Project Management:Corporate Training 

While its roots lie in business practices beginning  more than a century ago, it is only in recent decades that project management has emerged as a vital component of any serious business operation. It has also become a key to success in a global business environment where companies constantly seek an edge over the competition.

Unlike department or business managers, project managers are not limited to overseeing just one aspect of an operation, nor are they constrained by the time required to deal with personnel-related management issues.

Instead, project managers are tasked with a complex assignment: oversee all aspects of a project, ensuring that it is done well, on time and within budget.

To succeed in the job, project managers must become adept at a number of tasks as well as earn certifications that qualify them for this demanding career. They must also demonstrate a blend of an analytical mind and the ability to be a people person.

For those who can master its complexities, project management can be a rewarding career.

 

 

 

The Processes of Project Management

 

Simply put, project management is the job of overseeing a project to ensure it meets its goals, time line and budget. Clearly, however, this involves many processes once it is applied to projects within large organizations and involving many people.

Among the first jobs for a project manager is identifying the scope of a project – in other words, define in detail what the project is supposed to accomplish.

Next, a project manager must prepare a schedule, assigning tasks to team members and setting deadlines for each task.

Along with the schedule, a project manager must also establish a budget and ensure that it includes enough to cover unexpected contingencies without allowing exorbitant cost overruns. As the project begins, the manager must make sure team members have the necessary resources to accomplish their goals.

Project managers typically design plan using the Critical Path Method (CPM), a formula used to determine the correct order in which to complete a project as efficiently as possible. This can involve planning the project down to the hourly level.

Having initiated and planned the project, the manager must now communicate progress to upper management, keep team members informed on what is expected of them and ensure that the resources used by the team are the best available given the budget.

The Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide outlines five project management process groups, otherwise known as the traditional approach to project management, which is the standard for the project management of a project. The processes of project management should be carefully address by the project manager and performed by the project team. The five process groups are:

• Initiating

• Planning

• Executing

• Monitoring and Controlling

• Closing

 

Pioneers in Project Management

Project management began to evolve in the latter half of the 20th century, partially because of the strategies used by military personnel in World War II to oversee large, complex projects involving thousands of people, such as weapons manufacturing.

The roots of project management can be seen in the large government projects of the late 19th century, particularly the transcontinental railroad. Started in the 1860s, the railroad project required the efforts of thousands of people and used tons of raw materials brought in from various locations.

By the early 20th century, Frederick Taylor had revolutionized industrial businesses by introducing the concepts of managing every phase of a work day for laborers. Rather than simply asking employees to work harder and longer, Taylor developed strategies for working smarter and thereby improving efficiencies.

Henry Gantt, an associate of Taylor’s, studied ship construction during World War I and developed the idea of using bars and charts to graph when certain tasks, or a series of tasks, were completed.

Gantt’s work led to project management becoming a separate discipline within the workplace, as well as studies into industrial psychology, marketing and human resources management. By World War II, military and industrial leaders began to employ more detailed management processes and strategies to get the most from the labor force, including network diagrams and the Critical Path Method.

Soon, these practices spread across industries. Although the details have changed depending on the era and the industry, the overarching philosophy has remained the same: In order to succeed, all the various personnel and systems within a business must work harmoniously to achieve goals and successfully complete projects.

 

 

Project Management  Skills 

 

 

 

Successful project managersare in high demand as organizations strive to deliver successful projects at a faster pace in increasingly complex environments.  There are a few critical skills that make project managers successful –

Subject Matter Knowledge

• Effective project managers understand the inner workings of their organizations and know enough about their products/services to hold intelligent conversations with (1) customers, (2) stakeholders, (3) suppliers, and (4) functional leaders within the organization.

• The best project managers are excellent listeners, and view exchanges with the above groups as learning opportunities.

• Project managers that are new to an organization set aside learning time each week to better understand and interact with the four groups noted above.  This learning investment is paid back many times over in the form of good decisions, effective meetings, and successful project delivery (and fewer headaches!)

Project Management Tools

 

• Effective project managers understand how, when, and why to deploy project management disciplines at different points in a project.  Examples of these tools include developing project charters, planning, scheduling, vendor management, risk assessment, budgeting, change management, and project control.

Interpersonal and Leadership Skills

• Successful project managers know how to motivate people who do not work for them, and keep teams working effectively together.

• Quite simply, effective project managers tend to be as “likeable” as they are assertive.

Organization

• Project managers create structure from chaos by using specific tools such as charters, risk assessments, Gantt charts, decision matrices, and many other tools throughout the project.

Time Management

• Steven Covey’s quote, “The enemy of the best is the good,” applies especially well to project managers.  They understand that there are countless good things to be involved in, but there are a vital few best things that must come first each day.  Successful project managers are very good at saying, “I’m sorry but I can’t support that right now.”

• Successful project managers also respect their teammates’ time.  Project managers run efficient meetings, which results in good attendance by all parties over the long run.

Communication

• Project managers communicate clearly, concisely, and frequently.  They know, for example, when a simple email will suffice, or when a “working document” like a project charter will better serve their purpose.

Political Savvy

• There are times when interpersonal skills are not enough to garner the support needed from the organization on one or more project tasks.  In these cases, project managers use senior leadership support to get things done.  Project managers are very good at scheduling update forums with senior leadership and functional leaders, to ensure that all business functions are making the project a priority.

Comfortable Running a Meeting

• As a project manager you will spend a lot of time orchestrating meetings.  As a result, you must be comfortable running meetings with wide variety of audiences.  Here are three tips for success:  (1) stop thinking about how you are coming off in the meeting, and think about the project’s success instead, (2) organize ahead – state meeting objectives at the start of the meeting and do your best to keep the meeting on track to achieve those objectives, (3) know when to lean on others for answers – as a project manager you will likely not be the subject matter expert in the room, and no one should expect you to be.