Project planning and control in a consulting environment

Abstract

Project management has become well accepted as a management form within many large organizations and for the construction of most capital projects. However, there are many other fields or endeavors where the work of professionals can be defined as project work. Transportation consulting is one such field. Presently the distinction between functional management and project management is not well understood and as a consequence project management is practiced only to a limited degree. This thesis examines current practices in the field, obstacles to effective project management, and develops a framework for implementing more effective planning and control techniques. The individual elements of planning and control are discussed. The integration of project planning and control elements through the use of a Work Breakdown Structure is examined. Practical concerns relating to implementation of these techniques are addressed. Establishing effective planning and control techniques is not difficult, although by the nature of a consulting practice the initiative lies more with individual project managers then in large organization undertaking large capital projects. Small consulting practices do not have the ability to maintain the administrative overhead that larger organizations do. As a consequence project management is an approach to work that must be practiced at an individual level.