Project management tools and technique - Thesis Example

?Project Management Tools and Technique Introduction Organisations engage in activities of various kinds which are generally categorised into projects and operations. The two share similarities but are essentially two different activities. Meeting the requirements of operations or projects involves critical management techniques from relevant departments and individuals. This study will discuss how project management differs from operations management before proceeding to establish the most significant considerations in product management research. Examples will be used to discuss the standards, methodologies and bodies of knowledge in project management and how they differ. The issues to take into consideration when undertaking project management will then be discussed. This will be followed by an exploration of two project management methodologies basing this on real world examples. A conclusion will be arrived at and recommendations for an effective project management generated based on the literature reviewed and the case studies used. Project Management and Operations Management: Differences To distinguish appropriately between project management and operations management it is imperative that the difference between project and operations is established first. Operations and projects are both categories of an organisation’s activities and are both planned and controlled activities. However, they differ in repeatability where operations are continuous or repetitive activities. In contrast, projects are unique showing distinguishable features of the resultant product and temporary undertakings in that they have definite beginnings and ends (Lester 2007, p.1). Whereas operations result in the usual products of the organisation, projects may be for the purpose of developing new products, effecting structural changes in the organisation or implementing new or modified processes in production processes (Lester 2007, p.1). Based on the concepts of operations and projects explained above, operations management then involves activities aimed at ensuring that the usual production is carried out with minimal interruption. On the other hand, project management involves a series of activities undertaken to initiate, plan, control and terminate execution of activities of a project (Maylor 2005, p. 2). Besides the differences in uniqueness and repeatability, project management is different from operations management in that it is revolutionary and is based on transient resources while the latter is evolutionary and based on stable resources (Select Knowledge 2001, p. 9). Literature Review Project Management Standards, Methodologies and Bodies of Knowledge Morris and Pinto (2007, p. 243) explain the reasons behind the interest in a global approach towards project management standards, qualifications and body of knowledge including international competitiveness, concern of possible fragmentation of the project management field and demands from multinational practitioners. Since project management is a field experiencing considerable growth, there is bound to be differences in the bodies of knowledge and standards arising from various perspectives. As a result, there is the need for the establishment of universal standards, methodologies and body of knowledge to guide the field. The first body of knowledge under consideration is the PMBOK, established by the PMI (Project Management Institute) which took the earliest steps to professionalise project management. The PMBOK earlier on sought to codify the knowledge behind the field of project management but later realised it was quite a dynamic field and instead developed itself into good practice. The PMBOK Guide now serves as an accreditation tool for educational institutions and a test on it also serves as part of the qualifying process in the US Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. It is the most widely used body of knowledge in project management and has nine areas of knowledge on projects: management of integration, scope, quality, human resource, procurement, cost, time, communications and risk (Dinsmore and Cabbanis-Brewin 2010, p. 21). The next body of knowledge is the APMBOK (Association of Project Management Body of Knowledge) which was developed in the UK. It forms the basis of accreditation, qualification, research and publication in the UK. The areas covered in the APMBOK include management of context, planning of strategy, execution, techniques, business and commercial considerations and lastly governance and organisation of people and the profession (Chin, Yap and Spowage 2010, p. 6). The British Standard BS6079-1: 2002 provides guidance on the planning and execution of projects and the use of techniques in project management. It is more standards-based and has been revised a number of time in the last seven years to ensure it accommodates the most recent technology and practices in project management. The other significant body of knowledge is the Japanese P2M which also includes programme management besides management of single projects. Under the project management, the P2M covers management of strategy, finance, systems, organisation, objectives, resource, risks, information, relationships, value and communications (Dinsmore and Cabbanis-Brewin 2010, p. 26). PRINCE2 (Projects in Controlled Environments) has become synonymous to management of information systems across Europe. It has two levels of qualification; a basic foundation level and a practitioner level. PRINCE2 focuses on the structure and content of the plans and steps to be taken during project management and quality control applications. The areas covered in PRINCE2 are management of business case, plans, controls, risks, quality, configuration and change (Chin, Yap and Spowage 2010, p. 3-4). The IPMA (International Project Management Association) is the oldest establishment for project management started in 1965 as a forum for networking and sharing of information amongst project managers around the world. The IPMA aims at harmonising the various European bodies of knowledge in project management and provide competencies and standards to be followed in project management. It has evolved into a body of knowledge based on three main competence considerations; technical, behavioural and contextual competence Chin, Yap and Spowage 2010, pp. 8-9). These bodies of knowledge differ not only in their geographical backgrounds but also on where they place emphasis upon. For example, UK’s APMBOK was established due to the observation that PMBOK was more practitioner based and lacked an