scully
- Before you speak, ask yourself: Is it kind, is it necessary, is it true, does it improve the silence? — Shirdi Sai Baba
- When things are not working for us, instead of fighting and struggling, we need to say, “What’s happening here? How am I not being true to who I am? What is pulling me away from my purpose?” — June Singer
- The only people with whom you should try to get even are those who have helped you — John E. Southard
- It takes two to quarrel, but only one to end it — Spanish Proverb
- The first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn— Source unknown
- Confidence, like art, never comes from having all the answers; it comes from being open to all the questions — Earl Gray Stevens
- Life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it — Charles Swindoll
- If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow — Carol Tavris
- Peace is not the absence of conflict but the presence of creative alternatives for responding to conflict—alternatives to passive or aggressive responses, alternatives to violence — Dorothy Thompson
- Let us not look back in anger, nor forward in fear, but around in awareness — James Thurber
- A good manager doesn’t try to eliminate conflict; he tries to keep it from wasting the energies of his people. If you’re the boss and your people fight you openly when they think that you are wrong, that’s healthy — Robert Townsend
- Knowledge becomes wisdom only after it has been put to good use — Mark Twain
- People who fight fire with fire usually end up with ashes — Abigail VanBuren
- The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any — Alice Walker
- It isn’t a mistake to have strong views. The mistake is to have nothing else — Anthony Weston
- I’ve found that I can only change how I act if I stay aware of my beliefs and assumptions. Thoughts always reveal themselves in behavior — Margaret Wheatley
- I would not waste my life in friction when it could be turned into momentum — Frances Willard
- When you’re at the edge of a cliff, sometimes progress is a step backward — Source unknown
Taking the Right Path to Good Agile Implementations
1) A Wise Man Said Only Fools Rush In
Companies that goes nuts for agile because they know they have to deliver faster and for less cost to keep up with competitors may be making a big mistake and face a collapse of their efforts.
If they focused first on a deep understanding of their business’ needs, they could more accurately decide if agile is a good fit. A better approach for you to take is analyse your current processes to determine if agile methodologies actually support your goals and needs.
2) Educated Stakeholders Make Excellent Allies
Agile works from a focal point of improving quality delivery and frequency. It does not start with reducing time to market or cutting costs. Those benefits are a result of implementing agile methods over time, after the requisite investment of time and resources has been made.
3) Don’t Do the Project Without at Least One Committed Product “Owner”
A “product owner” is a the committed business leader who will make or break the project. This person will be expected to put at least half of their time into the project. They’ll also be responsible for getting all the decisions made through the right channels in a reasonable period of time. You must have a leader like this to succeed.
4) Gain Consensus on the Definition Of “Finished”
Everybody on-board needs to agree on what constitutes being finished with any stage of implementation. For some, it will mean that by the end of each and every iteration, the production-ready software will be available. This is not always possible, so get out ahead of a potential problem and gain consensus.
5) Build an Exceptional Cross-Functional Team
Cross-functionality is what separates the ineffective agile teams from the high-performance ones. Team members have to be proficient in performing any and all necessary tasks so that they’ll be able to always deliver what the customers need.
Team building requires that you identify the right parties and that you shape them into a functional team by making sure that they share your own true goal of always delivering massive value to product owners.
6) Make the Proper Investment in the Tools That Support Agile
The beginning stages of any agile project will involve you investing in the of the robust frameworks, infrastructure, and process automation tools that fully support agility. This includes a wide range of solutions like continuous build servers, automation testing, video conferencing, interactive chat, and software frameworks. Don’t scrimp on other important details like the solution architecture, either.
7) Retrospectives Need to Be a Main Priority
Inspection and adapting are the keys to agile. Organisations using this methodology use a vehicle called “retrospectives” to ensure these tasks are being performed correctly. A proper retrospective should embrace the qualities of self-improvement and transparency. Any actions that are a result of the retrospective must be given the highest priority. This is especially true of estimations, which are crucial to achieving the kind of team velocity that keeps projects on track.
8) Start the Project with a Solution Architecture
Even though documentation is not always the most glamorous part of any project, you’ll be well served to make sure you understand that documentation is still important to a successful project. Using a solution architecture pays off because it serves a blueprint for the final project that will be delivered by the team. Team members need this document so they understand what will happen if they make changes. Members who are added to the project at later days will use the documentation as a reference point so they can be brought up to speed.
