July 30, 2025
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Welcome to this weekās Project Management huddle ā your go-to source for the latest trends, industry insights, and tools shaping the industry. Letās dive in! š„
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What Are Project Activities & How To Define Them
Project activities are the building blocks of your project. Without a clear understanding of what the team needs to do to produce the right deliverables, youāll fall short of stakeholder and client expectations. Hereās how to plan and set up project activities for your projects.
Stay on Track
Project activities are the tasks team members carry out to move a project toward its goals. Organizing your project into activities keeps it structured so the team can work efficiently. These tasks are discrete units of work that drive a project forward, such as steps in creating a product, critical meetings, or defining the budget.
Milestones vs. Activities
While activities are ongoing tasks, milestones are key moments that mark significant phases or goals, like completing a design phase or launching a website. For example, to achieve a milestone like launching a website, your team might carry out activities like creating wireframes or holding client reviews.
The Software Advantage
Project management software lets you list activities, allocate resources, and track progress against timelines. Tools like Trello or Asana help visualize workflows and ensure no tasks are missed.
Deliverables & Activities
Project deliverables are the outputs of activities. For instance, an activity like creating a style guide results in the deliverable itself (the style guide). Examples of deliverables include reports, websites, or applications.
How to Become a Freelance Project Manager in 2025
Freelance project managers are in high demand, with the PMI estimating 88 million project managers needed by 2027. This surge is driven by startups and new businesses adopting project-oriented models. Beyond demand, freelancing offers flexibility: work from anywhere, control your time, and choose projects that align with your interests.
What Is a Freelance Project Manager?
A freelance project manager oversees projects from initiation to completion, following the PMBOK life cycle (five phases). Unlike full-time managers, freelancers work temporarily for multiple clients, handling specific projects or deliverables. Theyāre not full-time employees but often have more autonomy than independent contractors, who operate under fixed contracts.
Skills & Education to Succeed
While no formal education is required, 68% of top project managers hold bachelorās degrees in fields like business, engineering, or finance. Certifications like PMP, ChPP, CSM, or PMI-ACP can boost credibility. Hard skills include budgeting and risk management, while soft skills like communication and adaptability are critical.
Steps to Launch Your Freelance Career
- Choose a niche with high demand (e.g., tech, construction, finance).
- Build a strong resume highlighting skills and experience.
- Leverage your networkāformer colleagues, conferences, or coffee shops can open doors.
- Advertise your services on platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, or LinkedIn.
- Start with familiar projects to build a reputation before transitioning fully to freelancing.
Tools That Make You Unstoppable
Freelancers rely on project management tools to streamline workflows:
- Monday.com: Automate tasks and collaborate seamlessly.
- ClickUp: Organize tasks and prioritize projects.
- Jira: Ideal for Agile teams with sprint planning and issue tracking.
- Asana: Simplify remote collaboration with visual tools.
Salary Insights & Red Flags
The average hourly rate for freelance project managers in the U.S. is $46.19, with top earners making up to $87/hour (ZipRecruiter, June 2025). However, be wary of clients with unclear scopes, unrealistic deadlines, or poor communication.
Freelancing isnāt for everyone, but with the right skills and mindset, itās a rewarding path. Ready to dive in? Start today!
Enterprise Agility: The Key to Building Anti-Fragile Organizations
In todayās volatile world, enterprise agility is the secret sauce for organizations that thrive amid disruptions. From technological shifts to climate crises, businesses face constant pressure to adapt. The Project Management Institute (PMI) highlights how moving from resilience to anti-fragility is critical for sustained success.
Whatās the Difference Between Resilience and Anti-Fragility?
Enterprise agility is the foundation for both, but anti-fragility goes further. As Janka Krings-Klebe, author of The Antifragile Organization, explains, āAnti-fragile systems use disruptions as a source of learning and renewal.ā Unlike resilience, which focuses on bouncing back to a previous state, anti-fragility means growing stronger through stress.
Key Insights from the Webinar
- Lenka Pincot (PMIās Chief of Staff) and Giles Lindsay (author of Clearly Agile) emphasize that anti-fragility isnāt about survivalāitās about thriving.
- Zoom and Shopify are cited as examples of companies that leveraged agility to not only survive but thrive during the pandemic.
- Accentureās Global Disruption Index shows a 200% rise in disruption levels between 2017 and 2022, underscoring the urgency of agility.
Why Rigidity Kills Agility
Lenka warns that overly rigid processesādesigned for efficiencyācan stifle adaptability. āSystems designed for efficiency can be difficult to change quickly,ā she notes. Nassim Nicholas Talebās concept of ādebtā (short-term gains that limit long-term flexibility) is also highlighted as a barrier.
Practical Tips for Building Anti-Fragile Organizations
- Remove debt: Prioritize long-term adaptability over short-term wins.
- Normalize change: Foster a culture where teams embrace continuous transformation.
- Empower teams: Leaders must trust their teams to act autonomously and lead change.
- Stay tethered to purpose: Balance technical skills with adaptability, open communication, and trust.
Final Thoughts
The webinar underscores that perpetual transformation is the new norm. As Janka advises, āTake reflection time to appreciate your successes.ā For leaders, the takeaway is clear: agility isnāt optionalāitās the engine for future-proofing your organization.
š ļø Tool of the Week
Proofhub is one of the most efficient project management solutions for teams of any size, Streamline simplifies entire project workflows by integrating planning, delegation, tracking, collaboration, and file management. This comprehensive approach addresses the productivity challenge that arises when teams switch between various tools.Ā
š¤Æ Fun Fact of the Week
Organizations are adopting hybrid project management, combining multiple methodologies to manage teams and projects. This may involve using waterfall planning with agile sprints. Hybrid approaches can also mean historically waterfall-based teams hold daily standups, retrospectives, and other Scrum ceremonies, despite not fully adopting Scrum. Though not entirely new, research and articles on hybrid methodologies date back to around 2017. Theyāre gaining traction among organizations, including digital agencies and teams.
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