Project Management

These tools provide basic project management features and generally cost I than $200 per user. Smartened and tablet APS are available for much less, but the y often have Limited functionality. Low end tools are often recommended for small projects and single users. Most of these tools allow users to create Gaunt charts, which cannot be done easily us inning current productivity software. Midrange tools: A step up from low end tools, midrange tools are designed to handle larger rejects, multiple users, and multiple projects.

All of these tools can produce Gaunt c harts and network diagrams, and can assist in critical path analysis, resource allocation, project tracking, and status reporting. Prices range from about $200 to $1,000 per user, or less per MO nth for online tools. Several tools require additional server software for using workup feat rues. Microsoft Project is still the most widely used project management software in this ca destroy, and t has an enterprise version, as described earlier and in Appendix A.

Students and deed actors can purchase software like Microsoft Project at reduced prices from sites like www. Journey yet. Com ($139. 95 for Project Professional 2010 in 2012), and anyone can download a trial verse on from Microsoft’s Web site. Many other suppliers also provide trial versions of their product Weighed tools: Another category of project management software is high end tools, sometimes referred to as enterprise project management software.

These tools provide robust c abilities to handle very large projects and dispersed workups, and they have enterprise an d portfolio management functions that summarize and combine individual project information t o provide an enterprise view of all projects.

Hector Gaming Company Hector Gaming project is study growth. Their goal for the firm is grow to be the largest and best educational gaming company in the world. To achieve the end state goals, every member of the firm has to be on-board and linked to the organizational strategic plan. Moss and McAdams Accounting Firm M&M was a well-established regional accounting firm with 160 employees located across six offices in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The main office, where Palmer worked, was in Green Bay, Wisconsin. M&M’s primary services were corporate audits and tax preparation.

Over the last two years the partners decided to move more aggressively into the consulting business. M&M projected that consulting would represent 40 percent of their growth over the next five years(Gray, Larson 2008) This was a very competitive position. During the last five years, only 20 percent of account managers at M&M had been promoted to partner. However, once a partner, they were virtually guaranteed the position for life and enjoyed significant increases in salary, benefits, and prestige.

Film Prioritization The company is the film division for a large entertainment conglomerate. The main office is located in Anaheim, California. In addition to the feature film division, the conglomerate includes theme parks, home videos, a television channel, interactive games and theatrical productions. The company has been enjoying steady growth over the past 10 years. (Gray, Larson 2008) Project Management Styles Organizational culture Organizational culture is the pattern of beliefs and expectations shared by an organization’s members.

Culture includes the behavioral norms, customs, shared values, and the “rules of the game” for getting along and getting ahead within the organization. In certain organizations, culture encourages the implementation of projects. In this environment the project management structure used plays a less decisive role in the success of the project. This is true for Film Prioritization; their overriding objective is to create shareholder value by continuing to be the world’s premier entertainment company from a creative, strategic, and financial standpoint(Gray, Larson 2008) The project management structure plays more decisive role in the successful implementation of projects. At a minimum, under adverse cultural conditions, the project manager needs to have significant authority over the project team. Project Life Cycle The project life cycle typically passes sequentially through four stages: defining, planning, executing, and delivering. The starting point begins the moment the project is given the go-ahead. HGC struggled through the (4) phases of the life cycle. A consulting firm along with top managers defined and planned continued expansion of the company.

HGC internal conflict and fear of competition prevented them to progress through the execution and delivery phase. The 10 top managers couldn’t agree on the company new direction. M&M accounting firm allowed internal competition to move successfully through the project cycle. The accounting firm manager defined and planned, but like HGC fell short in executing and delivering. In the process, they overworked a valued employee and forced the employee to make a decision that didn’t benefit both projects.

Film Prioritization, moved through each phase of the cycle success from start to finish. This company had a well defined end state goal for the project and company as a whole. By developing proposal it game project managers direction on the other (3) of the cycle. The project cycle is a key resource in project management that tracks the success of the plan. References Clifford F. Gray, Erik W. Larson (2008). Project Management. The Managerial Process, Fourth Edition. Chapter One: Modern Project Management.

McGraw-Hill, a business unit of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Clifford F. Gray, Erik W. Larson (2008). Project Management. The Managerial Process, Fourth Edition. Chapter. Chapter Two: Organization Strategy and Project Selection. McGraw-Hill, a business unit of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Clifford F. Gray, Erik W. Larson (2008). Project Management. The Managerial Process, Fourth Edition. Chapter. Chapter Three: Organization: Structure and Culture. McGraw-Hill, a business unit of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The “Dummies Series” book, Project Management for Dummies, by Stanley E. Portny (Wiley Publishing, Inc., 2001), is, in my opinion, a relatively easy-to-read (although also somewhat structurally fragmented in places), step-by-step “how-to” book, for either current or prospective project managers, with or without experience. In life, every individual has projects to complete – usually a never-ending series of them, in fact, and often more than one project to complete simultaneously. One’s projects may be personal or professional; voluntary or required. They may be for our selves alone; for friends or family; for churches, clubs, or communities; special events; or for colleagues; companies, or employers.

