Project Management Paper
Introduction
Any project goes through a series of stages during its life regardless of scope or
complexity. Project activities must be grouped into phases in order for the project manager
and the core team to plan efficiently and organize resources for each activity, and in
addition objectively measure achievement of goals and justify their decisions to move
ahead, correct, or terminate the project. “Project management is the planning, organizing,
directing, and controlling of company resources for a relatively short-term objective that
has been established to complete specific goals and objectives (Kerzner, 2006, p. 4).”“
Furthermore, project management utilizes the systems approach to management by having
functional personnel assigned to a specific project. Once a project team is built, an
excellent way to make sure milestones and goals are efficiently accomplished is by
promoting good communication among project team members on a continuous basis. Team
meetings are a crucial communication method when working with teams. The first project
team meeting is of extreme importance because it is the time when the project goals and
expectations are clarified, roles are defined and team members can meet one another.
What is a Project?
Successful projects deliver what is expected, on time and within budget meeting
stakeholder expectations. “A project can be considered to be 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)
” Are multifunctional (i.e., cut across several functional lines) (Kerzner, 2006, p. 2).”“
Therefore, a project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to achieve a particular aim and to
which project management can be applied, regardless of the project size, budget, or
timeline.
What are the basic phases of the project lifecycle and their purposes?
Every organization goes through life-cycle phases to implement project management.
According to Kerzner (2006, p. 44), there are five basic phases of the project lifecycle. The
five phases are Embryonic Phase, Executive Management Acceptance Phase, Line
Management Acceptance Phase, Growth Phase and Maturity Phase.
In the first phase, the Embryonic Phase, the organization realizes the apparent need for
project management. The purpose of the Embryonic Phase is for the organization to
recognize the need, benefits, applications, and what must be done for project management.
Once theorganization identifies the need for project management, the organization enters
the second life-cycle phase which is the Executive Management Acceptance Phase. The
