APPROACHES TO PROJECT MANAGEMENT

TRADITIONAL APPROACH
V. The Closing Process

The Closing Process includes:

• Development and completion of punchlist
• Finalizing of record documents
• Training of owner personnel
• Turnover of operations and maintenance manuals
• Archiving of project files
• Accounting and closeout of a contract
• Conducting of a lessons‐learned meeting
The Role of the Project Manager
The role of the project manager in construction can be distilled into three actions:
PLAN
MONITOR
CONTROL
The Role of the Project Manager
Lead the Project Team
The project manager (PM), is the point person responsible for the project. He or she is
accountable for wins and losses on both the schedule and budget. They are tasked with utilizing
the company’s money, equipment, resources, and internal core competencies efficiently. The
project manager heads the contractor’s project team and is the lead decision maker.
The project team can be defined as the contractor’s employees: the supervisor and tradespersons
directly employed by the contractor, subcontractors who will perform work on‐site, vendors who
will provide specific equipment or fabricated items to the site, and the suppliers who will provide
essential components such as ready‐mix concrete, lumber, and building materials.
The Role of the Project Manager
Lead the Project Team
The project manager will lead the team in other ways as well. They include representing the
contractor’s team in meetings with the owner and architect/ engineers, lenders or investors in the
project, organized labor groups, and local governmental agencies or committees having jurisdiction
over the project.
The project manager will be responsible for reporting to account executives or senior management
on the company’s performance on that project.
The Role of the Project Manager
Create the Project Plan
The project manager leads the team that is responsible for creating the project plan.
The project plan is the workable scheme to accomplish the project’s intended goals.
The PM must devise the scheme within the confines of the contract documents, contractual
constraints, and the available budget as defined by the estimate.
The plan has to consider all of the resources that will be required and the most expeditious and
efficient use of those resources. Unpredictable events such as material shortages, labor strikes,
and price escalations, and even the weather must be taken into account in the plan. The plan must
have measurable events or deliverables that can be used to assess whether the plan is working.
The Role of the Project Manager
Create the Project Plan
The project manager will assemble, oversee, and assume responsibility for those individuals and
companies who are best suited to execute this plan. He or she will be responsible for analyzing
which key trades are critical to the success of the project.
The PM must identify the areas of high risk and work aggressively to mitigate the risk. Lastly, the
project has to meet the parameters set forth in the contract for performance and quality. Above
all, the plan has to be accomplished within a definitive timeframe.
The Role of the Project Manager
Develop the Project Schedule
The duty of developing a schedule is typically the responsibility of the project manager.
Even for the simplest project, the schedule is a complex, ever‐changing, and project‐specific
management tool. The schedule decomposes the project into the individual tasks that comprise
the whole. It organizes these tasks in chronological order, and clearly illustrates the
interdependencies between them.
The schedule enumerates definitive, recognizable milestones or intermediate goals, all of which
are set as a function of time.
The Role of the Project Manager
Develop the Project Schedule
Each of the tasks on the schedule, referred to as activities, has a party responsible to execute it,
called the resource.
Those parties may be subcontractors who have a continued interface on the project, such as the
electrician or HVAC contractor, or single application subcontractors who are on and off the project
relatively quickly, such as the dampproofing expert or the toilet partition installer.
In addition to the actual production activities, there are also administrative and procurement
components such as submittals and lead times that are incorporated in the schedule and have a
direct impact on progress.
The schedule should also include activities by outside parties such as the owner or building
inspectors whose performance impacts the project’s progress. Once the schedule has been
accepted by the team, it becomes the baseline for comparison of the performance.
The Role of the Project Manager
Monitor the Progress of the Project
In order to determine if the project is on schedule and in accordance with the plan, the project
manager is required to monitor the progress of the work.
As the work progresses, the schedule has to be updated to reflect actual performance. The
monitoring process is meant to establish a comparison between the actual progress and the
anticipated progress of the project as defined in the schedule.
The monitoring reveals what activities are ahead of schedule, on schedule, and, most
importantly, behind schedule. The monitoring process is based on feedback, an essential part of
the decision-making process.
The Role of the Project Manager
Control the Project
One of the most important responsibilities of the project manager is to control the project. Control
in most cases can be defined as making decisions proactively instead of reactively to guide the
direction of the project.
