By David Okul
July 25, 2019
The Project Management definition, history, life cycle, and stakeholders roles
The capacity to deliver projects on budget, schedule and business goal is a vital advantage in the contemporary business environment. The good news is that the discipline of project management equips individuals with the skills necessary to handle such complex and timely assignments. It goes without saying that project management skills are a necessity for any modern professional.
We need to define a project before we talk about project management. A project refers to “a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service or result.” (Project Management Institute). Every project has the components of objectives, timelines, budget, stakeholders and project managers.
What should be clear from the definition is that projects do not encompass routine day-to-day running of the organization. In many cases, the day to day runnings of organizations lacks a definite start and a finish time.
Silvica believes that every individual is a project manager in their own rights. Think about it. We undertake different projects every day. Examples of projects that you undertake include moving houses, renovating a house or even planning a wedding. All the examples fit the examples of projects as they seek to create unique products in a specified period of time. Let us examine if a wedding has the five components of a project:
- Objective: Many objectives will involve making the occasion memorable (in a good way) for the bride and groom
- Timeline: The wedding has to take place on the predetermined date
- Budget: Many weddings have a budget that will determine the choice of venue, number of guests, types of décor, etc
- Stakeholders: The bride and groom are the main stakeholders. Others include the officiator, guests, suppliers and so on.
- Project manager: the wedding planner
An understanding of what a project entails gives us the necessary background of understanding project management
THE DEFINITION AND RATIONALE OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT
The Project Management Institute defines project management as “application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements” Like the mainstream management, project management draws from the areas of integration, scope, time, cost, quality, procurement, human resources, communication, risk management, and stakeholder management. However, project management differs from mainstream management in the sense that it focuses on goals, resources, and schedules for each project.
Many accomplishments in the history of mankind are attributed to project management. The Great Wall of China and the Pyramids of Giza must have incorporated project management techniques. Nevertheless, modern project management techniques have their origins in the 19th century when railway companies were employing thousands of people to work on the transcontinental railroad. Frank Taylor and Henry Gantt further developed the concepts. In World War II, military and industrial leaders employed even more standardized project management tools like critical path methods.
The popularity of the practices was apparent that in the 1960s, The International Project Management Association and Project Management Institute were established. With the development of ICT and artificial development, project management keeps evolving.
Common terms and phrases used in project management include:
Project process: A step or set of steps on the path to completing a project
A project phase: is a mini-project in its own right
A methodology: is a body of common practices, procedures, tools, and techniques
A PMO (Project Management Office): defines and maintains standards for project management within the organization
A project portfolio: is a collection of projects or programs and other work that are grouped together to facilitate effective management
The Project Life cycle and How it can be used to communicate to stakeholders
The project life cycle involves the process of initiation, planning, implementation and closing the project. Every project, whether big or small, is characterized by the four stages. A fifth process of monitoring and controlling is also pertinent in modern project management. Throughout the project, activities are undertaken to achieve predetermined objectives in the specified time periods. The project life cycle is important in communicating project progress to stakeholders in two ways. First, it can be used to inform the stakeholders on the progress of the project even if the stakeholders are not familiar with the project details. The start point of this communication is informing the stakeholder on the current stage of the project in the project lifecycle. Secondly, the lifecycle can be used to compare different projects even if they are not similar.
Communication is an important element that has to be applied efficiently in all the stages of the project lifecycle. Some studies estimate that 20% of all projects fail because of ineffective communication. The project managers should ensure that communication is adequate in all the phases of the project lifecycle. It is a significant task because the stakeholders’ roles and interest change with the different stages in the lifecycle, and so should be the communication strategies. The strategies that can be used to implement effective communication in projects include fishbone diagrams and RACI charts.
All in all, project management is an indispensable skill for any professional. We need project management skills for our professional careers and day-to-day living.
References and Resources
David Okul is a freelance writer, and a PhD student at a Kenyan university