9) Embrace the Fact That Change Is Coming and Plan for It
You can’t make a change without a cost in agile. Change is something you always have to embrace philosophically, but be aware of the costs and the impacts to the project. When you are doing the estimation process, factor in potential changes when applicable.
10) You and Your External Partners Should Have an Agile Relationship
Agile is not always the best fit for traditional vendors. They prefer contracts that use fixed prices and fixed outcomes. When you switch to agile you’ll need to make a point out of understanding the ramifications the changes will have with your vendors. You and they may have to make some changes to keep the relationship running smooth.
Try to build a transparent relationship with all of your external vendors. Risk Reward contracts that employ clearly defined KPIs work amazingly well for agile organisations.
35 Best Conflict Resolution Quotes
Conflict happens. However, avoidance of conflict, with no effort to resolve it, postpones a proper response and exacerbates the problem because conflicts that are allowed to fester unaddressed will always increase and have negative effects on relationships within the body.
These quotes seem to suggest that it is how you handle the situation, your attitude going into the conflict, and the conflict resolution that matters.
- “If you understood everything I said, you’d be me.” — Miles Davis
- “Don’t look where you fall, but where you slipped.” — African proverb
- “Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.” — Paul Boese
- “If war is the violent resolution of conflict, then peace is not the absence of conflict, but rather, the ability to resolve conflict without violence.” — C.T. Lawrence Butler
- “One of the most basic principles for making and keeping peace within and between nations is that in political, military, moral, and spiritual confrontations, there should be an honest attempt at the reconciliation of differences before resorting to combat.” — Jimmy Carter
- “Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today.” — Cherokee proverb
- “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak. Courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” — Winston Churchill
- “A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty.” — Winston Churchill
- “Every conflict we face in life is rich with positive and negative potential. It can be a source of inspiration, enlightenment, learning, transformation, and growth–or rage, fear, shame, entrapment, and resistance. The choice is not up to our opponents, but to us, and our willingness to face and work through them.” — Kenneth Cloke and Joan Goldsmith
- “The quality of our lives depends not on whether or not we have conflicts, but on how we respond to them.” — Tom Crum
- “I believe that the basic nature of human beings is gentle and compassionate. It is therefore in our own interest to encourage that nature, to make it live within us, to leave room for it to develop. If on the contrary, we use violence, it is as if we voluntarily obstruct the positive side of human nature and prevent its evolution.” — His Holiness the Dalai Lama
- “The quieter you become, the more you can hear.” – Ram Dass
- “The more incompetent one feels, the more eager he is to fight.” — Fyodor Dostoyevsky
- “Every person in this life has something to teach me—and as soon as I accept that, I open myself to truly listening.” — Catherine Doucette
- “The only difference between stumbling blocks and stepping stones is the way in which we use them.” — Adriana Doyle
- “When we change the way we look at things, the things we look at change.” — Wayne Dyer
- “Whenever two good people argue over principles, they are both right.” — Marie Ebner von Eschenbach
- “Today . . . spend more time with people who bring out the best in you, not the stress in you.”—- Unknown Author
- “Any fool can know. The point is to understand.” — Unknown
- “Love is our most unifying and empowering common spiritual denominator. The more we ignore its potential to bring greater balance and deeper meaning to human existence, the more likely we are to continue to define history as one long inglorious record of man’s inhumanity to man.” — Unknown
- “You can never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the old model obsolete.” — Buckminister Fuller
- “Our greatest power as nations and individuals is not the ability to employ assault weapons, suicide bombers, and drones to destroy each other. The greater more creative powers with which we may arm ourselves are grace and compassion sufficient enough to love and save each other.” — Seth Godin
- “The problem with holding a grudge is that your hands are then too full to hold onto anything else.” — Seth Godin
- “To truly listen is to risk being changed forever.” — Sakej Henderson
- “The great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes
- “Whenever you’re in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. That factor is attitude.” — William James
- “Never look down on anybody unless you’re helping them up.” – Jesse Jackson
- “Always pass a plate of forgiveness before each verbal feast — Anabel Jensen
- “Never ruin an apology with an excuse.” — Kimberly Johnson
- “If you’re not listening, you’re not learning.” — L.B. Johnson
- “Conflict cannot survive without your participation.”— Wayne Dyer
- Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” — Carl Jung
- “When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears.”— Anthony Robbins
- “Happiness depends on what you can give, not on what you can get.”— Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati
- “Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal.” — Martin Luther King
Jesus did not advocate non-violence merely as a technique for outwitting the enemy, but as a just means of opposing the enemy in such a way as to hold open the possibility of the enemy’s becoming just as well. Both sides must win. We are summoned to pray for our enemies’ transformation, and to respond to ill-treatment with a love that not only is godly but also, I am convinced, can only be found in God.
