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Project Management Institute, which was founded in 1969, is a professional organization for project management specialists. Its services include the development of standards, research, education, publication, networkingopportunities in local chapters, hosting conferences and training seminars, and providing accreditation in project management.

Many researchers and organizations have described the project in different ways. The most comprehensive definition is provided by Project Management Institute as follows: “A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result”. As stated in the definition, a project can be a product, service or result. Thus, it can be found within a rich diversity of projects in our society.

As stated in the definition of project, projects are temporary activities. They have a definite beginning and ending point, and they can last minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, or years.

A major part of the project occurs in the performing phase. It includes the stages of design, production and implementation. It can be referred as progression through which a system moves from being an idea to an end item. This phase results in the accomplishment of project objective in a quality manner within budget and on time.

Project management is the implementation of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to accomplish project goals. The aim of project management is to integrate the components to accomplish the project goal.

Some of the reasons why importance of project management is increasing according to Gray and Larson (2000) are: compression of the product life cycle, increase in global competition, knowledge explosion, corporate downsizing, increased consumer focus, rapid development of third world and closed economies.

The project integration management has a set of control access points that are undertaken by the Project Manager. According to Project Management Institute (2008), project management consists of five sets of process groups. These groups are: initiating process group, planning process group, executing process group, monitoring and controlling process group, closing process group.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a method for dividing the overall project into smaller elements that is called work packages. The WBS usually defines the organization or individual responsible for each work package. It also makes it easier to prepare schedules and budgets.

Executing process group is performed to accomplish the work defined in the project management plan to meet customer’s satisfaction. It includes managing the project team such as giving and explaining tasks to all team members, defining how the team will perform, managing stakeholders’ expectations, and so on.

The monitoring and controlling process group includes the following project management processes: monitor and control project work, perform integrated change control, verify scope, control scope, control schedule, control costs, perform quality control, report performance, monitor and control risks, administer procurement.

Although Tower of Babel or Egyptian pyramids are called some of the first “projects”, it is probable that cavemen ancestors built first projects around 150,000 years ago. It is definitely true that the construction of Boulder Dam and Edison’s invention of the light bulb were also projects. However, it is assumed that modern project management began with the Manhattan Project.

1. A project states certain specific objectives that can be defined in terms of schedule and cost. For example, the objective of a project might be to plan a wedding in six months and within a budget of $8,000. It is expected that the wedding will meet the performance predefined by the bride and groom. 2. As stated in the definition of project, projects are temporary activities. They have a definite beginning and ending point, and they can last minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, or years. For example, a raw food workshop might be organized between January 25 and February 3. However, a bridge project for Bosphorus can take four years. 3. A project may be unique or may have some unique elements. Especially, megaprojects like Panama Canal are unique since they have never been done before. Other projects like building a shopping mall or an apartment building include established set of routines. On the other hand, these projects are also unique because of the customization. 4. A project uses various resources to conduct project activities. Such resources can involve people, equipment, material, machines and facilities. For example, a bridge project may include resources such as machines, concrete, labor and so on.

Project life cycle consists of four distinct phases: initiation, planning, performing and closure.

Closure Phase: This phase can be referred as the “termination” phase. It includes certain close-out activities to be carried out such as completing all payments, releasing project equipment/materials, and transferring all related documents. In addition to these activities, this phase involves customer training and obtaining feedback from customers about whether their expectations are satisfied.

For today, products in high-tech industries have an average life cycle between 1-3 years. Just 30 years ago, the average life cycle was 10 to 15 years, which was considered normal.

The project manager and project team carry out the project work in phases according to a “project management methodology.” When a project continues from one phase to the next, the project management methodology helps the project manager to (1) identify the required project tasks, (2) identify the required resources and costs, (3) establish priorities, (4) plan and update schedules, (5) monitor and control end-item quality and performance, and (6) measure project performance.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a method for dividing the overall project into smaller elements that is called work packages. The WBS usually defines the organization or individual responsible for each work package. It also makes it easier to prepare schedules and budgets.

The monitoring and controlling process group includes the following project management processes: • Monitor and control project work • Perform integrated change control • Verify scope • Control scope • Control schedule • Control costs • Perform quality control • Report performance • Monitor and control risks • Administer procurement

Performing Phase: A major part of the project occurs in this stage. The performing phase includes the stages of design, production and implementation. It can be referred as progression through which a system moves from being an idea to an end item. This phase results in the accomplishment of project objective in a quality manner within budget and on time.

Outcomes of a project are generally evaluated by three factors: cost, schedule, and performance. The cost of a project is the budget which represents financial limits that are needed for the project implementation. It might include labor costs, material procurement costs, and operating costs. For example, if the project is the organization of a conference, the cost might cover rental of facility and equipment, food, salaries of personnel, and so on. The project schedule is the timetable that shows in detail when each activity should begin and end. For example, if you are planning a wedding, invitations are sent out six weeks before the wedding. Finally, the last one is required performance. It is expected that the outcomes of the project meet the requirements of the customers. For example, in a new race car project, the drivers expect high quality engine performance, safety, ergonomic driver’s seat and so on. Otherwise, it will cause unsatisfied drivers.