Advances in Project Management: Narrated Journeys in Uncharted Territory(Routledge Frontiers in Project Management)

On the evidence of the authors of Advances in Project Management: Narrated Journeys in Unchartered Territory, there is a sea change coming. That change will affect the way projects are perceived, lead and governed, particularly in the context of the wider organisation to which they belong; whether that is in the public, private or not-for-profit sectors. Many organisations have struggled to apply the traditional models of project management to their new projects in the global environment. Anecdotal and evidence-based research confirms that projects continue to fail at an alarming rate. A major part of the build-up to failure is often the lack of adequate project management knowledge and experience. Advances in Project Management covers key areas of improvement in understanding and project capability further up the management chain; amongst strategy and senior decision makers and amongst professional project and programme managers. This collection, drawn from some of the world’s leading practitioners and researchers and compiled by Professor Darren Dalcher of the National Centre for Project Management, provides those people and organisations who are involved with the developments in project management with the kind of structured information, new approaches and novel perspectives that will inform their thinking and their practice and improve their decisions.

Table of Contents:
Contents: Introduction; Uncertainty: Managing project uncertainty, Darren Dalcher; That uncertain feeling, David Cleden. Strategic Risk: When do projects begin? Addressing strategic project appraisal issues, Darren Dalcher; Strategic project risk appraisal and management, Elaine Harris. Risk: Risks or projects?, Darren Dalcher; Managing risk in projects: what’s new?, David Hillson. Governance: Facing uncertainty: project governance and control, Darren Dalcher; Project governance, Ralf Müller. Programme Management: Managing uncertainty through programmes, Darren Dalcher; Programme management beyond standards and guides, Michel Thiry. Risk Leadership: Beyond tame problems: the case for risk leadership, Darren Dalcher; The application of the ’new sciences’ to risk and project management, David Hancock. Leadership: In search of project leadership, Darren Dalcher; Project-oriented leadership, Ralf Müller and Rodney Turner. Earned Value: Progress and performance: the case for extending earned value management, Darren Dalcher; Effective measurement of time performance using earned value management, Alexandre Rodrigues. Spiritual Inspiration: Inspiration in teams: searching for a new intelligence, Darren Dalcher; Spirituality in project management teams, Judi Neal and Alan Harpham. Ethics: Project ethics and professionalism: the making of a profession?, Darren Dalcher; Project ethics: the critical path to development, Haukur Ingi Jónasson and Helgi Thor Ingason. Stakeholders: Can we satisfy project stakeholders?, Darren Dalcher; What does the project stakeholder value?, Pernille Eskerod and Anna Lund Jepsen. Supply Chains: Managing connected supply chains, Darren Dalcher; Managing project supply chains, Ron Basu. Second Order Project Management: Making sense of complexity: towards a higher order, Darren Dalcher; A case for second order project management, Michael Cavanagh. Sustainability: Sustainability: a new professional responsibility?, Darren Dalcher; Taking re

About the Author :
Darren Dalcher is the founder and Director of National Centre for Project Management. He has built a reputation as leader and innovator in the area of practice-based education and reflection in project management and has worked with many major industrial, commercial and charitable organisations and government bodies. He is active in numerous international committees, standards bodies, steering groups, and editorial boards and heavily involved in organising international conferences, and has delivered many international keynote addresses and tutorials. He has written over 200 refereed papers and book chapters on project management and software engineering. Professor Dalcher is the editor of the two book series Advances in Project Management and Fundamentals of Project Management. He was named by the APM as an influential expert in project management for his contribution in ’integrating and weaving academic work with practice’ and awarded a prestigious Honorary Fellowship for outstanding contribution to project management.

Review :
’This volume is a collection of concise and informative articles on topics highly relevant to both new and seasoned practitioners of modern project management. The book works well as both a weekend read, and as a reference compendium with 26 contributors including notable authors such as Harris, Hillson, Müller & Turner, Remington, and Cavanagh. ...the range of subjects covered in this book is impressive. ... Above all, this book fills a current gap in the canon of PM literature by offering a practical how-to bridge between the Books of Knowledge (e.g. PMI, APM certification) level, and the demands of more complex programmes and projects. I commend this book to any practitioner wanting to understand the added dimensions of the new and highly challenging world of advanced project management.’ ICCPM - International Centre for Complex Project Management ’What sets this book far apart from others is the breadth and open-mindedness of the reflections. Dalcher is not afraid of including nontraditional project management topics such as the psychology of project management and spirituality in project management. Each one of the 20-plus topics is introduced by Dalcher with his point of view and followed by a paper by the primary author. For example, the topic of ethics is introduced with cogitation on project ethics and professionalism, followed up by the paper Project Ethics: The Critical Path to Development. ...the book is a delight to read and can serve as an easy reference for project managers willing to look beyond the standards and guidelines of traditional project management.’ Project Management Journal, vol. 45, no. 6 ’The book begins with an overview from Dalcher and some context-setting. It then offers a diversity of astute opinion from a range of experienced individuals, all with their own specific focus within project management. ... I was delighted that there were a number of chapters addressing what I would refer to as tough skills