No abstract is provided for this article.
No abstract is provided for this article.
Project management is a methodology widely used in organizations that believe in innovation and choose to organize their resources around projects. This paper presents new results and developments of a model that address the issue of optimal resource allocation, and more specifically, the analysis of complementarity of resources (primary resource and supportive resource) in a project. The concept of complementarity, which has been discussed based on an economic view, can be incorporated into the engineering domain as an enhancement of the efficacy of a “primary” resource (P-resource) by adding to it another “supportive” resource (S-resource). No replacement takes place. The gain achieved from such action is manifested in improved performance; e.g., shorter duration or improved quality, because of the enhanced performance of the P-resource. But such gain is usually achieved at an increased cost; namely the cost of the support resource(s). We developed a conceptual system capable of determining the ideal timing, and the ideal mixture of resources allocated to the activities of a project, such that the project is completed on time, if not earlier, with minimal cost. We present new computational results of a Genetic Algorithm, based in a random keys alphabet, with an optimized process that allowed reaching better results. The sequence of activities and the resource combinations for each pair activity/resources were obtained, respecting network constraints, showing the flexibility of the solution considering resources distribution and early resources release.
Competitiveness in a world characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, known by the acronym VUCA, is accelerating companies towards innovation. To ensure business continuity and control risk, companies must manage operations and projects with skilled teams and applying project management methodologies. The research described in this paper was undertaken in a SME Portuguese company, specialized in offering research and development solutions for industry. The main goal of the research is to implement project management good practices and lean production methodologies to improve the global performance of the company. A structured and adaptive toolkit to prioritize, select, assign resources, plan, execute and monitor projects is also in development to help the company reaching its strategic goals. The action-research methodology was used, with the researcher becoming part of the work environment, actively participating in the necessary tasks with other internal stakeholders, in a context of learning by doing. To implement the project management customized tools linked with the company strategic plan, the researcher used Business Process Management (BPM) and Lean principles. Some expected findings are the BPM customized solution implemented in the company as well as better organization and more efficient processes at the company, supported by Project Management methodologies.
This article aims to make a contribution to theory, as well as to practice, by identifying which project management practices are used by most private organizations in general and by sector of activity. The influence of practitioners’ characteristics in the choice of project management practices and their use in groups are also analyzed. The results show that the most used project management practices are kick-off meetings, activity lists, progress meetings, Gantt charts, and baseline plans; however, differences between activity sectors and practitioners’ characteristics were found. The results also indicate that the most used project management practices are, in fact, used as toolsets.
No abstract is provided for this article.
A “multi-modal” activity is one which can be performed in several modes, or levels, of resource(s) allocation. In this paper we assume that the activities are multi-modal, and each activity may require several resources for its execution. We also assume that the resources may be constrained on their availability over time, and that each activity has its own work contents as a continuous random variable for each of its required resources. We are concerned with establishing a suitable strategy that will focus on the universe of activity modes, selecting only those that will be relevant for the most probable overall project cost. In other words, we choose the most probable modes of activity execution among the theoretical continuum of modes; and propagate the consequences of that choice throughout the project. The proposed approach relies on the partitioning of the work content domains into classes. Using these classes, we address different probabilities for each feasible allocation.
Organizations are experiencing increasing pressure that is amplified by the current economic crises we are facing, where innovation, cost reduction, resource optimization, quality and customer satisfaction are increasingly even more important issues. Likewise, project management appears as a subject that has been growing over the years helping organizations to meet their goals, through the implementation of their projects, following good practices that are documented in various standards and methodologies. This research focuses on such practices. The goal was to find which are the most used project management tools and techniques in Portuguese Private Organizations and what factors influence their use.
No abstract is provided for this article.
This chapter resulted from an action-research undertaken on a Portuguese electric energy organization – EDP Distribution. The research aimed to develop, propose and implement a risk management methodology to integrate in the project management (PM) practices of an ongoing project. The methodology implemented allowed the project team to initiate systematized risk management practices through a simple structure, easy to apply, and with a degree of complexity compatible with the effort that the PM team could initially engage. It is expected that the proposed methodology signaled the initiation of the project risk management (PRM) process standardization in the EDP Distribution organization.
This paper presents three basic approximations developed to solve the Adaptive Stochastic Multimodal Resource Allocation Problem. Two of them are based on the DP model introduced in earlier papers ([23], [24]). The other one uses NLP to solve this problem. The approximations developed consist in considering the Work Content of some or all the activities of the project as represented by their mean values. These approximations were applied to a set of examples, and results were obtained and commented. As expected, running times were reduced, compared to the original model, but the total cost was underestimated, due to the use of means instead of the complete distribution.
No abstract is provided for this article.
The expansion of textile and clothing production to Asian regions has both, increased competition and created a need for integration with the global supply chain. Strategies are being designed to improve competitiveness and responsiveness of the chains by increasing the diversification of products and value addition. This study formulates and examines the potential of such strategies and their implementation for textile and clothing chains originating from Pakistan. The strategies were developed based on a SWOT analysis followed by their prioritization through Saatys AHP and ANP. This work extends the previously developed phase of strategic planning to the implementation phase. Here we analyse the strategic plans using the Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) method and taking into account relevant factors such as cost, time and implementability.
Project Management (PM) has emerged as a crucial factor that determines the success of an organization.In this sense, there is a growing concern for organizations to assess their PM maturity.This paper presents the PM maturity results for 19 organizations, using Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3 ® ) emerging from OPM3 ® Portugal Project research, that is presently in progress.All aspects of OPM3 ® Portugal Project are explained in detail, and a brief descriptive analysis of the 19 organizations assessed is presented.The preliminary results were obtained using two scoring methods, and are presented in tables organized by PM processes, Portfolio Management processes and Organizational Enablers areas.No other similar studies were found, thus it was not possible to compare the preliminary Portuguese results with other results.
No abstract is provided for this article.
No abstract is provided for this article.
ICOPEV2018: 4th International Conference on Production Economics and Project Evaluation | 20 Set. - 21 Set. 2018
This paper presents a narrative review on the Resource-Constrained Multi-Project Scheduling Problem (RCMPSP) under uncertainty and resource flexibility. Traditional project scheduling assumes complete information and a deterministic environment where a pre-computed baseline schedule is executed. However, real-world projects frequently face uncertainty, such as variable task durations and fluctuating resource availability. Analyzing studies from 2013 to 2024, this review examines optimization models addressing multiple objectives, including minimizing project duration, cost, and resource leveling. It categorizes solution approaches, from exact algorithms to heuristic and metaheuristic methods, while reviewing the primary instance sets and benchmarks used in the field. Additionally, it highlights the value of flexible resource management approaches that enable adaptive responses to real-time project demands, thereby enhancing scheduling robustness. By systematically addressing RCMPSP under uncertainty, this paper provides a valuable framework for researchers and practitioners seeking to develop resilient, adaptive scheduling solutions for complex, dynamic project environments.
