You're managing a drone project. How can you ensure progress stays on track towards meeting deadlines?

When utilizing drone technology, it is always important to have an understanding of the weather and climate in the areas you are performing extended work periods. Poor weather conditions can ground your drones faster than any other issue. Plan around forecasted weather conditions and top load your schedule accordingly to maximize the number of flights available.

I believe you manage the drone project like any other project. As the PM, I would review the business case and scope to see what I am doing is accurate and correct. I would come up with a plan and ensure that plan matches to the desired outcomes. My next step would be to set up a cadence with the vendor to ensure that things are progressing. The only difference would be is that this project will require a lot of outside time or working in a big area to check the validation of the progress. Once the project is completed, we can put this drone project in Program Mode or operations depending up on the organization's next steps.

When managing goals for a drone project, keep in mind deliverables that are outside the projects control. For example, drone operators need a license, and the applicant does not control the time it takes to process the application. Another critical deliverable is mapping of the geographic area in which test flights will occur. This is something needs to be updated on a regular schedule as authorized flight paths may change and it is incumbent upon the project to stay abreast of the changes.

Meeting deadlines on projects is important to most of the parties involved with its completion. Finishing a project ahead of deadlines gets very little coverage. The opposite is true for not meeting deadlines. Weather, labor, equipment, materials, management, can contribute to timely completion.

Goals should be clearly defined and documented. Any change in the requirements in the later stages should come via change request.

Ensure also you are aware of the legal responsibilities in the area that you are concerned with mapping or photographing. What are the potential aerial obstacles to avoid.

Assess risk and develop a risk table and tàble of which stakeholders need to be contacted on what issues. If possible provide a financial breakdown of costs in the event a particular risk occurs.

Identifying risks at the early stages of the project is a key aspect. Risks such as hardware limitations and availability can be identified at the earlier stages and should have been informed to the jey stakeholders. Also, it is always beneficial to create a precise risks and issues to give everyone a quick overview on the risks and issues along with their strategies and plans.

Milestones should be clear and achievable. Sponsors are generally more interested in the milestones rather than the individual tasks All stakeholders should be informed regularly as agreed during the kick-off meeting.

I find that communication is an area where most companies can always improve. Some of the barriers to good communication include language, terminology and cultural differences. Therefore, putting it in a simple context, organizations must understand their clients’ needs and communication styles, along with ensuring that their teams are fluent in understanding and explaining the services and products they offer.

Mantenha linhas claras e abertas de comunicação com todos os membros da equipe e partes interessadas. Isso inclui atualizações regulares sobre o status do projeto, desafios encontrados e próximos passos. Utilizar ferramentas de gestão de projetos pode ajudar a manter todos informados e alinhados.

Esteja preparado para reagir e ajustar o plano de projeto conforme necessário. O ambiente de drones pode ser dinâmico e suscetível a mudanças rápidas devido a fatores como o clima, regulamentos ou falhas tecnológicas. Ter uma abordagem flexível e proativa na resolução de problemas ajuda a mitigar riscos e a manter o projeto em movimento.

Understand Project Scope Before You Start. ... Define the Project Goal Using SMART Goals. ... Create a Project Plan With Realistic Milestones. ... Use the Right Project Management Tools. ... Plan Regular Check-ins With the Project Team and Stakeholders.

Change in the requirements should be documented and client should be informed about it's impact on the scope, schedule and costs. Also, there should be a contingency built in the project plan to accommodate minor changes.

Monitore e gerencie os recursos do projeto de forma eficiente, incluindo tempo, pessoal e equipamentos. Certifique-se de que os recursos são alocados de maneira otimizada para atender às necessidades do projeto, e ajuste as alocações conforme necessário para evitar gargalos e atrasos.

It's always a good practice to check planned vacation dates of assigned resources and those dates should be factored in while preparing the project plan. If resource unavailable dates are impacting the project timeline, there should be a standby resource.