Project Management

Gittinger (1982) states that ‘projects are the cutting edge of development’. The importance of projects and project management should not be glossed over in development work. In trying to achieve development at their specific levels, communities, organizations, regions and nations undertake projects. This papers seeks to give an explanation of what constitute projects, secondly it will explore the characteristics of projects. Thirdly it will explain project management and lastly discuss the duties of a project manager.  

According to the Project Management Institute, a project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service or result henceforth a project can have tangible and intangible deliverables. This definitions highlights that projects follow a specific time line and that they are time bound with specific objectives and goals. The Zimbabwe Independent (2014) cited that most projects in Zimbabwe missed set targets with government citing lack of funds for its failure to implement on time. Donors are particular about time in projects deliverables. Failure to work within agreed timelines in most projects has led donors or funders to pull out their resources or their funds. In some instances failure to adhere to the timelines makes projects costly for example the Zambezi water project aimed at supplying water permanently to Matebeleland which started in 1980 to date remains unfinished because Government does not have the cash to carry out the costly project. The failure of the projects to yield results makes it a failed project.

Similarly Prince 2 defines a projects as temporary organization with a purpose to deliver products according to an agreed business case. It is in this context that projects achieve unique products or services. The famous Tuskegee Syphilis project of (1932) which was carried by the United States government led to the development of penicillin. Though the project was racist and unethical the development of the antibiotic is still beneficial to date. Another unique project has been the development of the orange maize project to increase Vitamin A by Harvest Plus in Zambia. Bio fortified Vitamin A Orange maize has been developed to address the adverse effects of Vitamin A deficiency. The same project is being implemented in Zimbabwe under the Extension and Training for Rural Agriculture (EXTRA) Project, the Ensuring Nutrition , Transforming and Empowering Resilience in Zimbabwe (Enterprise Project) and the Increased Nutrition , Sustainable Production for Increased Resilience and Economic Growth  (INSPIRE) project

Association of Project Management  defines a project as an endeavor in which human material and financial resources are organized in a novel way to deliver a unique scope of work of given specification often within constraints of cost and time to achieve beneficial changes defined by quantitative and qualitative objectives. This definition points to a key element that characterizes projects which is budget or cost. Projects have a working budget which are adhered to ensure that the cost does not outweigh the benefits. Monitoring is then used ensure that projects do not move either outside their scope in terms of objectives as well as resources. Most projects have failed because they have failed to adhere to the budget outlines. The Shavi dam project of 2000 to supply water to the Runde rural irrigation scheme is uncompleted due to funds. The Public Works Minister in 2013 Gabbuza cited that Zimbabwe has failed to complete 400 projects resulting in material vandalism and damage  (www.AllAfrica.com). According PMBOK (2013) states that the success of a project is measured by product and project quality, timeliness, budget compliance, and degree of customer satisfaction. In this context it is evident that projects success hinges on project management.

Gittinger (1982) defines a project as an investment activity in which financial resources are expended to create capital assets that produce benefits over an extended period of time. This activity involves planning, financing, implementation and management as a unit. It is in this context projects are intended to address a particular problem or achieve an identified objective. The Improving Water Sanitation and Hygiene in Rural Areas of Zimbabwe program in Gokwe South was made up of a series of temporary projects to achieve certain objectives for example rehabilitations of boreholes and piping of Huchu area. The EXTRA program which is being implemented by a consortium of organizations such Welt Hunger Hilfe, Heifer Zimbabwe and Oxfam has carried a number of projects with specific objectives for establishment of demo plots , formation of Internal Saving and Lending Groups and Supplying of labor saving technologies.

Passenheim (2009) states that Project Management deals with tracking this process' execution, from a schedule and cost perspective. It includes functions for developing the optimal project schedule, producing a financial model of the project, scheduling and tracking of effort against plan, managing costs against budget, and reporting of status. The effectiveness and efficiency of project management ensures the success of projects to meet their objectiveness. Most failed projects are characterized by poor project management. An obscure and faulty management system leads to increased overhead costs and poor quality.

PMBOK (2013) defines project management as the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements. Project management is thus accomplished through integrating project management process which are categorized in five process groups these are Initiating, Planning, Implementation, Monitoring and Controlling, and Closing. Project management in short is balancing the cost, quality and time. Managing a project requires a diverse knowledge and an effective team in order to achieve project objectives. PMBOK (2013) cites that managing requires identification of requirements, addressing concerns and expectations of stakeholders, maintaining communication and managing stakeholders towards the goal.

Kerner (2009) Project management is planning, organizing, directing and controlling of company resources for a relatively short-term objective that has been established to complete specific goals and objectives. Furthermore, project management utilizes the systems approach to management by having functional personnel (the vertical hierarchy) assigned to a specific project (horizontal hierarchy). Project management also utilize planning tool such as The Logical Framework Approach (LFA) which is a specific strategic planning methodology that can be used to prepare many different types of projects. The Logical Framework Matrix aims to present information about the project in a clear, concise, logical and systematic way (Walsch, 2000).

