TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................3

1.0 INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................4

1.1 Project Management.........................................................................................................4

1.2 Stages in Project Management..........................................................................................5

1.2.1 Project Initiation..............................................................................................................5

1.2.2 Project Planning..............................................................................................................6

1.2.3 Project Execution............................................................................................................6

1.2.4 Project Monitoring and Control......................................................................................6

1.2.5 Project Closure................................................................................................................7

2.0 LEADERSHIP IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT......................................................................8

2.1 Importance of leadership on project management.................................................................8

2.1.1 Planning...........................................................................................................................8

2.1.2 Delegation of the project work........................................................................................8

2.1.3 Monitor the progress of the project.................................................................................8

2.1.4 Communication...............................................................................................................9

2.1.5 Increasing productivity....................................................................................................9

2.1.6 To Build trust within the members..................................................................................9

2.1.7 Control function at the end of the project......................................................................10

3.0 PROJECT PLANNING & INITIATION................................................................................11

3.1 Importance of Planning and Initiation.................................................................................11

3.1.1 Gathers Excitement.......................................................................................................11

3.1.2 Controlled Start.............................................................................................................11

3.1.3 Risk Mitigation..............................................................................................................11

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 3.1.4 Analyzing the Feasibility of the Project........................................................................12

3.1.5 Appropriate Resource Allocation..................................................................................12

3.2 Impacts of Project Planning on Industrial projects..............................................................12

3.2.1 Practical Examples - EU Co-financed Water Projects..................................................12

3.2.2 Practical Examples – American Airlines.......................................................................13

CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................14

REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................15

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 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The paper purpose of this report is to critically analyse the concept of project management. It
sheds light into the five key stages in the project management process and directs its focus on the
importance of leadership and planning and initiation in the project management process.

The author analyses different literature on project management and moves onto an evaluation of
leadership and the planning stage with regards to a successful project, discussing the success
factors of a project.

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 1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Project Management

Project management and project management related studies and research have been frequently
researched by many authors and scholars in the past (Soderlund, 2005). Before probing into this
topic, it is important to first understand how project management evolved and why and key
terminologies, distinguishing what a project is and what project management is.

A project is defined as the achievement of a specific objective, which includes a series of

activities and tasks to be completed that may result in the consumption of necessary resources.
This particular objective is required to be accomplished in a specified period of time with fixed
starting and ending dates (Munns and Bjeirmi, 1996).

Project management on the other hand is the procedure which looks over the entire process of the
project until it is completed. Project management involves the utilization of existing resources
within an organization, managing the project by adapting a collection of appropriate tools and
techniques, with no deviation in the routine organizational work processes. There are different
functions of project management starting from the definition of the required work, setting and
establishing boundaries to this work, distribution of required resources, planning and initiating
the project to actually executing the project, and finally, monitoring the progress of the tasks and
revamping any deviations from the original project plan (Munns and Bjeirmi, 1996; Radujković
and Sjekavica, 2017; Abbasi and Jaafari, 2018).

Is has been examined and understood that scholars of different fields of study recognize project
management to be a different element in that study. For instance, in the field of Applied
Mathematics and engineering, scholars refer project management to be a particular problem-
solving technique that is much similar to the Optimization theory whereas other parties like
social scientists, consider it to be related to behavioral aspects of project organizations
(Söderlund, 2004).

Nevertheless, many other scholars also have different conflicting thoughts and ideas with
relation to project management where some believe it to be of only theoretical and academic

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nature whereas some argue it to be more of a practical nature and of best use in practical
situations, where it is resonated by (Kwak and Anbari, 2009) that project management is a
concept that is built firmly on academic grounds, based on practical and theoretical research.

However, it is observed by the author that based on empirical research, the study of project
management has evolved over the years. Mainly as a result of the evolving trends in the
corporate world. As a result of the emerging trends and new ways of doing things, innovation has
led to new requirements by organizations. That is, how firms plan and organize the development
of products and processes have evolved and formed certain complexities with regards to the
speed of completion of the project or even the limitation of resources and much more. Thereby,
project management scholars and authors use these problems to identify solutions to every new
complexity identified. Hence, the never-ending evolution of project management (Soderlund,
2005).

1.2 Stages in Project Management

The project management process is known to have around five main stages as commonly
discussed by many scholars. The stages are roughly summed up as project initiation, project
planning, project executing, monitoring and cotrolling and project closure. This section will
discuss the main stages in the project management process.

1.2.1 Project Initiation

This is the initial stage in the project management process. This is the stage where activities and
tasks are performed to begin the project. Here, all the introductory requirements are outlined and
defined and the official authorization for the commencement of the project is given. The key
output of this step in the process is the project charter. A project charter is basically a document
that sets the foundation for the beginning of the project. This document formally admits and
accepts the existence of the project. This covers key issues underlying the project specifics such
as the business need, project scope, schedule milestones, deliverables, and resources. These key
issue and topics may be discussed and sorted (Carroll, 2012; Loudon, 2012).

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In this stage, organizations assemble a project team and gather the resources that has the right
skillset and talents that can meet the demands and requirements of the project at a minimum cost
(Project Manager, 2021).

