Project management theory. Project Management Theory and Practice, Third Edition 2022-11-17
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Project management theory is the study of how to plan, organize, and control resources in order to successfully complete a project. It is a broad field that encompasses a variety of approaches and techniques, including agile, Waterfall, and Lean.
One popular approach to project management is agile, which is characterized by a focus on adaptability and flexibility. Agile projects are organized into short cycles, known as sprints, which allow the team to rapidly respond to changes and pivot as needed. Agile emphasizes collaboration and continuous improvement, with a focus on delivering value to the customer as quickly as possible.
Another common approach to project management is the Waterfall method, which is characterized by a linear and sequential approach to project delivery. Waterfall projects follow a set of predefined stages, with each stage building upon the previous one. This approach is well-suited to projects with clear and well-defined requirements, as it allows for thorough planning and a high level of control over the project.
Lean is another approach to project management that is focused on maximizing value and minimizing waste. Lean projects aim to eliminate unnecessary activities and focus on delivering value to the customer as efficiently as possible. This approach is often used in manufacturing, but it can also be applied to other types of projects, such as software development or product design.
Regardless of the approach used, effective project management requires a clear understanding of the project goals, a well-defined plan for achieving those goals, and strong communication and collaboration among team members. It also requires the ability to identify and mitigate risks, as well as the ability to adapt to changing circumstances.
In summary, project management theory is the study of how to effectively plan, execute, and control projects in order to achieve their goals. It encompasses a variety of approaches and techniques, including agile, Waterfall, and Lean, and is critical for the successful completion of any project.
Theory of Project Management
Therefore, for this particular network structure, the average number of nodes, or activities, is constant over time. An example of an obscure, uncertain and complex project which demonstrated failure in achieving the project goal was presented. Given the rise of the present complexity and uncertainty environment, the application of the CAS framework to the evolutionary changes in PM, as opposed to the Newtonian paradigm that based on linear theory, has caught substantial attention. This stage was also an introductory stage for getting to know the team members. We show how to characterize the resulting S-curve's parameters in terms of observable project characteristics.
The proposed theory is based on finish-to-start constraints. Then, in the literature review, both Linear and CAS framework will be defined and elucidated in detail. The project manager heading an international project and team requires having an international outlook of diverse political and legal environments, to navigate unpredictable changes or challenges. Above and beyond, some complex factors such as elements of flexibility, uncertainty risk , informality, feedback interdependency and interrelationship and autonomy might influence the project have been discounted McCarthy IP, et. Projects within the context of product development are temporary, divine, unique, and transient. .
We suggest that a more appropriate analog might be the development of thermodynamics in the nineteenth century. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Pr. Fundamentally, these constructs provides a backbone of understanding project management in complex, uncertain and complicated environment. While TOC has claimed the approbation of most scholars and theoreticians, Bevilacqua et al. Bringing project management to life, it avoids being too sterilely academic and too narrowly focused on a particular industry view. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Systems that exhibit the characteristic of complexity theory is known as a complex adaptive system CAS Aritua et.
Project Management Theory and Practice, Third Edition
The theory became dynamic with the invention of the steam engine, which was patented by James Watt in 1781, but its principles were not understood until the mid-nineteenth century when the development of a set of dynamic observables e. In the PNR model, the labor cost rate is: where Tp is the time of the peak in the labor rate curve, see Figure 2. He teaches project management and supply chain management, both online and in the classroom. The first formal relation between the observables was Boyle's Law 1676 , followed by Charles's Law 1780s. Progress on the project thus depends on both the number of activities and the relations between them. Formally, the rate at which labor can be usefully applied to the project is proportional to the visible activities, V t. As a group, we displayed several important characteristics of an effective team through the common goal we shared.
Communication Theories Applied on Project Management
Different theoretical structures behave differently over time. Parr 1980 developed what might be described as the first foundational theory of software development. The textbook can be used as companion to the standard technical model and help those studying for various project management certifications. IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 4 4 , 345—361. Given that assumption, a fundamental theory typically arises in three stages: First, an understanding of observable quantities grows and precise definitions emerge. A theory is nice to have, of course, but the interesting question is, "Is it practical? Figure 3: Earned Value Management EVM Variance Analysis Formula.
He earned a doctorate in astrophysics from the University of Pennsylvania. The practice is significant since it allows teams to continuously compare planned performance Gaur, 2018. Therefore, the two observables in the PNR model N and T p are directly related to the most important practical project quantities, the cost and schedule. All curves have the same peak time in the labor rate, the same total area, and, therefore, the same total cost. In sum, these dimensions demonstrate how CAS diverges from linear systems. Teamwork activity was a satisfying task and has strengthened my theoretical knowledge through the practical skills I gained from the experience. With the assumption of observable, measurable parameters that remain predictable over the life of the project, management assumes it can predict behavior from initial data.
Sudden changes in plans can disorient some team members, causing them to not function as properly as usual. We proposed a theory, measured observables, validated the theory by comparing its predictions to a real-world project, and used the theory to guide future improvements. A tool for managing projects: An analytic parameterization of the S-curve. Figure 6: Labor rate profiles: PNR plan dashed , PNR actual solid jagged , PNR predicted solid smooth , and equation 7 dotted , which has a slightly better fit than PNR because of the extra parameter, α. In the main, the conventional theories and practices incapable to distinguish all of the disparate risk and uncertainty surrounding projects Steward R, et.
Finally, the article concludes by encapsulating the findings. The Underlying Theory of Project Management is Obsolete. This definition is reasonable because a project consists of interrelated activities that form an entity, i. IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 6 3 , 291—296. We derive a fundamental relation between the project network structure and the labor rate profile, which then becomes a legitimate project observable. Manage everything from simple to complex projects more efficiently with the help of visual boards, 200+ ready-made templates, clever no-code automations, and easy integrations. We observe for future reference that when the branching ratio is k, and a non-leaf node is completed, the change in the number of open activities is k-1.
TOC owes its provenance to Eli Goldratt. This paper will explain project management theories and practices that meet internationally recognized norms, project life cycle and milestones, as well as evaluation approaches and estimation of project duration. Efficiency is maximized when the labor rate matches the visible activity rate. These principles make use of linear step—wise refinement of the project management processes using a planning—as—management paradigm. Therefore, management should assign resources only to visible activities because assigning resources to activities not ready to be worked on is clearly wasteful. Central to TOC is the idea that constraints physical resources, market uncertainties, and regulatory issues are coterminous to entrepreneurial undertakings Simsit et al.
Specific project data were measured early on and the theory provided accurate estimates for the total cost and final schedule. Due to the characteristics of projects — unique, divine, novelty, finite, transient, multi-disciplinary, complex, dynamic and high risk, PMI, 2008 has delineated a structural dimension with two components of approaches — the product life cycles PLC and the management process. A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge PMBOK ® Guide — Fifth edition. According to the standard project management definition, activities consume time, and so, formally, the network is defined to consist of the set of activities, their execution time planned and actual , their links and interdependencies. A centralized project organisational structure was established to translate proper instruction and management to the operation of the project. Our theory should also support rational control of projects during execution by determining the impact of proposed network changes on the system's observables. The number of activities, N, is directly related to the cost.
