According to the traditional practice, at least several departments will participate in a project, including finance department, marketing department, administration department and so on. However, there will inevitably be friction between different departments in the process of operating the project, which will undoubtedly increase the cost of the project and affect the efficiency of project implementation.
The ways of project management are also different. Members of different functional departments form a team because of a project, and the project manager is the leader of the project team. Their duty is to lead his team to finish all the work on time and with high quality, and achieve the project objectives within the budget. The project manager is not only the executor of the project, but also participates in the whole process of project demand determination, project selection, planning and closing, and manages the project in all aspects such as time, cost, quality, risk, contract, procurement and human resources. Therefore, project management can help enterprises to deal with complex problems that need interdisciplinary solution and achieve higher operational efficiency.
The application of project management system has been limited to construction, national defense, aerospace and other industries from 1980s to many fields such as computer, electronic communication, financial industry and even government agencies, and it has developed rapidly. At present, in China, enterprises that have a deep understanding of project management and require project managers to have corresponding qualifications are mainly large multinational companies, IT companies and other enterprises that are in line with international standards.
Project management system is a new management discipline based on modern management science, which effectively integrates financial control, human resource management, risk control, quality management, information technology management (communication management) and procurement management in enterprise management, so as to achieve the purpose of completing internal work or projects with high efficiency, high quality and low cost.
With the development of IT industry, project expansion and investment in IT industry abound. In order to improve the level of project management and win the market competition, especially after China's entry into WTO, more and more people in the industry are participating in project management training in different ways, striving for the most authoritative professional project manager (PMP) qualification certification in the world. At the same time, most project managers in IT industry are trying to use project management system to assist their own projects. For the convenience of everyone, this paper briefly introduces project management.
1. Budget and cost control folding
Most project management systems can be used to obtain information about activities and resources in a project. The salary of personnel can be calculated by hour, overtime or lump sum, and the due date can also be specified; For raw materials, one-time or continuous costs can be determined; For various materials, you can set corresponding accounting and budget codes. In addition, you can use user-defined formulas to run cost functions. Most software programs use this information to help calculate the project cost and track the cost during the project. During the project, you can compare and analyze the actual cost and budget cost of a single resource, a team resource or the whole project at any time, and this information should be used for planning and reporting. Most software programs can display and print out the cost of each task and each resource (personnel, machines, etc.). ) or the entire project.
Folding schedule
Calendar program is mainly used to determine the working time of a single resource or a group of resources in a project. These schedules can be used to calculate the project schedule. Most system software will set a default value for basic working hours, such as Monday to Friday, from 8 am to 5 pm, with an hour lunch break in the middle. For a single resource or a group of resources, you can modify this schedule. For example, modify the time of going to and from work, input company holidays according to non-working hours, and input various shifts (day and night), including holidays and quantity units (hours, days and weeks). These schedules will be used when reporting the progress of work. They can usually be printed by day, week or month according to each individual resource, or the whole project progress can be printed as a comprehensive project progress, which may be as big as a wall.
3. E-mail folding
The common feature of some project management system programs is that they can send project information by e-mail. This function enables users to obtain information directly from e-mail without a printer or screen display. Through e-mail, project team members can learn about major changes, such as the latest project plan or progress, master the current project work, and send out various business forms.
4. Graphic folding
For a project with a lot of activities, it is extremely boring and error-prone to make Gantt charts or network charts by hand, or to modify drawings by hand. The most prominent feature of the current project management system is that it can simply and quickly make various charts, including Gantt charts and network charts, on the basis of the latest data. With the baseline plan, any changes can be easily entered into the system, and the chart will automatically reflect these changes. The project management system can link the tasks in the Gantt chart and display the workflow. In particular, users can switch between Gantt chart and network chart with only one command. In addition, charts usually have the following functions for users to use:
. Interactive operation processing of tasks and relationships. For example, connecting tasks through charts, changing the priority relationship or changing the duration of activities by expanding the continuous display function of activities.
Customize formats, such as graphic size, title, color, font and document layout.
. Displays a baseline comparison table for tasks or costs.
Highlight the critical path and show the delay of any activity.
