When we talk about the comprehensive project management, we are talking about a management system that encompasses a set of elements and areas that work together to meet the project’s requirements. The importance of the term “comprehensive” lies in the fact that all elements interact to achieve a common ultimate goal for all parties.
The comprehensive system will therefore set a clear direction with individual strategic objectives for all the elements and areas that make up the project, ensuring that they are integrated into an overall strategy.
Project Components
Every project consists of many different elements—human resources, materials, and documents—that are integrated into various timelines and tasks with individual but interdependent objectives. This gives rise to the need for a proper comprehensive project management that involves all departments in a set of activities coordinated according to their temporal relationships, constraints, dependencies, and causal relationships among them.
Areas of Comprehensive Project Management
Departments are the various interconnected management areas into which the comprehensive project system is divided, each with its own specific elements or elements shared with others. The project manager You must perform a work matrix with specific objectives for each of the areas, so that it can be quickly verified that each objective aligns with the objectives of the others.
Process Management
This is the main area, and its objective—along with its associated elements—is to create the final product in the most efficient way meeting deadlines, but that is not enough, as the product or work methods must meet the quality, safety, and environmental specifications set by the other management departments.
- Operations and support staff: coordinate workers' efforts, ensuring a good balance of timing and coordination of activities.
- External contributors: Collaborate with other managers to establish common working guidelines that ensure the objectives are met.
- Suppliers: Coordinate and integrate deliveries into the work plan (when, where, and how to receive materials).
- Human and material resources: the most suitable selection tailored to the construction processes.
Quality Management
The choice of construction process depends on the quality required by the client, as described in the project requirements. Work, communication, and delivery systems are managed in accordance with the conditions set forth in these requirements.
- Processes: familiar with the methodology for drafting technical specifications in accordance with guidelines and quality standards.
- Material and mechanical resources: compliant with ISO standards, product specifications, and work procedures, and meeting quality and environmental requirements—such as stainless steel for marine applications.
- Finishes: define the outcomes of quality management.
- Level of detail in the documentation: related to the required quality and applied to all management areas where reports, specifications, etc., are generated.
Environmental Management
The work environment and the type of project will determine the environmental management factors and restrictions on work processes. Depending on whether we are working in a special protection zone, vulnerable areas, or areas zoned for development, different measures will be adopted.
- Processes: Limitations or restrictions on areas and uses due to factors affecting the habitat. A system that does not intrude on the environment (noise if we are in a protected bird area)
- Quality: Adoption of regulations in accordance with environmental requirements.
- Material and mechanical resources: Attention to hazardous substances based on the work area, pollution, and noise.
- Documentation: an environmental impact assessment or report that defines work processes and conditions.
Health and Safety Management
The health and safety management It will be designed based on the risks that may arise from construction processes (environment, machinery, etc.), establishing work guidelines that will be incorporated into the execution of tasks
- Processes: work systems, designation of passageways for machinery or personnel, and safety measures based on the type of task.
- Environment: Definition of habitat-related risks.
- PPE: personal protective equipment tailored to the needs of the work environment and construction processes.
- Documentation: The health and safety study serves as a guide for best practices and for generating safety reports during implementation.
- Material and mechanical resources: Selection of the appropriate type based on the necessary safety, maintenance, and condition requirements.
In conclusion, the success of proper planning, monitoring, and corrective actions that enable us to The lessons we learn from this experience will be the most valuable asset we take away once the work is complete. That is why it is important to generate reports in the various areas of project management and share them—not only to improve the project experience itself, but also to help create a more efficient workflow for future projects.
In our Structuralia article, “Best Project Management Courses,” we provide an overview of all our main courses on project management.
