Modern Trends in Project Management

PROJECT REPORT
(Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Business Administration)

Submitted by
R.S Bhuvaneshwari (Reg.No: DA 3051335010036)

Directorate of Distance Education

Department of Management Studies

SRM UNIVERSITY, KATTANKULATHUR

CHENNAI 603203
OCT-2015

BONAFIED CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that this project report Modern Trends in Project Management. Is
the bonafide work of R. S Bhuvaneshwari who carried out research under my
guidance. Certified further that to the best of my knowledge the work reported does not
form part of any other project report on dissertation on the basis of which a degree or
award was conferred on an earlier occasion, on this or any other candidate.

Signature of the Co-Ordinator

Signature of the Guide

Director-DDE

External Examiner

Internal Examiner

Introductions:
Many project management methodologies being used today, are either the wrong
methodologies or are not applied fully. Some project managers see methodologies
as impractical and bureaucratic, relying on their gut instinct when it comes to
managing projects. If project management methodologies come across as too
complex to use in real-world projects, project managers will look for their own
shortcuts. Given enough time, anyone can be trained to adhere to a project
methodology. Projects are usually split into phases often along the lines of
initiation, control (Planning, Execution) and closure. During each phase, a number
of documents are produced as part of the project control process. All IT projects,
regardless of their size, complexity or industry, require a set of defined rules and
principles to be managed effectively and come to a successful conclusion. This
area of managing projects is called project management. This idea of project
management has been around for a long time. Today, project management has
emerged as its own field, supported by bodies of knowledge and researches across
many discipline. Although still relatively new, the field of Software Development
has its own Bodies of Knowledge that include various methodologies, frameworks,
tools and techniques supported by a continuous growing base of research.

Company profile:
ORGANISATION PROFILE
APEX is a global information technology (IT) Development & consulting firm
focusing on areas of specialization which includes ... strengths for vision of the
future and an insight into the core technical concepts in the IT and BPO industry.
APEX was founded on the principles of creating leadership and excellence in the
industry; with value and wealth for the stakeholders that comprise of our investor,
clients and employees. The promoters have extensive experience in the
Information Technology industry and have done excellent pioneering work in the
technology and successfully spearheaded different business strategies. Having
participated in IT industrys growth in India in the last 25 years, the management
team brings rich domestic and international experience to the table at APEX.
Ethics and fair play are the founding values of APEX culture. Our corporate value
system is based on the LEARN paradigm and is characterized by Leadership
through empowerment, Excellence in delivery, Adaptable to client needs, Respect
for client and employee and Nimbleness in responding to changing market needs.
This focus has already paid rich dividends in the last 3 years of our existence. The
success and growth is underlined by negligible attrition, sustained business growth
and establishment of operations in India. We have been profitable since our
inception and have grown organically to a team of over 3000 professionals. We
pride ourselves with being able to retain motivated talent pool in an industry which
is known for rapid attrition.The graphic below illustrates our development and
delivery methodology. The APEX Methodology is a hybrid model based on the
Waterfall and iterative model of development. The Rapid prototyping phase allows
us to design and develop a prototype before starting any full scale development.

The concept of rapid Prototyping helps reduce effort spillage and also allows
change incorporation and management at early stages of the project.

APEX offer Services through four disciplines for Consulting, Technology,

Outsourcing and Local Professional Services.
APEX organizational structure includes divisions based on client industry types
and growth platforms. Industry divisions, referred to as Operating Groups, include
Products

(e.g.

consumer

packaged

goods

or

industrial

equipment),

Communications High Technology and Media ('CHT'), Financial Services (e.g.

banking, insurance), Resources (e.g. utilities, chemicals, energy), and Public
Service. The growth platforms are respectively titled Management Consulting &
Integrated Markets, Outsourcing, and Systems Integration & Technology.
Management Consulting
o

Customer Relationship Management

Finance & Performance Management

Human Performance
Supply Chain Management

Information Technology Consulting

Enterprise Solutions
Information Management Services
Infrastructure Consulting Services
IT Strategy & Transformation
Research & Development
Service Oriented Architecture

Outsourcing
o

Application Outsourcing

Infrastructure Outsourcing

APEX is one of the fast growing consulting firm in the world and is one of the
largest computer services and software companies.
SOLUTION SERVICES:
APEX offers world-class software engineering, algorithm development,
content development, and other consulting services to help your company meet all of
its information technology needs. We excel in helping companies develop new
technologies and create new products based on those technologies.
Since our inception, we have developed numerous commercial products for clients in
a wide range of industries, with a strong vertical focus on publishing,
pharmaceuticals/biotechnology, material sciences, and financial services.
Our software engineers, project leaders, and managers, have a proven track record of
implementing state-of-the-art development methodologies and managing the delivery
of best-of-class products on time and within budget.
With our cutting-edge, global project execution strategy, APEX can handle projects
of any size or any level of complexity and deliver top-quality solutions at very
competitive rates. We invite
you to explore our service offerings, technical capabilities, and industry experience
and learn more about how GGA can serve your company's specific needs.
APEX offers specialized services for every aspect of SAP. Our main areas of
emphasis are SEM, financials, SCM, business intelligence and Net Weaver.

Custom ERP software application development

Upgrading existing ERP systems

Web enabling ERP solutions/ERP integration to ecommerce

Providing constant support an maintenance to the ERP solution developed

APEX set out to develop software tools that help people do what they need to get the
job done. APEX believes in creating tools that work the way people do. Not the other
way around. This philosophy is incorporated into every software product created and
client served.
The core of our solutions services are the same industry-best delivery processes and
methodologies that support our professional services offerings. We can quickly
assemble a project team from among the best technical talent in the world for almost
any type and scale of project.
Solutions, however, provide an additional level of value to our clients because we
provide these exceptional production resources plus exceptional project management
and required tools to complete the entire project. APEX can perform a turnkey
implementation - a solution - that meets your cost, technical, and time objectives.
APEX Engagement Models
A. Fixed Price/Fixed Time
This model provides the low risk assurance of both a guaranteed fixed price and
delivery date. This approach can be employed when the scope and specifications of
the project are reasonably clear.

Deliverables, costs and timelines are precisely documented in order to support the
strong project management methodology required to meet delivery terms. A phased
approach that includes scoping, development, implementation and business support
is followed.
Additionally, by combining the fixed price/fixed time model with our "right-site"
globally distributed implementation capabilities, we can offer customers a
tremendous cost advantage while providing low-risk and effective control of the
implementation process.
B. Time and Materials
In this business model, APEX forms project teams with the required resources and
project managers. The teams are provided equipment and infrastructure based on
project requirements. Customers pay periodic charges based on the applied
resources.
This model offers the ability to adjust team size and composition at any point if
variations in the project plan occur. Because of the immediate control this approach
affords, most of our services that are delivered on-site, at the client's location, use
this business model.
Time and materials engagements most often include the largest opportunity for
interfacing and collaboration between APEX and client resources. APEX resources
are selected based on reviews of both technical skills and interpersonal qualities.
They are motivated, highly- competent consultants who work seamlessly with client
teams to achieve project objectives while making a positive contribution to the work
environment.