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Agile Methodologies
The “agile” buzzword has really taken hold among a myriad organisations worldwide. That result is not particularly surprising. Who wouldn’t love to employ light and fast tactics that allow them to respond to rapidly changing challenges? Despite all the optimism about agile methods, the bigger question is how well companies are actually doing when it comes to employing these methodologies in the real world. Without understanding what the core objectives of embracing agile methods are, it’s not going to be easy to gain results.
Agile methodology is employed in order to reduce the time, risk, and cost that is associated with a project. However, these massive benefits are not going to materialise out of thin air. They are the result of the dedicated work of a team who is well versed in implementing the methodology.
To become “agile” will require organisations to take a quantum leap in their culture. They will have to embrace the entire philosophy behind these methods or no real change will take place. Truly agile companies are the ones that have gone through a transformative process in order to implement brand new processes that say goodbye to the past. This takes a lot of work and effort and not all organisations are willing or able to do this.
Ugly Agile Implementations
Project teams that are solely focused on results and who don’t do their homework end up with very ugly agile implementations. These teams are so excited about agile as a concept that they convert everyone in their organisation into adopting the methods. The problem is, they do not spend the requisite time getting everyone on board with exactly what needs to be done.
Because of this oversight, the projects are plagued with poor communications and engagement. The project team and others in the organisation are each working on their own tasks with no thought to how the pieces fit together in the “big picture.” This is a major problem because agile methods really only shine when the whole organisation works as one well-oiled unit. In this scenario, major issues at the core of the project are neglected and the entire project goes off the rails. This leaves a bad taste in the mouths of managers, who are no longer excited about agile methods.
Really ugly agile implementations have the wrong focus. Because of this myopia, the true benefits of agile employment are never realised. Before long, things, unfortunately, go back to “normal.”
Bad Agile Implementations
Some businesses completely miss the boat when it comes to agile deployment. They’re interested in receiving the benefits of reduced costs, faster time to market, and cutting “red tape.” Despite this knowledge, they’re not truly committed to the all of the values that are espoused by the Agile Manifesto. Without this commitment, they cannot possibly hope to fully embrace a functional implementation.
Organisations like to invest in education and communications, but they ignore important concepts like utilising the tools that help them truly embrace agility. They even form teams that understand cross-functionality, but without empowerment they are unable to make vital decisions.
Lastly, organisations that do poor agile implementations perform project reviews regularly enough, but the input from the meetings is never acted on by anyone. The key issues that are preventing proper implementation are never properly addressed and the project fails on its promise. Organisation members swear off the agile methods forever at this point.
Good Agile Implementations
When business personnel and IT staff work together, good implementations of agile are the result. These units work together so that a project delivery methodology is presented to the organisation that meets its needs. They also spend the time to create the cultural changes needed to ensure the methods are successful.
In organisations like this, team members, business end users, along with senior management and key stakeholders received a continuous education that empowers them all. Cross-functional teams that excel are the results. These organisations also invest in the techniques and tools that fully support agile. That includes test driven development, continuous builds, new standards, and more. With these in place, a platform that ensures long-term success will be installed.
Particularly telling, these businesses conduct regular project reviews which they conceptualise as opportunities to improve instead of something that simply has to be done. When change is needed, they embrace it and plan for it. When it arrives, they are ready and the organisation continues to excel. A sign of a good agile implementation is when the organisation is commits to making long-term changes that will benefit the methodology in the long run.
