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120 • Green Project Management

Finally, there are sites like Monster.com that can save project manage-
ment resources. These sites provide immediate information to allow a
project manager to screen potential candidates (whether permanent staff
or consultants) quickly and effectively. Staffing is another one of those
processes that go on during the execution phase of the project plan.
A search of the literature reveals that project managers spend between
60 and 80% of their time doing some sort of communications activity. If
using social media can save 20% or more of a project manager’s time (a
limited project resource), on a large project that could mean a savings of
tens of thousands of dollars. Additionally, the use of social networking
is taking advantage of electronic media to get out the project’s messages,
rather than generating paper or traveling to meetings, which reduces the
project’s carbon footprint. And a side benefit of using social networking to
reach out to a variety of people quickly and easily can do one other thing
that is very important to the project manager, reduce risk!

exeCution oF greenality eFForts

During this phase of the project, it is important that the greenality efforts
outlined and defined in the planning phase are properly executed. This
part of the project has much of the excitement and energy on the project.
All of the planning efforts are now coming to fruition. It is also a time
when the project team’s primary focus is on the “product” of the project,
that is, more of the functionality of the project, and aspects such as qual-
ity assurance and greenality (product or process) tend to get less atten-
tion. However, it is a critical time for greenality. Since it is a relatively new
concept in a project, if the attention is not put on greenality at this point,
the message will be clear that “greenality is not that important.” That
certainly is not the message that we want to convey. Managing the proj-
ect’s greenality is a necessary part of project management function and
must be considered. As a matter of fact, more emphasis must be placed
on greenality for just that reason. Because it is a relatively new function
as we’ve defined it, it isn’t well understood. Special attention has to be
placed on greenality so that it is understood and so that the commitment
to it remains strong in order for it to succeed. The question then is how
to continue to create a strong sense of commitment to greenality for the
project’s product and processes.