Newton 2015 cites that the primary challenge of project management is to achieve all of the project goals and objectives while honoring the constraints on scope, time, quality and cost. Projects need to be managed to meet their objectives, which are defined in terms of expectations of time, cost, and quality. Monitoring of inputs, activities and outputs is important for the success of the project. Assumptions that were made within the project logical framework should be monitored to ascertain their effect on the achievement of the stated outputs and objectives. Work plan which indicates which activities are ongoing should be monitored. The monitoring plan should set measurable indicators of inputs, the activities and outputs to be used as milestones or performance standard for monitoring. Monitoring provides regular feedback that helps to track costs, personnel, implementation, time, organizational development and economic and financial results to compare what was planned to actual events. In addition it provides managers and major stakeholders with regular feedback. The Government of Zimbabwe flawed monitoring system of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) led to rampant misuse of funds resulting in failed projects in most constituencies. According to Chiripasi (2011) out of 210 member of parliaments who received USD50000 only 66 could account for the funds.

Project management requires competent staff for efficiency and effectiveness. A competent project manager will be able to plan and monitor, control and direct resources of the project effectively. An effective and efficient system of management will increase organizational performance and make the organization more efficient and effective through better organizational behavior principles. Project management allow organizations to lower cost of operations by accomplishing more work in less time and with fewer resources without any sacrifice in quality. In some organizations planning tools such as Gantt Charts and Critical plans are employed to ensure that similar task are accomplished simultaneously to save time and cut costs.

The project manager manage the influence, advice and involve stakeholders in the project management. PMBOK (2013) defines stakeholders as individuals, group, or organization who may affect, be affected by, or perceive itself to be affected by a decision, activity, or outcome of a project. In the Extra project the manager has hold sensitization programs and planning workshops with stakeholders such Ministry of Local Governance, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development. Project manager ensures that stakeholders have active participation in the programme. Reports are given to stakeholders to notify them of activities carried and the impact.

B)

The Project manager is an integral part of the project.  This section will look at the duties of project manager in Welt Hunger Hilfe, EXTRA project. The project aims at reducing food insecurity, stunting, and poverty in Gokwe South. The project manager is responsible of managing a team of ten officers who work in different wards as Field officers. In addition the manager also supervises the Monitoring and Evaluation officer who is stationed at the District Office as well as the Finance and Administration Officer.  

The manager plays a supervisory role of the staff mentioned above. He ensures that the staff have submitted their work plans according to the Gantt chart and objectives of the project. The manager gets reports of the work done as well as carry routine checks and field visits to access progress of activities. The manager is also responsible of reassigning and delegating tasks where there are shortfalls so as to meet set targets. According to Passenheim (2009) a project manager not only requires a particular set of skills - how to communicate, to control and to motivate people, but also the specific knowledge about tools and techniques required to run a project successfully. It is in this case that project management hinges on the project manager competency to run the project.

The duties of a project manager are to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency flow of the project in achieving its mandated goals. The Extra project manager is responsible for controlling and allocating resources according to the budgets outlines. In some cases the manager reserves the right to make changes to budget allocation to ensure that the project is successful. The manager develops strategies to ensure that he is able to balance the scope of the project. Priority areas are emphasized in the project hence resources are allocated accordingly. The manager makes follow ups to ensure that indeed tasks have been completed with the intended and expected quality. In some cases demo plots are visited and accessed on how they have been set up and in some cases on the job appraisal of staff is done in the field. PMBOK (2013) observes that the project manager is responsible for controlling the work of producing the products, services, or results that the project was undertaken to produce.

The project manager is also responsible for requesting and hiring of competent personnel when a need arises or when there is a gap. While the recruitment is done up the Human Resource, initiation is taken by the Project manager and he is invited to interview the candidates.

The project manager reports to the Program Manager. It is in this context the project manager compiles reports that are used by the Program Manager. It is also the Extra project manager who attends feedback meetings at National level to report on the progress of the project.

In conclusion the Project manager is important in project planning. He is the center of operations in project and his ineffectiveness and incompetency can grossly affect the outcome or results of the project. Great caution needs to be taken when hiring one. His planning, monitoring, negotiation and communication skills should be up to standard as he manages the project through the project cycle.  This paper has explained the terms project and project and management and explained the duties of a project manager using the EXTRA project as an example.

Bibliography

Gittinger, JP. (1982), Economic Analysis of Agricultural Projects, Switzerland: Economic Development Institute-World Bank

Newton , P (2015) www.free-management-ebooks.com

Passenheim , O. (2009) Project Management,  Olaf Passenheim & Ventus Publishing, London.

PMBOK (2015) A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, Project Management Institute, Inc., Pennsylvania

Walsch, A.  (2000) Introduction to the Logical Framework Approach (LFA) for GEF-financed Projects; German Foundation for International Development; Berlin.

 www.AllAfrica.com Accessed on 28 April 2018