adequate knowledge base. The Japanese P2M focused more effort on value creation through the establishment of enterprise mission and strategies. The IPMA on the other hand covers contextual and behavioural aspects in project management. PRINCE2 defines a structures methodology which can be tailored to suit organisational requirements. BS6079 is more focused on standards in planning and execution of project management undertakings. Issues under Consideration when Undertaking a Project There are a number of issues that need to be considered in project management for the achievement of the project's mission. These issues arise in all aspects of project roll out as any BOK would present it; initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control and finally, closing (Brown 2007, pp 4-5). These issues include the work breakdown plans, cost estimates, logic and schedules. The issues that need to be considered during a project can thus be derived from the project plan, where it is established that these include setting of the mission and objectives, schedules, cost analysis, risk analysis, quality plan, environmental and safety plan, human resource, scope and time management, procurement, communication and documentation. The mission statement is an all encompassing explanation of why the project is being done and is supported by a set of specific objectives that address each subset of the key issues of the project. Examples include costs, technical considerations and time limits among others. The mission and objectives are key issues when undertaking a project since they guide the entire project, make it straightforward and act as an appraisal measure (Berkun 2008, p. 69). Time management is one of the key issues during a project, where clear knowledge of the work breakdown structure, scope and human resource requirements come into play. The project manager needs to consider timelines since the very essence of a project lies in its time limit or life cycle. Poor time management impacts on the whole project and perhaps more importantly impacts on the overall cost (Dinsmore and Cabanis-Brewin 2010, p. 103). Quality maintenance is another issue that arises during implementation of projects. Although quality is usually adjudged through the final product of the project, it is the quality of the processes during implementation that determine the quality of the final product and then proceed to govern the quality of operations until another project is implemented. During the project, quality translates to keeping to the established processes, plans and requirements as was set forth in the planning stage (Lester 2007, p. 73). The next issue that requires consideration during a project is cost management, where according to the PMBOK, the manager needs to not only estimate costs and make a budget but also control costs during project roll out. Cost is a serious issue since its planning affects the entire project and the project itself affects the costs. On a closely related issue, procurement is a weighty consideration during the project since it impacts on time, costs and quality dimensions of the project. The management should ensure that the procurement strategy is adhered to properly (Lester 2007, p. 238). Risks in the project implementation are also a key issue that concerns project management. Events that may cause losses and diversion of project objectives are a problem due to uncertainties, and the fact that lack of proper risk management may result in degeneration into chaos. Risk management involves first studying the scope and goals of the project and then undertaking a risk analysis which is then followed by the establishment of a risk management strategy (Othman, Zain and Hamdan 2010, pp. 99-100). Environmental, health and safety issues are other key aspects of project undertakings as can be learnt from the spectacular collapses of several organisations due to shortcomings in these areas. As a result, the project being undertaken should ensure that all the necessary legal and organisational health, safety and environmental requirements are observed at all times during roll out of the project until it is complete (Lester 2007, p. 278). Communication is a key determinant of the success of the project since it serves several functions including keeping all stakeholders up-to-date, helps in resolution of problems and management of risks and aids in appraisal at each step of the project. As per most of the bodies of knowledge that inform project management strategies, communication should involve proper information sharing and performance reporting (Cooke-Davies 2001, p. 53). Case Studies Case study 1: Ministry of Defence Equipment and Support Adoption of Combat Identification Server Technology The Combat Identification Server (CIdS) technology is a revolutionary military technology through which the cockpit on aircraft could be enabled to provide a picture of the positions of nearby friendly forces on the ground and thus reduce confusion during times of war. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) appreciated that this was a complex system of software that would require the best project management methodology to implement. Traditional project management by the defence sector had no way to integrate quality assurance with timely completion and cost management. Since they had to get the technical bits right, the timelines of defence project usually extended considerably. This is accompanied by massive increment in costs of such projects. In the implementation of the CIdS project, the MoD decided to adopt the use of Agile project management methodology specifically Dynamic Systems Development Model (DSDM) (GDUK 2010). Agile methodologies focus on a number of principles and values, all of which have been drawn from the bodies of knowledge of project management. One of the main values in agile systems is the emphasis on communication, which should be effective, clear and timely. Simplicity is another value in agile systems whereby the project management focuses on the simplest solutions that are possible. Feedback, courage and humility are also main values behind agile methods (Carayannis and Kwak 2002, pp. 16-17). The Agile DSDM project management model implemented for the MoD was focused on establishing the parts of the CIdS system to be implemented based on “Must, Should, Could and Won’t” (GDUK 2010, p. 4). This helped the project implementation to focus on what was necessary. The project was divided into increments which were divided into time boxes. Each time box had to be completed before moving to the next and there was no room for extension of the