The Importance of Planning in Project Success

Executive Summary

It is impossible for a project to be carried out without outlining a well-detailed plan that is to be followed throughout the project life. Planning aids a project manager to minimize costs, maximize the total direct and indirect benefits of the project, and manage the quality, risks and the changes taking place during the project life. This essay identifies the relation between project planning and its success. Previous studies by several researcher have found out that there is a direct positive correlation between planning and overall project success. A look into the summary of the study shows that if a project manager puts an average of 26.7% effort in planning the activities of the project, then the probability of the project producing expected results rises by 20% all other factors held constant.

Introduction

The conception, appraisal and selection of a project leads the management into the planning phase, where the schedule is created, the requirements and the deliverables are explained and the detailed activities of the project are outlined (Chow & Cao, 2008). This phase is called the planning phase. The ultimate success of a project is measured using different methods ranging from organizational to intuition by the managers, and determined using different methods as well. Previous studies such as that conducted by Ika & Donnelly (2017) and Costantino et al. (2015) have covered other factors that contribute to the success of the project. This paper defines project success as the ability of the project to meet the objectives it was intended for. Most firms start a project, whilst aiming to complete it effectively and efficiently, in order for the project should meet all the goals of the stakeholders (Ika, 2015). The main factors this essay will cover are team building and planning. The two factors go hand in hand, as a project requires an organized team and a well detailed plan.

Planning

This essay acknowledges planning as the centerpiece of project management. According to Ika (2015), writings under project planning and project success, planning is defined as the sequence of tasks that are to be carried out over time and provide the stakeholders with the desired outcomes of the objectives and is usually monitored and reviewed at different stages of the project’s life. At times, it is revised or some cases might need adjustment if necessary (Darwish & Rizk, 2015). During the different phases of planning, different techniques, and tools such as the responsibility matrix, work breakdown structure, network diagram, reserve analysis, and other tools are used independently or together in order to derive the best method to go about the project.

The work breakdown structure is a deliverable oriented method that divided the deliverable into various mini-activities that can be efficiently tackled by the project team (Darwish & Rizk, 2015). This methodology enables the managers assign responsibilities to the project team effectively so that all the activities are carried out on time either simultaneously or dependently depending on the cost and the availability of the resources. A look into the strategic plan by North Miami Beach, the plan entails the area’s potential and priority challenges so that the projects with the highest priorities are given the most allocation of the available resources (Yalegama et al., 2016). The plan ties activities to the different departments and provide a blueprint of the stakeholders’ meeting. The plan by the beach takes on the work breakdown structure where the projects that require the most inputs are given the highest priority. It also incorporates this planning method in that the responsibilities are delegated to different departments concerning the projects and the overall performance of the beach (Banihashemi et al., 2017).

The network diagram methodology is one where tasks are connected to their preceding and successive activities in a flowchart diagram. It identifies the logical sequence of activities that will comprise of the entire project completion (Osei-Kyei et al., 2017). Network diagram starts with the first task with the beginning of every task depending on the completion of the other until all the activities are carried out and the project comes to an end with the final project achievements.

Strengths and weaknesses of the planning tools

Work breakdown structure takes on decomposition, which is useful in identifying, managing, and reducing ambiguity and scope uncertainty. However, under-decomposition leads to dissatisfied stakeholders and the project not meeting its desired objectives whereas over-decomposing may cause the project to be over-exaggerated while in real sense it does not meet the expectations of the stakeholders or fulfill the need it was intended for. It is important that the project managers consult the estimation experts or use estimation from published data to ensure accuracy on their measurements (Kerzner & Kerzner, 2017).

Network diagram is suitable when the durations for the activities are uncertain. It majorly focuses on the task completion and indicates how long the activity should take to be completed to enable the beginning of the next task. The network diagram, however, focus on the important task that are crucial for the project success or even the task that require the most resources to complete. It only depends on the estimated duration of task completion to prioritize the project tasks (Harris et al., 2018).

Team building

In this essay, team building is defined as a process of taking individuals with diverse needs, expertise, background and transitioning them through various methods to form an effective and integrated work unit. In the process of transitioning the individuals, their goals are merged to support the main objective of the project. Previous studies such as that conducted by Jaggar et al. (2016) indicate that for a project to succeed, an effective team is essential during the execution of the project activities and a detailed plan does not guarantee a project plan if the team assigned to the tasks of the project do not perform their responsibilities to their best. As a team manager the task to build an effective team, which involves several activities like staffing the project team, developing proper communication channel, motivating the team members, identifying the work structure as well as creating a proper image for the project, fall on them (Aga et al., 2016). As seen in the Bainbridge Island, the projects are identified and the tasks are delegated to every department. A constant supervision of the team members and the monitoring of the project success id carried out frequently. The plan takes on the approach of the team leader keeping in touch with his team members to influence the overall performance of the project.

Maximum participation from the team members is necessary in order to achieve the desired goals of the project. In occasions where the team members do not collaborate or cooperate, the desired benefits and objectives cannot be achieved despite a well laid out plan or the effort spent on building the team (Camilleri, 2016). Thus, an efficient team is not only necessary during the early stages of the project but also during the mid-phases and the closure of the project tasks.

Strengths and weaknesses of team building

Different people have different idea, opinion, and knowledge of dealing with problems that arise during a project life. An efficient team will be able to maneuver through the problems with ease as there will be proper communication aiming to understand and incorporate the new ideas (Camilleri, 2016). The bringing together of individuals to share knowledge however, may result in a misunderstanding than an understanding as some people are rigid to take in new ideas and do not respond well to critics. The end result may be a delayed and underperformed task. Whereas team building may foster alliance, friendships, increase the project quality, and effectiveness, the alliances forged are short-lived as everyone disperses once the project is completed. This may affect the performance of the team members in any case the project is prolonged further than it was intended (Papke-Shields et al., 2017).

Planning in a project is useful in situation where the stakeholder is expecting a defined project and projections of the costs and the expected benefits of the project. The management is required to lay out a plan of all the activities taking into account all externalities and risks that may occur during the project (Camilleri, 2016). Planning ensures that the project is cost effective and that it does not affect the stakeholders negatively or interferes with their daily activities. Team building on the other hand is required in situations where the stakeholders desire a completed work that measure up to their expectation and that it meets the goal and the objectives of the project (Papke-Shields et al., 2017). While planning is necessary in all projects, team building is used when there is enough resources to take care of the team members’ expenses and the project requires international expertise. The management should ensure that the project is completed within the required time, attains the desired objectives, and is within the budget estimated during the planning phases (Camilleri, 2016).

Conclusion

This essay captures the importance of planning a project as well as the importance of team building. Planning ensures that the project remains within context, such that by the end of the project, all the objectives are achieved and that the deadline is met. Planning also ensure that the project stays within budget so that a task use the least amount of resources it can use while achieving the maximum benefits to the stakeholders. Team building on the other hand ensures that the project is done with maximum precision and accuracy. It also ensures that the project is done efficiently and effectively. the essay also find out that the amount of time a project manager put in place for planning and building his team is directly proportional to the probabilities of the project success. Thus, planning and building an effective team is critical for the well performance of a project.

References

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