Essential Project Management

In the past few weeks I’ve seen PM’s get involved in such varied activities that I thought it warranted listing here:

- Quality Assurance: Testing the IT system we use for quoting projects
- Product Management: Figuring out how to get direct feedback from international users of a software product
- Product Management: Tracking down international sales figures
- Detective Work: Tracking down an XML syntax problem in an English documentation source file
- Training: Helping a documentation team learn about Globalization and how it’s done

That’s in addition to our “normal” work, whatever that is! If you have a similarly non-PM task you’ve done recently, feel free to share!

What’s the origin of the phrase “the whole kit and kaboodle“? Click here to find out!

One of the key functions of a project manager is to track the progress of a translation or localization project. For shorter term projects, tracking may last a few hours. For longer term projects such as a software localization project, tracking may span 1-2 years. My key tips for project tracking are as follows:

• Determine a tracking process that works for each type of project you manage
• Choose a tracking tool that works for everyone who needs access to your schedule
• Expect changes to your schedule–they will happen

For short-term projects such as regular file handoffs to localization vendors, I use an Excel worksheet to track vendor delivery dates, and when delivered I mark the date in italic text. It’s pretty low tech but it works!

For a longer-term project (such as one which spans two calendar years), I use a Gantt chart since it makes it easier to track task owners and dependencies. I use color coding for different areas of the schedule such as documentation, software UI, quality assurance and key project milestones (in red). Not everyone has the software required to open the Gantt chart so I save it as a PDF which everyone can open (providing they download the free Adobe Reader tool).

Finally, it’s important to understand that schedules change. So pick a tool or process that can handle frequent changes, and remind yourself regularly that schedules change so that you don’t stress out when they do, and can handle changes with aplomb!

At this time of year, with New Years resolutions on our minds, I couldn’t help but put my PM hat on while a friend was outlining all of the goals she has for the new year. She began listing a number of business goals and a few personal ones. That all sounded reasonable. Then after a couple of cups of coffee, things got out of control. In addition to the above, she also wanted to learn to quilt, sign up for a rock-climbing course, learn more about wine and, oh yeah, train for the Kona Ironman.

That’s when I stepped in with my practical PM strategies. I encouraged her to follow a few simple rules to give her a fighting chance of reaching her goals:

- Write down goals
- Don’t overcommit
- Track your progress

If you don’t write down your goals, they’ll never happen. Especially at the start of the new year, when you’re caught up on your sleep and are feeling relaxed, you’ll have lots of lofty ideas but they’ll never materialize if you don’t write them down.

Once you’ve made your list (pick a tool that suits you and don’t hesitate to keep it as simple as a bulleted list), pare it down to what you think you can reasonably accomplish and consider keeping one or two “stretch” goals to challenge yourself. Then add deadlines in the form of specific dates and track your progress on a weekly or monthly basis. I like to use a program that will pop up a reminder when the task is due or, better yet, 2 weeks before the task is due, so that you have a little time to get your act together and take that next step toward reaching your goals.

Don’t forget to be creative and include one or two fun goals so that you look forward to the process! Here’s to a productive, organized and happy new year!

This week I asked Sanford Wright of LUZ, Inc. to comment on how his translation agency has changed their project management strategies in these challenging economic times.

Many freelance translators have told me that even in this down economy they are still receiving plenty of job requests and are busier then ever. Is that true for your agency as well?

There is no doubt that 2009 was a bit of a “different” year for us. While our revenue growth was about 10% over last year’s revenue, the typical cycle for projects was the opposite this year (busiest in the end/beginning of year; slower in the summer). However, this is probably more of a factor from the economic meltdown hitting its climax in the beginning of this year. For us, the summer and fall months have actually proved to be as busy as ever.

Could you share with us how your project management strategies have changed at LUZ in the past year, given the current economic environment?