Decisions must be made by taking into account all of the information available at the time and
acting in the best interest of the project.
Controlling the project includes making adjustments to both the plan and the schedule when
things change, as they inevitably do.
The PM must remember that there are always alternate methods for achieving the project goals. It
is impossible to be proactive in every situation; occasionally, crisis management is the topic of the
day.
The Role of the Project Manager
Take Corrective Action
When the progress of the project falls short of the plan or deviates from the schedule, the project
manager must be willing and able to take immediate and effective action to correct the deviation.
The corrective action runs the full spectrum from written directives to termination. The actions
necessary are determined as a result of analyzing all of the data in the feedback cycle,
discussing the options with team members, and considering any potential consequences of
those actions.
The Role of the Project Manager
Achieve the Project Goals
In summary, the main duty of the project manager is to achieve the project goals.
The planning, scheduling, monitoring, and controlling of the work are all designed and intended
to further the project goals.
Goals of the Project
The goals of the project are the goals of the project team.
As the lead on the project team, the goals of the project manager are synergized with the team.
They are result of a clear understanding of the project documents made evident during the
planning process.
Some of the goals are contractual in nature, and some are imposed by the senior management.
Goals of the Project
Contractual Performance Obligations
In their simplest terms, contracts define quality, time, and price. It is the primary goal of the
project team to meet the performance requirements of the contract.
Failure to meet these obligations can render the remaining goals on this list unattainable. The
project manager and the project team must have a thorough understanding of the contract
requirements.
 Goals of the Project
Financial Objectives
All project managers are tasked with meeting (or exceeding) the financial goals outlined in the
estimate or by the project team. That means the project should contribute its share to the
company’s financial bottom line.
As with any for‐profit business enterprise, making a return for managed risk is one of the
determinants of project success.
Project managers are often the gatekeepers to the profits. They are charged with the task of
maintaining the estimated profit carried in the bid, in addition to the profit that comes from
negotiating, effective decision making, controlling the participants, and superior management of
the schedule.
Goals of the Project
Prevent or Minimize Delay
Recovery from delay can be very costly, if even possible.
Once a project has experienced a delay, it can provoke a host of claims from affected parties:
claims of losses from the owner, claims of material escalation costs, imposition of liquidated
damages, and even additional charges from the architect and engineers for extended services.
Resolving delay disputes is time‐consuming and distracts the project manager from his or her real
responsibilities in managing the project.
Careful monitoring of a project schedule and control of the contractors performing the work can
prevent or minimize delay.
Goals of the Project
Avoid Claims or Litigation
Claims for additional work as a result of delay, acceleration or escalation costs are normal
occurrences on a construction project. Those claims that can’t be substantiated and approved in
the normal course of business often end up with a third party overseeing the resolution of the
dispute.
Preparing to litigate, arbitrate, or mediate a dispute is a burden on the project manager’s time and
can be all consuming. Since most actions to resolve disputes occur well after the incident, the
project manager must review and study the project records and become re‐acquainted with the
details.
Avoiding claims or possibly the resulting legal actions is a primary responsibility of the project
manager. It can very quickly turn a financially successful project into a loser.
Goals of the Project
Control the O-P-C Relationship
The O‐P‐C relationship is the tri‐party arrangement most often used in the construction industry
under the design/bid/build delivery methodology.
The Owner (O) contracts with the Professional (P), most often an architect or engineer, for design
and administration services. The Owner (O) also contracts separately with the Contractor (C) to
construct the physical project.
While there is no direct binding agreement between the professional and the contractor, there is a
requirement that they cooperate in the interest of the owner to complete the project. As the party
with the most financial risk, it is the project manager for the general contractor that needs to
control the O‐P‐C relationship as well as the project team.
Goals of the Project
Increase Market Share
In all businesses, a successful engagement, a well‐executed contract, or the sale of a product
that performs as advertised should increase business and add to a company’s market share. The
construction industry is no exception.
There is only so much advertising that a company can do. Successful performance adds to a
company’s reputation and ultimately its bottom line. As the old adage goes: “The proof is in the
pudding.” While it may not be the primary goal of the project manager to increase business, it
should be an ancillary goal. It is the by‐product of a project done well, and a reward for superior
performance by the project manager.