 CHAPTER ONE

 GENERAL INTRODUCTION
(AN OVERVIEW OF THE
FIELD OF PROJECT
MANAGEMENT)

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1.2 Meaning and definition of project

What is a project?
 There is no one comprehensive definition for a project.
Its definition varies from author to author, from
organization to organization, and based on the nature,
objective and other characteristics of the project.
 As a result you may find several definitions of a project
in the literature some of which are provided below.
 A project is an organized effort to do something useful
or attain a useful end result which is sometimes defined
as a plan, venture or enterprise (Angus and Norman,
1997).

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 Project is a temporary organization to which
resources are assigned to undertake a unique,
novel and transient endeavor managing the
inherent uncertainty and need for integration in
order to deliver beneficial objectives of change
(Turner and Müller, 2003).
 A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to
create a unique product, service or result (PMI,
2004).
 Project is a unique process intended to achieve
target outcomes (Zwikael and Smyrk, 2009).

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 A major misconception about a project is relating it to
only construction or creation of such physical facilities as
buildings, roads and dams.
 However, project may involve intangible things such as
creation of awareness (e.g. about HIV/AIDS), eradication
of diseases (e.g. polio vaccination), combating harmful
practices (e.g. genital mutilation) and capacity building
(e.g. training to enhance service delivery capabilities of
public sector employees).
 Thus, projects may range from physical or technical
(construction of physical facilities) to mixed (involving
both physical and nonphysical things) to nonphysical
(dealing purely with behavioral aspects of an
organization).
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In short
 A project is defined as one shot, time tested, goal
directed, major undertaking requiring the
commitment of varied skills and resources.
 A project also described as a combination of human
and non human resources pulled together in a
temporary organization to achieve a specified
purpose.
 A project has a single set of objectives, and a when
these objectives are reached, the project is
completed. Therefore, a project has a finite and well
defined life span.
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 It is a package of time bound, scheduled and assembled
activities dedicated to the attainment of a specific
objective of successful completion of a work, on time
and within the allotted budget.
 Effective management of project is vital for the
development of any economy, since development itself is
the effect of a series of successfully managed and
completed project.

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 Project management, then, is the application of
knowledge, skills and techniques to execute projects
effectively and efficiently.
 It’s a strategic competency for organizations, enabling
them to tie project results to business goals — and thus,
better compete in their markets.
 Project management is a methodical approach to
planning and guiding project processes from start to
finish.

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 According to the Project Management Institute, the
processes are guided through five stages: initiation,
planning, executing, controlling, and closing. Project
management can be applied to almost any type of project
and is widely used to control the complex processes of
software development projects.
Project management processes fall into five groups:
 Initiating
 Planning
 Executing
 Monitoring and Controlling
 Closing

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Features of a project (Distinguishing characteristics of a
project)
 According to Turner and Müller (2003), PMBOK (2004)
and Nicholas and Steyn (2008), the following features
characterize a project:
i. Temporary – Project is not a “going concern”. It rather
is a one-time non-routine activity that has a definite
beginning and a definite end.
ii. Resources – Project involves different resources drawn
from different functions, organizations and professions
that cross beyond the ordinary boundaries of an
organization and its functional units (Nicholas and
Steyn, 2008)

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 Beneficial changes – Turner (2006b) stated that a
project is meant to produce an output which in its turn is
meant to help its owner to achieve beneficial outcome.
 Goal oriented - A key point to note in relation to project
goals is that they should be stated in a way that
facilitates measurement of achievements. The general
rule is that project goals should be SMART – an
acronym for:
 Specific – well defined and clear to anyone that has a
basic knowledge of the project,
 Measurable – how do we know how far away completion
is and when it has been achieved,

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Cont….
 Action-oriented – indicate what should be done to
achieve the objective,
 Reliable/achievable – do we have the resources (human,
financial, material, information, time) to make the goal
happen? Is the objective achievable with the available
resources and timeframe, and
 Time-based – it should identify a definite target date for
completion and/or frequencies for specific action steps
that are important for achieving the goal on/within a
specific time period.

