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Volume IX - Issue X - October 2007

Second Edition

Second Editions include selected high quality papers previously published in another journal in a language other than English. Republication is with the permission from the author and journal of original publication.

 

Popularity vs. Profession: The Project Management Dilemma

By Ruth Murray-Webster & Peter Simon

Editor’s note:  This paper was originally published as Lucid Thought no. 34 in April 2007 by Lucidus Consulting in the UK. It addresses an interesting and important dilemma related to the debate about project management as a profession.  It is reproduced here with approval of the authors and Lucidus Consulting.  For more information, see author bios at end of article.

 

Project management is already considered by many to be a profession but some of us remain to be convinced.  In order to remove any possible doubt the already converted are aiming to convert the rest of us by:

  • Further defining and differentiating project management from general management; and

  • Seeking greater recognition through qualifications and through chartered status.

Unfortunately this move to further recognition is complicated by one very important word ‘project’.  It used to mean a unique piece of work delivered within time, cost and quality constraints to meet objectives (or whatever variation on this description you prefer) but over time this seemingly clear definition has become muddy. The word project is now firmly set in common parlance.  Not only do we have projects to manage the building of a 100,000 seat sports stadium or to launch a new bank account but our children have history projects to produce a piece of researched work on the Romans or the Cold War. 

This means ‘we’ have conspired to create a vast number of projects ranging from the biggest and most complex endeavours ever undertaken to projects that are simple and are carried out by an individual person without any need to involve anyone else (apart from willing parents and friends).  As a result of having a vast number of projects we suddenly have a vast number of people who call themselves project manager.

Read the complete paper English

 

About the Authors:


Ruth Murray-Webster
Author

Ruth Murray-Webster, MBA, APMPQ, PMP is managing partner at Lucidus Consulting Limited in the UK.  She has over 20 years of experience as an organizational change facilitator, coach, consultant and manager.  In her early career, she led significant organizational re-alignment programmes for two blue-chip companies.   For the past ten years, she has worked as an independent consultant, helping a wide range of clients with project, programme, quality, risk and change management solutions.  Ruth is a >Managing Successful Programmes Advanced Practitioner (MSP) and a PRINCE2 practitioner. She is also a full member of the Association for Project Management (APM), the Project Management Institute (PMI®), the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development, and the Chartered Quality Institute.   Ruth has a wealth of knowledge and experience, including international PM experience in China, Japan, Norway, Russia, the UK and the USA.  She is co-author of the APM book ‘Starting Out in Project Management’ and of ‘Understanding and Managing Risk Attitude’ which is now widely acclaimed as leading the way in helping to manage risk effectively.  More information about Lucidus can be found at www.lucidusconsulting.com.  Ruth Murray-Webster can be contacted at Ruth@LucidusConsulting.com.



Peter Simon
Author

Peter Simon, FAPM, APMPQ, PMP is managing partner at Lucidus Consulting Limited in the UK.  He has 30 years of experience as a project management consultant and practitioner across a wide range of industries and business sectors.  In his early career he worked for a variety of organizations in the Oil & Gas, Transportation and Utilities sectors and was responsible for all aspects of project planning, control and risk management on projects in Europe, the Middle East and the USA.  In his later career, he was successful in building up the PM consulting businesses for PMProfessional Group and ESI International.  Peter was an elected member of Council for the Association for Project Management (APM) during 1998-2000 and is a former member of APM’s Executive and Professional boards.  He was Chairman of the APM’s Risk SIG for four years, and was Project Manager and Managing Editor of the APM’s PRAM Guide published in October 1997.  Peter is a co-developer of the APM’s Introductory Certificate and Practitioner Qualifications for project management, and has been highly involved in other APM certification programs.  He is also a member of the Project Management Institute (PMI®) and is a Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) Advanced Practitioner and a PRINCE2 Practitioner. He is co-author of the APM book ‘Starting Out in Project Management’ and of ‘Practical Project Risk Management: the ATOM Methodology’.  More information about Lucidus can be found at www.lucidusconsulting.com.  Peter Simon can be contacted at Peter@LucidusConsulting.com.

 

 

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A Short History of Modern Project Management

By Alan Stretton, PhD

Editor’s Note:This paper was originally prepared and used for a Modern Project Management Course at the University of Technology, Sdyney, Australia, by professor Alan Stretton in the early 1990s.  The paper was also originally published by the Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM) in instalments  in the “Australian Project Manager”, Part 1 in Vol 14, No 1, March 1994; Part 2 in Vol 14, No 2, July 1994; and Part 3 in Vol 14, No 3, October 1994.  In his paper, Professor Stretton provides some historical perspective on the development of modern project management up until that time.  We at PM World Today thought it might be useful for some readers to read these historical developments.  This paper is re-published herein with author approval and the approval of AIPMl.  All rights reserved by Alan Stretton.

When people talk about the history of project management, it is quite common for the Egyptian Pyramids (or the like) to be exampled as early historical projects. But there is rather widespread agreement that what could be validly called modern project management had its genesis in the 1950s. In the ensuing years, many distinctive project management tools, techniques and concepts have been, and are being, developed - particularly as the areas of application of project-based management have been proliferating so widely. This short history of modern project management focuses on mainstream issues and developments in  the past forty-odd years. It also attempts to identify emerging trends in concepts and practices in project management at the time of writing (1994). The majority of the reference materials are US-sourced, with some references to early Australian developments in which the author was personally involved.

Read the complete paper English

 

About the Authors:


Alan Stretton, PhD
Author

Alan Stretton, PhD, Fellow of the Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM) and former chair of the PMI Standards Committee, is one of the world’s most widely respected figures in the project management profession. Alan retired from his second project management-related career in 2006, as Adjunct Professor of Project Management in the Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Australia, which he joined in 1988 to develop and deliver a Master of Project Management program. Alan has a BE Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Tasmania and a Masters Degree in Mathematics from the University of Oxford (UK).  He was Tasmanian Rhodes Scholar for 1948. He was awarded an honorary PhD in Strategy, Programme & Project Management by Ecole Superieure de Commerce de Lille, France in 2005.  Prior to joining UTS, Mr Stretton worked in the building and construction industries in Australia, New Zealand and the USA for 38 years, which included the management of construction, R&D, information and control systems, internal management education programs, and organisational change projects. At the end of 1987, Alan retired from his first career after 26 years at Lend Lease Corporation, now one of the world’s largest construction and property development companies. Since 1982, Alan has been involved in the development of PM-related courses and curricula at major universities in the Sydney area, and in the development of professional standards for both the Project Management Institute (PMI) in the USA and the Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM). Alan Stretton was elected a Life Fellow of AIPM in 1996. Since 1977, Alan Stretton has published over 70 professional articles and papers related to project management, including 34 presentations at various project management conferences around the world.  Alan was named a global advisor to PMForum in August 2007.  Additional information about Alan Stretton can be found at http://www.pmforum.org/pm%20forum%20team/advisors.htm#3.

 

 

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