Importance of People Management as Part of Project Management - Essay Example

work Header Sheet 210272-11 BUSI1329: Project Management School/Level BU/UG work Individual Work Assessment Weight 70.00% Tutor F Mafakheri Submission Deadline 03/04/2014 Coursework is receipted on the understanding that it is the students own work and that it has not, in whole or part, been presented elsewhere for assessment. Where material has been used from other sources it has been properly acknowledged in accordance with the Universitys Regulations regarding Cheating and Plagiarism. 000746264       Abdulrahman Rabea Al Ansari Tutors comments                          Grade Awarded___________ For Office Use Only__________ Final Grade_________ Moderation required: yes/no Tutor______________________ Date _______________ Importance of People Management as Part of Project Management Projects generally involve a dynamic collection of people who will normally have interests, philosophies, values and approaches that are varying and priorities that may be different from one person to another. In project management, it is very important to make sure that this mix becomes articulate and drives the project forward as much as possible (Hallows, 1998, p. 25). The employees form one of the scarce resources of the organization and their contribution in a project determines its success. In project management, project human resource management can be considered to be the most operational use of the people that are supposed to be working on the project and it entails the planning that normally takes place in the organization, the hiring of staff and the ultimate development of the team that will be tasked with working on the project all the way to the end (Frigenti and Comninos, 2002, p. 39). Therefore, it is indisputable that the role of the employees within a project cannot be undermined if there are any hopes of completing the projects in time and in the most efficient manner. The processes and methodology that are associated with projects normally depend on people who form the labour source from the beginning to the end of the project. The nimble approaches consider the views of the individuals more but they both depend on how the people will work together (Cox, Housden, Parkinson, and McKee, 2012, p. 56). Organisations must make sure that they identify the significance of behavioural factors that are associated with performance during the project. Hence, project managers that possess strong behavioural skills stand a better chance of making the team that works under them become more involved in the project and the making of decisions as well as shared decision-making, which in the end will make the process of project management be a success. In this age, the project managers are more mandated to manage the people that are working in the project more than they actually manage any other organizational resource (Kerzner, 2010, p. 379). The implication of this is that people management is the back bone of the project implementation process. A project manager is endowed with the noble role of organizing the human resource, controlling it and directing it towards the organizational goals and objectives (Chartered Institute of Building, 2011, p. 7). The project managers play a critical role in orienting the employees to the goals and the objectives of any particular project. All projects are time objective specific and people management ensures that employees are oriented to the project goals. The significance of aligning the employees to the organizational goals is that they know what to do any particular time and they have a central focus in all their operations. Secondly, they understand the value of accomplishing these goals and they can design innovative operation stances that can help them achieve these goals (Badiru, 2008, p. 7). Organizations such as Coca Cole Hellen have ventured into people management to ensure the quality of their projects (Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, 2004). Quality influences the marketability of a product and hence people management in Coca Cola ensures that the employees just the right quality that the organization aims to achieve. Another important aspect of people management is that it helps to meet strict deadlines that are associated with projects. Each project has its own critical path and this makes it time limited in a way. The success of an organization depends on its ability to accomplish its projects at the designated time. Some projects such as government projects are time sensitive and do not give a room for flexibility as far as time is concerned. Therefore, the ability of an organization to manage its employees determines the success of such an organization. Managing the employees ensures that they cooperate with the project schedule and that they put maximum effort to complete the project in time. People management ensures that there is strong team work which in turn ensures optimal work output. Research shows that a strong team optimizes work out and provides an opportunity for employees to complete the projects in time. A wide range of research has shown a great correlation between employee management and the performance of project management in business organizations (Harrison and Lock, 2004, p. 263). Research shows that people management ensures worker commitment and efficient utilization in skills. Dwivedula & Bredillet (2010) set out on a research to investigate the efficiency of project implementation and employee commitment. After researching in a project-based environment, they came up with the conclusion that worker commitment determines the success of project implementation. This result can be linked with aspects of people management that ensures that every person is committed to work and that they do not leave during the time of the project (Kennedy & Philbin, 2013). In the engineering field where expertise is very critical, if an employee leaves during the time of the project implementation it is likely to impact on the project path as well as efficiency (Gleadle, Hodgson, & Storey, 2012). In this light, people management ensures that the employees have a long term relationship with the organization and cannot leave in the middle of project implementation. People management provides a platform to manage worker conflicts that are inevitable during the project implementation process. Conflicts result to project delay especially when team cooperation is lost. In most IT projects, employees are expected to work on small portions of the project individually before fusing them into the final project. In such instance, if there is a crisis between two people working on different sections, the problem should be resolved quickly to avoid project disorientation. The adoption of phase monitoring and a feedback mechanism that is well structured should be able to highlight the problem before it can escalate and get out of control. It should be considered with importance that the project manager and the people that work under him are always on the same side and that no one is working against the other so that the project can run as smoothly as possible (Lester, 2007, p. 305). This will go a long way in reducing the instances that errors are bound to occur and solving of conflict will be easier since they will be dealt with early enough whenever they will occur. Another value of project management is to allow correction of mistakes that arise during the project plan. People management supports effective communication between employees and the project