The Project Manager's MBA

Project managers are no longer judged by the technical success of their projects alone. They're also held accountable for their contributions to the company's financial goals. Yet most project managers don't have the business knowledge necessary to make project-based decisions that lead to bottom-line success. In this book, Dennis Cohen and Robert Graham, both former university professors and experienced project management consultants, provide the skills that, until now, could only be gained through a graduate degree and years of hands-on experience. Cohen and Graham walk project managers through basic business concepts such as value creation, accounting and finance, strategy, and marketing. They connect these concepts to the decisions project managers face every day. And they make it easy to apply the resulting solutions on the job through a unique business systems calculator. Readers can use the online calculator in conjunction with the book to understand how different project variables affect business outcomes, to determine the overall impact of proposed project changes, and to evaluate the economic results of many decisions they make. Cohen and Graham's principles apply equally to projects in business, non-profit, and government organizations. And each one is illustrated through case studies drawn from a range of industries, including pharmaceuticals, the technology sector, even the winemaking business. Whether the mandate is to get new products to market, improve the infrastructure, or better serve customers and clients, this book teaches project managers how to make day-to-day decisions from an upper-management perspective. And it provides a blueprint for planning and pitching potential projects that demonstrates a higher level of business savvy.

Preface xi The Authors xvii 1 An Entrepreneurial Approach to Managing Projects 1 2 Accounting and Finance Basics for the Project Management Entrepreneur 25 3 Business Strategy: Where Are We Going and How Are We Going to Get There? 57 4 Project Management Processes for Business Results 85 5 Marketing and the Project Manager: Understanding the Customer and the Competition Too 109 6 Project and Post-Project Costs 135 7 Why Finance Matters for Project Managers 153 8 Decision Making and the Business Systems Approach 187 9 The Project Venture Development Process 199 Appendix: An Outline for Building a Project Business Case and Plan 207 Glossary 213 References 227 Index 231