Identifying the true need, the most fundamental problem, or opportunity is the most important step in the entire process of project planning and management”. With relevant examples, discuss this statement.
Answers;
A project is an endeavor to accomplish a specific objective through a unique set of interrelated tasks and the effective utilization of resources. Project plan has been defined differently by different authors, however according to Walker, (2015) a project plan is a series of formal documents that define the execution and control stages of a project. It has to be noted that a comprehensive project plan must include; considerations for risk management, resource management and communications, while also addressing scope, cost and schedule baselines. Some of the key questions that a project plan helps to answer include; who, what, where, why, how and when of the project with tasks and due dates.
The following are some of the key documents involved in a project plan;
A project charter; this Provides a general overview of the project. It describes the project’s reasons, goals, objectives, constraints, stakeholders, among other aspects.
Statement of works; Defines the project’s scope, schedule, deliverables, milestones, and tasks.
Work Breakdown structure; Breaks down the project scope into the project phases, subprojects, deliverables, and work packages that leads to organizational final deliverable.
Project plan; The project plan document is divided in sections to cover the following: scope management, quality management, risk assessment, resource management, stakeholder management, schedule management and the change management plan.
It is imperative to identify the true need or the fundamental problem of the project and this is because of the following reasons;
Developing of clear objective is possible; this is because when the true need of the project is identified it enables the project manager to design Clear objectives of the projects so as to achieve the intended or desired outcome. The objectives of the project has to be clearly identified in order. According to Gido, & Clements, (2014) Knowing the problem or the true need of the project enables the project planner to design clear and concise objectives and this therefore greatly increases the likelihood of solving the problem of achieving the intended purpose of the organization or an institution, however they further warn that without clearly defined problem that the organization needs to achieve there is a likely hood of failing to solve the problem at hand.
Risk assessment is possible; having a clear understanding of the problem or the true need of the projects is key towards enabling the organization overcome risks associated with project implementation. This is because when the organization knows what it wants to achieve it will enable in establishing the level of risks against the level of rewards and therefore being able to achieve the goals that are intended. Some of the most common risks involved in the project planning and implementation process include; financial risks. This is the type of risks that an organization incurs in terms of the financial resources it is likely to lose as a result of implementing a specific goal or need. Risk management is also possible; when the organization has a good understanding of what it needs to solve and its challenges it is able to management the risks that come with the process of developing the project (Meredith, 2017).
Communication; when the organization has been able to understand its problems it is able to communicate effectively to the employees and its stake holders. This enables the members to have a clear vision of where the organizational decisions are leading them and therefore they are able to communicate to all employees in a way that enables the organization achieve its goals.
Overall financial planning is possible; when the organization true problems are known, organizations have different challenges globally, and however an organization cannot plan well without clearly understanding its problems and more to that help the team to know what exactly is required of them. A written plan will help project Manager communicate key details, making it easier for management and the team to complete certain tasks.
Identifying task dependencies; when the organization has designed a well identified problem it is supposed to solve it I able to Identifying task dependencies, a project plan shows project managers which tasks have dependencies, and allows them to be scheduled accordingly. Kicking off a project without identifying dependencies will lead to tasks being done in the wrong order, resulting in project failure. A clear project plan allows you to know which team member is in charge of which task.
More efficient resource allocation is possible when the organization has a well-defined problem, since this will allow the project management team to understand were exactly to put more emphasis and also to determine the future and the present requirement of the resources with its possession.
REFERENCES
Walker, A. (2015). Project management in construction. John Wiley & Sons.
Gido, J., & Clements, J. (2014). Successful project management. Cengage Learning.
Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., & Mantel Jr, S. J. (2017). Project management: a strategic managerial approach. John Wiley & Sons.
