Project Management (2)

Project Management

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1) Why must management support be visible to the whole team and not just to the project manager?

Visibility- In a project setting refers to the ability of the top management in an organization to have a perspective of the ongoing projects and hence determine how to prioritize their execution.

Management support is important for every project in order for it to be successful. Many projects are started with big goals, and strategies are laid down on how to perform all the activities which result to great achievements. Visibility of management support in an organization leads to appropriate resource allocation due to grassroots innovations since the team members are aware of the significance of the project to the organization (Young & Jordan, 2008). They would demonstrate willingness to experiment and take risks for the sake of the project’s success.

The team members due to familiarization with the project are able to access unique knowledge as they work on something they like due to their passion for it. Distribution of the information increases the percentage to be completed, reduces the actual hours spent on it and also has financial impact (Young & Jordan, 2008). Failure to be there visibility leads to being able to achieve project objectives as there is lack of prioritization in order of importance eventually overworking the team members.

2) What factors should be considered when performing a return-on-investment analysis on training dollars for project management?

Return-on –investment analysis on training dollars for project management is a popular financial metric for evaluating the financial consequences of individual investments and actions. It is the calculation basis for all informed decisions in investments, and though the calculations remain constant, the variables are different. ROI helps executives to see the monetary value that project management training programs bring to their organizations, they are not only concerned about the enjoyment and the training lessons gained but also the positive impact the training has on their organization (Ibbs & Kwak, 2000). It is monetary measurement that is used to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of an investment made by an organization. There is a general formula for calculation of return-on-investment:

ROI= (Gains- Cost)/ Cost.

Return –on- investment = Gain of the investment – Cost of the investment divided by total cost of the investment.

There are many factors can influence ROI, including changes in price, volume, or expenses, as well as the purchase of assets or the borrowing of money (Ibbs & Kwak, 2000). The most important aspect in the analysis is determining how beneficial the project will be, therefore in carrying out a cost-benefit analysis it helps the organization to predict if the project will bring benefits to the organization this involves looking into the future based on various assumptions made. The costs to be considered are looked at for all phases of the project. They may be recurring for example changes in personnel and materials maintenance or non-recurring such as capital investment. All these factors put into consideration will help in decision making for the investors because of proper information which may save them money by avoiding wrong decisions by choosing the highly paying option in a case where they have to make a choice between two or more projects.

3) Is it possible for a matrix to get out of control because of too many small projects, each competing for the same shared resources? If so, how many projects are too many? How can management control the number of projects? Does your answer depend on whether the organization is project-driven or non-project-driven?

In defining, the matrix organization structure is a combination of two or more types of organization structure (Kuprenas, 2003). The combination is a balance which helps organizations to achieve higher efficiency, readiness, and quick market adaptation. Hence they can respond faster to demand that arises from the market and customer which decreases the lead time and financial actual to produce a new product. The matrix structure is designed for people to work on more than one project and is this applicable mostly in a dynamic environment; however multiple concurrent projects in a matrix environment create intrinsic risks for all the projects (Kuprenas, 2003). These results from accountability where for example a manager is entrusted with project management, they might prioritize some of the projects forgoing others in a such a case where resources are to be allocated there may not be equal allocation due to more knowledge on one project compared to the other one. Other specific risks may include; bad decision-making, slow response times, control issues, and staff stress and turnover.

The observable fact of individuals working on multiple projects is not limited to matrix structures only: in many organizations resources also work on more than one project at a time (Engwall & Jerbrant, 2003). While it is often vital for individuals to be allocated simultaneously to more than one project, there are obviously limits to the number of projects one person can work on efficiently. Depending on the key resources an organization is able to determine the number of active projects they can handle within a given time frame. Within an organization where multiple projects are handled , there needs to be a comprehensive project plan development as part of the corporate strategy, through project screening and project portfolio management to preparation of individual projects, with resources (including funds and key people) allocated to each project (Engwall & Jerbrant, 2003).

In an organization the number of projects handled doesn’t matter and it does not mean that many projects cause failure; there just needs to be plan where some of the projects are active and others are impending. The large number of projects and the resulting conflict over resources put undue stress on resources employed on concurrent projects. Frustration comes to the managers due to the fact that their personnel are constantly distracted by side projects that are not critical to the success of the organization or their department. Formal prioritization of projects is therefore essential.

