In this episode of Project Control Academy’s interview series with authors, experts, and thought leaders in project controls, project management, leadership, and career growth, I interviewed Ursula Kuehn, the author of Integrated Cost and Schedule Control in Project Management. To learn more about this book and order a copy, please click here.

Download the free audio mp3 podcast of this episode on iTunes.

Ursula Kuehn is a retired certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and Past President of UQN and Associates, a consulting/training company to government agencies and commercial corporations in various project management services. When I asked Ursula on how project control professionals can move into the Project Management, she responded: “Get some good leadership training because once you become a project manager, leadership is really the biggest part of your job. As the leader of your project, you’re the one that is responsible for everything and so when things go wrong, you’re the one that somehow has to get through it.”

To Ursula being a leader doesn’t mean bossing people around. It really means being able to take people involved in the project forward and get them to feel like their project is going to be a success. Nobody wants to drag themselves into work when they know they are on an unsuccessful project. However, if you know that you are on a successful project, it gives you that jump start in the morning. You’re excited about going to work. A project manager needs to instill that idea in the project personnel that he or she has and make sure that they understand that the project is going to be a success.

The following are 3 things that Ursula would teach a newbie in project controls or project management:

1. How to build a Work Breakdown Structure

Ursula stresses out on the importance of Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). In her book, Integrated Cost and Schedule in Project Management, she brings simple examples of how to build a good WBS. One of the examples was about building a pond in her yard. Ursula believes that the concept of WBS is the same no matter how complex the project is. The idea is to fully understand how to build the right WBS to figure out what the work is that you’re going to do to manage your project and deliver what you have to deliver. If you can’t properly build a WBS, you won’t be able to control the project.

2. How to estimate costs

The second thing that Ursula would teach a project professional is cost estimating. She believes that cost estimating should be done before scheduling. According to Ursula, if you estimate costs and roll them up, the whole scope should fit in the budget. If it doesn’t, two things can happen: a. You can ask for more budget if you can justify that; b. You can go back to your scope and WBS to carve off some parts that you can leave for another phase or iteration, so you have a balanced scope and budget.

3. How to schedule

Ursula suggests that scheduling comes after developing the WBS and estimating costs. Once you know the scope, estimate the costs, and balance the cost to the budget, it is time to develop the schedule. You can get almost anything done in any amount of time if you have the resources and budget to do it. It is important to understand that you can compress a schedule as long as you have resources. Compressing a schedule doesn’t necessarily double the cost if you truly plan it out properly. That is why integrating cost and schedule is critical and that is what she discusses in her book, Integrated Cost and Schedule Control in Project Management, in details.

Note: Ursula is very much open to work with a project professional who is interested in working on a new edition of her book and publishing it together. If you are interested, please let us know so we can connect you with Ursula. This is a great opportunity.

Resources

• The Audio version of the interview with Ursula Kuehn, PMP on Project Controls Mastery Podcast 
• Integrated Cost and Schedule Control in Project Management by Ursula Kuehn
• Project Controls Training Programs

• Project Controls Video Tutorials

Interested in learning the step-by-step process in integrating cost (EVM) inside your scheduling software (P6)?

About Ursula Kuehn

Ursula Kuehn is a retired certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and Past President of UQN and Associates, a consulting/training company to government agencies and commercial corporations in various project management services.  With a strong background in operations research and mathematics, Ursula is recognized in integrated cost and schedule control and earned value management procedures.  She is the author of Integrated Cost and Schedule Control in Project Management, published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers.  She has consulted in program control of several major US Government programs, such as the USDA MIDAS Program and the NARA ERA Program.  She has served as an adjunct professor teaching project management for UMUC, Graduate School of Management and Technology.  She has been a senior instructor, developing and facilitating various project management and earned value management courses, for various training organizations.  Ursula holds an M.S. in operations research from George Washington University College of Engineering, a Master Certificate in project management from George Washington University Business College, a B.S. in mathematics from Bowling Green University, and is a Member of American Mensa. You can connect with Ursula via LinkedIn.

About the Interviewer, Dr. Kamran Akbarzadeh

Dr. Kamran Akbarzadeh is co-director of Project Control Academy and founder of Dream Achievers Academy.  With his Amazon best-selling and international award-winning book, Leadership Soup, Kamran is an internationally recognized leadership and success expert. 

With years of experience as a project manager and subject matter expert in big oil and gas companies, and as a successful entrepreneur, Kamran believes that everyone has the potential to achieve what he or she truly wants in life. His desire for adding value to people and helping them grow and achieve their dreams and visions motivated him to establish Dream Achievers Academy and write his second book Get What You Want, which also became an award winner.

Kamran’s vision is to passionately add value to people around the world and inspire them to realize their potential and fulfill their dreams. And his mission is simply to serve.

As an inspiring and motivational speaker, seminar leader, and coach, Kamran equips his audience with profound tools, techniques, and solutions to hone their skills, increase their influence, get what they want, and achieve long-lasting success in their personal and professional lives as a result.

Kamran holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, PMP with Project Management Institute, and Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) with Toastmasters International.