Project Management as Imperative for a Business Organization - Report Example

PROJECT MANAGEMENT Introduction The brisk and shifting demands brought about by globalization and emergence of high technology led business firms and organizations to fine-tune themselves as they increasingly recognized the compelling need to engage in flexible development initiatives for their business' own survival. As a result, these firms are confronted with the challenges of dealing with diverse and multifaceted development initiatives of various nature and character. Project management therefore is the capacity and the competence to handle and cope with these distinct developments. Project management has been depicted as a finely developed and a well recognized and accepted domain of professional expertise and as a sphere for academic study geared at promoting improvements in a system (White and Fortune, 2002). It likewise presents a logical and an efficient methodology to all phases of a project by ascertaining that every move and every step is meticulously conceptualized, supervised, monitored and accounted for. At the outset, its application was intended for big organizations with intricate systems and processes; however, contemporary techniques of project management can be modified and tailored to suit the needs of the smaller firms (Baccarini, 1999). In essence, project management is not just a process or a method; it is really more of a "mindset," thus, it is imperative for business organization owners or those in the higher echelon of firm management to be receptive to its potentials toward progress before it can be initiated as a constructive and a valuable process within the organization. Definition/Principles As a concept, project management has been in existence for centuries with its casual use of the Chinese and Egyptians that led to remarkable undertakings like the Great Wall of China and the Pyramids. Nonetheless, as a contemporary phenomenon, it has gained so much attention, focus and acceptance in the Information Technology industry as rapid developments continue to flow (Fox 2004). In a treatise centering on the significant components of effective project management, it has been inferred that - "In any project situation, there is a client/customer who has a unique need which requires knowledge and resources to conduct the realization of the concept within the specific constraints of time, money and specification. The effective management processes of planning, monitoring and control are required to translate the idea of change into tangible deliverables" (Cicmil, 1997). As it is, project management is a novel process whose implementation has become a great necessity in today's competitive market. To endeavor the completion of any project entails several elements and obstructions, among them are client special requirements, project complexity, organizational restructuring and project risks (Kerzner, 2003). With a methodical procedure in place, obstructions can be explained and courses of actions and suitable measures can be taken to either prevent or overcome them. Some of the many potential benefits project management provides include (Kerzner 2003): Identification of functional responsibilities ensuring that all activities are accounted for; Identification of time limits for scheduling; Measurement of accomplishment against plans; Early identification of problems; and Improved estimating capability PMI (2000) supplied a straightforward description and characterization of the term which depicts it as "the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project requirements." As the concept of project management surfaces, three core stimuli are involved (Baccarini, 1999): 1. Complexity - refers to the mounting intricacies of responsibilities and the necessity for higher levels in the spheres of expertise 2. Change - deals with progressively active settings and the continuous presence of pressure within organizations and the execution of change due to global competition 3. Time - refers to the demands for responsibilities, assignments and objectives to be completed as swiftly as possible Project Management Phases Project Initiation Phase Typically in this stage conceptualization of the project takes place, likewise, it is in this phase that specifications of what the project should accomplish is being discussed. In addition, this stage calls for the project team to carry out interviews with customers and stakeholders; conduct research and brainstorming sessions so as to generate more data; prepare the project feasibility document, project concept statement and project charter; and the preparation of other documents as defined in the organization standards. Project Planning Phase This is considered the most significant stage in project management. The inputs generated during the planning stage can save hours of confusion in the next stages. At this juncture, the project team needs to establish the business requirements; ascertain cost, schedule, and list of deliverables and delivery dates; determine resource plan; and secure management approval. Project Planning is crucial to a project's success. It helps team members understand assigned tasks and corresponding expectations. In its entirety, project planning stage identifies scope, tasks, schedules, risks, quality and staffing needs. Project Execution and Control Phase The execution phase is exemplified by the actual work on the tasks planned while the project control stage involves the comparison/contrast and the assessment of the actual performance against planned performance and taking suitable and corrective measures to get the desired output. This phase has direct association with the project's progress and stakeholders' expectations. Project Closure Phase This is the last phase of the Project Life Cycle. The commencement of the project closure phase is determined by the completion of all project objectives and acceptance of the end product by the customer. It includes the following tasks: release of resources, both staff and non-staff, and their redistribution and reallocation to other projects, if needed; closure of any financial issues like labor, contract etc.; collection and completion of all project records; archiving of all project records; documenting the issues that took place when the project was being undertaken and their resolution; recording lessons learned and conducting sessions with the project team on the same, this helps in the productivity improvement of the team and helps identify the dos and don'ts of the Project; Lessons learned are an essential part of the project closure phase. It assists in responding to the following queries during project closure: Did the delivered product / solution meet the project requirements and objectives Was the