1.2.2 Project Planning

In this, the project is strategized. The set of tasks are laid out that need to be completed as
milestones. This is listed in the project plan. Here, how the project is carried out and by whom
are taken into consideration and necessary information to identify the tasks/activities are
gathered. Moreover, the cost is estimated by preparing a budget for the project.

It is important to consider the possible risks in the project and what actions need to be taken to
mitigate these risks. In this stage a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is prepared to assign the
tasks to the relevant team member/resource. Furthermore, important project management tools
are utilized like Gantt charts and other project management software are utilized (Carroll, 2012;
Loudon, 2012).

1.2.3 Project Execution

This is the stage where the project is actually carried out. The deliverables that were actually
outlined in the project initiation and the tasks assigned to the team members are implemented
(Loudon, 2012). In this stage the critical role of the project manager comes into play. The project
manager looks over the entire execution process, by guiding and regularly meeting up with the
members to ensure they are on track and to remind them what output is required from them.
Here, the costs and expenditure are also kept record of and the team has to coordinate with one
another and gain maximum efficiency. The quality of the milestones achieved are assessed too
(Carroll, 2012; Loudon, 2012; Project Manager, 2021).

1.2.4 Project Monitoring and Control

Even though this stage is separately highlighted in this report, this stage occurs throughout the
entire project, from the execution to the end. This is done regularly to assess the performance.
The outcomes will be matched against the project plan to review the quality. In this stage, an
essential document is the status report. Here, the status of every completed task is written down

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formally, addressing the outcome to be compared with the set standards like the cost, quality, and
in quantitative terms the tasks itself (Loudon, 2012).

1.2.5 Project Closure

Finally, the project is formally closed. Once the deliverables and the resulting product is
acceptable and accepted by the organization, the project comes to an end. All the relevant
documents are archived (Loudon, 2012).

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 2.0 LEADERSHIP IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT

2.1 Importance of leadership on project management

2.1.1 Planning

The project success depends on how effectively and efficiently the objectives of the project is
achieved by satisfying the stakeholders. The execution of the project depends on how the project
is planned, and a poorly planned project has a higher probability of failure. Leadership is
important for a project to be properly planned. A good leader would gather the ideas from those
involved in the project and built a plan which would include the ideas of the subordinates and
focus on the ultimate objective of the project. A project which is planned with the support of
members, has a higher probability to be managed successfully, as the members would realize
their ideas are involved in implementing the project. Leadership is important to coordinate the
subordinates (Globerson and Zwikael, 2002).

2.1.2 Delegation of the project work

The members within the group would possess different skill, attitudes, and knowledge. One
single individual would not be able to carry out all the activities within the project. Leadership is
important to properly delegate the responsibilities, task, and duties among the team members to
properly manage the project. When the tasks to be carried out within the project is not properly
delegate, this would result in conflict of duties among the team on who to do what, which would
ultimately result in the failure of the project (Carroll, 2012).

2.1.3 Monitor the progress of the project

Leadership is important to monitor whether the project is moving in the correct direction or not.
When the project performance deviates from the goals of the project, it is the leader who should
identify what are the causes for the deviation in the project, and what are the steps to be taken to
correct the deviation. If there is no good leadership, the project would not be properly monitored

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and would not realize whether the goals have been achieved or not until the end of the project.
Leadership is important to manage the project in the right direction. If the project progress is in
the correct direction, it is the duty of the leadership to ensure that the progress is continued in
future (Loudon, 2012; Millhollan and Kaarst-Brown, 2016).

2.1.4 Communication

Providing feedback to the members within the group is important to motivate and coordinate the
project. It is the duty of the leader to keep the members within the group motivate to successfully
manage the project. Even though a project might have a good plan, properly delegated if the
members are not motivated, the activities within the project would not be properly executed.
Leadership is important to communicate with the members on how their performance are, where
to improve and guide them to achieve the objectives of the project (Carroll, 2012).

2.1.5 Increasing productivity

To increase the productivity of the project it is important to have a project oriented

organizational structure, with the leadership of well- defined project manager. Without a good
leadership, the project is left alone without any proper directions where each member would
carry out their own task. To increase the productivity of the project, the input from the
employees is important, which would not be achieved if there is no proper leadership. Leadership
is important to improve the input of the employees which would result in increasing productivity
(Greer and Conradi, 2009; Radujković and Sjekavica, 2017).

2.1.6 To Build trust within the members

Leadership is important to build the trust within the members of the project. When any members
within the project faces any obstacles, it is the leader who should be involved in helping the
members to remove the obstacle. When a leader creates such a relationship within the project,
the trust and the spirit of the team would drastically increase. The leader develops a good
relationship with the stakeholders as well. When a project is behind achieving the goals,
leadership is important to properly communicate it with the stakeholders and ensure that the team
would do their best in achieving the objectives. Building a good relationship and trust with the
team members and the stakeholders would help the organization in the long term (Carroll, 2012).

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2.1.7 Control function at the end of the project

At the end of the project it is the leadership that would measure how successful the project is.
Having a proper check on the success of the project is important for the future projects.
Leadership is important to do a proper control function, to collect information on where the
project was successful and where the project went wrong. A lack of leadership would result in no
proper information on how to manage the future projects (Radujković and Sjekavica, 2017).