C. Modularized Hybrid
Within a Time and Materials engagement, APEX can perform individual phases of a
project on a fixed time / fixed price basis. The remaining phases and tasks outside the
scope of the fixed bid would remain under the T&M arrangement. In such hybrid
engagements, the client has precision and flexibility in mixing cost, risk, and control
with respect to each stage or task of an implementation.
D. Partnerships and Revenue/Risk Share
IT projects are undertaken to provide cost savings, higher productivity, or increased
revenue opportunities. As with any strategic initiative, there are associated risks. We
are confident in our ability to deliver measurable business benefits. Therefore, in
many cases we can link our project fees with the actual business benefit our clients
realize. Revenue/Risk Share models are popular amongst emerging businesses or
technology companies. APEX can invest and share the development costs in return
for jointly owning the Intellectual Property (IP) and sharing revenue streams. Under
this business model APEX shares the risks involved in developing and marketing a
product along with our customers

E. BOT model
Applying the Build-Operate-Transfer model, APEX can rapidly establish an offshore
operation for a customer, and later transition the center to the client's control or
ownership. The phases of the B-O-T model include the following services.
Build: Setup the facility and infrastructure, staff the development center, and
establish knowledge transfer. Operate: Manage the offshore organization including
program management, development, QA, maintenance, enhancements, and product
support. Transfer: Register a new offshore subsidiary for the customer, transfer
assets, and handover operations.

F. BOT Extension to ODC Model

Considering some clients' specific needs, APEX also offers the option of
converting an ODC (Offshore Development Center) model into a BOT model after a
mutually agreed (usually 2 years or greater) duration without any additional transfer
fees

VISION AND VALUES

APEX strives for excellence in everything they think, say and do.
Quality: APEX is dedicated to achieving the highest levels of quality in everything
they do to delight customers, internal & external, every time.
Respect for the Individual: APEX uphold the self-esteem and dignity of each other
by creating an open culture conducive for expression of views and ideas irrespective
of hierarchy.
Innovation & Continuous Learning: APEX creates an environment of innovation and
learning that fosters, in each one of us, a desire to excel and willingness to
experiment.
Collaboration & Teamwork: APEX seeks opportunities to build relationships and
leverage knowledge, expertise and resources to create greater value across functions,
businesses and locations.
Harmony & Social Responsibility: APEX takes utmost care to protect our natural
environment and serve the communities in which we live and work. Their business
practices are guided by the highest ethical standards of truth, integrity and
transparency.

STRATEGIES
APEX long-standing commitment to high standards of corporate governance and
ethical business practices is a fundamental shared value of its Board of Directors,
management and employees. The Company's philosophy of corporate governance
stems from its belief that timely disclosures, transparent accounting policies, and a
strong and independent Board go a long way in preserving shareholders trust while
maximizing long-term shareholder value.
Good corporate governance flows out of the commitment of the Management and
the Board of Directors. When the commitment is backed by the fundamental beliefs
of maximizing value for stakeholders; transparent actions in the business; values of a
corporate; and mutual trust amongst all constituents of the business, the organization
transforms itself into a higher plane of leadership. The forward-looking approach of
APEX has always helped it, in achieving the desired results. This approach has
transformed the company's culture to one that is relentlessly focused on the speedy
translation of scientific discoveries into innovative products. APEX commitment
towards Corporate Governance started well before law mandated such practices.
The company has identified and established its core purpose, mission and core
values for achieving corporate excellence. APEX believes in crafting an environment
where the parameters of conduct and behavior of the company and its management is
constantly aligned with the business environment.
SAFETY AND HEALTH
At APEX, the safety, health and physical well-being of people represent an important
driver of its sustainability. It guarantees an environment in which our intellectual
capital is adequately protected at all times, serving as an inducement for others to
join.
This sets into motion a virtuous cycle of insight retention, driving sustainability in

the process. This safety aspect has been captured in the incidence and frequency
rates comprising a part of the Safety, Health and Environment report. As a forwardlooking organization, we are also encouraging the reporting of near misses with a
view to eliminate the root causes of accidents, representing the base of our safety
pyramid.
They have also implemented an internal guideline for contractor safety, a training
manual for contract workers covering job safety, tool inspection and other
initiatives.
As an additional initiative, all our manufacturing locations are adequately equipped
with occupational health centers. Medical checks are carried out regularly and
workplace monitoring is a routine activity, to ensure that exposure limits are not
exceeded.

CORPORATE TRAINING PROVIDE FOR

Eswari College Of Engineering

SRM Nightingale Primary & Matriculation Higher Secondary School

PayPal
OUR CLIENT COMPANIES

GOVERNMENT OF TAMIL NADU

GRACE DAVISON CHEMICALS INDIA (P) LTD
MODERN COTTON YARN SPINNERS LTD

GLOBAL MARINE

AMUTHASURABEE MILK PRODUCTS

SRIVATSAN EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

PHOENIX TECHNOLOGIES
EVERONN EDUCATION LTD

Our Address for Communication

CHENNAI
Company
Name
Address
Reception
Phone
Admin Phone
Email
Website

: Apex Global Solutions

: No.13/6, Kumaran Colony,
3rd Street
Vadapalani,
Chennai
600026
: 044 4503 2414
: +91 95000 38389 /+91-9600
055345
: hr@apexglobalsolutions.in
:
www.apexglobalsolutions.in

Abstract
Modern Trends in project management is a well-understood discipline that can
produce predictable, repeatable results. The methodologies of modern project
management are highly analytical, usually requiring automated tools to support them
on large projects. Like most other disciplines, it is learned through both practice and
past experience. Project management encompasses many different skills, such as
understanding the interdependencies among people, technologies, budgets, and
expectations; planning the project to maximise productivity; motivating others to
execute the plan; analysing the actual results; and reworking and tuning the plan to
deal with the realities of what really happens as the project is executed. In order to
manage a project and bring it to a successful completion, its project manager must
have a complete understanding of the methodologies being used for the management
of different parts of the project. Managers prefer specific project methodology, while
resist and face difficulties for an opportunity to manage another project with different
methodology as they do not know how much commonality exists between the
preferred and the new required methodology. This paper discusses the issues
involved in modern project management and compares the differences between
traditional and modern project management skills and techniques.