LUZ, Inc. provides localization services for life science companies. As a result, the primary driver in the quality-cost-turnaround pyramid has historically been quality. But that changed this year; cost became much more of an important driver for our clients. While quality is still very important, in the past year, we saw cost became equally important. For most of our clients, they demanded – and, if they were a good client, received – significant rate reductions this year. In turn, we needed to make sure that our project management practices reflected this same shift (for example, added emphasis on working with linguists to receive volume discounts, staggering deliveries from linguists to take better advantage of within-project leveraging, etc.).

Do your PM hiring practices change in the short term in a down economy or are you still able to find a way to focus on the long-term goals of the business?

From a hiring perspective, the down economy didn’t really play a major factor. While our rate of growth may have slowed a bit, we still hired project management personnel this year and we still look for the same characteristics in a project manager/project coordinator. If anything I would argue that project management became even more important this year. If it was harder to win new clients, it becomes even more important to keep our current client base happy and our project managers are on the front lines of keeping clients happy.

Could you share with us the types of ongoing training you provide at LUZ so that your PM’s can continue to develop their skill set?

We separate training into two primary categories. The first category is geared more towards “hard skills.” This includes trainings on internal processes (updated workflows, lessons learned on projects/CAPAs, etc.), technology (internal systems, translation memory, content management systems, structured authoring, etc.), industry trends, and regulatory standards which affect our clients. The second category is geared more towards “soft skills.” We believe that we are a SERVICE provider and we need to ensure that our clients receive a high-quality service experience from our projects managers. These training sessions include methods of standardizing response times to emails/phone calls, consistent communication styles (proactive, accommodating, and helpful), etc.

Sanford Wright is President of LUZ, Inc., an ISO 9001:2000 certified, leading translation and localization solutions provider exclusively focused on the life science industry. If you would like to join the LUZ team, send your résumé to recruit@luz.com.

Check out the latest issue of the NCTA’s December 2009 issue of Translorial and read Susan Ayoob’s article entitled “Creating a Functional Relationship” where she maintains that a simple lack of communication is what creates a dysfunctional relationship between PM’s and freelance translators. You can find this and more translation related articles at http://translorial.com.

You might also want to check out a recent Commonwealth Club podcast of the interview with Jonathan Zittrain, author of The Future of the Internet and How to Stop It. I haven’t read it yet but it sounds interesting so I plan to check it out of my local library for a holiday vacation read.

One of the things I look for when choosing a localization vendor is that vendor’s ability to accept and learn new technologies. With the complex project I’m managing, I’ve been applying more and more technology to my processes to save time and money. And that means the PM’s with whom I work need to be able to keep up with the technologies being used by a software company based in the Silicon Valley.

I’m lucky in that the small, medium and large sized agencies with which I work have all managed to stay on the forefront of technology so that they’re ready when we (Adobe) are. Not only do they not balk or hesitate but they readily embrace new technologies and show a certain curiosity for things to which they have not yet been exposed. This is not only important but crucial for me in my choice of PM’s/localization vendors.

Translation agency PM’s should also stay abreast of new technology. Some technology can be forced on a PM simply because an agency adopts it. A smart PM will spend the extra time required to become expert at manipulating TM’s, using server-based TM technology and any other technology their agency decides to use. The better PM’s are at using technology to streamline their projects, the happier their freelancer translators will be as well since the time spent to properly prepare files, scope projects and maintain TM’s will help translators work more efficiently. And translators are more apt to accept jobs from a PM who makes their lives easier.

In this challenging economy, some of us are finding ourselves in situations where staffing has been reduced. In my industry the euphemisms are “downsizing” or “rightsizing”. Whatever it’s called, it means that folks have been laid off and someone has to pick up the slack. No, unfortunately the amount of work to be done didn’t decrease along with staffing levels!

I’m currently faced with this challenge and am also dealing with the fact that the folks who were laid off were friends and respected colleagues. I’m now trying to do the tasks they previously had been doing for me, and quite well I might add. Here are some strategies that I’m using to deal with this situation:

- Don’t hesitate to reach out to others.

