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Chapter One
Understanding the essence of project and
project management

Yika’alo W. (PhD)
 What is project?
• “Unique process consisting of a set of coordinated and
controlled activities with start and finish dates, undertaken to
achieve an objective conforming to specific requirements,
including constraints of time, cost, quality and resources”
• Therefore:
– A Project is a planned set of activities
– A Project has a scope
– A Project has time, cost, quality and resource constraints

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 What is project?
• A project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a
unique product or service.
• It is
– performed by people
– constrained by limited resources
– planned, executed and controlled
• A project should have definite starting and ending points (time), a
budget (cost), a clearly defined scope—or magnitude— of work
to be done, and specific performance requirements that must be
met.
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 What is project? Summary
• A definitive deliverable (objective and goal)
• Takes time
• Consumes resources
• Definite starting and stopping dates
• Is broken up into tasks (activities, steps)
• Consists of processes
• Proceeds through milestones
• Utilizes teams
• Based on personal integrity and trust

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 Example
• Developing a new product or service
• Effecting change in a structure, staffing or style of an
organisation
• Designing a new transportation vehicle
• Developing or acquiring a new or modified information system
• Constructing a building or facility
• Building a water system for a community in a developing
country
• Running at campaign for political office
• Implementing a new business procedure or process

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 Project features

1. Temporary
– A project has a definite beginning and definite end
– The duration of a project is finite
– The opportunity or market window is usually temporary, most projects
have a limited time frame in which to produce the product or service
– Temporary does not necessarily mean the duration of the project is
short. It refers to the project’s engagement and its longevity.
– Temporary does not typically apply to the product, service, or result
created by the project; most projects are undertaken to create a lasting
outcome.

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 Project features
2. Unique result
– Projects involve doing something that has not been done before in the
same environment
– The project may require some innovation to be completed
3. Progressive elaboration
– A project occurs step by step to define the product or service, in a so called
“progressive elaboration” process.
– For instance, the development of a chemical processing plant begins with
the process engineering to define the characteristics of the process, and
ends with the final assembly.

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 The Triple Constraint
• Every project is constrained in different ways
by its
– Scope goals: What is the project trying to
accomplish?
– Time goals: How long should it take to
complete?
– Cost goals: What should it cost?
• It is the project manager’s duty to
balance these three often competing
goals
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Figure 1-1. The Triple Constraint of Project
Management

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 Project Stakeholders
• Stakeholders include all members of the project team as well as
all interested entities that are internal or external to the
organization.
• The project team identifies internal and external, positive and
negative, and performing and advising stakeholders in order to
determine the project requirements and the expectations of all
parties involved.
• The project manager should manage the influences of these
various stakeholders in relation to the project requirements to
ensure a successful outcome.

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 Project Stakeholder
• “A person or group of people who have a vested interest in the
success of the project and the environment in which the project
operates”
Sponsor,
Funding Body,
Customer and users Environmental agency,
Suppliers, Maintenance Team
Sellers, Government regulators,
Business partners, Fusion Community,
Neighbours/Community/Sha Consultants
re Functional managers

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 Program Management
• A program typically involves multiple projects working toward the
completion of a single deliverable.
– These projects must all be properly integrated toward this end.
• A program is defined as a group of related projects, subprograms,
and program activities managed in a coordinated way to obtain
benefits not available from managing them individually.
• Programs may include elements of related work outside the scope
of the discrete projects in the program. A project may or may not
be part of a program but a program will always have projects.

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 Program Management
• Program management is the application of knowledge, skills,
tools, and techniques to a program in order to meet the program
requirements and to obtain benefits and control not available by
managing projects individually.
• Projects within a program are related through the common
outcome or collective capability.
• If the relationship between projects is only that of a shared client,
seller, technology, or resource, the effort should be managed as a
portfolio of projects rather than as a program.

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 Program Management
• Program management focuses on the project interdependencies
and helps to determine the optimal approach for managing
them.
• Actions related to these interdependencies may include:
– Resolving resource constraints and/or conflicts that affect multiple
projects within the program,
– Aligning organizational/strategic direction that affects project and
program goals and objectives, and
– Resolving issues and change management within a shared
governance structure.

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 Difference between project and program
Project
Project includes all activities to
complete a given job
It has narrow scope and has shorter
duration
Project is a part of program
Project is individual activity
Program
A program is defined as an ongoing
process or ongoing operation
indefinitely
It has broader scope and has longer
duration
It is a main activity
A program is a group of projects
managed in a coordinated way to
obtain benefits not available from
managing them individually.
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 The art of organising, leading, reporting and completing a

project through people
 The initiation, planning, execution, control and termination of
projects in a formal, directed and intelligent fashion
Project  Project management is “application of knowledge, skills,
Management tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project
requirements.
 project management processes comprising the 5 Process
Groups: initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and
controlling, and closing”
 Therefore, project management is causing a planned
undertaking to happen.
 A project manager is a person who causes things to happen
 Project management includes
• Managing a project typically includes, but is not limited to:
– Identifying requirements;
– Addressing the various needs, concerns, and expectations of the
stakeholders in planning and executing the project;
– Setting up, maintaining, and carrying out communications among
stakeholders that are active, effective, and collaborative in
nature;
– Managing stakeholders towards meeting project requirements
and creating project deliverables;
– Balancing the competing project constraints, which include, but
are not limited to:
• Scope, quality, schedule, budget, resources,
and risks.
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 Project management objectives

• Coordinate the various interrelated processes of the project

• Ensure project includes all the work required and only the work required
to complete the project successfully
• Ensure the project is completed on time and within budget
• Ensure the project will satisfy the need for which it was undertaken
• Ensure the most effective use of the people involved with the project
• Promote effective communication between the project team and
members and key stakeholders
• Ensure the project risks are identified, analyzed and responded.