Objectives:
a. Understanding the concepts of modern trends in project management
b. To study the effect of Modern trends in project management behaviour in
relation to IT industry.
c. To analyze the Modern trends strategies adopted by some of the companies in
IT industry to woo the projects modern world.
d. To do a comparative study of the modern trend strategies adopted by the
companies in the IT industry

Organizing for Project Management

2.1 What is Project Management?

The management of construction projects requires knowledge of modern
management as well as an understanding of the design and construction process.
Construction projects have a specific set of objectives and constraints such as a
required time frame for completion. While the relevant technology, institutional
arrangements or processes will differ, the management of such projects has much in
common with the management of similar types of projects in other specialty or
technology domains such as aerospace, pharmaceutical and energy developments.
Generally, project management is distinguished from the general management of
corporations by the mission-oriented nature of a project. A project organization will
generally be terminated when the mission is accomplished. According to the Project
Management Institute, the discipline of project management can be defined as
follows: [1]
Project management is the art of directing and coordinating human and material
resources throughout the life of a project by using modern management techniques to
achieve predetermined objectives of scope, cost, time, quality and participation
satisfaction.
By contrast, the general management of business and industrial corporations assumes
a broader outlook with greater continuity of operations. Nevertheless, there are
sufficient similarities as well as differences between the two so that modern
management techniques developed for general management may be adapted for
project management.
The basic ingredients for a project management framework [2] may be represented
schematically in Figure 2-1. A working knowledge of general management and
familiarity with the special knowledge domain related to the project are

indispensable. Supporting disciplines such as computer science and decision science

may also play an important role. In fact, modern management practices and various
special knowledge domains have absorbed various techniques or tools which were
once identified only with the supporting disciplines. For example, computer-based
information systems and decision support systems are now common-place tools for
general management. Similarly, many operations research techniques such as linear
programming and network analysis are now widely used in many knowledge or
application domains. Hence, the representation in Figure 2-1 reflects only the sources
from which the project management framework evolves.

Figure 2-1: Basic Ingredients in project management.

Specifically, project management in construction encompasses a set of objectives
which may be accomplished by implementing a series of operations subject to
resource constraints. There are potential conflicts between the stated objectives with
regard to scope, cost, time and quality, and the constraints imposed on human
material and financial resources. These conflicts should be resolved at the onset of a
project by making the necessary tradeoffs or creating new alternatives. Subsequently,

the functions of project management for construction generally include the

following:
1. Specification of project objectives and plans including delineation of scope,
budgeting, scheduling, setting performance requirements, and selecting project
participants.
2. Maximization of efficient resource utilization through procurement of labor,
materials and equipment according to the prescribed schedule and plan.
3. Implementation of various operations through proper coordination and control
of planning, design, estimating, contracting and construction in the entire
process.
4. Development of effective communications and mechanisms for resolving
conflicts among the various participants.
The project management Institute focuses on nine distinct areas requiring project
manager knowledge and attention:
1. Project integration management to ensure that the various project elements are
effectively coordinated.
2. Project scope management to ensure that all the work required (and only the
required work) is included.
3. Project time management to provide an effective project schedule.
4. Project cost management to identify needed resources and maintain budget
control.
5. Project quality management to ensure functional requirements are met.

6. Project human resource management to development and effectively employ

project personnel.
7. Project communications management to ensure effective internal and external
communications.
8. Project risk management to analyze and mitigate potential risks.
9. Project procurement management to obtain necessary resources from external
sources.
These nine areas form the basis of the Project Management Institute's certification
program for project managers in any industry. Back to top
2.2 Trends in Modern Management
In recent years, major developments in management reflect the acceptance to various
degrees of the following elements: (1) the management process approach, (2) the
management science and decision support approach, (3) the behavioral science
approach for human resource development, and (4) sustainable competitive
advantage. These four approaches complement each other in current practice, and
provide a useful groundwork for project management.
The management process approach emphasizes the systematic study of management
by identifying management functions in an organization and then examining each in
detail. There is general agreement regarding the functions of planning, organizing
and controlling. A major tenet is that by analyzing management along functional
lines, a framework can be constructed into which all new management activities can
be placed. Thus, the manager's job is regarded as coordinating a process of
interrelated functions, which are neither totally random nor rigidly predetermined,
but are dynamic as the process evolves. Another tenet is that management principles

can be derived from an intellectual analysis of management functions. By dividing

the manager's job into functional components, principles based upon each function
can be extracted. Hence, management functions can be organized into a hierarchical
structure designed to improve operational efficiency, such as the example of the
organization for a manufacturing company shown in Figure 2-2. The basic
management functions are performed by all managers, regardless of enterprise,
activity or hierarchical levels. Finally, the development of a management philosophy
results in helping the manager to establish relationships between human and material
resources. The outcome of following an established philosophy of operation helps
the manager win the support of the subordinates in achieving organizational
objectives.

Figure 2-2: Illustrative Hierarchical Structure of Management Functions

The management science and decision support approach contributes to the

development of a body of quantitative methods designed to aid managers in making
complex decisions related to operations and production. In decision support systems,
emphasis is placed on providing managers with relevant information. In management
science, a great deal of attention is given to defining objectives and constraints, and
to constructing mathematical analysis models in solving complex problems of
inventory, materials and production control, among others. A topic of major interest
in management science is the maximization of profit, or in the absence of a workable
model for the operation of the entire system, the sub optimization of the operations
of its components. The optimization or sub optimization is often achieved by the use
of operations research techniques, such as linear programming, quadratic
programming, graph theory, queuing theory and Monte Carlo simulation. In addition
to the increasing use of computers accompanied by the development of sophisticated
mathematical models and information systems, management science and decision
support systems have played an important role by looking more carefully at problem
inputs and relationships and by promoting goal formulation and measurement of
performance. Artificial intelligence has also begun to be applied to provide decision
support systems for solving ill-structured problems in management.
The behavioral science approach for human resource development is important
because management entails getting things done through the actions of people. An
effective manager must understand the importance of human factors such as needs,
drives, motivation, leadership, personality, behavior, and work groups. Within this
context, some place more emphasis on interpersonal behavior which focuses on the
individual and his/her motivations as a socio-psychological being; others emphasize
more group behavior in recognition of the organized enterprise as a social organism,
subject to all the attitudes, habits, pressures and conflicts of the cultural environment
of people. The major contributions made by the behavioral scientists to the field of
management include: (1) the formulation of concepts and explanations about

individual and group behavior in the organization, (2) the empirical testing of these
concepts methodically in many different experimental and field settings, and (3) the
establishment of actual managerial policies and decisions for operation based on the
conceptual and methodical frameworks.
Sustainable competitive advantage stems primarily from good management strategy.
As Michael Porter of the Harvard Business School argues:
Strategy is creating fit among a company's activities. The success of a strategy
depends on doing many things well - not just a few - and integrating among them. If
there is no fit among activities, there is no distinctive strategy and little sustainability.
In this view, successful firms must improve and align the many processes underway
to their strategic vision. Strategic positioning in this fashion requires:
Creating a unique and valuable position.
Making trade-offs compared to competitors
Creating a "fit" among a company's activities.
Project managers should be aware of the strategic position of their own organization
and the other organizations involved in the project. The project manager faces the
difficult task of trying to align the goals and strategies of these various organizations
to accomplish the project goals. For example, the owner of an industrial project may
define a strategic goal as being first to market with new products. In this case,
facilities development must be oriented to fast-track, rapid construction. As another
example, a contracting firm may see their strategic advantage in new technologies
and emphasize profit opportunities from value engineering (as described in Chapter
3).

