Great book. Immediately helpful. Fun to read.

This book is great. It is easy to read, insightful and down right funny at times. As I read it I was immediately able to put the author's advice into practice in my job.

Berkun breaks down complex parts of running a project and delivers advice in consumable, actionable chucks with humor and wit.

At some points, Berkun's descriptions of project pitfalls rang so true to my experience that I felt a sense of relief. I found myself saying "Oh good, it's not just the project I'm working on." The author has a sense of optimism which I found energizing. Even as he describes mistakes people make and reasons projects fail, there is still an underlining sense of hope as if to say, "Hey, we're all human and here is how to deal with it."

Most importantly, this book is enjoyable to read. I found the author's use of humor and personal experience helped me retain concepts in the book and get through it quickly.

Wise and Witty

Scott Berkun, where have you been all my life? I agree whole-heartedly with the other glowing reviews posted here. The content is great and this is a must have for any PM-type professional.

Scott has been in the trenches and writes from his experiences and observations. He's taken often cumbersome topics and put his down-to-earth touch on them. His sense of humor comes through from page 1 and helps to drive principles home with real-world, often non-tech examples!

Scott didn't stop with the publication of the book - The discussion forum (http://www.scottberkun.com/books/artofpm/) and PM Clinic provide additional resources. Information gleamed from these three sources have proven helpful in all facets of my everyday life.

What great resources for beginners and career PMs alike!

Skills you need, not yet another methodology...

This is my type of book on project management... readable without a rigid methodology! The Art of Project Management by Scott Berkun (O'Reilly).

Chapter List:
Part 1 - Plans: The Truth About Schedules; How To Figure Out What To Do; Writing The Good Vision; Where Ideas Come From; What To Do With Ideas Once You Have Them
Part 2 - Skills: Writing Good Specifications; How To Make Good Decisions; Communication And Relationships; How Not To Annoy People - Process, Email, And Meetings; What To Do When Things Go Wrong
Part 3 - Management: Why Leadership Is Based On Trust; How To Make Things Happen; Middle-game Strategy; End-game Strategy; Power And Politics
Notes; Annotated Bibliography; Acknowledgements; Photo Credits; Index

Most books on project management, while useful, can be painful to read. A structure and methodology is laid out, each step is spelled out in exact detail, and every exception to the rule is covered somehow. If your only job is to manage projects, perhaps you can do all the paperwork required. Berkun's written a different style of book. Rather than introduce yet another methodology, he focuses more on the skills and techniques that a project manager should have. He talks about how to schedule projects, not "this is the way you should do it". He touches on soft skills such as communications between team members and with management. Bottom line, it's the things you need to think about in the role of project management instead of what steps you need to follow. What's nice about this book is that you could apply it to your job even if you're required to adhere to a specific process-driven methodology like RUP. Since it deals with mindsets and skills you'll need in any case, you'll come away better prepared to do your job.

This is one of the more practical books on project management that I've had the chance to cover. The writing style is also less formal and a bit more "real life" than most. You actually feel like you're talking with the author instead of being "talked to". It doesn't look like your typical O'Reilly book, but it is a great addition to their collection of titles. If you need to understand more about project management, this would be a very nice place to start...