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Classification of projects
Projects may be classified into different categories in
various ways as indicated below.
Ownership – this is based on who owns the project with
no reference to the beneficiaries from the project.
Accordingly, we may have private sector projects
undertaken by investors with the main objective of
earning profit and public sector projects undertaken by
national, regional or local government entities or non-
governmental not-for-profit organizations with the
objective of improving the livelihood of citizens without
expecting any return from citizens consuming the goods
and services of these projects.
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 Source of fund – this is based on whether the project
is financed by equity, loan and/or grant. For example,
most projects undertaken by public sector entities are
financed by external assistance and loan while
projects undertaken by private sector entities use
some combination of equity and loan financing.
 Time horizon – this is based on the time period the
project takes to become operational. Though highly
subjective, the usual classification of projects
according to time horizon is this: short-term projects
cover less than 5-year period of time; medium-term
projects cover between 5 to 10 years; and long-term
projects cover above 10-year period of time
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 Sectoral – this is based on the economic sector the
project is involved in and may include such groupings as
agriculture, industry, mining, health, education, transport
and communication, financial service, defense, etc.
 Types of major resource required – it is not uncommon
to classify projects as capital intensive which highly
depend on physical facilities and technology (e.g.
chemical and steel industries) and labor intensive which
highly depend on human capital (e.g. service and
agricultural projects in developing countries)
 Amount of resources required – although difficult to
determine the amount, projects can be divided in terms of
the amount of resources (e.g. financial and human)
deployed as small-, medium- and large-scale.
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 Assessment of benefits – in terms of the ways one may
be able to assess the benefits obtainable;
 projects may be classified as quantifiable and non-
quantifiable.
 Quantifiable projects are those to which plausible
assessment of benefits can be made (e.g. industrial and
mining projects) while
 non-quantifiable projects are those projects to which
application of plausible quantitative assessments of
benefits is not possible (e.g. health and education
projects).

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How resources are committed – this includes
 new investment project which involve establishment of
new production unit;
 expansion investment which involves repeating or
extending an existing production unit; and
 updating investment which involves replacing or
changing some elements of an existing production unit
to modernize and improve it

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Purposes and roles of projects
 Why do organizations undertake projects?
 This relates to the goals of a project and the answer
depends on whether the project is being undertaken by a
private or public sector entity.
 The ultimate goal of a private sector project is to
maximize the wealth of its stakeholders.
 On the other hand, the primary goal of undertaking
projects by public sector entities is to improve the living
standards of citizens.

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Cont…
 Projects are also said to be the “cutting edges” of
development. They are instruments or tools of
implementing development policies and programs to
bring development and growth to a national and its
citizens.
 They are means by which development aspiration of a
nation (or corporate entity) are put into practice and are
means of realizing development objectives.
 Thus, they are the most practical part of the macro-plan.

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 Besides, regardless of whether they are from the public or
private sector, projects play key roles in national
development. They:
 are catalyst agents of economic development, i.e. they
initiate and support the process of development and
accelerate the process of economic, social, cultural and
political developments,
 create employment opportunities e.g. imagine the
number of people employed in the construction of roads,
housing and business complexes, heath and educational
centers all over the country,
 enhance the supply of goods and services and lead to self-
reliance e.g. imagine the types and volumes of goods and
services the country used to import which are currently
being produced locally, 19
 support foreign currency earnings and improve
balance of payment given that the projects are export-
oriented and consume local goods and services or they
are not highly dependent on imported goods and
services,
 provide the framework for future activities of a nation
or an enterprise and shape the future pattern of
production and delivery of goods and services, and
 They also initiate development of basic infrastructure
and environment\
 Project identification brings the necessary change in
society in course of time
 Project accelerates the process of socio-cultural
development
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The linkage between projects and programs
 Some people use the terms “Program” and “project” as
synonymous. But there is a difference.
 A program is usually larger in scope, is activity-
oriented, and is not necessarily time bound. For
example, health program, educational program,
agricultural or industrial development program may
consist of one or more fertilizer projects, and so on.
 The project objective must aim at meeting the program
objectives. While program objectives may be broader,
and project objectives are more specific and focused.

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 A project is a scheduled undertaking for the purpose of
creating a product or service.
 Program management, on the other hand, is the act of
creating and managing multiple projects, most of the
projects are usually related to one another.
 Project management is usually short-lived with specific
time constraints while program management is an
ongoing process in order to achieve the goals and
objectives.
 The job of a project manager usually involves working
on finite projects or objectives.
 The program manager works more often with strategy.

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 Project Management deals with a relatively stable
environment, while Program Management deals with an
ever changing environment.
 Program Management is about keeping all intentions
and tasks in existence over time, delegating it to others,
and keeping track of their deliverable.
 Program Managers are accountable for the delivering of
the outcome of a team. Most executives and directors are
doing program management at a higher level.
 A lot of their work involves getting status updates, so
that they know the "what so" and cajoling, and reminding
people and teams to send their updates.

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Project plan
 A project plan is "A formal, approved document used
to guide both project execution and project control.
 The primary uses of the project plan are to document
planning assumptions and decisions, facilitate
communication among stakeholders, and document
approved scope, cost, and schedule baselines.
 A project plan may be summary or detailed."
 A project plan is alternatively defined as “a statement
of how and when a project's objectives are to be
achieved, by showing the major products, milestones,
activities and resources required on the project."
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 At a minimum, a project plan answers basic questions
about the project:
 Why? - What is the problem or value proposition
addressed by the project? Why is it being sponsored?
 What? - What is the work that will be performed on the
project? What are the major products/deliverables?
 Who? - Who will be involved and what will be their
responsibilities within the project? How will they be
organized?
 When? - What is the project timeline and when will
particularly meaningful points, referred to as milestones,
be complete?

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 f o r
y o u ! !
n k o n !
T h a n t i
a t t e
o u r
y

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