In large Oil & Gas and EPC projects there is a ton of money on the line. The difference between a successful project, and an unsuccessful one is often the effective organization of the projects from FEED to Handover. The right project management infrastructure can help teams deliver capital projects with normal amounts of cost growth and schedule variance (typically ~10%). Alternatively, there is project chaos.  And in an industry that has a median cost growth of 24% and median schedule slip of 20% – this is the most common scenario. Effective project management requires the right systems and infrastructure to support it but that’s just a drop in the bucket.  Effective project management can reduce cost growth by 58% and schedule variance by 50%. Yes, project chaos is avoidable.

So how do you get from project chaos to order?  You’re in luck, this is our specialty, and there are 3 key ways to treat project chaos.

Stop using emails, spreadsheets and homegrown systems to manage projects. Have you ever wasted time digging through an email chain looking for critical information, or poured over somebody else’s spreadsheet trying to find what you need? Most folks have and those are just small examples of how ineffective spreadsheets, emails, and homegrown systems are. So quit using systems that provide little organization, accountability, and visibility – they allow project management chaos to flourish.
Get all of your teams working in the same system. Centralize. Collaborate. Have you ever been roadblocked by rouge teams, partners, or contractors using a different system? This happens in almost every project, and can be a tough situation to navigate. By implementing an effective, web-based project management system you can provide the most up-to-date data to all project stakeholders, in a single system. When the end game is reducing project chaos – you need to get everything in one place and everybody working in one system.
Enforce standardization. Ever encountered confusion due to multiple numbering systems or naming conventions? If you have, you know that this inconsistency makes it hard to track progress, report, and find the data you need. An effective project management system will allow you to track and enforce your numbering system, as well as partners, suppliers, or owners.  To prevent project chaos and enforce standards, start using an application that has defined numbering systems and naming conventions.  You might not realize how much project chaos is weighing you down.

If you, or someone you know is experiencing project chaos – please contact ProjecTools as soon as possible.  Symptoms include:  lack of reporting, cost growth of more than 10%, schedule slip of more than 10%, premature graying in management, lack of return customers, and many more.

The side effects of successful project management with ProjecTools include:  more sleep at night, promotions, an increase in profitability, more time, and more effective reporting.