Concepts and Process of Project Planning and Management

This blog's objective is to improve your comprehension of the notions of project planning and project management. We began by talking about the idea of a project, then we moved on to project planning. In addition to exploring the idea of project planning, we went into great detail about project life cycles by outlining the stages of a project. You might have comprehended the idea, significance, and elements of project management by reading this article.

Content

Introduction
Project Planning and Management
Conceptual Understanding of Project Planning
Project Life Cycle
Project Management
Summary

Introduction

One of the crucial elements in the development sectors is the planning and management of projects. Before we talk about project planning and management, it is crucial that we comprehend the concept of a project. Define the project first. A project is a brief activity with a clear beginning and finish that is carried out to achieve particular aims and objectives, usually to bring about positive change. According to this concept, projects are created in order to bring about the desired changes in society. The goals and objectives that have been established should guide this transition. Therefore, one should arrange the activities in a methodical and logical manner in order to accomplish these aims and objectives. Therefore, it may be said that development requires careful project and activity planning. Consequently, one of the crucial elements of development is the planning and administration of projects. It becomes imperative that we go into great detail about project management and planning.

Project Planning and Management

Project planning and management is one of the crucial elements in the development industry, as was previously noted in this blog. Despite being two distinct concepts, project planning and project management are connected. Project planning is one of the many components of project management, which is a vast term. Let's get into more detail about these two ideas.

Conceptual Understanding of Project Planning

Planning is the secret to a project's success. The core of the project life cycle is project planning. It outlines your destination and your method of transportation for everyone concerned. The project timeline is formed, the project deliverables and requirements are defined, and the project plans are documented during the planning phase. It entails putting together a set of blueprints to direct the team over the course of the project. The fundamental goal of project planning is to assist businesses or employees in resource projection. Time, money, and human resources are all part of the project resources. The project planning phase is frequently the most difficult stage for a project manager since we need to predict the risk associated with project implementation and build solutions accordingly for better project implementation.

The basic processes of project planning are:

Scope planning – It is necessary to identify and define scope of the project in terms area and beneficiary groups in the initial phase.
Developing the time line– It includes the listing the entire schedule of the activities and detailing their sequence starting from the initial phase to the ending phase of the project.
Resource planning – This includes indicating who will do what work, at which time, and if any special skills are needed to accomplish the project tasks
Budget planning – specifying the budgeted cost to be incurred at the completion of the project

Defining the project's original goals and objectives is the key part of the planning phase. The project's aims and objectives are reflective of the demands and problems that must be addressed. The project's goals are thought of as its foundation. Consequently, goals should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time bound). Any project's success is dependent on its goals. SMART objectives therefore drive projects in the proper direction.

Project Life Cycle

After talking about the idea of project planning, it is vital that we talk about another aspect of project management, namely the project life cycle. We are all aware that the beginning of the human life cycle is distinct from that of any other living species. This species' life cycle begins with birth and concludes with death. A project also has a set life term. The stages or steps involved in project planning and management are known as the project life cycle. Every development project begins with an evaluation of the problem or requirements of the partner parties. Every project has a start, a midpoint where work is done to bring it toward completion, and an end (either successful or unsuccessful).

A standard project has four phases which are as follows:

Conceptualization/ Initial Phase:

The beginning of the project life cycle is at this phase. The project's idea is launched during this phase. Workers or organizations identify the problems on the ground. The organizations, employees, or beneficiaries themselves can identify the problems. Because the entire project will be based on the genuine problem of community need, this stage in the life cycle is crucial. There are many techniques to pinpoint the problem, including field research, secondary sources like news articles in print and electronic media, etc. The next stage in this phase is to conceptualize the idea after it has emerged by looking at links to other relevant problems. The nature and scope of the project must be determined during this phase. The project's nature will determine if it is development- or welfare-oriented, whether we will give the beneficiaries services or work to increase their capability. Second, determining scope is a crucial component of this phase. The initiative must be restricted to the beneficiary groups when the area has been clearly defined. We can construct the goals and objectives in accordance with the nature by defining it in the early phase. You must also comprehend the social setting and environment in which this project will be implemented during this early phase. This will enable us to complete the project activities in light of the local social environment.

