“no one can whistle a symphony. a whole orchestra is needed.” – the. lucky rooster
You are reading: Books on program management
If you want to take your project management skills to a new level, here are the top 10 project management books that I would say really changed the game for me.
each one has their special contribution in terms of shaping my project management mindset, skill set and tool set, as well as set of actions.
Being an effective project or program manager means knowing how to make things happen.
While being a program manager requires more than project management, project management remains at the core.
project management is the backbone of execution.
and execution is difficult. but execution is also the breeding ground for results. execution is what separates many teams and individuals from the people who have good ideas and the people who actually send them.
great ideas die on the vine every day for lack of execution. (Failure to execute is the same way great strategies die, too.)
the 10 project management books you should read
If you’re a project manager who wants to learn the art and science of execution, here are some books that have served me well:
1. agile management for software engineering
David Anderson’s Agile Management for Software Engineering turns the theory of constraints into pragmatic insights to drive projects forward, progress where needed, and produce great results.
The book provides a great perspective for thinking in terms of business value and how to flow value through the project cycle.
2. agile project management with kanban
agile project management with kanban, by eric brechner, is the definitive guide to doing kanban.
Instead of getting bogged down in theory, it’s a fast-action guide to transitioning from scrum to kanban, while bringing the good stuff forward. Eric helps you navigate the tough decisions and adapt kanban to your environment, whether it’s a small team or a large organization.
if you want to lead big projects in today’s world and if you want to master project management, kanban is a fundamental part of the formula and this is the book.
3. flawless execution
Flawless execution, by james d. Murphy shares deep insight into how fighter pilots fly and lead successful missions, and how those same practices apply to leading teams and driving projects.
is one of the best books that connects strategy with execution and shows how to get everyone in the game and how to keep learning and improving throughout the project.
See Also: Penny Reid – Book Series In Order
This book also has a great way to lay out the results for the week and help people avoid getting overloaded and overwhelmed, so they can do their best work every day.
4. put them on your side
get them on your side, by samuel b. Bacharach delves into stakeholder management, but in a simple and effective way.
stakeholder management is one of the secret keys to effective project management.
so many great ideas and other great projects die due to poor stakeholder management. if you don’t have people on your side, the project loses support and funding.
If you win support, everything will be easier.
This is probably the ultimate engineering guide to understanding politics and treating it as a “system” so you can play the game effectively without getting sucked into it.
5. how to execute successful projects iii: the silver bullet
How to Run Successful Projects III: The Silver Bullet, by Fergus O’Connell, cuts through all the noise of what it takes to do skillful project management.
While “The Silver Bullet” is a bold title, the book lives up to its name.
o’connell carves out the essential core and high-value activities with stunning clarity so you can focus on what counts.
Whether you’re a lazy project manager who just wants to focus on doing the bare minimum and keep pushing big projects, or you’re a high achiever who wants to take your project management game to the next level, this is the guide for you. do it.
6. make things happen: mastering project management
Making Things Happen: Mastering Project Management by Scott Berkun is the book that truly frames how to drive high-impact projects in the real world.
is a book for program managers and project managers, written by a real microsoft program manager.
It’s hard to get projects done right if you don’t understand project management from start to finish. this is that end-to-end guide, and it dives deep into the whole middle. If you want to get an idea of what it takes to submit highly successful projects, this is the guide.
7. managing the design factory
managing the design factory, by donald g. reinertsen, he is an old man, but good.
One of my former colleagues recommended it to me early in my career.
It taught me to think very differently and much more systematically about how to truly design a system of people who can consistently design better products. it’s the kind of book you can come back to after a lifetime to truly master the art of building systems and ecosystems to ship great things.
while it may sound like a philosophy book, donald does a great job of turning ideas and insights into action.
See Also: Karen M. McManus Books In Publication & Chronological Order – Book Series
You will find yourself rethinking and reimagining how you create products and lead projects.
8. requirements-based project management
requirements-based project management: uncovering david’s slingshot by susanne robertson and james robertson is a book that will add a ton of new tools to your toolbox for representing problem space and better organizing problem space. the solution.
It is one of the best books I know for handling large amounts of information and using it meaningfully in terms of driving projects and improving product design.
9. secrets to master wbs in real world projects
secrets to mastering wbs in real-world projects, by liliana buchtik, delves into the art and science of work breakdown structure.
the work breakdown structure is the last tool that project managers have, that other disciplines do not have.
The problem is that too many project managers are still creating activity-based work breakdown structures when they should be creating results-based work breakdown structures.
This is the first book I’ve found that provided real breadth and depth on building better work breakdown structures.
I also like how buchtik applies work breakdown structures to agile projects.
This is hands down the best book I’ve ever read on the art and science of doing real world work breakdown structures.
10. simple strategic project management
Strategic Project Management Made Simple: Practical Tools for Leaders and Teams, by Terry Schmidt.
This book helps you develop the skills to handle really big, high-impact projects.
but it also comes down to very simple projects. what it does is help him paint a vivid picture of the challenge and the solution, so that his efforts on the project are worthwhile.
is a “results” focused approach, whereas many project management books tend to be “activities” focused. this is actually the book i wish i had known about earlier in my career – it would have helped me speed up a lot of skills and techniques i learned the hard way in hard hitting school.
The strategic aspect of the book also makes it highly relevant to program managers who want to change the world.
This book shows you how to drive projects that can change the world.
and that’s an ending…
well, there you have it.
that’s my short list of project management books that really made a difference and can really help you become a more effective program manager or project manager (or just develop better project management skills).
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too many people are still working on ineffective projects, getting mediocre results, trying too hard and doing too much “push” and not enough addressing the existing “pull” that’s already there.
These are the project management books that build real competence.
and where competition grows, trust flows.
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