As the author concurs, in his “Introduction” to the text:

Projects have been around since ancient times. Noah built the ark, Leonardo da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa, Jonas Salk developed the polio vaccine – all projects. . . . Why then, is the topic of project management suddenly of such great interest today? The answer is simple.

The audience has changed and the management projects in particular, however, as Portny also points out, within Chapter 1, must meet three key criteria; they must have

1. “Specific outcomes”;
2. “Definite start and end dates”, and
3. Established budgets” (p. 10).

Further, as that chapter mentions, project management “includes three basic operations” (p. 12), which are: (1)planning; (2)organizing; and (3) control (Portny).

In management today, for managers at all levels, completing projects; meeting project goals; and meeting project deadlines, are more important, as skills, aptitudes, and professional achievements, than ever before, especially within today’s super competitive business environment. As Portny also states at the outset: “Successful organizations create projects that produce desired results in established timeframes with assigned resources” (p. 9). Clearly, those who can successfully, skillfully, and within budgets and deadlines complete projects have an advantage over those who cannot.

Many suddenly find themselves project managers, not by choice, but due to either changed or expanded job descriptions or expectations, or just plain company need. Increasingly, project management has increasingly become a ticket to job promotion and career advancement (or not).

Moreover, if one has no previous formal training in project management, one may need to simply learn such skills on the job, and quickly. Project Management for Dummies is written for such individuals: those who would like to develop new project management skills (but also for those who desire to increase their current ones). The book is, I believe, potentially very useful for readers within either group.

This book guides one through the beginning, middle, and ending project stages. It offers guidelines and tips on planning; navigating through ambiguities and uncertainties; teamwork; time management, organizational strategies; handling paperwork; staying on track; meeting deadlines, and bringing projects to a successful, satisfactory, and timely conclusion.

Topics Project Management for Dummies covers include: making project schedules; building teams and sustaining teamwork; budgeting; coping with risks and surprises; optimally integrating technology into project management; and keeping team members motivated, on task, and within budgets and deadlines. Structurally, the book is divided into five parts (I-V). Each part consists of between three and six chapters, with 20 chapters in all.

Chapter headings and topics covered include (to name but a few) “What is Project Management (And How Do I Get Paid Extra to Do It?)” (Chapter 1); “Estimating Resource Requirements” (Chapter 5); “Tracking Progress and Maintaining Control” (Chapter 10); “Dealing With Risk and Uncertainty” (Chapter 15); and “Ten Tips for Being a Better Project Manager” (Chapter 20). There are also two appendices (A and B) and an index.

Chapter 2 covers defining and understanding what one is trying to accomplish with a project, knowing who and what one is doing a project for, and why that person or entity needs the project completed. This chapter also offers ways to avoid others’ having unrealistic expectations of the project or oneself as manager. “Looking at the big picture” includes “figuring out why you’re doing

This project”; “identifying the initiator”; “identifying others who may benefit from your project” and “defining needs to be addressed” (pp. 29-32). In short, Chapter two focuses on defining the rationale(s) and parameters of the project; clarifying those for oneself and for all others involved; and laying the initial groundwork toward project completion.

Chapters 3, 4, and 5 focus on “Getting from Here to There”; “You Want This Done When”; and “Estimating Resource Requirements”. Key ideas contained within these chapters, include knowing and planning all steps of a project, including making a “work breakdown structure”; “knowing how much detail is enough” (p. 49); “developing and analyzing a network diagram” (p. 71) and “assign your project’s personnel needs” (p. 105).

Chapter 5 in particular also stresses the importance of finding the right people to assist with the project. Portny observes “Your project’s success rests on your ability to enlist the help of the right people to perform the necessary work” (p. 106). Portny also stresses that, toward that same end, “identifying skills and knowledge needed to perform your project’s activities” (Project Management for Dummies) and Finding people who in fact possess all of those required skills will either make or break a project.

One of the chapters I found most personally useful was Chapter 6, on “The Who and How of Project Management”. Here, Portny covers three main topics: (1) “Distinguishing the project organization from the traditional organization”; (2) “Clarifying the roles of different people in the matrix organization”; and (3) “Recognizing key tips for increasing the chances of success” (p. 137). As Portny also notes in this chapter, project management structure and atmosphere may be, and very often is, much different than overall company structure and atmosphere, and one is wise to be clear at the outset on the differences between the two.

While projects are company activities, they nevertheless typically take on atmospheres, conflicts, and lives of their own. For example, one operates within both a centralized company structure and a functional departmental or area structure in most parts of one’s job. However, project management may send one outside one’s own functional structure into various other functional structures within the centralized one.