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 Why Project Management?
• Because companies are organized around projects (and processes)
• Because project management is recognized as a core competence
• Because project management is a discipline in disarray—we just don’t know
how to manage projects well
• Because project management differs in significant ways from ordinary
management
• 1/4th of world GDP (10 trillion of 40 trillion) is generated from projects
• The world as a whole spends nearly $10 trillion of its $40.7 trillion gross
product on projects of all kinds.
• More than sixteen million people regard project management as their
profession; on average, a project manager earns more than $82,000 per year.

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Advantages of Project Management
• Better control of financial, physical, and human
resources
• Improved customer relations
• Shorter development times, lead times
• Lower costs
• Higher quality
• Higher profit margins
• Improved productivity

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The criteria for success in Project management?
• Completion on time
• Completion within budget
• Completion within expected quality
• Completion with full functionality
• With complete Customer Satisfaction

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Project Management Knowledge Areas

Project
Integration Project Project
Management Scope Quality
Management Management

Project
Risk Project
Project
Management Human
Time
Resource
Management
Management

Project
Communications Project
Cost Project
Management
Management Procurement
Management

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Skills, Competencies of the project management
• Leadership--articulate the vision and hold
everyone accountable to it
• An ability to develop people
• Communication competencies
• Interpersonal competencies
• Able to handle stress
• Problem solving skills
• Time management skills
• Negotiation skills

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Key role of project manager
• A Good Project Manager
– Takes ownership of the whole project
– Is proactive not reactive
– Adequately plans the project
– Is Authoritative (NOT Authoritarian)
– Is Decisive
– Is a Good Communicator
– Manages by data and facts not uniformed optimism
– Leads by example
– Has sound Judgement
– Is a Motivator
– Is Diplomatic
– Can Delegate

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Project Manager Roles and Interactions

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Recall the Large Project Hierarchy

PROJECT
MANAGER

PROJECT

LEADER

TEAM TEAM
LEADER LEADER
Recall the
Large Project
Hierarchy DEVELOPER

1
DEVELOPER

2
DEVELOPER
3

DEVELOPER DEVELOPER DEVELOPER DEVELOPER

4 5 6 N

DEVELOPER DEVELOPER
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 Project Life Cycle
• A project life cycle is the series of phases that a project passes through from its
initiation to its closure.
• The phases are generally sequential, and their names and numbers are
determined by:
– The management and control needs of the organization or
– Organizations involved in the project,
– The nature of the project itself, and
– Its area of application.
• The phases can be broken down by functional or partial objectives,
intermediate results or deliverables, specific milestones within the overall scope
of work, or financial availability.
• Phases are generally time bounded, with a start and ending or control point.

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 Project Life Cycle
• The generic life cycle structure generally displays the following
characteristics:
– Cost and staffing levels are low at the start, peak as the work is carried out, and drop
rapidly as the project draws to a close.
– The typical cost and staffing curve above may not apply to all projects. A project may
require significant expenditures to secure needed resources early in its life cycle, for
instance, or be fully staffed from a point very early in its life cycle.
– Risk and uncertainty are greatest at the start of the project. These factors decrease over
the life of the project as decisions are reached and as deliverables are accepted.
– The ability to influence the final characteristics of the project’s product, without significantly
impacting cost, is highest at the start of the project and decreases as the project
progresses towards completion. The cost of making changes and correcting errors typically
increases substantially as the project approaches completion.

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Project Life Cycle

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 Project life cycle
• Regardless of the scope or complexity, any project goes through a
series of stages during its life.
Four stages in the life of a project
• Phase I : Conception and selection
• Phase II : Planning and Scheduling
• Phase III : Implementation, Monitoring and Control
• Phase IV : Evaluation and Termination

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 Functions performed in:
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Phase I Phase II Phase III Phase IV

Conception & selection Planning & Scheduling Implementation, Evaluation and
Monitoring & Control Termination
• Identify a need for a • Set up technical teams • Precuring materials • Training operational
project to decide on how the • Building and testing staff
• Establish goals to be project can the tools • Transfer of materials
achieved by the project implemented. • Developing support • Transferring the
• Estimating the amount • Plan for the system responsibilities
that the firm will have
to commit for the
Functions performed in:
requirements of
personnel, finance,
• Producing the system
that aimed at.
• Releasing surplus that
remain after use.
project materials etc. • Verifying whether the • Releasing the project
• Presenting the project • Prepare a schedule performance is up to staff for the next
idea or various the laid down standard assignment.
alternative ideas to the • Making modifications
management and get if required.
their approval
Project Management Process Groups

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Process Groups Interact in a Phase or Project

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Project Boundaries

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