Practical Project Management for Creative Projects – 2021
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Project management is key to getting any idea from start to finish, but video projects face special challenges that set them apart from traditional business projects. In this session, Rich Harrington introduces the core concepts of effective project management as it relates to work in video production. Rich shares insights from his many years as a business owner and creative professional, bringing together full-time employees, contractors, and freelancers to plan and execute high-level creative projects that keep clients happy. • The "What's" and "Why's" of project management • Understanding services offered • Project management core concepts • Scoping a creative project • Estimating time • Client communication • Project control cycle • Managing employees and contractors • Effective teams • Keeping clients happy • Closing out the project
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Practical Project Management for Creative Projects – 2021
- 1. Practical Project Management for Creative Projects Richard Harrington
- 2. Course Overview • The "What's" and "Why's" of project management • Understanding services o ff ered • Project management core concepts • Scoping a creative project • Estimating time • Client communication
- 3. Course Overview • Project control cycle • Managing employees and contractors • E ff ective teams • Keeping clients happy • Closing out the project
- 7. Richard Harrington I'm a visual storyteller exploring the fusion of photography and video. I'm also a husband & father
- 8. Vital Statistics • Author 40+ Books • Author 200+ Video Courses • Publisher of Photofocus & ThinkTAP Learn • Conference Speaker • Business Owner • Photographer • Product manager
- 10. Past Projects • America Online • American Diabetes Association • American Israel Public A ff airs Commi tt ee • American Red Cross • Apple • Children's National Medical Center • Department of Veterans Administration • Drobo • Federal Communications Commission • Google • lynda.com • Microso ft • Skylum • Smithsonian Institute • Under Armour • US Air Force
- 11. Advisory and Consultant Projects • Television Networks • ABC News • CNN • Discovery Channel • Major League Baseball Network • NASCAR • Turner Networks • Technology • Adobe Creative Cloud Advisory Board • Apple • Athentech • Pearson Education • Skylum So ft ware
- 13. Jobs I’ve Held • Reporter • Director • Graphic artist • Editor • Producer • Publisher • Production manager • Writer • Blogger and Podcaster
- 14. What They Have in Common • Storyteller • Communications consultant • Entertainer • Documentarian • Manager • Journalist
- 16. The “What’s" and “Why’s" of Project Management
- 17. Why Use Project Management? • Be tt er control • Be tt er customer relations • Be tt er communication • Higher quality results
- 18. When Not to Use Project Management • Functional organization • Accounting • Personnel • Immature employees • Routine operations
- 20. If you have a bad feeling... say something
- 21. Make sure the client knows that you care about their project
- 22. Always try to think about things from the client’s point of view
- 23. www.pmi.org
- 24. Project Management Institute • Professional organization founded in 1969 • 3 million+ professionals working in nearly every country in the world • Global advocacy, collaboration, education, and research • Advance careers • Improve organizational success • Mature the profession of project management • Foster ethics in project management
- 26. Capabilities • Internal services • External services • Make vs. buy • Scaling services over time
- 27. Competitive Advantages • Unique • Something you o ff er that others do not • Perception • Something you o ff er that enforces market perception or advantage • Positioning • Something you o ff er to defend against a competitor or changing market condition © Vanelli
- 28. Outsourcing • Local • National • International • Researching
- 29. Partnering • Formal • Wri tt en agreement • Payment terms • Informal • Core team • Freelance talent
- 31. The Bo tt om Line • Project management is a collection of business practices and it works • It is not a fad, it is not new, it is just ge tt ing the a tt ention it deserves • As pace quickens, budget and workforce are shrinking • By employing an organized, tactical approach you can thrive in the changing fi lm/video/photo industry • You can never be too busy to manage a project
- 33. Triple Constraint • Scope: • What is the work that must be completed? • Schedule: • What are the time constraints for the project? • Budget: • What are the fi nancial constraints of the project?