Those areas outside one’s usual functional structure become the unique “matrix structure” (p. 141) of the project. Understandably, the matrix structure of an individual project will spawn (and necessitate) much different communications; alliances; interrelationships; interactions, and interdependencies than will usual, more typical work activities. Key players in a project matrix environment, which obviously differs from one’s overall work environment, will typically include the “project manager; project team members; functional managers; and upper management” (p. 143).

Chapter 7 covers choosing and involving the “Right People” (p. 149) in one’s project. Supporting ideas covered in this chapter include the importance of understanding one’s project’s audience (“any person or group that supports, is affected by, or is interested in your project” (p. 150). Each project also has “drivers”; “supporters”; and “observers” (p. 158) and it is equally important, Portny suggests, for project managers to identify and know each of them, and their respective roles. Of crucial importance to project success, also, is “Finding a project champion” (p. 159) or someone high up in one’s organization that will support and encourages the project.

Teamwork is crucial to successful project completion. Chapter 8 explains the importance of “defining team members roles and responsibilities” (p. 166), and making sure all team members are aware of their own and each others’ roles and responsibilities. Therefore, lines of authority, responsibility, and accountability must be clearly established at the outset, and sustained throughout the project. This chapter also discusses strategies project managers can use should they have to deal with micromanagement from above, such as “setting up times to discuss interesting technical [or other] issues with the person” (p. 181).

The book also covers ways of tracking progress and maintaining control (Chapter 10); ways of keeping everyone informed (Chapter 11), including sharing information both in writing and at meetings; and ways of encouraging peak performance in team players (Chapter 12), including providing rewards and helping players maintain motivation.

Chapter 14 focused on handling risk or uncertainty, including ways of identifying possible risk factors; assessing risk impact, and preparing a risk management plan. Key advice of this chapter is to realistically assess risks to the project, and to have a risk management plan for handling them.

Later chapters included advice on how to hold people accountable (Chapter 18); getting a project back on track (Chapter 19)and tips for optimal project management (Chapter 20).

All in all, I benefited from reading and reflecting on the guidelines, strategies, and tips plentifully contained within Stanley E. Portny’s Project Management for Dummies. The only aspect of this book that I found disappointing was that of that it had far fewer specific examples, of actual project management situations to illustrate major points and concepts, than I would have liked. I learn best and most easily from examples and discussion of how those examples illustrate theoretical concepts. I would have liked for Portny to do more of that in this book than he did. Major strengths of the book include its being thorough; comprehensive; well organized, and practical.

The SAP system incorporates the project builder function to handle all the projects at all departments at Nestle. From the manufacturing to operations to supply chain management, inventory setup, materials management and personnel and customer handling, SAP manages all processes and creates detailed plans regarding its costs, schedules, resource allocation, setting baselines and timelines for activities. This system is also integrated with the budgeting overview and procurement cycle.

The project management takes a very definite role regarding the various locations it serves. The project plan was a started at the startup of the project at the initiation stage where the scope of work was clarified with a customer and both approximate completion time and budget was clarified based on historical data of similar recent project. Project stakeholders were identified including customer representatives, maintenance representatives and project engineering team with the SAP project management software.

Te primary importance is the risk management process which is attached to every element at the SAP system. It holistically integrates the various other business modules for the purpose of determining and tracking the change for projects. The resource track and its usage are some of the various points of concern for the organization. SAP at Nestle engages the responsibility at every resource. The Work Breakdown Structure and critical path is decided and distributed at every level of the organization which not only maintains schedule but also alerts for the achievement and failure to follow the schedule and cost.

Nestle  has already accomplished noteworthy increase at ROI as the demand forecasting model serves a great principal in their growth and cutting costs.

With SAP in place at Nestle, the enterprise functional modules lead to more trustworthy demand forecasts for the various Nestlé product ranges. The supply chain improvements accounted for a major chunk of the $325 million Nestlé says it has saved from SAP (Worthen, 2002).

SAP architecture at Nestle has effectively pulled all resources of the organization to fill their objective. The enterprise architecture fetched the importance of the various business units and the various business processes that are required to be identified and made good for fetching the right objective for the purpose (Symons, 2006).

The enforcement of enterprise architecture would be to embrace change for the organization as the defined processes would be helpful to identify the need to implement change. The alignment of business units and flexibility can be largely enforced for fetching the scalability of the resources to invest fresh ideas and processes for change. Enterprise architecture has made clear all processes to be identified and collaborate with better planning and organizing ability.

Mediators scope adjustments to accommodate new realities or incorporate new capabilities can pay off, but only when they’re done very intentionally and with a hard-nosed insistence on demonstrating up front where the money is going to come from. Such vigilance doesn’t just happen, which is why for every story like Infant’s, there’s probably three or four that speak to the dangers of creep. Need an example? Think of the Big Dig, the highway project to put Boson’s central artery underground, in which scope changes were all too casually agreed to when they were noticed at all.

