Background
Change, at a seemingly ceaseless increase in pace, is recognized today as one
of management's greatest challenges. Consequently, management focus is shifting
from traditional routine 'enterprise' management, to one of capturing needed
competitive change through establishing a project or a program of projects. Competitive
change and projects are synonymous, but to be successful different projects require
different management approaches. Therefore we need to establish an effective
classification for both the scope of project management and for different types
of project. Table 1 - A Hierarchy of Management Orientation
shows the consequential implications of shifting focus from one to the other.
|
Enterprise
|
Project
|
|
Direction
|
|
Goals:
|
Continuity defined by
- sets of Objectives
|
Purpose:
|
Change defined by
- sets of programs
|
|
Objectives:
|
defined through
- strategies
|
Programs:
|
defined through
- sets of Projects
|
|
Process
|
|
Strategies:
|
achieved through
- Tactics
|
Projects:
|
achieved through
- sets of Tasks
|
|
Tactics:
|
achieved through
- consistent Activities
|
Tasks:
|
achieved through
- variable Effort
|
|
Activities:
|
result in
- continuous product
|
Effort:
|
results in
- unique product
|
|
Characteristic:
|
"In-finite"
|
Finite
|
Table 1 - A Hierarchy of Management Orientation
Historically, projects have been associated with the construction of buildings
and facilities and records tend to focus on the challenges of the construction
work itself. However, even ancient history has something to tell us about the
problems faced on the management side of project work.
For example, the earliest pyramid at Saqqara in Egypt was the first stone building
of any size to be found in the world. It was commissioned by King Zoser of the
third dynasty and while the king was clearly the 'sponsor' of the project, one
of his ministers, Imhotep, was the 'project manager'.
We are told that "Although no trustworthy details of the lives of Zoser
and Imhotep have come down, we can be sure that they were able men who worked
long and effectively together. Probably, Imhotep was a universal genius like
Archimedes and Leonardo da Vinci. Such was his repute as a physician, architect,
writer, statesman, and all-round sage that in later times collections of wise
sayings circulated under his name."[1]
Thus was born the reputation of the project manager, but this particular project
was not without its management problems. The account goes on
"[previously] ... Egyptian kings and nobles were buried in a
tomb called a mastaba ... [but] ... Zoser and Imhotep ... built a stone mastaba
of unusual size and shape. It was square instead of oblong like its predecessors,
and was over 200 feet on side and 26 feet high.
"Not yet satisfied, Zoser and Imhotep enlarged this mastaba twice
by adding stone to the sides. Before the second of these enlargements was completed,
the king changed his mind again. He decided not only to enlarge the structure
still further, but also to make it into a stepped pyramid, resembling four square
mastabas of decreasing size piled one atop the other. Then Zoser changed his
mind once more. The tomb ended as a stepped pyramid of six stages, 200 feet high
on a base 358 by 411 feet ... ."
This brief but age-old example demonstrates some of the classic difficulties
experienced by project management in the modern world such as: controlling the
scope of the project, the impact on cost and schedule, handling a difficult client,
and the frustrations of the project manager. While the account suggests that
Zoser and Imhotep worked well as a team, it is unlikely that Imhotep for his
part was faced with the current-day need to 'gain and retain team commitment'
of those working for him. No doubt he had available a powerful enticement. Those
who failed to perform could be summarily executed!
Today, this form of incentive has been mostly discredited, though not entirely.
Its modern-day equivalent, summary dismissal, is to be found in the corporate
world, but has the attendant difficulties of extended litigation if not conducted
with due care. While the remaining workers may work more intensively, morale
implications suggest that they work less effectively.
The traditional techniques of project management, estimating, budgeting, scheduling
and monitoring the work are relatively easy to master. The difficult areas, to
which most problems can be traced, is to be found in the planning and controlling
of the work, and organizing and motivating the people who do it. Moreover, the
availability of 'universal geniuses' like Imhotep are few and far between, so
that understanding the project management process and enabling project management
learning becomes of primary importance. Major issues include: On what basis will
the project be managed? How will it be controlled? And, how shall we know if
it has been successful?
1. Sprague
de Camp, L., The Ancient Engineers, Ballantine Books, New York, February 1974,
p21.
|