- 34. Triple Constraint • Learning to balance these is essential to your success • There is a fourth force at work that holds all three together, QUALITY • Simply put, Good, Fast, Cheap… Pick Two! • You job is to balance all of these
- 35. Project Objectives • Schedule • Performance • Cost
- 36. Characteristics of a Project • Purpose • Temporary • Unique • Resources • Cost/Time constraints • Interdependencies • Life cycle – Tasks • Con fl ict • Risk
- 38. The Project Management Process • Develop the concept • Select the Project Manager • Identify the resources needed • De fi ne the goals • Create a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) • Match workers to the work • Select team members • Estimate time for tasks
- 39. The Project Management Process • Create a schedule • Finalize the budget • Build a project plan • Execute the work • Coordinate e ff orts • Measure and evaluate progress • Take corrective action • Test
- 40. The Project Management Process • Obtain client sign o ff • Transfer the project to client • Analyze the work and process • Archive the resources • Have a debrief (client and/or internal) • Create an internal report or notes
- 41. The Creative Lifecycle • Client call or email • Project kicko ff meeting • Budget and schedule • Work initiated • Client reviews • Project delivery
- 42. The Creative Lifecycle • Projects start o ff behind • Rush to start • Driven by deliverables • Many key tasks o ft en overlooked or assumed • Struggle to balance creative with budget
- 44. Scoping the Project • Will take 2—16 hours to complete • Document 2—10 pages • Will become the charter • Get all key players to a tt end • Quiet room/no distractions • Get sign o f
- 45. Project Name • Check with client • Descriptive • Unique • Alpha/numeric combo • Match purchase order
- 46. Executive Summary • What the project is all about • What makes it unique • Easy for a decision-maker to understand • Why the project should be funded or not canceled
- 47. Re fi ning Scope • Be speci fi c • Avoid adjectives • More details, not less • Build the box and fi ll it up
- 48. Key Roles • Executive Sponsor • The internal or external client • Project Manager • The individual in charge of the project • Business Experts • Team members who understand the business aspects of the project • Technical Experts • Team members who understand the technical aspects of the project
- 49. Scoping Document • Project name • Executive summary • Background • Project scope (High level) • Key roles • Signature lines — Sign o ff “charter”
- 51. Knowledge is Happiness • Clear de fi nition of work to be performed • Clear expectation on acceptance criteria • Identi fi cation of deadlines to be achieved • Team established • Leadership identi fi ed
- 52. The Joy of Contracts • Fundamental to the business relationship • Minimize con fl ict • Identi fi es risk • Allows for smart growth
- 53. Creating a technical brief • Photography • Capture format(s) • Delivery format(s) • Color space • Resolution • Video • Capture • CODEC • File format • Delivery format(s) • CODEC • File format • Resolution
- 54. Estimating Time
- 55. Using Historical Data • Time logs from similar projects • Past budgets • Knowledge of employees • Knowledge of subject ma tt er experts
- 56. (1 Optimistic + 4 Most Likely + 1 Pessimistic) ________________ 6
- 57. Peer Review • Number checking • Forgo tt en charges • Plausibility • “Second opinion”
- 58. External Review • Peers in di ff erent market • Strategic partners • Subject ma tt er experts
- 59. When to Pad the Budget • Known unknowns • Rushed schedule • Di ffi cult to recover cost overruns • When client asks you to
- 60. XYZ Tradeshow Video Kiosk Video Assets Kiosk with Menus Manufacturing Capturing Video Audio Sweetening Color Correction Encoding Storyboard Designs Components Photoshop Menus Kiosk Authoring Assembly Shipping Setup and Installation Work Breakdown Structure • Key to budgeting • Identify major tasks to be completed • Keep breaking the job down into smaller pieces until you can accurately budget it and create time estimates • Get input from client and team
- 61. XYZ Tradeshow Video Kiosk Video Assets Kiosk with Menus Manufacturing Project Management Capturing Video Audio Sweetening Color Correction Encoding Storyboard Designs Components Asset Acquisition Photoshop Menus Kiosk Authoring Assembly Shipping Setup and Installation Client Communication Quality Control
- 65. In Progress Reports • Communicate to the client where the project is at • Best to be proactive… delaying ‘bad’ news only makes it worse • Do not be overly optimistic or pessimistic… • Be realistic
- 66. In Progress Reports • Identify milestones complete • Report percentage complete on tasks in progress • Identify tasks not yet started • Agree on regularity of reports with clients in advance • DON’T MAKE THEM ASK!