Construction for this project began in 1991 and was supposed to take 10 years and cost $4. 9 billion. Current projections suggest that more realistic figures are, at minimum, 14 years and $14. 6 billion. You treat every project as utterly unique, none of the learning from one project to another-?which essentially has to do with recognizing patterns-?transfers over,” says Steven Wheelwright, a professor and senior associate dean at Harvard Business School (HOBS) whose research focuses on product and process development.

And just what is this relevant learning Wheelwright is referring to? Conversations with project managers who have a track record of success underscore the importance of adopting, in the initial planning phase, key frameworks, rules, and structures to ensure: ; The right people have defined the project’s scope. ; The project’s boundaries have been sharply delineated. ; The impact of potential alterations or slippage can be quickly calculated.

In the implementation phase, the challenge is to organize the work so as to minimize the inherent uncertainties. Whether you’re the manager or the executive sponsor of any major project, a solid methodology that’s sensitive to creep can make it easier for you to decide, in the moment, which project add-ions to say yes to and which to pass on. The planning phase A surprising number of projects get under way without a thorough attempt to define their parameters, specs, and performance characteristics.

Haste is the chief culprit here, says Dave Nonfat, who brings 40 years of industry project management experience to his role as Enron operations adviser at HOBS and project manager for the renovation of one of the school’s main classroom buildings. “There’s a minimum lead time that all projects require,” says Nonfat, and it’s the responsibility of the project’s manager to know what that lead time is and to ensure that it not squeezed. Here are the key tasks of the planning phase: Differentiate scope from purpose.

As you define the parameters of a project, its critical to separate its scope from its purpose. “A project’s purpose is the general benefit it will provide to the organization,” explains Alex Walton, a Winter Park, AAA. Based project con- Copyright C 2005 by Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved. 3 Project Creep (continued) sultan who’s worked with computer, aerospace, financial, and medical/nutritional companies. “Its scope comprises the particular elements (or product attributes) that the project team can control and has agreed to deliver. For example, a project’s purpose may be to create a new food item that will increase sales by $20 million. But the team developing the product needs to know what features the product must have and what the budget for producing the product will be. This is the information that a three- to four-sentence document known as a scope statement provides; it spells out how the team intends to achieve success and, thus, the criteria on which it will be evaluated. Involve key stakeholders.

Make sure that you have the right people defining the project’s scope. “If you don’t have all the affected stakeholders and sponsors at the table, either you won’t get an accurate identification of the critical dependencies and functionalities or you won’t have the people who can ensure that the project hews to those critical dependencies and functionalities,” says Brian Dobby, a Enron project manager for Meddles, a Mason, Ohio-based subsidiary of Custodianship’s, who oversees the installation of electronics systems in health care facilities.

For this reason, it’s crucial to include “the end users perspective and needs when you’re scoping out the functionality that’s required,” says Wheelwright. In the renovation of Baker Library at HOBS, for example, project planners solicited faculty members’ input about the prototypes of the new office spaces that were being designed for them. Plan in the aggregate. Getting the right people involved in defining the scope ND devoting sufficient time to the project planning phase aren’t enough to ensure that the project has clear boundaries, however. Organizations also need to do aggregate project planning,” says Wheelwright, “in which they develop a strategy that lays out a pattern and rhythm for when subsequent projects will occur. ” This is especially important for new product development. Without such a schedule for future projects, a product engineer with a new idea can grow concerned that it will never be implemented; as a result, there’s a strong temptation for the engineer to try to slip that idea into the product that’s currently in placement-?regardless of its impact on the cost and schedule.

The analysis of prior projects serves as a valuable adjunct to aggregate planning. For example, study the past 1 0 internal IT projects your company has undertaken what patterns emerge? The findings can help you identify and better prepare for potential trouble spots in the IT projects that are on the docket for the coming years. Set the rules. One last piece Of work in the planning phase that can minimize the chances of project creep involves creating buffers or rules that make it difficult for significant hanged to occur without conscious discussion and approval. For instance: ; Set up a change control board.

In highly structured project environments, such a group is responsible for “gathering information about the impact that a proposed change will have on the schedule, budget, or scope; voting on the proposed change; and then sending a request-for-change document on for the project sponsors’ signature,” says Bob Tartan, a senior consultant who specializes in IT and telecommunications projects for Haverford, pa. -based PM Solutions. Thus, for an IT project affecting the sales, marketing, and logistics departments, the change intro board would comprise senior managers from each of these units.

Collectively the project phases are known as the project life cycle. Each project phase consists of one or more deliverables and ends when all of these are completed. At the end of each phase (phase exit/ stage gate/ kill point), both the key deliverables and the project performance to date are reviewed to

1. decide to move to the next phase or not and
2. detect and correct errors cost effectively.

