For most projects that you will do at Canisius, a simple assignment or outline of tasks may be all that you need. This is particularly true if you are working by yourself or in pairs. However, for more complex projects or projects with more than one additional member, sometimes just assigning tasks does not work. Sometimes due dates are forgotten, meeting notes lost, or the tasks seem a lot more daunting than they really are. A project management strategy helps manage all of this by providing a simple workflow. This allows you to manage and assign tasks and ensure that they are done before the due date, link or create meeting notes, and break down tasks into smaller, easier-to-manage components. And, if you find yourself struggling with a project, having all of this visually laid out may help you tackle them more easily. There are many strategies out there and tons of tools. We will only go into detail on some of the easiest strategies and then point out some tools available to you. We will end by providing some project management tips.

Key Takeaways

If you take nothing else away with you from reading this page, take the following:

Use a Calendar to help keep track of Due Dates
Break larger/more daunting tasks into smaller, more manageable components (and provide new due dates for those components)
Give yourself time to review and re-read your finished product. Try to finish your assignment 24 hours before the due date
Review all project requirements before handing in your assignment
When working with a group, there MUST be a designated group leader/coordinator

Project Management Strategies

These strategies are presented in no particular order. Additionally, we are just outlining strategies here and providing some quick examples. You may find that you need to customize these strategies or that using several of these strategies at once will be what you need. You may even find that the project strategies that we present here do not work for you. In that case, a quick Google search of "project management techniques" will provide you with many more.

Waterfall Method
The Waterfall method assumes that certain tasks need to be completed before other tasks can be completed. It is an all-purpose method, great for outlining tasks but not so great at seeing what tasks have not been started, are in progress, or finished. You can also make the Waterfall method more granular by providing tasks needed to finish the overall task.	Simple Waterfall method (made using Google Jamboard): Advanced Waterfall Method: *should go without saying: The very last task for these breakdowns in yellow should be "hand in before the due date"
Scrum
*Scrum workflow/methodology, made using Google Drawings. Assumption The assumption is that articles from JSTOR/Academic OneFile is are a project requirement	Based on the Agile framework, typically used for programming projects, but can be modified for other projects. The Scrum method has all of the tasks laid out and assumes that certain tasks can be completed along with other tasks. Tasks are also broken down into smaller components. Teams tackle smaller tasks/components individually but come together to tackle larger tasks and break into smaller teams again to accomplish smaller tasks/components and continue doing so until the project is finished. Tasks are assigned in short sprints (typically several days or several weeks) after which teams come together to discuss any issues or challenges preventing the task from being completed or to be assigned a new task.
Kanban/Charting Method
Another Agile-based strategy, this method identifies tasks, breaks them into smaller components, and puts them into different columns and is best for keeping track of tasks. Often these columns are titled Not Started, In Progress, and Finished. Other columns can be added as needed, such as a Review column. A simpler method could be done by simply adding a checkbox to the end of each task. You can assign people to these tasks very quickly.	*Google Docs was used here
Scrumban Method
*Google Doc's was used for this	This method combines both the Scrum and Kanban project management strategies. It takes from the Scrum method the idea of sprinting and meeting on a consistent basis while taking from the Kanban method the idea of charting and breaking tasks into smaller components. So, this method takes the positives of Scrum and Kanban. However, it can be more complicated and more difficult to implement without knowing how to do Scrum or Kanban first. Read more about this method from this link here and additional information linked here.
Prototype
This project management strategy allows you to quickly define what you need in your project and lends itself well to projects that need to be visually impactful or needs to have an overall framework (ex, Poster Boards, slideshows, web pages, or even an outline for an essay, etc.). Your group can often be working on other components of the project while you or other members can work on the prototype. Keep in mind that Prototyping does not do a good job of figuring out project due dates nor assigning tasks to members and should be used with one of the above strategies. While there are plenty of Prototyping Methods, one of the most common is wireframing. Wireframing is an easy method and requires minimal drawing skills, allowing for quick variations. Another good prototyping method is Mind Mapping, which is often used to show relationships between topics. While the focus of the article we linked is on note-taking, the general idea stands. Start with the Project Title in the middle and branch out to sub-topics/tasks.	Wireframe using Google Drawings Mindmap using Microsoft Whiteboard