Dynamic Project Management

This comprehensive, practical guide examines high-tech engineering projects and the people who implement them. It shows readers how to manage in today's competitive and demanding high-tech project environment and how to meet profit goals and motivate professionals. Based on actual experiences within some of the authors clients' organizations, the book addresses different types of projects, the difficulties in working within project organizations, the role of the project manager, the skills needed to survive in a multiproject environment, how to build the project team, dealing with conflict, how to respond to the request for a proposal, and how to evaluate and select computer-based project management information systems. Applications-oriented and eminently useful, the concepts and suggestions in this book can be successfully incorporated into the reader's own organization.

The topic of this book is known as dynamic scheduling, and is used to refer to three dimensions of project management and scheduling: the construction of a baseline schedule and the analysis of a project schedule’s risk as preparation of the project control phase during project progress. This dynamic scheduling point of view implicitly assumes that the usability of a project’s baseline schedule is rather limited and only acts as a point of reference in the project life cycle. Consequently, a project schedule should especially be considered as nothing more than a predictive model that can be used for resource efficiency calculations, time and cost risk analyses, project tracking and performance measurement, and so on. In this book, the three dimensions of dynamic scheduling are highlighted in detail and are based on and inspired by a combination of academic research studies at Ghent University (www.ugent.be), in-company trainings at Vlerick Business School (www.vlerick.com) and consultancy projects at OR-AS (www.or-as.be). First, the construction of a project baseline schedule is a central theme throughout the various chapters of the book, and is discussed from a complexity point of view with and without the presence of project resources. Second, the creation of an awareness of the weak parts in a baseline schedule is discussed at the end of the two baseline scheduling parts as schedule risk analysis techniques that can be applied on top of the baseline schedule. Third, the baseline schedule and its risk analyses can be used as guidelines during the project control step where actual deviations can be corrected within the margins of the project’s time and cost reserves. The second edition of this book has seen corrections, additions and amendments in detail throughout the book. Moreover Chapter 15 on "Dynamic Scheduling with ProTrack" has been completely rewritten and extended with a section on "ProTrack as a research tool".

Although project management is a newly recognised profession, it deals with a number of significant challenges. We seem to operate in an unprecedented environment, rife with change, innovation and turbulence. Moreover, projects by their very nature tend to push boundaries, encourage novelty and demand engagement with the uncertain and the unknown. Indeed, projects reflect our organised impulse to constantly amend, shape, improve and refine our context. So how can future projects overcome the challenges? Rethinking Project Management for a Dynamic and Digital World makes a powerful and original statement equipping project leaders and managers with new approaches and frameworks for an increasingly demanding world where the traditional methods, models and mindsets no longer suffice. The book explores new trends, promising ideas and novel concepts and distils the fundamentals for marshalling a world concerned with people, communities and value by deploying innovation, rethinking purpose and acting responsibly. An increasingly borderless, upwardly mobile and entrepreneurial society requires a revamped and revitalised project perspective that is more dynamic, adaptive and reflective. This volume brings together some of the best writing by leading authorities on many key topics, including benchmarking, lean quality, communicating, teams and teamwork, followership, organising for project work, project frameworks, agile working, project portfolios, strategic initiatives, strategic alignment, trust, entrepreneurship, putting people first, social processes, positive organisations, rethinking progress, the hacker paradigm, community, stewardship and knowledge management. The collection thus offers an invaluable new resource for informed managers looking to engage with the latest thinking and research and for researchers seeking to reflect on how the discipline is changing.

The topic of this book is known as dynamic scheduling, and is used to refer to three dimensions of project management and scheduling: the construction of a baseline schedule and the analysis of a project schedule’s risk as preparation of the project control phase during project progress. This dynamic scheduling point of view implicitly assumes that the usability of a project’s baseline schedule is rather limited and only acts as a point of reference in the project life cycle. Consequently, a project schedule should especially be considered as nothing more than a predictive model that can be used for resource efficiency calculations, time and cost risk analyses, project tracking and performance measurement, and so on. In this book, the three dimensions of dynamic scheduling are highlighted in detail and are based on and inspired by a combination of academic research studies at Ghent University (www.ugent.be), in-company trainings at Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School (www.vlerick.com) and consultancy projects at OR-AS (www.or-as.be). First, the construction of a project baseline schedule is a central theme throughout the various chapters of the book, and is discussed from a complexity point of view with and without the presence of project resources. Second, the creation of an awareness of the weak parts in a baseline schedule is discussed at the end of the two baseline scheduling parts as schedule risk analysis techniques that can be applied on top of the baseline schedule. Third, the baseline schedule and its risk analyses can be used as guidelines during the project control step where actual deviations can be corrected within the margins of the project’s time and cost reserves.

