Critical Components of a Project

A management triangle is a model of constraints of project management. It is a graphic aid where the three attributes show on the corners of the triangle to show opposition. It is often used to illustrate that project management success is measured by the project team’s ability to manage the project, so that the expected results are produced while managing time and cost. One method is to identify tasks needed to produce the deliverables documented in a work breakdown structure. The effect for each task is estimated and those estimates are rolled up into the final deliverable estimate. The tasks are also prioritized, dependencies between tasks are identified, and this information is documented in a project schedule. To develop an approximation of a project cost depends on several variables including: resources, work packages such as labor rates and mitigating or controlling influencing factors that create cost variances. Tools used in cost are, risk management, cost contingency, cost escalation, and indirect costs. A major component of the scope is the quality of the final product. The amount of time put into individual tasks determines the overall quality of the project. Over the course of a large project, quality can have a significant impact on time and cost. The real value of the project triangle is to show the complexity that is present in any project. In project management performance metrics are used to assess the health of the project and consist of the measuring of seven criteria: safety, time, cost, resources, scope, quality, and actions. Performance metrics should support a range of stakeholder needs from customers, shareholders to employees. Developing performance metrics usually follows a process of: Establishing critical processes/customer requirements; Identifying specific quantifiable outputs of work; Establishing targets against which results can be scored. There are a variety of ways in which organizations may react to results. This