Observing And Tracking Project Progress

Introduction

I have always been keen on observing and tracking project progress and remember observing a 56 story building being conducted on my way to school over a 3 year period and gradually watch it grow than finished and gradually opening its gates to the public. When I recall these projects I can only imagine the scale and skills the project manager required to complete this task. More recently I remember tracking the palm islands being constructed in Dubai which again mesmerized me due to the scale of the project (Hobbs, 2009). These were the projects which captured my attention as I also want to be part of a major project of such a scale.

Reflect on your time in this module and share important milestones of your journey with your peers. What about the module will have the greatest influence on your future?

With my objective and career goals and objectives set it was time to focus on my education which is a basic requirement for every engineer. I would need to master the skills and qualification need for project management after which would need to secure important insight and experience. This would allow me to gradually build my rank and reputation thus allowing me to reach towards my goals and target. But project management has not been as simple as it seemed and attending college has helped me identify important factors influencing the successful project management (Kerzner, 2017). The subjects modules have helped me comprehend the requirements of the profession as well as allowed accumulate considerable and important insight from peers regarding the subject and profession. The modules have helped me understand that simply having theoretical and bookish knowledge is not adequate to achieve high levels of success and young project engineers must adopt an open-minded view towards the subject and profession and be prepared to continue learning and from as many sources as possible thus helping they broaden their mind, knowledge, and experience. Explain how your preconceptions, thoughts, and expectations in managing projects were transformed during this module.

I have always considered that Project management involved planning and site supervision but the module has helped open up my perceptions related to project management by introducing different steps of the process which I had not considered. Raw materials consistency, labour security, site location, environmental factors, risk management and HRM among many more factors have not been introduced to me during the module which has helped me gain a much wider perception related to project management requirements and what an individual must focus on so as to manage a project successfully. Project management involved the coordination of all operations, processes, and supplies to ensure consistent flow is available on the site so as to ensure continuity (Rowe, 2015). This is critical to ensure the project remains operations throughout the year despite some raw materials and supplies being seasonal or having fluctuating prices. It also allows the project to set and remain on the project times thus ensuring the project is delivered within the given timeframe. There are multiple factors linked to successful project management making it also important to involved technology to help with monitoring, tracking and reporting on the projects progress. All these factors have been What did you read, write and discuss that changed your way of thinking about being a project manager? Be specific and use examples to support your post.

Each of the project management modules has delivered valuable insight towards my knowledge but as with any subject, there are modules which captured my attention and views linked to project management.  The Risk Management and Master Production Scheduling (MPS) modules have been the most captivating modules during the course as they have helped capture my attention with regard to the subject and certain important areas which require closer attention (Reid & Sanders, 2016). The risk management module helped me understand and better evaluate risks during a project thus helping avoid or even prevent risk from occurring. The module would be important as it would help reduce accidents by helping with risk analysis which is a basic requirement every project must have in place to minimize danger to its operation, workforce, and community.

The Master Production Scheduling (MPS) module was another module which has helped capture my attention as it opened up a new perspective liked to project management which I had not anticipated. Previously I considered project supplies to be ordered when required but this module helped educate me regarding the requirement of future stock planning. This ensures consistency thus allowing the project to plan ahead and schedule raw materials and other supplies which will be used during the course of several months thus ensuring raw materials securing for those months. On the other hand, it also allows the business to plan ahead which ensures the supply stocks are orders beforehand while keeping in mind storage space to ensure consistent operations. Using this master production schedule the raw materials quality, stock purchase plans and storage plans can be developed which is a critical requirement for every project's operations.

Conclusion

The project management program has helped open my eyes regarding details each project manager must follow so to ensure projects are planned and implemented within the specified timeframe and budget. Project planning is also not limited to a specific time limit and can continue making it important for the managers are able to manage the operations to ensure projects meet their long-term goals.

References:

Hobbs, P., 2009. Project management. London: Dorling Kindersley Ltd.

Kerzner, H., 2017. Project Management Case Studies. John Wiley & Sons.

Reid, R.D. & Sanders, N.R., 2016. Operations Management: An Integrated Approach. 6th ed. Wiley.

Rowe, S.F., 2015. Project Management for Small Projects. 2nd ed. Management Concepts Inc.