managers. When the people working on the project have a fear of criticism, they most likely will not disclose any problems or mistakes that may be happening in the project. These mistakes will get worse unless they can be identified and confronted in time and the measures that are needed to rectify and correct them initiated early enough. Effective people management gives the project managers the confidence to delegate their duties to responsible employees. This delegation entails transferring both the responsibility and the authority that the project manager holds to another person but making sure that he remains with the right to monitor the performance of the people that are working on the project whenever it requires that he does so (Wong, 2007, p. 2). This gives the employees the power to observe and take personal responsibilities of the mistakes that arise during the project implementation process without fear of criticism. In a nutshell, people management eases the manager’s task of monitoring and transfers responsibility to the operational level. The main of an organization is to satisfy its customer in the most efficient manner. Customer service and satisfaction depends on the interaction between the employees and the customers. In many organization, such as marketing organizations, the employees get into direct contact with the customers are they engaged in rolling out the products. People management ensures that internal organizational culture is replicated in the business external environment. If the project manager can be able to make the people a priority, then the employees will emulate this example without necessarily having any problems with it (Lester, 2007, p. 306). The employee will treat their customers the best way they can if only they are treated well in the organization. For instance, an employee who is criticized by the manager before his marketing task is likely to remain sad and may not be able to approach the customers with high spirits. The project manager can decide to use recognition programs, expand the training programs or make the communication better and clearer. People management ensures that there is a conducive business environment and the employees are in the right spirits required for customer satisfaction. It is through the process of employee management that the project manager instils the desirable organizational culture in the people that will enable them to look at each other as a team so that they are able to get the required results that the project expects. In most of these circumstances, the people that will be under the project manager will most probably follow the example that has been set by the project manager in the manner that they will carry themselves but not what the organization will be doing as a whole (Curlee and Gordon, 2011, p. 300). This gives the project manager the opportunity to instil confidence in their employees and to empower them as important stakeholders of the project. The employee’s confidence is crucial throughout the project implementation process. Employee confidence can be boosted through workshop training, motivation and promotion. Research shows that confident employee contribute more in project development that unconfident ones. Project managers are sometimes mandated to assume the roles of both the leader and the manager and a good project manager will have the insight to inspire other leaders in the work groups. The power to make or break a project actually depends on the people that are working on the project and the leaders that exist among them. A group leader has the obligation of making sure that the people that are working under him or her are focused on getting the job done by paying attention to every small detail and the daily operations of each and every task that should be carried out. It is therefore not correct to think as the leaders and managers as specific people since it is better to look at people in terms of the leadership qualities that they actually possess such as having an inspiration and a strong vision for success. Therefore, people management is the best approach to inspire leadership within the working team and to support the working group (Schwalbe, 2000, p. 25). Inspiring group leaders ensure that all groups are monitored effectively and their performance is optimized through accurate supervision. In conclusion, it is the people that run projects; therefore the individual characteristics of the project team are most vital for the success of the project. Organisations will always try to invest in this people that work on the project, the tools that these people will need in the project and the process that will be used in governing this people so that the project can be completed in good time and the way that the client wants it. It is therefore important to note that the people factor is not only important in the design and operations, but also in the way they will be able to work together in a particular system. People management ensures that the managers can form the right work team that will remain loyal, committed and in high spirits to implement the project. It makes the work of the managers easier and ensures flexibility. In short, the success of a project is dependent of the efficiency of people management during project implementation. References Badiru, A., B.. 2008. Triple C Model of project management. Boca Raton: CRC Press, Print. Chartered Institute of Building. 2011. Code of Practice for Project Management for Construction and Development. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Print. Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (Cchbc). 2004. Talent Management: From Competencies to Organizational Performance - Coca Cola, 107-125. Cox, E., Housden, M., Parkinson, L., and McKee, F. 2012. CIM Coursebook: Project Management in Marketing. Hoboken: Taylor & Francis. Curlee, W. and Gordon R. 2011. Complexity theory and project management. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley. Print. Dwivedula, R, & Bredillet, C 2010, The relationship between organizational and professional Commitment in the case of project workers: Implications for project management, Project Management Journal, 41, 4, pp. 79-88, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 26 March 2014. Gleadle, P, Hodgson, D, & Storey, J 2012, The ground beneath my feet: projects, project Management and the intensified control of R& D engineers, New Technology, Work & Employment, 27, 3, pp. 163-177, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 26 March 2014. Frigenti, E. and Comninos D. 2002. The Practice of Project Management. London: Kogan Page. Print. Harrison, F. L and Lock D. 2004. Advanced project management. Aldershot, England: Gower. Print. Hallows, J., E. 1998. Information systems project management. New York: AMACOM. Print. Kennedy, D., & Philbin, S. P. 2013, Applying A Little Reason To Your Projects. Industrial Management, 55(2), 18-22. Kerzner, H. 2010. Project management best practices: Achieving global excellence. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons. Lester, A. 2007. Project management, planning and control. Amsterdam: Elsevier/Butterworth-Heinemann. Print. Schwalbe, K. 2000. Information technology project management. Cambridge, Ma.: Course Technology. Print. Srikantaiah, T., Koenig, M. E., and Al-Hawamdeh, S. 2010. Convergence of project management and knowledge management. Lanham, Md: Scarecrow Press. Wong, Z. 2007. Human factors in project management. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Print. Read More