In November of 2012, a robotics research laboratory at a southeastern university began to work on a multi-million dollar robotics project to participate in a national level robotics competition. This project was led by a robotics lab referred to as the Southeastern Robotics Lab (SRL) in this report, and included three additional partners from other research centers, corporations, and universities (referred as Partner A, Partner B and Partner C). While SRL is an experienced robotics laboratory which had performed successfully on various large scale robotics projects, the new project was managerially much more complex due to the involvement of several external organizations, the size of the project, availability of financial resources, and the strictness of the deadlines. The project failed to meet its desired outcome with the project team unable to field a completed system as intended at the end of the scope of work (13 months from project start to conclusion). The failure was an example of common shortcomings in multi-organizational innovative projects. Using the SRL case, we offer a simulation-supported explanation for why complex high-tech projects frequently fail. We gather data through interviewing several researchers directly involved in the project, and conduct textual analysis of archival data through the project. Then we build a system dynamics model of the system and conduct simulation-based analysis of the case. The study offers managerial implications for similar large scale projects. / Master of Science

An increase in collaboration between organizations building digital libraries has strengthened the need for tailored project management systems. Current project management tools do not handle the unique challenges that digital libraries pose from a management perspective. They require significant time to apply, and only provide partial solutions. To address this issue, we have designed, implemented, and deployed a Web-based management solution which caters to the planning needs of the project team during the initial phases of digital library development. The main aim of the tool is to capture digital library development patterns and to make development easy for collaborators. The key aspects of the tool are: i) use of the 5S framework of digital libraries to describe the managerial information system as well as the digital library being managed itself, ii) design that is centered on keeping the user informed about digital library practices by integrating appropriate user affordances into the tool, and iii) providing generic project management features such as timeline-creation and task-scheduling in addition to digital library customizations. A formative evaluation of the tool was performed using CTRnet and a national digital library as case studies. / Master of Science

