Though founded as a formal principle in the 1950’s for use in complex engineering projects, project management skills can be applied in most, if not all, industries today on a day-to-day basis.
The Project Management Institute (www.pmi.org) defines project management rather succinctly as,
the application of knowledge, skills and techniques to execute projects effectively and efficiently.
There are 4 major constraints that I believe must be defined upfront and then actively managed during the execution of a previously defined project:
- scope of work
- time
- quality
- budget
I find that, in order for a project to be successful, the objective itself must be carefully considered during the planning phase to enable the 4 constraints to be managed effectively and efficiently. A primary objective must be specific and measurable. Of course, secondary objectives may be more loosely defined as “nice-to-haves.”
I subscribe to the 4-constraint project management system when managing projects or supervising others. However, I also find value in being cognizant of the Project Management Triangle when analyzing vendor proposals and offerings in the marketplace.
The Project Management Triangle is similar to what is described above except Scope of Work and Quality are merged, so there are only 3 constraints (or sides): Time, Quality and Budget. This is also commonly referred to as the “Fast, Good or Cheap” conundrum in which you can expect to achieve any 2 of those things, but never all 3. I think one could also refer to this as actively managing your own expectations.
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