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 3.0 PROJECT PLANNING & INITIATION

A critical brief description of project planning and initiation has been provided in first chapter of
the report. This section may critically analyse the importance of project planning and initiation in
the industrial context. According to

3.1 Importance of Planning and Initiation

3.1.1 Gathers Excitement

The planning and initiation stage is the very beginning of the project management process and at
this stage, the team member and the planners set out at a very positive tone and brings out the
excitement and enthusiasm among the members. Therefore, having a proper planning and
initiation stage may set the right tone for the process. Hence, it can prove to be motivating an
bring out the best among the members, with higher expectations and more (Carroll, 2012).

3.1.2 Controlled Start

Just as the excitement of starting a fresh project. A proper plan enables the project to be started
with proper controls and boundaries imposed. For instance, setting a budget for the expenditures
of the project keeps the members at the edge when it comes to spending and may always be
economical when it comes to spending in terms of procurement and much more. Furthermore,
this may allow the implementors to be careful when managing time and effort (Carroll, 2012).

3.1.3 Risk Mitigation

Risks are the possibilities of the project failing. This can be an extremely high cost for the
organization especially if the project is already a work in progress. That is, if the project has
already begun and the possible risks were identified whilst its ongoing as the organization needs
to bare the costs of failure and this could lead to inefficiencies. Nevertheless, due to a proper
planning and initiation stage, such possible risks may be calculated and identified, and also
necessary steps and actions will be taken to mitigate or completely avoid these risks. Hence, the
planning and initiation stage may prove to be useful (Greer and Conradi, 2009).

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3.1.4 Analyzing the Feasibility of the Project

Not every idea or process/product development give positive results. Some may not be possible
to implement and may not give the intended results for the organization. Therefore, this may be
identified in the planning stage where a feasibility study will be conducted to understand the
viability of the project. If in the initial stage, the project proves to either be a cost, or not produce
desired results. Then necessary actions could be taken by the higher levels to cancel the project
at possibly zero or minimum cost (Greer and Conradi, 2009).

3.1.5 Appropriate Resource Allocation

Any given task requires resources to execute them. In the planning phase of project management
process, the necessary and required resources are listed out. This includes raw materials and even
the skillset, labour and talent pool for the project. As a result of having a proper, effective
planning stage, it is possible to only hire and purchase strictly relevant resources. In terms of the
right people for the right job and cost-efficient resources for the desired task. This may enable
the project team to stay behind the budget, and be more productive (Project Manager, 2021).

3.2 Impacts of Project Planning on Industrial projects

3.2.1 Practical Examples - EU Co-financed Water Projects

Based on (Radujković and Sjekavica, 2017), the EU co-financed water projects are a classic
example, portraying the importance of planning and initiation in project management in a
practical industrial context. It is highlighted that these projects highly succeed due to the proper
execution of projects perfectly aligned with the project strategy. These projects carryout an
effective plan by taking a holistic view of the deliverables and other variable factors in the
project. Here, much pressure is given to the project manager as well and is proved that these two
factors are primary for its success.

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3.2.2 Practical Examples – American Airlines

Another example of a successful project as a result of proper planning is American Airlines. It is

observed that American Airlines adapted an effective planning process via project management
tools that boosted its net profit by a multi-million-dollar value.

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 CONCLUSION

In conclusion, it is understood that, despite the time cost attained, implementing a project with a
proper project plan and a skilled, experienced project manager, effective results may be gained,
or possible adverse effects and costs can be avoided. The practically observed importance of a
good project leader could be a good plan, proper delegation of authority and tasks, effective
communication, building of trust and productivity of the project, whereas, a proper plan implies
that team members could be motivated, resources effectively attributed with least wastage and a
controlled start of the project.

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Abbasi, A. and Jaafari, A., (2018). Evolution of Project Management as a Scientific Discipline.
Data and Information Management, 2(2), pp.91-102.
Carroll, J., (2012). Effective project management. 2nd ed. Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, UK:
In Easy Steps Ltd.
Globerson, S. and Zwikael, O., (2002). The Impact of the Project Manager on Project
Management Planning Processes. Project Management Journal, 33(3), pp.58-64.
Greer, D. and Conradi, R., (2009). Software project initiation and planning – an empirical
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Kwak, Y. and Anbari, F., (2009). Analyzing project management research: Perspectives from top
management journals. International Journal of Project Management, 27(5), pp.435-446.
Loudon, J., (2012). Applying Project Management Processes to Successfully Complete Projects
in Radiation Medicine. Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Sciences, 43(4), pp.253-258.
Millhollan, C. and Kaarst-Brown, M., (2016). Lessons for IT Project Manager Efficacy: A
Review of the Literature Associated with Project Success. Project Management Journal, 47(5),
pp.89-106.
Munns, A. and Bjeirmi, B., (1996). The role of project management in achieving project success.
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Planview Blog. 2021. 5 Real-World Successful Project Management Examples. [online]
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<https://www.projectmanager.com/project-management>
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