What Is Project Management and the Various Phases

Project Management Before addressing what is project management, let us first look into what is a project? Some have defined a project as a temporary activity that is done to produce a service, a product or a result. It is temporary in the aspect that it has a set duration of being undertaken and thus it is restricted to both in terms of resources and scope. Examples include: the construction of a bridge, development of software, or expansion of a company into new markets.

There is a need for excellent management of projects if they are to be delivered on-budget and on-time (PMI, 2015). The best approach to EHR (Electronic Health Record) implementation in a large organization or among several organizations is step-by-step adoption. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) grants have, however, discovered that a 'big-bang' or'all-together'strategy works effectively, and is even preferred over a stage-by-stage approach. It is a challenge to procure desiredexpertise for aiding with EHR planning and implementation, particularly in rural areas and healthcare establishments for underserved people (e.g.

community healthcare facilities). Health IT implementationis, indeed, only one-thirdtechnology, while the greater portion of it (two-thirds) constitutes organizational work process and culture. Effective application of EHR systems necessitates commitment of asubstantial amount of time, as well asmaterial and human resources to developmental efforts for studying and restructuring organizational workflow. Assessment of existing workflow patternsfacilitates integration of IT into the health facility's patient care delivery system.

Process restructuring doesn't necessitate costly software orspecialist advice; it does, however, call for a considerable amount of healthcare worker effort and time (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2014). EHR-connected project management isstudied in this paper.

Thesis Statement: The discipline of project management proves vital in the current-day commercial environment, whether in determining life-cycle of the venture, contribution of critical thinking and research to planning, concept planning, project team formation, sponsorship and leadership roles, project-task itemization, and role played by EHR and other software in large-scale integrated programs, central to organizational success in today's business environment. Project Management Projects are different from normal business activities in that they require people to come together, albeit temporarily, to concentrate on the specific objectives of the project.

Thus, effective teamwork is key to the success of projects. Project management has been defined as the management of specific sets of operations (through the application of tools, techniques, skills and knowledge) for the purpose of achieving set objectives. How a project is managed is dependent on several factors such as the complexity, significance and scale of the project. Thus, different projects have different managerial challenges (APM, 2015).

The success of multifaceted ventures (like implementation of EHR) calls for identification of means to incorporate stakeholders (especially physicians), project supervision, decision-making, and communication. Effective skills in project management may enable project managers to coordinate and direct assigned resources, such that they all tasks essential to completion of EHR implementation are delivered, within the set cost, scope, and time limitations (DOQ-IT, 2015).

Importance to the Business World So as to gain a competitive edge in the current chaotic world economy, firms are increasingly turning to project management for constant delivery of results. Huge businesses in different sectors of the economy, and from different countries are increasingly turning to project management to not only improve project results, but also control spending. Adhering to project management strategies and tools enabled firms to cut costs and reduce risks during the recent global economic downturn, which contributed to the survival of most of these companies.

Implementation of project management across all departments in an organization can help establish a strategic value chain that would give such an organization an advantage over its competitors. It will also help such a company to deliver its projects on time and on-budget, the two factors that often directly or indirectly lead to the success of a company (PMI, 2010).

Project Life-cycle Management Five process clusters have been defined in the PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge), which must be adhered to for any venture: initiation, planning, execution, supervision and control, and closure; the above process groups constitute a matrix. Projects encompass 9 knowledge fields: scope, integration, quality, time, cost, communications, human resource, procurement, and risk management. The field of integration management is particularly important while applying project management for dealing with the obstacles to implementation of EHR, due to its effect on all the remaining fields (OHSU, 2015).

Project Management Benefits It gives one individual (the project manager) the responsibility and accountability for overall results of a project. It also clearly makes other individuals at various levels of the organization accountable for specific tasks in the project. It also assures that decisions made by concerned functional departments are for the greater good of the project and the company, rather than for the good of a singular contributing department. Project management enables more effective contribution from all the parties involved in the project.

