WHAT IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT?

PROJECT MANAGEMENT IS THE PLANNING, ORGANIZING AND MANAGING THE EFFORT TO ACCOMPLISH A

SUCCESSFUL PROJECT. A PROJECT IS A ONE-TIME ACTIVITY THAT PRODUCES A SPECIFIC OUTPUT AND OR
OUTCOME, FOR EXAMPLE, A BUILDING OR A MAJOR NEW COMPUTER SYSTEM. THIS IS IN CONTRAST TO A PROGRAM,
(REFERRED TO A 'PROGRAMME' IN THE UK) WHICH IS 1) AN ONGOING PROCESS, SUCH AS A QUALITY CONTROL
PROGRAM, OR 2) AN ACTIVITY TO MANAGE A NUMBER OF MULTIPLE PROJECTS TOGETHER.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT INCLUDES DEVELOPING A PROJECT PLAN, WHICH INVOLVES DEFINING AND CONFIRMING THE
PROJECT GOALS AND OBJECTIVES, HOW THEY WILL BE ACHIEVED, IDENTIFYING TASKS AND QUANTIFYING THE
RESOURCES NEEDED, AND DETERMINING BUDGETS AND TIMELINES FOR COMPLETION. IT ALSO INCLUDES MANAGING
THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT PLAN, ALONG WITH OPERATING REGULAR 'CONTROLS' TO ENSURE THAT THERE
IS ACCURATE AND OBJECTIVE INFORMATION ON 'PERFORMANCE' RELATIVE TO THE PLAN, AND THE MECHANISMS TO
IMPLEMENT RECOVERY ACTIONS WHERE NECESSARY.
PROJECTS OFTEN FOLLOW MAJOR PHASES OR STAGES (WITH VARIOUS TITLES FOR THESE), FOR EXAMPLE: FEASIBILITY,
DEFINITION, PLANNING, IMPLEMENTATION, EVALUATION AND REALISATION. (
NOTE: THERE ARE MANY SOFTWARE TOOLS THAT MAKE PROJECT MANAGEMENT MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE AND
EFFICIENT. SOFTWARE TOOLS TO DO PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROCESS LISTS SOFTWARE RESOURCES. THE READER
MIGHT BEST BE SERVED TO READ ABOUT THE OVERALL PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROCESS IN THE SECTION,
"FOUNDATIONS OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT" BELOW, AND THEN REVIEW SOME OF THE SOFTWARE TOOLS. ANOTHER
APPROACH IS TO REVIEW THE TOOLS AS THE READER PROGRESSES THROUGH EACH PHASE OF THE PROJECT
MANAGEMENT PROCESS.