The project life cycle defines the beginning and the end of the project. It determines which transitional actions are included and which are not (feasibility study, etc. Since the project Is divided Into phases, deliverables from a phase has to be approved in order to move forward to the next phase. However, a later phase might start before the last phase has been finished if the risk is deemed acceptable. This overlap of phases Is called fast tracking. The project life cycle defines:

1. The technical work in each phase (who works in which phase) and
2. who is involved in each phase. This can be very general or very detailed (project management methodologies).
3. Project life-cycle differs from product life-cycle. There can be many projects defined within the product life-cycle.

Common characteristics of project life -cycles are:

1. Costs are low at first, get higher towards the end, and then drop rapidly.
2. Risk and uncertainty are high at first, and hence the probability of successfully completing the project is low at the beginning. This will change as the project proceeds to the end.
3. Changing the outcome is easier at first and gets harder towards the end because of the costs.

Note: section 2. 1. 3 – up 13- 15 contains a list of phases within a project life-cycle. These cannot be summarized and should therefore be read from the book Itself. . Project stakeholders Project stakeholders are those Individuals or organizations that: 1- Are actively involved in the projects 2- Their interests are effected by the project Identifying the stakeholders is difficult but key stakeholders on every project are: – Project manager Customer (may have many layers- may be the user or an entity that buys the product and doesn’t use it directly) Performing organization Sponsor In addition to these, there are many names and categories of project stakeholders see page 16, last paragraph) and some of them may even overlap.

Managing the expectations of the stakeholders is difficult as they may come into conflict. In general, the conflicts should be resolved in the favor of the customer without disregarding the needs of the stakeholders. This can be one of the major challenges in project management. 3. Organizational influences Projects are typically part of an organization larger than the project, therefore some elements in the organization can influence the project itself.

Organizational systems: Organizations are either project-based or nonprofit-based. Project based organizations either derive their revenue primarily by performing projects for others, or have adopted management by projects. Project-based companies tend to have management systems in place to facilitate project management. Nonporous]etc-based organizations, however, often lack management systems which makes project management more difficult.

The project management team should be aware of how the organization’s system affect the project. Organizational cultures and styles: Most organizations have unique and describable cultures that often have a direct influence on the project. Organizational structure: The structure of the organization describes the availability of or terms under which resources become available to the project. In this matrix, the classic functional organization is a hierarchy where each employee has one clear superior.

Staff members are grouped by specialty. They still have project, but the scope is limited to the function, meaning that each group will do its work independent from other groups (departments). At the other end of the matrix we have the productized organizations, where team members are collocated, meaning hat departments work together and report directly to the project manager or provide services to various projects. Most modern organizations involve all these structures at various levels.

Project office: There is a range of uses for what constitutes a project office. A project office may operate on a continuum from providing support functions responsible for the results of the project. 4. Key general Management skills General management is different from project management. General management deals with every aspect of managing an ongoing organization including a long list hat you can find on page 21! General management skills provide much of the foundation for building project management skills.

From these, those that are highly likely to affect most projects are:

1. Leading: Leading and managing are both needed in a project manager. Managing concerns “consistently producing key results expected by stakeholders”. Leading involves establishing direction, aligning people, and motivating and inspiring. Leadership might be demonstrated by people other than the project manager as well.
2. Communicating: how, when, in what form, and to whom to report project performance.
3. Negotiating: directly or with assistance (mediation & arbitration).
4. Problem solving: problem definition and decision making.
5. Influencing the organization: getting things done. Understanding of the structure of the organization and the mechanics of power and politics.
6. Social-Economic-Environmental Influences: The project management team must understand that conditions and trends in this area may have a major effect on its project. Several major categories that frequently influence projects are:
7. Standards and regulations: Standards are guidelines that are not mandatory while isolations are.

Global business practices are becoming increasingly common both for large multi-national organizations as well as small domestic businesses. Many businesses outsource work to other countries or contract people of organizations globally to complete project work or provide offshore services (Eberlein, 2008, p. 27).

A better understanding of how to manage global projects is important to the body of knowledge about project management. The purpose of this study is to explore the similarities and differences between domestic and global project management. The research questions used to guide this study are 1. In what ways are domestic and global projects similar and different?  What are some mediating variables that contribute to global project failure or success? Domestic Project Management

In the United States the Project Management Institute (PMI) project management body of knowledge (PMBOK) and the Association of Project Manager’s (APM) body of knowledge (bok) are used as guides for planning and controlling projects (Burke, 2001). According to the PMBOK a project is “a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service. Temporary means that every project has a definite end. Unique means that the product or service is different in some distinguishing way from all similar products or services” (PMBOK as cited in Burke, 2001, p. ). All projects share the same basic components:a project manager or single individual responsible for the outcome of the project, a beginning and an end, ( distinct phases, budget of allocated financial and physical resources,  unique set of activities specific to the project, fast tracking to getting product or process completed before the competition, and  identification of team member roles and responsibilities (Burke, 2001).

