So, let’s start from the beginning. Who exactly is it that manages projects?
Anyone who oversees a project is a project manager, as the term suggests. Everyone is a project manager in some capacity, even if the project in question is their own life. To go into greater detail, let’s speak about the activities that one participates in when they have the goal of doing something.
They first come up with a strategy or a concept and then devise a mechanism to put that plan into action to achieve the intended outcome. This step also involves determining whether or not they have the necessary resources, such as time or money, to carry out the plan.
Take, for instance, the scenario in which you want to spend your holiday in a nation other than your own. You realise that you can’t simply stand up and walk out, right?
For the whole of this endeavour, you will need to have a strategy in place. There are things like paying for plane tickets, obtaining a visa, preparing sure you have enough money to spend, booking a hotel room, and ensuring that you do not have any outstanding work, particularly if certain due dates are drawing near, amongst other things.
You are going to need to approach this methodically. You will first need to plan the process, consider the locations that you would like to visit, decide how many days you would want your vacation to be, check to see what kinds of tickets are available, arrange the flights, book the accommodations, and take care of any other necessary details.
During the process of managing a project, several adjustments are made to guarantee that progress will continue to be made toward the goal of success, which includes being inspired… There may be times when you won’t succeed, but learning from those experiences will help you succeed the following time.
This is especially true for undertakings that you do yourself. You first decide what it is that you want to create, then do some research to determine what it is that you need when you work on the project until it is finished, and then you can be the proud creator of whatever it was that you created. As the project is completed successfully, you will get valuable experience that will better prepare you to carry out the activity again, or perhaps something quite similar, shortly.
Now that we’ve covered the basics, I’d like to share with you the definition:
“Project managers are responsible for the planning, procurement, and execution of a project, and this role applies to any endeavour that has a specified scope, defined start, and defined completion, independent of the industry. Project managers are the initial point of contact for any difficulties or inconsistencies that arise from inside the heads of different departments in a business. This is done before the matter is brought to higher authorities in the organisation. A project manager is accountable for overseeing all aspects of project management. This person is more concerned with ensuring that the progress, mutual interactions, and duties of multiple parties are maintained in a manner that minimises the danger of overall failure, optimises benefits, and minimises costs. They seldom engage directly in the activities that create the outcome.”
Do you agree that this will need a significant amount of effort? But there is no need to be concerned. The task of your project manager may be made simpler if they have access to the appropriate tools and are proficient in the necessary abilities.
The scale of a project is not predetermined. A project can include the development of an application, the launch of a website, or simply the organisation of a birthday party. When you stop to think about it, our day-to-day lives are filled with instances of projects that are quite similar to one another, and even when we aren’t aware of it, we are managing projects.
A project manager’s role is to know how to go about not just having the project authorised, but also to bear in mind the amount of time, money, and manpower that will be necessary, and then to create an atmosphere that will improve the likelihood that the project will be successful.
You will be responsible for developing timelines and determining whether or not to make use of specialised software for managing projects.
As I have already indicated, businesses give credit for their success to project management because they realise the true value of project management, which is something I will be discussing in the next paragraph.
The True Benefits of Working in Project Management
Let’s speak about the true benefit of project management. In addition, people who are interested in beginning a career as a project manager should be aware that the question “what is the value of the project manager?” is likely to be posed during the interview process.
Everyone here has their conception of what it means for anything to be of value in this setting. It conveys a sense of significance or value. You are aware of how helpful a certain product or person is.
The ability of project management to contribute to the delivery of consistent outcomes while also contributing to an overall increase in the process’s efficiency is what gives it its worth. There is a connection between everything. Good methods in project management may help save expenses, even get the project finished on time, boost the motivation of the team, and lead to many other benefits for a business.
Through the use of project management, the project manager is aware of how to fulfil these commitments. They are in charge of the planning and direction of the work for the team. They keep an eye on how things are going and are prepared to make adjustments to the project if any problems crop up.
Knowing a project is being managed by a qualified project manager is why firms are eager to pay project managers. And I am referring to getting paid a significant amount of money in this section, which is a topic that I will cover further on in this book.
Some of the advantages of a good project manager are:
- The goals of the initiative are very clear.
- Having an idea of what to anticipate
- Efficient execution Having the capacity to deal with problems as they crop up
- Maintaining order within the group
My experience as a project manager has taught me… I had a discussion with the leader of the organisation regarding the project that is currently being worked on. We discuss the predicted outcomes. The expenses and the available money. The group of people currently working on the project. In this part of the meeting, we also discuss the milestones’ due dates as well as the anticipated date of completion. After that, I travel to the next location to check that everything is operating as it should.
In terms of my background in launching websites, one of the first things I do is consult with the customer on the appearance of their blog or website. After that, I develop a spending plan that will be necessary to obtain a programmer to start working on it. The costs are necessary for the staff to maintain the website, manage the content, and do other similar tasks are included in the budget.
In addition, I collaborate with the content team to develop material that will subsequently be published on the website when it has been launched. In addition to this, I plan up a timeline for the social media team to follow so that they can start generating excitement about the imminent launch of the website. It is helpful to set milestones and proceed methodically. As you read further in this book, you’ll have an understanding of what I mean by this point.
As for what many of you will confront, particularly working for a corporation, the main thing for a project manager to accomplish is to identify the pain spots. After the sore spots have been identified, you are in a position to suggest a project that will assist in removing or reducing the sore spot. You might also provide a suggestion on how to boost profitability and other related things.
As a project manager, it is your responsibility to communicate the value that your project management abilities provide to a business. This is because they are aware of the significance and worth of good project management. If you want to take command of the aforementioned project, however, they need to know what you can contribute to the table before they can do so.
Several Varieties of Projects to Choose From
In this section, I’ll be discussing the many sorts of projects that a project manager could eventually be responsible for overseeing in their career.
You may choose to work on a real-world project, or you could work on a virtual one instead. I have worked with both children, and if you want to be successful with any of them, you need to make some adjustments to the way you approach things.
Now, when I say “physical tasks,” I mean things like remodelling a room in a building, making something by hand, and other such activities that need your physical labour. When it comes to virtual projects, they are more concerned with the world of the internet or the virtual space, such as the creation of a website or an application. The execution of various types of projects calls for the use of various kinds of resources.
And you are correct, a single project can have both tangible and intangible components at times.
There is always going to be a group of people working on a project, and that group is going to be comprised of individuals who each bring a unique set of abilities and personalities to the table. To successfully manage a project, you will need to be able to collaborate effectively with the team that has been assigned to you. But more on it later.
Concerning the projects, they can be professional, in which case you would be employed by an organisation to serve as the project manager for one of their endeavours. This can include creating a new company logo or even introducing a brand-new product or service to the market.
There are other scholarly endeavours. These have to do with academic research and checking to see that everything is completed at the right time. If we move away from the more professional aspects of the situation, you may find yourself working as a project manager while you are a student.
Then some undertakings are done for personal use or by oneself. This might include collaborating with another individual on the construction of a new patio, a shed, or even a treehouse. I just wanted to bring up personal projects because I want to relate what I mentioned at the beginning of this course about how everyone has performed the job of a project manager in one way or another to personal projects.
However, the abilities and pointers that I will share can also be utilised in academic and personal projects to increase the likelihood of success. Going forward, I will be focusing more on professional project management with this book; however, the skills and pointers that I will share are transferable.
