Discussion Board

 
Discussion Board Forum 4 Thread
Select 1 of the topics below as the topic for your Discussion Board Forum.

Discuss the meaning of the term “integrated monitoring.” In addition, explain the primary reason that project managers monitor project work activities.
Why is information analyzed, and what specific pieces of data would be of interest to the project manager?

  
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POST #1
Nathan 
Discussion Board Forum Four
           Project managers set the climate for the project and define the processes and procedures for execution.  Monitoring of the activities and progress is a critical piece to the effective completion of the project.  Project managers determine the integrated monitoring system that best correlates to their particular project.  Integrated monitoring sets the stage for project monitoring information systems and the effective management of the project.  This discussion investigates the meaning of integrated monitoring and the many reasons project managers choose to monitor project work activities through the duration of the project.  Effectively incorporating monitoring techniques assist management in meeting objectives.   
Integrated Monitoring
           Practitioners must closely monitor projects to ensure they meet the perspective milestones and maintain the critical path.  According to the Project Management Institute (2017), the monitoring and control of project work is the ability to meet the objectives outlined in the project management plan through the tracking, reviewing, and reporting of the overall project progress.  Integrated monitoring is a combination of effective and efficient monitoring techniques focusing on project success.  Techniques, such as expert judgment, data analysis, decision making, and meetings, assist project managers in the integrated monitoring of projects (Project Management Institute, 2017).  Project managers may use all of these monitoring techniques or choose individual ones that best suit the project.  Furthermore, the use of a systematic and integrated monitoring systems steers projects from failure and integrates stakeholders to the project objectives (Grigore, Ionescu, & Niculecu, 2018).  Integrated monitoring is an effective tool for project managers to monitor project work activities.  What types of monitoring systems does your organization employ?            
Project Manager Monitoring
           Project manager’s primary reason for monitoring work activities is to make certain the project is proceeding as the project management plan states (Project Management Institute, 2017).  Each internal an external monitoring mechanism provides the project manager with insight to the direction of the project and the projected outcome.  The monitoring and control process takes place in parallel with the project execution and ensures the project is in line with acceptable variances of scope, schedule, and costs (Galante, La Fata, & Passannanti, 2019).  Moreover, the monitoring of work activities provides checks and balances so project managers can make the appropriate decision when unacceptable variances occur.  If a negative or unacceptable variance appears, project managers can avoid delays and take the appropriate action to bring the project back within its target and constraints (Galante et al., 2019).  Effectively monitoring and controlling work activities enables project manager to adhere to the schedule, cost, and quality originally set forth.  Within your experience, can a project manager over monitor work activities?       
Biblical Integration
           Effective monitoring of activities is essential to project management and everyday life.  According to Hosea 4:6, lack of knowledge negatively affects many people, and the cause is the inability to acquire knowledge or deliberate rejection of it.  The Lord monitors mankind’s existence and mankind should monitor their actions to control their destiny.  Like the verse from Hosea 4:6, project managers must integrate and monitor project parameters to make certain the project meets the intent of the project management plan and constraints.  The integrated monitoring approach is a way to take an active role in one another’s lives.  As Psalm 119:105 says, “your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (English Standard Version).  Monitoring mechanisms present in a project and life provide boundaries for effective execution.      
Conclusion
           Project execution requires an abundance of monitoring and controlling to make certain it properly progresses to its conclusion.  The effective integration of monitoring techniques such as expert judgment, data analysis, decision making, and meetings helps inform stakeholders and team members on the status of the project while monitoring its progress.  Moreover, the effective monitoring of the project is invaluable to the project manager as it aligns the project outcome with the project management plan.  The effective integration of monitoring techniques is essential to controlling the cost, timeline, and deliverables of the project.  A project manager’s ability to influence the results through attaining accurate information is essential to the success of the project.   
References
Galante, G. M., La Fata, C. M., & Passannanti, G. (2019). Project monitoring by dynamic statistical control charts. Journal of
           Modern Project Management, 7(3), 1-18. Retrieved from https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.19255/JMPM02105
Grigore, M. C., Ionescu, S., & Niculecu, S. (2018). New methods for project monitoring. FAIMA Business & Management Journal,
           6(1), 35-44. Retrieved from https://web-a-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4& 
sid=35c69518-5f99-48fa-968e-06444ba53ba7%40sdc-v-sessmgr01
Project Management Institute. (2017). A Guide to the project management body of knowledge: PMBOK Guide (6 ed.). Newtown
           Square, PA: Project Management Institute, Inc. 
 
