Mudassir Iqbal

No one can be a master of all; it’s too difficult a task. But you can definitely be a Jack-or-Jill-of-all-trades. As project managers, we wear multiple hats—from being facilitators and problem-solvers to translating corporate needs into actionable plans for teams and supporting assets This exposes our weaknesses on multiple fronts. I strongly believe that when it comes to project management in this advancing digital era, it’s equally important to identify your weakness—and work on them—as it is to know your strengths. Let’s look at some common weaknesses in many project managers… 1. Infrequent communication with team members:  No one negates the significance of consistent communication. Nonetheless, project managers often forget to meet with the team and provide updates to key stakeholders once the project is underway. Formulating the groundwork for everyday meetings—including who will join them to keep things on track—is essential. Project managers need to focus on having t...

Project Risk Management →  Video on Project Risk Management Changes and Risks are inevitable, you can't run from these. To be an effective project manager it is in your favour to plan for these calamities beforehand. The challenge with this planning is that both risks and changes are unknown. The war room or continuous communication and face to face interaction helps in identifying the unknown. Project Risk Management is the route to the identification, evaluation, and response to any risk that emerges and assists the project remains on track and meet its ultimate goal. Risk management is an important part of the planning process to determine the risks that might happen and how to control. As a project manager, there’s nothing better to make you sleep well at night knowing that you have got the risk to your project under control and the stakeholders know about them. "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong."   - Murphy's Law A risk is something that could p...

Project Stakeholder Management →  Video on Project Stakeholder Management Every project has stakeholders. The project wouldn’t be existing without stakeholders. Project Stakeholder management helps to build a bridge which is needed for better understanding of our audience. Stakeholders are individuals who either care about or have a vested interest in the project. They can be a supporter or adversary and may positively or negatively influence The project sponsor is the main stakeholder who expects to receive the project’s deliverables. Typically, there is a certain expectation at a particular time, budget, quality level, and other standards. A project can only be a success story if it meets its objectives and meets and sometimes exceeds the expectations of project stakeholders. The project manager must be aware of all the stakeholders, understand them, and keenly manage key stakeholders expectations and influences on the project. It’s a common scenario when many project ...

When we think of project managers, we think of team leaders accountable for delivering the project within the allocated deadline and budget set by the client. In reality, it takes a lot to become a project manager. Achieving a leadership position comes with massive responsibility and requires certain character qualities. Leaders often require at least some training in regards to soft skills. One can have the potential to become a great leader, but if he or she doesn’t have the right personality, they won't be able to make it far on just raw talent. Here are the skills that (in my point of view) are essential to be a good—and eventually great—leader: Effective communication The ability to interact with multiple people at different levels is a skill that draws a line between ordinary and great leadership. A project leader must call for clear communication regarding the project’s expectations and ultimate objectives. Therefore, he or she must be able to progressively ali...

Project Procurement Management - PMP/CAPM →  Video on Project Procurement Management No organization can deliver a project in a silo, they would need to buy a product, services or a combination of both from outside to deliver the project objectives. Project Procurement Management refers to the goods and services required to complete the project. These can be procured from other parts of the organization involved in performing the project through resource management. It refers to the formal processes that many organizations follow to acquire goods and services. Procurement Management is the procedure of choosing, monitoring, and closing vendor contracts. Managing project procurements require the project manager to effectively cooperate with the buying department on the procedure of scheduling and managing procurements. Procurement on the project will be heavily impacted how the performing organization deals with the procurement in general. What kind of policies and proced...

Resign Your Job, Not Your Dignity Most of us would agree that it’s a small world—and even smaller within professional circles. We need to make sure that we leave good impressions on the people we meet—especially where we work. I understand that this is not always possible—we can’t make everyone happy, but we must try. Preparing to embark on a new job opportunity is an exciting feeling since you are turning over an important page in your career book. Though if you are presently working, this eagerness can be outshined by the fact that you are at the point where you need to resign from the current job. You might be thinking about how to go about it. This is where the true character of all parties involved come to light. What do you think of a company that wants you to give short shrift to your previous employer by forcing you to join earlier than your notice period would allow? Would you cut your notice period in half and run away without a proper handover? And what of the company...

Project Communication Management →  Video on Project Communication Management Project Communications management is essential to any successful project; it comprises of the procedures required to ensure on time/prompt and suitable/appropriate production, assembly, dissemination, storage, and final outlook of project information. It offers crucial connections among individuals, ideas, and information that is essential for success. Organizations environment and culture impacts the level and the kind of communications one may have on the project. Many project managers have implemented the technical work to excellence in order to figure out that stakeholders are not contended due to poor communication. For that reason, project communication is equally important as the technical work.  Also, the project manager needs to communicate in case of any unexpected events. That’s the area of project risk management. T he constant and steady communication with stakeholde...