The Future of Project Management
Introduction
Project management refers to an assortment of tools and techniques that help guide the use of allocated resources in accomplishing a unique one-time task within some set guidelines of time and cost (Seymour & Hussein, 2014). Seymour and Hussein note that project management is not considered a new concept as it is believed to have existed since the advent of humanity, though the complexities that have continued to engulf modern project have necessitated some changes in the project management process. Technology evolution has been a major factor in the variation of the project management techniques and the sustainability of projects throughout their life cycles is an issue of special concern.
Project sustainability refers to the ability of projects to live and efficiently operate with the scheduled resources and guidelines throughout their life cycle. To help guide and sustain the future of project management in the modern dynamic times, higher education curriculums are designed to equip graduates with project management skills due to the high probability of them managing some projects in the course of their careers (Chow, et al., 2014). Successful project management requires detailed training and thus the future of this practice is enshrined in the types of education and management policies enshrined in the learning institutions where project managers are churned. Future project management requires efficiency in terms of costs, allocated resources and labor to help ensure seamless attainment of designated targets.
Research Question
A number of essential issues influence the sustainability of future project management processes, hence, the need for evaluation of what shall actually guide the practice of sustainable project management in the future. Thus, this paper aims to answer the following question:
What is the future of project management?
Making Distinct Project Objectives
Project management in the modern and future world cannot be run in a vacuum with vague instructions. Stakeholders and all project participants do not only require information about what ought to be done but why it has to be done. The modern project administration process needs many clarifications with regard to the reasons why some project is picked at the expense of another (Longman & Mullins, 2004). The personnel mandated with the establishment, development and completion of projects need to own the projects to help enhance their morale, motivation and commitment towards the realization of the set project targets. Longman and Mullins (2004) propose that for effective future project management, project managers need to effectively communicate to all stakeholders about projects to be undertaken in addition to outlining the importance of such projects to the organization.
Longman and Mullins (2004) opine that project team members’ commitment to the successful completion of a given project largely accounts for the success of such projects. The red-tape administration in the past where the boss was not questioned has no place in the operations of the modern world and as such, project leaders have the noble obligation of outlining the benefits of a given project to an organization. Additionally, project leaders ought to use their management and leadership skills to persuade all the team members to embrace the set projects, as it is not easy to rally team members and other stakeholders fully behind some project.
Making Project Management Practical from the Start
The process of managing projects is not easy with the advent of technology and the running of projects is associated with the use of complex management tools and software. The complex tools used in the project management process help control important aspects of project management such as financial management, which is a very important pillar of project implementation (Kozak-Holland, 2011). Unlike in the past decades when project management was largely manual, the present and future project management requires the use of complex tools to and software to help enhance accountability and transparency in the project running process in addition to guiding projects through the set guidelines (Kozak-Holland, 2011).
To help avoid ambiguity, Longman and Mullins (2004) propose that project managers should avail important guidelines to help project team members understand the modern sophisticated technological applications used in the running of projects. The practical understanding of the project applications helps the project leaders easily guide their team members through the project implementation process. The project leaders equally need a detailed understanding of the project guidelines in a systematic format to help enhance their ability to practically guide their project teams to the realization of some project goals. Theoretical knowledge is very important in the process of managing projects though the practical part of project guidelines is very important in ensuring successful future project management (Kozak-Holland, 2011). Thus, it is important that project managers and their team members comprehend the guidelines and application of various tools that help run the project to completion to help enhance project performance.
Provision of On-Job Training to Project Management Students
Effective training of project management students in an environment that helps enhance their practical experience helps boost the future of project management. On-job training of students helps impart the practical experience of the skills and concepts they run in theory, hence, making the students holistic (Schibi, et al., 2014). Practical training of students in the modern education institutions will help prepare an experienced crop of graduates, capable of managing complex project assignments in a skilled manner to help guide the projects to successful completion. In the past, the theoretical learning of project management concepts and guidelines were a norm and graduates were expected to boost and grow their practical skills in field experience after their employment though such systems have no place in the modern and future society of project management.
The provision of on-job training in the student learning process is a bonus to the project management process as it ensures the provision of highly competent managers. The provision of avenues for project management students to grow their skills does not only grow their project management skills but also grows their strategic leadership and organizational skills that help prepare them for future project management roles (Kozak-Holland, 2011). Thus, the future of project management lies on depends on the appropriate training of students with regard to the use of the various project management tools and software in that help grow their project management skills and enhance their preparedness for project leadership positions. With such detailed student training on the dynamics of the evolving project management requirements, successful future project management can be assured.
