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| Figure 01: Difference between project and operation |
This
is a very common question which comes in anyone’s mind that is new to project
management. PMBOK (2008) points out that both
projects and operations have planning, executing, controlling stages and also
both of them are performed by people and constrained by limited resources. So
if these two concepts have considerable amount of similarities, then what makes
a project differ form an operation?
To
find out a solid answer to this question, it’s vital to have clear
understanding of basic definitions and terms in project management. So let’s
have a look at the definitions of these two concepts.
PMBOK (2008) stated that:
A
project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service,
or result. The temporary nature of projects indicates a definite beginning and
end.
Whereas;
Operations
are permanent endeavors that produce repetitive outputs, with resources
assigned to do basically the same set of tasks according to the standards
institutionalized in a product life cycle.
Although
these two concepts have considerable amount of similarities, different
characteristics could be found for each based on the above definitions.
Characteristics of Projects
- Projects are temporary.
- Projects create unique product, service or result.
- Projects have definite start and end dates.
- Projects are progressively elaborated.
- Projects terminate after achieving its objectives.
Characteristics
of Operations
- Operations are ongoing and repetitive.
- Operations don’t terminate when its current objectives are met.
- Operations usually produce the same result or product.
- Operations help to keep the organization functioning.
Progressive
elaboration is a technique which helps to create project plans and estimations
more accurately. Example:
A project starts with a per-defined scope and receives further elaboration as the project progress. So that the project team will modify the previous project scope according to the new information they receive and make project plan more accurate.
At the very first day
of my Project Management lecture, I was asked to identify a set of scenarios and
if they were projects or operations. And I found it was really hard because I
had no idea about characteristics of projects and operations. But after I have
been through my lecture notes and required text books, I gained the ability to
identify any given scenario and if it was a project or an operation by using the
identified characteristics.
Reference:
PMBOK, 2008. A Guide to the Project Management
Body of Knowledge. 4th ed. Newtown Square: Project Management Institute,
Inc.
