Uub-Project Strategy? Separate & Link vs. Sub-Task... Mike?

[EarlePearce]

I am a former user (P97) introducing Project into my new company. I never
was really proficient with Project 97 and so am starting over.

This is an engineering firm with about 100 new projects a year, most of
which last a couple years. I'm new to the company but see they add about 100
projects a year so the decisions I make now will have a lasting impact on PM.

We have 1 resource pool and while one of the PMs take ownership, they all
help meet deadlines. Same for drafters and integrators. Our clients are
usually large architectural firms who set most of our milestones as
deliverables. Our most significant issue is that of over allocating
resources causing continual drama to meet dates.

It was suggested that I keep all projects within a master project called
<company name> and projects become subtasks to that. I've looked at linking
projects and carry this concern that if a change is made in one and something
breaks I'll loose the whole thing.

I really want to do what works now AND forever for this company, so should I
commit to linked projects or put all projects into 1 file? Is it a
no-brainer or a toss-up?

I'm sure I can grasp the all-in-one methodology, however if the call is
linked, where do I start learning the real stuff I need?

Sorry it's so long a request.

Earle

 

[Rod Gill]

Linked projects and resource pools are problematic in that using the old
DDDE technology it is a matter of when you get file corruptions, not if as
you will never get that many project managers to 100% reliably manage files
correctly (EG never rename, over-write or move without first detaching from
the pool etc.

For this number of projects I think you need to look seriously at Project
Server and engage a Microsoft Partner with good EPM experience to implement
it for you and provide the training and help you produce the processes that
will add the value your organization needs.

--

Rod Gill
Project MVP

Project VBA Book, for details visit:
http://www.projectvbabook.com

NEW!! Web based VBA training course delivered by me. For details visit:
http://projectservertraining.com/learning/index.aspx

 

[Jim Aksel]

Rod's last point is the best suggestion -- you should probably get Project
Server and deal with it that way. You can become the Server King and let the
managers manage their own project files on the desktop versions using the
features of server.

If the company elects to pass on Server (it is an expensive commitment), the
better approach is separate project files with one master. In this instance,
as long as you lock down the location of where the files are stored you can
delay the DDE concerns in Rod's post.

Although expensive, ask yourself this -- How much are we willing to pay to
continuously monitor and deal with the integration issues that will come into
play without server. With 100 projects I guarantee you will need several
full time heads to manage it properly. With Server, that headcount can drop.

At my present engagement, we sometimes have 2 schedulers full time on one
project. The company seems to think the upper limit is about 8 projects for
one scheduler without going to Server. A project file is typically about 500
lines here, although some run into the thousands.
--
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Jim
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