Appendix B. Develop your project-management skills
If you completed most of or all the chapters in this book, you’re well on your way to mastering Microsoft Project 2016. However, one book can get you only so far. To help further your knowledge of Project and project management, start with the sources listed in this appendix.
Join a Project learning community
Many Project users love to talk about the program and their work with it and to share ideas with others. Whether you work in a large organization or independently, you’re likely to find a community of Project users nearby.
If you’re in a large organization, especially one with a strong project-management focus, you might find an internal Project user group or support group there. Such groups often meet informally to provide peer training and support, critique plans, and share best practices. If such a group does not exist in your organization, perhaps you can start one.
In the public realm, there are many Project user groups around the world. These groups typically meet on a regular basis to share tips and tricks about Project. Joining a user group is a great way to broaden your exposure to Project usage; it also can be a great source for informal product support, training, and career networking.
The following are a few places where you can investigate Project user groups and related resources:
The Microsoft Project User Group (MPUG) is the official industry association for Project. MPUG offers information about a variety of Project and project-management resources, in addition to a directory of Project user groups around the world. Find it on the web at mpug.com.
The Microsoft and Office website includes a variety of tools and information to help you succeed with Project. Useful pages include:
• The main Project product page at https://products.office.com/project.
• Help and customer support at https://support.office.com.
• Community questions and answers about Project at answers.microsoft.com.
• In-depth blog posts from the Project product team members at https://blogs.office.com/project.
To showcase your Project expertise formally, you can become certified. Microsoft developed certifications for Project and enterprise project-management solutions. To learn about training opportunities and requirements for Project-related certifications, visit https://www.microsoft.com/learning.
Join a project-management learning community
Perhaps more than other desktop programs, Project requires you to be involved in a specific formal activity: project management. Project management can be an exciting mix of technical, organizational, and social challenges. The Project Management Institute (PMI) is the leading organization of professional project management. PMI focuses on setting project-management standards, developing and offering educational programs, and certifying project managers. The most widely recognized PMI certification is the Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge—published by the PMI and referred to as the PMBOK (pronounced “pimbok”) describes generally accepted project-management practices, knowledge areas, and terminology. In addition, the PMI publishes the Project Management Journal and PM Network journals. You can learn more about the PMI on the web at pmi.org. If you are professionally invested in the practice of project management, you should be in the PMI.
Tip
Project includes some PMI-related and PMBOK-related templates that might be of interest to you. These include the Project Management Institute Process and PMBOK Compliant Project Management templates. To view these, click the File tab, click New, and then click them in the list of available templates.
There are, of course, many worthwhile commercial and nonprofit organizations dedicated to Project and project management besides those we have described here. Project enjoys a leading position in the diverse, sometimes contentious, but always interesting world of project management. Wherever you are in your own Project and project-management knowledge and career development, you can find a great variety of supporting organizations and peers today. The authors wish you the greatest success!