“Must be able to handle 5 to 6 projects at one time as well as handle requests for quotes for future work”. So says a job posting for a project manager. There are many different criteria asked for and assumed when it comes to project management. Also a basic generic criterion all project managers either have studied or performed. The following is a short list of only three of the non-basic criteria:
1. A defense contractor requires a Project Manager who is proficient in electronic troubleshooting. The company also requests that the PM have at least 10 years experience at actually being the project manager.
2. A small glass company near Tampa, Florida, requires the PM to be strong in accounting skills.
3. A construction company stresses that their PM must have “the ability to handle 5 to 6 projects at one time as well as handle requests for quotes for future work”; previously mentioned at the beginning.
Showing these postings as an example stresses the diverse applications a PM is exposed to. The ability to adapt and change must be strong within the PM as well as the organization in question.
Mentioned earlier in this paper, there are specific areas of study or experience a PM must know to be considered a PM. According to the article, “Getting Started in Project Management” (The Hampton Group) there are eight areas to master:
1. Scope and Charter
· A charter is simply a contract between the project members. These members include the project manager and the stakeholders involved. This contract, signed or just verbally agreed to, is generally the single most important tool a project manager can use, if used in the correct manner. It sets the basis of growth for the project. (Template)
· The scope of the project will set the tone of the project. It defines the limits and it sets the result. Utilizing concepts such as conceptual thinking and if the end result is created at the beginning of the project, the success of the project is quantifiable and is able to flex with the projects movements. To create the scope, a PM asks the stakeholders what their meaning of success is in terms of the project in question. What will have to be attained before the stakeholders are satisfied with end results.
2. Work Breakdown Structure
· The WBS determines the exact nature of the tasks required to complete the project (Meredith and Mendel, p 162). The WBS, typically used after a clear understanding of the project is clear (Blair), will breakdown the project into pieces that are even more easily understood.
An efficient Project manager should be aware of the necessary critical skills, Should learn to communicate effectively with every level, manage the resources in the right way, put strict processes in place, delegate tasks accordingly, do adequate testing, keep realistic expectations, never assume and don’t be afraid of what might go wrong.
At first should the terminology be defined. A project is "a unique set of coordinated activities, with a definite start and finishing point, undertaken by an individual or organisation to meet specific objectives within defined, scheduled costs and performance parameters" (BS 6079-1,200:2, Material of Sunderland 2005, page 5). The individual who undertakes the organisa-tion is usually the project manager. This person plays a special role and is supported by his team.
Project management is known as the discipline of planning, organizing, motivating, and controlling resources to achieve specific goals. In the diagram to the left in the picture you can see that as a project manager you are the center of either a great accomplishment or a major failure. Some of the major factors to being a successful project manager would be a person that is a great manage several projects or responsibilities and scope issues on an every day basis. If you have a pr...
Project managers are leaders of small and large groups destined to complete a strategic project plan. Leadership characteristics described above can make or break a team. In all successful project fulfillments, it is the leadership of the project manager that determines the type of success for the project’s members. The most...
It is important for the contractor to be involved in the project at early stage as he will provide expertise in terms of buildability and programming for works planned. Client has to appoint consultant and a contract administrator to prepare drawings, a project specification and cost plan. He would have a control over design of the project through professional team. It is obligation of the contractor to complete works in the time given as the extensions of time wont be given without permission of contract administrator.) Management procurement generally works on the basis of two different methods: • Management Contracts (the employer appoints a professional team and a management contractor who will be responsible for managing project.)
A program should be developed for identifying potential project managers and consciously developing them through cross-functional work experience and various trainings. These trainings should not only include technical marketing and product development but also on communication and group effectiveness. If there is no corporate training program in place then EPD should initiate this program within its division.
