Harvey Levine White Paper Index

Harvey A. Levine

Harvey A. Levine is a past president of the Project Management Institute and the recipient of PMI's 1989 Distinguished Contribution to Project Management award. He was elected as a Fellow of PMI.

Mr. Levine, with more than 40 years of service to the project management industry, is founder of The Project Knowledge Group, a consulting firm specializing in PM training, Project Management software selection and evaluation.

Mr. Levine is the author of:

• Project Portfolio Management: A Practical Guide to Selecting Projects, Managing Portfolios, and Maximizing Benefits (2005)
• Practical Project Management: Tips, Tactics, and Tools (2002)

He has implemented or enhanced the project management capabilities of numerous firms, often combined with the selection of project management tools. Mr. Levine is considered the leading consultant to the project management software industry and is recognized as the leading expert in tools for project management.

He has been a pionner in the development of Project Portfolio Management Concepts and Methods.

He has written for Sciforma the following white papers about portfolio management, project management, resource management, risk management, earned value…

• Implementing Project Portfolio Management (2008)
  Part 1: Modifying the Organization for Project Portfolio Management)
• Implementing Project Portfolio Management (2008)
  (Part 2: New or Modified Processes for Project Portfolio Management)
• Project Portfolio Management (2000)
  (A Song without Words?)
• Bridging the Gap Between Operations Management and Projects Management (2000)
  (The Important Role of Project Portfolio Management)
• Project Portfolio Management is not just Enterprise Project Management (2003)
• Project Portfolio Management (2003)
  (The Right Stuff )
• Components of a Project Portfolio Management Process (2004)
  (Part One - Selecting Projects for the Pipeline)
• Components of a Project Portfolio Management Process(2004)
  (Part Two - Managing the Pipeline)
• Components of a Project Portfolio Management Process(2004)
  (Part Three - Executing Project Portfolio Management)
• Is There a Gorilla in Your Portfolio?(2004)
  (Turning Opportunity into Value)
• Defining Project Portfolio Management (2004)
  (A Bridge or a Hub?)
• Thanksgiving, Trucks, and Project Portfolio Management: (2004)
  (Universal Applicability for PPM?)
• Challenging a "Customer-driven" Policy with PPM(2005)
  (Being Customer-driven isn't Enough)
• A Strategic Look at the Balanced Portfolio (2005)
  (Balance is Directly Related to the Strategies of the Enterprise)
• The New World of Resource Allocation (2005)
  (PPM Model )
• The Role of Stage-Gate in Maintaining the Project Portfolio (2005)
  (Portfolios Must be Managed for the Realization of Benefits)
• Dealing with Risk in Project Portfolios (2006)
  (Portfolio Risk is Not Just the Sum of Its Parts)
• It's The Mission, Stupid (2006)
  (A Hierarchy of Mission, Strategies, and Tactical Initiatives Drive the Portfolio)
• Project Portfolio Management as a Best Practice (2006)
  (PPM Gaining Wide Acceptance)
• Projects as Investments (2006)
  (Mitigating Irrational Exuberance)
• Ten Key Points for Adoption of Project Portfolio Management (2006)
  (Reducing Intimidation & Enabling Rapid Adoption)
• Adjusting the Project Portfolio for a Shifting Market (2006)
  (It's the Role of the Governance Council)

Implementing Project Management

• The Final Word (2006)
  (Lessons in Practical Project Management)
• Managing Change (2006)
  (It’s All About the Baseline)
• Techniques for Project Initiation (2001)
  (Part One: Getting Started)
• Techniques for Project Initiation (2001)
  (Part Two: Project Strategies)
• Techniques for Project Initiation (2001)
  (Part Three: Stakeholders & Organizations)
• Techniques for Project Initiation (2001)
  (Part Four: Project Frameworks)
• Techniques for Project Initiation (2001)
  (Part Five: Project Milestone Schedules)
• Do You Weebis? (2001)
  (Clarifying WBS, OBS & RBS)
  
• Why Project Management Implementation Programs Fail (2001)
  (Taking Shortcuts vs. Diminishing Chances of Success)
  
• Rules for Project Success (2000)
  (Don't Ignore Your Common Sense!!!)
• Implementing Project Management (2000)
  (Commitment and Training Ensure Success)
• Minnesota Smith and the Temple of Unrealized Dreams(2000)
  (The Search for Automated, Integrated, Enterprise-wide Project Management)
• Automatic Project Management(1999)
  (A Classic Oxymoron)
• Project Life Cycles and the WBS (2002)
  (Part One: Typical Project Life Cycles)
• Project Life Cycles and the WBS (2002)
  (Part Two: Generic Project Life Cycles)
• Practical Project Management (2002)
  (Part One – Organizing for Project Management and Project Initiation Techniques – Tips and Traps)
• Practical Project Management (2002)
  (Part Two – Scheduling – Tips and Traps)
• Practical Project Management (2002)
  (Part Three – Resources & Costs – Tips and Traps)
• Practical Project Management (2003)
  (Part Four – Contingency, Risk Management & EVA – Tips and Traps)
• Practical Project Management (2003)
  (Part Five – Making Project Management Work – Tips and Traps)
• Eight Potential Benefits from Expediting Projects (2004)
  (Expedite Your Way to Lower Costs and Higher Profits)
• Focusing on Deliverables (2005)
  (Physical Definitions Are Key)
• A Plan, a Plan, My Kingdom for a Plan (2006)
  (Part 1 – The Initial Project Set-up & Planning Process)
• A Plan, a Plan, My Kingdom for a Plan (2006)
  (Part 2 – The Baseline Plan)
• A Plan, a Plan, My Kingdom for a Plan (2006)
  (Part 3 – Scope Management)

