How and Why Project Managers Need to Be Able to Contribute to Business Strategy

Project Management and Business Strategy

How and why project managers need to be able to contribute to business strategy?

Every complex organization engaged in commercial activity relies heavily on the support systems designed, implemented and supervised by project managers, because "the project manager ensures that the project, once defined, is executed efficiently by managing the day-to-day activites, reporting directly to the client on project related issues" (Pellegrinelli and Bowman, 1994, pp. 125-132). The overall strategic objectives outlined by members of an executive management structure require adept project management to ensure that deadlines are met in timely fashion, budgetary restrictions are adhered to, and deliverables conform to the specifications provided by clients. Within the specific field of information technology (IT) project management, the use of quality control and quality assurance (QC / QA) programs involves the precise application of numerous tools, techniques, principles and practices designed to ensure that IT projects prioritize quality during the duration of their planning, implementation, and delivery. Decades of research focused on the theoretical foundations of project management have resulted in the development of Seven Basic Tools of Quality, including cause-and-effect diagrams, control charts, run charts, scatter diagrams, histograms, Pareto charts, and flowcharts (Schwalbe, 2011). These advanced forms of statistical analysis assist IT project managers in the intricate process of achieving continual balance with regards to the triple constraint of budget, time, and scope that limits a project's progression. As Mintzberg states in Rethinking Strategic Planning Part I: Pitfalls and Fallacies, his seminal treatise on project management's role in the realm of business, "strategies are not developed on schedule, immaculately conceived. They can appear at any time and at any place in the organization, typically through processes of informal learning more than ones of formal planning" (Mintzberg, 1994, pp. 12-21). The sheer unpredictability of strategic business planning necessitates that project managers remain capable of contributing viable ideas within an environment which is conducive to innovative adaptation.

The most publically accessible shift in a multinational corporation's business strategy occurs when the company alters its current mission or vision statement to reflect the pursuit of new objectives. As researcher Jenny Stewart observes in The Meaning of Strategy in the Public Sector, "because agency mission statements are generally broad and uplifting, they do not in themselves provide a clear path to the goals or objectives the agency might set itself" (Stewart, 2004, pp. 16-21). Bridging the gap between mission statements issued by executive management and a company's actual ability to direct resources and personnel effectively and efficiently is precisely the role of a qualified project manager. By engaging in a methodical process of predictive analysis, project managers are capable of developing detailed strategic plans which contain a multitude of contingencies, both of the internal and external variety. According to prevailing research on the efficacy of predictive modeling, techniques and tools such as "scenario immersion, pictorial models, mathematical models, mock-ups, surveys, and computer simulations" (Goel and Pirolli, 1989, p. 19) are among the project manager's most effective resources during the process of implementing a comprehensive strategic adjustment. When members of executive management work in collaboration with the project managers who work to realize their plans, the overall strategic benefits to this working relationship far exceed the potential disadvantages.