Best Practices in Information Technology and Project Management

IT businesses and companies these days face cut throat competition. All of them have the desire to stay ahead in the race. This driving force makes them come up with different ideas to carry themselves forward. Over the years, many companies have started adopting project management to achieve their business goals. It has consistently enabled them to deliver good business results.

Project management and its value

To understand the importance of project management, it is essential to understand its meaning. Project is an activity that brings a group of people together for a certain amount of time. A project is mainly designed with the objective of creating a unique or new product or service. Projects are temporary in nature. The reason for this is that they are usually bound by a specific time limit defining the start and end. What makes a project unique is its operation. Projects are different from the usual routine that the IT companies follow. Projects are carried out to accomplish the predefined goals. Again it is not necessary that the people involved in a project belong to the same organization or even the same demography.

A project needs to be properly managed so that it is delivered within the specified time while following the project guidelines. Here comes the need of project management. It means proper application of techniques, skills and knowledge to carry out the project efficiently and effectively. It is important for organizations as it allows them to synchronize the project results with their business objectives.

Efficient project management delivers better results while keeping it cost efficient. It also helps in cutting the competition by keeping the stakeholders and customers satisfied. A report by an Economist Intelligence revealed that around 80% of executives believe that project management helped them stay in the competition even during recession. Project management reduces the chances of creating errors while relying on fewer resources.

PMBOK and PMI

A lot has been said and written over the past twenty years about following the best project management. The first formal reference on this topic came from Project Management Institute through the book titled ‘Project Management Book of Knowledge’. Till date, this book remains one of the best references for best practices for project management. PMBOK has listed the fundamental guidelines and generally accepted practices that can be used by software, construction, automotive and many other business organizations.

The fifth edition of the English PMBOK Guide came in 2013. It basically covers five processes along with ten knowledge areas. The five processes have been listed as follows:

• Initiate
• Plan
• Execute
• Monitor and control
• Close

The knowledge areas covered in the guide are:

• The first area is project integration management.
• The second knowledge area is project scope management.
• Third one is project time management.
• Fourth knowledge area covered in the book is project cost management.
• Fifth area talks about project quality management.
• Sixth area covers project human resource management.
• The seventh knowledge area is project communications management.
• The eighth area covered in the guide is project risk management.
• Ninth area discusses project procurement management.
• The last area throws light on project stake-holders management.