Project Charter is a document that describes the overall project and provides a summary of the objective and management of the project. It provides a detailed description of the project, its objectives, identifies the main stakeholders, and defines the authority of the project manager. It serves as a reference throughout the life cycle of the project and also for the future of the project. Project charter is the starting phase of the project and it plays an important role in a project as it sets out exactly what the project will achieve, the essence, goals and objectives of the project, provides understanding of the project, authorizes the work to take place and acts as a contract between the project sponsors, stakeholders and the team.
Having skilled, competent, and professional program and project managers P/PMs is essential to the success of critical agency missions. P/PMs ensure that requirements are appropriately written, performance standards are established, and contractors deliver what they promise. P/PMs develop requirements, lead integrated project teams (IPTs), and oversee budgeting and governance processes, all of which are critical to ensuring that mission needs are filled and expected outcomes achieved. Officials have declared that all projects with budgets of $5 million or more will have a dedicated, certified project manager. So what exactly are the government leaders going to do? First is to train and certify employees as soon as possible. (acc.dau) On the commercial side, obtaining a Project Management Professional Certification (PMP) holds increasing power. Some companies will not hire someone without it, regardless of experience. To obtain the certification, there are several requirements that must be met. "In order to apply to take the PMP exam you are required to have attained a certain amount of experience leading and directing projects: 60 months (7,500 hours) of experience if you have an associate’s degree, and 36 months (4,500 hours) of experience if you have a bachelor’s degree. PMI (the Project Management Institute) has an audit process to help ensure that potential PMPs are being truthful about their project history (though admittedly it is not a watertight process (Crawford, 2011). This commercial PMI certification is not as relevant within the DoD as it is with commercial companies. In fact, many government project managers has never maintained the PMI
Project Management Institute (PMI) (2013). Project Management Professional (PMP) Handbook. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.pmi.org/certification/~/media/pdf/certifications/pdc_pmphandbook.ashx. [Last Accessed 20 April 2014].
A project manager should have a clear vision of the desired outcome and he/she should be aware of
The overall job description of a construction project manager is simple, they plan, coordinate, and supervise construction projects from their development to their completion. However, the job is much more demanding and descriptive than that. Construction managers must prepare a variety of cost estimates, budgets, and timetables. They are responsible for contracting out specific jobs to skilled tradesmen such as the electrical, plumbing, masonry, and carpentry work. They must ensure all work on the job site complies with city legal requirements, safety codes, and other regulations. Throughout this entire process, they collaborate hand in hand with architects, engineers, lawyers, other construction managers, and clients. As one can see, the job of a construction project manager is incredibly descriptive and requires a variety of skills, but perhaps the most important of these
In the globalized economy, Successful project managers are in much demand across many industries. Organizations strongly need experienced project managers to lead their staff to accomplish their business goals and deliver successful projects. In an increasingly complex environment, project managers need to turn into many roles and have all kinds of responsibilities at each level of management within an organization. Good project managers are not born. They need to be trained. They develop their skills through study, practise and experience. They become better project managers after they finish a successful project each time. They learn new techniques and apply them on their projects. They learn their lessons from failed projects and then improve to be better project managers in the future.
Defining a proper scope of a project is the basic layout, on which everything goes out then, if you lay out a good sound scope and define your processes up to the extension then only it will be easier to work on simpler tasks.
Over the course of my professional life, I have become increasingly involved in project management roles. Doing so has made me aware of the many varied challenges that can face projects and the project managers who are charged with bringing them through to completion. The success or failure of projects, in whatever economic, political or social field, rests not just on the quality of the project’s goals, but also on the abilities of those involved in the project – and above all those who are managing it – to bring it to successful completion. To do this, project managers need to be equipped with a very wide range of skills, many of which are unrelated to the type of project itself. So, for example, a project manager of an engineering project must not only have engineering
They need experienced project managers to lead them through the process of implementing project management as they are just starting the journey towards project management maturity. It is necessary for them to outsource for a longer period of time and not just for training in order to follow the right direction on their PM implementation.