Project Management Definitions
A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result. The temporary nature of projects indicates a definite beginning and end. The end is reached when the project’s objectives have been achieved or when the project is terminated because its objectives will not or cannot be met, or when the need for the project no longer exists.
What is Project Management?
Project management (PM) is the art of creating the illusion that any outcome is the result of a series of predetermined, deliberate acts when, in fact, it was dumb luck… Harold Kerzner also defines Project Management as a “Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling”.
Project Management Institute – PMI – defines project management is a methodical approach to planning and guiding project processes from start to finish which 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.
Arcording PMBOK, Project Management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements. Project management is accomplished through the appropriate application and integration of the forty-two logically grouped project management processes comprising the five process groups.
Wikipedia definition of Project Management “PM is the discipline of planning, organizing, and managing resources to bring about the successful completion of specific project goals and objectives. It is often closely related to and sometimes conflated with program management”
It is also found on Project Management Help website, PM 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.
