Project Management and Human Resource Managment

Project Management

A project may be defined as a one-shot, time-limited, goal-directed, major undertaking, requiring the commitment of varied skills and resources. A project has also been described as "a combination of human and nonhuman resources pulled together in a temporary organization to achieve a specified purpose." A project has a single set of objectives, and when these objectives are reached, the project is completed. Therefore, a project has a finite and well-defined life span. In addition, management must have a very clear idea as to what these objectives are so that there can be no question as to when the project is completed.

The words project and program may be considered to be synonymous. However, the two words have had different acceptance depending on the industry involved. The Department of Defense and their aerospace and electronics customers prefer to use program management. Construction, public works, and product industries prefer the term project management. There is a growing acceptance of the differentiation of a "project" from a "program" in that a program is usually much larger in scope, is activity oriented, and is not necessarily time limited. A program, however, may encompass a number of projects.

Project success depends on selecting the right person as a project manager. Management means getting things done through the active support of other people. It would be difficult to find a better statement which more accurately describes the project manager's job. Unlike the functional manager who has power through position in the hierarchy and direct authority over people, the project manager usually has only position power which usually comes from endorsement of the role by top management. However,...

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...he line managers themselves. Many of these saw an attempted switch from the 'traditional supervisor' to the 'first line manager', who was expected to embody a new management style which included involving, developing, and communicating with employees. It is also worth noting here that Clark (1993) has found that technical change has also led to increased line manager involvement in employee relations issues.

Also, in relation to devolution, Bevan and Hayday (1994) found that line managers were not adequately consulted about the devolution of responsibilities and were, as a result, unclear about their roles. In any case, they were reluctant to take on personnel responsibilities, because they felt that they were really the work of the personnel function. This, in turn, meant that many human resource departments were reluctant to devolve responsibilities to the line.