Improving Project Communication Drives Move to APM Methodology For Client Projects

– Parallel Project Training supports and develops professional project managers in achieving enhanced project communications –

Reading, UK. 26 May 2011: Recent project management training courses held in Reading and Swindon are being credited with improving communications in major client projects and enabling clients to understand the wider context of decisions that are being taken. The substantial practical experience of delegates was developed by the training into an understanding of how formal project management methods could bring consistency across projects.
For Q-Log project management consultant Ben Young, the driving force behind attending the APMP and APM PQ training courses was to develop better and more formal methods of communicating to clients in a project environment. He needed the ability to communicate demonstrable milestones clearly and effectively with clients to encourage them to engage with the projects.
His previous experience managing projects using the Six Sigma strategy focussed on tracking financial targets and volatility relative to costs but this method was ineffective for communicating what a project was aiming to achieve. Neither did it prove clear enough for communicating the broader context of a project and the reasons why a process was being changed and why certain decisions were taken. The APM methodology enables project managers to demonstrate the value and worth of a project and communicate that to all those affected.
Ben commented “I had a fantastic, refreshing experience with Parallel Project Training. They supported me and developed me as an individual both before and after the courses. Especially beneficial was the one-to-one coaching to help me gain the tough APM PQ qualification. I can now apply reasoned solutions to client projects to help resolve issues more readily. The Parallel trainers were very knowledgeable and supportive and they helped identify my personal strengths and gaps in my knowledge. In client situations like the Q-Log consultancy there is a requirement to continually justify decisions that are taken on projects. The formal APM methodology now enables me to do this with ease.”
The qualifications gained from these project management courses are valuable for a project manager’s personal development but of more benefit was the formalisation of delegates’ understanding of project management methods. The next step in Ben’s progress to chartered professional status is the APM RPP qualification, which will also enhance the professional standing of Q-Log as more of its project managers achieve chartered status.