It doesn’t pay to underestimate just how difficult implementing good agile really is. Since major internal changes to how project delivery is done need to be embraced, the road ends up being a challenging one. Traditional managers will be challenged because empowered teams now have more input than ever before.
Once a good agile implementation is in place, the benefits are obvious and plentiful. An energised, cross-functional community of empowering people who are all focused on common goals get more done than ever before. Good implementation put platforms into use that improve project delivery because they allow for test-driven development, continuous integration, standards implementation, and best practice design applications.
6 Project Management Taboos Christian Project Leaders Should Break
The lack of project management training or experience of many Christian leaders can be an enormous stress factor for them. Whilst natural organizational ability is enormously helpful, in itself it is no guarantee of any project being both successful and low stress.
A taboo is an activity that is forbidden or sacred based on religious beliefs or morals. Breaking a taboo is extremely objectionable in society as a whole. We have isolated six project management taboos that are common in PM discussions.
The upside of understanding and acting on these most common project management taboos is tremendous. Not only will your project success rate increase, you’ll also improve satisfaction among internal customers.
1. ‘The customer is always right’ is wrong
The project sponsor is a role in project management, usually the senior member of the project board and often the chair. The project sponsor will often be a senior executive in a corporation who is responsible to the business for the success of the project.
However, project sponsors are people, and they can be wrong. This taboo prevents project managers from openly examining the actions of senior individuals in power. In its more stringent form, this taboo can even convert “lessons learned” activities into simple exercises in fawning praise for the vision of our leaders. When we cannot question the actions of the powerful, the organization can have difficulty finding its way out of trouble. This problem is most severe when the actions (or failure to act) of an Executive sponsor in power is the issue.
Ignoring a Problem Is, Enabling the Problem
2. ‘Ignore your problems and they will go away‘
The perfect employee. The perfect manager. The perfect workplace. Wouldn’t it be nice if that existed? When it comes to managing people, one of the best things we can do is to realize that nothing will ever be perfect. There will always be problems. It’s how we deal with them that matters the most, so do not ignore them, because they won’t miraculously go away. The problem only gets worse, frustration levels increase, productivity suffers and complacency will set in. They fester the longer you ignore them and ultimately compound the cost of the project.
You aren’t fooling anyone, people know when there is a problem! Occasionally things can get better by themselves, however, the majority of the time this doesn’t happen.
If you do something wrong, it’s about how well you fix it,” says GlassHouse Technologies’ Scannell. “Most people batten down the hatches and close up shop. Understanding when you’re starting to fail and quickly being able to engage as many stakeholders as possible to fix it is critical.”
Emotional Intelligence for Project Managers – Nice to Have or Necessity
3. Showing emotion is a sign of weakness
If only it were just about defining scope, creating a project plan and tracking costs.
Project Management obviously encompasses all those things, but it’s also about relationship development, team building, influencing, collaborating, and negotiating often in very complex environments.
In most workplace environments project managers have difficulty showing feelings. Project managers cannot even discuss them. It’s a pity — feelings are part of being human. When we can discuss feelings, we can manage them, and we can use them as indicators of morale, future performance, or motivation. This project management taboo can limit the effectiveness of project retrospectives. In projects, strong feelings are common. They play an important role in determining project performance. Yet feelings are rarely discussed in project retrospectives, and this omission can prevent project managers from truly understanding the evolution of the projects they are supposedly managing and examining. However, whatever form a project takes there will always be people involved and where there are people there are emotions.Emotions influence people’s actions, their behaviors and their responses to the emotions of others. So welcome to the world of ‘emotional intelligence’.
The concept of Emotional Intelligence (EQ) was first popularised by Daniel Goleman in 1995 with his book, “Emotional Intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ.”
Just Jump Through the Hoops, Don’t Try to Fix the World
4. Project Managers should play by the rules
Most organizations have processes that nearly everyone understands are outdated and counterproductive, however, when project managers dismiss these processes, neglect to model their costs to organizations, the outdated processes are then very difficult to change.
Indeed, the taboo is part of the cultural infrastructure that enables these dysfunctional processes to persist. If project managers discuss them openly, they might find that upgrading them could provide significant payback.
Keep Complaining! It’s Good for You!
