Painless Project Management: A Step-by-Step Guide for Planning, Executing, and Managing Projects

by Pamela McGhee, Peter McAliney

A detailed guide to successful, efficient project management, written by two pros with a combined 55 years "in the trenches!" Project management is a vital and growing component of many organizations and can literally make or break a company. In this step-by-step guide, two project management consultants present a comprehensive guide to effective project management, complete with real stories and case studies from actual project managers. This straightforward guide cuts through the technical jargon to present an easy-to-follow, easy-to-learn approach to executing any project from beginning to end. Project managers, as well as those who want to learn more about project management, will find this guide to be an indispensable resource for all their projects.

Genres: Nonfiction, Management

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of those books with painfully obvious information dressed up as if it's a new idea.

For example, on page 130, there's a graph with word bubbles and arrows going left to right. On the left is "Begin", on the right is "Project Done" and in between are "Step 1" , "Step 2", etc.
Seriously?

More problematically, this book represents the standard practices I've seen in umpteen failed projects. Ike said something like "Planning is everything, but plans are useless." A truly good project management book would explicate that and not focus so much on the mechanics of the plan. I'm still looking for that book.

[Loreley · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's very well written; most of the textbooks are boring as hell and just reading one page is tiring - but I kept reading this one with unexpected pleasure and interest. Real-life examples helped too. Some concepts that confused me in other textbooks were explained more clearly here; diagrams and charts were easy to understand as well.
I bought this book for reviewing before exams, but I imagine it can be very useful for practicing managers.