Project Management Organizational Structure

SICT

Unit Credit Value : 2EssentialLearning time : 80 hours

Cikguhadi.com

Learning objectives

• Understand organizations, including the four frames and organizational structures.

• Explain why stakeholder management and top management commitment are critical for a project’s success.

• Learn the concept of a project phase and project lifecycle.

Organization

• Definition: A social unit of people that is structured and managed to meet a need or to pursue collective goals.

• Projects cannot be run in isolation• They have to operate in a broad organizational

environment

• Project managers must learn how to work well within the four organizational frames: structural, human resource, political and symbolic.

• The frames are based on Lee Bolman and Terrence Deal in Reframing Organizations.

• They suggest that project managers who can understand these four frames will improve their leadership and management.

Organization

Structural Frame

Human Resource Frame

Political Frame Symbolic Frame

Organization Frames

“The RATIONAL side of an organization”• Focuses on roles, responsibilities, coordination

and control.• Emphasize rationality, analysis, logic, facts and

data.• Believe strongly in the importance of clear

structure and well-developed management systems.

Structural Frames

• Problem arises when:– Structure does not fit the

situation.• Main challenge would be attuning

structures to tasks, technology or environment.

Structural Frames

“The PEOPLE side of an organization.”• Focuses on the harmony

between the needs of the organization and the needs of people• He/she cares of people

who are involved in a project and in an organization.

Human Resource Frame

• believe in the importance of coaching, participation, motivation, teamwork and good interpersonal relations.

Human Resource Frame

• Problem arises when:–Organization and people are in a bad

relationship/no harmony.• Main challenge would be developing harmony

by attuning organizational and people needs.

Human Resource Frame

“The CONFLICT side of an organization”• Sees organizations as

arenas or contests.• Believe strongly that every

organizations are competing for limited resources and fighting for power.

Political Frame

• In order to survive, they build networks, allies, coalitions.

Political Frame

• Problem arises when:–Misuse of power. Power

concentrated in the wrong places or is too broadly dispersed.

• Main challenge would be how to appropriately use the power to foster networks and alliances to acquire resources.

Political Frame

“The CULTURAL side of an organization.”

• Focuses on meaning and faith.

• Sensitive to organization’s history and culture.

Symbolic Frame

• believes that the essential task of management is to provide vision and inspiration.

• Inspires and excites people with his/her actions and visions.

Symbolic Frame

• Problem arises when:–Uncertainties among people causing

meaning and faith to be lost.• Main challenge would be to create and

maintain inspiration, meaning and faith.

Symbolic Frame

• An organizational structure facilitates the coordination and implementation of project activities.

• The main purpose is to create an environment which fosters interactions between team members with a minimum amount of conflicts.

• Structures can take on various forms. Each with its own advantages and disadvantages.

Organizational structure

• The rationality of an organization practicing a particular structure depends on their business type and size.

• The three basic structures are: Functional, Project and Matrix

Organizational structure

• Bringing together one specialized area into one organizational unit.• This brings efficiency within themselves. i.e

communication among department is good.• Functional type organization is insular. It

means that they’re only concerned with their own performance and with little interest with other type of specialists.

Functional-Type organization

• This lack of communication makes an organization slow and inflexible.• Suitable for small organization.

Functional-Type organization

• Structure is built around functions.

General Management

SystemEngineering

SoftwareEngineering

Verification &Validation

Software QualityAssurance

System engineer

System engineer

System engineer

System engineer

SW engineer

SW engineer

SW engineer

SW engineer

V&V engineer

V&V engineer

V&V engineer

V&V engineer

SQA engineer

SQA engineer

SQA engineer

SQA engineer

Functional-Type organization

• Groups each organizational functions into divisions.• Each division has full control and quipped with its own resources.• No conflict with other divisions due to this.• However since each divisions has its own function, there is a heavy

duplication of resources, skills and expertise.• Suitable for large organization.

Project-Type organization

• Structure is built around projects

General Management

Project A Project B Project C

System engineer

SW engineer

V&V engineer

SQA engineer

System engineer

SW engineer

V&V engineer

SQA engineer

System engineer

SW engineer

V&V engineer

SQA engineer

Project-Type organization

• Composite of functional and project.• Teams are formed based on their specialized area but each are involved

in different projects.• Hence there is skill diversification and training across function is easier

and manageable.• However, employees may face unclear roles and inconsistent job

demands due to interdependencies between functional departments.• Suitable for large organization.

Matrix-Type organization

• Composite of functional and project.

General Management

SystemEngineering

System engineer

System engineer

System engineer

System engineer

SW engineer

SW engineer

SW engineer

SW engineer

V&V engineer

V&V engineer

V&V engineer

V&V engineer

SQA engineer

SQA engineer

SQA engineer

SQA engineer

SWEngineering

V&VEngineering

SQAEngineering

Project A

Project B

Matrix-Type organization

• Stakeholders are the person involved in or affected by project activities (see lecture 1 notes)

• Project manager must take time to identify, understand and manage a good relationship with all project stakeholders

• Four frames of organization are essential in meeting all the stakeholders’ needs and expectations

• Stakeholder executives/top management are very important stakeholders

Stakeholder management

• From time to time project managers would require approval in order to obtain project resources.

• Top management has the power to approve them.• Top management also deals with political issues that often arises when a

project manager cuts across to seek cooperation from other people in an organization.

• Top management serve as a mentor and coach project managers on their leadership issues.

Top management

Close-Out Implementation

• Not to be confused with project process groups (next lecture).

• Project lifecycle is a series of activities/phases in conducting a project.

• Four phases of a traditional project lifecycle:

DevelopmentConcept

Project phases and project lifecycle

• Concept – Rough assessment of project. Identify needs, approaches, problems and solutions.

• Development – A more detail assessment of project. Outline what the project will accomplish, assign who will do what work, identify time taken and how much will be the cost.

Project phases

• Implementation – Real work now began according to proposed plan, schedule and budget.

• Close-Out – All work has been completed and project is terminated.

Project phases

– A project should pass through each of the phases successfully before stepping into the next phase

– Management reviews/phase exits/kill points should occur at each phase to evaluate the project’s progress, likely success, and continued compatibility with organizational goals.

The importance of project phases and management reviews

• You own a website design company. Organize your company team into Functional, Project and Matrix Structure.

Tips: Think of what kind of professions are involved in building a website.

ACTIVITY

Summary• Project managers must learn how to work well

within the four organizational frames: structural, human resource, politcal and symbolic.

• An organizational structure facilitates the coordination and implementation of project activities.

• The three basic structures are: Functional, Project and Matrix

Summary• Project lifecycle is a series of activities/phases

in conducting a project. The phases are: concept, development, implementation and close-out

• A project should pass through each of the phases successfully before stepping into the next phase