Polytechnic university of the Philippines

Open university system

Master of science in construction management

CM 652 PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Module 1
Intro to PM

ENGR. GUILLERMO O. BERNABE

SUBJECT SPECIALIST
WHAT IS A PROJECT?

ACCORDING TO PMBOK A PROJECT ''IS A TEMPORARY ENDEAVOR

UNDERTAKEN TO CREATE A UNIQUE PRODUCT, SERVICE OR
RESULT.’’
Operational Work

Operational Works are quite opposite in nature to Projects. Operations are

ongoing and repetitive. They involve work that is continuous without an
ending date, and you often repeat the same processes and produce the
same results.
 Project vs. Operations
• Operations...
- are on going and repetitive;
- Involve work that is continuous without an ending date;
- Often repeat the same processes and produce the same results.

• Projects vs. Operations ...

- Both projects and operations:
- Are performed by people
- Use limited number of resources
- Are planned, executed, and monitored

• ProjectsandOperations(HandinHand)...
- Project usually exist to support the needs of Operations.
- Operations (managers or experts) are usually major stakeholders in
projects
- Projects experts often contribute to the success of the turn over stage of
projects (Sometimes projects members transit to careers in Operations later)
What is Project Management?

Project Management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and

techniques to meet the project requirements.

It is the responsibility of the project manager to ensure that project

management techniques are applied and followed.
What is Program?

What Programs are groups of related

projects that are managed using the
same techniques in a coordinated
fashion.

A program manager manages the

scope, budget, and schedule of the
program

Projects have separate scopes,

budgets, and schedules and may be
managed by separate project managers
What is a Portfolio?
Portfolios are collections of programs
and projects that support a specific business
goal or objective. Note, projects and
programs within a portfolio may not be
related.

A portfolio manager:
- analyzes the feasibility and profitability of
projects in a portfolio and assures their
alignment with business objectives
- Selects projects that contribute to business
objectives.
- Manages resources across projects and
programs (mainly financial resources).
- May decide not to start projects or stop
those that do not contribute to the business
objectives
 Project\Program\ Portfolio Relationship
• Project governance is the activity of aligning project objectives with
strategy of higher organization
Project, Program and Portfolio Relationship
What is a Project Management Office

• The project management office (PMO) is an organizational body or

entity assigned to oversee the management of projects and programs
throughout the organization.
Primary Function of PMO

A Primary function of PMO is to support project managers in a

variety of ways which may include, but are not limited to:
• Managing shared resources across all the projects administered by the
PMO.
• Identifying and developing project management methodology, practices &
standards.
• Coaching, mentoring , training and oversight.
• Monitoring compliance with project management standard policies,
procedures , and templates via project audits.
• Developing and managing project policies, procedures, templates, and
other shared documentation ( organizational process assets);
• Coordinating communication across projects.
Role of a Project Manager

• The Project Manager is the person responsible for accomplishing the project
objectives.
• Project managers strive to meet to balance constraints, including the triple
constraint of project scope, time, and cost goals.
• Depending on the organization structure , a project manager may report to
functional manager.
In other cases project manager may be one of the several project managers
who report to a portfolio or program manager that is ultimately responsible for
enterprise wide projects . In this type of structure, the project manager works
closely with the portfolio or program manager to achieve the project objectives
Constraints

• One of the major changes of PMBOK ® Guide is that it no longer

mentions the triple constraint of scope, schedule and cost.
• Instead it discusses how PMs must balance scope, quality, schedule,
budget, resources and risk.
• e.g. Constraints may include the date a milestone or the project must
be completed OR the maximum allowable risk a project may have.

• NOTE: Appendices A and B of PMBOK

The project manager

• Why do we need project managers?

