Introduction
Project management is a process of scheduling, organizing, inspiring and conniving resources to realize explicit goals. It also refers to submission of acquaintance, skills and techniques to an extensive array of actions with an aim to meet project particulars (Kanda, 2011). Projects are temporary, unique and undertaken to meet distinctive goals and targets. Thus, managing projects requires application of diverse procedural skills and supervision strategies through five crucial processes. The project management process are crucial to a manager as they help in making sure that the outcomes from each phase are fulfilling and provide a smooth transition to the next phase (Kanda, 2011). Project management is complex and the five processes help to ensure coordination and organization.
Processes of Project Management
The first process is project idea and beginning (Larson, 2010). This involves careful examination of a project idea to determine its benefits and viability. It is important to determine if the project idea is applicable as well as the benefits of implementing the idea. The second process is project description and scheduling (Larson, 2010). This involves developing a project scope that outlines activities of the project. This process ought to generate a budget for the project, a schedule, a list of required resources and project priorities. The third process is project execution (Larson, 2010). This process involves distributing resources and informing various teams of their responsibilities. During this process, activities such as team expansion and solicitation apply. This process also acts as the best time to give all the project information as all teams form before moving to the next process. The fourth process is project performance and organization (Larson, 2010). This process entails comparing the project progress to the actual plan. From the results, a manager may be required to make changes to the project schedule to ensure that they meet objectives at the end. The fifth and final process is project closure. The two main components of this process are contract shut out and administrative closure. Contract shut out entails resolving any open items from the project. Administrative closure entails an evaluation of the project after completion and approval of the outcomes (Larson, 2010). The evaluation aims at highlighting success achieved from the project as well as any lessons learnt.
The Most Important Process
All the five processes of project management are important, albeit on differently. The most important process is project description and scheduling (Kanda, 2011). This process involves planning and developing the scope of the project. The planning process has two categories, which are core planning and facilitating planning. Core planning involves developing steps and processes that apply in all projects such as budgeting, scope development and resource planning (Kanda, 2011). On the other hand, facilitating planning involves developing processes unique to a project that may not apply to another project. This involves activities such as quality needs, project staff and risk identification (Kanda, 2011). The project scope is very important because it has a huge impact on schedule development, project cost and the quality attained by the project. However, it is important to note that good communication is an essential project management skill and component that requires good planning and development (Larson, 2010). Therefore, the scope of a project ought to consider good communication to avoid a jumbled and incoherent project.
Conclusion
Project management processes are crucial to a manager as they help to ensure coordination and organization. The processes are dependent on each other such that the outcomes of one process influence the development of the other. Communication is an essential project management skill that ensures good and stress-free transition between the processes. A well-developed project scope and good communication ensures realization of nearly all project goals.
References
Kanda, A. (2011). Project Management: A Life Cycle Approach. New York: PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.
Larson, E. (2010). Project Management: The Managerial Process. New York: McGraw-Hill Publishers.