Project Management Essay Example for Free

Project Management Essay Project management tool is important for any project management to achieve success. Effective management are with out doubt requires the use of a set of tools that enables plan development and tracking and to be able to foresee or predict the outcome of the project. Among the widely used tool of management is the Cost Business Analysis which is used to determine if a project will be worthwhile. The analysis is performed prior to implementation of project plans and is based on time-weight estimates of costs and predicted value of benefits. This management tool is very important because it provides necessary and precise information about the project cost factors that includes labor, materials, and resources. This tool also provide estimate of the cost factors in terms of dollar amounts and expenditure period. More importantly, it helps the management decide if the project will be implemented or if the project will be beneficial. Another important project management tools that could provide project managers gain insights of the potential success of the project is the Project Plan. Thomas Pyzdek stressed that project plan â€Å"shows the why and the how of a project† (p. 535). Pyzdek noted that a good project plan include â€Å"a statement of the goal a cost/benefit analysis, a feasibility analysis, a listing of the major steps to be taken, a timetable for completion, and a description of the resources required to carry out the project† (p. 535). But the most important benefit that the project manager can get from having a good plan is that it helps identify â€Å"objective measures of success that will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed changes† (p. 35). The importance of having a project plan is that it provides a vehicle for discussing each worker’s role and responsibilities; this helps direct and control the work of the project. It also provide idea how the parts fit together, for coordinating related activities, and it provides a clear of the objective when it is reached and when the project ends. Among the project management tools used by project managers are the PERT-CPM-type, Gantt chart, and other web-based applications such as Primavera Project Planner, Project KickStart, and many others. PERT-CPM-type is recommended for large-scale projects that require more rigorous planning, scheduling, and coordinating of numerous interrelated activities such as in military establishment. Gantt chart on the other hand is also a very useful project management especially in planning and scheduling projects. Its strength is in monitoring the progress of project from the start of the project until its finish date. Three of the leading software nowadays such as GanttProject, Primavera and KickStart are the number one choice of the professionals because they are very accurate and cost-saving. GanttProject is a Gantt chart based in Java; however, the project can run on Windows or Linux (linux. com). The tool allows for a wide-ranging activity such as breaking the activities into tasks and assign human resources to perform the tasks. Primavera (P3) is more affordable and it can manage the toughest kind of project and activities in a very short duration of time; information can be accessed throughout the company. Project KickStart on the other hand is easy to use and is designed for small to medium scale projects. This helps the managers to identify the different phases of the project such as goals, obstacle, and calendar (Project KickStart). Basically, each tool possesses strength and weakness; the project manager chooses the tool that suits the needs of the project. These tools provide the same services as the Office Project. They are simpler and convenient to use unlike MS Excel where some commands may not be provided to get the required information. Also, it is limited in terms of access to Web and multiple users.