Overview of Project Management

and its related Topics

By Illango
Introduction of Project Management
Project Management is evolved from early days of
systems Management. The growth and acceptance of
project Management has changed significantly over the
past 50 years are so..and it is expected to continue and
grow into coming centuries especially in Multinational
Project Management.
Why Project Management? The decision on whether
or not to set up a separate project management
division is subjective as it depends upon various factors
some of them are: Interactions or interdependencies
between various departments. Sharing of common
resources The importance of the project to the
organization Size of the project Degree of unfamiliarity
with the work involved and its complexity Changes in
the market and The reputation of the organization


Why Project Management
Definition of Project Management

Project management is the process and activity of planning, organizing,
motivating, and controlling resources to achieve specific goals. A project is
a temporary endeavor designed to produce a unique product, service or
result with a defined beginning and end (usually time-constrained, and
often constrained by funding or deliverables , undertaken to meet unique
goals and objectives, typically to bring about beneficial change or added
value. The temporary nature of projects stands in contrast with business
as usual (or operations),which are repetitive, permanent, or semi-
permanent functional activities to produce products or services. In
practice, the management of these two systems is often quite different,
and as such requires the development of distinct technical skills and
management strategies.
According to Project Management institute a Project is defined as A
Temporary Endeavor undertaken to create a unique Product or service
A British standard defines A unique set of coordinated activities ,with
definite starting and finishing Points ,undertaken by an individual or
organization to meet the specific objectives within the defined schedule
,cost and performance parameters

Project and PM process
Project is considered to be any series of
activities having below Qualities
Have specific objective
Have defined start and end date
Have fund limits and fund planning
consume human or non human resources
Work across Multifunctional (depts.)



Project vs Program
Process of Project Management
Project initiation This includes prelimnary evaluation
of idea, analysis of risk involved, time ,cost and
performances.
Project planning-Identification of resources ,developing
realistic time and perdormance parameter.
Project execution- integrates the projects product and
services into organization and establishment of
marketable product or services.
Project Monitoring and control checking the progress
compared with targets , correction if any and ensuring
smooth flow for progress.
Project closure-Reallocation of resources for new
project , an end is means new beginning of life cycle.


Flow of Process of PM
Phase of Project Management
Benefits of Project Management
To complete Projects within stipulated period
Within budget cost
Appropriate performance
Customer satisfaction or acceptance
Mutual Scope changes
Better corporate culture or multidisciplinary.
Demerits of PM:
In flexible , rushing on schedule may harm quality,
need more skilled staff and delayed decesion..etc


Constraints of Project Management
Like any human undertaking, project Mangement need to be
performed and delivered under certain constraints.
Traditionally, these constraints have been listed as "scope,"
"time," and "cost"





As per above PM triangle represents constraints , One side of the
triangle cannot be changed without affecting the others. These
three constraints are often competing constraints: increased scope
typically 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.
Project Managers

A project manager is the person responsible for accomplishing the stated
project objectives. Key project management responsibilities include
creating clear and attainable project objectives, building the project
requirements, and managing the constraints of the Project Management
triangle, which are cost, time, scope, and quality.
A project manager is often a client representative and has to determine
and implement the exact needs of the client, based on knowledge of the
firm they are representing. A project manager is the bridging gap between
the production team and client. So s/he must have a fair knowledge of the
industry they are in so that they are capable of understanding and
discussing the problems with either party.
Most companies have mainly five resources namely Money, Manpower
,Machine ,Methodology ,Materials ..Actually Project Manager does not
control any of these resource directly except Perhaps Money (budget) and
directly controlled by Functional Managers , PM must negotiate with
Functional manager for controlling all Resources .


Responsibility of Project Manger
The specific responsibilities of the Project Manager may vary depending
on the industry, the company size, the company maturity, and the
company culture. However, there are some responsibilities that are
common to all Project Managers Developing the project plan

Managing the project stakeholders
Managing Communication
Managing the project team
Managing the project risk
Managing the project schedule
Managing the project budget
Managing the project conflicts
Managing the project delivery

Project Manager vs Line Manager

Who should be the Project Manager? In any organization we find two
types of people: 1. Those who give excellent ideas from their knowledge
and experience but are not very good at getting things done and 2. Those
whose are good at handling men and matters, but are not as sound as the
former in technical matters. People who have great ideas are not
necessarily good implementers. The manager of a project should be one
who can work effectively with different groups of people, interact with
various departmental heads, and integrate all the functions to get the
project move. Harold Kerzner calls the first type of people Project
Champions and the Second Project Manager.

Project Manager Vs Line Managers There is always a constant tussle
between the line managers and the project manager to share the
organizations resources like; Money, Manpower, Equipment, Facilities and
Information Technology. Manpower is controlled by Line Managers.
Allocation of manpower will be done by Line Managers based on the
request made by Project Manager. Employees provided to Project
Manager continue to report to Line Manager and give preference to the
commands of the Line Manager over the Project Manager. Success of
Project depends on good working relationship between PM and LM
Management of international Projects
Management of International Projects Globalization
has a significant impact on the way the projects are
managed. According t Rudd Lubbers, Globalization is a
process of minimizing the significance of geographical
distance, in developing and maintaining international
economic, political and socio-cultural relations. There
are 3 basic models of project management based on
the project management styles in different geographic
locations. The European Model- Fully structured and
systematic procedure for handling technical issues The
North American Model : The system is not as formal
and rigid as it is in Europe. The Japanese Model : They
believe that superior technology brings in superior core
competency.
Some of International Projects