Project Management: Effectiveness and Assessment

According to Davidson (2002), the origin of project management can be traced back to the post World War II era in which new efficient developments started taking place across the triad i.e. the US, Europe and Japan.

Projects are formally defined by Cleland and Gareis (1994), as the process that transforms and unsatisfactory state of affairs into better state within certain time and resources limit. The literature within the domain of this subject has accepted the fact that orientation towards project based approach is concentrated within few industries due to their inherent characteristics. Drawing upon Krezner (2001), it can be elaborated that those industries that are project-driven like construction and aerospace, needs more rigorous project specifications. The evolution of PM process has started from such industries and has permeated into others with differing levels (Papers4you.com, 2006). Its applications, concepts and methods have been broadened for its uses for all the industries.

The development of standardized procedures for project management has been the centre of discussion for many years and in today’s world there are many well known such standards. Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) and Projects in Controlled Environments (PRINCE), are two of the most widely used standards applicable to any nature of project in any industry (Meredith & Mantel, 1995). At the same time there has been constructive work in the development of industry specific project management processes and methodologies so as the particular needs of each industry can be taken care of.

The role of project manager is seen central to the process of project management but it has been established in literature that it should not be regarded as one man task since it requires other individuals and their competencies that are grouped together and who are dedicated to achieving the particular objectives of the project (Pinkerton, 2003). One of the criticisms on project management literature development is its concentration and focus towards the ‘hard’ aspects of the change while neglecting the ‘soft’ aspects. The school of thought that believes in blending both hard and soft issues to build upon project management techniques is growing. 

It can be concluded that project management skills and process although are generalized for any type of project within any industry but these are more appropriate for some than others. Levine (2002) has suggested that weather an organization is involved in managing projects or not in the traditional sense, but it requires the management of its assets and PM provides overall process and skills needed to achieve any change objectives. 

References:

Cleland, D.I., Gareis, R. (Eds) (1994), “Global Project Management Handbook”, McGraw-Hill International Editions

Davidson, Frame, (2002), “Tools for an age of rapid change, complexity and other business realities”, San Francisco, California: Wiley & Sons, Inc. (US)

Kerzner, Harold, (2001), “A systems approach to planning, scheduling and controlling”, New York: Wiley & Sons, Inc. (US)

Levine, Harvey, (2002), “Practical project management, tips, tactics and tools”, New York: Wiley & Sons, Inc

Meredith, J.R., Mantel, S.J. (1995), “Project Management: A Managerial Approach”, John Wiley & Sons, New York, NY

Papers For You (2006) "P/M/400. Project management in theory and in practice", Available from http://www.coursework4you.co.uk/sprtmgt7.htm [22/06/2006]

Pinkerton, William, (2003), “Achieving project bottom-line success”, New York: Mc Graw Hill