Project Management Defined
Project management was once a unique term designated for specialized organizations such as NASA or the US Army Corps of Engineers. Today, this term is a widespread and well-known term for almost every business, regardless of its size. Some regard project management strictly as a business discipline used to “define goals, plan and monitor tasks and resources, identify and resolve issues, and control costs and budgets for a specific project” (2006, Bridgefield Group). Others view project management almost as an art - “the art of managing the product and service development cycle to achieve a balance of time, cost and quality” (2007, MarketRight, LTD). The Project Management Institute defines project management as “the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to a broad range of activities in order to meet the requirements of a particular project” (2007, Project Management Institute [PMI]).
Almost any human activity that is non-repetitive can be considered a project: building a new bridge, planning a wedding, or writing a term paper. However, there is a big difference between carrying out a very simple project involving one or two people and one involving a complex mix of people, organizations and tasks. It is only human to plan for the future and in an essence; a project can be captured on paper with a few simple elements: a start date, an end date, tasks to be done, and some idea of the resources needed during the course of the project. However, when the plan starts to involve different things happening at different times, some of which are dependent on each other, and resources are required at different times and in different quantities and perhaps, working at different rates, the ...