time box. The DSDM model was utilised at all steps of implementation of the project including business and commercial considerations, negotiations, strategising, techniques, human resource management, communication, teamwork and risk management. The project was largely successful, prompting the MoD to consider establishing it as the standard for management of future projects. The project was completed in time and kept within the budget besides achieving the desired quality (GDUK 2010). The Agile DSDM was the most appropriate methodology for implementation of the CIdS technology since it established the most notable aspects of this highly complex system and divided the steps of the project into manageable parts. These were hugely influential in ensuring the project would meet its time and cost requirements. Case Study 2: Synergi’s Implementation of TOC and Critical Chain Synergis Technology Group is a large establishment that concurrently manages over 200 complex projects at any one time. Even before considering implementing Theory of Constraints (TOC) and Critical Chain in their activities, Synergis still had excellent engineering and manufacturing records. This success, however, was accompanied by growth which was nearly getting out of hand since the ability to manage the system was not growing commensurately. Their projects involve capital engineering, pattern building, casting, machining and assembly and lastly quality control, steps during which considerable uncertainties delay processes and cut delivery time which is perhaps the most significant factors in maintaining clients. The goal of the project management that was implemented at Synergies was to implement a Critical Chain solution that would result in better throughput and better lead times. Through a TOC thinking process approach, Synergis developed a prerequisite tree through which all obstacles preventing them from achieving their goals were established. The implementation plan established centred on effective project management integrating the business side as well as the organisational culture side. Critical chain project management takes care of the uncertainties in traditional project management through streamlining task responsibility, specifying buffers and placing focus on the correct time estimates according to each task; this is besides undertaking proper resource balancing. The impacts of the Critical Chain project management were felt at Synergies Technology Group, with the firm being enabled to identify bottlenecks, predict problems and pre-empt them. This was coupled with enhancing the capacity to complete projects in time and within budget. This form of project management was the most appropriate for the case of Synergies since it has modalities to handle complex and multi-system projects (Critical Chain UK 2002). Conclusion Project management is a different concept, practice and discipline from the common operations management due to its unique results, timeline specifications and lack of repeatability. There are various bodies of knowledge and standards in project management including PMBOK, APMBOK, PRINCE2, P2M, IPMA and BS6079. All of these differ in the areas they place emphasis upon but generally cover the same areas in project management. Some of the key issues that are taken into consideration during a project include time, scope, quality, environment, health and safety, cost, personnel management and risk management, all of which can be observed in the case studies discussed. Recommendations The discussion into the bodies of knowledge, key issues and the exploration of the two case studies provides insight into the considerations that an organisation planning or implementing a project should consider. The following are the recommendations for such an organisation: • Employ professional project management services. Project management is different from operations management which means that leaving this responsibility to operations managers may easily lead to failure. • Join a relevant BOK body. Before undertaking the project, establish whether the standards and principles involved in the project meet the minimum set by the BOK body. In the UK, bodies such as APMBOK provide valuable information on project management. • Ensure that the project being implemented is based on a proper strategy since most BOK guidelines are based solely on execution of the project. • The planning part for the project is particularly pertinent since it guides the project management. • Establish all the relevant issues that impact the project during its implementation. This is beneficial in reducing uncertainties. • The best project management strategies are increasingly leaning towards simplicity and clear activities which have the capacity to transform the project to meet the time and budget requirements. • Communication and teamwork are fundamental aspects of project management and they should be planned clearly before roll out of the project. References Berkun, S 2008, Making things happen: Mastering project management, O'Reilly Media, USA. Brown, ED 2007, Strategic project management, Aligning Technology, Strategy, People & Projects, viewed 4 November 2011, Carayannis, EG & Kwak, YH 2002, The story of managing projects: A global, cross– disciplinary collection of perspectives, Grenwood Press, UK. Chin, CC, Yap, EH & Spowage, AC 2010, Reviewing leading project management practices, PM World Today, vol. vol. XII, no. XI, 1-18 Cooke-Davis, TJ 2001, Towards improved project management practice: Uncovering the evidence for effective practices through empirical research, Universal Publishers, USA. Critical Chain UK, 2002, Case study: Synergis technologies group- The power of creative engineering and multi-project management, Synergis, viewed 3 November 2011, Dinsmore, PC & Cabanis-Brewin, J 2010, The AMA handbook of project management, AMACOM, USA. GDUK, 2002, Application of the dynamic systems development method in a complex project environment, viewed 6 November 2011, Lester, A 2007, Project management, planning and control: managing engineering, construction and manufacturing projects to PMI, APM and BSI standards, Butterworth-Heinemann, UK. Maylor, H 2005, Project management, Harlow, England. Morris, P & Pinto, JK, 2007, The Wiley guide to project organization & project management competencies, John Wiley and Sons, Canada. Othman, M, Zain, AM & Hamdan, AR 2010, ‘A review on project management and issues surrounding dynamic development environment of ICT project’, International Journal of Digital Content Technology and its Applications, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 97-105 Read More