Project management for networking geeks

Network professionals are typically well-versed in the technical aspects of networking: router and switch configuration, server deployment and management, and so on. However, network pros are rarely trained on how to manage projects. This is unfortunate, because many -- if not most -- of the problems that networkers face in projects can be mitigated with just a few project management skills and techniques.

Design and install networks long enough, and you'll be sure to have some of those projects go awry due to unforeseen surprises. Sometimes it's because the infrastructure you need, such as power in a communications room, is not ready when you need to install an Ethernet switch. Other times, your network equipment vendor may seem to be perpetually on "back order" with the one module you need. Or perhaps it's the all-too-familiar "scope creep" -- when users decide they need greater wireless coverage than they asked for at the beginning of the project, without increasing costs of course.

Managing network projects does not have to be an exercise in fortune telling. When digested down to the core components, network projects are just like any other project, IT or otherwise: There is an objective, a time line, a budget and expectations of those who will benefit from the network once it is completed.

Properly trained project managers command hefty salaries because they understand these processes. A casual search on Monster.com or Dice.com will lead to many job postings for certified project managers in many IT fields. And for good reason: CEOs and CIOs know that certified project managers are less apt to have projects run away from them.

But while attaining project management certifications such as the Project Management Institute's Project Management Professional (PMP) could be just as valuable to you as a network professional as a Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert or a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer, you don't have to earn the full PMP certification to reap some benefits. I have discovered in my own pursuit of the PMP that applying a few simple project management tips will quickly earn you a reputation for delivering network projects on time and within budget -- the sort of reputation that opens doors.

Triple constraints
I once saw the following on the wall of a drive-in oil-change service: "You can have it done cheap, fast or right; pick two." This is true of all projects, and it illustrates the so-called "triple constraints" rule: projects are subject to cost, schedule and performance parameters. Changing one will affect at least one of the remaining two.

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