The Story of Managing Projects

Book excerpt: Project management has been practiced for thousands of years, but only recently have organizations begun to apply systematic management tools and techniques to manage complex projects. Today's approaches to project management can be traced directly to methodologies designed by the U.S. military and Department of Defense in the years after World War II. Subsequent advances in management information systems have helped to codify project management practices; most recently, the Internet has dramatically enhanced the ability of individuals, teams, and organizations to manage projects across continents and cultures in real time. The Story of Managing Projects showcases cutting-edge research conducted around the world on emerging practices in project management. Covering an enormous spectrum of subjects and industries—from an upgrade of the Greek railway system to infrastructure reconstruction in Kuwait—the authors explore the full range of inter-personal, technical, and organizational dynamics of project management, contributing new insights to its theory and application.