December 2007Networking Day for Mini-Projects Seven Ways of Mismanaging your Project: a bad practice guide

1. Forgetting to invoice the Subject Centre for your funding.

December 2007Networking Day for Mini-Projects 2. Never telling your colleagues what you are doing. This ensures that they: Don’t interfere with help, advice or informal publicity Don’t adopt or support project outcomes Don’t spread the word in your institution

3. ‘Winging it’ Examples of good practice include: Total avoidance of planning, especially of time and resources Squeezing the project into gaps in your teaching, research and admin duties Avoiding all contingency planning Assuming that others (technical specialists, interviewees) will be there just when you need them

4. If you have made plans (in contravention of 3), sticking to ‘em For example: Paying no heed to outcomes as the project progresses Never adjusting what you are going to do, how and when

5. Keeping the project to yourself. On no account release information about the project. This will have the effect of: –Improving the profile of your department –Alerting members of your PR department or even the THES –Risking offers of further funding from elsewhere in the sector –Eliciting invitations to write journal or conference papers

6. Not communicating with the English Subject Centre. This may result in: –Offers of help, advice or sources of these –Agreement on projects being rescheduled or restructured

7. Considering the needs of your audience. Focussing on the audience for your project can result in outcomes that are: –Interesting and relevant to English lecturers other than yourself –Presented in a way that is likely to engage interest –Read by anyone outside the Subject Centre