2.3 Strategic Planning and Project Programming

The programming of capital projects is shaped by the strategic plan of an
organization, which is influenced by market demands and resources constraints. The
programming process associated with planning and feasibility studies sets the
priorities and timing for initiating various projects to meet the overall objectives of
the organizations. However, once this decision is made to initiate a project, market
pressure may dictate early and timely completion of the facility.
Among various types of construction, the influence of market pressure on the timing
of initiating a facility is most obvious in industrial construction. [3] Demand for an
industrial product may be short-lived, and if a company does not hit the market first,
there may not be demand for its product later. With intensive competition for
national and international markets, the trend of industrial construction moves toward
shorter project life cycles, particularly in technology intensive industries.
In order to gain time, some owners are willing to forego thorough planning and
feasibility study so as to proceed on a project with inadequate definition of the
project scope. Invariably, subsequent changes in project scope will increase
construction costs; however, profits derived from earlier facility operation often
justify the increase in construction costs. Generally, if the owner can derive
reasonable profits from the operation of a completed facility, the project is
considered a success even if construction costs far exceed the estimate based on an
inadequate scope definition. This attitude may be attributed in large part to the
uncertainties inherent in construction projects. It is difficult to argue that profits
might be even higher if construction costs could be reduced without increasing the
project duration. However, some projects, notably some nuclear power plants, are
clearly unsuccessful and abandoned before completion, and their demise must be
attributed at least in part to inadequate planning and poor feasibility studies.

The owner or facility sponsor holds the key to influence the construction costs of a
project because any decision made at the beginning stage of a project life cycle has
far greater influence than those made at later stages, as shown schematically in
Figure 2-3. Moreover, the design and construction decisions will influence the
continuing operating costs and, in many cases, the revenues over the facility lifetime.
Therefore, an owner should obtain the expertise of professionals to provide adequate
planning and feasibility studies. Many owners do not maintain an in-house
engineering and construction management capability, and they should consider the
establishment of an ongoing relationship with outside consultants in order to respond
quickly to requests. Even among those owners who maintain engineering and
construction divisions, many treat these divisions as reimbursable, independent
organizations. Such an arrangement should not discourage their legitimate use as
false economies in reimbursable costs from such divisions can indeed be very costly
to the overall organization.

Figure 2-3: Ability to Influence Development Cost Over Time

Finally, the initiation and execution of capital projects places demands on the
resources of the owner and the professionals and contractors to be engaged by the
owner. For very large projects, it may bid up the price of engineering services as well
as the costs of materials and equipment and the contract prices of all types.
Consequently, such factors should be taken into consideration in determining the

Figure 2-4: A Matrix Organization

Figure 2-5: A Project-Oriented Organization

To illustrate various types of organizations for project management, we shall
consider two examples, the first one representing an owner organization while the
second one representing the organization of a construction management consultant
under the direct supervision of the owner.

Project Development Process Cycle

The basic characteristics of a project are that it is set of no repetitive activities which
create a unique product or service. The activities utilize a variety of resources.
Systematic acquisition and deployment in a relatively short span of time is the
essential process of a project. Development of a project starts with the acceptance of
the proposal by the customer in all respects technical and commercial. The
marketing people would have taken concurrence of the details and the time schedules
for various stages from the project manager and given their commitment to the
customer.

The following are the stages in the development process:

1. Obtaining the specifications
2. Creating a work breakdown structure
3. Preparing a comprehensive PERT Chart
4. Forming groups and teams
5. Forming a core group consisting of members chosen from as many teams as
possible.
6. Fixing the responsibility areas
7. Preparing budgets, supplier contracts
8. Setting up communication channels, feed back routes and monitoring mechanisms.
Many of the above activities can be performed concurrently and save a lot of time.
The above is generally common for most of the projects. In some cases many of the
activities are done by one or two persons. You will observe that information flow is
of utmost importance. With most communication becoming almost instant, it is only
necessary to follow the protocol established, to ensure that the decision making
processes are not hindered. Having developed the project as above, it is ready for
implementation.

1. Obtaining the specifications

This is the culmination of the efforts of the marketing department in securing the
contract. The needs and associated requirements are clearly written down, based on
which the proposal has been given.
This is an important phase as the needs of the customers would be converted to
proposal which should meet his requirements. In most of the cases, a number of
changes would need to be made.
Considerations of cost, possibility of a few changes to accommodate the technical
requirements or acquisition of new technology to incorporate improved performance
characteristics will be considered.
Time required for the project may undergo a change. To reduce the cost, or improve
upon delivery or for better monitoring, the customer may offer the services of a few
of his personnel, equipments or even buy technology. When all these are agreed
upon, a detailed document covering all aspects would be ready. Based on the final
document, the specifications of all components of the project will be made. If a few
have only broad descriptions of what is intended, they are made note of and the
person/department which would finalize within a time frame is worked out. When
specifications are available, the Project Manager can proceed further.
2. Creating a work breakdown structure
Once the specifications are completely ready, the project manager has the
responsibility of showing the work elements in a structure which show the sequence
in which they are to be performed. Who will be responsible for different aspects of
the project. Define the specific activities that have to be performed. Do all of them
have resources to perform their activities? At what points of time will they require
those resources. If they have to be procured, what are the arrangements to be made.

What is the reliability of those vendors?

What is the backup for those?
If some work is to be outsourced, will the contractor do at site?
If done elsewhere, who will transfer? At what time delivery can be effected?
All these questions and many more would have be settled at this stage itself. So all
the persons responsible activities will have been identified and the sequence of
operations settled
3. Preparing a comprehensive PERT Chart
The basis for this chart is the Critical Path. A number of activities make a project.
Because of technological necessities some activities can be performed only after
some others have been completed. Some activities are independent of some other set
of activities. Different activities require different times for their completion. Some
projects are big and a number of clearly distinguishable stages, called milestones, are
identified. Since some activities run concurrently, there are possibilities that one set
of activities end up early and have to wait for some other activities to proceed
further.
This means that there are more than paths from the beginning to the end, and one of
them takes more time than the others. We call that critical path.. In PERT Programme
Evaluation and Review
Technique we take into consideration the fact that the times allocated for all the
activities might not be determinable. So, we give three time estimates optimistic,
most likely and pessimistic. Giving weightage of four to the most likely period, we
try to find the variance of the project. As some activities get completed earlier, there
are opportunities to utilize the resources allocated to them for the critical activities to
hasten the project. These are done on a continuous basis as the project is under

progress. Since actual times taken for the activities are changing, reviewing helps us
to meet the deadline by resource smoothing. A chart is prepared and stubs of
different colours are used to indicate the progress of all activities, so that corrections
can be effected.
4. Forming groups and teams
The next stage in the development of the project, is to identify persons to undertake
the various tasks which include procurement of materials, maintaining equipments,
stocking of spares, etc. Some of them are to be shared between teams. However,
most of the teams formed are focused on the jobs assigned to them. Forming and
developing teams which contribute their best to the project, is a challenging task. He
should ensure that the knowledge and skills of the members of a team complement
those of others. In projects where knowledge base is very high like those in the IT,
R
& D, Innovation fields to create an atmosphere of camaraderie and mutual respect
will go a long way in improving efficiency. Opportunities should be created for them
to spend time together outside working hours. If for some reason, any member does
not want to stay in a team, he or she should be accommodated at the earliest. A
number of professional consultants offer training programmes for the managers in
this area. The latest trends in HR are to find new ways to make employees feel
comfortable and important so that they stay and work better.
5. Forming a core group consisting of members chosen from as many teams as
possible
They will be generally senior members of in their teams. They will be sharing
information about the progress and see what activities can be hastened or retarded,
what facilities can be loaned, person from a team can help another team in solving a
problem. Coordination and cooperation result in solving problems sooner. The

members of the core group will be responsible to bring to the notice any changes
they want in their teams. This group will facilitate conflict resolution among the
teams.