The role of the project manager is “to set up a management structure which not only meets the needs of the project, but the needs of the organization, the needs of the stakeholders and the needs of the individuals working on the project” (Burke, 2001, p. 1). Projects range in size and scope from small domestic projects to large multi-national global projects. The first, and often critical task of the project manager is to identify the stakeholders of the project and what their needs and expectations are in relation to the urpose and the scope of the project (Kerzner, 2003). According to the PMBOK, there are nine components that the project manager must consider:  integration,  time, quality, scope,  cost,  human resource management, communication,  procurement, and risk. This involves the project manager articulating what has to be completed in order for the project to be a success. This includes outlining how long the project will take, how much it will cost, what resources are needed, and what technical or subject matter experts are needed.

Prior to implementation, the project manager works with others on the project team to develop a plan and how it will be implemented. Throughout the planning, implementation, and completion phases, the project manager is responsible for managing techniques and tools used as well as integrating, monitoring and maintaining the process and personnel from concept to completion of project objectives (Burke, 2001). Project integration involves the planning, execution, and control of the project and how the inputs from different knowledge and technical experts will be coordinated (Kerzner, 2003).

Project scope management involves ensuring that all the tasks required for the project are defined, the resources required are identified, and controlling processes are in place (DeLone et al. , 2005). Project cost management includes understanding budget allocation and restrictions and planning how resources will be used, cost estimates and budgeting, cash-flow and control. Project quality management involves indentifying and maintaining the necessary conditions to ensure quality assurance and control during all phases of the project life cycle.

Management of project personnel is also an important responsibility of the project manager. Project human resource management involves identifying, recruiting, and maintaining a project team with the right mix of technical and knowledge experts (Kerzner, 2003). Project communication management involves creating a work environment that facilitates the proper communication channels for the collection and dissemination of information related to planning, implementation, and completion of the project.

Project risk management involves identifying risks and incorporating processes and procedures to mitigate against risks to the completion of the project. Finally project procurement management involves identification and implementation of processes that facilitate the planning and procurement of resources and necessary documentation for completion of the project (Burke, 2001, pp. 8-9).

During the project life-cycle, project managers are responsible for oversight of such tasks or processes as work breakdown structure, critical path methods (calculation of all the activities from start to finish to determine the duration of the project), resource smoothing, earned value, and configuration control (Burke, 2001). Many organizations are turning to management-by-projects approach because it provides flexibility, decentralized management responsibility, a more holistic or global way of conceptualizing problems and solutions, and problem solution processes that are goal oriented (Burke, 2001, p. ). One benefit of management by project is that it allows for the inclusion of temporary, part-time or full-time workers as team members. Another is that this approach has been endorsed by the International Project Management Assoc iation (IPMA) (Burke, 2001). This is important for global project management scenarios. Global Project Management Global project management often involves program management in which a project office is designated to mange a large capital project that is subdivided into smaller project teams each with a specific goal to achieve as part of a larger plan.

Often the project manager will be involved with one or more of the following, either personally or through designated representatives:  recruitment of project team personnel,  human resources and personnel issues,  identification of economic factors related to the project, computer or other technical systems to be used,  legal contracts or other required documentations,  sales and marketing issues if applicable,  and costs (purchasing, sales, and employee) (Burke, 2001, p. 5).

Finally, the project manager either serves as the technical expert or identifies and includes on the project team the necessary technical and knowledge experts required to complete the project. The project manager is key to the success of any project. The project manager sets the overall tone and creates the environment in which the work is to be completed (Delone et al. , 2005). The project manager must contend with and integrate the different expectations of outside forces that influence the project development, implementation, and completion.

This includes stakeholder goals and expectations as well as the immediate client or sponsor requirements for the project (Delone et al. , 2005). It also includes understanding how the project fits within the economic cycle, market requirement, and the competition. In addition, the project manager must complete the project within the culture and structure of the organization or organizations while adhering to any rules and regulations governing the industry (Espinosa et al. , 2003).

Finally, and sometimes neglected, the project manager must be mindful of the political forces that can affect the completion of the project, both internal to the organization as well as the external environment (Burke, 2001, p. 6). These factors are static and the manager must be able to deal with uncertainty, change, and risk within the project environment. In a growing global business environment, projects often involve international partner and project teams composed of members from different geographical and cultural areas (Eberlein. 008). Global project managers are faced with a different set of challenges than faced by the domestic project manager. “Conducting projects in different countries, with their unique legal and political environment, security issues, economic factors, and infrastructure limitations and requirements, increases complexity far beyond that of projects executed in domestic settings” (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. 1). Many of the issues discussed in relation to domestic project management are applicable to global project management.

