PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Essentials of Project Management

Essentials of Project Management

QUESTION 1 - Basics

A Project

According to the definition provided by the Oxford English Dictionary, a project is defined as a collaborative, or an individual enterprise which is designed and planned carefully to achieve specific goal(s).

Project Management

Project management can be defined as a planned effort to accomplish a certain project. It includes planning, organizing and managing resources which leads to success in achieving the project. Project management includes the planning a project, identifying tasks and goals which are to be achieved. A well executed project leads to the success of the business. Project management is associated with 5 types of processes which include: initiation, planning, executing, controlling and closing. A successful project can be evaluated on the basis of these steps. Professionally, project management should be carried on the basis of different projects and the goals which are set up in order to achieve it (Lock 2007, pp.7).

Project Phases

Planning Projects

Project planning is normatively structured as a linear decision-making process that makes plans as a way to achieve desired outcomes. The planning process is anchored by five sequential steps: (1) problem/ opportunity, (2) research, (3) policy/programming, (4) implementation, and (5) evaluation.

Project Funding

This step will outline the financial investments on the construction project being set up. The project manager will have to look for different options of funding and investment in the project.

Executing the Project

Build the project team. In this phase, the project manager knows how many resources and how much budget is required for the project. The project manager then assigns those resources and allocates budget to various tasks in the project.

Controlling the Project

The project manager is in charge of updating the project plans to reflect actual time elapsed for each task. By keeping up with the details of progress, the project manager is able to understand how well the project is progressing overall (Lock 2007, pp.7).

Closure of the Project

In this stage, the project manager and business owner pull together the project team and those who have an interest in the outcome of the project (stakeholders) to analyze the final outcome of the project.

Responsibility Matrix

Responsibility matrix is a matrix structure, which helps in defining responsibility according to resources. The main objective of using responsibility matrix is the early identification of functional roles and fit these roles to important activities. It also helps in defining degree of responsibility and relationships among people. Project manager can use responsibility matrix to identify roles and responsibility in the early planning phase, and assign roles according to the activities of a project (Meredith & Mantel 2008, pp.12).

QUESTION 2- Priority Matrix

Time-constrain, Scope-enhance, Cost-accept

The recent project of developing Olympic village in London, for 2012 Summer London Olympics and Paralympics, falls in this priority category. The project started with an initial cost, which than was changed due to imposition of VAT in 2011. Initially the arena was to build up in two structures; however, the project was redesigned to be developed in a single ...