Let those dependent on your work know that you’re stretched a bit thin. They’ve been there and will understand.

One stellar vendor PM stepped up and offered to help as needed and in fact saw a few things I missed and said “hey, I took care of this for you, I hope that was okay.” In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’m very thankful I work with such professional people!

- Prioritize tasks appropriately.

This is always the case but even more so when resources are stretched thin. Start each day with a review of what really has to get done before you leave for the day so that the world doesn’t end. Review that list at lunchtime and ask yourself the same question. And don’t overload yourself with so many tasks that you feel overwhelmed. Limit the list to those things that you can reasonably get done in a day. Then if you finish the list early, you’ll feel great and maybe you will be able to complete one or two other tasks you hadn’t planned on!

- Make sure management understands the change in your work situation.

Don’t play the martyr but no need to whine either. Just make sure your manager, who is probably very busy like mine is, knows the impact of the layoff on your work. He/she can double-check that your priorities are in line with the rest of the organization and may also know of some additional resources that can help you through this difficult period.

In the interest of continuing to optimize the PM/client relationship, here are a few words on email etiquette:

- Reply to email

One tip if you’re very busy is to do a quick reply to let the sender know you’ve taken a quick read; then set the message to “unread” so you don’t forget about it.

- Confirm receipt of deliveries from a linguist or client

It just takes a moment! If you do it religiously, they will too and then everyone will be well informed and happy.

- Write useful subject lines

Include the project name and/or number, and a short but useful subject line. For example, “Project 1234: Delivery: FR>EN edits.” A vague subject line such as “delivery” is just not useful. Also, set standards with your linguists and clients for consistency; whenever my linguists deliver files, they always include the project codename and “HANDOFF” in the subject line so that I can easily spot those emails.

- Keep your email signature short and include only essential information

I saw a signature recently that took up my whole screen! That’s simply unnecessary and inconsiderate to the recipient as it forces them to dig to find the pertinent info. Don’t include every possible detail you can think of. Include the following at a minimum:

• Your full name
• Your role (linguist or PM, language pair)
• Your phone/fax numbers with timezone
• Your website
• Any key affiliations or certifications (ISO, ATA, M.A.)

Things that are NOT necessary:

• Email address (the email came from you after all!)
• Mailing address (it’s on your website and financial correspondence)
• Large logo (it’s on your website)
• Preachy statements such as how green your office is; include it on your website if you really feel you have to share it
• Legal statements (unless required by your lawyer; if so, ask for a short one!)
• Other unnecessary “cute” info like your Google Earth coordinates

- Include your email signature only in the initial email, not in replies and forwards

Again, don’t make the recipient have to dig for the one or two lines of useful information in an email that is a few screens long.

As a Localization Project Manager, here are some links I find useful:

http://www.xe.com/
Currency conversion site

http://timeanddate.com/worldclock/meeting.html
The World Clock Meeting Planner

http://www.wordreference.com/
Good, quick reference dictionary in 10 language pairs; also now available free for iPhone and iPod Touch

http://twitter.com/localization/
For twitter users

I’ve been doing some project management mentoring this past year and thought the benefits of mentoring warranted a blog posting. For those of you new to the localization or translation project management role, I encourage you to identify a mentor with whom you can work for an extended period of time to help you learn the craft of project management more quickly and become a more effective PM. Find someone where you work or identify someone you know through your network with whom you’d like to work. Generally mentees choose mentors however for those of you with a lot of PM experience, you might suggest starting a mentoring program in your office if one doesn’t already exist. Also, I hear that the ATA may consider starting up their mentoring program again in the near future. So that’s another possible opportunity for you to volunteer your skills.

My mentees find it helpful to have someone with whom they can share their difficulties without worrying that what they say will show up in their performance review. They become mentees because they’re interested in learning and my experience is that they’re like sponges, anxious for some assistance and enthusiastic about trying out new techniques. I find mentoring to be a very rewarding experience and encourage you to look into it.