Regardless of the product or service you are about to offer, every project requires a process to follow in order to bring it to life. These processes need to remain consistent throughout the performance, thus, we could enjoy successful results and view the concept coming to life as you have expected. It's not going to be easy, as everything in this world requires time, control, organisation, responsibility, clear understanding… requires a ton of things that in this article will map out for you.
In order to achieve a successful project management process, we need a set of skills and a variety of steps to follow. Project managers, stakeholders, team members are in charge to set up the stages and phases we will follow. To produce an effective project we need to remain constant, and have a clear understanding of the goals and objectives we are going after.
Let 's go deep in!
Essentially, Project management is the process of planning, executing, monitoring and closing a project. During the process, we need to identify and have a clear understanding of the project goals, objectives, timelines and manage resources in order to ensure a successful project delivery. Each project requires a series of processes to infuse it with life. These processes must be pretty consistent, following a strict structure, regardless of the industry you are working in. All projects are delivered in stages and phases that we will explain later extensively. Even Though, depending on the methodologies the team members are using, or even depending on the project, this can differ.
Project management is a discipline and defines the process we should follow in order to not get crazy during the completion of the project. Through the project management process we are able to carry the planning, executing and completing of different projects. Project managers are capable of doing so because they use a set of methodologies, processes and tools to guide their teams and manage resources, following the steps that the process identifies.
As we said, through this process we are able to plan, organise and manage resources to produce a successful completion of a specific project goals and objectives. The process involves several key stages and phases that are needed to ensure the efficient and effective performance of the project.
The project management process is a cycle, and each phase feeds into the next, having a complete dependence on each other. If one phase is not completed successfully we can't move on to the next step. If we move on to the next step knowing that the other phase has not been completed successfully, then we will make a huge mistake. During each phase, we need to have a clear understanding of the scope, timeline, and budget, in order to deliver the project you planned and not make such mistakes. Every project management, in order to achieve effectiveness, requires great leadership, a great skilled project manager who can guide the team members, manage stakeholders and carry on an effective communication plan throughout the project phases.
Project management typically includes the following steps, which can vary depending on the methodology used for each project. However, the following steps are the most common phases of a typical project management:
The first phase or step of the project management process is where we define the purpose, scope and goals of the project. Objectives are identified in this first phase, as well as we expect to identify stakeholders, and the project team. This phase we will define the resources, timelines, and budget required to complete the project, which will guarantee to keep moving forward, and complete the project.
The second phase of the project management process will guide the entire project from the starting point, the ideation to the completion. This phase involves carrying out or performing a detailed project plan that outlines the tasks, steps, resources and timelines required to complete the project. This part of the phase is also responsible for identifying potential project management risks, developing a strategy to overcome it, and creating a communication plan.
Here is where things are taking shape. This phase involves performing, carrying out the plan and delivering the project , including the risk, communication and managing resources plan. We will do this by implementing the tasks activities outlined in the plan. This phase is the most complicated one and the longest, because during this phase of the project management process we need to coordinate the team members and stakeholders on each level and ensure the project is constantly progressing according to the previous plan defined. Uphint is the perfect tool for this phase, totally useful and efficient to carry out your tasks, and specifically, for documenting any process automatically. This tool is free and super easy to understand. Uphint will increase your productivity and efficiency, with the free step by step guide creator. It provides a complete and detailed step-by-step guide of any process and it avoids you to create mistakes at work. It is very useful for creating sop for business.
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This phase involves constantly and continuously tracking or monitoring the project progress. As we are monitoring the progress,, we will be making adjustments as needed to ensure it stays in accordance with what we planned. We are able to control the changes of the plan. We will make the changes needed to ensure the project plan stays on track. This phase identifies potential risks or issues that may arise during the whole process. In this phase, we will need to map out and develop the strategies to overcome the potential risks.
The final phase of the project indicate the end of the project. This phase is where the project, the tasks and everything that was planned, is completed and the outcomes and insights are evaluated. We will close any remaining task, deliver the final product or service. The final task to carry out is to review the entire project and perform a detailed report that covers every aspect of it. Why? All the necessary information is stored and the project managers can access it easily, as well as we should conduct a post project review to evaluate the project success and identify any lessons learned from this project and used for future projects.
These steps may occur in different order, or may be we will follow different phases depending on the specific project you are taking on or the specific methodology used. As we said, these are the most common phases every project management follows. These phases builds a strong and clear framework to perform an effective project management of a project. Dividing the project into the multiple phases previously explained, gives a framework to operate, making it easier to plan and execute. For doing so, you will need the right tools to plan, organise, document and track projects. To simplify and turn a heavy management phase into a simple and easy one, we should consider Uphint.
To sum up, these are the steps we need to consider to run our project consistently and successfully. In order to achieve success, project managers and team members need to be multitasking and own a set of skills and expertise. To carry out a successful project we need a good level of organisation, a huge understanding of the goals, a great risk management ability, good communication skills and a great leadership.
