0.7 Project management areas of expertise

In order for you as the project manager to manage the competing project constraints and to manage the project as a whole, there are some areas of expertise that you should bring onto the project team ( [link] ). They are the application area of knowledge; standards and regulations in your industry, understanding the project environment, and you must have general management knowledge and interpersonal skills. It should be noted that the industry expertise is not in a certain field but the expertise in order to run the project. So while knowledge of the type of industry is important you will have a project team supporting you in this endeavor. For example, if you are managing a project that is building an oil platform, you would not be expected to have a detailed understanding of the engineering since your team will have mechanical and civil engineers who will provide the appropriate expertise, however, it would definitely help if you understand this type of work.

Let’s take a look at each of these areas in more detail.

Application knowledge; standards&Regulations

By standards , we mean guidelines or preferred approaches that are not necessarily mandatory. In contrast, when referring to regulations we mean mandatory rules that must be followed such as Government imposed requirements through laws. It should go without saying that as a professional, you’re required to follow all applicable laws and rules that apply to your industry, organization, or project. Every industry has standards and regulations. Knowing which ones effect your project before you begin work will not only help the project to unfold smoothly, but will also allow for effective risk analysis.

Some projects require specific skills in certain application areas. Application areas are made up of categories of projects that have common elements. They can be defined by: industry group (pharmaceutical, financial, etc), by department (accounting, marketing, legal, etc), by technical (software development, engineering, etc), or management (procurement, research,&development, etc) specialties. These application areas are usually concerned with disciplines, regulations and the specific needs of the project, the customer, or the industry. For example, most government agencies have specific procurement rules that apply to their projects that wouldn’t be applicable in the construction industry. The pharmaceutical industry is interested in regulations set forth by the Food and Drug Administration, whereas the automotive industry has little or no concern for either of these types of regulations. You need to stay up-to-date regarding your industry so that you can apply your knowledge effectively. Today’s fast paced advances can leave you behind fairly quickly if you don’t stay abreast on current trends.

Having some level of experience in the application area you’re working in will give you an advantage when it comes to project management. While you can call in experts who have the application area knowledge, it doesn’t hurt for you to understand the specific aspects of the application areas of your project.