A project is a job that is done once.

What is the difference between project management and managing in general? Aren’t they really the same?
The answer, of course, is no. A project is done only once, whereas most jobs are ongoing or repetitive, and
managing one-time jobs is different from managing ongoing ones. For one thing, the people who work on a
project may be reassigned to other jobs once the project is completed, so the team is temporary. Often the
team members do not report to the project manager on a regular basis, meaning that the project manager has no direct authority over them, a situation that presents its own set of problems.

Quality expert Dr. J. M. Juran defines a project as a problem scheduled for solution. This definition forces us
to recognize that projects are aimed at solving problems and that failure to define the problem properly is
what sometimes gets us into trouble. Interestingly, when you tell project team members that you want to begin planning a project by writing a problem statement, they tend to say, “We don’t need to do that. We all know what the problem is.”

In my younger days, I was sometimes intimidated by that response. Not any more. My rejoinder is, “If that is
true, it will only take five minutes, so let’s do it.” I have never yet gotten a group to write a problem statement
in five minutes, because seldom do people really understand or agree on what the problem is. This failure to achieve a consensus definition of the problem leads to developing the right solution to the wrong problem or to a paralyzing bickering about goals.

“A project is a problem scheduled for solution.”
—J. M. JURAN

To help a team at this point, I offer a definition of a problem. A desired objective is not a problem by itself.
The key to a problem is that there is an obstacle that prevents you from closing the gap (achieving your
objective) easily. Problem solving consists of finding ways of overcoming or getting around obstacles.
A problem is a gap between where you are and where you want to be, with an obstacle that prevents easy
movement to close the gap.

To help flesh out the definition, answer the following questions:
• What is the desired end state or outcome?
• What prevents or makes achieving it difficult?
• How will you know when you have achieved the desired result?

WHAT IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT?

Project management is the planning, scheduling, and controlling of project activities to meet project objectives.

The major objectives that must be met include performance, cost, and time goals, while at the
same time you control or maintain the scope of the project at the correct level.

Ideally, the scope of a project should remain constant throughout the life of the job. Naturally, this seldom
happens. In most cases the magnitude (scope) of the work increases as a result of overlooked details,
unforeseen problems, or an inadequately defined problem. The most common reason for scope changes is that something is forgotten.

project management: The planning, scheduling, and controlling of project activities to meet project
objectives.

Scope generally increases. In fact, about the only time project scope decreases is when the budget is cut and some of the originally planned work is put on hold. The problem with scope changes is that they tend to be small and incremental; if a number of them occur, the project budget or schedule may suffer. This is a fairly common cause of project failures.

A project manager should advise stakeholders (especially customers) of the impact on the project of a change in scope so that decisions can be made about how to handle such changes. If a customer is told that a requested change will result in a 20% increase in project costs, the customer may opt to defer the change. If the impact is not made clear, the customer may ask for the change, thinking the costs will not increase significantly, and be very dismayed at the end of the job to learn of the true impact. A project manager has a responsibility to keep stakeholders informed about the impact of scope changes on the project, protecting them from surprises at the end of the job and protecting the project manager from being evaluated on original targets rather than on revised ones.

performance: The quality of the work being done. cost: The cost of project work, directly related to the
human and physical resources applied. time: The schedule that must be met. scope: The magnitude of the
work to be performed.