ABSTRACT
Many of mankind's major achievements, such as the construction of the Egyptian pyramids or the Great Wall of China, can be designated as successfully completed projects; thus they were achieved by some form of project management. In the 1960s, companies with complex tasks and operating within a dynamic environment began to search for new management techniques and organizational structures that could be quickly adapted to a changing environment. Since its early origins in the Atlas and Polaris Programs, project management by whatever name—program/system/project management—has become a way of life in the aerospace and defense industries. The construction industry has been a major contributor to the national economy, accounting for at least 10% of the gross national product (GNP) in most developed countries. The development of new products and the improvement of existing products and processes is essential to a business operating in today's competitive and dynamic marketplace.
