Common MS Project Sever 2003 Issues and Workarounds

[eromanchuk]

Hi,

I am currently trying to assess different program management software
(ITG, Niku, RPM, EPM - project server). In my MS Project Server
analysis, I am trying to identify common issues that people experience
either when installing or using project server as part of an EPM
solution. And if there are any workarounds or general tips of the
trade, what those are. Any insights that you have would be greatly
appreciated. Feel free to point me to threads within this group or
other groups.

Thanks,
emily

 

[Mark Everett | PMP]

Emily -

I think thtat this is a very broad question. You can search this group
for issues but that is only part of the equation. Is the issue with
the software or is it a training or motivation issue? I have done
about 12 Project Server engagements and also worked with another tool
(PMOffice - it was awful) and I think that Project Server offers good
value for the investment. It has a great feature set and is fairly
inexpensive.

The big problems I have seen:

1. Process - the organization doesn't have the processes or the people
or the will to enforce the processes. In that case, Project Server can
get cluttered with bad or with data that doesn't need to be in the
server.

2. Trying to do too much too soon - if an organization doesn't have a
track record in fairly mature project management processes, and then
want to roll out Project Server with timesheet entry set to hours per
day, then there will probably be adoption issues. Use a measured
approach.

3. Training - Organizations not willing to spend the time/effort to
train the users, including the team members, project managers and
leadership.

4. Network issues - ensuring Project Server and the related components
are installed on equipment that is correctly sized and configured.
Slow response is a major user sat issue.

5. Requirements - generic or general requirements statements.

For technical issues, I suggest you take a look at Microsoft's
knowledge base to scan the articles. If you have specific questions,
let me know.

Hope this helps,
Mark Everett
www.quantumpm.com

 

[stephen.black]

I would also think that size of projects, number of users and typical
number of lines in each plan would also be a deciding factor.

 

[eromanchuk]

Mark,

This has helped me a lot! I will start scanning through Microsoft's
knowledge base.

Thank you very much,
Emily

 

[eromanchuk]

Mark,

This has helped me a lot! I will start scanning through Microsoft's
knowledge base.

Thank you very much,
Emily

 

[eromanchuk]

Mark,

This has helped me a lot! I will start scanning through Microsoft's
knowledge base.

Thank you very much,
Emily

 

[eromanchuk]

Mark,

This has helped me a lot! I will start scanning through Microsoft's
knowledge base.

Thank you very much,
Emily

 

[eromanchuk]

Hi Stephen,

Thank you for your post! You made some really good points. Typically,
we will have over 75+ resources assigned to a project although there
may be some with fewer resources (10 or so). In terms of the number of
lines, I don't know, but from what I have gathered, if the workplan is
too large (>2MB) or loaded with a lot of actuals when uploading it to
MS Project Server, it typically crashes the server. Due to this, we
will probably stipulate less than 2MB with few actuals and then allow
the plan to grow once in the server.

Again, thank you for your post!
Emily