Essay Example on Project Management: Techniques to Plan, Estimate, and Control

Introduction

Project management is a worldwide practice that follows various techniques to plan, estimate, and control business activities. Whether an individual decides to work on a small project with modest goals or large multi-departmental businesses must understand the process before starting it. All projects have essential objectives that are realized at the different stages of the life cycle, and they are all required to be simultaneously addressed from initiation to completion. The project management life cycle can be effective in the illustration of high-level processes that help deliver successful projects that are in line with the clients’ demands and the steps taken to ensure that the company’s goals are achieved.

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Project Management Life Cycle

The strengths of the project management life cycle theory include establishing a holistic approach that enables effective solving of problems in a firm or organization (Evans, 2003). The project management life cycle involves technology, people, and a process. When used well, it most of the time create positive results in complex processes where many applications and business partners are used. The project management cycle allows the people involved to experience the efficient setting of goals. The project managers are experienced in creating company goals that ensure they are delivered on time and follow the projected budget.

The project management life cycle also increases business processes' agility as they are easily modified and optimized (Evans, 2003). When a company hires a project manager, it benefits from the high level of expertise they possess, mainly because the organization's employees learn new things that help in their professional growth. It also reduces complexity through improving communication between the managers and other employees (Evans, 2003). Communication is a major contributor to the execution of functional elements required to make the technical details of the project achievable. Since project management methods major on quality more, the results achieved from the project deliver excellent results that improve customer satisfaction.

The project management life cycle also decreases the cost of ownership. Changes made in the business process make it easier for the project managers to articulate the project process while managing all stages of the project, including compliance and personnel (Evans, 2003). The managers find it easier to manage resources, give feedback, cut on time and costs as well as increase the quality of the products from the company. Finally, the project management life cycle creates a faster return on investment, especially when a company uses solid IT infrastructure (Evans, 2003). The management of business processes plays a major role in managing the business rules that are related to the success of the project. Project managers can, therefore, take calculated risks and allocate resources better after planning for the risks early and making smart decisions throughout the cycle.

The Reason the Other Project Managers Have Done a Commendable Job

The chosen project managers have done a commendable job in starting, planning, executing, and evaluating projects. They effectively show how, for a project to be successful, the project managers must lead a team and follow the phases in a dynamic and unpredictable business environment (Aston, 2016). In the initiation phase, the project managers have successfully shown how they will conduct secondary data analysis and literature review to generate the project’s purpose, mission, vision, and description, and summary milestones. In this phase, the project managers have shown how to undertake a feasibility study, assess the project's scope, identify various stakeholders and variables to be analyzed, and compare potential benefits and costs that the project will face.

In the planning phase, the project managers have shown how larger project goals are broken down into smaller goals that show the detailed plans that the company wishes to accomplish. The managers also show the roles and responsibilities of each staff and the plan for the distribution of resources, finances, and risks. The project managers document the plan for future references (Aston, 2016). In the execution phase, the project managers bring the plan to action after it is finally approved and completed. They clearly show the steps to be followed in this phase from the creation of tasks and organizing the workflow to the generation of a budget that will help the project succeed. Finally, in the closure phase, the project managers show why it is important to create an evaluation report that evaluates the project's success and how the team worked together to meet the projected goals under the stated budget.

Lessons Learned From Other Project Managers

I have learned that the successful completion of any project is not easy because it requires various tasks and phases that meet the needs of the clients and the stakeholders. A lot of activities are required in the process from when the project begins to the time it reaches the completion phase. As a project manager, it is necessary first to conduct enough research that will help in the determination of the goals that are to be achieved in the project. They should then propose a solution for achieving the set goals and ensure that they accomplish each phase of the cycle before moving on to the next phases. Project managers must possess adequate knowledge concerning the project management life cycle. It keeps any on-going projects organized and viable from the time it is an idea to completion.

Conclusion

Breaking down the project into various phases is an important step that project managers must know. This phase is goal-oriented with unique characteristics and product deliverables that are reviewed at the end of the cycle. I have also learned that project managers must be effective in creating and developing teams that lead their projects to successful completion and execution. The effectiveness of the selected teams depends on the right combination of leadership, experience, soft skills, and knowledge displayed by project managers.

References

Aston, B. (2016). Project management life cycle: Complete guide to project delivery process. The Digital Project Manager.
https://thedigitalprojectmanager.com/project-management-life-cycle/.

Evans, N. D. (2003). Business innovation and disruptive technology: Harnessing the power of breakthrough technology... for competitive advantage. FT Press. https://aiu.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781323315699/cfi/6/22!/4/26/6/10/4@0:95.3