Project Management: A Managerial Approach

Overview Project Management Growth Factors Project Aspects Project Criteria Project Life Cycle Project Management Profession

Introduction Much of project management developed by the military Navy’s Polaris program NASA’s space program Strategic defense initiative Project management has found wide acceptance in industry External vs internal to organisation It has many applications outside of construction Managing legal cases Managing new product releases

Forces Of Project Management Forces driving Project Management: 1. exponential expansion of human knowledge → dev, prod & dist. 2. growing demand for a broad range of complex, sophisticated, customized goods and services → product design an integ. & inherent part of prod and dist 3. evolution of worldwide competitive markets for the production and consumption of goods and services → what, when and how to distribute output 4. Expansion of global markets Team-based problem solving v. individual All of these contribute to the need for organizations to do more and to do it faster Project management is one way to do more faster

Projects Tend to be Large The Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel Denver International Airport Panama Canal expansion project Three Gorges Dam, China Projects are getting larger over time Flying: balloons  planes  jets  rockets  reusable rockets The more we can do, the more we try to do

Project Management Also Getting Smaller More people are seeing the advantages of project management techniques The tools are become cheaper The techniques are becoming more widely taught and written about

The Professionalism of Project Management Complexity of problems facing the project manager Growth in number of project oriented organizations The Project Management Institute (PMI) was established in 1969 By 1990 it had 7,500 members 1995, over 17,000 members 1998--exploded to over 44,000 members This exponential growth is indicative of the rapid growth in the use of projects Importance of PMI as a force in the development of project management as a profession

Project Manager Project manager is the key individual on a project Project manager is like a mini-CEO While project manager always has responsibility, may not have necessary authority

Trends in Project Management Achieving strategic goals Achieving routine goals Improving project effectiveness Virtual projects Quasi-projects

Organizational Imperatives Traditional hierarchical management declining Consensual management increasing Increasing reliance on systems engineering Projects integral to organizational strategy

The Definition of a “Project” Must make a distinction between terms: Program - an exceptionally large, long-range objective that is broken down into a set of projects Task - set of activities comprising a project Work Packages - division of tasks Work Units - division of work packages A specific, finite task to be accomplished

The Definition of a “Project” Definition used by PMI: A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service

Project Management A Working Definition A problem with a known solution scheduled for completion—unique and non-routine activities Project Management: The science and art of solving the problem within predetermined time and resource parameters

Characteristics of a Project Temporary Have a supported purpose/importance Performance specifications (form, fit, function) Have a life cycle with finite due date Interdependencies Uniqueness Resource requirements and tradeoffs Stakeholder Conflict

Quasi-Projects and Fuzzy Goals Tasks without Specific Targets No Who, What, When, Where, How Much Implied Performance, Cost, Time Constraints “Projects” to Determine Project Scope Warning: If these Become Projects, Expect Delays, Cost Overruns, Dissatisfied Customers

Objectives of a Project Project Objectives: Performance Time Cost Expectations of clients inherent part of the project specifications There are ancillary (process) goals: Improving the organisation’s project management competency & methods Individual managerial experience gained The health of the project team and the organisation Environment

Objectives of a Project 3 Project Objectives:

Why Project Management? The main purpose for initiating a project is to accomplish some goal Project management increases the likelihood of accomplishing that goal Project management gives us someone (the project manager) to spearhead the project and to hold accountable for its completion

Why Project Management? Companies have experienced: Better customer relations Shorter overall delivery times Lower costs and higher profit margins Higher quality and reliability Higher worker morale

Why (not) Project Management? Companies have also experienced some negatives: Greater organizational complexity Increased likelihood of organizational policy violations Higher costs More management difficulties Low personnel utilization Says managers cannot accomplish the desired outcome Conflict

The Project Life Cycle Stages of a Conventional Project: Slow beginning Buildup of size Peak Begin a decline Termination

The Project Life Cycle

The Project Life Cycle Time distribution of project effort is characterized by slow-rapid-slow

Project Management Life Cycle Definition Planning Implementation Delivery Level of effort 1. Goals 2. Specifications 3. Scope 4. Responsibilities 5. Teams 1. WBS 2. Budgets 3. Resources 4. Risks 5. Schedule 1. Status reports 2. Change Orders 3. Quality Audits 4. Contingencies 1. Train user 2. Transfer documents 3. Release resources 4. Reassign staff 5. Lessons learned

Proactive Project Life Cycle High Project Manager Roles and Responsibilities Level of Value Effort Change Management System Closed-Loop Planning-Monitor-Control System Project Evaluation (Audit) Process Low Define Plan Implement Delivery Scope WBS/OBS/Schedule Resource (Re)allocation “Learn Curve” Tradeoffs Detailed Budget Cost Containment Final Report

The Project Life Cycle Projects also exist which do not follow the conventional project life cycle Comprised of subunits that have little use as a stand alone unit, yet become useful when put together

The Project Life Cycle Unlike the more conventional life cycle, continued inputs of effort at the end of the project produce significant gains in returns (eg. Baking a cake, software project, chemical reaction project, writing a book/thesis)

The Project Life Cycle Risk during project life cycle With most projects there is some uncertainty about the ability to meet project goals Uncertainty of outcome is greatest at the start of a project Uncertainty decreases as the project moves toward completion

Project Life Cycle: Reduce Uncertainty of Cost Estimate

END