The current business environment faces several risk factors which include the inability to foresee the upcoming challenges which are unhealthy to the business. This calls for the development of better skills. One of the key factors in successful project management is strong competence. For a business organization to flourish in this competitive world, a company should ensure that its competence base is well managed throughout business operations. This paper will investigate the role played by the concept of project management in today’s business world.
Project management is an area of business operation and studies that deal with the critical organization, management planning, and economic utilization of available resources (Dinsmore et al 2005, p.25). This is categorically imperative because both specific and general goals of a given project cannot be achieved without competent project management. However, project management is sometimes brought together with program management although a program might encompass several projects under it. On the other hand, a project has a short life span with short specific objectives to be attained within given span of time. A project is usually aimed at bringing positive change or increase in value (Ireland 2006. p110). In a business operation however, there is need for continuity into tomorrow. Business endeavors are not meant to end within a short period of time. This therefore calls for continuity which can only be possible through well-sustained program management. As a precaution, project and program management should be handled separately with clear defining goals so as they are not conflated.
Today’s business environment requires a workable project management for it to survive in the competition (Phillips 2003, p.354). If all the project targets and goals are attained, then the project manager will also be a success and in return boost business performance. Achieving these goals, however, remain to be the key challenge. Most businesses do not make it in the modern cutthroat market mainly because of the level of their current and expected future operations. Time factors in stimulating projects and the expected returns should also be addressed alongside budget allocations for all intended projects. If projects are poorly managed without putting these factors into consideration, the risk factors will equally be high thereby jeopardizing the present state of the business.
An analysis on budget for intended projects should be shrewd to seal all the loopholes for unnecessary yet costly projects (Lock, 2007). The period within which a particular project should be completed is important. It should be remembered that effective and profitable business operations ought to be strict on specific returns volumes versus given time length.
The secondary challenges are even more demanding for an effective business environment. After careful study and analysis of time and available resources, there is still need to optimize the application of these factors for maximum gain by a business unit. The distribution and integration of factors of production are imperative if the pre-defined goals are to be met (Hoon Kwak, 2005).
Project management in an organization is procedural and is carried with certain methodologies in place. Conventionally, it consists of four to five components and a regulatory system. The main development stages of project growth are initiation, project outline, execution stage, professional management, and finally the finishing stage (Cleland & Gareis, 2006). All these stages should be followed for a business environment to be successful. Research data should be utilized accordingly to reduce the risk factor of project failure. The initial stage of project management will identify type and level of development (Stevens, 2002). Inability to execute this stage appropriately will most likely weaken the business operations in the competitive market. It is the foundation stage without which the entire project and business plan is bound to fail. A thorough understanding of the business atmosphere is required hereby ensuring that all basic inputs and regulations are part of the project before it kicks off (Witzel 2003, pp.96-101). Any weaknesses should be identified early enough and suggestions are made to rectify them.
The design stage follows immediately after the concept has been initiated. For the management of a project to be viable at this stage, a small sample of the end product is put to test. The reason for doing this results from the fact that today’s business environment is very tricky and overwhelmingly dynamic. Therefore, the main role of project management here is to ascertain the viability of the project before finally rolling the final product to the consumer who completes the channel of production (Kousholt 2007 p.59)
To recap the role of project management in today’s business environment, project control is a vital mechanism that will at all-time streamline operations to fit within the stated domain of budget and time factors. It also takes care of a stepwise management process which might make or break the entire business management. Every individual project requires its own share of control mechanisms tailored to fit it. The main reasons why control should be exercised include cost, change, risks involved as well as a labor input.
References
Cleland, D. and Gareis, R. (2006) Global project management handbook. “Chapter 1: “The evolution of project management”. McGraw-Hill Professional.
Dinsmore, C. P. et al (2005) The right projects done right! John Wiley and Sons.
Hoon Kwak, Y. (2005) “A brief history of Project Management”. In: The story of managing projects. Elias G. Carayannis et al. (9 eds), Greenwood Publishing Group.
Ireland, R.L. (2006) Project Management. McGraw-Hill Professional.
Kousholt, B. (2007) Project Management –. Theory and practice. NytTeknisk Forlag.
Lock, D. (2007) Project management (9e ed.) Gower Publishing, Ltd.
Phillips, J. (2003) PMP Project Management Professional Study Guide. McGraw- Hill Professional.
Stevens, M. (2002) Project Management Pathways. Association for Project Management. APM Publishing Limited.
Witzel, M. (2003) Fifty key figures in management. Routledge Press.