Formation Phase:

After we have a clear understanding of the nature, purpose, and scope of the project, the following stage is to develop it logically and methodically. The project proposal is all that is being developed during this phase. The basic goal is to adequately plan time, money, and resources to estimate the required work and to minimize risk throughout project execution. As a result, we must organize our thoughts before putting them on paper in the form of a project proposal. The proposal enables us to maintain focus as we carry out project operations and make use of resources. The project proposal includes the following items.

Developing the scope statement, goals and objectives
Identifying deliverables and creating the work breakdown structure;
Identifying the activities needed to complete those deliverables and networking the activities in their logical sequence
Estimating the resource requirements for the activities
Estimating time and cost for activities;
Developing the schedule;
Developing the budget;

Operational/Implementation Phase

The operational or implementation phase is the following phase in a project cycle. The procedures utilized to finish the tasks outlined in the project proposal are included in this phase. organizing community members and resources is required (cost, time and human). Integrating and carrying out the project's tasks in accordance with the project management plan is crucial during this phase. The project's work is carried out in accordance with the project plan. Since this phase is the phase of the project, it takes up the majority of its time.

It's crucial to keep the project under control and moving forward. As a result, the project is continuously monitored for progress in compliance with the project proposal. To evaluate how well the activities are being carried out, there are frequent meetings and site inspections. Regular field crew reporting also aids in project monitoring and management. Additionally, this enables project managers to take the proper steps as needed to keep the project on schedule.

Once we begin carrying out the planned activities, it is our responsibility to keep all project stakeholders informed of the project's status and development. The financing agency and recipients are any project's major stakeholders. As a result, the project manager should always provide these stakeholders with the status report and publish it. This should cover how money is spent in relation to the actions taken to produce the desired results.

The final stage is to end the project when it has been implemented successfully. Now let's talk about the final phase of the project life cycle.

Termination/ Withdrawal Phase

During the final phase in project life cycle is terminating the project. Closing includes the formal acceptance of the project and the ending thereof. The emphasis is on releasing the final deliverables to the beneficiaries. Administrative activities include the archiving of the files and documenting lessons learned. Further we hand over all the project related documents to the community people. The handing over process is done to ensure sustainability of the project. This phase consists of:
Project close: Finalize all activities across all of the process groups to formally close the project or a project phase
Contract closure: Complete and settle each contract (including the resolution of any open items) and close each contract applicable to the project or project phase.

Conducting lessons-learned studies to evaluate what went well and what didn't is the final phase. By conducting this kind of study, the project organization is given the benefit of experience, which will benefit upcoming project teams.

Project Management

The talk above gave us a better understanding of the various phases of any project. In light of the aforementioned argument, we have talked about the need for systematic project use if we are to implement the project successfully. To develop and manage projects efficiently, there are many different factors that need to be taken into account. The concept of project management and its various components must therefore be understood by us. Let's start by defining project management before we have a debate. Planning, coordinating, obtaining, and managing resources to achieve specific project goals and objectives is the discipline of project management. As was mentioned above, there might be obstacles in the path of the project's aims and objectives. Risks are reduced and project limits are overcome with the aid of project management. Project management is nothing more than systematically coordinating these restrictions, which are often scope, time, and budget.

Now lets us discuss about the different components of project management.

Components of Project Management

Project management consists of following components.

