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The Project Management Life Cycle

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The Project Management Life Cycle

A complete step-by-step methodology for initiating, planning, executing and closing a project successfully

Kogan Page,

15 min read
10 take-aways
Audio & text

What's inside?

To manage a project correctly, get organized. Set goals, hire the right people, anticipate problems and deliver on time.

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Editorial Rating

6

Qualities

  • Applicable

Recommendation

This book is for people who conceive of work in terms of to-do lists, bullet items, flow charts and tables of organization. If you're not that type, you might want to consider delegating your next project-management task to someone else - because, often, that kind of detail-oriented mentality is exactly what a project needs. At times, this book reads more like an extended outline because of its step-by-step approach. And author Jason Westland is clearly interested in promoting his trademarked "Method123 Project Management Methodology" or MPMM, and his Web site selling various planning aids. However, the book is both detailed and comprehensive, complete with charts, diagrams and even a free CD-ROM. As the cycle of corporate change accelerates, every company needs to become better at executing projects. getAbstract recommends this book to managers who need a map through the maze of tasks involved in bringing a special project to a satisfying conclusion.

Summary

Mastering the Basics

To respond to changes in the business environment, many companies have transformed themselves from operations-oriented to project-oriented businesses. The goal of any project is to bring about beneficial change to the company. A project is a "unique endeavor" that has a "defined timescale" - in other words, a beginning and an end, when you'll hand in the deliverables. A project has an "approved budget" and always involves "an element of risk." Project management comprises the activities, skills and processes that will bring the project to successful completion.

Research indicates that as many as seven out of every 10 projects fail: they are late, overbudget, of poor quality or all of the above. Given the growing importance of projects to corporations, which must continually adapt to rapidly changing circumstances, these kinds of disappointing project results are a matter for concern.

The main reason projects fail is that they lack a systematic implementation methodology such as the "Method123 Project Management Methodology" (MPMM). This method begins by breaking down all projects into four phases:

  1. "Project initiation" - ...

About the Author

Jason Westland has served as a project director, a general manager and a CEO. He managed strategy for the British national railroad and has advised project managers around the globe.

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