Project Management from Simple to Complex

Learning Objectives

1. Identify the Project Management Institute’s definition of project management.

2. Analyze and evaluate the role of client expectations in a project.

3. Define project scope. “Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements

” (Project Management Institute, Inc., 2008). This simple definition represents a compromise that resulted from intense discussions within the Project Management Institute (PMI) during the 1980s. One of the priorities of PMI during this time was the development of project management as a profession. Although debate continues on whether project management is a profession with an enforceable code of conduct and other traditional criteria for recognition as a profession, the development of A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) and the project management certifications that derived from these efforts helped promote the understanding and development of the project management field.

The discussion about what should be in the definition of project management included debates about the purpose of project management. Is the main purpose to meet client expectations or is the main purpose to meet the written specifications and requirements? This discussion around meeting project requirements was not easily settled. If it is assumed that the project client is the one who defines project requirements, then maybe project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to meet client requirements or client expectations. PMI’s definition of project management does provide a good understanding of project management, but it does not help us understand project success. For that, we must include the client.

Jack Meredith and Samuel Mantel (Meredith & Mantel Jr., 2006) discussed project management in terms of producing project outcomes within the three objectives of cost, schedule, and specifications. Project managers are then expected to develop and execute a project plan that meets cost, schedule, and specification parameters. According to this view, project management is the application of everything a project manager does to meet these parameters. This approach to defining project management shares PMI’s focus on the project outcomes in terms of requirements.

Meredith and Mantel added a fourth aspect of project management—the expectations of the client. One client-centered definition of project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to meet or exceed the expectations of the client. This definition focuses on delivering a product or service to the client that meets expectations rather than project specifications. It is possible to meet all project specifications and not meet client expectations or fail to meet one or more specifications and still meet or exceed a client’s expectation (Darnall, 1996).

Meredith and Mantel discussed a tendency noted by Darnall (Darnall, 1996) that expectations often increase during the life of a project. Meredith and Mantel suggest that this is a form of scope increase. A project scope is a carefully crafted document that reflects the performance specifications of the project deliverables. Defining the project scope and managing scope change is a very different process from developing an understanding of a client’s expectations and managing those expectations. Darnall focused on defining and managing client expectations as a critical project management skill that is distinct from scope development and management.

Client expectations encompass an emotional component that includes many client desires that are not easily captured within a specification document. Although closely correlated with project specifications, client expectations are driven by different needs. It is possible for a project team to exceed every project specification and end up with an unsatisfied client.