Project Management
Categories: Careers
You need $15,000 by the end of the month to keep Old Man Murdock from foreclosing the orphanage. Time to put on a show!
You've got to get a script written, cast the show, obtain costumes, build sets, advertise the performance, sell tickets, organize volunteers, and get any funds you raise to Old Man Murdock by his deadline. Time for some project management.
The term refers to the process of overseeing any particular undertaking. It includes all the planning, execution, and oversight needed to make sure the endeavor goes off without a hitch.
In the business world, there are a ton of theories and advice on the best way to perform project management. It's a formalized process. Depending on whom you ask, there are either four or five stages to a well-managed project. The five-step approach is broken down into initiation, planning, execution, monitoring/control, and closure (known as the five phases of the project management lifecycle). The four-stage model leaves out the monitoring phase (assuming it will be part of the execution part). So...that model goes: initiation, planning, execution, and closure.