6. Fixing the responsibility areas

This is a crucial stage in the development of the project. Every person in the project
the teams, team members and the members of the core group will know what is
expected of him. Each team will know as to what they are expected to complete
during what periods. The core member of this team will be in communication with
the other teams as well as the project manager regarding the progress or any other
additional resources the team would need to keep to the schedule

7. Preparing budgets, supplier contracts

At this stage the Project Manager knows what his teams can contribute to the project.
He will prepare the budget for what his firm is going to buy for being utilized by the
various team members for completing their jobs. However, a number of inputs may
have to be procured and the contracts with suppliers have to be given out depending
on the competitive offers, quality and delivery schedules required. Firm
commitments from suppliers have to be obtained. Clauses about inspection,
transport, insurance and payment will have to be worked out in detail and accepted.
Project overruns are common and costly. Many good projects have floundered on
this account.
Every care should be taken to ensure these are attended to at this stage. Many firms,
knowing that these are likely to happen, will add these costs to the project cost. But
then, we have competition to contend with.

9. Setting up communication channels, feed back routes and monitoring

mechanisms.
The last step in the development process of a project is to establish a system of
reporting and initiation of action taken upon them. Monitoring and control become
meaningful when timely actions are taken. With the availability of intranet and
internet, transfer of information has become very easy and authentic. Internet
chatting, videoconferencing avoids many movements of persons saving on time and
money. Nevertheless personal meetings will be useful to clarify a number of matters
especially financial ones.
Self Assessment Questions 2
: Fill in the blanks
1. In PERT, we give three time estimates _________, ________ and
_____________.
2. Many good projects have floundered on account of ___________.
6.3 Modern Trends in Project Management Perception
Owing to competition and projects being undertaken on a global scale, projects are
no longer constrained by volumes, funds or even by materials. Technology can be
accessed globally.
Consultants give specialized inputs. Modern software programmes are available for
testing processes even before they are manufactured, assembled or applied.
Simulation programmes are written for various situations the project flows through.
The main benefits are in the area of costs and time. Principles of TQM, Kaizen, and
Lean Manufacturing are being applied by most companies to derive leverage by
eliminating waste. Some of the practices are given below.
1. Continuous Business Process Improvement CBPI

A process through which a project team passes on the details of any system or
method improvement as a recommendation is an effort for continuous improvement.
The improvements when practiced by many teams get verified and authenticated and
become standard. During implementation or after a review of performance, we will
still find areas which can be taken up for improvement. To avoid duplication of the
learning process, Knowledge Management practices are implemented for enter prise
wide availability. CBPI is entrusted to a smaller team within a team for initiating,
implementing, analyzing and distributing the process.
2. Force Field Analysis
All improvement programmes have compulsions like competition, customers
demands, technology changes, economics, governmental regulations. However,
resistance also is seen because the organizational members feel threatened or
unwilling to learn and expose their weaknesses. It may also arise out of a real
concern that the change may be too costlyor time consuming or even unnecessary.
Force Field Theory enunciated by Kurt Lewin, states that the two sets of forces are in
opposition. So, to effect change, managers must find ways of increase there will be a
movement towards change. On achieving some success, the consequences of
changes should be allowed to be settled. After reinforcing the effects, the effort
should be continued to effect change. The project manager will be in charge of the
whole process.
3. Information Risk Management The
information is constantly subjected to Scientific and Analytic Processing. Many
times Automated systems of quality control of key input data connected with the
project will help in reducing the risks of overruns beyond the control of the team.
One of the major problems of with data undergoing a lot of processing is the
corruption that may occur and the consequent effect on the decision making process.
The project manager should take the assistance of a system administrator and run

checks as frequently as possible. A few members of the team will also be associated
to reduce the risk.
6.3Recent Revolutions in Project Management
The field of Project Management has undergone a sea change in recent years owing
to, mainly the
Following reasons:
a) Information Technology
b) Automation of Physical Work
c) Workplace Flexibility
d) Elimination of traditional jobs and work structures
e) Globalisation of Markets, supplies and workforce
f) Domination of Knowledge Holders
a) Information Technology
Every project will have a huge information inflow which have sorted, classified,
distributed, analyzed for purpose of decision making and actions taken. IT helps in
the process at speeds which humans cannot hope to reach. This facilitates the
availability of information across the organisation and even in the field because of
intranet and internet facilities which have become very common. Production of
drawings using CAD has become universal. Documentation of materials received,
dispatched, excesses, shortages, reordering, etc have been become faster and
accurate, thus facilitating execution of projects. Transactions are on line making
reporting, feedback and decisions become faster.
b) Automation of Physical Work
Automation means elimination of human intervention in performing tasks.
Sophisticated machines, Special Purpose Machines, CNCs have reduced human
effort in workplaces. Movement of materials is conducted by programmed material

handling equipments like the Automated Guidance Vehicle Systems. It is possible to

identify materials because of the bar coding systems.
c) Workplace Flexibility With advances in transport and easier movements across
countries, the whole world has become one huge workplace. With globalization
many firms have offices in many countries and projects are accepted worldwide. This
flexibility has enabled project managers to outsource materials and people, for
achieving better profits.
d) Elimination of traditional jobs and work structures
Organizations are getting flatter. Teams have become very important. They perform
most of the functions of management like purchase, recruitment, training, accounts,
transport etc. No doubt the corporate office keeps track of all activities. But the
autonomy extended to them has resulted in faster decision making and many times
cost effective. The knowledge and skill factors of various jobs have changed greatly.
We find that companies are installing self directed teams who initiate actions
required of them to complete the jobs or projects on hand. It has been the practice of
well run and progressive organizations to give a great amount of autonomy to their
employees.
1. What is a Methodology?
A methodology is a set of guidelines or principles that can be tailored and applied
to a specific situation. In a project environment, these guidelines might be a list of
things to do. A methodology could also be a specific approach, templates, forms,
and even checklists used over the project life cycle. A methodology can also be
defined in other ways, for example [2, 3, 4]:
A process that documents a series of steps and procedures to bring about the
successful completion of a project.

 A defined process for accomplishing an end.

A series of steps through which the project progresses.
A collection of methods, procedures, and standards that define a synthesis of
engineering and management approaches designed to deliver a product,
service, or solution.
An integrated assembly of tasks, techniques, tools, roles and responsibilities,
and milestones used for delivering the project.