Discover solutions to common obstacles faced by project managers. Written as a business novel, the book is highly interactive, allowing readers to participate and consider options at each stage of a project. The book is based on years of experience, both through the author's research projects as well as his teaching lectures at business schools. The book tells the story of Emily Reed and her colleagues who are in charge of the management of a new tennis stadium project. The CEO of the company, Jacob Mitchell, is planning to install a new data-driven project management methodology as a decision support tool for all upcoming projects. He challenges Emily and her team to start a journey in exploring project data to fight against unexpected project obstacles. Data-driven project management is known in the academic literature as “dynamic scheduling” or “integrated project management and control.” It is a project management methodology to plan, monitor, and control projects in progress in order to deliver them on time and within budget to the client. Its main focus is on the integration of three crucial aspects, as follows: Baseline Scheduling: Plan the project activities to create a project timetable with time and budget restrictions. Determine start and finish times of each project activity within the activity network and resource constraints. Know the expected timing of the work to be done as well as an expected impact on the project’s time and budget objectives. Schedule Risk Analysis: Analyze the risk of the baseline schedule and its impact on the project’s time and budget. Use Monte Carlo simulations to assess the risk of the baseline schedule and to forecast the impact of time and budget deviations on the project objectives. Project Control: Measure and analyze the project’s performance data and take actions to bring the project on track. Monitor deviations from the expected project progress and control performance in order to facilitate the decision-making process in case corrective actions are needed to bring projects back on track. Both traditional Earned Value Management (EVM) and the novel Earned Schedule (ES) methods are used. What You'll Learn Implement a data-driven project management methodology (also known as "dynamic scheduling") which allows project managers to plan, monitor, and control projects while delivering them on time and within budget Study different project management tools and techniques, such as PERT/CPM, schedule risk analysis (SRA), resource buffering, and earned value management (EVM) Understand the three aspects of dynamic scheduling: baseline scheduling, schedule risk analysis, and project control Who This Book Is For Project managers looking to learn data-driven project management (or "dynamic scheduling") via a novel, demonstrating real-time simulations of how project managers can solve common project obstacles

Recent computer-based tools for project planning and management focus on user-friendliness and interconnectivity. However, these programs function on the Critical Path Method, or CPM, which was created in the 1950s. These programs, which involve simplistic models and methods, ignore the fact that the underlying computations on which they function h

Gain the competitive advantage with innovative management strategies for the new millennium! Business survival in today's global competitive economy requires companies to adapt quickly to rapidly changing markets, tighter schedules, diverse teams, and frequent technological advances. Change today is so pervasive that it has, paradoxically, become a constant. Based on their extensive and diverse project management experience within Fortune 500 companies and U.S. government agencies, the authors provide a practical and highly informative guide that can be applied easily to a variety of technical projects, regardless of industry! Revised and updated to reflect today's revolutionary changes and extraordinary business challenges, The New Dynamic Project Management: Winning Through the Competitive Advantage provides proven, practical management strategies to give your projects and your teams the competitive advantage.

Selling and delivering a project to a satisfied client, and making a profit, is a complex task. Project manager and author Robin Hornby believes this has been neglected by current standards and is poorly understood by professionals in the field. Commercial Project Management aims to rectify this deficiency. As a unique ‘how-to’ guide for project and business managers, it offers practical guidance, and a wealth of explanatory illustrations, useful techniques, proven checklists, real life examples, and case stories. It will give project managers a needed confidence boost and a head start in their demanding role as they go ‘on contract’. At the heart of Robin’s approach is a vendor sales and delivery lifecycle that provides a framework for business control of projects. Unique elements include the integration of buyer and vendor project lifecycles, the recasting of project management as a cyclic set of functions to lead the work of the project, and the elevation of risk assessment from a project toolkit to a fundamental control process. Beyond project management, the book proposes a comprehensive template for the firm whose business is delivering projects. This is a how-to book for project and business managers working in a commercial environment looking for practical guidance on conducting their projects and organizing their firm.