Introduction
A project is a long term or short term undertaking aimed at meeting a desired goal or objective such as in an organization, company or by an individual. In order for one to obtain effective and efficient results from a project, they have to plan for the project under what is referred to as project planning and project management respectively. Before anyone undertakes the risk of initiating a project, they first have to develop a project plan. The main mistake people often do is forget that this is the crucial factor behind the success of any given project and prior to this, they venture in trying to save time money and other various problems (Olson, 2001).
Body
The main issue that makes the project manager’s panic is always the way in which they are supposed to plan and schedule their projects since estimation is the crucial or key to the project’s success. Estimation should not be the key thing but accurate estimation for that matter. Cost estimation and time are the essential components which lead to the success of a project and must be considered when developing a project plan.
One more reason is that with the fact that time estimates are known to give the metrics for how much the contracts will go and, therefore, give how much the projects will be beneficial. Critical time estimates also helps allocate enough time for project management governance, whole project, interact with the external bodies resources and legal bodies, meetings, quality assurance and the training (Olson, 2001).
It is very essential for project managers to resist to some project baselines since some other changes within the project have negative impacts to the project. One of circumstances where a manager has to change a project’s timeline is when the project approach is not working and requires to be modified. If the budget of the project gets cut, change of the timeline must also be made. Managers should allow change only when it is precise that, with the type of change, the project will risk failing and not meeting its objectives. It will be this change that will be used to revive the project and make it obtain the desired goals. The presence of natural calamities or disasters also prompts the manager to make timeline changes. There is also a situation when a manager should not make a timeline change; this is when the managers wish to conceal the dismal performance of the previous or recent project. Change is not expected to be made after the completion of the project.
There are ways in which the organizations capture all the lessons learned from projects which include the following: the project managers employ the use of databases or repositories in order to make sure that all tracks and issues are not lost. These repositories are either manual or electronic as per the requirements of the project. The managers have the task of updating them so that they reflect what occurred. This process has helped a lot in avoiding repeat of the problems in the organization’s project (Kerzner, 2010).
It is very important for project managers to get involved in their profession because, without them, the projects will all be failures. They perform various tasks, which include determining how and when consumers are ready to use the products once transformed. They also implement strategies which allow effective and efficient movement of the product in to the performing organization. Acting ethically is very crucial for a project manager since it helps boost the rapport between the firm and the outside or external environment. It helps boost the code of conduct of the manager which will be a driving force for the success of the project hence meeting the objectives.
Conclusion
Project initiation comes before project planning. The aim of project planning is to define the actual parameters of a project and make sure that all initial requirements for the running and controlling of the project are in place. Project planning defines an advantage or the chance to identify and resolve any remaining issues and give solutions to the outstanding questions, which might undermine the goals of the project, or in any case threaten its success. On the other hand, project initiation is what incorporates the crucial or, fundamental documents, to define the project, the success of the project, project sponsorship and ongoing project management. In other words, it ensures the successful beginning of a project and provides a tangible start towards achieving the project goals and objective (Kerzner, 2009).
References
Kerzner, H. (2009). Project management:a systems approach to planning, scheduling and controlling. Pearson Prentice.
Kerzner, H. (2010). Strategic planning for project management using a project management maturity model. Prentice Hall.
Olson, D. H. (2001). Introduction to information systems project management. New Jersey. Prentice Hall.