- 67. Pre-Production • Name project • Project team and manager • Post scoping document, schedule, and milestones • Post budget or time requirements • Post tech brief • Collaborative scriptwriting
- 68. Production • Create shot list • Crew meeting notes • Gather graphic assets • Post production documents
- 69. Postproduction • Review graphics • Review edits • Track changes • Exchange fi les • Compression delivery
- 70. Project Closeout • Change order reconciliation • Time tracking/ fi nal billing • Client asset tracking • Music reporting • Project debrief
- 71. • Delivery speed • Deliver to multiple people simultaneously • Scalable infrastructure • Scalability in systems for review • Interactive and collaborative tools The Reasons to Use Online Collaboration
- 72. • Need to learn new language, skills, and so ft ware • Potentially requires investment • Higher rate of failure on delivery • OS, so ft ware, and other setup variables • Potential annoyance by clients/team members waiting for downloads The Reasons Not to Use Online Collaboration
- 73. Essential Features • Time-tracking • Change-tracking • Cross-platform • Permissions • Web-based scheduling • Whiteboards • Milestone tracking • File transfer • Video review • Threaded messages • Email noti fi cation • Private messages • Team rosters • Chat/IM
- 74. Basecamp • Online system • Widely used • Supports common media types • Scaleable
- 75. www.basecamp.com
- 77. Creating a Slack Channel • Organize your team conversations in open channels • Make a channel for a project • Everyone has a transparent view of all that’s going on • For sensitive information, create private channels and invite a few team members
- 78. Use Slack for Messaging • Send messages directly to a person • Send messages to a small group • Supports both voice or video calls • Make one-on-one or group calls right from Slack
- 79. Use Slack for File Sharing • Supports most fi les including images, PDFs, documents, and spreadsheets • Share with anyone you want with both private and public links • Add comments to fi les • Archive is searchable • Integrates with Google Drive, Dropbox, or Box
- 80. Use Slack for File Sharing • Storage Allotment • Free plan — 5GB total for the entire team • Standard plan — 10GB per team member • Plus plan — 20GB per team member
- 82. Searchable Archives • Everything in Slack—messages, noti fi cations, fi les, and all—is automatically indexed and archived • Slack also indexes the content of every fi le so you can search within PDFs, Word documents, Google docs, and more • Set a powerful search with advanced operators to quickly locate items
- 86. Sample Photo Shoot Control Cycle • Identify objectives • Secure the location • Identify gear needs • Identify crew needs • Capture the images • Onsite image backup • 3-2-1 backup of images • Photo selects • Photo postproduction • Client review • Client hando ff • Additional deliverables • Archives
- 91. Balancing Control with Speed • By employing an organized, tactical approach you can thrive in the changing fi lm/video/photo industry • You can never be too busy to manage a project
- 96. Time Tracking • Critical for time and materials work • Evaluate your fi xed price jobs • Use of so ft ware systems • Frequency of reports
- 97. Recruiting Contractors • Join local professional groups • Ask peers or existing vendors • Join user group communities • DSLR meetups • Photo Walks • meetup.com • Apple and Adobe user groups • LinkedIn
- 98. Managing Contractors • Clear expectations • Job rate vs. hourly rate • Reporting frequency • Supervision
- 99. When to Hire Sta f • Many issues to consider • Look at frequently hired freelance positions • Evaluate personnel expenditures annually • Consider other costs • May not be able to get fi rst choice • The more dollars you can keep internal, the easier it is to control the project and reduce risk
- 100. Employee Status • When working with contractors, especially long-term • Be careful to follow rules • h tt ps://tinyurl.com/goton2t
- 101. Working with an Accountant • Most creative people are challenged by fi nances • Need to make decisions and adjustments monthly • Learn to use accounting so ft ware, but still have a person who reconciles the books and ensures accuracy
- 102. E ff ective Teams
- 103. Successful Team Start Up • Agree on the team's purpose • Identify the project stakeholders • Identify the team roles • Agree on the ground rules • Decide on team logistics
- 104. E ff ective Team Membership • Take responsibility • Follow through • Listen actively • Communicate clearly • Provide feedback • Accept feedback • Track time
