Project Management vs Operations Management - Assignment Example

Describe the strengths and limitations of project management compared with operations management. Operations management can be described with three characteristics: Creates goods and service (i.e. production) Transforms inputs into outputs Focuses on operations Project management is an activity with a specific objective, finite duration (start & end dates), and limited resources (money, people, material). Operations management does not have predetermined limited duration and resources - as long as there is suitable demand for a product Its relevant operations will endure. Projects may exist within (or in conjunction with) ongoing operations. Each operations management and projects management has its specific role. Operations management: Objectives Goals Strategies Project Selection & Mix Cash Flow Projects Management: Schedule/Time Project Cost Performance Stakeholder Satisfaction Scope/Change Control So one of the certainties of an operations manager's career is that he or she will be responsible for numerous projects. These will range from large capital projects to the installation of new information systems. Effectively managing these projects means delivering them on time and within budget. How successful an operations manager is will be strongly influenced by his or her project management skills. (2) Why are many (or perhaps most) projects either delivered late, over budget, or not what the customer expected There may be a plenty of reasons why project fail. Here is the Seven Deadly Sins: Mistaking half-baked ideas for viable projects Dictating unrealistic project deadlines Assigning under-skilled project managers to high-complexity projects Not ensuring solid business sponsorship Failing to break projects into manageable "chunks" Failing to institute a robust project process architecture Not establishing a comprehensive project portfolio to track progress of ongoing projects It's common practice that there are a lot of projects, which had no chance to succeed. In the report of Standish Group about the commercial software industries following conclusions were made: U.S. companies would spend $81 billion on cancelled software in 1995 31% of software studied was cancelled before they were completed 53% of software projects overrun by more than 50% Only 9% of software projects for large companies were delivered on time and within budget. For medium-sized and small companies the numbers improved to 16% and 28% respectively. (Standish Group, 1995) The success rate for software projects is very low. Although there are a great many reasons of project failure, the analysts mark out main three messages: 1. Software development is still highly unpredictable. Only about 10% of software projects are delivered successfully within initial budget and schedule estimates. 2. Management discipline is more of a discriminator in success or failure than are technology advances. 3. The level of software scrap and reword is indicative of an immature process. (Royce, 1998) According to Royce, the main reasons why software project got into trouble are: Poor requirements definition Inadequate software project management Lack of integrated product teams Ineffective subcontractor management Lack of consistent attention to process Too little attention to software architecture Poorly defined, inadequately controlled interfaces Software upgrades to fix hardware deficiencies Focus on innovation rather than cost and risk Limited or no tailoring of standards So for many projects it's normally never to be finished. But I think that it is possible to accomplish successfully any project, if some necessary efforts are undertaken. Only highly qualified specialist in project management should decide what kind of efforts must be undertaken. (3) Can a measure be reliable, yet invalid Give three examples and explain. A data source is said to be reliable if repetitions of a measurement procedures results that vary from another by less then a pre-specified amount. Validity measures the extent to which a piece of information actually means what we believe it to mean. A measure may be reliable but not valid. A mismarked 36-inch yardstick pretending to be a meter stick performs consistently, so it's reliable. It does not however, match up accurately with other (standard) meter rulers, so it would be judged not valid. Another example of reliable, yet invalid measure is a watch that goes twice faster then normal ones. It is reliable, but time measurement with this watch is invalid. One more example of reliable but invalid measure is person's foot pretending to be a foot measure (app. 33 sm). Most people have feet less or more than 33 sm, so this measure is reliable and invalid. To be satisfactory, measures may be subjective or objective, quantitative or qualitative, but they must be numeric, reliable and valid. (4) Discuss the applicability of the various Schools of Management Thought to various kinds of projects. Give at least three examples. There are four kinds of Schools of Management Thought: Scientific School of Management. It emphasizes scientific analysis of work methods. Scientific analysis of work methods is still a valid approach to enhance efficiency and productivity, also for ergonomic analysis. It can be applicable to the modeling of the interaction of the plant's owner with the trade union, because they are adversaries and have opposite views. Process School of Management. It's also known as the "traditional school" and holds that management is a process of getting things done through and with people operating in organized groups. It emphasizes: Analyzing the management process Establishing conceptual frameworks Performing research and testing principles empirically Tenets of this school: Management is a process best studied by analyzing the functions of the manager Fundamental truths and generalizations can be made of management principles Fundamental truths can lead to research to improve management practice Truths can lead to a theory of management Management is an art which can be improved with science It's applicable to building construction, software development and other process-oriented projects. Behavioral School of Management. It focuses primarily on human behavior in organizations and the effect of social interaction. Emphasis on management as a social system - the organization as a social organism: Workers motivated by social needs, achieve a sense of identity through work More responsive if management can met their social and personal needs A complete - or even adequate - description of employees in the Behavioral School of Management may not be possible: People are complex and react differently to the same environment or the same to different environments. A human resource manager in a big organization can use Behavioral School of Management for providing some social policy for employees. Quantitative School of Management. It emphasizes quantification of management decisions. Tenets of Quantitative School of Management: Organizational performance can be improved through analysis and modeling Organizations can be designed to optimize the flow of resources and information Planning department can successfully use the Quantitative School of Management when planning various indicators for the next year. (5) Describe the project as a system. What are potential advantages and disadvantages of systems analysis and the systems approach to project management Simple definition of system is: a system is anything that has parts. Project as a process can be broken by parts (planning, execution, defect elimination) so project is a system. System analysis creates a framework of the desired system, determining that can be designed without undertaking the design. Project as a process can be represented by one of several process models of the system development life cycle, such as the waterfall model or the spiral model. Waterfall model. The waterfall approach is very structured and disciplined. Formal documentation and sign-off procedures enforce this disciplined approach. A phase is not considered completed until all documentation is done and approved. The documentation provides concrete evidence of progress and milestone achievement, which is embraced by management. This tends to add cost to the front end of the project while cutting time in the build and delivery phases, since all decisions will be made before the implementation begins. The biggest problems with this method occur because the subject matter experts are required to have perfect foresight. Once the system is specified, there is no easy method to modify the functionality. This results in delivered products that may not meet the real needs. This very rigid approach can work well if the requirements are stable and completely understood. Spiral model. The spiral model's biggest advantage is in early detection of high-risk situations and the ability to make a go/no go decision at the end of each round. This is because there is an explicit risk analysis designed to identify potential problems as more is learned about the system requirements and implementation. This relies heavily on the team being experienced and able to accurately assess risks. A major drawback to this approach is that risk analysis itself is very expensive and adds significantly to the overall delivery cost. Also, some environments may not lend themselves to being able to easily cancel a project, such as one that has been contracted to third parties. Bibliography: 1. Field, T. (2005) Failed Projects: Cases. When Bad Things Happen To Good Projects. The Washington Post Company 2. Finkelstein, R. (n.d.) Schools Of Management Thought: An Historical Overview. 3. Finkelstein, R. (n.d.) An Owerview Of Systems And The Systems Analysis. 4. Royce, W. (1998). 'Software Project Management: a unified framework'. MA: Addison-Wessley. 5. Starting a Project. (2005). Project Management Information. Retreived June 25, 2005 from http://www.projectperfect.com.au/info_start_project.php 6. The Standish Group Report. (1995). The Standish Group, 'Chaos'. Retreived June 25, 2005 from http://spinroot.com/spin/Doc/course/Standish_Survey.htm Read More