University of Palestine - Gaza Faculty of business& IT – Project Management Chapter 2 Project Definition

Eng.Mosub I Tabash2 Topics  The Emergence of Project Management  Project Definition  Project Characteristics:  Temporary  Unique  Product, Service or Result  Progressive Elaboration

Eng.Mosub I Tabash An Introduction to Project Management Organizations are facing increasingly complex challenges: –High escalation factors for salaries and raw materials, –Pressures from stockholders, –Possibilities of long-term, high inflation accompanied by a mild recession –Lack of borrowing power 3

Eng.Mosub I Tabash In the past, organizations have attempted to ease the impact of these conditions by: –Embarking on massive cost-reduction programs such as early retirement, layoffs, and a reduction in manpower. –Pressure line managers to accomplish the same amount of work with fewer resources, –Improving efficiency or upgrading performance requirements 4 An Introduction to Project Management

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Organizations started considering new techniques to obtain better control and use of the existing resources. The traditional structure is highly bureaucratic and cannot respond rapidly enough to a changing environment. 5 An Introduction to Project Management

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Thus, the traditional structure must be replaced by other temporary management structures that are highly organic and can respond very rapidly as situations develop inside and outside the company. Project management 6 An Introduction to Project Management

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project management was confined to U.S. Department of Defense contractors and construction companies. Today, the project management is being applied in diverse industries and organizations as defense, construction, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, banking, hospitals, accounting, advertising, law, state and local governments, and the United Nations. 7 An Introduction to Project Management

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Defined A project “any series of activities and tasks that: Have a specific objective to be completed within certain specifications Have defined start and end dates Have funding limits (if applicable) Consume human and nonhuman resources (i.e., money, people, equipment) Be multifunctional (i.e., cut across several functional lines) Project Management, A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling, Seventh Edition Harold Kerzner 8

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Defined The Project Management Institute (PMI) Defines the Project as “a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service, or result” PMI, Project Management Body of Knowledge, Third Edition 9

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Characteristics Temporary: –Every project has a definite beginning and a definite end. –The end is reached when: the project’s objectives have been achieved, or it becomes clear that the project objectives will not or cannot be met or The need for the project no longer exists and the project is terminated 10

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Characteristics Temporary: Not necessarily short, may last for 10 years BUT not an ongoing efforts Temporary does not apply to the product, service or result created by the project (Outcomes may last forever –Pyramids, Sowis Canal) 11

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Characteristics Unique Products, Services, or Results Projects create a unique deliverable: –Product that is produced, quantifiable and can be an end item or a component item (Airbus, Processor…etc). –Capability to perform service such as business functions (Marketing campaign, fundraising…etc) 12

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Characteristics Unique Products, Services, or Results Projects create a unique deliverable: –A result such as outcomes or documents. Research paper, Capacity building projects…etc Note: A product or service may be unique even if the category to which it belongs is large. 13

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Characteristics Many thousands of office buildings have been developed, but each individual facility is unique—different owner, different design, different location, different contractors, and so on. The presence of repetitive elements does not change the fundamental uniqueness of the project work. 14

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Project Characteristics Progressive Elaboration Integrates the concepts of temporary and unique. Because the product of each project is unique, the characteristics that distinguish the product or service must be progressively elaborated. Progressively means “proceeding in steps; continuing steadily by increments,” 15

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Elaborated means “worked out with care and detail; developed thoroughly” These distinguishing characteristics will be broadly defined early in the project, and will be made more explicit and detailed as the project team develops a better and more complete understanding of the product. 16 Project Characteristics

Eng.Mosub I Tabash Other Common Characteristics of Projects Multidisciplinary Complex Conflict Risk Part of Programs