Making Project Systems and Procedures User Friendly
The project systems ought to be friendly to the users and require comprehensible scheduling that can be easily followed by all the project team members. At times, the process of running projects can be tedious but the future of project management requires that all the organizational structure ratify all bottlenecks in the project implementation process such that all persons understand their position in the project implementation process. The project information systems need to capture the predetermined expectations of a project and as such help provide a comparison between actual project outcomes and the expectations (Longman & Mullins, 2004).
Project management requires that the project leaders communicate the rationale behind the project selection, planning and implementation process is clear to the team members. When all the project systems are friendly to the team members, their comprehension for the necessity of all the stipulated steps is enhanced and as such, the project management process is likely to be very successful (Schibi, et al., 2014). The importance of having a user-friendly project adoption and implementation system is that all the team members can easily be influenced to rally behind the successful implementation of a scheduled project. The future of project management is largely bound to be influenced by the friendliness of project systems because through such, the systems are easily understood and appreciated, hence making all team members to embrace the project.
Providing Motivation and Teamwork
Project success is not an individual input of project managers but rather a combined effort of a project team. For successful project implementation, teamwork has to be the guiding spirit as the project managers have to assign some oversight and sub-management roles to some project team members (Cooke-Davies, 2002). The notion of a project manager holding full responsibility for the success of given projects cannot be relevant now and in the future as it was several decades back. Systems have changed and the role of teamwork in achieving project targets cannot be overlooked. The project team-leader in the modern technological and dynamic project management process is that of providing necessary guidance and motivation to team members across the project departments to help achieve the desired success.
Through teamwork, team members collaborate to achieve stipulated project targets and their combined effort culminates into the success of a project through the attainment of the project goals. To help maintain the morale and motivation of project team members, project managers need to adopt effective leadership styles that include the use of rewards in acknowledging team members who put in some exemplary effort that guided the attainment of the project objectives. Team members who assist in coaching others on how best to implement some required concepts for the success of the project ought to have their efforts recognized through motivational rewards to helping keep them motivated in providing such important assistance (Milosevic & Srivannaboon, 2006).
Additionally, the team members who provide oversight and other sorts of support require special recognition. It thus means that future project management ought to be anchored on effective teamwork practices and motivation of all project team members. A well trained, experienced and motivated team will always guarantee successful project implementation and thus, the project managers require training on how best to maintain their team members motivated in addition to learning how best to inculcate positive team spirit in their project teams (Schibi, et al., 2014).
Project Appraisal
Project managers require project appraisal activities to help gauge their performance beyond the ordinary evaluation of projects through the achievement of stipulated project goals. Through project appraisal, project managers get to evaluate a wide array of project issues that help them monitor the not only the success of the projects but also the strengths and weaknesses experienced in various departments (Longman & Mullins, 2004). The modern project management process is a complex process and to help sustain its future, project appraisal facilities should be provided through which the project leaders can gauge the skill level, unique experience gained and other important points of focus encountered in the process of managing given projects.
The modern and future projects are largely influenced by the power of technology and as such, complexity and risk in the project management process is a reality to be lived. Project managers, thus, need to device mechanisms to ensure they are always updated with the developments in the managing of various complex projects, hence, the need to have a project appraisal tool through which they can gauge continued project performance (Schibi, et al., 2014). Through appraisal, project managers will be able to assess what was superbly done, what was awfully done, lessons learnt through handling the particular project to completion and the strengths and weaknesses encountered in the course of the project.
Mere project completion and attainment of targets thus has no place in the future of project management due to the continued evolution of challenges encountered. The project appraisal tool provides an avenue for evaluating what could have been done better in addition to providing working alternatives through which the project weaknesses could have been avoided (Longman & Mullins, 2004). Through project appraisal, proposals are made on how best similar future projects can be handled to help enhance on their overall operational efficiency. Thus, the appraisal of projects enables every project to be a learning experience to all stakeholders, providing a better avenue for project management. It therefore means that project management is a continuous learning experience and the success of future project management is anchored on the lessons learnt today. Future managers need to develop their management skills through every project they oversee and thus, help assure of a more sustainable future project management process.
Project Methodology
Project methodology refers to the guidelines required in achieving some set project targets within an organization (Attarzadeh, 2008). It is the approach provided by the project leaders through which projects are to be established and operated throughout their life cycle. According to Attarzadeh (2008), most project management methodologies are irrelevant and inapplicable in the modern operational systems. The problem with the type of methodologies employed in the execution of projects is the bureaucratic approaches of project leaders who believe that it is either their way or no way (Attarzadeh, 2008). Some project methodologies can be extremely complex to implement in the real world and thus, project leaders need to be flexible enough to device alternative operational ways through which projects can be practically executed.
