Tools and Techniques: The Holy Grail of Project Management

Project management requires the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to achieve the goals of the project. According to PMBOK, “Tools and Techniques” is the specific tangible resource or defined procedure that is used in the performance of a process. Many tools and techniques that are mentioned in the PMBOK Guide are general and can be used in other contexts. There are hundreds of tools and techniques available to manage any project effectively. Below mentioned tools and techniques are extracted from A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) – Sixth Edition. But this is not a compressive list, I have mentioned here only selected tools and techniques which are frequently used in projects. I am sharing a list of only important tools and techniques, for details please refer PMBOK. Please build a solid, understanding of each tool or technique for effective project management.

 

Data Gathering Tools and Techniques

 

·       Benchmarking 

·       Brainstorming 

·       Check Sheets

·       Checklists 

·       Focus Groups 

·       Interviews

·       Market Research

·       Questionnaires and Surveys

·       Statistical Sampling

 

Data Analysis Tools and Techniques

 

·       Alternatives Analysis

·       Assessment of Other Risk Parameters

·       Assumption and Constraint Analysis

·       Cost of Quality

·       Cost‐Benefit Analysis

·       Decision Tree Analysis

·       Document Analysis

·       Earned Value Analysis

·       Influence Diagrams

·       Iteration Burndown Chart

·       Make or Buy Analysis

·       Performance Reviews

·       Process Analysis

·       Proposal Evaluation

·       Regression Analysis

·       Reserve Analysis

·       Risk Data Quality Assessment

·       Risk Probability and Impact Assessment

·       Root Cause Analysis

·       Sensitivity Analysis

·       Simulation

·       Stakeholder Analysis

·       SWOT Analysis

·       Technical Performance Analysis

·       Trend Analysis

·       Variance Analysis

·       What‐if Scenario Assessment

 

Data Representation Tools and Techniques

 

·       Affinity Diagrams

·       Cause‐and‐Effect Diagrams

·       Control Charts

·       Flow Charts

·       Hierarchical Charts

·       Logical Data Model

·       Matrix Diagrams

·       Matrix‐Based Charts

·       Mind Mapping

·       Probability and Impact Matrix

·       Scatter Diagrams

·       Stakeholder Engagement and Assessment Matrix

·       Stakeholder Mapping

·       Text‐Oriented Formats

 

Decision‐Making and Communication Skills Tools and Techniques

 

·       Multi‐Criteria Decision Analysis

·       Voting

·       Feedback

·       Presentations

 

Interpersonal and Team Tools and Techniques

 

·       Active Listening

·       Communication Styles Assessment

·       Conflict Management

·       Cultural Awareness

·       Decision Making

·       Emotional Intelligence

·       Facilitation

·       Influencing

·       Leadership

·       Meeting Management

·       Motivation

·       Negotiation

·       Networking

·       Nominal Group Technique

·       Observation/Conversation

·       Political Awareness

·       Team Building

 

Estimation Techniques Tools and Techniques

 

·       Analogous

·       Parametric

·       Bottom‐Up

·       Three‐Point

 

Other Tools and Techniques

 

·       Expert Judgment

·       Meetings

·       Decomposition

·       Problem Solving

·       Audits

·       Inspections

·       Project Management Information Systems

·       Communication Technologies

·       Change Control Tools

·       Information Management

·       Knowledge Management

·       Agile Release Planning

·       Critical Path Method

·       Dependency Determination and Integration

·       Leads and Lags

·       Precedence Diagraming Method

·       Resource Optimization

·       Rolling Wave Planning

·       Schedule Compression

·       Schedule Network analysis

·       Context Diagram

·       Product Analysis

·       Prototypes

·       Cost Aggregation

·       Financing

·       Funding Limit Reconciliation

·       Historical Information Review

·       To‐Complete Performance Index

·       Communication Methods

·       Communication Models

·       Communication Requirements Analysis

·       Design for X

·       Project Reporting

·       Quality Improvement Methods

·       Test and Inspection Planning

·       Testing/Product Evaluations

·       Colocation

·       Individual and Team Assessments

·       Organizational Theory

·       Pre‐assignment

·       Recognition and Rewards

·       Virtual Teams

·       Training

·       Contingent Response Strategies

·       Prompt Lists

·       Representations of Uncertainty

·       Risk Categorization

·       Strategies for Threats

·       Strategies for Opportunities

·       Strategies for Overall Project Risk

·       Advertising

·       Bidder Conferences

·       Claims Administration

·       Source Selection Analysis

·       Ground Rules

 

These tools and techniques are an integral part of a procedure to complete any project. You may avoid using all of them in a small project, but for multi-million projects like Burj Khalifa and Delhi Metro, avoiding all these tools and techniques is inevitable. It provides a structured system for the entire project and is a significant part of best practices across industries.