Project Management As You See It
In any profession, you can hardly do better than to learn time-tested
fundamentals and groundbreaking concepts, apply them across a variety of real
world situations, and be inspired to continue to learn and teach as you go
forward.
As you consider the totality of the information presented in this seminar, do you
feel prepared to apply what you have learned? Do you think you have benefitted
professionally from this course? Are there concepts that simply do not ring true in
your experience?
Explain two best practices for project portfolio management and why they are
most relevant to organizational success. Discuss at least two concepts presented
in this course that surprised you. Identify a particular concept that seems
particularly relevant to your research, �EFFECTS OF HRM PRACTICES ON
EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE�. explain why, and discuss your next steps for
your doctoral study.
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Project Management Experience
Project Management Experience
The project management course has contributed significantly to my knowledge and
played an imperative role in developing my future potential professionally. At this juncture, I
feel like I am ready to apply what I have learned. The course has not only introduced me to new
concepts but also helped me put some of the organizational processes that I have observed into
context. In essence, I absolutely understand the importance of various fundamental functions that
are executed to enhance business success. I can undoubtedly say that I have advanced
professionally and this course will contribute greatly to my future performance.
Despite understanding a majority of concepts however, I still came across some concepts
that did not immediately tally with my experience. An example is the concept of employee
ownership, which calls on organizations to put employees at the core of the implementation to
promote effectiveness. In my previous experience, project portfolio management has been a
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reserve of the management, where major decisions are made at the top and employees are given
direction from there (Harvard Business Review, 2013). Requiring the contribution of each
employee during development appears like a workable idea, which I can project at my
workplace. This is because it promotes ownership and consequently improves performance.
I found two best practices, namely strategic alignment of objectives with organizational
strategy and effective management of aggregate resources as the most relevant for organizational
success. In order for project management to work effectively, it is imperative that the objectives
resonate well with the organization’s goals in order to reduce chances of conflict of interest and
divided goals (Neverauskas and Čiutienė, 2011). Effective resource management ensures that the
company can achieve optimal performance by achieving as much as possible using the limited
resources.
Two concepts in this course really surprised me. The first one is that poor communication
is a more common contributor to project management failure than to lack of adequate skills. It is
important for the management team to foster effective communication as this ensures that
information is disseminated properly and that the team can work together to deliver the desired
outcomes (Besteiro, de Souza Pinto and Novaski, 2015). The second concept is that project
completion is not adequate to gauge the successful implementation of a project. Monitoring and
evaluation, which may be conducted over a long period of time after completion of the project
ensures that the project any shortcomings can be addressed; and thus ensure complete success of
the project (Martinsuo and Killen, 2014).
The concept of project team management seems particularly relevant in my research,
‘Effects of HRM practices on employee performance’. Through this course, I have learnt that the
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HRM has a role to play in developing the project team through a sequence of actions that
includes planning for human resource management, acquiring a project team, developing the
project team and finally managing the project team (Stulgienė and Ciutienė, 2012). Following
this pattern ensures that employee performance is exceptional, the HR has played the role of
managing the project team to ensure that it possesses the right skills and capabilities to execute
strategy. In this regard and in relation to my doctoral study, I intend to explore the importance of
project team management as a prerequisite for effective project management. This means that the
concept should be given greater priority that it has currently.
References
Besteiro, É. C., de Souza Pinto, J., & Novaski, O. (2015). Success Factors in Project
Management. Business Management Dynamics, 4(9), 19-34.
Harvard Business Review. (2013). HBR Guide to Project Management. HBR Guide Series.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Press.
Martinsuo, M., & Killen, C. P. (2014). Value Management in Project Portfolios: Identifying and
Assessing Strategic Value. Project Management Journal, 45(5), 56-70.
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Neverauskas, B., & Čiutienė, R. (2011). The Theoretical Approach to Project Portfolio Maturity
Management. Economics & Management, 16845-851.
Stulgienė, A., & Ciutienė, R. (2012). HRM Challenges in Transition to Project Management
(Project-Based Organization). Economics & Management, 17(3), 1214-1218.