The dynamism of such approaches requires that the project leaders train their team members on the most practical ways of running given projects other than abiding by inappropriate project implementation methodologies. When project team members own the project implementation process, the attainment of project targets can be easily realized (Milosevic & Srivannaboon, 2006). The control of projects through the phases of initiation, control and closure can be efficiently done when friendly project operation methodologies are implemented. Thus, project managers have the responsibility to involve the project team members in devising the best operational methodology that is easy to learn and use in the execution of stipulated projects.
The project management methodology thus needs to be very practical and familiar with the project team members to enable them be productive throughout the project life cycle. The future of project management requires that project managers adopt friendly and practical methodologies through which they can easily implement projects without a lot of ambiguity and resistance from team members. Project managers ought to understand that not all project methodologies are applicable to all projects and effort should be made in designing project methodologies that meet the specific needs of particular projects (Milosevic & Srivannaboon, 2006). Some project methods were designed in the past and never captured lot of modern complexities and thus not suitable for guiding the implementation process of various projects. Thus, the only way out for future project management is the adoption of project methodologies anchored on the specific needs of particular projects and that are practical and easily comprehensible to the project team members (Attarzadeh, 2008).
Project Governance
As noted by Too and Weaver (2014), project governance is a project management process that has gained a lot of relevance in the modern and future project management processes. Through project governance, organizational managers provide mechanisms of providing accountability for project activities and good governance practices ensure that all projects are well managed according to the set organizational standards. The main aim of project governance is the realization of increased accountability to all project undertakings, a role that is less popular to project team members attempting to misuse the set project resources (Too & Weaver, 2014).
Project governance has been observed to encompass many conflicts of interest along various project management lines as the project managers scheduled to realize various project outcomes are the ones who equally examine the whole project process, evaluate themselves and present reports to the organizational process. The need for a governance agent helps examine how the project managers execute their roles in addition to evaluating the success of the project in attaining the expected outcomes from an external point of view (Peterson, et al., 2002). According to Muller (2009), good project governance provides appropriate checks and balances through which transparency and accountability are effectively established in line with organizational goals.
Through effective project governance, Too and Weaver (2014) argue that future project management practices can be more transparent as the project managers and their team members can be held accountable to all project activities. Additionally, project governance helps gauge the success of a project in meeting anticipate outcomes and thereby advise accordingly. For any project to succeed accountability has to be the operational hallmark and thus all projects need to be effectively managed to help attain stipulated project objectives. The future of project management is therefore subject to the effectiveness of the project governance systems through which evaluations will be made on the success level of project managers and their teams in meeting the scheduled project expectations.
Competence Gap
According to Sylvius and Schipper (2014), projects are considered instruments of change in organizational set-ups, thus their impact influences the modalities of operation in various organizational departments. The implication of the consideration of projects as organizational change agents is immense and to help realize a sustainable future, the competencies of project managers in realizing their role as change agents and doing their best to assure business sustainability is of special concern. Project managers require specialized training to help them understand the complexities of the projects they run and the impact of such projects in providing for the future sustainability of organizations.
A competence gap exists when managers are not able to tailor their projects targets towards a sustainable future, both for the projects and the organization (Sylvius & Schipper, 2014). The researchers further argue that inability to notice the need for suitable competencies on the side of project managers directly affects the future organizational sustainability as the project managers are the ones who ought to provide organizational guidance with regard to the types of corporate social responsibilities to be undertaken by organizations. Thus, it is important that future project managers acquire competence skills to help them plan for project and organizational sustainability to help organizations live to meet their objectives for a foreseeable future period.
Conclusion
Project management is a highly tasking role that requires project managers to own essential skills, expertise and experience to help effectively manage project teams throughout the project implementation phases. Project management has been evolving for centuries now and the advent of technology brings about new applications and software that may be complex to understand and use in all project phases. However, the flexible understanding of multiple project methodologies helps the project managers’ select project approaches that are familiar with the team members and suitable for the realization of specific projects. The future of project management requires a great shift from past practices in project management as most project requirements in the modern world are complex and dynamic when compared to those in previous decades. It is the role of the project managers to tailor their project plans towards the realization of sustainable project and organizational goals. Teamwork and motivation of project team members is also considered a strong pillar towards the realization of future sustainable project management practices.
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