Mary Hardiman

Lori Cook

MGT 598

 

“Property development: becoming your own project manager, or hiring in outside help?”

The article “Property development: becoming your own project manager, or hiring in outside help?” written by Paul Naybour brings important pointers to the surface. Companies must weigh the advantages and disadvantages of either assuming the responsibilities of a project manager themselves or hiring a project manager to assume those responsibilities. It is recurring question that requires thorough research and consideration before an answer can be reached.

Inf act, this was a question that was raised at my current workplace. My company had decided to create a new company offering to customers – the procurement of new plant construction (N.P.C.). Shortly after having started this new endeavor two years ago, my company realized that they may have bit off more than they could chew. They missed important project deadlines, underestimated the risk of the project, overestimated the budget of the project, etc. This resulted in a chaotic web of problems which were due to both a lack of time, experience and knowledge within our company. It was a struggle that the management team tried to juggle for nearly two years, but they realized that a change needed to be made in managing the N.P.C. project.

In the article, Naybour mentions a couple of factors to consider a company must decipher whether there is either the need or lack of need for a new Project Manager hire. First, the time frame of the project must be considered (“Property Development”). The project must be completed by a given deadline. The company must decide whether they can finish the project internally or if they need external help to finish the project. Second, the amount of the Project Manager’s experience must be considered (“Property Development”). If the project requires a considerable amount of knowledge/experience, the company must assess if they are qualified to complete the project. These are a couple of points to consider when deciding to use internal employees or find external candidates to complete the project.

My company assessed the situation and recognized the need for a new full-time Project Manager hire. Ideally, they wanted a manager with both nuclear project management and N.P.C. experience. However, the pool of candidates with both nuclear N.P.C. experience was very small. They were unable to find a candidate that met both of those requirements. Even if they had recruited a candidate that met those ideal requirements, this new hire most likely would have needed a high salary and fallen outside of my company’s budget. This was why they chose to hire a fairly recent undergraduate student with a degree in mechanical engineering. This new hire was new to the nuclear industry and new to the working world. My company decided to go this route to keep within their budget for the project. This was a thrifty alternative that allowed them to keep within their budget as well as fill the N.P.C. project holes that had previously existed. As discussed in class, this could be considered one of the Project Priority Matrix’s “tradeoffs” (“Defining the Project,” slide 10). My company decided to prioritize the need to meet their budget and fill the full-time position as the first priority while putting the experience/knowledge of the new hire as secondary. Nevertheless, the new hire added value to the N.P.C. endeavor and continues to gain the experience/knowledge at my company.

Works Cited

Cook, Lori. “Defining the Project.” MGT 598: Project Management. DePaul University, Chicago. 11 July 2015. Lecture.

Naybour, Paul. “Property Development: Becoming Your Own Project Manager, or Hiring in outside Help? Project Accelerator News.” Project Accelerator News. Project Accelerator News, 17 June 2015. Web. 11 July 2015.

Mary Hardiman

Lori Cook

MGT 598

 

“Do You Have What it takes to be a Project Manager?”

According to the author Moira Alexander of “Do You Have What It Takes to be a Project Manager,” the career of a Project Manager is a demanding profession.  This occupation is fast-paced, ever-changing, time-sensitive and served with an excessive amount of uncertainty and stress (“Do You Have What it takes to be a Project Manager?”).  There is great strain on the Project Managers as well as their employees to execute a successful project.  There may be hundreds or thousands of projects – successes or failures — undertaken by a single department within a large corporation each day.  For this reason, it is advised to be aware of the demands of the profession.to look to successful companies launching successful projects.

We can start by looking at a successful company like Apple, Inc. in examining the life of a project.  As discussed in class, Apple, Inc. is a great example of a company that undertakes its infamous annual project of releasing its newest, shiniest iPhone to the market.  Year after year, Apple launches its innovative and most anticipated product to the public.  As discussed in class, this undertaking of a temporary endeavor to create a new product is known as a “project” (“Chapter 1: Modern Project Management”).  The Apple iPhone release is one of the most successful projects that has gained a following worldwide with millions of sales each year.

Despite common misconception, each project has its own challenges since each project is “temporary” and “non-repetitive” (“Chapter 1: Modern Project Management”).  Each project faces new challenges because of its uniqueness.  As an example, Apple launches a new iPhone each year, which makes the project time-sensitive.  Each project will have its own time-related objectives stating when each project task must be completed (“Chapter 2: Organization Strategy and Project Selection”).  Apple launches a more “improved” iPhone each year, which makes the project unique.  The newest iPhone must be different from the last iPhone released in order to meet the requirements of the term “project” (“Chapter 1: Modern Project Management”).  These two defining characteristics of the term “project” are what create challenges for all of those involved in the project itself.

Apple employees have heavy pressure on them to release a product with better design, feature, connectivity, and overall performance improvements.  Therefore, each change made to the iPhone, whether minor or major, must be carefully planned and executed among each team member or team lead.  In the technology sector of the market, upgrades to products are constant and ever-changing.  You must be comfortable with making constant decisions in an environment with continual change.  Moira Alexander states that “Everything, from where you work, how you do things, whom you interact with and when things are done is in constant flux and flex. In fact, continual change is the sheer nature of what is required to keep within the scope of a project” (“Do You Have What it takes to be a Project Manager?”)  The success of the project relies heavily on its team members to keep up with the most current technological trends in the market while delivering positive project results.

This is exactly why the career of a Project Manager is not easy-breezy, low-stress job.  It is a demanding career that requires a creative, organized and confident professional.  So, “If all of the things the job entails do not frighten you, then you just might be cut out to be a great project manager” (“Do You Have What it takes to be a Project Manager?”).

Works Cited

Alexander, Moira. “Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Project Manager?” CIO, 13 Mar. 2015. Web. 29 June 2015.

Cook, Lori. “Chapter 1: Modern Project Management.” MGT 598. Illinois, Chicago. 13 June 2015. Lecture.

Cook, Lori. “Chapter 2: Organization Strategy and Project Selection.” MGT 598. Illinois, Chicago. 13 June 2015. Lecture.