. Enlarge or reduce the displayed image.
5. Transfer-in/out data folding
Many project management system software packages allow users to obtain information from other applications, such as word processing, spreadsheets and database programs. The process of entering information for the project management system is called transfer in. For example, you only need to enter information in the spreadsheet when necessary, instead of re-entering the cost information about people or machines in the spreadsheet into the project management system program, and you may also enter conflicting or incorrect information. Similarly, it is often necessary to input some information from the project management system into these applications. The process of sending out information is called transferring out. For example, it may be necessary to transfer the contractor's progress report to a word processing annotation file.
Most project management system programs allow information files in standard ASCⅱⅱ code to be transferred from Windows clipboard to SQL database, Lotus, Excel, Microsoft Project Exchange, OLE client/server, DDE client/server and other systems.
6. Handling multiple project and subproject collapses
Some projects are large in scale and need to be divided into smaller task sets or subprojects. Another situation is that experienced project managers manage several projects at the same time, and team members also work for multiple projects at the same time, and allocate working time among multiple projects. In this case, most project management system programs can help. They can usually store multiple items in different files, which are interconnected. The project management system can also store multiple projects in the same file, handle hundreds or even thousands of projects at the same time, and draw Gantt charts and network diagrams.
7. Fold the report
When the project management system package is first applied, there are usually only a few reports, usually a list summarizing the progress plan, resources or budget. Today, most project management system packages have very extensive reporting functions. Here are some reports that can be made:
Comprehensive report of the project.
. Report on major stages (milestones) of the project.
All kinds of information in a certain period of time, such as tasks that have been completed and are in progress during this period, and tasks that will begin.
Financial statements, showing comprehensive information, including all tasks, the whole project budget, cost overruns, accumulated budgeted costs, actual costs and commitments.
. Cost/schedule control system standard (c/scsc) report. This report is usually requested by the US Department of Defense for national defense projects.
. Make resource allocation reports for various resources or a group of resources of the project.
Customize standard reports, cross reports and variable benchmark comparison tables.
8. Resource management folding
At present, the project management system has a list of resources, which lists the names of various resources, the time limit for the use of resources, the standards and elimination rate of resources, the income methods and text descriptions of resources. Each resource can be assigned a code and a member's personal schedule. Limit each resource, such as the time that can be used. Users can allocate resources to tasks by percentage, set priority standards for resource allocation, allocate resources to the same task, and keep comments and descriptions for each resource. The system can highlight and help correct unreasonable allocation, adjust and smooth resource allocation. Most software packages can handle thousands of resources for a project.
9. Plane folding
In all project management packages, users can define the activities that need to be performed. Just as software can usually maintain a list of resources, it can also maintain a list of activities or tasks. Users choose a title, start and end dates, summary and evaluation, estimated duration (including optimistic, most likely and pessimistic estimates according to various time standards) for each task, and define the sequence relationship with other tasks and the person in charge. Usually, a project in a project management system will have thousands of related tasks. In addition, most programs can create job analysis structures to help plan jobs.
10. Project supervision and tracking folding
A basic task of project management is to track and manage work progress, actual cost and actual resource consumption. Most project management system software packages allow users to determine a benchmark plan and compare the actual progress and cost with the corresponding parts in the benchmark plan. Most systems can track many activities, such as ongoing or completed tasks, related expenses, spent time, start and end dates, actual investment or spent funds, consumed resources and remaining time limit, resources and expenses. These proximity and tracking features in the management software package have multiple reporting formats.
1 1. Planned folding
In practical work, the project scale is often relatively large, and the manual arrangement of activities is extremely complicated. Project management system packages can provide extensive support for planning work and are usually automated. Most systems can make Gantt charts and network charts based on task and resource lists and all relevant information, and any changes in these lists will be automatically reflected in the schedule. In addition, users can also schedule repetitive tasks, set the priority of scheduled tasks, perform reverse scheduling (from the end of one day to the first day), determine work shifts, arrange occupied time, schedule tasks, determine the latest or earliest start time, and specify the date when tasks must start or end, or the earliest or latest date.
12. Confidential folding
A relatively novel feature of project management system is security. Some systems have passwords for basic information of the project management package itself (such as salary), individual project files and project files.
13. sorting and screening folding
Using sorting, users can browse information in any order, such as salary rate from high to low, alphabetical resource names or task names. Most programs have different sorting methods (for example, by first name, last name, etc. ). The filtering function helps users to select some resources that meet certain criteria. For example, some tasks need specific resources. If users want to know information about these tasks, they only need to command the software program to ignore tasks that do not use such resources and only display tasks that use such resources.
14. What-if analysis folding
A very practical feature of project management system is hypothesis analysis. Users can use this function to explore the impact of various situations. At some nodes of a project, users can ask the system, "What if we delay for a week?" The system will automatically calculate the impact of the delay on the whole project and display the results. For example, in a construction project, to study what will happen if the wood consumption rate increases by 65,438+05%, the contractor only needs to input this change into the computer, and all related expenses and costs can be displayed. Almost all variables in the project (personnel, wage rate, cost) can be tested to observe the impact of specific conditions. This analysis can make the project manager better control all kinds of risks related to the project.
Project management allocation execution folding edit this paragraph
How to implement project management is particularly important. Singapore Airlines emphasizes that project management can be divided into three steps, namely, application business integration, business data analysis and decision execution.
Application business integration folding
Integrate independent market management, sales management and after-sales service to provide a unified operating platform. Integrate data from multiple sources to realize the integration and sharing of business data. The realization of this link enables system users to get a faithful record of all kinds of data in the system, representing the real business situation.
Business data analysis folding
Processing, processing and analyzing the data in the project will benefit the enterprise greatly. OLAP can analyze these data and generate various reports. You can also use the processing means of commercial information warehouse to further process and mine the data, analyze the correlation between data indicators, and establish a relational data model for simulation and prediction. The result of this step will be very important, which not only reflects the actual business situation, but also plays a guiding role in the adjustment of future business plans.
Decision execution folding
According to the predictable analysis report provided by data analysis, enterprises can summarize and use the knowledge learned in business processes to adjust business processes and business plans. Through adjustment, we can strengthen contact with customers and make our business operation more suitable for market requirements.
Project management elements collapse and edit this paragraph.
A successful project usually has three elements: the time element-the time to complete the project should be "fast" and the cost element-the cost to complete the project should be "cheap". The element of effect-the performance after completion should be "good".
What is "good"? What is "fast"? What is "cheap"?
A good project should first meet the basic needs of customers in function, and at the same time, the quality is reliable and the safety performance is guaranteed. The appearance of the project is beautiful and unique, which can make people feel happy. The residential area has a beautiful environment and is suitable for living. The plane layout of the project is reasonable, making maximum use of the limited area and creating as much available space as possible. All kinds of water and electricity, gas, telecommunications, monitoring and other supporting facilities are complete and stable in performance.
Of course, in addition to being useful and useful, the functions of the project need to be forward-looking, that is, to reserve space for functions that may be needed in the future.
So, let's talk about what "fast" is. In our daily life, "fast" and "good" are often subjective rather than objective. Sometimes it's based on feelings rather than reason.
To meet the requirements of expected completion, we must know how to complete a large-scale and long-term project at different stages. At each stage, the completion forecast should be made according to the different emphasis of each stage. The finer the project score, the higher the accuracy of the forecast. However, it is very difficult to implement, because each link is not fragmented and needs the cooperation and cooperation of many departments. Planning and implementation need to be analyzed according to the specific situation. If everything goes according to plan, this is in line with the fast principle, otherwise it is unhappy. When it is time to finish, it is fast, otherwise it is slow.
As for what is "cheap"? How much a project should cost should be calculated accurately. Generally speaking, the actual investment and expected investment can basically be controlled within a certain range. According to the total price of each sub-project, the total price of the project can also be effectively controlled. But not necessarily, the less money you spend, the cheaper it is. Cheap is equivalent to the effective value of the project. In the process of project implementation, the higher the effective value of the same investment, that is, the cheaper it is, and the lower the effective value of the same investment, the less cheap it is.
The goal of project management is fast, good and cheap, but in fact, due to various reasons, it is difficult for the project to maximize the three goals at the same time, and quite a few times it needs to be chosen. The key is to take the overall situation into consideration, and take the lesser of the two evils and the heavier of the two benefits. In the process of project implementation, it is necessary to deal with many specific situations in the process of project implementation in time and effectively to ensure the smooth implementation of the project.
In a word, the purpose of the project is to increase the company's income, save the company's expenses and improve the company's service level. The success of the project depends on whether the project is completed quickly, well and cheaply.
Selection criteria of project management system Fold and edit this paragraph.
1. capacity folding
This is mainly to consider whether the system can handle the number of projects you expect, the number of resources you expect to need and the number of projects you expect to manage at the same time.
2. Document preparation and online help function folding
The document quality and online help function of each project management software package are different, which is very different. Mainly consider the readability of the user manual, the logical expression of concepts in the user manual, the detail of the manual and online help, the quantity and quality of examples, and the description level of advanced performance.
3. Easy to operate and fold
No matter what kind of software package you choose, this is usually very important. Mainly consider the "viewing" and "feeling" effects of the system, menu structure, available shortcut keys, color display, information capacity displayed at each time, simplicity of data input, simplicity of data modification now, simplicity of report drawing, quality of printout, consistency of screen display, and difficulty of being familiar with system operation.
4. Available function folding
Be sure to consider whether the system has all kinds of functions required by the project organization. For example, does the program have a work analysis structure, Gantt chart and network diagram, and how about resource balance or balance algorithm? Can the system classify and filter information, monitor budgets, generate customized schedules, and assist in tracking and control? Can it detect improper resource allocation and help solve it?
5. Compatibility with other systems.
In today's digital society, a large number of electronic systems are increasingly unified. If you work in an environment where appropriate data are stored in various places, such as databases and spreadsheets, you should pay special attention to the compatibility and unity of project management software. Some systems can only be unified with several general software packages at the most basic level, while others can be integrated with distributed databases or even object-to-database at the advanced level. In addition, the ability of project management software to transmit information to word processing and graphics software packages by email will also affect your decision.
Common project management systems fold and edit this paragraph.
8 management project management system
8thManage project management software uses WBS architecture to drive the overall control of project planning and execution, and uses the advanced theory of "dynamic management and real-time sharing" to effectively follow up the progress, cost, resources, performance and risks of the project, which solves the problem of project failure caused by information lag in traditional management, changes post-event management into process control, and improves the management and control ability. At the same time, the system also provides document management and multi-dimensional reports to help enterprises precipitate knowledge and support enterprise decision-making. It is a good helper for project managers and management!
product function
Basic management: project scope management, time management, expense management, quality management, communication management, resource management, problem and risk management, procurement management and overall management.
Advanced management: requirements and iterative management, method and template management, commitment management, execution management, and status survey.
The roles of different people
Management: realize multi-project management; Understand the implementation of the project in real time through various charts such as the strategic map of the project, including the progress, cost and risk of the project, to help decision-making; Real-time access to the work of the project team to achieve effective monitoring and guidance.
Project manager: use WBS framework to plan and allocate work; Track the work of project personnel and control the project.
Project progress; Approve and improve various deliverables and control project quality; With the help of reports and icons, analyze project problems and reduce project risks; Manage all kinds of project documents and contracts.
Project members, through personal work platform for work arrangements; Submit the work schedule and deliverables, and update the project progress; Submit questions, participate in instant discussions and so on.
System characteristics
1.B/S architecture, supporting cross-departmental and cross-regional use, and supporting LAN or Internet use;
2. Pure WBS architecture: providing a flexible and standardized project management framework;
3. Dynamic management: the system simulates ATM mode and adopts "transaction management" mode to share information in real time;
4. Multilingual version: support free switching between Chinese (traditional and simplified) and English;
5. Easy to expand: The architecture of "One Design One System (ODOS)" is adopted, and management modules such as ERP, CRM, HR and procurement are seamlessly embedded, so it is easy to expand without integration;
6. Integrability: The system provides a variety of external interfaces and can be integrated with a variety of enterprise management software.