5. Keep complaining! It’s good for you!
We’ve all know that rush of relief you feel as soon as you wrap up a major rant. This is the national art and sport of the UK. However, complaining is viral misery. Back in 2006, an American pastor named Will Bowen launched a campaign he called “A Complaint Free World”. Drawing on the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer, Alessandri pushes back against the assumption that complaining is only worthwhile if it gets concrete results; there’s no point in it, the received wisdom goes, if what you’re bemoaning is beyond your control.
Peace Is Not Absence of Conflict, It Is the Ability to Handle Conflict by Peaceful Means
6. You must take sides in a political conflict
Just keep neutral. It is possible to be respectful to (and respected by) your colleagues by staying neutral. Politics are as old as civilization and have continued to be a source of fascination since Machiavelli wrote The Prince, a treatise on how to acquire and retain power, in the 16th century.
There are a lot more project management taboos that aren’t included listed here. We are interested in your thoughts and suggestions?
Axelos CEO Peter Hepworth in the Spotlight
Project Journal had the privilege of interviewing AXELOS previous CEO Peter Hepworth. Peter provided us with an insight into his role and AXELOS as a whole in October 2015.
AXELOS CEO Peter Hepworth
Peter joined AEXLOS as CEO in July 2013 and was previously Managing Director for Activision Blizzard a $400 million turnover and $150million EBIT business. In 2014, Activision Blizzard was the fifth largest gaming company in the world by revenue.
Peter is an economics graduate, chartered accountant, with an M.B.A. from Cranfield and A.M.P. from INSEAD.
What is AXELOS?
AXELOS is a joint venture set up in 2014 by the Government of the United Kingdom and Capita, to develop, manage and operate qualifications in best practice, in methodologies formerly owned by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC).
AXELOS promotes best practice frameworks such as PRINCE2 and ITIL and is developing a cyber resilience best practice portfolio later in 2015.
How does AXELOS differ from APM?
AXELOS is an independent organisation, allowing the user community to focus more on the content of frameworks and guidance without much interference. The firm puts a heavy focus on the guidance given, ensuring the content is fuelled by good ideas to keep the ITIL structure up to date. But while the business has a combination of access to one of Britain’s largest corporations and the UK government, more than 75% of publication sales and Prince2 certification is sold outside of the UK, a trend that is growing faster due to emerging markets.
The company varies its training approach. Its Portfolio, Programme, and Project Management Maturity Model (P3M3), for example, encourages users to assess their performance against benchmarks. Mike Acaster, PPM portfolio manager, says: “PRINCE2 is applicable to many sizes of organisation, but sometimes it’s better to be a bit more specific. It’s about tailoring advice for that context. In some cases it has been tailored, and people don’t realise it’s PRINCE2 – you have to scratch the surface.
How do you view the future of project management?
After years of being associated with large engineering and construction projects, project management has moved beyond infrastructure. Firms across different countries and sectors now acknowledge the need to manage their processes and keep costs and timing under control. As businesses begin to recognise the importance of project management worldwide, questions are being asked about the standards required. AXELOS is focusing on how these can apply to different staff and situations, as well as how workers can develop a career path in project management.
Is AXELOS popular aboard?
“It’s hard to measure the adoption of our products, but if you look at the number of exams taken, you can see strong growth outside the UK, as well as in the UK,” he says. “In the US there’s a lot of interest, and the biggest international user of PRINCE2 is the UN, to make sure their aid development is correctly managed.
“Our Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) product was used to deliver the Olympic Games. I was in Tokyo after they had won the right to host Tokyo 2020 and the focus was ‘When can we have MSP?’ They want to see the same success as London has had.”
What are the future priorities for AXELOS?
“Career path. For the individual, it’s about how your career can develop. There’s a different skill set between project and portfolio management, and no linear route. It comes to modularisation. We have been able to offer different dimensions.
Cyber Resilience is next. Companies need to put more emphasis on improving their reactions to cyber attacks rather than continuing to focus on prevent. Although there are a number of standards and best practices in place to prevent cyber attacks, firms are still falling foul, and this is usually due to the internal attitude and people, rather than technology.
New products launched in 2015 include PRINCE2 Agile; Cyber Resilience Best Practice and Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
What’s next?
Young people are learning things online and changing how it is done. We want our members to feel proud about having AXELOS qualifications and have launched digital badges so that project professionals can display their mark of professionalism across popular social networks.