- 105. • Meet individually with team members • Check in with the client and stakeholders • Evaluate severity of problems • Ensure buy-in from key team members • Avoid blame or hurt feelings…focus on problem solving • Lead by example Corrective Actions for Teams
- 106. • Share responsibilities • Encourage communication • Give clear ownership of tasks • Create a culture of accountability Encourage Leadership Amongst the Team
- 107. • Mentor individuals • Identify tasks and milestones clearly • Make critical path well-known • Have schedule and tasks publicly visible • Use a physical tracking system Fostering Team Accountability
- 109. Communication Goals • Open communication • Frequent communication • Perception is reality • Emotions have a huge impact
- 110. Always try to think about things from the client’s point of view • Potential issues • Is the fi ght worth it? • How to choose your ba tt les
- 111. The Client Debrief • Identi fi es open issues • Clears the air • Provides lessons learned • Creates an environment of trust and con fi dence • Return client assets
- 112. Being Seen as a Resource • Open and frequent communication • Connect on LinkedIn • Be well-rounded • Connect on shared interests • Respond to general questions • O ff er value added services • Pass on praise up the chain of command
- 113. Surveying Clients • Informal check-in bi-annually • Detailed survey to understand client needs and opinions • Net Promoter Score® survey
- 114. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 DETRACTORS PASSIVES PROMOTERS NET PROMOTER SCORE X 100 –
- 115. Closing Out the Project
- 117. When is a Project Done? • Check the scope of work • Check change orders • Ensure all deliverables are met • Ensure all deliverables are accepted • Formally request client sign-o ff and project closure • Initiate fi nal billing
- 118. Reconciling Change Orders • Look at original scope of work • Look through wri tt en change orders • Review project notes • Discuss with team members to avoid anything slipping through • Finalize with a wri tt en report for client
- 119. Reconciling Billing • Final bill • Incorporates client constraints • Initial budget • Change orders • May be lower or higher… be honest
- 120. Delivering the Bill • Include client name • Include project or PO # • Include due date • Include payment terms
- 121. 06/30/05 Date 655 Invoice No. Metropolitan Washington Council of Govts. 777 North Capitol St. N.E. Suite 300 Washington, DC 20002 Attn: Brian L. Bill To Net 30 Days Terms 07/30/05 Due Date Working Lands Job Invoice Balance to be invoiced upon project completion Total Date Work Performed Qty Rate Amount RHED Pixel 2108-C Gallows Road Vienna, VA 22182 703-734-7433 Production Services - Prep, Shoot, and Digitze video footage of Meeting 1 1,790.00 1,790.00 $1,790.00 06/30/21 07/30/21
- 122. The Project Debrief • Technical components: • Any innovations achieved • Quality and appropriateness of technologies and equipment used in project • Suggestions for technical work fl ow for similar projects • Any equipment purchases needed
- 123. The Project Debrief • Organizational components: • Any unresolved or exceptional administrative challenges • Quality of team-building and leadership • Suggestions for future management strategies • Suggestions to improve the collaborative environment
- 124. The Project Debrief • Human components: • Appraisal of professionalism • Analysis of in interpersonal skills • Appraisal of external collaborators • Appraisal of client
- 125. The Project Debrief • Logistic components: • Was the project managed in a rational way? • Were there any wasted e ff orts or resources? • Was the schedule for the project achievable without major cost or performance issues? • Was the work environment safe and risk-free?
- 126. Capturing Lessons Learned • Ask team members to debrief on their own • Capture debriefs a ft er the meeting • Document all thoughts • Share with management and internal stakeholders • Archive for future reference and projects
- 127. Archiving the Project • Backup project fi les • Backup source fi les • Create archival-quality master fi les for all deliverables • Log all licenses • Updating project closeout notes
- 128. Conclusion
- 130. There’s always somebody willing to work for less than you.
- 131. There’s always somebody who has more talent than you.
- 132. There’s always somebody who’s smarter than you.
- 133. There’s nobody out there who is exactly like you.
- 134. When they can, people choose to do business with people they like and respect.
- 135. Be real… Be nice… Be you...
- 137. www.pmi.org