On-Line Project Management Tools Review - Seavus Project Viewer

A tool for people involved in projects who don't create project plans, but only need to open, view and update task progress in the project plans created in MS Project. It provides a complete set of views and additional features to view projects and tasks. 

This product is simple and one I wished for a long time.  To often I have had to convert my Project Plans into other formats so my I could share them with my team members.

This allows my project team to quickly open up my project, and update their progress, if required.

Mainly I found it handy for virtual meetings, it allowed all team members to open up the project plan, then discuss it either via the telephone or a series of e-mails as required.

An added bonus is you can use it to search through a project plan to help quickly pin  point the item(s) of interest.

And it’s priced right a 15 day free trail, and a one time fee of $39.00

A simple and elegant solution.

On-Line Project Management Tools Review - Bright Green Projects

An Agile project tool, founded on principles of Scrum and Lean Kanban

I have to admit I haven’t used this tool much but what I have seen so far has impressed me.

One of my favourite ideas of the Agile methodology is the use a board with a list of items broken down into sections such as:  What needs to be accomplished what is being worked on and what has been done.  The problem is that using  a large physical board doesn’t do much when working with a virtual teams in different parts of the globe.

This application simulates the giant board and allows you to share it with your team members no matter where their physical location happens to be.

Some the noteworthy features are:

 manage requirements, risks, bugs, actions 
* plan sprints and releases 
* visualize your work on a Kanban wall 
* report progress using burn down charts 

It’s free for the first 3 users, and $20 per month per user after that, this can get pricy but it is a unique product.  If you are in need of such a product I would recommend that you evaluate it and see if the cost is justifiable.

On-Line Project Management Tools Review - JIRA Studio

I have used JIRA in the past and have found it an excellent tool for tracking:  Issues, Risks, Bug Tracking, and Scope Changes.   It integrates for Gmail, you can set it up that for certain issues, the required people are emailed so nothing is missed.

It is created around a team-centric view, so collaboration is easy and well laid out.

Some of it’s more notable features are:

 Subversion source control 
* JIRA issue tracking 
* Agile planning and project management 
* Continuous integration 
* Wiki and collaboration 
* Peer code review 
* Source code search, browsing and metrics 

Integration with Google Apps

* Activity Bar: put issues, code reviews, build results, email, events at the fingertips of every user. 
* Google Chat within JIRA Studio: real-time communication and build notifications. 
* Google Docs in wiki pages: embed individual docs or lists of docs. 
* Google Docs attached to JIRA issues: attach Google Docs to JIRA issues, with single-click preview. 
* Exchange gadgets: add Google gadgets to JIRA Studio, and JIRA Studio gadgets to Gmail or Google Sites. 
* Integrated user management: auto-login to JIRA Studio using your Google Apps account.

I love this application the only disappointing part is the cost of using it via Google Apps.

At s $25/month per user,  for even a small team the costs can add up quickly, this app is far more affordable if you purchase it and install it on your own servers and run it locally.  A shame because for me part of the attractions to the Google Apps market place is that Software publishers can afford to bring their prices down due to extra volume they receive by participating in the marketplace.

On-Line Project Management Tools - Gantter Project



There is really not much to say about this products, simply put this is a very basic no frills replacement for MS Project.

It’s outstanding features are that it can import MS Project files, or allow you easily create new ones through the program its self and that you can share your work with others.

It integrates via Google docs so it’s handy for saving files.

While this may not be the best MS Project replacement it is totally free, and it works well.

There have been some reports of lost data, but I have been testing this product myself for the last six months with no problems.

PMI's Agile Certification

Recently PMI has announced that it will be offering an Agile certification.   

As this is just the beginning you can bet that there will be many iterations before this finalized.

However for those interested in getting on the ground floor visit www.pmi.org/agile it contains all the information regarding this initiative.

As I am interested in this I will be posting regular updates as the certification progresses.

Before I go into further details, I would like to acknowledge that I have seen a number of debates regarding the usefulness of this or any other certification.  As well as what makes this any better then those who posses certification such as (CSM) Certified Scrum Master, see www.scrum.org.

It’s not my attempt to try and persuade anyone as to which is better or the value of certification in general but provide simple fact for those who are interested in pursuing PMI Agile certification further.

Important information to note:

Initial pilot for certification application will start around mid May-2011

Those who wish to be certified must prove they have at least 1500 hours of Agile project management experience, as well as the usual required PMI hours.   So if you had an overall PM experience of 5000 hours at least 1500 must be managing Agile Projects.

You need at least 21 hours of agile training, courses that are recognized can be found on the www.pmi.org website.   The good news is that some web seminars will be recognized.   Further at this time, you may apply and be approved for certification prior to taking any training, as long as you promise to take the course at a future specified date.

Finally you must pass the test – more information to come.

Once you have obtained your Agile certification to maintain it you must acquire at least 30PDU’s every 3 years.  If you are already a PMP and then acquire PMI Agile certification the original 60PDU’s per 3 years still applies only now 30 of those should be directly towards Agile management/participation.