Digital badges are tokens that appear as icons and are awarded to signify learning achievements in a way that can be easily verified and shared online. Our members digital badge’s will hold and display information about their professional development activity as well as the issue date and an expiry date.
Individual workers, organisations and entire industries can benefit from badges. Badges are a new form of currency – a more transparent and efficient way to communicate the acquisition and development of workplace skills.
From AXELOS to Microsoft, IBM to Oracle, many leading companies have adopted digital badges as a form of recognition for continuing professional development and certifications. The individuals who earn these badges enthusiastically share them to LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and other online destinations. Once shared, anyone can verify the authenticity of and learn more about the individual’s abilities. That shareability and verification can make all the difference in a competitive job market, whether an individual aspires to move ahead in her current position or move into a different job.
We also want continued openness from AXELOS, even more community collaboration and specific actions to further increase the relevance of AXELOS in the future.
Where do you believe project management is heading?
Anyone can benefit from project management guidance. “We are all project managers now,” he says.
Top 10 Project Management Myths Debunked
Since the dawn of time, mankind has used myths to make sense of the uncertainty that surrounds us. In the early 1990s a lot of people believed that project management was the best kept secret in business. However, because project management was not seen as a prevailing profession at that time, it suffered from a lack of awareness which was in a sense, a double edged sword. Those who were knowledgeable in the practice of project management became extreamly valuable to organisations and pioneers for the profession.
These early adopters were able to convince organisations that project management practitioners were needed. Myths around project management began to form in the business community and as the role of the project manager was unclear, questions were raised as to what project management was and what it could offer organisations.
The definition of the word myth is a “widely held, but false belief or idea.” Here, we’re going to examine 10 of the most pervasive PM myths that have emerged.
Myth #1 – Contingency pool is redundant
This is one of the most ‘mythical’ myths that has plagued the industry for a long time. Coupled with the tendency to presume that ‘real work’ is tantamount to implementation or building something concrete and you have the perfect recipe for project disaster. The thought pattern behind this approach typically originates from budget constraints and/or having unrealistic expectations. As we all know, or should know, the unexpected happens quite regularly. An effective contingency plan is important as it aims to protect that which has value (e.g., data), prevent or minimise disruption (e.g., product lifecycle), and provide post-event feedback for analysis (e.g., how did we fare? did we allocate funds correctly?).
Myth #2 – Project Management software is too expensive
If your idea of project management software involves purchasing servers, and purchasing a software application from a major vendor for a small practice with 10 practitioners then, yes, it is too expensive. If, however, you have gone cloud and elected to use a powerful web-based project management solution (such as Smartsheet), then you are likely to save thousands of pounds while reaping the benefits of a pay-as-you-go price structure. The present, and future, lie in cloud solutions that provide equal, or superior, functionality at a fraction of the cost.
Myth #3 – Project Management methodologies will slow us down
Project managers have a reputation of using process-intensive methodologies that favour ideology over pragmatism. In some instances this may, indeed, be the case when there is a mismatch between a specific project management approach and the organisation’s acutall needs (e.g., a process-driven method, such as PRINCE2, may not be appropriate for a slightly chaotic environment that favours an adaptive approach, such as Scrum). So, in sum, put down the paint roller (“Project Management isn’t for us!”) and take out your fine-bristled brush (“The Critical-Chain method may not be our cup of tea, but Agile on the other hand”¦”).
Myth #4 – Facts and figures are more important than feelings and perceptions
While facts are very important, projects are often derailed and sabotaged because of false perceptions. The PM must pay attention to both fact and fiction to navigate through turbulent organisational change.
Myth #5 – Project managers need to be detail oriented and not strategic in nature
While it is of the utmost importance for the project manager to understand how to read the details of the project, they must also understand how the project supports organisational objectives. Having a strategic perspective adds great value to the skill-set of the project manager.
Myth #6 Rely on the experts in everything that you do
It is true, we do need to rely on the experts but our trust can not be a blind faith. The job of the project managers in this area is twofold. First we must extract information and second we must verify that the information is accurate. A good example of this is asking a planner to provide an estimate on the effort required to perform a task. In some instances team members forget to include tasks which ultimately results in a faulty estimate.