However, in addition to the PMI and PMBOK in the United States, there are others organizations that provide project management guidelines such as the Association of Project Managers (AMP bok) in the United Kingdom, The AIPM Competency Standards for Project Management in Australia, the ISO 10006 Guideline to Quality in Project Management, South African unit standards, and the International Association of Project Managers (IPMA’s BOK) (Burke, 2001, p. ). The purpose of these resources is to provide a body of common knowledge that can be used in domestic as well as international projects Compared to the PMBOK used in the United States, the APM bok from the United Kingdom employs a broader approach to project management, utilizing 55 knowledge areas compared to the nine knowledge areas of PMBOK.

The APM bok: Incorporates not only inward focused project management topics (such as planning and control techniques), but also broader topics in which the project is being managed (such as social and ecological environment), as well as specific areas (such as technology, economics, finance, organization, procurement and people as well as general management). (Burke, 2001, p. 8) Global project management involves an understanding of the industries and types of projects that are used in the countries involved in the project (Burke, 2001).

When involved in global project management, a key issue is ensuring a common understanding and competence of project managers who come from different project management certification of licensure programs Delone et al. , 2005). Project managers and team members will have to work out a common business language and set of common practices and procedures that will be adhered to during the planning, implementation, and completion of the project. This is especially important when dealing with different legal systems and requirements of the countries involved in the project (Burke, 2001, p. 10).

The Influence of Culture to the Success of a Project Global project managers must effectively deal with differences in language that could be barriers to communication and understanding. Cross-cultural differences can also pose challenges when cultural conventions are violated. This lack of attention to language and cultural will show up at any point in the life cycle from planning to the completion stage in the form of differences in quality standards adhered to by technical and knowledge experts as well as misunderstandings over goals and task requirements (Henri & Sousa-Poza, 2005).

Differences in labor relations, governmental agency involvement must also be addressed when forming a project team and setting the project deadline (Freedman & Katz, 2007). A critical mistake a project manager can make in working with an international team is neglecting cultural variables than can pose a risk to planning and execution. For example, assigning a high-risk project to a team composed of members from a risk-averse culture (e. g. Germany, Japan, and China) may result in excessive time spent in the planning and risk assessment phase of the project life cycle, changing processes, procedures, and performance aspects to mitigate against low probability risks that results the wasting of time and resources, and negative attitudes about the success of the project (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. 2)

In countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, and some African nations, the successful completion of time-intensive and time critical projects can be jeopardized by a culture that places an emphasis on being patient and bending to the will of fate. It is therefore vital to review such cultural characteristics in the context of a project’s priorities, considering alternatives where appropriate” (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. 2). Who the stakeholders are in a global project are also important considerations. While this is often neglected in domestic projects, the negative repercussions pose a greater threat to global projects (Freedman & Katz, 2007). To mitigate against the negative risks associated with a global partnership, it is important to establish shared goals and objectives from the start.

This is often a difficult process because of cultural differences between the countries involved. While all cultural differences cannot be eliminated, identifying and mutually acknowledging these differences can help decrease misunderstandings and insults that could threatened the completion of the project (Freedman & Katz, 2007). Therefore, a project manager involved in any international partnership would take into consideration several factors that start with an assessment of the cultural values of the country and organization from which some of the team members would be recruited.

Questions that the project manager would ask include:  How complex is the project?  How complex is the project infrastructure?  What are the key risk areas of the project? How time-critical is the project?  What are your long-term objectives? Which cultural barriers will you have to address? Once the team has been established, time should be taken to clarify and align the technical and knowledge competencies required by team members as well as the intentions and expectations from both the domestic and globally based team members for how the project will proceed.

Since communication may be more difficult when working with a global partner, it is incumbent on the project manager to take the extra time to clarify and confirm information shared between project team members and key stakeholders in the project (Delone, 2005). This process will help the project manager identify and deal with differences in values that might threatened effective collaboration (Freedman & Katz, 2007). Project team leadership can be influenced differently in domestic and global project management. Approaches to leadership that work well in domestic projects may fail when working with culturally diverse team. For example, there is a hierarchy of communication between workers, supervisors, and leadership that are strictly adhered to in some countries (e. g. , India and Japan) that is not a part of the organizational culture in the U. S. Ignoring these cultural conventions could lead to project delay or even failure (Freedman & Katz, 2007). In addition, some cultures are highly authoritarian, group-oriented, and use indirect communication; these cultural practices are different from U. S. practices that tend to be more egalitarian, individualist, and use direction communication.

This can result in situations where project team members are confused about how to interact with others and how to approach project tasks, often leading to delay or project failure (Freedman & Katz, 2007). If problems or conflict does occur, a project manager who understands the cultural differences at play, can work with team members to develop strategies that help adapting behaviors to accommodate differences in expectations about leadership, decision-making procedures, work styles, and rule/tactics of negotiation (Freedman & Katz, 2007).

