#14 - Project Management Fundamentals Part 1

Whether you’re new to the world of project management, or a senior project manager wanting to brush up on your skills, this is the right place to be. As always, its best to practice and understand the fundamentals in project management as it will help you out in the long run.

Let’s dive in on the definition of project management.

What is Project Management?

Project management is the art and science of planning, executing, and closing projects. It involves managing resources, time, and scope to achieve specific goals and meet success criteria. Without project management, projects aren’t completed within budget, take forever to complete, and they won’t meet the desired quality standards.

The Project Life Cycle

What is the project life cycle?

Every project that you participate in is divided into five phases. Initiation, planning, execution, monitoring/controlling, and closing. Let’s discuss each of the parts indepth:

Initiation

Welcome to the Initiation phase.

During the initiation phase a project idea is made and the feasibility of the project is assessed.

At this part you’ll want to identify all of the stakeholders involved, the roles of each team member, and create a project charter to ensure that everyone is on the same page.

Tools:

• Project Charter

Planning

I believe that planning is the core aspects of being a project manager. As they always say “If you fail to plan than you plan to fail”.

Take time to communicate with your team about what deliverables need to be completed, the risks and constraints of the project, scope, budget, and create a timeline on when the project will be completed.

Set goals! One of the goals I usually set sounds like this“Complete at least 75% of a project task before the weekend”. The goals can be more explicit than that, but its important to create goals so that the team is motivated to achieve them.

Tools:

• Gantt Chart
• Work Breakdown Structure

Execution

Now that you have a plan, its time to put it to action!

During the execution phase the teams are assembled, the tasks are assigned, and everyone begins their work on the project.

Effective leadership and communication are vital in this phase because you want to keep the team updated on what they need to accomplish. To succeed during this phase, take time to determine the preferred team communication style (chat, email, voice chat, etc) and speak with them throughout the project.

Communication Platforms:

• Slack
• Telegram

Monitoring and Controlling

Now that everyone is working on the project, the project manager needs to know how to monitor and control it. At this phase, you can use project management software to keep everything on track.

Track KPIs and make regular status reports to keep everyone informed on the project status. I like to create a weekly report on the progress, define the roadblocks that are hindering the project, and give a list of suggested solutions to get through them.

Monitoring Tools:

• Asana
• Trello
• ClickUp
• Jira

Closing

The final round of project management! In the closing phase the deliverables are given to the stakeholders for a final review.

Also, it is important to create a post-mortem analysis to learn from the successes and challenges that occured during the project. This will help you and your team navigate through the next project more smoothly and avoid pitfalls that you’ve faced in the initial project.

Fundamental Concepts

There are some frameworks and concepts really known within the project management ecosystem. Here are the most popular ones:

• Agile: It is good for projects that follow an iterative project process. Agile projects concentrate on continuous feedback and incremental releases. If you are a member of a software development team, chances are high that you have used this management style.
• PRINCE2: PRINCE2 is one of the most popular process-driven project management approaches. It is mostly based on flexibility and adaptability, which makes this approach very useful to be applied under a wide range of projects.
• PMP — Project Management Professional: The PMP is based on Project Management Body of Knowledge and covers the best standards and practices in project management operation.

Why Is Project Management Necessary?

Project management is about delivering results, improving team communication, and driving change. Here are some reasons why it is necessary:

Risk Management

A good project manager is aware of the risks that occur within a project. Scope creep is a pain in the ass and the best way to avoid is by documenting everything, communicating changes, and staying aware of potential surprises that occur.

Quality Control

Every project needs someone in charge of quality control. A project manager will help create structured processses and effective monitoring to ensure that the team works at a high quality standard.

Collaboration

Your team is the greatest asset. Without a good team and your project will remain incomplete. It is important to create good communication channels, set clear roles and responsibilities as it will help your team become more productive and more likely to complete the project on time.

How do I Get Started?

Want to know more about project management? Kick off with these three steps:

First, learn the basics. Do some online courses, read books, and go through tutorials that can help in building a good foundation. Perhaps begin with PMBOK Guide or an introductory course on Agile.

Get Certified

PMP, PRINCE2, or Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) certification can add weight to your resume and exponentiate your career prospects.

Get Experience

Apply your knowledge Verfügung in real-world projects. Start small, volunteer for project roles, or seek internships to get practical experience.

Join a Community

Interact with fellow project managers. Join forums, attend conferences, and make contact with your local PMI or PRINCE2 group to get involved.

Conclusion

Project management is an exciting field that has a lot of opportunities for development and growth.

New project managers should take the time to hone their skills and understand the fundamentals to become a more vital role to the team.

So explore your resources, reread this simple Medium tutorial and start your project management journey today!

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