Myth #7 All the battles have to be fought and won so that we can succeed
Project managers sometimes make the assumption that they need to stand firm to get the job done, however, coming to compromise on a particular issue is often a better course of action in order to win the war.
Myth #8 Project Managers can wear multiple hats
Wearing different hats can be extremely confusing. This is especially true if the project manager is asked to be a business analyst or technical expert on top of serving in their PM role. They end up doing both roles with mediocrity. When we “wear two hats” we essentially tell ourselves that both hats fit on one head at the same time. However, what happens if the demands of two roles conflict and what assurances do we have that we’re managing the inherent conflict of multiple roles and the risks the roles introduce? Sadly, multiple roles become more common as we move up the management hierarchy in an organisation, and that’s exactly where potential conflicts of interest can do the most harm.
Myth #9 Once the risk register is created, it’s full speed ahead
Risk management provides a forward-looking radar. We can use it to scan the uncertain future to reveal things that could affect us, giving us sufficient time to prepare in advance. We can develop contingency plans even for so-called uncontrollable risks, and be ready to deal with likely threats or significant opportunities. Too often, it’s not until a catastrophic event occurs and significantly impacts project progress that ongoing risk reviews are conducted.
Myth #10 Project managers can not be effective in their role unless they have specific technical expertise in the given field that the project falls within
You don’t need to be an engineer to manage a construction project or a IT technician to manage a software development project. All you need is a fundamental understanding with strong PM skills to manage the team. Experience in the field helps but does not guarantee success.
Project management is challenging enough without the myths. The profession has come a long way since the 1990s and some of these myths are fading. However, we still see remnants of them in one form or another. Great projects cut through false assumptions and confusion, allowing their teams to make smart decisions based on reality.
These are just 10 project management myths, what are yours?
13 Basic Facts You Should Know about Modular Homes
Modular homes sometimes referred to as “factory-built construction“, encompass a category of housing built in sections typically at a factory location. These houses must conform to local and regional building codes for the country the buyer plans to situate the dwelling.
Just like site-built housing, construction teams build modular homes to last and increase in value over time. As the factory finishes building sections of the house, each piece is transported to the homeowners build site on large truck beds. Local building contractors then assemble the house and inspectors ensure the manufacturer has built your residence to code. Most customers find that modular housing is less expensive than site-built homes.
1. Benefits of Construction
One of the benefits of construction is that manufacturers build them indoors in an enclosed factory setting, where the materials used to build the homes are not subject to adverse weather during construction.
Most building contractors can finish erecting a house in as little as 1-2 weeks, though it may take up to 4 weeks or more for local contractors to finish building the dwelling on-site once it has been delivered.
2. Differences Between Modular and Site Built
Modular homes are not the same as site-built homes, which contractors create 100% at the build site. That means the
contractor must collect all the materials for a house and built it on-site. Like a modular home, the site-built home must conform to all regional, state and local building codes. Many refer to site-built construction as stick-built homes. Stick built housing is also well-built and designed to last a lifetime.
3. Difference Between Modular and Manufactured
Manufactured housing is another form of factory construction. Many consumers have mistakenly referred to these homes in the past as mobile homes. Others refer to manufactured homes as trailers. Manufacturers do build these houses in a factory like modular homes on a steel chassis.
The manufacturer then transports sections of the home to the building site as completed. These dwellings are usually less expensive than both modular housing and site built housing, in part because they don’t come with a permanent foundation. Trailers and mobile homes are more likely to depreciate than modular or site built homes.
4, Advantages of Modular Construction Over Site Built
Modular homes offer many advantages over traditional site built dwellings. Many consider modular homes a hybrid breed of housing. Not a manufactured house and not a site built house, these homes offer consumers multiple benefits including costs savings, quality and convenience. In many ways modular homes surpasses site built housing in quality and efficiency.
Modulars have grown up. They are more and more becoming a mainstream selection for first time and secondary homebuyers. Most people now realise they don’t’ have to give up design quality or customization to buy a prefabricated house. One of the biggest misconceptions people have of prefabricated housing is they are look alike. “Boxy” is not a word that can begin to describe prefab dwellings. In fact, more suitable descriptions of these buidlings would include: “Elegant, durable, customised and high-class”. Many people find they can afford to include more specialization and customization when they buy a factory built house over a traditional stick built construction.