Some cultures expect their leaders to be more egalitarian than is common among US leaders (e. g. , Scandanavia, Israel, Australia, and New Zealand). When leaders are perceived as too autocratic, team members often will resent the leader’s actions and ignore a leader they consider arrogant and overbearing. On the other hand, some cultures expect the leader to be more directive and autocratic (e. g. , most countries south of the US, Russia, China, India, Mid East, and Far Eastern countries) (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. ). When a leader is perceived to be too friendly or casual with subordinates, team members will react to the project manager with confusion and distrust (Freedman & Katz, 2007). It cannot be understated the importance of project managers to accommodate their behaviors to the cultural and organizational expectations. “It is entirely possible to behave in a way that will be viewed as weak and ineffective in one culture and viewed as boorish and ineffective in another” (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. 4).

Palvia and Vemuri (2002) stress the key role that trust plays in the successful completion of a project. This is especially relevant to global project management were trust is built and strengthened by a project manager who recognizes the language, culture, local customs of the international partners and teams members in addition to knowledge about legal or regulatory requirements (Kliem, 2004). Project managers also must be prepared to work with leaders in other countries who are not familiar with working in cross-cultural teams and are unaware of how to interact in these situations.

Project managers facile at “influencing, negotiating, and adapting their behavior to different people and contexts” (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. 5) are best suited from global projects. These managers are able to build relationships and understand the important role that these relationship are to the success of a global project. These managers are able to tap into relationships formed with partner organizations to help resolve issues or expedite solutions.

Project managers who have difficulty in the following areas would be poor choices for leading a global project:  building relationships, knowingly or unknowingly ignores or insults foreign team members, have poor communication skills,  views foreigners as lazy, stupid, or unable/unwilling to adapt, unwilling to adapt his/her own behaviors, takes for granted the importance of coming to consensus on issues related to project tasks, times, and quality (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. 6).

On the other hand, Freedman and Katz (2007) outlined several behaviors of the “uninformed” superior working for a foreign company that could threaten the collaboration, functioning, and success of a project. These disruptive behaviors include:  Delegates completely, doesn’t see any reason to get involved. “They work for us—you make that clear to them! ”?Asks if the project manager is keeping “banker’s hours” when he/she comes in later after being on the phone from 11-3 the night before. Sees no reason to be selective (except technically) in placing people on an international project. Selects high risk/high collaboration projects for international work. Assumes the time required is the same for international and domestic projects. Is unwilling or unable to change leadership style to meet cultural expectations. (Freedman & Katz, 2007, p. 5) Another factor that is different from domestic projects is that members on a global project team often are geographically and sometimes organizationally dispersed (Orlikowski, 2002). It is not uncommon for these project members to meet in “virtual teams” using telecommunications and information technology (Eberlein, 2008, p. 9). Bell and Kozlowski (2002) point out that the use of virtual teams add an additional layer of complexity to any program. The lack of personal contact hinders team development and constrains performance management. At present, “there have been few efforts to include the culture variable in the theoretical frameworks” (Gurung & Prater, 2006, p. 24). Conclusion Being the manager of a globally based project can be exciting and rewarding with the project manager has the knowledge and skills to deal with culturally diverse work situations.

In order to increase leadership effectiveness and the management of risk, uncertainty, and complexity, the project manager must become familiar with the guidelines for the project process that is common in the country where the project will be completed. In addition, cultural awareness and the ability to engage members of the team in effective communication that considers and respects cultural customs of the hosting country is critical to project success. Different countries respond differently to peers and those in positions of authority. A little “homework” about the culture and customs of the host country will serve the project manager well.

References

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2. Burke, R. (2001). Project management: Planning and control techniques (3rd ed. ). New York: John Wiley & Sons.
3. DeLone, W. , Espinosa, J. A. , Lee, G. , & Carmel, E. (2005). Bridging global boundaries for IS project success. Proceedings of the 38th Hawaii International Conference on Systems Science, Big Island Hawaii, IEEE.
4. Eberlein, M. (2008). Culture as a critical success factor for successful global project management in multi-national IT service projects. Journal of Information Technology Management, 19(3), 27-42.
5. Espinosa, J. A. , Cummings, J. N. , Wilson, J. M. , and Pearce, B. M. (2003). Team boundary issues across multiple global firms. Journal of Management Information Systems, 19(4), 157-190)
6. Freedman, S. , & Katz, L. (2007). Critical success factors for international projects.PM World Today, 9(10), 1-8. Retrieved April 18, 2010 from http://www. pmworldtoday. net
7. Gurung, A. , & Prater, E. (2006). A research framework for the impact of cultural differences on IT outsourcing. Journal of Global Information Technology Management, 9(1), 24-43.