Successful Project Management [with Microsoft Project 2003 CD-ROM]

by Jack Gido, James P. Clements

This text covers everything students need to know about working successfully in a project environment, including how to organize and manage effective project teams. Communication is also emphasized, with a focus on how to document and communicate project developments within and outside of the team. In-depth coverage of planning, scheduling, and cost estimating is also included.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Textbooks, School, Reference

Hardcover

Published August 10, 2004

Reviews

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the worst textbook I’ve read but not the best either. The authors have a fairly simple writing style which made the material easy to read and understand. The Microsoft project exercises were useful in learning how to apply the topics discussed, however they are out of date at this point and some of the steps they describe aren’t applicable anymore to the new ms project interface.
So overall a fine book, but dry as a bone. That’s my biggest complaint. Granted I realize there’s only so much you can do to make project management interesting, but even so it was still difficult to get through because of my eyes glazing over.
That being said I am keeping this as a reference for when I’m working on a project.

Five stars for content, two for readability.

[Grant Cousineau · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having been a part of projects for quite a number of years -- from an Eagle Scout project when I was 17, to being a small part of opening two new grocery stores in my early 20s, to my current role in strategic product positioning (which is almost entirely a project-based role), it was refreshing to have an MBA class discuss such a familiar topic, yet break down the process of project management into manageable components. I found this particular textbook easy to read and follow, and the corresponding Cengage online materials both helpful and useful. In fact, I kind of love the ability to take quizzes and check my work along the way, emphasizing learning over memorization. (Don't worry, the professor assigned other homework to reinforce utilization and understanding of the unit content.)

In fact, one thing I particularly enjoyed was that for many chapters, the end-of-chapter assignments compounded upon the same example. Our class followed the one about the medical research non-profit that was refreshing its annual reports to better educate its audience with visuals as well as attract more donors. To stick with that same example week to week, adding layer after layer like the work breakdown structure through budgeting and risk assessment, it helped give a really good sense of what it'd be like to work on the same project over a longer period of time, focusing on each component of project management separately, yet see how it was all interconnected.

However, I will say some of the content within the book felt either redundant or obvious, and those end-of-chapter quizzes were odd. Even with multiple-choice questions, sometimes the choices all felt like they were basically synonyms saying the same thing. It tests you on the exact phraseology used in the book and tries to throw you off by just reshuffling similar words to trick you, even if you understand the general concept. Additionally, some chapters were relatively short, and the quizzes were elongated to stick to a consistent 20 questions per chapter, even if some of those questions were redundant. In short, I'm giving this a three out of five because I felt like the same amount of content could've been covered in half the text and work. That said, I did still find this a valuable resource.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Successful Project Management by Jack Gido, is a competent companion to the PMBOK in explaining and outlining the basics of Project Management techniques in a more readable and understandable format. The PMBO is notoriously technical in nature, and so this was the textbook used in my introductory courses in Project Management. The basics are covered, from planning and scheduling, to risk management, to budgeting, to monitoring and controlling, project tasks are well defined, and clear examples are given to assist in study. I did have some issues with a few sections of this book. For example, Gido seems to have involved himself in dispute over task networking, using a 0 day start for projects, although I have been taught to start at day 1 when doing a PDM or critical path diagram. Small issues like this exist, but overall, this was a good textbook to use for introductory Project Management concepts, and offers a good counterpoint to the more dry and technical PMBOK.

[bella]

reading this cover to cover for a class i despised was… a lot! i hated this class as i had a really shitty professor.
but, as far as textbooks go, this one did an excellent job at approaching the material in an easy to understand/digestible way. so, it wasn’t all bad.

[Yeshin Singh]

Great

[Anastasia Artamonova · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good read, helpful advice and case studies. Lots of common sense written out.

[Shahan Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is well organized. Used this for the MBA Project Management class. The information is quite easy to learn.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basic project management book. Nothing too in-depth. Would have preferred something that sticks closer to PMI standards. But good basic book for a project management beginner.

[Christian Oleson · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a textbook. I used this as the main material for a Master’s level project management course. It’s beneficial, and I like the ability to check what you are learning throughout the chapter. However, some places it could be more succinct, while other places, especially in regards to applications for information systems and software development, should be expanded (after all, we live in a technologically drive world).

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I read it for a class; but found that it has a wealth of knowledge. I'll be keeping this book for my personal collection as I am sure that I will be referring to it throughout my career.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book with lots of good ideas and information about Project Management

[Peterwilliam]

grad school textbook - no rating/review

[Jorge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent as a textbook!

[Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

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