Fund raising and budgeting
Staff recruitment and development
Management Information System, Public Relations
Reporting and Documentation: monthly reports; annual reports; project reports; brochures, newsletters

Fund Raising

Any initiative depends on financial support; without it, organizations would find it challenging to carry out their plans. Fundraising is the process of asking for donations from people, businesses, nonprofit organizations, or governmental bodies in order to collect money or other resources. It can also apply to finding and approaching potential investors or other cash sources for for-profit businesses. Face-to-face fundraising in the past typically involved requesting donations from people at their doors or on the street. Modern fundraising methods include professional fundraisers and online fundraising (on commission basis). One important way that non-profit organizations can raise funds for their operations is through fundraising. For instance, scholarships for students with merit awards for excellence in athletics or academics, humanitarian causes, relief from natural disasters, human rights, research, and other social issues.

Most organizations have a distinct unit set up to raise money for their organization. They might hire a staff member whose primary duty is fund raising. This person, who typically belongs to the organization's top management team, receives a salary just like every other worker.

Types of Fund Raising:

Annual funding from a financial endowment, which is a sum of money that is invested to generate an annual return.
Raise funds through competing for grant funding. Grant (money) is offered by governmental units and private foundations/ charitable trusts to non-profit organizations for certain projects.
A capital campaign is when fundraising is conducted to raise major sums for a building or endowment, and generally keep such funds separate from operating funds.
Special events are another method of raising funds.
While fundraising often involves the donation of money as an out-right gift, money may also be generated by selling a product of some kind, also known as product fundraising.
It is common to see on-line impulse sales links to be accompanied by statements that a proportion of proceeds will be directed to a particular charitable foundation.
When goods or professional services are donated to an organization rather than cash, this is called an in-kind gift.
A number of charities and non-profit organizations are increasingly using the internet as a means to raise funds; this practice is referred to as online fundraising.
Some of the most substantial fundraising efforts are conducted by colleges and universities.
The donor base for higher education includes alumni, parents, friends, private foundations, and corporations.

Process of Fund Raising:

Prospect (donor) identification: The first step of fund raising is to identify the prospective done who can provide funds to the said activity. In this process we need identify such a funding organisation which can provide funds to the particular issue or social problem.
Prospect research and verification of the prospect's viability: Once identification is done, the next step is to explore the possibility of getting funds from the donor or funding organisation by collecting appropriate information by doing research and verifying their areas of interest.
Cultivation: The next step after verification is to approach donors and cultivating the idea of project to the donor for getting funds. This can be done through presentations in front of funding organisation, sending them concept note/project proposal, appealing, etc.
Solicitation: Solicitation means getting funds for the project. The funds are being transferred to the organisation against the budget head mentioned in the project proposal.
Stewardship:In this step, organisations provide status to the organisation about utilization of the funds. The report or latter being the process of keeping donors informed about how support has been used. The utilization certificate and audit reports are also submitted to funding organisation along with activity reports.

Staff Recruitment and Development

Staff hiring and development are crucial aspects of project management. Staff is equally as important to any endeavor as funding is. For new projects, organizations can either hire new employees or stick with their current workforce. The project's success is dependent on the team's dedication, skill, and qualifications. As a result, hiring new employees and investing in their ongoing training are crucial to project management.

The procedures below can be modified for staff recruiting in order to have competent, skilled personnel.

Define staff positions, role & responsibilities: This is the first step in staff recruitment. The first thing we need to do is to define the staff positions. This has already mentioned in our project proposal. Further we need to define the roles and responsibilities of each position to bring clarity among workers. This initial task will help us to minimize the overlapping of work done in future.
Advertise & receive applications: After defining the positions, roles and responsibilities the next step is to publish the advertisement. This can be given in newspapers, journals, periodicals and any other public documents. Advertisement should include the details of the positions, role and responsibilities and if possible the details of incentives. The deadlines and detail address should be given in the advertisement.
Screening & recruiting (interview): Once the advertisement is published, we start getting applications. The next step is to screen the applications and call appropriate candidates for the interview.
Appointment: Once the interviews are conducted you select the suitable candidates. The appointment letter is given to the selected candidates. This appointment can be on regular basis or on contractual basis as per the project requirements.
Training & development: If the staff is recruited newly, they have to be given the training about the project requirements, organizational culture, and other important things about the project and organisation. While working on the projects and in the field staff needs to be updated they also further need to develop their skills. Therefore, continuous on job training is required for the staff development.
Appraisal & promotion: For sustainability of the staff, organisation must provide them incentives as per the performance. Therefore, if the project is for longer duration of more than one year, organisation may conduct appraisal of the work done and accordingly decide about the promotions and other incentives. This is important aspect in staff development as it help to keep motivation among staff to bring efficiency and effectiveness among staff.
Project completion & contract settlement: This is the last stage in which staff is terminated as the contract (if on contractual basis) is getting over at the end of the project.

