Classify this itsy-bitsy book as a project management guide that isn't a project to read but that distills all the basics for you into a quick thumbnail guide on everything from establishing objectives and keeping to schedules and budgets to providing effective leadership and tackling problems efficiently. Along the way, simple checklists enable you to be fully prepared at every stage, from starting up to closing down, and accessible diagrams and flow charts explore different options for action and provide useful examples. Granted, if you're looking for very specific or in-depth guidance, you may find this book too cursory and general in its approach. But if you're looking for a thumbnail guide to the basics, it'll do you just fine.

It's worth mentioning that the book is also part of reference publisher Dorling Kindersley's Essential Managers series--20 itty-bitty li'l books on business and career topics ranging from communication, leadership, and decision making to the management of time, budgets, change, meetings, people, projects, and teams. Combining the For Dummies book series's talent for breaking down a lot of information into bite-size bits and sidebars with Dorling Kindersley's signature design style of crisp, classy graphics on a gleaming white backdrop, they don't represent the cutting edge of business thinking and they don't necessarily reflect any unique individual perspective. Instead, it's as though someone collated the best general thinking on these 20 topics and rolled them out into 72 brightly designed and easy-to-read pages, studded along the way with boxed tips, color shots of a multiracial cast of "coworkers" animatedly hashing through the workplace issues of the day, and a self-test of one's skills in the topic at hand on the last few pages of each volume. Again, they're not for anyone looking for more in-depth or focused help on any of the subjects they cover, but they're perfect as a quickie general-interest reference... and let's face it, they're so cute and look so smart in a neat little stack or row that you'll probably want to buy a whole bunch to give to your entire staff or department.


Inc.
It hits all the bases...


Book Description
Learn about quality control, communication, deadlines, budgeting, and planning risks. From setting out objectives to compiling the close--down report, from choosing priorities to selecting the right team, Project Management shows you how to plan, run, and monitor a project, and explains what to do if things go wrong. It contains a wealth of straightforward, expert advice on scheduling and budgeting, managing and communicating information, planning activities, and developing leadership skills to ensure successful completion of all your projects. The Essential Manager have sold more than 1.9 million copies worldwide! Experienced and novice managers alike can benefit from these compact guides that slip easily into a briefcase or a portfolio. The topics are relevant to every work environment, from large corporations to small businesses. Concise treatments of dozens of business techniques, skills, methods, and problems are presented with hundreds of photos, charts, and diagrams. It is the most exciting and accessible approach to business and self--improvement available.


About the Author
Andy Bruce is the founder of SofTools Limited--a specialist business research and consulting company.Ken Langdon has a background in sales and marketing in the computer industry. During his early years with a major computer supplier, he was involved in pioneering the use of project management techniques--including a comprehensive use of Pert--in the information technology departments of major computer users in industry and local government. As a consultant he has taught project planning techniques and assisted in the preparation of plans in the USA, Europe and Australia.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Learn about quality control, communication, deadlines, budgeting, and planning risks.

From setting out objectives to compiling the close—down report, from choosing priorities to selecting the right team, Project Management shows you how to plan, run, and monitor a project, and explains what to do if things go wrong. It contains a wealth of straightforward, expert advice on scheduling and budgeting, managing and communicating information, planning activities, and developing leadership skills to ensure successful completion of all your projects.