A Cup of Joe – Perspective from a Tech PM

I like coffee and like most people, it helps me to wake up and stay alert.  I also know that too much caffeine lowers my ability to focus.  The same is true for email in the project management environment.  Email is a wonderful tool for point to point communication, but it has its drawbacks.  A few email drawbacks are as follows:

• No memory –  For instance, remember the email with the validation spec for that integration piece you did on that project with Widget Integration, Inc.  Yeah, the second spec?  Now find it.  Enough said.
• Email splinters – You sent me an email.  I sent it to two developers.  Both responded.  I send one back to you.   How much information is lost in the process?
• Transparency – Do we really need to talk about Blind Carbon Copy (bcc)?

So, is there a solution?  First, I try to hold to the rule the right amount at the right time.  Second, do not underestimate face to face meetings and telephone conversations.  And lastly, and most importantly, take it to the web; use some of the new and innovative solutions that exist.

• Forums and blogs – When kept to topic, forums and blogs easily store the history of communication from multiple people.
• Work flow and Issue tracking -   Collaborate between client, Project Manager and Developers on issues and enhancements while tracking histories and versioning; try Gemini.
• Documentation – Build a WIKI to display and easily update quick reference guides (QRGs), manuals and How Tos.

Want to be even more cutting edge?  Try Base Camp, Google docs and Yammer.