A formal project methodology should lead the work of all team members
throughout the life cycle of a project. All members of a team should be familiar
with and use the chosen methodology throughout their projects. Many project
management methodologies address the management of a single project, without
appreciating that many other projects in a company compete for the very same
resources

and attention. The project management methodology should also provide project
managers with the perspective that there is a project management framework and
associated methodologies present in the company. In Fig. 1, we see that Project A
has no methodology and is filled with process issues as well as problems that

actually increase as the project moves along [5]. Additionally, Project B, which has
a structured methodology with defined and operational project processes,
minimizes the number of problems that may occur on the project [5].

Fig. 1: Difference in using a methodology.

Strategy with Methodologies

For any company to be world class, the strategy is clear, survey the entire
landscape and then put the objectives. In negative economic times, always
remember that what comes down must come up [3]. In other words, after
identifying and selecting the correct methodology, it may be the best defense
if you want to:

 Avoid mistakes
Reduce cost
Reduce risk
Meet project schedules
Identify and correct errors early
Avoid excessive documentation

Review on Project Methodologies

Project management has grown from the early initiatives in the India defense and
IT sectors in the late 1970s and 1980s. The Indian Department of Defense
achieved early project management successes, mainly promulgated through their
internal policies, procedures, and lessons learned. Many articles, seminars, and
training programs that expanded the project management genre, although much of
the theory centered on the use of tools and techniques, such as:
PERT/Gantt charts.
Critical path.
Scheduling techniques.
Organisational issues.
Conflict management and others.

Most projects share a common life cycle. This is not to say that these projects are
all designed and executed the same way, but they remain universal, as they pass
similar phases during the life cycle of the project.

2. How Many Development Methodologies are there?

There are no similar development methodologies. Some companies have their

own unique customized methodology for developing products or services; others
simply use standard commercial off-the-shelf methodologies. With the incorrect
methodology, discovering, designing, building, testing, and deploying projects can
be chaotic. At least 20 different methodologies are competing to be the best
methodology, and this list of methodologies keeps on growing. Some of the
assessing project development methodologies are shown in Table 1.

Assessing project development methodologies.

Methodolo

Ris

gy

/LifeSource
Cycle Lo
Open

Easy
to

Frequ

Easy

Sco

Reliabil Docum

ent

to

pe

ity

Implem
Easy
Chang Mana Cree

ent

Projec
t

Approa
Orient Iterative

XP-Extreme

w
Me

High

Iterative

Pharma

dMe

Avera

Phased

Object

d
Hig

ge
Diffic

Iterative

h
/ Hig

ult
Diffic

Phased

Oriented
Spiral
MBASE
RAD

hLo

ult
Easy

Phased

Crystal

w
Me

Easy

Iterative

Incremental

dMe

Avera

Phased

ge

Prototyping

Lo

Easy

Phased

UniCycle

w
Lo

Easy

Phased

Model

The project methodology that is chosen represents merely the framework for the
real work to be done and indicates where creativity is needed. Many times, project
managers simply select the available methodology and continue to develop their
projects with that same methodology. When unpredictable results occur on a
project, they raise issues and risks and try to manage reactively. Project managers
often lack the controls to measure and respond to the unpredictable. Therefore, they
must first determine that the methodology is the correct one.

Many project managers find it difficult to give up control as provided in traditional

development. There is no guarantee that the team will deliver if it just follow a
chosen methodology. Clients seldom complete requirement specifications because
their requirements are constantly changing. The most logical solution is to simply
evolve the product as the client's needs change along the project development
process. This shows the need for a methodology to be more flexible than a formal
waterfall approach. In fact, the trend is shifting to the more iterative or incremental
style of methodologies.

Most project developments are wrongly approached with the assumption that the
methodology used is well-understood, and the project can be easily planned and
estimated. When a project begins to fail, the development process is immediately
provided with more resources and attention to get it back on track. Thus, cost and
schedule overruns start occurring. These step-by-step approaches do not work
because they do not cope with human and technical unpredictability. Inflexible

processes are often too constraining and fall short of delivering a project to
operations or production .

1. Requirements for Selecting a Methodology

The essential decisions that a project manager must make when selecting a
methodology are below.
Budget
Budgets play a big role in any project, and the type of methodology to be used is
important. Formulated fairly early in the project's planning stage, the budget
estimate is most often based on analogous estimating. With the budget estimate,
we start at the top and work our way down into the project details.

Team size
Methodologies are directly proportional to the team size. Use light
methodologies for smaller teams and heavy methodologies for larger teams..

Technology used
The technology used on a project affects the direction and type of methodology
selected. Unfamiliar technology slows progress. On many projects today,
simulation and testing of new technologies is actually considered a phase of the
methodology.

Tools and techniques

Some project methodologies require more tools and techniques than others. For
example, some projects need databases, visual modeling tools, and project
management tools; while others require hardly anything. If a project manager

must manage multiple design changes, he or she will need a configuration

management tool and technique.

Project criticality
Any critical project with a "must-deliver" target date needs to have the correct
choice of methodology. The project might require additional resources to finish
by the required date. If the methodology is too small, the project manager loses
control; too large and formal, he or she slows the project down. A project
manager's experience and skills will help in choosing the best approach.

Existing processes
In any company, the maturity and ease of use of existing project processes
largely influence the methodology. Some company processes may be totally
unreliable and ad hoc, slowing down completion of tasks.

Light or heavy methodology

The choice between using a light or heavy methodology determines the success of
the project.

Light Methodologies
Ever-increasing technological complexities, project delays, and changing client
requirements, brought about a small revolution in the world of development
methodologies. A totally new breed of methodology, which is agile, adaptive, and
involves the client, every part of the way, is starting to emerge. Many of the
heavyweight methodologists were resistant to the introduction of these "light
weight" or "agile methodologies". These methodologies use an informal

communication style. Unlike heavyweight methodologies, lightweight projects have

only a few rules, practices, and documents. Projects are designed and built on faceto-face discussions, meetings, and the flow of information to the clients.
The immediate difference of using light methodologies is that they are much less
document- oriented, usually emphasising a smaller amount of documentation for the
project. The great thing about light methodologies is that they are learning
methodologies. After each build or iteration, the team learns to correct issues on the
project and improvement cycles form throughout the project. Additionally, with light
methodologies, the project teams are smaller and rely on working more closely,
fostering knowledge sharing, and having almost instantaneous feedback. The project
manager does not need to develop heavy project documentation, but should instead
focus on the absolute necessary documentation.

Heavy Methodologies
The traditional project methodologies are considered bureaucratic or "predictive" in
nature and have resulted in many unsuccessful projects. These heavy methodologies
are becoming less popular. These methodologies are so laborious that the whole pace
of design, development, and deployment actually slows down, and nothing gets
done. Project managers tend to predict every project milestone because they want to
foresee every technical detail. This leads managers to start demanding many types of
specifications, plans, reports, checkpoints, and schedules. Heavy methodologies
attempt to plan a large part of a project in great detail over a long span of time. This
works well until things start changing, and project managers inherently try to resist
change.

