In this chapter, the main objective is to show the reader the interaction between the innovation process and the project management process. In today's world, the great concern of large companies takes place in the process of ensuring that the knowledge gained remains within company boundaries. In this chapter, the authors show how a proposed model retains the knowledge gained during the project management process and company investments through innovation and the use of lessons learned methodologies. In addition, the reader has the opportunity to see the evaluation of the process of emerging technologies against the paper of the strategic planning process through the well-aligned process of knowledge management within the companies. The chapter is divided into three major sections: the first presents the main concepts in project management and also in innovation and technology. In the second section, the reader has the opportunity to learn about the process of project management and learning. Finally, the authors present the proposed integration model as a source of knowledge retention through innovation and technology.
TopIntroduction: Project Management Concepts
In recent times it has been accompanied by the method of implementation of corporate strategies in practice. It is interesting to note that most of the advances that have occurred in various fields of activities of the company were achieved through the use of known structures such as lessons learned from past projects which reflect that the current situation is not satisfying the demands of the analyzed area.
For Heldman (2006) a project is “a temporary endeavor, with start and end dates defined, which aims to create a unique product or service that is completed when its goals and objectives are met and approved by the stakeholders.”
The guide of ICB-IPMA (1999) defines project as an effort in that financial, human and material resources are organized in a structured way to hold a defined scope of work, preliminary specifications, time constraints and cost-effectively, following a standardized lifecycle, in order to achieve beneficial change defined by quantitative and qualitative objectives.
According to PMBOK (2004) “A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to achieve a particular goal, and on which the Project Management can be applied regardless of size, budget or schedule of implementation.” A project involves a result in developing something that has not been done before in the organization, or a new product, service or an existing procedure different from all others in the company (VALERIANO, 2005). In figure 1, it’s clear that at the beginning of the project planning, the level of uncertainty is very high because the lack of scope definition. As much as the scope is defined, the project unity increases.
Figure 1.
Relationship between uncertainty and uniqueness of projects
This uniqueness characteristic of the projects gives them a degree of uncertainty. Because of this, projects are usually divided into phases to facilitate their management. The set of phases of a project is known as the project life cycle. This life cycle serves to define the technical work and the people involved in each of its phases. These settings can be general or very detailed and, in the case of the latter, are called Project Management methodology.
Valeriano (2005) states that the words “manage” and their derivatives, as a manager, management, and management refers to actions located at a specific level of the organization, such as production management, marketing management, project management, strategic management, among others. Have the words “run” and their derivatives, as manager and management, refer to parts of the duties of manager.
In the case of project management, management is a party of management, the main ones being cost management, risk management, quality management, etc. Heldman (2006) states that Project Management is the “application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities in order to meet the requirements at hand.”
According to PMBOK (2004), Project Management is the art of coordinating activities with the objective of achieving the expectations of individuals and organizations directly involved in the project or whose interests may be affected positively or negatively during the project or after its completion.