BOOK REVIEW
Book Title: Project Management Hacking: How to Manage Projects More Efficiently and Effectively in Less Time
Author: Douglas Peyton Martin
Publisher: Routledge/Productivity Press
List Price: $79.95 or $15.96
Format: Hardcover or Paperback,
Publication Date: 2020
ISBN: 978-0-367-34815-1
Reviewer: Kristyn Popejoy, PMP
Review Date: March 2020
Introduction
This book attempts to give project managers tips to achieve certification, lead teams, projects, and hone life skills. The book is brief. The author does not provide concrete templates or structured examples but instead makes his point through storytelling. His intention is clear to make his point and move on.
Overview of Book’s Structure
Across nine chapters, the book covers certification, personal development, leading a project team, process groups, general life skills, other duties, and summary.
Within each chapter, the author describes a standard path, evil path, and hacker path. The standard path section is brief and merely an introduction to the chapter. The evil path covers what not to do while the hacker path provides the authors tips and tricks. All recommendations for finding efficiency and effectivity while managing projects are located in the hacker path portion of each chapter.
Highlights
The book highlights a few specific opportunities that are time saving opportunities for a project manager.
The main point is a project manager needs to lay groundwork early in the planning portion for time saving success later in the project when executing, monitoring, and controlling processes are occurring. Half way through the book the author finally calls out where a project manager can save time!
Douglas highlights that project managers should not have their “nose down” into the product. Focusing on the product is a trap. Instead, project managers should focus their time on the project “that provide zero residual value to the product being delivered.”
Other highlights include empowering the project manager to escalate and raise issues, shorten meeting time, change, listen for silence, and issue resolution.
More…
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About the Reviewer
Kristyn Popejoy
Texas, USA
Kristyn Popejoy, PMP, is Assistant Director of Program Management with 14 years in the transportation and trucking industry. Her experience ranges from sales planning, procurement, supply chain, product development and project management.
Editor’s note: This book review was the result of a partnership between the publisher, PM World and the PMI Dallas Chapter. Authors and publishers provide the books to PM World; books are delivered to the PMI Dallas Chapter, where they are offered free to PMI members to review who agree to provide a review within 45 days; book reviews are published in the PM World Journal and PM World Library.
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