Project management

and
project cycle management
Project Cycle Management
-----
A short training course in project cycle management for
subdivisions of MFAR in Sri Lanka

MFAR, ICEIDA and UNU-FTP

Ministry of Fisheries and Icelandic International United Nations University Fisheries

Aquatic Resources (DFAR) Development Agency (ICEIDA) Training Programme (UNU-FTP)
Sri Lanka Iceland Iceland
 Content of the lecture
What is a project?
How does project management benefit you?
Project cycle management (PCM)
PCM tools
Project managers
 Learning objectives

After this lecture participants will understand

the basics of project management, know the
role of project manager and principles of
project cycle management
 A project
What is a project

Defined start and end, specific scope, cost and

duration

A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a

unique product, service or result

A series of activities aimed at bringing about

clearly specified objectives within a defined time
period and with a defined budget
(EU Aid delivery methods)
 Benefits of project management

Project management was developed to save

time by properly planning a project and
considering all relevant factors which may
affect its outcome

The benefits have been proven - it saves

time and money - and generates a more
successful outcome . if guidelines are
followed
 How does project management
benefit you?
You will have goal clarity and measurement
Your resources will be coordinated
Your risks will be identified and managed
You will increase the possibilities of time savings
You will increase the possibilities of cost savings
You will increase the possibilities of achieving the
agreed outcome
You will increase the possibilities to deliver projects
successfully
 Improved quality

Decision-making routes and processes are

clearly defined
Deadlines, costs and resources are
controlled systematically
All processes in the project management activity chain
are coordinated to ensure they remain in harmony with
one another
The result will help you to get:
more speed
greater flexibility
improved quality
 What project management helps
you to achieve
Plan tasks in project
Avoid dependencies problems
Reduce risks
Track progress accurately
Organize project process and timeline
Improve stakeholder - staff communication
Improve management of stakeholders
expectations
Complete within budget and on time
 Project success factors
Stakeholder involvement
Executive management support
Clear statement of requirements
Proper planning
Realistic expectations
Smaller project milestones
Competent staff
Ownership
Clear vision and objectives
Hard working and focused staff
The triple constraint

Co
m
Ti

t s
Quality
Project Cycle Management (PCM)

PCM
Is a methodology for the preparation,
implementation and evaluation of projects based
on the principles of the logical framework
approach

It describes management activities and decision-

making procedures used during the life cycle of a
project (key tasks, roles and responsibilities, key
documents and decision options)
Project cycle management (PCM)

Is useful in designing, implementing and

monitoring a plan or a project
A clear concise visual presentation of all the
key components of a plan and a basis for
monitoring
It clarifies:
How the project will work
What it is going to achieve
What factors relate to its success
How progress will be measured
 The project cycle
Programming

Evaluation Identification

Financin
g
decision
Implementation Formulation

Financing
decision
 The three PCM principles
Decision making criteria defined at each phase

The phases in the cycle are progressive

Project identification part of structured

feedback
 PCM is result based
PCM requires the active participation of key
stakeholders and aims to promote local
ownership

PCM incorporates key assessment criteria

into each stage of the project cycle

PCM requires the production of good quality

key documents in each phase to support
decision making
 PCM helps to ensure that
Projects are part of the country policy
objectives
Projects are relevant to the real problems of
target groups / beneficiaries
Clearly identified stakeholders (primary
target groups and final beneficiaries)
Projects are feasible (objectives are realistic)
Clearly defined coordination, management,
financing arrangements, monitoring and
evaluation
Benefits generated by projects are likely to be
sustainable
 PCM tools
The logical framework approach

Quality assessment criteria

Institutional capacity assessment

Economic and financial analysis

Promoting participatory approaches

 Time management

Defining project activities

Activity scheduling
Create and controlling the
project activities

An
An inch
inch of
of time
time cannot
cannot be
be
bought
bought for
for an
an inch
inch of
of
gold."
gold." -- Chinese
Chinese proverb
proverb
 Time management grid
Urgency

Quadrant 1 Quadrant 2
Important but not
Urgent and important
urgent
Importance

"Firefighting" "Quality time"

Quadrant 3 Quadrant 4
Neither urgent nor
Urgent but not important
important
"Distraction" "Time wasting"

There's an old joke when it comes to project management time:

'The first 90 percent of a project schedule takes 90 percent of the time. The last 10 percent
takes the other 90 percent of the time'
Managing the scope of the project

Project scope management constitutes 'the

processes to ensure that the project includes all
of the work required, and only the work
required, to complete the project successfully.
Project scope has several purposes:
It defines what work is needed to complete the
project objectives
It determines what is included in the project
It serves as a guide to determine what work is not
needed to complete the project objectives
It serves as a point of reference for what is not
included in the project
 Role of a project manager
The role of a project manager is affected by
the one-shot nature of the project
The role of a project manager is difficult when
team members are still linked to their
permanent work areas
Members may be assigned to several projects
simultaneously
Managers must rely on their communication
skills and powers of persuasion
 Project manager attributes
Leader & manager Knowledgeable about
Facilitator, coordinator the organization
Communicator Political sensitivity
Credibility: Technical/ Conflict: sense,
Administrative confront, resolve
Work under pressure Can deal with stress,
chaos, ambiguity
Goal-oriented
Planning and follow-
Innovator
through
Versatilist
Ethical dilemmas
Project manager attributes

X Specialist

Generalist
Versatilist
 Project manager duties
Reports to senior management
Communicates with users
Plans and schedules
Obtains and allocates resources
Controls risks
Manages people
Coordinates
Implements quality assurance
Controls the budget
Delivers results
 Project teams
Diversity of knowledge needed
Cross-functional
Self-directed
Often ad-hoc or temporary
Often distributed (geographically)
Start and end dates
 Project personnel skills
Technical
Political
Problem-oriented
(vs. discipline-oriented)
Goal-oriented
Flexibility, adaptability
High self-esteem
can handle failure, risk, uncertainty,
unexpected
can share blame and credit
 Governmental projects
Legal constraints on government projects
Laws, statutes, ordinances, directives, regulations,
budgets, and policies
Accountability to the public
Accountable to legislative & judicial bodies,
interest groups, the press and the public
Utilization of public resources
Objective is not higher ROI, but public good
 Project governance
Risk planning
Balancing risk avoidance and risk acceptance
Life cycle management
From concept to replacement
Strategic change
Balancing the solution and the ability to utilize
Value management
Adopting consistent processes, building in quality
and adding value
 Project management
methodology scope

What is a methodology
The way we do things around here !
Communication, consistency, understanding,
accountability
Project management vs. other activities
This way project management uses the same
approach for all situations
 References
British Standard 60971, 2000:2
European Commission (2004). Project Cycle
Management Guidelines. Downloaded 1st March
from:http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/qsm/documents/p
cm_manual_2004_en.pdf