 
Wilson, R. (2014). A comprehensive guide to project management schedule and cost control. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. 
POST #2
Discussion Board Forum 4
Kenny  
Monitoring Project Work Activities
Integrated monitoring may be defined as a continuous and systematic process to establish, examine, and explain the environmental quality. Integrated monitoring involves data collection, analysis, interpretation, giving reports, making recommendations as well as reviewing actions to be taken (Callistus & Clinton, 2018). A reliable integrated monitoring need should have a mechanism for data sharing, enhanced data availability, accessibility, and exchange of information across different media. The key benefit of integrated monitoring is to check that the plan has resulted in the environmental outcome expected. It provides information to determine the state of the surroundings and health and understand whether the situation is getting better or worse.
In many cases, complex projects surpass their budget or time limit or even break down because of various reasons. To keep track of a project means to continually collect facts regarding all features of the project, observe and keep a history of all ventures taking place within the project. Monitoring includes a structured and planned observation of the continuing procedures in the project (Callistus & Clinton, 2018). It (monitoring) also involves providing a useful response to the owners of the project concerning the project position, so they make decisions. Monitoring does not just include generating reports for the management and team members; the project manager should determine whether the project is going per the team’s efforts.
The main reason why project managers monitor project work activities is to make sure the project eventually succeeds through the achievement of overall objectives.  The primary advantage of the current outlook to monitoring is that it allows the project managers to acknowledge the associated motives for the prosperity or downfall of the project. Through monitoring, projects get approved within the required budget and time, and this shows that the monitoring process is effective. Donor agencies, together with investors, are pleased with the degree of accountability of projects if there is active monitoring to secure accumulated profits in funding other enterprises (Callistus & Clinton, 2018).
Monitoring also helps to improve the communication between different parties involved in the project activities. It, therefore, ensures that they have a clearer understanding of implementation activities concerning all fields of the project (Callistus & Clinton, 2018). Establishing clear communication channels such as workshops, frequent meetings, printed media, or the internet is vital in making communications more effective. The project manager informs the rest of the team concerning the overall progress of the project activities giving an account of every event.
Monitoring allows the project personnel to acquire lessons from their previous experiences. The project manager can identify any mistakes made during the entire process and inform the team on where to make clarifications. Monitoring thus ensures that there is a high-quality performance in the future and that no similar mistakes recur, hence minimize any risk of project failure (Otieno, 2019). For this to be effective, the project manager should prepare reports to be used by other stakeholders in comparing performance against objectives.
In conclusion, the managers should ensure monitoring at all times to lower the risk of restarting the job, which would otherwise lead to extra costs and time wastage. Many project developers tend to give monitoring process little priority and do it just for the sake of fulfilling requirements. Each project may have unique requirements; therefore, project managers should develop appropriate monitoring mechanisms (Otieno, 2019). A sound monitoring system should be simple, cost-effective, relevant, flexible, transparent, and comprehensive.  Those responsible for implementing the monitoring system should also not only “look to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen” (Zondervan, 2017) to ensure the system is successfully monitoring all aspects of the project.
References
Callistus, T., & Clinton, A. (2018, January). The role of monitoring and evaluation in construction project management. In International Conference on Intelligent Human Systems Integration (pp. 571-582). Springer, Cham.
Otieno F.A.O., (2019). The Roles of Monitoring and Evaluation in Project Management. Scientific Journal,Volume 1, Issue 5, pp 41-44.
Zondervan. (2017). Holy Bible: New International Version. Holy Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI.