Course Code: BMGT306

Course Title: Project Management

Semester/Session: Semester Second / 2024/2025
Faculty: Social and Management Sciences
Department: Business Management
Course Facilitator: Dr. Rakiya A. Umar
Email: rakdanmusa@[Link]

Course Outline:
1. Introduction to Project Management
o Definition project
o Definition of Project management
o Purpose of Project Management
o Types of Projects
2. Planning (usage of various charts),
o Plan
o the mechanics of project team building
o the dynamics of project teams
o cost estimation Procurement
3. Project implementation strategy,
o Executing
o Executing process group processes
o Monitoring and controlling
4. Monitoring and evaluation, developing
o Monitoring and controlling process group processes
o Monitoring and Controlling Cycle
5. Planning
o Executing
o Executing process group processes
o Monitoring and controlling
o Monitoring and controlling process group processes
o Monitoring and Controlling Cycle
6. Project Management Template
o developing a project management template
o usage of project management template

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Definition of Project
Project has been defined in various ways. Some authorities see projects as mere
activities while others see them as programmes of action.
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English defines a project as an important
and carefully planned piece of work that is intended to build or produce
something new, or to deal with a problem.
From this simple definition, we can see that a project, apart from being
important, should be carefully planned so as to produce something. Some of the
things that a project seeks to produce may be tangible or intangible. A
motorcycle is a tangible product but conducting a census is not a tangible
product.
The following are examples of projects:
a. construction of a 100-bed hospital at Gwarzo by the Kano State government.
b. Dualisation of the Abuja-Maiduguri, highway by the Federal Ministry of
Works.
c. Sinking of 10 water boreholes at Kano Municipal by the local government
council.
From whatever angle we see these projects, some of their features are that they
will require the commitment and deployment of scare resources. Also, the
products will not manage themselves. They will be managed.
Project Management
Project management has evolved because of the need to manage complex public
and private sector activities.
Meaning of Project Management
If we define a project as an important piece of work, project management is the
planning, organising, directing and controlling of resources for a relatively
short-term objective that has been earlier established to complete specific goals.

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For example, the construction of a 100-bed hospital at Gwarzo by the Kano
State Government will require a lot of resources: financial, material and labour.
There will be need for procurement of land. There will also be need for
architects to design the hospital. There will be need for structural engineers,
civil and building engineers and electrical engineers. Different types of
equipment will be sourced for e.g. X-ray machines, laboratory equipment, etc.
to equip the hospital. There should be a way in which all these resources should
be coordinated and managed for effective and time management. In situations
like these, project management comes in handy to provide much needed
expertise.
Purpose of Project Management
From the onset, it will be necessary to stress that many projects are very
complex in nature. The complexities may be introduced by the nature of
technology required to execute the project. For example, a census project is one
of the most difficult and complex projects that public sector managers may face.
Also, managing elections in Nigeria is another complex project.
Most projects such as we have mentioned may require elements of critical risks
and uncertainty. For example, how do we predict what will happen next year?
Even if we could predict the political future with a measure of certainty,
predicting the movement of prices and costs of materials in Nigeria involves a
lot of risks and uncertainty.
In all cases therefore, we would say that the purpose of project management is
to foresee the future and associated problems and therefore, plan, organise and
control key activities so that projects are completed successfully and on time
too.
If we see project management from that perspective, it follows logically that
project management starts even before financial resources are committed and
lasts until the completion of the project.
Types of Projects

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We have discussed the meaning of project management and also the purpose.
Let us go further and discuss the various types of projects that we might
encounter in our different organisations as managers. Some of the types include:

Tangible Projects
Tangible projects are those projects whose output are tangible and can be seen
with the naked eye. They may include the following:
1. a civil engineering project
2. a hospital building project
3. a water borehole project
4. an aircraft manufacturing plant
5. a milk manufacturing plant
6. an urban playground.

Intangible Projects
Intangible projects are those that require commitment of resources but whose
output cannot be seen with the naked eye. In most cases, they are social projects
and in some cases they may be political projects. Examples of intangible project
in Nigeria include election, the national census and public awareness
programmes.

Projects Objectives
Projects must have objectives. It is one of the important tasks of project
managers to see that the projects they manage meet their objectives. Let us now
discuss the objectives of projects.
1) Completion Time
Most projects, when formulated, have completion times. Most public sector
projects even at the time they are awarded or initiated always have a time frame
attached to them. For example, the rehabilitation of the Lagos-Benin
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expressway may be projected to be completed in 24 months. That is the
projected duration of the project. Any contractor who is given the contract for
such a job should ensure that the road is completed on time.
Another point to note about completion time of projects is that late completion
or delivery of an agreed project will not please the sponsor of a project.
Consider, for example, that the Federal Ministry of Works awards a contract for
the dualisation of the Abuja- Maiduguri road to Julius Berger and the road is to
be completed in 24 months under the terms of the underlying contract. If Julius
Berger, the contractor, fails to complete the road project in 24 months, the
Ministry of Works will not be pleased with it. Besides, time is money and if a
contractor fails to operate within a time frame, inflation may set in and delay the
project completion or increase the cost.
2) Performance
All projects have objectives which they set out to achieve. For example, a
public hospital project should have the objective of providing safe and
affordable healthcare to the community. Also, a private sector fast food project
has the objective of manufacturing burgers, fish cake, shawarma, etc. for its
customers. This is a performance objective.
Quality
Also, apart from the performance objective, most projects have a quality
objective. For example, a hospital should have the objective of providing
healthcare. This is a performance objective. But the provision of the service
should be safe. For example, hospital workers (nurses, doctors, etc.) while
treating patients must take adequate care so as not to infect the patients with the
HIV through use of unsterilized needle. This is a quality objective.
Most organisations have quality as one of their major objectives. See, for
example, what Daimler Benz has done with Mercedes Benz cars. Sony products
are reputed for their amazing quality.

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Finally, another aspect of performance is reliability. A good product should also
be reliable especially in the case of medical testing devices.

3) Budget
All projects involve financial outlays. The financial outlays (expenditures)
attached to a project are usually controlled by the budget. The budget sets a
limit as to the quantity of funds a project can consume. In most organisations,
the budget for every project is usually set aside. The reason why a project
should be monitored is that failure to do so in some cases may lead to
exhaustion of funds and abandonment of the project in question.

We have seen that projects may have three main objectives, namely: time,
performance and budget objectives. A major task facing project managers is
how to balance these three objectives. What it means is that at all times the
focus of managers must be on the three items.

Project Plan and Schedule

A project plan is the listing or display that emerges when major project activities
have been estimated, subjected to their logical sequences and timed. In an ideal
situation, network analysis is usually a preferred method for producing a project
plan.
On the other hand, a project schedule is obtained by doing further work on the
project plan. The resources needed to execute the plan must have been estimated
and then taken into account. We can therefore, describe a project schedule as a
working document that results from matching the organisations available
resources to the project plan. From the foregoing, we can say that project plans
and scheduling go hand in hand. They are usually linked.

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The Planning Time Frame
Every project to be executed must have a time frame. There are two ways of
considering a project time frame, namely: the free planning approach and the
target led approach.

Free Planning Approach

Under the free planning approach, a set of physical and financial estimates are
obtained and used to produce a project plan that predicts the completion time of
the project. This predicted completion time will now be accepted by the project
manager or team.

Target-Led Planning Approach

The target-led planning approach appears to be the direct opposite of the free
planning approach. In the target-led planning approach, the project target
delivery or completion date is determined well in advance. And so the project
manager must work with the available resources to meet the target delivery date
for the project. For example, if there is going to be an army exhibition on
Independence Day (1 October), all the officers involved in the exhibition will
take October 1 as the target date for the project delivery and work to meet the
deadline.
It should be realised that target-led planning at times leads to project planners
having to build overtime into the project just to ensure the completion. If project
plans are made with full consideration of the organisation‘s available resources,
then the execution of the project will not encounter problems along the line.

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Essential Project Management Tools
1. Project Management Software
Project management software is the backbone of modern project management.
It provides a centralized platform for planning, tracking, and managing projects.
These tools often include features for task management, scheduling, resource
allocation, budgeting, and reporting. Some popular project management
software includes:

 Trello: Known for its simplicity and visual approach, Trello uses boards
and cards to help teams manage tasks and workflows. It’s ideal for
smaller teams and projects with less complexity.
 Asana: A more robust tool, Asana offers a range of features for task
management, project tracking, and team collaboration. It’s suitable for
larger teams and more complex projects.
 Microsoft Project: One of the most comprehensive project management
tools, Microsoft Project offers advanced features for scheduling, resource
management, and portfolio management. It’s ideal for large organizations
with complex project management needs.

2. Gantt Charts

Gantt charts are one of the most widely used project management tools. They
provide a visual timeline of a project, showing the start and end dates of
individual tasks, as well as their dependencies. Gantt charts are particularly
useful for tracking progress and ensuring that tasks are completed on time.
Tools like Microsoft Project and Smartsheet offer built-in Gantt chart features,
allowing project managers to easily create and update these timelines as the
project progresses.

3. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a hierarchical decomposition of a
project into smaller, more manageable components. It breaks down the project

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into tasks, subtasks, and work packages, making it easier to estimate time, costs,
and resources.
The WBS helps project managers to:

 Clearly define and organize the scope of the project.

 Assign tasks to team members with specific roles and responsibilities.
 Monitor and control project progress by tracking each component.

4. Critical Path Method (CPM)

The Critical Path Method (CPM) is a technique used to identify the longest path
of dependent tasks in a project. This path is known as the critical path, and it
determines the minimum project duration. By focusing on the critical path,
project managers can ensure that any delays in these tasks do not affect the
overall project timeline.

CPM is particularly useful for complex projects with multiple interdependent

tasks. Tools like Microsoft Project and Oracle Primavera offer CPM analysis
features to help project managers optimize schedules.

The Critical Path Method (CPM) is a project management technique used to

identify the sequence of tasks that determine the shortest possible time to
complete a project. It helps in scheduling, resource allocation, and risk
management by pinpointing the activities that directly impact the project's end
date.
Project Matrix Charts
Let us briefly recall that every project consists of people, tasks and resources.
These three items are present in every conceivable project. There must be a way
or manner in which the three items will be organised to be able to ensure project
execution. Matrix charts list one set of factors at the extreme left-hand side of
tabulation and on the right-hand side, factors directly associated with them
across columns. There are many variations of the matrix chart.

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In project management, matrix charts are very useful for managers who have
the responsibility of allocating tasks to different people in a project team. Matrix
charts are very useful for planning and controlling projects. The matrix charts
can be used to allocate people to tasks, or tasks to people. In some cases, the
matrix chart is used to allocate people to machines.
Bar Charts
Bar charts are derived from Gantt Charts named after their originator, Henry
Gantt. Bar charts are used in planning and scheduling. They are very easy to
draw and can be adapted to suit many planning and scheduling jobs. When
properly prepared, bar charts turn out to be very handy planning and scheduling
aid to a project planner.

In using the bar chart, the project manager will usually identify each task within
a project and then go ahead to allocate a time frame for the completion of each
task. With this information, the bar chart is then constructed.

Mechanics of project team building

Team-Based Structures
In a very large organisation including a multinational, we come across situations
where there are many teams within the organisation. The teams may be created
for various purposes. Let us briefly discuss some examples of teams in a
practical organisation setting. To organise our thoughts we shall define team-
based structures as "employee teams". It is a design where work is structured for
groups.

The groups are then given authority and discretion over matters such as process
improvement, service development, quality management or even new product
development. Team approach to management was developed mainly by

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Japanese companies like Toyota, Honda, Mitsubishi, Sony, and a whole lot of
others. What we see today are giant Japanese firms which control a large
segment of global trade?
Let us briefly discuss some of the team-based structures that are in place in
some organisations.
1) Pure Project Teams
A pure project team is a specially constituted work group formed within the
organisation and given a special assignment or task. The assignment could be
any of the following:
a. installation of a new computer system
b. design of a new product
c. design of a new service format.
Usually, members of a pure project team are nominated to join the team based
on certain criteria. A team leader or manager is usually placed at the head of the
team. In most cases, after the assignment has been completed, the team is
disbanded.

2) Task Force Teams

A task force is created by top management to tackle or solve a major problem.
In the Nigerian setting, we have witnessed the advent of one task force or the
other. There was the task force on ports congestion. Members of a task force are
usually drawn from various organisations with a team leader as the head.
Usually at the end of the assignment or when the task force loses focus, it is
disbanded.

3) Quality Improvement Teams

Today, quality has become an issue that has taken the front line in business
discussions. Most organisations are drawing heavily from the Japanese firms
that have long imbibed quality as their watch word.

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In Nigeria today, total quality management (TQM) has become an important
issue and many firms are setting up internal quality teams specially empowered
to address ways to improve quality.

Group Dynamics and Team Building

Recall that organisations grow out of the need for people to cooperate for the
achievement of set goals. The coming together is based on the fact that different
people have different skills. That precisely explains briefly the origin of teams
or groups.

Although groups have been variously defined in the literature, our working
definition is that a group is a collection of two or more people who perceive
themselves as a group, share a common interest, goal, norm and a sense of
belonging. They may have a leader.
Invariably, the following can be seen as groups:
a. a computer steering committee
b. a product launch committee.

We have just defined a group but we need to go further to examine the group
content. In an ideal project team or group, there will be different people from
different backgrounds and different skills. When people join a project team or
group, they may lose their work identity especially if the group they joined has
a work culture or ethics.

Practically, organisations use groups or teams for the following purposes:

a. To distribute work along clearly defined lines. In a bank, for instance, you
could find the energy group, treasury group, etc.
b. To monitor and control work. After a group has been formed, the group needs
to be managed and that is why every group or team should have a leader.

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c. Problem solving. At times, groups are used to solve organisational problems
as they arise. Problems facing an organisation are many. They may be major or
minor. In most cases, when major problems arise, management can set up a
team to look into the problem.
Team Work
Building project teams is not the end of the task ahead. The most important task
is how to build team spirit. Like we said earlier, members of the team may come
from various units or departments to join a particular team set up at the head
office. The critical task and which is the duty of the team leader is to ensure that
the group members see themselves as members of a team and also work like a
team.
If members of a team are to perform as team players and work towards
team objectives, then certain things should be present in the team. Let us
examine those things:

a) One Unit Goal

It is important that every member of a team perfectly understands the goals and
objectives of the team. Every action of each member must be directed towards
the set objectives of the team.
b) Group Cohesiveness and Support
A group is made up of a number of people with different qualities and
characteristics. A good group is one in which there is that cohesiveness. This
cohesiveness binds the group together and makes them act in one direction and
towards the same objectives.
c) Team Spirit
Individual spirit is not the same as team spirit. Team spirit is based on group
affinity and affection amongst members. Team spirit makes an individual
member imbibe the spirit of a group and behave like the group.
d) High Expectations

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There must be high expectations amongst the various members of a team. For
example, when you form a 15-man football team to represent Nigeria, each
team member usually will have high expectations arising from team dynamics
and spirit.
e) Willingness
Team members must be willing to be members of the team. They should not be
unwilling members because if they are, they will be frustrated and this will
affect the team as a whole
Communication within Project Team
We need to now discuss communication within a project team. In a project
team, there will be a lot of people who need to communicate with each other.
Communication is the process of exchanging information between one person
or another or between one person and a group of persons. Communication also
conveys knowledge of or information about a subject matter. Communication is
all about sharing information. Generally, in a team situation, there is the need
for effective communication amongst the members.
The importance of communication is that it is the life blood of any
organisation and by implication the team. Communication as a process assists
management functions to be accomplished. Communication enables the team
leader to communicate with other members of the team and also enables other
team members to communicate with the team leader. Communication provides a
link between people in a team or organisation.
The real purpose of communication is to effect change in an organisation and
influence action towards organisational objectives. Communication organises
the human resources in an organisation or team. Let us discuss the lines of
communication in a project team.
a) Vertical Communication
Vertical communication within the project team could be from the team leader
to subordinates or from the subordinates to the team leader. Vertical

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communication assists in passing information on policies and provides feedback
mechanism through which staffs respond to communication.
b) Horizontal Communication In a project team, communication can flow
horizontally across staff at the same level in the project team. It could be
communication to all the managers in the team or at the same level.
c) External Communication Within a project team, external communication
is a situation where the team or group exchanges information with the
larger organisation. For example, when a team leader reports progress to
the managing director, we regard the information as a form of external
communication as it is outside the team.

Building Good Interpersonal Relations within the Team

An organisation may possess enormous capital, good organisational structure,
highly trained manpower. But if the staff do not relate properly to one another,
then problems may likely occur frequently and retard corporate performance.
As discussed earlier, a team can be made up of people from different units and
backgrounds. It is therefore, very important that at all times, managers should
be aware of the need to build and maintain good interpersonal relationship with
their subordinates, bosses and peers within the organisation.
Put simply, interpersonal relations are the way and manner people get along
with one another. It could be the relationship between one person and another or
between one group of persons (e.g. staff) and another group of persons. If
people are friendly and understanding, then good interpersonal relations develop
and everyone performs his or her tasks properly.

Effects of Poor Interpersonal Relations

a. Tension between staff and other fellow staff
b. Tension between staff and management
c. Tension amongst management staff

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d. Unhealthy internal rivalry between all staff
e. Industrial misery and hostility
f. Strike
g. Corruption
h. General dishonesty
i. Crime in the work place
j. Disloyalty to the organisation.
In a situation where there is no good interpersonal relation, obviously
productivity is lowered and this gives rise to lower earnings for the organisation.

Cost Estimation
Introduction
Generally in project management, it is very important to accurately estimate the
cost of a project. It is even more necessary for management decision and
control. Before a project comes on stream, the cost implications must be known
well in advance and properly estimated. This serves as a guide to proper project
management and control. Proper cost estimation will allow for proper planning
of costs, allocation of resources to various units of a project, cost control and
most importantly budgetary control.
What is Cost?
Cost refers to the value of resources, including money, time, effort, and
opportunity, that are used or given up to produce goods or services, or to
achieve a specific goal. It can be viewed as a monetary outlay, the price of a
good or service, or the sacrifice made to obtain something.
Types of Costs
Direct Costs
Direct costs are those costs which are attributed directly to a job or project. For
example, if an engineer spends five hours to design an engineering column, then
that time spent by the engineer can be described as a direct labour and the cost

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can be recorded as a direct cost to be charged directly to the design of the
engineering column.
Factory Costs
The concept of factory cost is mainly applicable to manufacturing concerns.
Factory cost is the total cost of a job or project before the addition of a mark-up
for the purpose of profit. Factory costs will include the following:
a. direct materials costs
b. direct labour costs
c. indirect labour costs
d. design costs.

Fixed Costs
Fixed costs are those costs which remain virtually unchanged and must continue
to be incurred even though the workload might fluctuate between zero and the
maximum or installed capacity. Fixed costs will generally include the following:
a. management salaries
b. administrative salaries
c. heating and electricity expenses
d. insurance
e. maintenance of building, etc.
f. business permits.

Indirect Costs
In an ideal setting like a manufacturing facility, the provision of office
accommodation, management, welfare services, accounting, heating and
lighting all constitute costs that must be incurred in running the manufacturing
facility. Others will include salaries and wages.

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Standard Labour Costs: Labour constitutes a very critical component of project
cost. It includes the labour of both junior and senior personnel, engineers,
accountants and the rest who are involved in a project. When trying to estimate
the labour cost for any project, it would be very difficult to use the different
rates of pay to be earned by every individual. There might be two engineers
engaged in a project but they may not be earning the same salaries. Generally, in
project management, it is advisable to use standard costing to estimate the cost
of labour. For labour costs, it is convenient to classify people according to some
convenient rules based on the type of jobs that they do.

For example, engineers in a project may be averaged out to cost N1,000,000 per
annum. Therefore, we can estimate that the standard cost for an engineer for a
project is N1,000,000 per annum. That is the cost that will be imputed in the
cost estimate for engineers.
Also, for accountants involved in a project, there may also be the need to work
out the standard cost for an accountant. For example, we might estimate the
standard cost for an accountant to be N1, 500,000 per annum. For all types of
labour, we should have estimates of the standard costs. It enables the project to
be properly cost.

Work Breakdown
Consider a project to build a new university at Ulakwo which is about 20
kilometres from Owerri, the Imo State capital. Even where we have defined the
project as a new university, it will be very necessary to consider the total picture
of the new university project.
The university project will include the following:
a. access roads
b. administrative buildings
c. lecture halls

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d. clinics
e. laboratories
f. churches and mosques
g. students hostels
h. university teaching hospital complex.
Breaking the total project into smaller units constitutes what is referred to as a
work breakdown. Work breakdown enables the project managers or
administrators to break down a large or complex project into smaller and more
manageable units. The ideal thing to do is to break a project into smaller units
called subprojects.
The sub-project itself could be further divided into much smaller units for
effective analysis and design. When a project is broken down into smaller sub-
projects, it becomes very easy to cost each sub-project properly. After costing
each subproject properly, then we could then add up the costs of the sub-
projects to generate the cost of the total project.

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY

The main objective of developing a project plan is to guide the project
implementation, a good plan should help produce good outputs, which
ultimately lead to good outcomes. A good approach to help the coordination
between project planning and project implementation is to have the same people
who plan the activities be the people who will implement them. The project
team needs to experience and build the skills to develop and implement a plan,
the team that implements the plan has a better chance at success if its part of the
plan development. Although project managers are responsible for developing
the overall project management plan, they must solicit inputs from the project
team members for each process area.
Project implementation requires a different set of skills; such as leadership,
communication, facilitating and negotiating skills. Project managers must

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provide leadership to interpret the project plans and the implementation
guidelines, project managers must also be able to communicate with the project
team and stakeholders to develop and implement good project plans. Project
managers and their staff must possess the required expertise for successful
project implementation. If they don‘t, it is the projects manager‘s job to help
develop the necessary skills, or find somebody else who can to the job or alert
the organizations management of the problem.
Project Managers Role
a) Project Plan Monitoring and Control
Monitoring and controlling the project involves identifying, evaluating and
managing changes throughout the project management life cycle, the role of the
project manager in this area involves achieving the following objectives:
 Ensure that changes are beneficial and contribute to the project success; this is
achieved by influencing the factors that create changes and by making trade-offs
among the projects constraints such as scope, schedule, budget and quality.
 Communicate significant changes to management, beneficiaries and donors,
especially the ones that will impact the projects constraints.
 Update project plans and record changes.
b) Communicator
This is another important role of the project manager, but one that is often
overlooked and not properly taken in consideration when assigning a project
manager to a new project. Communication is providing relevant, timely
information to the right people about the project. Communication is used to
inform and educate the project stakeholders about the project objectives, risks,
assumptions and constraints. The communication or informational role is the
most critical role for the success of the project.
The organization functional managers, project staff, donors and key
stakeholders need to make critical decision about the project, and the
information they receive must be relevant, on time and accurate. Project

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managers in the role of communicators take three functions: to gather
information from project staff and other people involved with the project;
distribute the information to stakeholders, which includes the donor,
beneficiaries, and the organizations functional managers; and the last function is
to transmit the information to the external environment, such as the general
public to gain support to the project.
Project managers spend most of their time communicating. They hold meetings;
develop reports (writing as well as orally) to the, donors, beneficiaries or senior
management; they listen to issues; solve problems; provide direction and
constantly negotiate for resources. Project managers‘success depends greatly on
their ability to communicate. The project manager uses two forms of
communication:
1. Formal communications which include progress reports and presentations to
management or the beneficiaries
2. Informal communications which includes email messages, telephone calls,
and team meetings
The effectiveness with which this role is used is important to the success of the
project and the project manager.

c) Leader
A project manager is above all a leader; the team needs direction for the life of
the project and the project manager is responsible for leading the team to
achieve the vision that the project has created, a project manager does this by
facilitating, coordinating and motivating the team to achieve the project goals;
this is a central role of the project manager and her ability to influence, inspire,
direct, communicate will determine her effectiveness as a project manager.
Leading is a central role; it involves working with and through others to achieve
the objectives of the project. It is through the project manager‘s ability to lead
will determine the success of the project.

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The focus on this role is to ensure the project team and the project stakeholders
have a clear vision of the objectives the project aims to achieve. During the
curse of the project is not unusual that the team starts shifting its attention from
the final objective; here is where the leadership role is needed and the project
manager needs to communicate and motivate the team to the ultimate goal.
The leadership role includes the facilitator, coordinator and motivator roles.
i) Facilitator
In this role the project manager acts as an individual who enables the project
team to work more effectively; helps them collaborate and achieve synergy. The
project manager is not responsible to do all the tasks of the project, that is the
responsibility of the project team, the project manager role is to create the right
conditions that enable the project team to carry their duties.
The project manager also contributes by providing the framework to facilitate
the interactions among the different groups so that they are able to function
effectively. The goal of this role is to support the project team and the
beneficiaries so that they can achieve exceptional performance. The project
manager encourages full participation from the project team, promotes mutual
understanding with the beneficiaries and cultivates shared responsibility among
all project stakeholders.
The facilitator role is mostly used when dealing with beneficiaries, since the
project manager doesn‘t have any form of authority over this group he must
provide an environment of trust where beneficiaries feel comfortable about
contributing ideas and provide input to the project and discover the solutions
that can help achieve the projects objectives.

ii) Coordinator
Coordination means integrating the goals and activities of the people and groups
involved with the project. The functional units in the organizations, such as
finance, human resources and procurement; and the beneficiaries and the

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partners involved with the project, need their activities be coordinated in a way
that benefit the project. This role demanded of the project managers is needed to
ensure all these groups are working towards the same goal. The project
managers has to inform each group about what is expected from the by the
project, without coordination these groups will lose sight of their role with the
project and may pursue their own interest at the cost of the project.
The need for coordination depends on the extent to which they need to be
integrated with the activities of other groups; it depends on the degree of
interdependence and the nature of communication requirements. A high degree
of coordination is needed when factors in the project environment are changing
and there exist a high level of interdependence among the activities performed
by the different groups. This is a case when one group requires an output
coming from another group in order to complete an activity.

Communication is the best tool to achieve an effective coordination, the project

manager‘s role is to ensure that information is received by all groups at the right
time; the greater the level of complexity and uncertainty about the project
objectives the greater the need for information. The project manager needs to
evaluate the best approach to coordinate formal or informal communications.
The approach has to match the project‘s capacity for coordination with its need
for coordination; it is important to know if the need for coordination is larger
than the ability to coordinate then the project manager increases the resources to
help him coordinate.

iii) Motivator
Development projects are highly complex and demanding on the project staff,
this is the reason why the project manager has to act as a motivator to the team
in times of difficulty. Working with people is not always easy and the factors
that provide them with motivation are different from each other. The project

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manager‘s role as a motivator is to identify the factors that serve as an incentive
for a project team to take the necessary action to complete a task within the
project constraints. The nature of development projects; difficult locations, high
security risks, extensive travel, limited accommodations and other factors
contribute to the low motivation of the team.

The project team is an integral part of the project, lack of motivation can lead to
high turnover and low morale which results in poor performance. Even if the
project is able to develop the best plans and has all the resources needed if
people are not motivated the project will fail. Project Managers also foster
teamwork among all project participants, they act as catalyst of change to get
the beneficiaries, donor, project team and management of the organization to
work and meet the project goals.

MONITORING AND EVALUATION

A project is a temporary endeavour designed to produce a unique product,
service or result with a defined beginning and end (usually time-constrained,
and often constrained by funding or deliverables) undertaken to meet unique
goals and objectives, typically to bring about beneficial change or added value.
The temporary nature of projects stands in contrast with business as usual (or
operations), which are repetitive, permanent, or semi-permanent functional
activities to produce products or services. In practice, the management of these
two systems is often quite different, and as such requires the development of
distinct technical skills and management strategies.
Projects may be audited or reviewed while the project is in progress. Formal
audits are generally risk or compliance-based and management will direct the
objectives of the audit. An examination may include a comparison of approved
project management processes with how the project is actually being managed.
Each project should be assessed for the appropriate level of control needed: too

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much control is too time consuming, too little control is very risky. If project
control is not implemented correctly, the cost to the business should be clarified
in terms of errors and fixes.
Monitoring is a deliberate systematic means of collection and analysis of
information as a project progresses which intended at adequate efficiency and
effectiveness of a project embarked on with thorough use of resources. It
facilitates organization to determine whether the resources available are enough
and are being utilized satisfactorily. Project monitoring is establishing measure
that projects are on targets and indicators to measure advancement and
achievement.
Evaluation involves conscious checking into project effects vis-à-vis the agreed
slated plans on accomplishment scale. It concern with outcome process of a
blueprint which can be done during and after the project. Evaluation is not an
end product but a process expected to take place throughout the stages of a
project or action.
Evaluation is a process used to ascertain what has happened during a given
activity, whether a programme or activity is working, and whether the initial
commitment has been carried out and achieved In the course of the project it is
done to ensure any contingency that can hamper the project is resolved and
plans are amended to suit goals of the project. While after project evaluation is
aim at understanding success or fail at the same time outline the means, measure
and medium for improvement ahead of next implementation of project plan.

Differences between monitoring and evaluation

Planning
After the initiation stage, the project is planned to an appropriate level of the
main purpose is to plan time, cost and resources adequately to estimate the work
needed and to effectively manage risk during project execution. As with the

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Initiation process group, a failure to adequately plan greatly reduces the
project's chances of successfully accomplishing its goals.
Project planning generally consists of:
 determining how to plan (e.g. by level of detail or Rolling Wave planning);
 developing the scope statement;
 selecting the planning team;
 identifying deliverables and creating the work breakdown structure;
 identifying the activities needed to complete those deliverables and
networking the activities in their logical sequence;
 estimating the resource requirements for the activities;
 estimating time and cost for activities;
 developing the schedule;
 developing the budget;
 risk planning;
 gaining formal approval to begin work.

Additional processes, such as planning for communications and for scope

management, identifying roles and responsibilities, determining what to
purchase for the project and holding a kick-off meeting are also generally
advisable. For new product development projects, conceptual design of the
operation of the final product may be performed concurrent with the project
planning activities, and may help to inform the planning team when identifying
deliverables and planning activities.

Executing Process Group Processes

The execution/implementation phase ensures that the project management plan's
deliverables are executed accordingly. This phase involves proper allocation,
coordination and management of human resources and any other resources such
as material and budgets. The output of this phase is the project deliverables.

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Monitoring and Controlling Process Group Processes Monitoring and
controlling consists of those processes performed to observe project execution
so that potential problems can be identified in a timely manner and corrective
action can be taken, when necessary, to control the execution of the project. The
key benefit is that project performance is observed and measured regularly to
identify variances from the project management plan.

Monitoring and controlling includes:

 Measuring the ongoing project activities ('where we are');
 Monitoring the project variables (cost, effort, scope, etc.) against the project
management plan and the project performance baseline (where we should be);
 Identifying corrective actions to address issues and risks properly (How can
we get on track again);
 Influencing the factors that could circumvent integrated change control so
only approved changes are implemented.

In multi-phase projects, the monitoring and control process also provides

feedback between project phases, in order to implement corrective or preventive
actions to bring the project into compliance with the project management plan.

Project maintenance is an ongoing process, and it includes:

 Continuing support of end-users
 Correction of errors
 Updates to the product over time

Cycle
Monitoring and Controlling Cycle

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In this stage, auditors should pay attention to how effectively and quickly user
problems are resolved. Over the course of any construction project, the work
scope may change. Change is a normal and expected part of the construction
process. Changes can be the result of necessary design modifications, differing
site conditions, material availability, contractor-requested changes, value
engineering and impacts from third parties, to name a few. Beyond executing
the change in the field, the change normally needs to be documented to show
what was actually constructed. This is referred to as change management.
Hence, the owner usually requires a final record to show all changes or, more
specifically, any change that modifies the tangible portions of the finished work.
The record is made on the contract documents – usually, but not necessarily
limited to, the design drawings.
The end product of this effort is what the industry terms as-built drawings, or
more simply, "as built." The requirement for providing them is a norm in
construction contracts. Construction document management is a highly
important task undertaken with the aid an online or desktop software system, or
maintained through physical documentation. The increasing legality pertaining
to the construction industries maintenance of correct documentation has caused
the increase in the need for document management systems.
When changes are introduced to the project, the viability of the project has to be
reassessed. It is important not to lose sight of the initial goals and targets of the
projects. When the changes accumulate, the forecasted result may not justify the
original proposed investment in the project. Successful project management
identifies these components, and tracks and monitors progress so as to stay
within time and budget frames already outlined at the commencement of the
project.

Project Definition

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Project definition is a process which seeks to describe a project from the idea
stage to the stage when the project has been completed. All information about
the project is usually embodied in the definition of the project. Usually, before a
project starts, it must be properly defined so that the parties involved properly
understand their clear roles.
The Project Cycle
The project cycle tries to describe the various stages that are involved from the
conception of a project idea to when the project is executed. Understanding of a
project cycle is really very important as it enables us to get the total picture of a
project. Let us now examine the various stages of a project cycle.

1. The Project Idea Stage

The project idea stage is the first stage of a project cycle. The idea about a
project arises from a variety of sources within the market place or
macroeconomic environment. New project ideas could originate from within an
organisation or from outside it. In a public sector organisation, it emanates
mainly from the assigned roles of the relevant body. For example, a rural
farmers‘ fertiliser distribution project is most likely to emanate from a state
ministry of agriculture and natural resources. The idea of a rural medical clinic
is also likely to emanate from a health ministry. In the private sector, project
ideas could emanate from within an organisation or from outside. From within,
it could arise out of contacts between salesmen and customers. It could also
arise from outside if customers specifically request for possible bigger or better
products.

2. Project Identification Stage

After the project idea stage, the next stage is the project identification stage. The
project identification stage consolidates the project idea stage. Project ideas are
not actually useful except if they are clearly identified and put down in a

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systematic manner for further processing. A government agency may conceive
the idea of poverty alleviation in a particular local government area of Bauchi
State. But you will realise that the concept of poverty alleviation covers a very
vast area of possible interventions. So apart from simply coming up with the
poverty alleviation, the government agency should go ahead to identify the
mode of intervention. The poverty alleviation project could be any of the
following:
a. a rural women soap making seminar/workshop
b. a rural women micro-credit scheme
c. a millet planting project.

3. Project Evaluation Stage

When a project has been identified, the next step is to evaluate the project.
Project evaluation involves the estimation of the costs and benefits of a project.
Costs and benefits should be measured in terms of cash flows. It will be
important here for us to understand that the estimation of cash flows of a project
is a very difficult task. It is difficult in the sense that cash flows which are likely
to arise in the future may be difficult to estimate. In a public sector set up, other
factors come into play when evaluating a project. For example, the employment
generation potentials of a project may be taken into consideration when
estimating the benefits of a project. Besides, political considerations may also
come into play.

4. Project Selection Stage

After the project evaluation stage, the next stage is the project selection stage.
Faced with an array of projects with different values and worth, there is need to
select which projects will be embarked upon. Besides, budgetary considerations
will also come into play since the resources for projects are limited. Project
selection is a top management responsibility. In the selection of projects, top

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management usually considers the financial cost outlays involved and match
them with the benefits to be derived from a project. Projects that add positive
benefits to the community should be selected.

5. Project Execution Stage

The project execution stage is the final stage in the project cycle. After a project
has been selected, it moves on to the execution stage. In most organisations, the
responsibility for execution of projects is vested on a project management team
raised by management or government. The function of the project management
team is to ensure that the budget for the project is actually spent on the project
and that the project is completed on schedule. In an ideal organisation, the
project management team usually prepares a monthly or quarterly budget report
on projects. This is important for project monitoring and control.

Planning in Occupation
The nature of planning in occupation varies and is peculiar with goals
associated with it the occupation, irrespective of public or private occupation
seven reasons serve as motives for planning; namely; finance, strategic,
contingency, crucial succession, tactical and operational.
1) Financing Planning:
Long-term profit planning aimed at generating greater return on assets, growth
in market share, and at solving foreseeable problems. It goes without saying that
you must have a tangible financial plan for your business. The following are a
handful of musts in a good financial plan:
a. The plan must have buy-in from employees at all levels of the organization.
b. The plan must be clearly communicated.
c. The plan must be rooted in reality.
d. The plan must be forward-looking.

