Change-My-Career.co.uk

Project Management Careers, PMP & The Prince 2 Foundation

Project Management has a place in all areas of industry. Those considering training or retraining to build a career in this sector will find it a stimulating and exacting profession, and extremely rewarding. The work suits people who are well disciplined, and usually good at maths and technology subjects. It's also useful to have good interpersonal skills as the work often requires quite detailed communication with others.

...Smoothly And Efficiently!

The number of project management teams has increased over the years as commercial organisations realise their worth. To over-simplify, a plan has a start and end date, a list of tasks and a list of the resources needed. Then we need to add in all the real-life complexities that most projects have to deal with. We're all project managers to some extent, but if you learn how to use the tools and techniques for commercial productivity, you can build a very lucrative and interesting career.

You'll find a range of commercial colleges that provide Project Management training. Entry level courses will cover the basics of project preparation, costing, execution and completion. More advanced courses will lead onto human resource management and risk analysis etc.

Common Terms

There's a certain amount of industry jargon to understand with project management. Along with learning about the essential characteristics of each project, you'll need to get in tune with modern accepted wisdom. There are a number of schools of thought in project management but you will discover many processes have a lot in common.

The History Of Project Management

Even in ancient times, project management was used as a tool for controlling resources and the workforce - though motivational techniques would have differed greatly!

It was originally the responsibility of senior engineers and architects - think Sir Christopher Wren in the 17th century and Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the 19th century.

F W Taylor was an American mechanical engineer who published 'The Principles of Scientific Management' in 1911. As an efficiency and management expert, he influenced other people's work, such as Henri Fayol's 'Fayolism' and Henry Gantt's 'Gant Chart'. Frederick Winslow Taylor could be regarded as one of the first management consultants, and was one of the leaders of the Efficiency Movement in the US. He maintained there was always one best way to fix a problem.

Let's Bring It Up To Date

By the mid twentieth century we had moved into the early days of the modern Project Management era, when it started to become recognised as a discipline in its own right. When the US Navy was developing the Polaris Missile system, a new technique was needed to cope with all the various aspects of the job. Thus the PERT chart was developed to simplify the planning and scheduling of this massive project. This and other mathematical techniques such as the Critical Path Method (CPM) started to spread. Pioneering work by Hans Lang and others led to technology for estimating and managing costs, along with engineering economics.

The IMPA

In the late 1960's the International Project Management Association (IPMA) was founded. A non-profit Swiss registered organisation, it now claims to have over 40,000 global members. Member associations promote project management and provide information about trends and developments.

The PMI (Project Management Institute)

At the end of the sixties what's now the world's largest PM organisation was formed - the Project Management Institute. A project management guide, the 'Project Management Body of Knowledge' from PMI is now on its fourth edition. This process-based guide deals with just about all information and practices in project management. A thorough understanding of the fundamentals covered would make you a subject matter expert. Courses are available which train students on the various facets of the PMBOK. You will be in a position at the end of such a course to take the world standard PM exams, which come under the headings of Project Management Professional and Certified Associate of Project Management.

PRINCE2 (Derived from PROMPT and PRINCE)

'Projects in Controlled Environments' (now version 2) is used extensively in PM, although it was initially designed purely for the management of IT projects. The method can work with most project management techniques, but it predominantly describes product based planning, change control technique and quality review technique. Students undergoing this training will learn how to manage projects within a clearly defined framework.

PRINCE2 can be used as an invaluable diagnostic tool for project work, audits and troubleshooting. It's very specific, efficient and manageable.

Depending on your present level of knowledge and experience, you may wish to consider other college introductory courses. Learning how to lead and help people understand the processes will prove just as important as learning the processes yourself. Take time to go through all the training options available to you.