Project Management Theory and Practice

Although there are numerous project management resources available, most are either too academic, focus too heavily on IT, or provide quick-fix advice without the theory required to understand why the solutions work. Following and expanding on PMI’s Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK^®), Project Management Theory and Practice provides students with a complete overview of project management theory—in language they can easily understand.

This classroom-tested textbook translates the abstract model vocabulary and processes from A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK^® Guide), Fourth Edition into accessible discussions complete with contemporary views and projections for the future. The text integrates the organizational environment that surrounds a project to supply students with the well-rounded knowledge of theories, organizational issues, and human behavior needed to manage real-world projects effectively. Providing a clear picture of the state of the art in project management, it details numerous project-related frameworks, including:

• Enterprise project management
• Project portfolio management
• Work breakdown structures
• Earned value management
• Professional responsibility
• Project team productivity

The text reaches beyond traditional core project management topics to include discussions on enterprise maturity, virtual and outsourced organizations, project management offices, operational governance, and multi-project management. Filled with numerous end-of-chapter questions, scheduling and budgeting problems, scoping projects, and sample worksheets that illustrate various analytical tools and management decisions, this is the ideal text for classroom use and essential reading for anyone seeking project management certification.

Gary Richardson, PhD, PMP is the program coordinator for the University of Houston's College of Technology graduate level project management program. This program serves both the internal and external community in regard to the theory and practice of project management. He comes from a broad professional background including industry, consulting, government, and academia.

During the early phase of his career he was an officer in the U.S. Air Force, followed by industry stints at Texas Instruments as a manufacturing engineer, and then by consulting assignments at the Defense Communications Agency, Department of Labor, and the U.S. Air Force (Pentagon) in Washington, D.C. The latter half of his career was spent with Texaco and Service Corporation International in various IT and CIO level management positions. Interspersed through these periods he was a professor at Texas A&M, the University of South Florida, and the University of Houston, and also did other adjunct professor stints at three other universities. Gary has previously published four computer-related textbooks and numerous technical articles.

Through his experiences in over 100 significantly sized projects of various types, he has observed frequently encountered issues and has been an active participant in the evolution of management techniques that have occurred over this time.

Gary received a BS in mechanical engineering from Louisiana Tech, an AFIT postgraduate program in meteorology at the University of Texas, an MS in engineering management from the University of Alaska, and a PhD in business administration from the University of North Texas. He currently teaches the PMP Prep course and other graduate-level project management courses at the University of Houston plus various continuing education courses.