customer satisfied Was Project Schedule Met Was the Project completed within Budgeted Cost Were the risks identified and mitigated What could be done to improve the process The outputs from project closure phase provide a stepping stone in implementing the next projects with much more efficiency and control. (Kerzner, 2003) Traditional Triple Constraints Just like most human endeavors, projects are carried out, performed and delivered in the midst of certain constraints. Conventionally, the most evident limitations are scope, time and cost. Likewise, they are referred to as the Project Management Triangle, wherein each side represents a constraint -- one side of the triangle cannot be changed without affecting and influencing the others (Kerzner, 2003; Berkun, 2005; PMI, 2003; Charmoun, 2006; Lewis, 2002) Time constraint refers to the amount of time available to complete a project while cost talks about the budgeted amount available for the project and scope deals with what must be done to produce the project's outcomes. These three constrictions are often competing with each other -- increased scope usually means increased time and increased cost; a tight time constraint could mean increased costs and reduced scope, and a tight budget could mean increased time and reduced scope. The focus of project management is to provide the processes and mechanisms that can enable the project team (not just the project manager) to organize work in an efficacious manner and efficiently respond to these constraints. Time To be methodical about it, the time necessitated to produce a deliverable is projected as employing numerous processes and logical systems. One method is to identify and recognize responsibilities necessary to produce the deliverables documented in a work breakdown structure or WBS. The work effort for each task is estimated and those projections are rolled up into the final deliverable estimate. In like manner, these tasks are prioritized, dependencies between tasks are identified, and the information gathered is documented in a project schedule. The dependencies between the tasks can affect the length of the overall project (dependency constrained), as can the availability of resources (resource constrained). Time is not considered a cost nor a resource since the project manager cannot control the rate at which it is expended. This makes it different from all other resources and cost categories. Cost The outlays, financial and otherwise, to develop a project relies on a number of variables which mainly include: labor rates, material rates, risk management, plant (buildings, machines, etc.), equipment, and profit. For instance, when getting an independent consultant for a project, cost will typically be determined by the consultant's or firm's per diem rate multiplied by an estimated quantity for completion. Scope This refers to the requirements specified for the end result. The overall definition of what the project is supposed to accomplish and a specific description of what the end result should be or accomplish. A key element of scope is the quality of the final product. The amount of time put into individual tasks determines the overall quality of the project. Some tasks may require a given amount of time to complete adequately, but given more time could be completed exceptionally. Over the course of a large project, quality can have a significant impact on time and cost (or vice versa). Together, these three constraints have given rise to the phrase On Time, On Spec, On Budget. Communication is the means of support and the lifeblood of projects and organizations. The project manager incessantly disseminates project information from external stakeholders to project plan documentation, to the internal stakeholders, to the project plan. This cycle of communication and information flow is imperative and must be consistent throughout the life of the project. Without it, stakeholders and the project team can be left wondering where things stand and what decisions have been made. While one needs to understand who is involved in the project, it is equally important to understand what information is needed and at what level they need to receive it. Essentially, there are specific necessities for a communication plan. The communication plan needs to be scaleable and must be organized based on the scale and depth of the project. One shouldn't arrange for a detailed or an extremely complicated communication plan if it is for a straightforward project that only entails the involvement of a small group. Understanding the needs of stakeholders and developing a suitable plan for communicating progress, successes, risks, and changes is paramount. The operative word when creating the plan document is appropriate. One shouldn't communicate irrelevant information, otherwise, stakeholders and the project team may become overwhelmed with information and disregard relevant future information. What must be communicated is information whose presence or absence will have some direct impact on project's success. And how does one identify when information will have a direct impact on a project Usually if the data affects the scope, time, cost, risk, or quality of the tasks involved. A project team that practices effective communication is certain to make insightful and educated project decisions. Just as blood doesn't flow by itself, neither does communication. Both require interaction on the part of the team and stakeholders. References Kerzner, Harold. Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling, 8th ed. Wiley, 2003 Berkun, Scott. Art of Project Management. Cambridge, MA: O'Reilly Media, 2005 Lewis, James. Fundamentals of Project Management. 2nd ed. American Management Association, 2002 Verzuh, Eric. The Fast Forward MBA in Project Management. 2nd ed. Wiley, 2005 Project Management Institute. Project Management Institute Practice Standard for Work Breakdown Structures. 2nd ed. 2006 Baccarini, D. History of Project Management. School of Architecture Construction and Planning. Curtin University of Technology, 1999 Cicmil. "Critical factors of effective project management." The TQM Magazine. 1997: 390-393 Fox, G. M. Is there a Role for Project Management in Achieving Improved Success Rates for Start-Up Business University of Limerick, 2004 Project Management Institute (PMI). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge. 3rd ed. Project Management Institute, 2003 White, D. and Fortune, J. "Current Practice in Project Management - An empirical Study." International Journal of Project Management 20 (2002): 1-11. Chamoun, Yamal. Professional Project Management, The Guide. 1st.ed. Monterrey, NL Mexico: McGraw Hill, 2006 Lewis, James. Fundamentals of Project Management. 2nd ed. American Management Association, 2002 Read More