Developing a Project Plan is like preparing for a Road Trip

Anybody who has done a cross country road trip knows that a certain amount of planning is necessary. Many aspects of a Road Trip are like planning a project.

Project Management 101

When it comes to skills, project management is an excellent one to have. While you may think you know all about it from your days in grade school taking charge during group projects, project management is a complex skill.

Project management is crucial for sticking to goals, budgets, and milestones. To put it simply, think about project management as planning a cross-country road trip. You wouldn’t jump into that without proper planning, would you? Let’s go over the basics of project management and what it entails.

What’s a Project?

We need to understand what a project is first. Yes, you probably know what a project is. You’ve done group projects in school surely, but there is a proper definition of what it is in the business world.

According to the Project Management Institute, a project is defined as ‘a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result.’ Just like that road trip, the project needs to be planned out and prepared in a certain amount of time. It’s not meant to be ongoing.

What is Project Management?

Now that we know what a project is, let’s look at project management. Project management is essentially the skill and practice of applying tools and critical thinking to complete a project that has very specific requirements.

You identify a problem, create a solution and execute it. Let’s go back to that road trip we’re planning. The first thing you do is choose a destination, right? Once you have that in mind, you get on with planning the trip. There are several things you need to do before getting on the road to get you where you’re going. For example, you may need an oil change or other car maintenance, supplies, and planning your route. All of these steps are part of project management for your road trip!

The Stages of Project Management

When you embark on project management, there are several stages in the process. Each one will focus on certain milestones within the project and is meant to keep you within budget, as well.

Initiation

During initiation, you define the project or figure out the road trip destination. This is the very beginning, so nothing needs to be hammered out yet, but you may have a rough timeline in place as well as potential resources.

Planning

The planning stage is when you create goals and a timeline for the project. Think of all the stuff you do to get ready for a road trip. That’s what you’re doing during the planning phase of project management. You’re getting all the pieces together such as setting a budget and goals.

Execute

This one is simple. You start the project or get out on the road.

Monitor

Once the project management has begun, your team will monitor what’s going on for any problems or bumps in the road like a flat tire.

Closing

You did it! The project is completed, and you’ve reached the end of the road trip and can enjoy it. This is when the project is moved to another team to continue any tasks.

Conclusion

Project management is extremely important for staying organized and completing milestones. Think about how stressful it would be if you went on a cross-country trip with zero planning. You’d potentially run into car trouble, get lost, and not make it to your destination on time. That’s why it’s always important to plan and have a project manager for your team!