What is Project Management?
Project Management is a common term these days, but what exactly is it? Isn’t it just the formal way of saying “getting shit done”? I have to admit — prior to really learning about project management, I had thought: project managers just hold status meetings, make schedules and budgets, and ask “is it done yet?” — how hard could it be? Those things might be part of it, but there’s so much more to it.
In this post, I’ll provide a definition of project management, share my personal story for getting into the field, and offer a few principles I’ve learned through education and experience.
What is Project Management?
To understand what project management is, it’s important to understand what a project is. A project is “a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product, service or result,” according to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) Guide [I’ll explain what this is in the next paragraph]. The key words here are “temporary” (there’s a start and end), “unique” (different from before), and “product, service, or result” (some kind of output). The Project Management Institute (PMI) defines project management as “the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements” [source]. I would also add that projects should produce some kind of business value or benefit.
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge
The PMBOK Guide, a 600-or-so-page book, is a set of generally recognized practices in the profession of project management, compiled into a centralized reference source. This is what the Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification Exam is based on [read about how I passed the exam in my other blog post here].
The PMBOK Guide details a matrix of 49 processes arranged into ten knowledge areas and five process groups, among other things (yes, it’s broken down into many, many steps).
For real-life application, the PMBOK Guide doesn’t need to be followed to a T for every project (in fact, this would be impossible). Every project is different and requires different things; the PMBOK Guide describes every step in detail, but is meant to be adapted depending on the situation. PMP knowledge doesn’t solve all project problems nor does it guarantee project success. It does, however, provide a framework for all the components a successful project would have, while offering guidance for process, things to consider, potential risks, how to deal with issues, etc.
Why I got into Project Management
A major reason I became interested in project management was experiencing a particular project go sideways. Once upon a time, I was informally assigned a project involving senior executives, which initially seemed simple. In retrospect, it had an unrealistic timeline, unclear budget, and undefined scope — all of which should have been red flags. At the time, not only did I not know how to ensure project success, I didn’t even know what project management activities were. In the end, a lack of stakeholder agreement, communication breakdown, and unmet expectations resulted in project failure. Fortunately, the stakeholders involved were forgiving and even acknowledged my hard work and commitment, but I still felt like a failure. For an interesting read on the topic of project failure, check out the blog, Why Do Projects Fail?.
After this experience, I kept asking myself what went wrong and how could this have gone better? I never wanted to experience that kind of failure again. I dove head first into learning about project management and was determined to obtain the PMP certification. Luckily, I had friends who had already completed it and were generous with their advice on how to get certified and how to become a good project manager.
Another catalyst for my transition into project management was moving on from doing actual creative work and also from marketing. After working as a graphic designer and in marketing for a decade, I wanted to add to my skill set. I knew I still wanted to be close to design and marketing and figured project management — particularly creative project management — was a way to still be involved. I also realized my strengths were in getting things organized and getting things done. As a project manager in brand, I’m able to still be part of the creative process and be involved in creating cool stuff with cool people.
Project Management Principles
I’ve been lucky enough to be able to learn from some great teachers and professionals in the project management industry. Here are a few things I’ve picked up along the way:
Plan the Work, Work the Plan
The majority of work for a project manager is often in the beginning phases of the project, particularly in the planning stage. This is when scope is agreed on, the people involved are determined and how they will be communicating, how the work will be done, when the work will be done, how problems will be dealt with, etc. If a project is well-planned upfront, the execution should be a breeze, as long as things proceed according to plan. It’s all about being prepared.
People, Process, Business Environment
The new PMP certification exam was updated January 2, 2021 [source] to focus on three new domains: People, Process, and Business Environment (previously, from 2015 onwards, it had focused on the stages of a project lifecycle: Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring and Controlling, and Closing — a more traditional, linear approach). These are definitely the major things a project manager needs to have a good grasp of. In acknowledging that today’s project management practitioners work in a variety of project environments and utilize different project approaches, PMI made this adjustment. This revision shows the progressive nature of project management as the role of project managers continue to evolve in order to include more diverse skills and approaches. This also helped to make space for more predictive, agile, and hybrid approaches, which are gaining popularity.
Scope, Schedule, Cost
What needs to be done, by when, and how much will it cost? Project success is heavily dependent on how well scope, schedule, and cost are known, planned for, managed, and executed. It’s important to understand that any one of these cannot change without the others changing. If scope changes, the schedule or cost must change. If schedule changes, scope or cost must change. And (you guessed it) if cost changes, scope or schedule must change. Understanding the impact when things change is vital to project management. And don’t be scared to let people know they can’t get something for nothing (no such thing as a free lunch, right?). Establishing boundaries is a good way to set expectations. The reality for any project is that there is never enough time and never enough money (also in life), so how do you make the best of it?
Roles and Responsibilities
A project manager is a leader, organizer, collaborator, connector, motivator, communicator, process creator, structure builder, problem solver, mediator, facilitator, teacher, learner, notetaker, transcriber, and more.
They wear many hats (this is why my homepage image is my hat collection — I like to wear many hats — you caught that, right?).
One major responsibility of a project manager is leading and managing the project team as well as others involved with the project. It’s the project manager’s job to make sure everybody knows what the project goal is and what they need to do to achieve it. Then, it’s all about making sure things happen as agreed to. Arguably, the most variable part of any project is people, but also the most vital, as they can make or break a project plan.
Getting the right information, to the right people, at the right time
One of the most important traits of a project manager is communication — it’s what they do all day. Whether it’s a face-to-face conversation with a team member, sharing status updates with a steering committee, or reviewing a contract with a vendor, project managers are constantly communicating, so they need to be efficient and effective at it. It can be as simple as communicating who, what, when, where, why, and how. Let people know what’s happening, when, and allow room for discussion.
Project managers are connectors; they bring people and information together. They also help remove barriers to getting things done. This can be technical obstacles, but also interpersonal and social obstacles. It’s important to acknowledge that different people have different communication styles; some prefer face-to-face (casual chats or formal meetings), while others prefer instant messaging, email, video conference, etc. The thing to keep in mind is to meet them where they’re at. Finding out what motivates people also helps in better understanding. With communication being such big part of project management, knowing how to deal with people is important and being personable helps.
Seek To Understand
As a project manager, it’s important to stay neutral and always look for the truth (without getting too philosophical — seeking to understand can also apply to life in general). Being able to evaluate a situation logically in order to determine the best course of action is the trait of a good project manager. It’s their responsibility to gather facts, determine impact, offer solutions, facilitate decision-making, and follow through with next steps. In other words, be competent at gathering information, interpreting it, and using it effectively. Knowledge is power!
More Information
If you’re interested in learning more about project management and PMP, the PMI website has a lot of good information. There are Local Chapters of PMI if you’re looking to connect with people in your area. You can also contact me — I’m always up for talking about project management!