• Integrator
• Manager
• Person Accountable of project success
• The ultimate project voice
Figure 1 shows typical project activities without a project manager. It
shows the multiple interactions an agency faces without a project
manager to manage the work activities involved in delivering a new
capital asset. Figure 2 depicts a typical project organization with a
project manager. it shows how a project management organization
is structured with the assignment of a project manager to manage
project work activities.
Figure 1 A Project without a Project Manager
Figure 2 A Project with a Project Manager
Project Manager Skills

Skills every good project manager should have:

• Integration Skills
• Communication skills
• Planning and Organizational skills
• Leadership Skills
• Team Building and Motivational Skills • Budgeting Skills
• Conflict Management Skills
• Negotiation and Influencing Skills
1. Integration Skills

• Handed the authority to monitor and coordinate the functions and

activities taking place at various levels of the organization.
• Ensure that the team works towards completing the given project by
making sure that it meets the scope, budget and time.
Effective execution of integration management is regarded to be a critical
success factor for the Project Manager.
2. Communication Skills

• Written and oral communication skills are the backbone of all

successful projects.
• Takes on many forms of communication – project documents, meeting
updates, status reports, etc.
• Must be explicit, clear, and complete (so that the audience has no
trouble understanding what has been communicated)
3. Planning and Organizational Skills

• Must be able to record, track and locate information at a

moments notice - including memos, project reports,
personnel records, vendor /supplier quotes contracts etc.
• Organize events e.g. meetings, workshops
• Put together and manage teams, media releases
• Prioritize and manage problems, the day, time and
interruptions.
4. Leadership Skills

• Leadership & Management are not synonymous

• Leaders impart vision, gain consensus for strategic goals, establish
direction, inspire and motivate others.
• Managers focus on results and are concerned with getting the job
done according to requirements.
• PMs need to exhibit both
5. Team Building and Motivational Skills

• PMs rely heavily on their team

• The team members may or may not have worked together
• The PM must set the tone and help them through different team
forming –stages
• Help the team to become fully functional
• Many times PMs are responsible for motivating persons who do not
report to them directly (Functional organization)
6. Budgeting Skills

• Establish and manage budgets and therefore need some

knowledge of finance and accounting principles
• Need to perform cost estimates for budgeting
• To be able to read and understand vendor quotes, preparing or
overseeing purchase orders, reconciling invoices
• Linking project costs back to project activities and expense items
7. Conflict Management Skills (or Problem-solving Skills)

• This is a Two-fold process

• Define the problem by separating the causes from the symptoms
• Ask questions–is it external or internally based? A technical
problem? Inter-personal? Managerial? What are potential impacts
or consequences?
• Examine and analyze the situation causing the problem and
alternatives available
• The PM must make a decision – determine the best course of
action and implement the decision (not too late though).
8. Negotiation and Influencing Skills

• To be effective at problem solving – requires negotiating and

influencing skills
• Negotiating is working with others to come to an agreement i.e. One-
on-one or in teams
• Required in almost every area of the project – budgets, contacts,
resource assignments, scope definition
• Influencing is convincing the other party that one thing is better than
another
• Required that you understand the formal and informal structure of all
organizations involved.
• Power and Politics -techniques used to influence people to perform
9. Power and Politics (Kim Heldman)

• Power – the ability to get people to do things that they wouldn’t do

otherwise. The ability to change minds and the course of events
and to influence outcomes.
• Politics – involves getting groups of people with different interest to
cooperate creatively even in the midst of conflict and disorder.
Project Managers are generalists with many skills in their repertoire.
They might possess technical skills, but technical skills is not a pre-
requisite for sound project management skills.

The project team is the group of people on whom the PM will rely
for technical details.
REFERENCES:
PROJECT MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE, A GUIDE TO THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT BODY OF
KNOWLEDGE (PMBOK® GUIDE) - 6TH EDITION PROJECT MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE.
MORRIS, P. AND JAMIESON, A., TRANSLATING CORPORATE STRATEGY INTO PROJECT
STRATEGY. PROJECT MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE, 2004.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE, THE STANDARD FOR PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT, PROJECT
MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE.
PROJECT AND CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES.
THANK YOU!