Module 4 Paper Document 2
Module 4 Paper Document 2
Module 4 Paper Document 2
Sarah Brennan
OGl 321
Module 4 Paper
how using knowledge can help visualize the future. Knowledge plays a big role in managing
projects uncertainty since it allows the project manager to plan out how projects and events will
occur. We see that tactic acknowledgement is beneficial by having the wisdom and experiences
that occur that allow managers to know how to successfully tackle a project and close deals
efficiently. The Hallmarks of effective decision making include being timeliness, deciding
whose decision it is, involving the right people to make the decision making, communication
within the team, consistency, finding the window of opportunity and lastly measuring
through all the factors of what it takes to decide on something important within the project.
I would say I agree with these assertions based on the article that was provided in step
one of this project due to a lot of examples where it could lead to successful projects and I really
do think that decision making should be thought about more directly and more thoughtfully since
needing to make knowledge based decisions daily where I really need to have some area of
experience to make those decisions. If I am not able to make that decision myself, I take a step
back to determine who would be the best fit for this area. I also agree that communication is key
since you need to have your team on board and on the same page to successfully get the work
Looking back at the simulation earlier in this module, I believe some of this information
would have helped me decide what was the best decision for the team. I had many employees on
my team not fully understanding their jobs and felt stressed that I was not communicating
enough, so I would have taken a step back to get a view of what was going wrong and host more
meetings for who and when the help was needed. The next simulation I plan to implement some
of these skills I learned today on what I face next for unexpected situations, by planning for these
When I read the article, The Tao of Project Management, It was definitely a good blog
that shows how management differences can really affect a team. I read an example in this blog
where poor management is viewed as a manager that is eager for success but does not really care
about the team. The manager is so focused on showing how clever he is and creating a hectic
work environment that the team often feels ignored and unworthy. Then we look at a wise
project manager that does not care how smart he looks in front of his team, he is just focused on
how he can get his team to do their work effectively and protect the team.
I agree with these assertions that were made in that blog, as I am thinking about my
workplace and how I see myself as a manager, I do really try to be apart of the team that is their
to help with anything and not a manager that just tells people what to do and ignore them if they
need help. It definitely is important for project managers to be on the same page and act as an
equal to their team or at least give positive reinforcement and feedback to their team in order to
have the team feel valued and understand what they should and should not be doing.
This information is important to remember since it will always benefit you as being the
wise project manager instead of the poor manager since it shows immaturity and disrespect to the
team that is working for you and for future projects that may come along and they know of your
history of managing styles. In the simulation that we completed earlier this week, I think that this
article can be a little confusing to interpret into a online scenario because I am not actually
present as a manger online, but I do think in that scenario I could have used skills of being a
present and respectful manager so that my team had more confidence of feeling understood and
communicated with.
When I read the blog of: How to Manage Risks: A Guide for Project Managers, I learned
five effective ways to manage project risks. The first one being making risk identification a team
activity, this means involving your team and brainstorming together different risk scenarios and
all come together to propose possible solutions. This is something my management team does at
Starbucks at our weekly meetings, we go over possible scenarios where we have to coach or
resolve a conflict situation and we roleplay ways we can solve these situations together and get
The second most effective way to manage project risks is to determine your risk
tolerance, meaning the risk tolerance is the amount of risk you are willing to accept to achieve
your project goals. Having this planned out will allow you to know what to do in response to a
situation that came up that didn't go as planned. The third way to decide which risks to manage is
to decide which risks you want to take action on based on your risk tolerance and the resources
available to you. The third Way is to develop a plan for mitigating risks, developing a plan of
action for either avoiding or dressing the risks that came up and protect you from costly delays
and project failures. And lastly we should track risks throughout the Project Life Cycle meaning
tracking risks throughout the project helps you identify new risks as they rise and determine
All of those effective ways to manage a project really come in handy by being prepared
for the worst outcomes while hoping for the best outcomes. You always should have back up
plans set up to allow time and knowledge of possible risks that may arise and when they do you
that these effective ways would be very helpful as I kept getting outcomes out of my control and
I was not prepared at all for those risks that arose. If I had used this method of planning for
project risks, I would have been more prepared to tackle these situations better and have a better
plan. For future simulations I plan to take into consideration risks that could possibly affect
timelines, team stress levels, budgets, etc and plan out how I would overcome those obstacles.
Over all, I plan on incorporating all of these strategies I have learned in the blogs and
articles in my current job as a manager and see how this improves my everyday management
routine as well as when I am in charge of a project. Next simulation I will be trying out these
scenarios as well to test out if this can improve my overall score, which I am hoping it does
because I feel as if I went over many things in this project that I was struggling with last
simulation.
Resources
http://thetaoofpm.blogspot.com/.
https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/lib/asulib-ebooks/reader.action?
docID=438596.