If the project manager does not obtain a complete list of user requirements from
clients for the heavy weight project, it is very likely that the heavy methodology will
not work effectively because the project will be racked with change, slippages, and
rework on the project documentation. A heavy weight methodology works on the
assumption that the more rules and coordination there are, the better the project
result will be. A complex project requires sufficient documentation just to jog the
memory of the many team members on the project. However, excess methodology is
very costly and inept, there are more updates to reports, plans, and schedules.
Alternatively, there are times when a heavyweight methodology may be appropriate
for super projects where it is necessary to gain stricter control and coordination
between phases, and to improve the lines of communication between team members.

Importance of methodology and life cycles

Successfulimplementation of

any project methodology is a project itself. The

hard part is to roll it out and make it part of the company's everyday culture.
Although managers can manage projects without a formal methodology, having one
can be a big help. Project management methodologies have been around for
decades, but first started to become popular in Information System (IS) in the early
1970s. These methodologies usually have two components. The first is an overall
process for doing things, while the second consists of templates or forms required at
specific portions of that process. While the process itself is the true methodology,
most project managers consider the templates and forms to be part and parcel of the
methodology.

Project management methodologies are important for two reasons. First, they
standardize the way in which an organization manages its projects. This allows
people from anywhere in the organisation to talk with one another using the same
terms and the same definitions for those terms. Presenting a consistent approach to
project management via standards also allows project managers to cover for one
another when the need arises. The second reason that methodologies are important
is that they provide novice project managers with the tools to manage projects,
without requiring a long learning curve.

Project life cycles generally go hand in hand with project methodologies. Such life
cycles break a projects life into a series of phases or stages. The end of each phase
provides a convenient project review point for senior management to institute go or
no-go decisions, and also allows project managers to plan the next phases in more
detail. While project life cycles can have many phases, the majority have three to
five. They include some type of project start-up or initiation, a project construction
or implementation stage, and, finally, a project evaluation or post- implementation
review. The Project Management Life Cycle has four phases: Initiation, Planning,
Execution and Closure as shown in Fig.

Selecting project management methodologies

First, an exploration of the benefits and drawback of vendor methodologies is in
order. The greatest benefit of a vendor methodology is that the work is already done,
which can save an organisation literally years of developing an internal methodology.
The vendor methodology has also been tested and proven to work, saving both the
time and headaches involved in smoothing out process wrinkles. On the downside,
however, purchased methodologies

require

an organisation to change its

existing practices to match those of the methodology.

If it does not, then the organisation must customise at least some of the
methodology. These customizations can vary from minor tweaks of the process, to
customisations so severe that the original purchased methodology is virtually
obliterated. Another drawback of purchased methodologies is their price. Some of
the more popular methodologies for IS projects include Dynamic Systems
Development Method (DSDM) from Computer Associates and PRIDE from
Computacenter.

Implementation of project management methodologies

Once an organisation has either selected a vendor methodology or developed one

in-house, it is ready to start the long, often tedious process of creating project
standards. While some of the purchased methodologies come with standards for
various project components, organisations will need to develop standards for those
that do not have them. One of the first steps in implementing a project methodology
is good planning. The only thing that really distinguishes projects from non-projects

is the project life cycle. To develop a broad understanding of the generic discipline
of the management

of, both project managers and executives should address the

broad range of issues affecting all stages of the life cycle in all kinds of projects [2].
This is certainly a tough challenge as it requires a substantial breadth of analysis
and understanding. Maintaining a coherent conceptual view of the discipline at this
broader level is generally difficult. We can, however, create a simple structure
comprising project methodology; project team; tools and templates; business
processes and development techniques in three separate levels to show this
relationship.

Fig. 4: Project structure and composition.

Creating WBS, Estimating, and Tracking Standards

The first standard to be established is how project WBSs will be created. Many
organisations develop project templates for the most common types of projects
developed in the organisation, and then specify that project managers work from
these templates. The advantage of this is that project managers are not
reinventing the wheel on each project [2, 10]. In turn, this speeds up planning,
and allows better project tracking. After WBS standards are established, the
organisation must decide how estimates will be created. Estimates can be
determined from expert opinions, weighted averages, statistics from previous
projects, or from techniques such as function point analysis.

If organisations track their projects accurately and religiously, they can use statistics
from previous projects to provide the most accurate estimates. This highlights the
need for standards in tracking projects. Most organisations use some type of
automated time, keeping package to track time against proj tracking has three
project-related purposes. The most critical is to accurately judge where a current
project stands. However, other reasons that are almost as important are the uses of
time tracking for project cost accounting, and for data collection, in order to better
estimate the next project. To provide the best database for estimating future projects,
these packages should allow tracking against each task in the WBS, reinforcing the
desirability of standard WBSs [10].

Change Control, Quality Control, and Communications Standards

Standards for change control, quality control, and communications are equally
important to project success. Change control in this context does not refer to changes
in functioning production systems, but rather to changes in the project itself. The
most common modifications to be managed are scope changes, generally expressed
as a need for increased or different functionality. Because estimates are based on

functionality as originally conceived, changes to initial functionality will obviously

impact the projects cost and schedule.
To minimise this effect, change control policies outline the project managers range
of discretion for approving changes, and spell out escalation levels and procedures.
While these two standards can be negotiated at the beginning of each project, general
guidelines can prove helpful. Quality standards in an IS department tend to address
how the department handles testing and production turnover. Some examples include
how unit testing, system testing, and user acceptance testing will be performed.
Communications standards are also important to successful projects.

The main reason that projects change as often as they do is that someone
misunderstood a communication, be it the systems person or the client. The
organisation can significantly reduce the number of changes to a project in its later
stages by setting clear communication guidelines during planning, and then
constantly updating everyone involved in the project as it progresses, and doing so in
a standard manner.

2. Methodology Training
While it is attractive to start training employees on the new methodology as soon as
it is selected, this jumping the gun can be hazardous to the ultimate success of
methodology implementation. Certainly, the methodology will evolve as employees
start using it, but there should be a base of standards in place prior to training, lest
employees, at a minimum, require retraining. In some organisations, employees
have actually revolted and chosen not to use the methodology at all, until standards
have been established [2, 10]. With at least tentative project tracking, estimating,
change control, quality control, and project communication standards in place, the

organisation is ready to conduct IS departmental and client training. This training

can be performed in three way:

Using outside consultants, who often develop the training as well; via internal
employees; or using a combination of consultants and employees. If the
organisation chooses the combination approach, external consultants often
develop the training, whereupon they train the internal employees regarding
how to deliver the training.
Since both project managers and project participants must understand the new
methodology, it often makes sense to have two separate classes. The more indepth class, for project managers and project leaders, ideally provides case
studies, so they can actually practice the critical portions of the methodology.
Although this type of training initially takes longer, the learning curve is less
steep when project managers and leaders start following the methodology on
real projects.
The training for project participants can be less detailed, focusing on their roles
in the new methodology. It need not specifically train them to use all the pieces
of the methodology.

