Successful project controlling in practice

Project controlling basics

• Objectives and tasks in project controlling, differentiation from project management and corporate controlling.
• Classic standards: DIN 69901, ^PMBOK® Guide, GPM Version 4.0 (ICB4) and ^PRINCE2®.
• Compact insight: Controlling agile projects.
• The project target figures performance/results/quality, deadlines and costs as the basis for active project controlling.

Project controlling toolbox

• Minimum requirements and project controlling tools for small projects: Information collection, meeting management, acceptance criteria, work package list, milestone list, simplified risk analysis.
• External versus internal reporting: pyramid structure, project status reports in the form of professional management reports, individual project KPI systems, plan/actual comparisons with deviation analyses as well as corrective and preventive measures.
• Project progress control with degrees of completion.
• Phase milestone plans, milestone trend analyses, Gantt plans.
• Cost trend analyses, project cost accounting, rolling forecasts.
• Differentiated risk analysis and assessment.
• Holistic project controlling: index values, earned value analyses.
• Change and supplement management.
• Resource management, productivity checks.
• Financial resource management, project costing, revenue recognition.
• Project reviews, project documentation, lessons learned.
• Instruments for agile projects: Backlog, Benefit Value, Task Board, Time Boxing, WIP Limits, Burndown Chart, Definition of Done etc.

Organization of project controlling

• Compact definition of further controlling in the project environment: large-scale project, portfolio, multi-project, program controlling, tasks of a PMO Project Management Office.
• Fundamental decisions as framework conditions.
• The project team: role, tasks and cooperation of project management, project controlling, PMO and steering committee.
• Proven procedure for setting up, expanding and introducing project controlling.
• Project management software at a glance.

Best Practices