Fundamental Project Management

 

According to Meta Group, Inc., in Stamford, Connecticut, "Poor project planning and management are to blame for companies scrapping almost a third of new software projects for a loss of $80 billion annually. One out of two projects run more than 180 percent over budget for another $59 billion in losses."  (Computer World, September 22, 1997).

Businesses can no longer grow and develop without significant IT investment. In just the last two years, the percentage of companies' total revenue devoted to IT has increased by more than 17 percent, from 6.8 percent in 1999 to 8 percent in 2001 (Information Week, January 8, 2001). While having to budget more for application implementations, companies have to watch their costs more than ever. Therefore, IT dollars must be spent on successful deliveries, not mistakes. Good project management is the key to well-executed implementations.

Strong project management is essential for rapid, flexible and cost-efficient deployment of new applications. The project manager must combine keen business awareness, proactive risk management and the ability to lead a technical team.

High quality professional project management is more than just gantt charts. Most project managers know the fundamentals of planning, resource management and quality control. But to consistently deliver projects on time and on budget, they need to integrate strong …

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