The Agile Methodologies

Project or development managers are still facing controversy between the agile and
heavyweight methodologies. Currently, many companies favour the agile
methodologies. Agile methodologies present new, nontraditional ways of building
complex products and systems. Projects that use agile methodologies are now
starting to report improved time line and cost savings, compared to those in the
heavyweight family .

Additionally, project teams are hailing the agile family of methodologies as

remarkable because, at last, a series of methodologies contributes directly to the
business. Many managers tend to stick with the heavyweight methodology because
they want to predict the entire project until the last man-hour, whereas the project
teams tend to stick with dynamic shorter cycles. Industries that use agile
methodologies include financial, IT, telecom, utilities, and many more service
industries. Furthermore, this trend is starting to emerge worldwide. The following
are the most commonly used agile methodologies:

 Extreme Programming (XP)

Scrum
Crystal methodology
Dynamic Systems

Development Methodology (DSDM)

Rapid Application Development (RAD)

Adaptive software development
Lean development
Feature-driven development

Agile methodologies better suit small projects where smaller project teams are
involved. With larger team size and the complexity and duration of the project, the
choice of a heavyweight methodology is purely from a command and control
perspective. Many smaller companies do not use heavyweight methodologies and
prefer the more agile approach to building solutions [7].

3. Differences between traditional and modern project management

Comparisons between traditional project management and modern project
management from the four perspectives of planning, leading, organisation and
controlling are explained below.

Planning
i. Traditional planning
Planning for an operational environment consists primarily of establishing the

schedules people work, assigning individual tasks, scheduling vacations and

adjusting for expected and unexpected time away. Plans for Continuous Efforts
may assume highly stable end-products, a well-defined process and taskbased workers. This yields plans that are very predictable early on and highly
stable over time. Many of the project management techniques and current day
expectations were based on these assumptions. Staff planning for a Single-Time
Effort is complicated by dynamic teams comprising of people who typically do
not report administratively to the Project Manager. Matters become seriously
complicated when these people are available on a limited, unpredictable basis.

ii. Modern planning

Project planning focuses on breaking down the total effort into assignable units,
estimating this work, defining the most efficient order in which the work should
be performed, and then deploying available staff to specific work packets for
specific windows of time. Perhaps the most significant influence of modern
project management is on project plans and the planning
process. Because Single-Time Effort projects are only performed once, and in
many cases, have never been done before. It is impossible to create final,
stable plans early in the life of the project.

While preliminary and highly speculative projections may and should be

produced, these early plans must be repeatedly re-base lined as new
information becomes available. A complete discovery process is typically
required before stable plans are feasible. Because of their experience with the
early, stable plans of Continuing Effort, many organisations falsely assume
they may simply command early planning data for Single-Time Effort. This

often dooms a project to failure as it is operating with totally invalid set of

expectations and strategies.

Leading
i. Traditional Leading
Leading any human organisation requires managers, working in a benevolent
manner with their subordinates, helping them learn how to accomplish
assigned work. In Repeating Effort and Continuing Effort, the manager is
often the task expert and is fully qualified to perform any work within their
managerial domain. If not, they can easily retain an advisor or consultant who
fills this role. These traditional supervisors and managers are expected to make
the hard decisions, even when others do not agree with their conclusions [5].

ii. Modern Leading

Due to the complexity and diversity of skills needed to perform Single-Time
Effort, it is impractical for the project manager to be the task expert of all work
that must be done. When these managers attempt to blindly dictate direction,
they are quickly exposed by their impractical or unreasonable edits. Instead,
modern managers work to solicit individual contributions, create consensus
within the project team, facilitate group decisions and create an environment
where it is possible for people on the project to accomplish their work with a
minimum of distractions. The modern Project Manager plans, organises and
controls the project with the team and not for the team [5].

Organisation

i. Traditional Organisation
The operational manager is primarily concerned with creating a structure
within his or her control that monitors the work flow. They must insure the
proper number and alignment of employees to accomplish the work in a
consistent manner. Well-defined career paths are established with the promise
of a in-line promotion for length of service. A managers personal ranking in
an organisation is often directly related to the number of people in their
employ. In this setting, the traditional manager often has both administrative
and functional authority over their employees. Administrative duties include
the care and feeding of their employees such as salary administration,
training plans and employee evaluations. Functional authority is the right to
assign work to an individual and have that work be accountable back to the
boss. When this view dominates an organisation, it creates serious conflicts for
managers of Single-Time Efforts.

ii. Modern Organisation

A modern Project Manager must establish clear roles and responsibilities
needed for the success of their project. A project staff often includes many
people who do not report administratively to this manager and may even be at a
higher corporate level. Organising a project structure begins with defining what
is expected of the Project Owner along with each member of the Project Team.
The Project Manager must also define and explain the responsibilities they will
have to the project. Further, these managers typically have only functional
authority over their team.

This authority is often compromised by the priorities, views and occasional

interference of the actual administrative managers. It becomes illogical and

unfair to hold a Project Manager responsible for deliverables and dates when
they have such limited and tainted authority over their team. Even more vexing
is the tendency of out-of control organisations to improve the look of
productivity by deploying the same people to multiple simultaneous projects.
Organisations must address this condition with well-defined roles, clearly
stated responsibilities, full release of people to a project and a corporate
resource management process that insures team members are never overdeployed to multiple projects.

Controlling
i. Traditional Controlling
Controlling an operational organisation includes establishing organisational
performance goals and then determining what each individuals contributions
should be. Individual goals are assigned and measure to insure the employee
is meeting their goals. Control is usually established around target performance
over a standard period of time, such as a quota measured within an hour, day or
week..
ii. Modern Controlling
Single-Time Efforts are measured based on creating quality, not quantity. It is
critical to first verify the completion of promised deliverables. Objective
criteria for completeness and quality must be met before a deliverable is
considered done. Performance and productivity may then be measured by
comparing planned hours, durations, start dates and finished dates against the
actual. However, instead of comparing performance against the original plans
created during the first days of a project, measurements must be against

revised and relevant baseline plans.

4. Conclusion
Selecting a Project Management methodology can be one of the most difficult
parts and can have real impact on the fate of the project. Normally the Project
Managers' criterion for choosing a methodology for any project is mainly based
on an experts opinion, past working experience, government rules and
regulations, organisation, senior management, stakeholders preferences and
client location. All of these can have positive or negative impact on the
underdevelopment projects. However, all of the above mentioned criterion have
inbuilt quality of rigidness. None of these provide any opportunity to analyse the
nature of project and then decide the future course of action related to the
selection of project management methodology. Decisions in which a
methodology is chosen or used based on a single criteria can have serious
negative impacts on the project especially if the project manager, development
teams do not have the knowledge or the pros and cons of the selected
methodology. No project management methodology is meant to be taken
verbatim. It must be customised in the context in which it is being applied in
order to increase the rate of adoption and the opportunity for success. It has been
observed and evident from the above text, that all the methodologies discussed
have some common tools and procedures. There are points where one
methodology has some powerful tool and procedure than the others. In that case
and in order to make the most of these established methodologies, a combine,
mixed approach is required to get the best possible results.