往链科技www.WL566.com往链点点通共享资源，了解更多请登录www.WL566.comMODULE TITLE: PROJECT APPRAISAL, PLANNING & CONTROL.LESSON 9: Project Control.INTRODUCTION.In Lesson 2 we saw that no matter how well a project has been planned, there are likely to be deviations between actual and planned performance. It may be that certain of the planning assumptions turn out to be invalid. There may be delays in receiving goods and services from outside suppliers. Perhaps there is an epidemic leading to staff shortages. In BS 6069-1:2000 it is stated that;“All projects are subject to change and their success depends on how well they are planned in the first instance and how well changes are managed.”So, important though sound project planning is, it is not an end in its self. Establishment of project objectives and plans is of little value if the plans are not carried out in such a way that agreed project objectives are achieved. Therefore, to be effective, project managers must be able to measure performance, determine if and where deviations from the plan are occurring, and take corrective action. The comments above might convey an impression that control is entirely concerned with correcting things that have in some way deviated from the plan. This of course is very far from being the case. Having done everything possible to ensure that the plan is sound, successful project managers initiate actions in a timely way so that the project progresses in accordance with that plan, and hence deviations and the need for corrective action are minimised. Such a plan, as you have seen in earlier lessons, needs to take account of all the activities and resources necessary to complete the project successfully. It also needs to be based on a thorough understanding of all the things that can go wrong and what action needs to be taken, either to prevent them from going wrong or dealing with them when they do go wrong. Keeping projects on track requires effective control and it is to this that we turn in the first part of this lesson. Identifying and dealing with things that can go wrong is the subject of risk management which is taken up in the second part of the lesson.YOUR AIMS.On completion of this lesson you should be able to: Understand the importance and nature of project control. Make a contribution to the control of projects in which you become involved. Understand and apply basic risk assessment and management techniques.STUDY ADVICE.A number of control related issues have already been raised in earlier lessons. In this lesson we will revisit control in order to extend our consideration of the issues and concepts and to reinforce your learning of them. Much of the material is discursive in nature and you should read it carefully and as directed to ensure you have a full understanding of it. The notes in the lesson guide will introduce, signpost and clarify the main issues.PROJECT CONTROL.As a starting point, let us briefly consider the control process in general. Control is widely written about and applied and there is general agreement about its core concepts and processes. Koontz & Weihrich (1990) are typical of many authors in suggesting that,“Control techniques and systems are essentially the same for cash, office procedures, morale, product quality, or anything else. The basic control process involves three steps, wherever it is found and whatever is being controlled. These are establishing standards, measuring performance against these standards, and correcting variations from standards and plans.”Setting Standards. Effective control procedures are dependent upon good planning, without which it is unlikely that there will be a proper understanding of the objectives an organisation is attempting to achieve. Dixon (1991) suggests that, “The first logical step in the control process is, therefore, to draw up organizational objectives and plans”. He goes on however to argue that, “Since company plans vary in both detail and complexity, and since managers cannot usually monitor everything, special control standards need to be established”. The standards, or performance criteria, vary in nature and among the best, according to Dixon, are verifiable goals or objectives. Such standards are used as a basis for providing indications of how things are going without having to check every step in the process. Measuring Performance. The measurement of actual performance or results should, so far as is possible, be an early warning system which aims to detect deviations from the standards in advance of their occurring. Hence, remedial action can be taken to avoid the deviation.Corrective Action. Once the deviations have been identified and analysed, they must of course be attended to by the development and implementation of a programme of corrective action. This is likely to be a time-consuming tasks and the time-lag between measuring performance and taking remedial action clearly underlines the im