This specific area of best practices looks to accelerate and internalize the learning necessary for project managers to better understand user analysis for example (Little, 2011). The curriculum structure must be agile enough to take into account the specific learning needs of project managers, business analysts and contract managers yet rigid enough to ensure that user analysis and user requirements are well-understood and strengthened (Holzle, 2010)
All three of these have unique and differentiated critical success factors that they have in creating, collaborating on and completing projects (Dexter, 2010). In addition, each of these teams have completely different metrics they are evaluated on, different career paths, and completely different strategies for getting work done (Little, 2011)
This is one of the best practices of human resource training on several levels, the most valuable being the ability of shared knowledge and insight to create shared expectations and trust (Crawford, Leonard, Jones, 2011). As individual departments share knowledge, insight and experience trust becomes an accelerator across the entire organization, making collaborative benefits accrue in each phase of the project life cycle (Lyso, Mjoen, Levin, 2011)
Best Practices in Human Resource Training within Project Management The study of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health illustrates several critical best practices for human resource training in project management environments (Damare, 2008). Additional literature review illustrates how long-term learning is being achieved in project management curriculum and learning scenarios by incorporating scaffolding, or the development of individualized learning programs to ensure each professional has a program aligned to their unique strengths and weaknesses (McNamara, Parry, Lee, Pitt-Catsouphes, 2012)
The curriculum structure must be agile enough to take into account the specific learning needs of project managers, business analysts and contract managers yet rigid enough to ensure that user analysis and user requirements are well-understood and strengthened (Holzle, 2010). This doesn't have to be a dichotomy but can instead be complimentary and supported with effective individualized learning programs creating through scaffolding (Najjar, 2008)
I'd also concentrate on making sure students realized that project management is as much about skills as it is about continually striving to improve ones' own leadership skills as well (Varghese, 2003). Beginning with creating an effective business case for a project, I'd focus teaching hwo project management must also be anchored in financial disciplines as well, including how to complete Return on Investment (ROI) calculations on short, intermediate and long-term projects (Contino, 2004)
I'd want to infuse a sense of enthusiasm and insight into how project management is transforming enterprise globally and making them more competitive in the process. With criterion in mind the first article would be a study of how project management was able to completely turn around a major telecommunications network project and get it back on track and achieved in the city of Los Angeles (Imam, Dhillon, 1989)
The successful completion of the telecommunications network throughout Los Angeles in this first article shows what's possible with project management techniques and strategies applied to very complex, potentially challenging situations. In keeping with this case-based approach to showing the value of project management, the second article centers on how European Aerospace plc was able to also transform its core operations and stay competitive in turbulent markets as a result of successful project management planning, execution and continual monitoring (Quayle, 1999)
Beginning with creating an effective business case for a project, I'd focus teaching hwo project management must also be anchored in financial disciplines as well, including how to complete Return on Investment (ROI) calculations on short, intermediate and long-term projects (Contino, 2004). Second, I would make it very clear that the ROI of any project is entirely predicated on how well change management programs are managed as well (Reed, 1996)
The third article or study I would recommend is one that deals with the toughest aspect of project management, which is change management. The article, Selling Project Management to Senior Executives: The Case for Avoiding Crisis Sales (Thomas, Delisle, Jugdev, Buckle, 2002), shows just how difficult it is to make change permanent in any complex project management scenario
I'd also focus on no matter how much technology you rely on, project management fundamentals must still be well understood to get the most out of them. I'd also concentrate on making sure students realized that project management is as much about skills as it is about continually striving to improve ones' own leadership skills as well (Varghese, 2003)
The ability of a project manager to navigate through a complex multinationals-based project and retain the support, trust, insight and guidance from key stakeholders was the single greatest critical success factor across globally-based projects (Khang, Moe, 2008) in addition to those specifically based in China (Wang, Liu, 2007). Managing a Global New Product Development (GNPD) team that requires high levels of EI, excellent transformational leadership skills and the ability to determine when and how to use high and low-context cultural leadership techniques underscore just how critical it is for Coca-Cola to create a culture that nurtures this level of project management excellence (Barczak, McDonough, Athanassiou, 2006)
For Coca-Cola, the challenge quickly extends beyond the purely theoretical and technical aspects of project management, which are increasingly be automated today and engrained into organizations' cultures (Mattia, 2011). The challenge is to create a culture that nurtures and grows project management leaders who have the ability to manage the more technical aspects of project management while having the emotional intelligence (EI) and transformational leadership to quickly navigate project teams based in cultures and nations entirely different than their own (Clarke, 2010)
The greatest challenge Coca-Cola project managers will face globally is the daunting task of orchestrating the critical success factors of keeping projects moving forward through ach phase, while also keeping stakeholders invested and owning the project process as well (Khang, Moe, 2008). Being able to create, sustain and leadership relationships with stakeholders within adn outside the company is the single greatest critical success factor for mitigating resistance to change and being successful in change management programs (Cowan-Sahadath, 2010)
For project management to become a core competency in any organization, a cultural shift often must occur, with the role of emotional intelligence, transformational leadership skills and enhanced communication skills honed over time (Holti, 2011). Case studies of organizations that create this level of integration between leadership, innovation and management development have a higher level of project management goal attainment when compared to those organizations that don't, on a longitudinal basis (Crawford, Nahmias, 2010)
What's needed is a cultural framework within Coca-Cola itself to serve as the transformational foundation for recruiting, training and refining the skills of project management leaders. For project management to become a core competency in any organization, a cultural shift often must occur, with the role of emotional intelligence, transformational leadership skills and enhanced communication skills honed over time (Holti, 2011)
Being able to create, sustain and leadership relationships with stakeholders within adn outside the company is the single greatest critical success factor for mitigating resistance to change and being successful in change management programs (Cowan-Sahadath, 2010). This is the truest measure of a highly effective project manager as well, the ability to be transformational and manage the potentially divergent, even divergent and disruptive force of stakeholders on project performance (Keegan, Hartog, 2004)
Multinational Project Management: Recommendations for Coca-Cola Leading projects on a multinational basis requires a unique series of cultural and transformational skills that are critically important for balancing the traditional constraints of project management on the one hand and achievements of strategic objectives on the other. For Coca-Cola, the success of multinational projects is predicated on the ability to balance the constraints of time, cost and quality of project completion with the attainment of challenging, strategically important project objectives (Khang, Moe, 2008)
collectivist views of project management and leadership best practices, and the wide variation in Project Management (PM) values and beliefs compared to Chinese values and beliefs all contribute to higher levels of project risk and lower probabilities of success (Wang, Liu, 2007). For Coca-Cola, the challenge quickly extends beyond the purely theoretical and technical aspects of project management, which are increasingly be automated today and engrained into organizations' cultures (Mattia, 2011)
The nature of reporting relationships, hierarchical vs. collectivist views of project management and leadership best practices, and the wide variation in Project Management (PM) values and beliefs compared to Chinese values and beliefs all contribute to higher levels of project risk and lower probabilities of success (Wang, Liu, 2007)