Project failure continues to be a concern even though standards and procedures have been in place for years to counteract the issue. Many reasons for the high rate of project management failure have been purported in the research literature (Bauer, 2006; Hammoud, 2008 & Kerzner, 2002). This study analyzes the problem of high failure rate of major capital projects within Transnet Freight Rail. In addition to reviewing research literature that addresses projects failure concepts, critical success factors, project management principles, strategic alignment, skills and capabilities of project managers and how these factors might relate to major capital projects failure, the study will examine possible problems at the organizational and functional level that might be contributing to the high failure rate of major capital projects within TFR. / Graduate School of Business Leadership / M.B.A.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2003. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study is focussed on the all-important issue of estimation and forecasting in project management. Most project managers relate the kind of difficulties they have to go through in dealing with superiors that come up with a targeted deadline for a project with a given budget but with little or no regard to due process of arriving at both duration and cost. Many projects are doomed to overrun both schedule and cost from the word go because either the project manager is not equipped to give accurate estimates or is too timid to upset the boss by saying they do not believe the project would be completed within the said duration and the given cost without compromising quality. It is well said in literature that the three pillars of any project completion are time, cost and performance. Two of the three can be predetermined and the third will normally be dependent on those two. Where there is generous time and a large budget, chances are that a good quality well considered and executed project will result. The opposite is also true. This study investigates literature on the subject and also seeks to look at the trends in estimating in practice, by way of questionnaire and physical inspections. The questions that it seeks to answer are: a) Are project managers in most companies formally qualified? b) What is their disposition to using computerised/statistical methods in estimating? c) Does the level of education affect the disposition of project managers to using computerised/statistical methods of estimation? And finally, d) What methods are project managers using to estimate duration, cost and schedule? The results of this survey show that most projects managers do not have formal training in project management. At best they have attended short courses in project management. The survey also shows that even the formally educated project managers do not think much of strictly scientific (computerised/statistical) methods of project estimation. They rather feel that getting input from experienced functional people on the separate parts of the project tends to produce more accurate estimates. There is a leaning therefore towards using past experience on similar projects to generate norms and expert advice from the relevant functions on the expected costs and durations of accomplishing the parts of the project on which they have experience. All the project managers that responded to the survey said they had formal documentation for their projects and that they kept copies of the documentation in a central place that was easily accessible. Physical checks of this fact revealed that 29% of the interviewees did not have central or well-kept databases of previous projects' information. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die studie plaas klem op die belangrike kwessie van skatting en voorspelling in projekbestuur. Die meeste projekbestuurders ondervind die tipiese probleem waar senior persone projekteikendatums en -begrotings neerlê, sonder behoorlike oorweging van die faktore wat tyd en koste beïnvloed. Baie projekte is dus, van die staanspoor, bestem om beide koste en tyd te oorskry. Die projekbestuurder is dalk nie behoorlik toegerus om akkurate skattings te maak nie, of andersinds ontbreek die moed om die senior persoon daarop te wys dat tydskaal- en koste-teikens slegs teen 'n verlaging in kwaliteitstandaarde bereik kan word. Die literatuur gee wye erkenning aan wat die die drie pilare van projekvoltooing is: tyd, koste, en prestasie. Twee hiervan kan vooraf vasgepen word, terwyl die oorblywende een dan 'n funksie van die ander twee word. Indien daar ruim tyd en fondse beskikbaar is, is daar 'n beter kans om goeie kwaliteit en 'n gunstige projekuitkoms te verseker. Die teenoorgestelde is ook waar. Hierdie studie ondersoek die literatuur in die vakgebied, en gee bepaalde aandag aan die tendense in vooruitskattingspraktyke deur van 'n vraeboog en fisiese ondersoeke gebruik te maak. Die vrae wat deur hierdie navorsing gestel word, is die volgende: a) Is projekbestuurders, in die meeste organisasies, formeelopgelei? b) Wat is hulle houding teenoor die gebruik van rekenaargebaseerde statistiese metodes vir vooruitskatting? c) Beïnvloed die vlak van opleiding hierdie houding teenoor die gebruik rekenaargebaseerde statistiese metodes? d) Watter metodes gebruik projekbestuurders om kostes, tyd, en skedules te bepaal? Die ondersoek bevind dat die meerderheid projekbestuurders nie formele opleiding in projekbestuur het nie. Ten beste het hulle slegs kort kursusse in projekbestuur bygewoon. Die studie bevind ook verder dat selfs formeel opgeleide projekbestuurders nie ten gunste van streng wetenskaplike (rekenaargebaseerde statistiese) skattingstegnieke is nie. Hulle voel dat die insette van ervare funksionele personeel wat op verskillende elemente van die projek werk, meer akkuraat is. Daar is dus 'n neiging om eerder vorige ondervinding op soortgelyke projekte te gebruik om norme vas te stel, en om kundige spesialiste se raad te gebruik by die skatting van koste en tydsduur met betrekking tot die gedeeltes van die projek waarin hulle spesialiseer. AI die projekbestuurders wat aan die vraeboog-opname deelgeneem het, het bevestig dat hulle formele dokumentasie rakende hulle projekte byhou, en dat kopieë op In toeganklike plek sentraal beskikbaar gehou word. Die fisiese ondersoek bevind dat 29% van die persone waarmee onderhoude gevoer is, nie projekrekords van vorige projekte op In sentrale databasis bewaar nie.

Project failure continues to be a concern even though standards and procedures have been in place for years to counteract the issue. Many reasons for the high rate of project management failure have been purported in the research literature (Bauer, 2006; Hammoud, 2008 & Kerzner, 2002). This study analyzes the problem of high failure rate of major capital projects within Transnet Freight Rail. In addition to reviewing research literature that addresses projects failure concepts, critical success factors, project management principles, strategic alignment, skills and capabilities of project managers and how these factors might relate to major capital projects failure, the study will examine possible problems at the organizational and functional level that might be contributing to the high failure rate of major capital projects within TFR. / Graduate School of Business Leadership / M.B.A.

