Introduction
A project can be defined as a string of activities carried out to achieve clear goals. Projects are complex and occur once. They are not part of the daily operations of a business. Most projects are customer-focused. Besides, they are constrained by budget. A number of businesses use projects to launch new products or processes. Therefore, a project is unique and more heterogeneous. Projects have a life span. They have a start and an end date. At the end of the allocated time, a project manager is expected to have completed the assigned task. Project management is the use of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the objectives of a project. Project management takes the traditional management functions these are, planning, directing, motivation, organization, and control. In the current business world, businesses are moving towards a project-based approach in coming up with new products are processes. This treatise discusses reasons why project management has become popular. It also talks about the challenges of implementing a project-based approach in an organization. Finally, it compares some international project management organizations in the world.
Need for project management
In the contemporary world, businesses have to be strategic in all processes. Most importantly, time is of the essence during the implementation of the strategic goals. Projects are vital tools for the implementation of strategic goals. They ensure that organizations achieve the desired outcome with the allocated resources and within the allocated time. Other than the launching of new products or processes, the management of an entity may decide to divide critical sections of a strategic plan into projects. Organizations find themselves in pressures emerging from cutthroat competition. To be able to face competition, organizations have to change processes from time to time. Apart from the competition, businesses face shortened product life cycles and narrow product launch windows. This is because products lose market at a high rate. Therefore, it is necessary to come up with and launch new products from time to time. This will help in retaining existing and attracting new customers. Another reason why businesses need projects is the increase in complex and technical products. An organization will always strive to have products that are in line with current technology. Technology can be seen as the main reason for dynamism in the organization. The emergence of global markets and recent economic fluctuations have also exposed organizations to external pressures. All these factors have contributed to the endless demand for project management by businesses. [1]
Challenges in introducing project management in an organization
A major challenge in introducing project management philosophy in an organization is resistance to change. Employees of an organization are likely to resist the new philosophy. Employees view the project as not necessary. They argue that work can be done without using projects. Further, employees consider projects as too rigid. They are not flexible to allow for their inputs. Also, due to the urgency in the objectives to be achieved and the processes involved, employees view the project as complicated busy work. Therefore, projects create environments that are not user-friendly to employees. Management of an organization may also resist change. They view the project as a costly affair. Therefore, they may not be willing to change to the new philosophy due to cost implications. Further, they may argue that the project-based approach is quite time-consuming. An organization may take a lot of time to change from the old ways of handling change to a project-based approach. Therefore, there may be a lot of doubt on the time of change over. Finally, management may lack confidence in the ability of projects based approach to work on their objectives and needs. [2]
Successful and unsuccessful projects
The success of the project is determined by various factors. First, there is a need to have a “sound project management process that will give clear guidelines on what to be done and at what time”. There should be clearly defined roles and responsibilities. [3] Further, implementation requires support from all stakeholders of an organization. Also, projects should be tied to the organization’s strategic and business goals. For instance, the construction of a channel undersea rail tunnel connecting Folkestone and Coquelles took a longer period than the project duration. This is an example of an unsuccessful project. The project lacked support from all stakeholders involved. This led to resistance during implementation. Further, there was no adequate feasibility study. There were instances when people were stuck on the way as a result of snow. An example of a successful project is the introduction of windows seven. This project was well coordinated. The implementation and launch of the product were quite successful.
Examples of international project management organizations
There are a number of project management organizations with different goals and objectives. An example is the ASAP. The goal of the society “is to lead the mainstreaming of project management as a core competence of all professions”. The objectives of the society are to “provide services to members that promote advancement in the practice of competent project management”. Also, provide high standards of ethics, conducts, education, and achievement by all project management”. The group’s methodology is to “build business relationships with various stakeholders to support their project management needs”.[4] IAPPM’s goal is to enhance and add value to the global members and project community. Their objective is to “allow the community at large to manage projects and programs successfully using the right tools, skill sets, and methods”. Their methodology is to “work together with members, project communities, business partners and corporations by leveraging their content, collaboration and business management insight”.[5] IPMA’s goal is to assist the member associations to succeed. Key objective of IPMA is to actively promote the value of project management. Their methodology entails “developing products and services that enhance performance throughout the global PPPM community”.[6]
Bibliography
ASAPM, About Us, 2011. Web.
IAPPM, About IAPPM, 2003. Web.
IPMA, Vision and Mission, 2012. Web.
Lock, D, Project Management, 9th edn, Gower Publishing Limited, England, 2007.