Project Management Library Renovation
Project management principles
Project management principles are typically learnt from experience and are generally valid for all projects and the project manager has to know when and how to apply them to a project (Harold, 2009). In the library building project these principles could have helped reduce problems during and after renovations of the library.
Tailor to suit the environment: whatever project management methodology or framework a manger favours, it must be tailored to suit the needs of their project. Levy (2002) says, rather than blindly following a methodology, the project manager must be able to adapt procedures to meet the demands of the work in hand. How the manager plan on a two-week project is likely to be very different from how they plan on a two-year project. Understand the customer’s requirements and put them under version control. Thoroughly understand and document the customer’s requirements, obtain customer agreement in writing, and put requirements documents under version identification and change control. Requirements management is the leading success factor for systems development projects.
Business justification: every project should lead to a worthwhile return on investment. In other words, we need to understand the benefits that a particular project will bring, before committing ourselves to any significant expenditure. During the lifecycle of a project, however, circumstances can change quickly. If at any point it becomes clear that a return on investment is no longer feasible, then the project should be scrapped and no more money wasted.
Manage by exception: project sponsors should avoid getting too bogged down in the day-to-day running of projects and instead allow the project manager to concentrate on this area. Levy (2002) goes on to say Micro-management by a project sponsor is a hindrance, not a help. Project sponsors should set clear boundaries for cost and time, with which the project manager should work. If he/she
Project management principles are typically learnt from experience and are generally valid for all projects and the project manager has to know when and how to apply them to a project (Harold, 2009). In the library building project these principles could have helped reduce problems during and after renovations of the library.
Tailor to suit the environment: whatever project management methodology or framework a manger favours, it must be tailored to suit the needs of their project. Levy (2002) says, rather than blindly following a methodology, the project manager must be able to adapt procedures to meet the demands of the work in hand. How the manager plan on a two-week project is likely to be very different from how they plan on a two-year project. Understand the customer’s requirements and put them under version control. Thoroughly understand and document the customer’s requirements, obtain customer agreement in writing, and put requirements documents under version identification and change control. Requirements management is the leading success factor for systems development projects.
Business justification: every project should lead to a worthwhile return on investment. In other words, we need to understand the benefits that a particular project will bring, before committing ourselves to any significant expenditure. During the lifecycle of a project, however, circumstances can change quickly. If at any point it becomes clear that a return on investment is no longer feasible, then the project should be scrapped and no more money wasted.
Manage by exception: project sponsors should avoid getting too bogged down in the day-to-day running of projects and instead allow the project manager to concentrate on this area. Levy (2002) goes on to say Micro-management by a project sponsor is a hindrance, not a help. Project sponsors should set clear boundaries for cost and time, with which the project manager should work. If he/she
Bibliography: Sidney M. Levy (2002) Project Management in Construction Project Planning, Management and Delivery | Whole Building Design McGraw-Hill, 2002. M Spinner (2007) Project Management: Principles and Practices, Prentice-Hall, New Jersey, USA Frame, J Lewis, James (2006) The Project Manager 's Desk Reference, 3rd edition, McGraw-Hill, Martin, Paula, Tate, Karen(1997) The Project Management Memory Jogger: A Pocket Guide for Project Teams , GOAL/QPC, Chris Jones (2009)Project Management: A Managerial Approach , 7th edition, Wiley Project Management Institute(2008) A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge:(PMBOK® Guide), 4th edition, PMI, Schwalbe, Kathy (2008) Information Technology Project Management (with Microsoft® Project 2007 CD-ROM) , 6th edition, Course Technology, Stackpole, Cynthia Snyder (2009) A Project Manager 's Book of Forms: A Companion to the PMBOK® Guide, Wiley,