Project Planning and Control - Essay Example

? Project Planning and Analysis Insert Insert Grade Insert Introduction Project planning and analysis is an essential ingredient for any organization’s success. To begin, planning refers to the making of a formal outline of the expected future actions. On the other hand, the process of closely following procedures of operations or activity and dealing with any form of deviations from the actual plan that may mean reconstitution of the original plan refers to control of the plan. Many firms use project planning and control methods to ensure that all their operations are run in accordance with the needs of the final consumers or the target market. Planning and control is constituted by four main activities that include scheduling, loading, sequencing and monitoring, and control. Whereas scheduling is about the timing of operations, loading involves the quantity of work to be done according to available capacity. Sequencing, in turn, involves the order in which the work is to be done (Johnston, Chambers and Slack, 2007). Consequently, monitoring and control involves ensuring that all the other components are going according to plan. Organizations are frequently involved with processes, movement of materials, finished goods and services that need proper planning and control. It is, therefore, important to any firm that wants to effectively perform and compete in today’s highly sophisticated operational business environment (Kerzner, 2009). To successfully coordinate all functions in line with an organization’s goals and objectives, management is increasingly being faced with the need for proper planning and control. Managers, therefore, need to properly understand the basic components of proper planning and analysis of projects. The nature of organizations, as have been noted by many analysts, has been fast changing, and it is therefore important to embrace the best practice, of which planning and control plays an integral part. Reasons for Choosing Project Planning and Control I have identified project planning and analysis because it mainly focuses on my career as a project coordinator. My work as a project coordinator involves tasks such as scheduling of meetings, monitoring work progress, tracking progress of processes, generating reports and working closely with all concerned departments for the success of the project. All these day-to-day activities of a project coordinator therefore need proper planning and control techniques, and hence my interest in this area. As a project coordinator, I therefore feel most aligned to the selected topic. Effects / Benefits Having pointed out my work as a project coordinator as the main reason for identifying the topic, it is important also to point out the effects or benefits it has on my personal objectives in line with my career. First is the issue of scheduling as discussed in the overview of the selected topic. My work as a project coordinator usually involves a lot of allocations and timing for various events, processes and individuals involved. A critical and comprehensive overview of the component that forms an important element of my daily operations is therefore of great benefit to my work as a project coordinator because it further equips me with the technical as well as the theoretical knowhow on the subject. The success of any project relies on proper planning, and no project coordinator can ignore planning (Carmichael, 2006). Planning, in turn, depends on appropriate scheduling and control measures that have been put in place to ensure that it succeeds. Another area of project coordination is that of preventing risks associated with failures or uncertainties that are associated with unrecognized future drawbacks in the course of planning. Proper control measures learnt in this topic such as demand forecasting and push or pull control mechanisms will go a long way in ensuring that my work is based on an enlightened point of view rather than working towards a failure. Moreover, managing the staff for a particular project is a challenging task that requires a well-planned and properly constituted scheduling structure. The use of rolls and setting targets is one of the major various activities according to time and set objectives. The topic has therefore played an important role in redefining the way I have and will approach my daily tasks and therefore help in my career development as well as growth. Expected Results My acquired knowledge in the areas of project planning and control will work to boost my success in my work, and this, according to my expectations, will be in the areas of skills in decision making, management and coordination of the various components of specific projects I will be handling in the future. Some of the projects I have been handling require massive staff who are to be coordinated for the efficiency of assigned projects. After being enlightened on the various methods of job scheduling like the use of a Gantt charts, I expect that the overall effectiveness of my future coordinated projects will improve my performance by a further 50%. In addition, I expect to meet the set timeliness with ease having leant the various demand push and pull factors that will enable me to decide on the best method of resource allocation and scheduling to avoid wastage and reduce materials lead times. My long-term expectation is my career success and growth, and the knowledge acquired in this topic will play a major part in achieving this objective. I am also ready to assists my colleagues through teaching and guiding them on the various issues of project planning and control that need to be taken into account, as I have noted during my handling of this subject. Suggestions and Recommendations The human resource best practice requires that staff are constantly trained and appraised for better performance. In addition, training is also a motivating factor for human resources who might have ambitious career development plans. The area of project management has been evolving over the decades, and it is important that staffs involved in projects be adequately and frequently engaged in training to adapt to these changes (McGraw, 2011). It is also important that organizations recognize that all levels of staff understand the importance of planning and control for every project so that there are minimal costs incurred as a result of loss associated with inappropriate expertise. Communication flow is crucial for any project, and therefore, it is essential that it also becomes a part in the process of control and analysis of any other project. It is notable that with good knowledge, even the inexperienced are likely to succeed in the area of project planning. Professionals in the field should therefore encourage more training so that many projects that have the potential of becoming a burden to organizations or even the general public are turned around to become a success. Learning about project planning and control has therefore been of great benefit to me. Bibliography Carmichael, D. (2006). Project Planning and Control. Taylor and Francis publishing, Oxon. Johnston, R., Chambers, S., and Slack, N. (2007). Operations Management, 5th Ed. Prentice Hall/Financial Times, New York. Kerzner, H. (2009). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling and Controlling. John Wiley and Sons, New Jersey McGraw, V. (2011). The Importance of Project Planning. [online] Available at: [Accessed on Dec. 24, 2012]. Read More