It also allows proper utilization of all of an organization's planning and control systems, tools and methods, and the data they produce. Project management brings together multiple different disciplines from departments of an organization and thus enables collaboration for the purpose of achieving project objectives. It creates strong commitment of the project team to its objectives. Project management allows teamwork leading to effective performance (Archibald, 2004). Concepts of Planning in the EMR Project Life-cycle The planning phase is the second stage of the project management life cycle.

It encompasses the creation of a set of operations that are to be undertaken by the team through the execution, and closure stages of the project. This phase initializes when the project has been officially approved and financed. The planning phase requires proper research and analysis that will culminate into full project management, leading to the development of systems. Staff members and stakeholders must be incorporated into the project and implementation process right from its onset, and all through the course of the project.

Views and response of doctors, other organizational personnel, interested parties, and relevant stakeholders should be sought at decisive stages. Failure to do this and, thereby, ascertain their agreement/acceptance, will cause the project to not come up to scratch (e.g. cost and scope growths), and may possibly render it unsuccessful. Inclusion of parties that are financially-backing the project and overall organizational business plan is of particular import. EHR acquisition shows higher rates of success, when it is associated with the organization's overall business aim (DOQ-IT, 2015).

How Research and Critical Thinking is Mandatory in Planning For the successful implementation of a project, critical thinking is a necessary skill. Even though some people have this skill more naturally than others, it is one that can be developed and sharpened. Critical thinking has been defined as a process of identifying and assessing evidence so as to make more effective decisions. In other words it is an objective thinking process. Critical thinking is the skillful application of evidence to solve problems.

It is about thinking ahead so as to decide on potential outcomes using facts (CARE, 2009). Project Organizations and the Importance of Leadership and Sponsorship Project organization defines the human resource/organization of the project. Its purpose is to define the chart, roles and relationships of the team members. The organizational structure helps all members to clearly identify their roles in each position, enabling effective coverage of tasks (SEI, 2015). One noteworthy feature of sponsorship and leadership is project-linked decision-making.

Furthermore, decisions have to be confirmed and conveyed to every concerned individual prior to the project's onset, or at least, at the earliest possible instant. One can never ascertain beforehand what challenging decisions the project manager along with other stakeholders will have to encounter. Nevertheless, a documented decision-making system makes the decision-handling process simpler (DOQ-IT, 2015). Project Team Building Team building activities are undertaken so as to develop trust and loyalty -- the foundations for effective teamwork.

Team building is all about enabling members to gel and understand each other through activities, such as personal assessments and games. Team building initiatives entail discussions between team members, following instructions as given and maintaining the morale of the team (Medinschi & Col-a).

Techniques of Successful Team Building For team building to be effective, one needs to utilize several tools and strategies as described below: Kick -- off Meetings A new project should always begin with a meeting where the project, the roles and responsibilities of the team members will be discussed. How the project fits into the company's overall objectives should also be highlighted. Team Agreements Establishing team rules and mode of operation allows teams to work together in a way that is not only effective, but also efficient.

It will also enable team members to clearly know their roles and ease communication over issues, such as responsibilities and member behavior. Delivery Process Definition Understanding how the project is to be undertaken makes it easier for team members to do their jobs. Conflict Management An experienced or skilled project manager will know that there is always a potential for conflicts to arise in any team, and thus should establish clear plans to stop or solve any conflict, should it arise.

Personality Assessments Team building sessions in which personality assessments are utilized can help team members effectively understand each other. Team Building Events Team events help in the development and maintenance of positive team dynamics. Here is where trust and loyalty can be built, enabling the stability of teams and their effectiveness. Executive Coaching Can be an effective tool for teams and project managers to enable them to understand their role and how their behaviors would affect team performance (PMIWDC, 2015).

Creating a Work Breakdown Structure Creation of this structure requires team effort and one effective way of doing it, is to organize a brainstorming session with all the project team members, where they use note cards and white boards to identify the specific deliverables and work packages. The note cards can then be taped onto a notice board as a reminder to the members. The Need for Project Management Software in Large Integrated Programs and its Benefits Project management programs have been around for several years now.

They are used in many large projects to help determine which operations depend on one another, the manner in which they are linked, and what happens in the case several variables are changed or go wrong. In other words, project management programs can be used to predict project outcomes by changing variables in a computer for a large complex project that is dependent on many different.