by Chan Kwan Wing, John. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 69-70). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iii / LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS --- p.v / PREFACE --- p.vii / ACKNOWLEDGEMENT --- p.ix / Chapter / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Chapter II. --- METHODOLOGY --- p.4 / Chapter III. --- VARIOUS ASPECTS IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT --- p.6 / Project Scope Management --- p.6 / Project Evaluation --- p.7 / Define the Objectives --- p.7 / Defining the Project Scope --- p.8 / Project Time Management --- p.10 / Introduction to the S-Curve --- p.11 / Planning and Scheduling with Gantt Charts --- p.13 / Network Representation of a Project --- p.14 / Precedence Diagramming Method --- p.18 / Project Cost Management --- p.20 / Cost Estimating --- p.20 / Pricing Strategies for Contractors --- p.21 / Cost Budgeting --- p.23 / Cost Control --- p.24 / Project Quality Management --- p.29 / Quality Management --- p.29 / Project Human Resources Management --- p.32 / Organizational Planning --- p.32 / Staff Acquisition --- p.33 / Team Development --- p.34 / Project Communication Management --- p.35 / Information Dissemination --- p.35 / Performance reporting --- p.36 / Administrative Closure --- p.36 / Project Risk Management --- p.37 / Risk Identification --- p.37 / Risk Evaluation --- p.37 / Risk response Development --- p.39 / Chapter IV. --- THE HUMAN SIDE OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT --- p.40 / Leadership and Team Building Skills --- p.42 / Interpersonal Influencing and Negotiation Skills --- p.45 / Interpersonal Influencing Skills --- p.45 / Negotiation Skills --- p.46 / Conflict Management Skills --- p.47 / Decision Making and Problem Solving Skills --- p.49 / "Planning, Organizing and Administrative Skills" --- p.50 / Technical Expertise --- p.51 / Chapter V. --- PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN APPLICATION --- p.53 / Real-Life Problems Encountered by Client Project Managers --- p.53 / Real-Life Problems Encountered by Contractor Project Managers --- p.57 / Problems Encountered by Project Managers in General --- p.64 / Chapter VI. --- CONCLUSION: LESSON LEARNT --- p.65 / APPENDIX --- p.68 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.69

Thesis (MBA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2018 / South Africa is a developing state; the roles of the state owned entities in encouraging economic growth and contributing to the mitigation of unemployment and poverty eradication are unavoidable. Project management from an engineering development perspective and as an industrial discipline has been investigated and published throughout the past period. It could be said that the subject is mature, as recent publications on project management fail to bring new knowledge to light particularly in Eskom. This mini dissertation studies the most significant serious success factors in the effective project management in different departmental conditions within Eskom. Projects are being used daily in Eskom to achieve the company goal. In recent years researchers have become increasingly interested in factors that may have an impact on project management effectiveness and the success of projects. However, there is little research that shows how effectively projects are managed in a business organisational context like Eskom. My Study aims to partly fill this gap by presenting results from a case study and surveys of Eskom as an organisation practising project management. It also aims to investigate the effectiveness of project management in terms of Eskom Divisional structures, technical competency, Eskom Project leadership ability and the characteristics of an effective project manager. In managing projects, it is significant to know how to handle both the tools and the people and to achieve a balance between the two. Experience, especially in the management of change was perceived to be a significant factor in project success

This research discusses the project management using the Cooperation Information System Framework in accordance to the distributed environment demand, as well as the information technology application, in human cooperative work practice, the project team organizes, as well as the project information system three between reciprocity; And, the union Collaborative Project Management Architecture, develops this research subject Integrated Collaborative Project Management Information System, and the definition is " A large-scale, modularity, integrated process guidance system, conformity project management information flow and so on process plan, execution, control, take coordinates the cooperation as a foundation, emphatically the team member's communication coordination ability, with the project information management, provides the project decision-making information, the promotion project carries out the achievements and the quick reaction capability." . Integrated collaborative project management information system, emphatically in the emphasis project process management, the project member coordinates the cooperation the communication mechanism, as well as the project information database uses again, and does take the component integrated concept as the system framework foundation, may do for the new generation of project management system software development basis. In addition, this research takes the project-driven as the enterprise mainly operates basal engineering company for apply object, with the Integrated Collaborative Project Management System Architecture, be used as the nucleus that the engineering company enterprise applies the structure, and according to configure with the layout engineering project management system, and describe its system establishment process.

This thesis is about the standardization of the planning phase in a project management office (PMO). The purpose of the research is to find the way to standardize the planning phase in PMO. This purpose is motivated by the relevance of planning phase in projects. Planning is about to forecast, and the consequences of a bad forecasting can be critical for the developing of the project. The research question of the study is the following one:➢ How can the planning phase be standardized in a Project Management Office?To answer this question five interviews have been performed. The interviewees were senior project managers from different companies in Sweden. In order to keep the confidentiality, the names of the managers and the companies which they belong to are omitted. A literature review has been done to set up a theoretical framework and validate the results from the interviews. The study concludes that the only part in planning which can be easily standardized is the work breakdown structure. The results showed that standardization of planning phase as a whole is a big challenge for PMO and also that specialization helps in great measure the standardization of planning.

This thesis analyzes the project management and its maturity at the company nkt cables Vrchlabi k.s., člen skupiny NKT, which is focused on the production of cables and wires. The thesis is divided into theoretical and analytical parts. The first part describes the theoretical approaches to project management, the second part analyzes the process of current condition in the company. In the following part are listed recommendations for the company based on the analysis, and summary of the results and conclusions of this thesis.