Management Information System

Organizations must inform stakeholders of the specifics of their activity and the use of funds, as was already mentioned. In addition, the organization must to be well informed about the initiative. This information must be kept in a systematic manner and published when needed. This is merely the management information system, one of the project management components. It is crucial that we comprehend the meaning and significance of the management information system. The discussion that follows will assist us in comprehending this.

A management information system (MIS) is a system that offers the data required to successfully manage businesses. The application of people, documents, technology, and processes used by management and accountants to ensure the smooth operation of organizations is covered by internal controls procedures, which are often considered to be a subset of the broader internal control procedures in organizations.

Internal reporting was first done manually and only sometimes in firms and other organizations, and it provided sporadic and delayed information on management performance. Computers started storing more data over time and connecting to systems of information that were once distinct. A planned system for gathering, processing, storing, and disseminating data in the type of information required to carry out management tasks is known as a "MIS." It serves as a kind of recorded account of the planned and carried out actions. It must include provisions for reports based on performance evaluations in areas crucial to the strategy, as well as feedback loops that enable improvement of every part of the company's operations, including hiring and training practices. These reports would cover performance in relation to cost centers and projects that affect profit or loss, and they would do so in a way that pinpoints personal responsibility in addition to being virtual and real-time.

Project management includes not just keeping and storing information in a systematic way but also reporting and documenting it so that it can be shared. As a result, it is essential that we comprehend the final aspect of project management, namely reporting and documentation.

Reporting and Documentation

Let's talk about how crucial reporting and documentation are to project management.

Project management requires both reporting and documentation. It aids in the documentation of all project-related activities. Measurement of the effects of the project's actions is also helpful. To keep stakeholders informed about project activity, offer status updates. It also aids in discovering implementation flaws for the organization. There are numerous ways to report. Let's examine the reporting methods.

Activity report & financial report: Activity report is mainly related with the project activities whereas financial report is concern with the details of cost incurred for project activities.
Process report (narrative) & summary report: Sometime organisation has to provide the detail process to the stakeholder with minute details of the implemented activities. This can be provided by the process reporting. At the other hand summary report is to document important events of the project activities.

Summary

This blog's goal was to improve your comprehension of the notions of project planning and project management. We began by talking about the idea of a project, then we moved on to project planning. In addition to exploring the idea of project planning, we went into great detail about project life cycles by outlining the stages of a project. You may have gained a better understanding of project management's idea, significance, and elements thanks to this article. Noting that project planning is one of the key components of project management is also crucial. You can now appreciate the significance of fund raising, management information systems, reporting, and documentation thanks to this talk.

Reference

Rajendra Singh Thapa, Project Development & Management: The Object Oriented Approach, International Journal of Soft Computing and Engineering (IJSCE) ISSN: 2231-2307, Volume-1, Issue-NCAI2011, June 2011
Project Management Handbook: A Working Tool for Project Managers, Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development
Dr Anne Touwen, Handbook for Projects: Development Management and Fundraising, 2001
Jason Wastland, Project Management Guide Handbook, 2003
Koteshwar Raju & Satyanarayana, Planning (NGO Excellence), CollegeCommunity Network Centre, DNR College, 2009, 7-21