Project management in the civil engineering sector involves leading a team to complete a specific design or construction task, whilst meeting a range of designated goals and targets. The project manager will ensure that the constraints of the project, the set time frame and the budget are all met, whilst guaranteeing the quality of all production and operations.
This is particularly important in the civil engineering business, as lengthy construction projects often have strict or demanding deadlines and financial limitations. A sizable project requires lots of planning, monitoring and quality control, all of which must be executed to a high standard for a positive outcome.
Productive and profitable project management means excellent organisation, delegation, and communication across a team. Peruse this list of the top ten tips for successful project management to find out how to get the most out of your resources.
Creating a Project Plan
A project plan is a formal document that outlines and guides a project from start to finish. It should detail goals, specific tasks, and what success looks like for that specific project. Your project plan should:
● Detail goals and objectives
● Outline a timetable and schedule
● Set the project scope and budget
● Clarify the roles and responsibilities of each team member
● Include a communication plan to ensure everyone is kept informed
Getting this plan in place at the very start of your project will help you to kick start the organisational process, and let everyone in your team know where the project is heading.
Setting Clear Goals
It is difficult for a team to succeed in a project or task if they don’t know exactly where they’re headed. Setting clear goals and objectives allows for the entire process to become clear to everyone involved. This manages expectations and allows each team member to organise their time accordingly.
When goal-setting for a complex project, it is important to be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound. Keeping these factors in mind ensures that your goals and objectives are as effective and useful as possible, whilst avoiding vagueness. Without this approach, you may find that your team loses focus and begins to miss deadlines.
Creating a Realistic Budget
Producing an accurate budget will help you keep track of your project goals, and avoid unexpected costs later down the road. Budget planning involves an estimation of labour costs, procurement costs for goods and services, research or consultancy fees, and any staff training that may be needed.
These costs can be divided into two simple categories to help you weigh up different expenses. These are:
Fixed costs – expenses with a fixed price that don’t change, such as salaries, regular bills, and regularly ordered resources
Variable costs – expenses which are likely to change, such as contractors paid by the hour, or other construction work that could take longer than planned – these should be monitored throughout the project
Understanding these different types of costs can help you to produce an accurate and realistic budget to keep your project running smoothly. This will support your team in meeting their objectives on time and without overspending.
Building a Strong Team
Having an organised and workable team structure for your project ensures a punctual completion of tasks, high productivity levels, and a generally healthy work environment for everyone involved. A well-managed team will also cut costs, as projects can be completed quicker with less added expense for prolonged deadlines.
Make your team stronger and more efficient by:
● Giving everyone clearly defined roles
● Praising and rewarding success
● Giving feedback with sensitivity
● Making the most of everyone’s strengths
● Encouraging your team to connect with each other
Communicating Effectively
Effective communication is a defining characteristic of a successfully managed project. The right messages need to be sent, received and understood to ensure your project goals are met on time. Your project plan should include a separate communication plan which details how specific information will be relayed to internal team members and external stakeholders.
Internal and external communication demands different tones of voices and levels of formality:
Internal communication – between individuals who are actively working on a project – this will take the form of detailed informal discussion directed towards issue resolution
External communication – between members of the project team and key stakeholders, such as the CEO, other relevant departments, press and customers – this will be a more polished and formal kind of discussion
Managing Risks
You need to be aware of potential risks to your project’s success so you can prepare for and adapt to challenges as they arise. A project risk assessment will allow you to create a formal overview of likely project risks, planning ahead for how they’ll be managed.
Potential project risks can be categorised as:
● Financial- relating to rising costs, additional labour that needs to be paid for, or other miscellaneous additions to the budget that haven’t been anticipated
● Strategic- relating to the strategies chosen to implement your project, as well as your methodology, employee satisfaction and technology investments
● Performance- relating to missed deadlines or targets for the project, and the fallout from outdated market research
● External- relating to unexpected employee absences through illness or holidays, the impact of weather, or changes to laws and procedures
Managing Change
In addition to anticipating risks, a successful project will also be adaptable to all kinds of changes to the initial project plan, whether this is positive or negative.
One way to do this is to have a dedicated change management team which works to support the project manager throughout the process. This team can assist in staying on top of communications with stakeholders, and developing training programmes to assist with the implementation of new skills or technologies.
Having this change-focused team in place will ensure that change takes place in an organised fashion whilst staying on top of goals and deadlines.
Managing Expectations
As well as preparing for risks and change in your project, it is also important to manage expectations throughout. Failing to do so could result in a range of challenges including confusion amongst your team members, a lack of focus, and a reduced level of trust across your team and with your client.
In order to avoid this, it is important to make goals and expectations clear in your initial project plan, suggesting detailed targets for all stages and aspects of your project. It is also beneficial to under-promise what you can deliver with your planned goals, with the potential then to over-deliver, and excel expectations. This is made easier when you have comprehensive communication channels in place.
Implementing Project Management Software
Choosing appropriate software for your project will help you to organise your whole team in one place, whilst overseeing communication and changes as they develop.
In order to make an informed decision about what software to use, you may wish to consider:
● The current skill-set and technological capabilities of your team
● Budget and financial limitations
● Your top requirements for your software
● How user-friendly different software can be
● Choosing software that’s proportionate to the size of your project
It is important to ensure all team members are fully trained in utilising your chosen software, to avoid miscommunication and a loss of focus.
Striving For Continuous Improvement
In order to manage a project successfully, you need to be consistently looking for ways to improve your everyday methods and processes. Implementing a CIP (continual improvement process) can allow you to achieve incremental improvements over a prolonged period of time, or improve something immediately, which is known as a ‘breakthrough’ improvement.
One approach to continuous improvement is the PDCA cycle: Plan, Do, Check, Act. This cycle is ongoing and can be revisited throughout your project to ensure that you have the most efficient policies and methods in place.
Integrated Designs & Associates Ltd: Accredited Civil Engineers and Structural Surveyors
At Integrated Designs & Associates, we offer a range of project management and civil engineering services, including structural engineering and surveying. We offer both residential and commercial support, with our team of specialist structural and geotechnical consultants dedicated to meeting your every need.
What Will A Structural Survey Cost?
Our fees for a standard commercial or residential structural survey will vary depending on the size and complexity of your project. The value and location of your property will also impact costs.
To find out exact surveying costs, or if you would like to learn more about our project management services, then contact us now for more information.
