The traditional approach to project management was a predictive approach, where everything was planned in advance- the goals, features of the outcome, and the tasks and times involved. However, complex projects, particularly projects with no precedents and hence involving a lot of uncertainties made a predictive approach impractical.
Project Definition
Projects are finite endeavors that require a different approach to management compared to managing operations of, say a manufacturing business with repetitive operations. Each project has its own specific goal that typically involves adding some value or making some beneficial change. Projects will also have time and cost constraints, i.e. they will have to be completed within a specified time and within a specified cost budget.
Project implementation typically involves four stages, viz.
- Initiation
- Planning & Design
- Execution and
- Closing
The implementation also involves systems for Monitoring & Control. Another key dimension of project implementation is the need for resources, such as know-how, money, equipment, manpower and time.
Project Management Approaches
The basic approach is the problem definition and solution approach.
- The problem is clearly defined
- Alternative solution options are considered
- A certain path is selected
- The selected path is executed and
- A final evaluation is done to identify possibilities for future improvements
The Critical Path Method
Where there are precedents and project managers have a clear idea about the requirements, a predictive approach is appropriate. In this case, schedules indicating time and resource requirements are prepared during the project development stage. The critical chain of tasks that will determine the minimum time requirement for project completion is identified.
Once the critical path is identified, tasks on this path receive priority when resources are allocated. Completing these tasks as soon as resources become available will be a major project management objective.
Agile Project Management
For sizable projects with no precedents, a predictive approach will be impractical. In such cases, an iterative approach is considered a better option. Long-term planning is replaced with short-term plans to create particular deliverables. These deliverables will not be the final, marketable solutions. Instead, these will be working prototypes or components that can be demonstrated and evaluated.
Final users will be involved in the development team to provide an idea of the requirements, and more significantly to review and evaluate the short-term deliverables. The iterations are continued till the final product is ready to be released.
This iterative approach is known as agile project management. Agile project management makes it easier to adapt to changes, something that can seriously disrupt the predictive approach. The agile approach typically uses small teams whose members interact on a daily basis speaking about their progress, intentions and the problems they face.
Project Management Tools
A large number of tools and techniques have been developed for managing projects. Project management software for generalized and specialized requirements proliferate in the market. The software products typically use project management techniques such as Gantt Charting, Critical Path Method (CPM) and Program Evaluation & Review Technique (PERT). Some might focus on specific areas such as tracking progress.
New techniques are also being developed. Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) and Six Sigma are examples of comparatively recent approaches used to improve project management processes. Earned Value Management is an approach that is easier to implement than CPM etc, and has been adopted by DOD, US Government.
Project management focuses on executing projects in time within the constraints under which it has to deliver results. Projects are finite endeavors with specific starting and ending dates, unlike the repetitive operations of typical businesses. A predictive approach of planning everything in advance is used where the requirements are known. For new projects with many uncertainties involved, agile project management approaches are better.
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