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e. The plan must be reviewed formally; progress must be tracked on an ongoing
basis.
2. Strategic Planning:
A systematic process of envisioning a desired future, and translating this vision
into broadly defined goals or objectives and a sequence of steps to achieve
them. In addition to having a strong financial outlook, your company also needs
a clear strategic vision.
3. Contingency Planning: A contingency plan is a plan devised for an outcome
other than in the usual (expected) plan. It is often used for risk management
when an exceptional risk that, though unlikely, would have catastrophic
consequences. Contingency plans are often devised by governments or
businesses. A contingency plan is essential to growth and business success.
After all, you need a Plan-B or a backup plan to launch when the unexpected
happens. Contingency planning makes you proactive and serves as a source of
innovation and business growth in and of itself (double win!). In short, a good
contingency represents a researched and vetted realistic opportunity. If disaster
strikes, activate contingencies in order to fill a void.

4. Succession Planning: Succession planning is a process for identifying and

developing internal people with the potential to fill key business leadership
positions in the company. Succession planning increases the availability of
experienced and capable employees that are prepared to assume these roles as
they become available. What if your manager or an executive left suddenly? Is
your organization prepared to replace a major player on your team? Succession
planning, however, needs to be more than just naming a successor for major
company positions.
A strong succession plan creates opportunities for managers as well as
succession candidates because with a developed successor in place, managers
are primed to move into new positions and pursue opportunities when those

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arise as well. Therefore, succession candidates must be groomed, developed and
prepared to step into a new role when the opportunity arises so that the multi-
shift can happen simultaneously as needed (not to put off until candidates are
ready). You won‘t experience that lag time trying to figure out who can take
over their responsibilities and continue on your path to growth without wasting
time or additional resources

Strategic Plan
A strategic plan is a high-level overview of the entire business, its vision,
objectives, and value. This plan is the foundational basis of the organization and
will dictate decisions in the long-term. The scope of the plan can be two, three,
five, or even ten years.
Managers at every level will turn to the strategic plan to guide their decisions. It
will also influence the culture within an organization and how it interacts with
customers and the media. Thus, the strategic plan must be forward looking,
robust but flexible, with a keen focus on accommodating future growth. The
crucial components of a strategic plan are:
1. Vision
Where does the organization want to be five years from now? How does it want
to influence the world? Example ‘to create the most customer-centric company
on Earth’ (Amazon).
2. Mission
The mission statement is a more realistic overview of the company‘s aim and
ambitions. Why does the company exist? What does it aim to achieve through
its existence? A clothing company might want to ‘bring high street fashion to
the masses’, while a non-profit might want to ‘eradicate polio’
3. Values

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Inspire. Go above & beyond. Innovate. Exude passion. Stay humble. Make it
fun. These aren‘t fragments from a motivational speech, but [Link]‘s values.
Like Fab, each organization has its own values. These values will guide
managers and influence the kind of employees you hire. There is no template to
follow when jotting down the values.
Tactical Plan
The tactical plan describes the tactics the organization plans to use to achieve
the ambitions outlined in the strategic plan. It is a short range (i.e. with a scope
of less than one year), low-level document that breaks down the broader
mission statements into smaller, actionable chunks. If the strategic plan is a
response to What? the tactical plan responds to How?
Creating tactical plans is usually handled by mid-level managers. The tactical
plan is a very flexible document; it can hold anything and everything required to
achieve the organization‘s goals.
Operational Plan
The operational plan describes the day to day running of the company. The
operational plan charts out a roadmap to achieve the tactical goals within a
realistic timeframe. This plan is highly specific with an emphasis on short-term
objectives. For example, Increase sales to 150 units/day, or hire 50 new
employees are both examples of operational plan objectives.
Creating the operational plan is the responsibility of low-level managers and
supervisors. Operational plans can be either single use, or ongoing, as described
below:
1. Single use plans
These plans are created for events/activities with a single occurrence. This can
be a one-time sales program, a marketing campaign, a recruitment drive, etc.
Single use plans tend to be highly specific.

2. Ongoing plans

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These plans can be used in multiple settings on an ongoing basis. Ongoing plans
can be of different types, such as:
 Policy: A policy is a general document that dictates how managers should
approach a problem. It influences decision making at the micro level. Specific
plans on hiring employees, terminating contractors, etc. are examples of
policies.
 Rule: Rules are specific regulations according to which an organization
functions. The rules are meant to be hard coded and should be enforced
stringently. No smoking within premises, or Employees must report by 9 a.m.,
are two examples of rules.
 Procedure: A procedure describes a step-by-step process to accomplish a
particular objective. For example: most organizations have detailed guidelines
on hiring and training employees, or sourcing raw materials. These guidelines
can be called procedures.
Ongoing plans are created on an ad-hoc basis but can be repeated and changed
as required.
Operational plans align the company‘s strategic plan with the actual day to day
running of the company. This is where the macro meets the micro. Running a
successful company requires paying an equal attention to now just the broad
objectives, but also how the objectives are being met on an everyday basis,
hence the need for such intricate planning.

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