Planning is a huge task, whether it’s for home improvement,
planning a wedding, a kid’s birthday party or for a 50th wedding
anniversary. It is not an easy task because there are a lot of things to do in
order for an event or a project to be successful. That's the role of an organizer, coordinator or a project manager. Before today, if you had asked
me if I’ve done project management before, I would have told you no.
You may be wondering, what exactly is project management? You are
not alone, I asked that same question. In an article I read, it defines the
word “project” first in that it is temporary; it has a defined beginning and end
in time…it is not a routine operation, but a specific set of operations to
accomplish a singular goal (pmi.org). Project Management is the application of
knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project
requirements (pmi.org). It has always been done informally but began to emerge
as a distinct profession in the mid-20th century (pmi.org). The link
to the article is found here:
One of the projects I would consider as something in the category
of project management was renovating our kitchen a few years ago. My husband
and I bought a “fixer-upper” and since he is a handyman, we both liked the idea
of creating something new from something old. From the time we bought the
house, we had done minor updates such as adding a shower in the bathroom,
changing bedroom doors and painting walls. But we wanted to renovate our
old, dark, tiny kitchen so we talked and talked about it, indicating that
eventually, this was something we wanted to do. One weekend, while I was
away on a conference, my husband decided to surprise me by initiating the
project and taking down walls, opening up the kitchen to the dining area. Wow, finally
it was happening! The excitement kicked in and we both went to work. But the
excitement turned into anxiousness and into frustration because months went by,
and we were still not done with this project. This job was too big of a job to
do for one, maybe two people, if the job was easy enough for me to do. So, without any additional help, without seriously thinking about budget and the project timeline, since
we were both working full time, the renovation lasted about 8 months. Yes, that’s
how long it took!
Our project was finally finished, and I am greatly satisfied
with the results. However, looking back on that experience, there are a few things I would have liked
incorporated before delving into our kitchen renovation:
- Thorough planning, which included the total cost involved, projected timeline and maybe hiring additional help, would have been helpful. I liked this article and its ending quote from Ben Franklin stating “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.
In project management, I think planning is one of the most crucial and important phases. As Adrienne Watt stated that the planning phase is when the project plans are documented, the project deliverables and requirements are defined, and the project schedule is created (2014). It involves creating a set of plans to help guide your team through the implementation and closure phases of the project. This phase will help you manage time, cost, quality, changes, risk, and related issues (Watt, 2014). There were a lot of headaches that we could have avoided, if we planned it well.
So take on another project, and plan another event, just don't forget the words Project management!
References:
Project Management Institute (n.d.). What is project
management? Retrieved from https://www.pmi.org/about/learn-about-pmi/what-is-project-management
Watt, A. (2014). Project
Management. Retrieved from https://opentextbc.ca/projectmanagement/chapter/chapter-8-overview-of-project-planning-project-management/
