Project Management and Innovation Past and Future

Projects management is an important management tool to implement strategy and achieve an organization’s strategic goals. Organizations are using projects to adapt to changes in the competitive environment including increasing cost pressures, scarce available resources, global competition, new technologies and a race to get products to customers first (Hyvari, 2006). Projects deliver the most benefit when they are directly linked to corporate strategy (Crawford, 2006; Srivannaboon, 2006). (Brad McManus and Ron Cacioppe “Feature Article: An Integral Approach to Project Management.”)

The paper is divided into three sections, the first of which will establish a timeline of events. This project background will serve as a case study for the analysis in the following section that will be structured such that each of the previously mentioned facets will be independently analyzed and contrasted with project management principles. Finally the paper will conclude with a summary of the analysis and recommendations based on

With the exceptional growth in technology, the present day projects are often large and complex involving a significant risk. So, a Project Management Methodology enables the delivery organization to handle these projects comprehensively, systematically and in an integrated manner, which results in strategic, tactical and operational benefits.

In the current business environment, the demand for project managers is ever growing. In short, project management is a provisional project constrained by time, cost and scope (A guide to the project management body of knowledge, 2013). Between the immense organization, optimization, and communication assets skilled project management brings to a project, it is easy to see why project management is a booming field of study. Furthermore, project management can be both financially and personally rewarding when long term milestones and goals come to fruition.

In this paper the word ‘project” is defined, discussed and elaborated on. The phases of a project lifecycle and its purpose are to be discussed, and how it is important for organizations to use project management to accomplish tasks will in conclusion be discussed thoroughly. The indisputable word ‘Project” may be defined in numerous unusual ways, some can all have the same meaning and others can mislead a reader. The definition that accurately explains what a project is, comes from the Houghton Mifflin Company (2009) website stating; “something that is contemplated, devised, or planned; plan; scheme.” A definition that can mislead a reader is this definition from the same website just two paragraphs

Project management is the discipline of using policies and procedures to manage a project from creation to competition. The intent of this paper is to assess the role of a project manager and determine if I am well suited for a career in project management. To achieve this goal, I will be discussing the following areas: job description, general career path, education requirements, salary, career outlook, and the pros and cons. I will also be interviewing a colleague that currently working as a project manager to gain a better understanding of typical duties associated with the role.

6) notes that uncertainty and change are usually involved in projects. The reason for using projects as a work approach is often the ability coping with uncertainty, related to novel factors within the processes or context of the company or the goals that need to be reached. Kuura et al. (2014, p. 518) note that projects are connected to innovation and have always been used to create or deal with change, even though not all projects and SMEs are entrepreneurial. Projects have been promoted as a powerful, widely usable vehicle for integrating diverse functions, enabling the efficient, timely and effective accomplishment of goals, by using flexible, independent and knowledgeable people in temporary teams (Lindgren & Packendorff, 2011, p. 52). Projects are used to cope with risks and it has been stated that if a company does not fail in any projects, it is not taking enough business risks (Cooke-Davies in Morris & Pinto, 2007, p. 227). Maylor (2010, p. 6) also adds that projects are usually also social constructs with parts that are integrated within the project to create a system of

For Schumpeter, innovation means completely restructuring desire of the individual. This does not mean reshaping, but rather revolutionizing what the consumer wants and

While time, cost, and performance present the most tangible measures of project success, the academic literature offers more vigorous metrics for success. Baker et.al., advocate that the stakeholder perceived performance is what should be measured (Baker & Murphy, 1983). They go on to provide at least 10 factors ranging from clarity of project goals, to the capacities of the team members (including the Project Manager), and robust project management practices are followed for planning and scope control. The limitation to the work presented by Baker et.al, as Mantel et., al suggest is that it was limited to only R&D projects and may have limited implications for other type of projects (Meredith & Mantel, 2012). An alternative framework for measuring and determining project success was presented by Belassi & Tukel, who proposed that success could be determined by four groups of factors; 1: Factors related to the project; 2: Factors related to the project manager and team; Factors related to the organization; and Finally, 4: Factors related to the external environment. In this model they argue that the factor groups are interrelated and depending on the project can greatly impact the different success of each or failure of each grouping and ultimately the project (Belassi & Tukel, 1996).

A Project is a “temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product, service or results” (PMI 2013,p.3). Through arrangement of planned activities, a project is to achieve a desired goal within a specified period of time, cost and quality (APM 2012). The temporary nature of the project

Project management is an essential part of businesses and industries in order to advance ahead and add value to products. Project management enables companies to innovate, plan strategically, and for the economy to progress. The important parts of projects are often values such as team working, planning, innovation, time and budget management, and leadership. In the modern society, some projects can be pharmaceuticals (inventing new drugs), IT solutions (new technologies), energy and environment (other sources of energy such as solar), and military (new weapons and machines). The similarities are such that these projects are undertaken to improve the lives of

The purpose of this paper is to recommend that Project Management is a concept that focuses on the dynamic characteristics of a multi-facetted organization. In such a changing situation, effective communication is a characteristic that should be stressed and becomes the most important tool for the project manager and team members.

been widely established in areas such as the planning and control of time, cost and quality. In

– Planning and structuring the library to provide better accessibility to books and developing user friendly software. This can be achieved by utilizing new technologies.

In its modern form, project management dates back to the early 1950s, although its roots go further back to the latter years of the 19th century. As businesses realised the benefits of organising work around projects - recognising the critical need to communicate and co-ordinate work across departments and professions - a defined method of project management emerged.