Organization Approaches

• The Project Coordinator (2004)
  (A PM Alternative)
• Teams, Task Forces & Bureaucrats (2001)
  (Centralization vs. Decentralization)
• Does Your Company Need a CPO? (2000)
  (A Case for the Central Project Office and a Chief Project Officer)
• Tying Rewards to Results (2002)
  (Defining a Win-Win Situation for the Organization and Team Members)
• Where Do We Find Project Managers? (2002)
  (Internal Expertise May Lead to Better Implementation)
• Choosing Project Managers (2003)
  (Knowledge is Easier to Acquire than Changing Behavior)
• The Philosophy of Project Management (2002)
  (A Mixture of Art, Science, Processes, and Common Sense.)
• How to Stimulate Initiative and Innovation in Any Organization (2002)
  (Part One: Combating Lack of Trust, Segmentalization, and Aversion to Risk)
• How to Stimulate Initiative and Innovation in Any Organization (2002)
  (Part Two: The Psychological Contract)
• How to Stimulate Initiative and Innovation in Any Organization (2002)
  (Part Three: Shared Rewards )
• Applying General Wisdom to Project Management (2003)
  (Psychology is Crucial to Project Management)
• Project Termination (2003)
  (Guidelines and Practices)
• The In-Progress Project Audit: (2004)
  (Improving the Eventual Satisfaction of the Customer/Sponsor)
• PM & PPM Roles & Responsibilities(2005)
  (Recognizing & Employing the Right Skills)
• Truthful Assessments of your Projects(2005)
  (Part One: Avoiding Deception and Fraud)
• Where Do Projects Come From? (2005)
  (A Rational, Repeatable Process for Approving Projects)
• Reaching Consensus (2006)
  How to Avoid Power Plays and Biases in the Decision Process
• The Project Suppport Office (2006)
  An Alternate Form for a PMO

Resource Management

• Resource Contingency Planning (2001)
  (Flexibility is a Virtue)
• Challenging Conventional Wisdom (2003)
  (Automated Resource Leveling)

Risk Management

• Risk is Still a Four-letter Word (2008)
  (Can You Hear Me Now?)
• Risk is a Four-letter Word, But Denial is our Biggest Enemy (1999)
  (Risk Management is an Essential Part of Project Portfolio Management)
• All Opportunities Have Risk (2005)
  (Uncover Hidden Risks with a Risk Breakdown Structure)

Software Selection

• Simplifying Project Management Software Selection (2000)
  (A Balanced Approach)
• Implementing a Computer-based Project Management Capability (2000)
  (Components for Success)
• The Significance of “E” (2003)
  (The State of PM Tools for the Enterprise)

Earned Value

• The Education of Justin Thyme - Project Manager (1999)
  (A practical explanation & illustration of Earned Value Analysis for Projects)
• Measuring the Value of Work Accomplishment (2000)
  (Part 1: Fidelity in Measuring Accomplishment Value)
• Measuring the Value of Work Accomplishment (2000)
  (Part 2: Can I Use EVA if I Don't Collect Actual Cost Data?)
• Measuring the Value of Work Accomplishment (2000)
  (Part 3: What if the Project Workscope Changes?
  Does it Invalidate the EVA?)
• Measuring the Value of Work Accomplishment (2000)
  (Part 4: Managing the Baseline for Phased Projects)
• You Don't Have Time for Earned Value Management? (2000)
  (Try EVM the Easy Way)
• Why Should You Use Earned Value Analysis? (2005)
  (Gain Tremendous Advantage Out of Just a Little Extra Effort)

Project Tracking

• Real Time Status vs. Period Data (1999)
  (The freshest data is not always the best data)

Schedule Management

• How Important are Schedules and Time Compression? (2000)
  (Modeling Techniques for Real-Life Projects)
• Estimating Task Durations (2001)
  (A Look into the Methodologies and Psychology of Estimating)
• “Plans are Worthless”, says famous general and former President of the U. S. (2002)

PM Miscellaneous

• New Names for Old Games (2000)
  (Rebadging Sound & Proven PM Concepts)
• Emerging PSA Solutions (2001)
  (Caution is Advised as We Wait for Maturity)
• Debunking Popular Scheduling Myths(2003)
  (Do Not Always Apply)
• The Project Manager's Bookshelf(2003)
  (A Broad Survey of Wisdom for Project Managers)
• Q & A - Reader Inquiries and Responses (2003)
• The Laws of Project Management(2004)
  (They are There for a Reason)
• The Changing Face of Project Management(2004)
  (Benefiting From the Advances)
• The Psychology of Time(2005)
  (Determine What You Know & What You Can Influence)
• Don't Drown in Sunk Costs(2005)
  (Sunk Costs Don't Matter)