Introduction

Projects should be envisioned as formal undertakings, guided by explicit management charters and focused on enterprise goals. The management of a project consists of many interrelated management pieces and parts. Many project success and failure studies have documented the basic factors leading to these conclusions. As projects have become more complex there is growing recognition that a skilled PM is the glue that brings these elements together. This involves the more mechanical management elements, but probably more important is the use of softer management skills for team motivation, conflict resolution, user communications, and general negotiation. The mechanical aspects are an important part of the overall management process in identifying what actions are required to influence changes. In addition to the internal project team, there will be other human interactions with external groups such as users, management, and various organization entities. The chapter also presents an overview of key concepts discussed in this book.