Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements. Project management is accomplished through the application and integration of the project management processes of initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. The project manager is the person responsible for accomplishing the project objectives. Managing a project includes: Identifying requirements Establishing clear and achievable objectives Balancing the competing demands for quality, scope, time and cost Adapting the specifications, plans, and approach to the different concerns and expectations of the various stakeholders. Project managers often talk of a ‘triple constraint’ – project scope, time and cost – in managing competing project requirements. Project quality is affected by balancing these three factors. High quality projects deliver the required product, service or result within scope, on time, and within budget. The relationship among these factors is such that if any one of the three Continue reading
Project Management
Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT) Model
Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT) funding model of project financing involves a single organization, or consortium (BOOT provider) who designs, builds, funds, owns and operates the project for a defined period of time and then transfers this projects ownership across to a agreed party. BOOT projects are a way for governments to bundle together the design and construction, finance, operations and maintenance and potentially marketing and customer interface aspects of a project and let these as a package to a single private sector service provider. The asset is transferred back to the government after the concession period at little or no cost. The Components of Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT) Model: Build: The concession grants the promoter the right to design, construct, and finance the project. A construction contract will be required between the promoter and a contractor. The contract is often among the most difficult to negotiate in Continue reading
Project Monitoring and Control
Any project aimed at delivering a product or a service has to go through phases in a planned manner in order to meet the requirements. It is very important to measure the performance of the current status of the project at anytime against its planned version. This helps to tackle any unexpected deviation in time, efforts and cost. It is possible to work according to the project plan only by careful and close monitoring of the project progress. It requires establishing control factors to keep the project on the track of progress. The results of any stage in a project, depends on the inputs to that stage. It is therefore necessary to control all the inputs and the corresponding outputs from a stage. This is achieved through devising proper controls for every stage. A project manager may use certain standard tools to keep the project on track. The project manager Continue reading
Steps in Project Risk Management Process
Project risk management as simple as it may seem and less regarded by many is a key component for a better project plan, time management, cost estimation and project scheduling. Project risk management is a term that encompasses and involves all processes concerned with identification, analyzing and response to project risk. It also consists of maximizing the results of likely positive events and minimization of the impacts of negative events. An effective project execution is also achieved through inclusion of risk management at all stages of the project starting from the planning, to implementation and finally execution. Experts have stated that a proper and strong project risk management process can reduce project problems by as much as 75 – 90%, combining it with concrete project management plans, defining a proper scope, managing change and communication, a good project risk management helps in reducing and eliminating surprises and unexpected project risks. Continue reading
Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3)
The Project Management Institute (PMI) published a standard called Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3) under the stewardship. For Organizations, the main purpose of the OPM3 standard is to presents an approach to explain an organizational project management and to assess the maturity of the project against a broad-based set of Organizational project management best practices. Organizational Project Management (OPM) is used to achieve or complete the goals of the Organization by means of projects. Organizational project management is the utilization of skills, techniques, knowledge, and tools to project and organizational activities. In Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3), the term “Organization” is not limited to an agency, company or society but it applies to a group which is aiming to use their material in the OPM3 standard. It illustrates business strategies and gives regulations and high-level perspective of resources which straightly influence financial consequences of organizations if it is Continue reading
Social and Commercial Profitability Analysis
Social or National Profitability Public projects like road, railway, bridge and other transport projects, irrigation, projects, power projects, etc for which socioeconomic considerations play a significant part, rather than mere commercial profitability. Such projects are analysis for their net socioeconomic benefits and the profitability analysis of such projects is known as social or national profitability analysis which is nothing but the socioeconomic cost benefit analysis done at the national level. Steps involved in determination of social or national profitability:- National/Social profitability analysis takes into account the real cost of direct costs and real benefit of direct benefits,. For instance, some of the inputs may be subsidized. Only the subsidized prices of input is what is relevant for assessing commercial profitability. However the national profitability analysis takes into account the real cost of inputs i.e. cost of input had they not been subsidized. Accordingly the required adjustment to direct cost of Continue reading