5. Cutting-edge Designs
Looking for a building design with a little pizzazz? You need to check out the latest architectural designs associated with prefabricated buildings. Firms are now building more elegant and unique designs to meet the increasing demands of selective customers. People are selecting modular designs over stick built designs to build their dream homes.
6. Customised Design and Modification
There are hundreds of companies that offer modular prefabricated construction kits and plans, and most employ various architects and specialized designers to help customize your home. That means you have more choices and a wider selection of designers to choose from. If you don’t find a style you like with one designer you can often move onto another, without even switching manufacturers.
7. Huge Range of Selection
Its always best to select a home that matches your lifestyle and design preferences.
8. Rapid Customisation
These are often the ideal selection for homeowners in need of a speedily designed homes. You simply can’t build a dwelling faster. Site built housing can take months to design and build. A manufacturer can design and place a prefab house in a few short weeks. You can pick from just as many different styles as you would a site built home if not more, but don’t have to wait weeks for contractors to build your custom house.
9. Precise Budgeting and Timing
Yet another benefit of these designs is the lack of guesswork involved. You don’t have to worry about how something will look. You know that everything will arrive to the build site complete and you will know the exact outcome. You also don’t need to worry about unexpected expenses, which is commonly the case with site built homes. With a prefabricated house, you know exactly what your home will cost and can control that cost from the point of buying to final construction. This isn’t the case with stick built housing. With stick built housing you also have to worry about surprises in the middle of construction. It isn’t uncommon for example, for a contractor to quit in the middle of a project. If this happens you have few choices.
Your home will sit partially built until you are able to find a new construction team. This alone may cost you valuable time and money.
10. Improved Energy Efficiency
Many prefab houses also come with what manufacturers call the “Energy Star” certification. This is a national company that promotes energy efficiency. Buildings with this label use 30-40 percent less energy yearly than traditional stick built housing.
This saves you time and money. Some key features of prefabricated housing that help improve energy efficiency include tight installation, high performance and weather resistant windows, controlled air systems and duct systems, upgraded air-conditioning and heating units and use of efficient lighting and heating appliances. As a bonus, these features not only save on annual energy costs but also improve the quality of your indoor air. Think energy efficiency isn’t significant? Think again. Over the lifetime of your house you could save thousands of pounds in energy bills by buying a prefabricated dwelling.
11. Design Modification is Easier
Most prefab homemakers now use computer aided design systems when conducting operations. This adds to the efficiency of construction and improves the appearance and architecture of homes. Prefabricated construction ranges from plain vanilla styling to intricate and complex modern designs.
12. On Time and on Budget
Perhaps the two biggest features or benefits of prefabricated housing that manufacturers hone in on are the speed that they can be built with and the competitive pricing they can offer on the final product. This is one reason that modular homes are gaining popularity.
13. Appreciate in Value
These dwellings also appreciate much like site built housing designs. Most homeowners are interested in building value in their house over time. Prefab housing afford you the opportunity to do this (keep in mind however much appreciation is dependent on real estate location). Select a good build site and your house will gain significant value over time. Other factors may also affect appreciation including landscaping and how well the house is cared for year after year. These factors also affect site built housing. Unlike mobile homes, which depreciate, a modular homeowner can expect to gain value from their home year after year. Study after study suggests that modular homes appreciate just as well as site built homes. They are also just as easily insured and financed.
As far as risk goes, you are no more at risk buying prefabricated housing than site built construction.
Modular Home Facts
- Modular homes appraise the same as their on-site built counterparts do.
- Modular homes can be more easilly customised.
- Most modular home companies have their own in-house engineering departments that utilize CAD (Computer Aided Design).
- Modular home designs vary in style and size.
- Modular homes are permanent structures – “real property.”
- Modular homes are considered a form of “Green Building.”
- Modular homes are faster to build than a 100% site-built home.
- Home loans for modular are the same as if buying a 100% site-built home.
- Insuring your modular home is the same as a 100% site-built home.
- Modular homes can be built to withstand 175 mph winds.
- Modular homes can be built for accessible living and designed for future conveniences.
Would you consider a modular home for yourself, or are you more of a traditionalist?
