Technology projects, by their nature, are machine oriented and rules based and are
performed by personnel who are most comfortable in that environment. These
personnel consider that management is a science which can be reduced to a set of
universal rules that, when applied, guarantee success. Any project failure then is a
reflection on the sophistication of the rules used and a requirement for ever more rules.
Forgotten, however, is that additional rules and sophistication increases overhead on a
project without recognizing that there always will be external forces, human nature and
other unknowns that impact a project beyond the scope of rules.
Technology personnel should realize that management is only partially a science that
can be defined by rules. Projects were successfully managed long before there were
sophisticated rules. For that reason project management rules may be consolidated to
those that identify parameters for decision points and the remaining management effort
then focused on instilling a project completion attitude on the other project personnel.
MCS can customize a project control process that matches both the client capabilities and
corporate culture.
to return to Challenge Resources.