Project Management
Project management is a carefully planned and organized effort to accomplish a specific (and usually) one-time objective, for example, construct a building or implement a major new computer system. Project management includes developing a project plan, which includes defining and confirming the project goals and objectives, identifying tasks and how goals will be achieved, quantifying the resources needed, and determining budgets and timelines for completion. It also includes managing the implementation of the project plan, along with operating regular 'controls' to ensure that there is accurate and objective information on 'performance' relative to the plan, and the mechanisms to implement recovery actions where necessary. Projects usually follow major phases or stages (with various titles for these), including feasibility, definition, project planning, implementation, evaluation and support/maintenance. (Program planning is usually of a broader scope than project planning, but not always - note: the terms program and programme have significant variations in their meaning in different geographical areas, e.g. Europe and USA.)
Sections of This Topic Include:
Overviews
of Project Management
Useful
Skills -- Team Building and Group Leadership
General
Resources
Overviews of Project Management
Definitions of Project ManagementPlanning a Project
Project Planning
Project Cycle Management
Project Management Productivity Checklist
Team Building and Group Leadership
There are certain skills to have when conducting project management. It's
best to have a team of planners when doing project planning. Therefore, it's
important to have skills in forming, leading and facilitating groups. The
following information will help you develop these skills.
Team
Building
Leadership
(Introduction)
Meeting
Management
Facilitating
in Face-to-Face Groups
Group-Based
Problem Solving and Decision Making
Conflict
Management (this topic provides basics in managing conflict in groups)
General Resources
Project Manager Decisiveness
Project
Management Glossary
Michael Greer's Project Management Resources
Project managers resource
center
Project Management
Institute(PMI)
Project Management Institute communications center
Commercial Solutions Reading Room
Leadership Knowledge Base:
Information to Improve Your Leadership Skills.
Project management training, project
management books, free project templates, project
Free project management book
Project Management Book focused on iterative project management
(for creative industries and software development)
PMConnection
Exclusive Articles
Free
Project Management Articles published weekly
Project Management Community
Webinars
on Chartering a Project and Developing and Using a Work Breakdown Structure
(WBS)
For the Category of Planning and Project Management:
Related Library Topics
Recommended Books
There are many kinds of planning, e.g., strategic planning, business planning, project planning, financial planning, staffing planning, market planning, etc. These kinds of planning often have a common set of terms and activities among them. One of the best approaches to learning about this common planning process, as opposed to studying all of the kinds of planning, is to understand project management. At the end of this section are links to other types of planning that are explained in the Free Management Library.
Also See
Business Planning -- Recommended Books
Strategic Planning -- Recommended Books