For the management to be able to control the number of projects and avoid conflict of resources, setting up a feasible schedule for a set of concurrent projects is no small challenge but it is essential that the relative priorities of projects are formally defined and that such priorities are not frequently changed (Engwall & Jerbrant, 2003). Top management support and ownership is one of the key success factors in multiple-project environments. Without such involvement, local optima are pursued. At the early stages of a project, rough-cut capacity planning is sufficient; but, as part of the gate criteria for assessing a project phase, comprehensive allocation of resources should already have been done for each project phase before the phase is approved.

The study carried out for this particular question is that the organization is project- driven and there are many projects being run by the organization simultaneously. The condition is that resources are not moved from one project to another in a ‘fire fighting’ mode. There can be a possible solution to the problems of accountability, response time, and control: the project manager sub-contracts the work to the functional departments, and the functional departments contract labor to the projects.

4) Draft a course summary for a desired program to enhance project management skills in your organization.

The skills that a project manager possesses can either make a project successful or become a failure depending on their application of the skills they have in their management work, they achieve this through adequate utilization of available resources and proper time management. There are several factors that should be considered in order to enhance project management skills;

Have effective communication skills- A project manager should be a good communicator consecutively encouraging the knowledge of the project to all stakeholders. He/ she is able to differentiate issues which are of more importance and discuss it with all stakeholders , these helps them to know what is expected of them throughout the life cycle of the project being carried out. The flow of information in an organization is vital and the manager should therefore be able to establish how it should be relayed and to what levels (Perce, 1998). Some of the information should not be communicated to a client and in circumstances where it should, and then the manager must be able to pass it on taking in to consideration the effects it could have on the overall success.

A project manager should be highly organized and a good multi-tasker. They are entrusted with a great responsibility within the project and should be able to handle many tasks at the same time, paying attention not to prioritize some projects more than others in which case they many allocate resources inefficiently (Perce, 1998). As many tasks as they may be conducting on daily basis, they should be product- oriented in managing the projects. Lack of organization can lead to failure of the project.

Be a leader and take charge of the project. Projects need to be led in a manner that builds harmony to generate credible relationships with key stakeholders and ensure alignment to the project objectives and emanate the assurance necessary to hold all participants in the project accountable (Brown, 2000). They should be able to demonstrate that the project has a future and that the result will be achieved at the end.

Possess good negotiating skills, the manager should make the people to understand what it is that they are dealing with for the team to make individual efforts and accomplish the ultimate desired goals of the project (Brown, 2000). A lot time will be invested in making the negotiations to enhance the relationships and figuring out of the interests of stakeholders so that the project can move forward in the right direction. This will save time and hence resource utilization. Sometimes not being in the knowhow of negotiations may spoil achievement of the project set objectives and strategies, therefore the skills that the manager displays may affect the project positively or negatively.

Be a problem-solver by being capable of recognizing them as soon as they start appearing. Certainly, in there will be times when problems and obstacles arise that involve immediate solutions this involves paying attention to details no matter how small or big the problem is this will ensure that the impacts likely or caused by the problem are addressed in time thus ensuring that proper measures are put in place (Perce, 1998). This is enhanced by knowledge which is invested technologically and good managerial skills about areas of their jurisdiction.

5) describe how a project’s maturity would affect your approach to managing it and why.

Project management maturity is the progressive development of an enterprise-wide project management advance, tactic, policy, and decision-making process (Yazici, 2009). The appropriate level of maturity will normally vary for each organization and it’s based on its specific, strategies, goals, resource, capabilities, needs as well as scope. Management at this stage will be different since the project has reduced in its cost. It also enables the manager to deliver the project on time and also increases the desired profit of the project.

Reference

Brown, K. A. (2000). Developing project management skills: A service learning approach. Project Management Journal, 31(4), 31.

Engwall, M., & Jerbrant, A. (2003). The resource allocation syndrome: the prime challenge of multi-project management?. International journal of project management, 21(6), 403-409.

Ibbs, C. W., & Kwak, Y. H. (2000). Calculating project management’s return on investment. Project Management Journal, 31(2), 38-47.

Perce, K. H. (1998). Project management skills, AAOHN JOURNAL, 46, 391-406.

Yazici, H. J. (2009). The role of project management maturity and organizational culture in perceived performance. Project Management Journal, 40(3), 14-33.

Young, R., & Jordan, E. (2008). Top management support: Mantra or necessity?. International Journal of Project Management, 26(7), 713-725.