Project management is the art of planning, executing, and monitoring a project in order to achieve specific objectives; it encompasses both back-office and front-office activities carried out by one or more dedicated individuals, focused on the analysis, design, planning, and execution of project goals, managed as it evolves and within its constraints of time, cost and quality.
In a professional context, a project is a unique, temporary activity with a defined purpose, start, and end. Managing a project involves coordinating people, resources, budgets, and timelines through the application of appropriate methods, tools, and techniques. It is about applying knowledge, skills, and tools to the tasks related to a project in order to achieve its objectives.
Project management is a fundamental discipline for organizing and optimizing teamwork to minimize risk and maximize resources. This approach is applied in various sectors: from business to technology, from research to engineering, with origins dating back to ancient times: 100,000 men worked for 20 years on the Pyramid of Cheops; in De Bello Gallico, Julius Caesar describes the technical and organizational details of building a bridge over the Rhine.
In modern times, project management has developed in various fields, such as construction, industrial engineering, logistics, and new technologies. Project management is a culture that evolves through experience gained from managing complex projects.
What are the tasks of a Project Manager?
The project manager is the central figure in project management, responsible for the planning, execution, and completion of the project. Their tasks are varied: good project management requires not only organizational skills, but also the ability to respond to unforeseen challenges and adapt to the needs of the context. It is more than just planning, requiring constant attention and ongoing monitoring, including budget management and problem-solving.
The project manager is responsible for planning, meaning defining the project’s goals, the resources required, the execution time, and costs.
They must coordinate and manage the team: assigning tasks, motivating, resolving conflicts, and ensuring that activities are completed on schedule.
During the execution of the project, the project manager must continuously monitor its progress, identify any deviations, and intervene to keep the project on track; manage risks, anticipating them when possible and adapting the project’s evolution to any issues that arise in the various steps of progress. Finally, they must be good communicators: the project manager is the point of contact for exchanging information with the company and project participants.
What are the technical skills of a Project Manager?
The project manager should possess a mix of technical, managerial, and interpersonal skills. Among the most important, we can identify:
– knowledge of project management methodologies: a project manager must be familiar with key project management methodologies, such as traditional project management (project life cycle) and the agile approach. Mastery of methods like Scrum Agile or project Gantt charts is essential for effective planning and management.
– advanced planning and resource management: understanding how to properly allocate resources, time and budget is critical. The project manager must know how to make accurate forecasts and maintain a balance between the resources available and the demands of the project.
– risk analysis: a good project manager must be able to identify, analyze, and manage risks. This involves having a good understanding of common risks in a given sector and a strategy to mitigate them.
– project management tools: a project manager should be skilled in using project management tools like Microsoft Project, Trello, Asana, or Basecamp, which facilitate planning, resource management, and progress tracking.
What are the main project management techniques?
In project management, there are numerous techniques for managing the project life cycle. Here are the key ones:
Project Gantt Chart: The Gantt chart is one of the most popular tools for planning a project. It allows you to visualize activities, their duration and the time relationships between them, providing a clear picture of progress and deadlines.
Agile: The Agile approach, particularly the Scrum Agile method, focuses on flexibility and adaptability. It is based on short work cycles (sprints), with continuous feedback and the ability to revise the plan as the project progresses. This technique is especially effective in complex projects and dynamic contexts, such as software development.
Risk Management: risk management is fundamental to project management, involving the identification, evaluation, and mitigation of potential issues that could jeopardize the project’s success.
Performance Monitoring: the use of project management tools makes it possible to constantly monitor project progress, comparing current results with established goals and choosing corrective actions as needed.
Project management is an essential discipline to ensure the success of any project. The project manager’s skills, along with the appropriate techniques, allow for effective planning and management of each project phase. Using project management tools like Gantt charts, methodologies such as Scrum Agile, and a solid understanding of technical skills are key to achieving set objectives.
To equip professionals with the necessary background and practical knowledge in this discipline, Bologna Business School offers several programs, including the Open Program Project Management, Open Program Project Management Advanced, and Open Program Project Management Certification. These training pathways provide the tools and correct approach for managing projects in various contexts.
The Open Program Project Manager is a course that can be attended in two different formulas, online or in-person, characterized by a mixed faculty of lecturers and consultants, capable of approaching the subject both academically and from a pragmatic point of view. From multi-project management to project charters, from work breakdown structures to resource planning, this program aims to provide the tools and a methodological framework useful for organizing and controlling a project in different contexts.
The Open Program Project Management Advanced is designed for those who have already acquired basic project management skills and wish to transfer innovative approaches and tools to new professional settings. This part-time, on-campus course of four days provides the tools to better understand and manage the complexities arising from such a broad discipline, with a focus on Agile Management, Risk Management, Client Management, and Multi-project and Program Management.
With the Open Program Project Management Certification, BBS offers a course specifically designed to prepare for the PMP (Project Management Professional) exam. This part-time, hybrid 4-day course is dedicated to project managers who wish to consolidate their knowledge and obtain an internationally recognized certification from the PMI (Project Management Institute). It is a key opportunity for successfully entering the project management market.
Bologna Business School, always attentive to offering immediately spendable training programs and with a strong network available to its students, is the best choice for those who are looking for practical, high-level, and concrete training in the complex field of project management.