The aviation industry is among the most indispensable components of the modern world, which is getting more competitive and global. In such a context, the quantities and quality of aviation activities have increased dramatically and have turned into different forms. Similarly, the aviation projects and industry have become more sophisticated and complex, which has increased the necessity for human capital, novel inventions in technologies and techniques required for the management of aviation projects. However, a problem still exists concerning the manner in which the aviation projects could be managed effectively. There is no specific formula for aviation project managers to overcome all the challenges just as it is the case for all other projects. However, if some key factors or points are understood concerning aviation projects, management might be easier but does not assure the project managers that their projects will be a success. What issues, and what steps are the most effective for better results in aviation projects? The objective of this paper, therefore, is to report on the factors that determine effective project management in the aviation industry. However, the paper starts by defining project management and linking it to the aviation industry before exploring the factors for success in aviation project management.
Before defining project management, it is essential to start by defining a project. A project refers to a transient endeavor, uniquely undertaken by a firm or individuals to attain the set objectives that might be defined according to benefits, outcomes, or outputs. A project is always deemed to have been successful when it attains the objectives in relation to the acceptable criteria as well as within a specified budget and timescale (Association for Project Management, n.d). Therefore, project management, according to Project Management Institute (n.d) is the application of techniques, tools, skills, and knowledge to the activities of a project so that it meets the requirements of the project, its success. Project management was constantly practiced informally for some time up to the mid-20th century when it started to emerge as a field of professionalism (Project Management Institute, n.d). The process of project management, as reported in the literature, entails five fundamental steps, initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. These steps follow each other in an orderly manner, and literature reports that the former directs what ought to be done in the latter (Project Management Institute, n.d).
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There is no limit to the field or industry to which project management can be applied since projects exist within all industries. The aviation industry has also adopted project management. Aviation project management could be considered as a section of the broader field of project management that adopts core techniques of project management (Öztürk, 2012). Since, essentially, each type of project has a similar objective that is to be completed successfully despite the numerous risks and challenges, there is a need to predict the challenges using the steps of project management highlighted in the preceding paragraph. Five project types can be realized when the aviation projects are scrutinized from a deeper perspective, projects for pure scientific research, projects of IT and those related to the management change, manufacturing, civil engineering and construction (Öztürk, 2012). Each of the aviation works such as supporting, improving, building, navigation service, transporting, manufacturing, and design is considered as an aviation project, which requires the application of the techniques of project management. Some factors such as the utilization of information technologies, integration of aviation firms, industrial globalization, customer service, time competing, among others have affected the nature of aviation project management because of primary objectives. For example, the primary objectives of projects during the 1960s and 70s were only quantity and costs (Öztürk, 2012). However, literature reports that contemporary project management objectives consider three fundamental elements of quality, time, and costs ().
The success of aviation projects stems from how well all the primary objectives of project management are integrated into one another. Literature reports twelve factors that determine the success of aviation project management. The first is the need for projects to have proper project definitions as well as a sound business case. This means that the project managers will be able to determine the objectives of the project and its implication to the nature of the business (Flouris and Lock, 2016). The second factor is the need for the project managers to determine the most appropriate strategy that would be used in the entire project management process. It is reported that a failure to choose an appropriate strategy on the side of the project managers could result in a failure of the project from the initial stages of initiation (Flouris and Lock, 2016). Therefore, it is needful for project managers to research the most appropriate strategies before setting off the project. The third factor that determines the success of aviation project management is the need for the higher management to support the project in conjunction with the project manager (Flouris and Lock, 2016). It is reported that a strong managerial support will facilitate a smooth flow of the resources required to complete the project within the specified objectives. The third factor reported above leads to the fourth; the need to have sufficient financial, human and other resources required for the execution of the project.
The fifth factor is the need for the firm to control the changes to the authorized projects. This factor is critical because it implies that the firms need to stick to the objectives of a given project before embarking on another. For example, a project might fail if the firms instruct the project managers to deviate from the original plan. According to Flouris and Lock (2012), there is a need for technical competence among the project managers and the human resources involved. It suggests that aviation managers have to hire the best project managers if they have to see their projects succeed. The project manager is also required to assign the duties of the project to human resources with the appropriate technological competencies to ensure that they turn out successful (Flouris and Lock, 2012). The organizations are further required to have an appropriate organization structure that would support a smooth running of the processes of project management. It is widely argued in the literature that organizations with an inclusive approach to decision making have a higher rate of success in their projects compared to those that do not have such frameworks (Flouris and Lock, 2012).
Human resources are an important component of the processes of project management. For this reason, it is required that the project managers express an appropriate regard to the safety and health of each of the human resources involved in the project (Flouris and Lock, 2016). This factor draws relevance from other fields of management, which emphasize the need for leaders to be concerned about the well-being of their workers since it has a positive impact on transforming their attitudes to work (Flouris and Lock, 2016). The project manager, therefore, is required to work in line with other departments within the aviation firm to assure the human resources involved in the project will be safe and healthy.
The impact of effective communication on the success of project management is heralded in literature is the most critical factor for success (Öztürk, 2012). For example, effective communication skills serve the purpose of coordinating the activities of the project. In addition, effective communication could be a motivating factor to the employees to ensure that they work to meet the targets since it emphasizes what the project should attain. Therefore, effective communication avoids confusion among the human resources involved in the project management process, which speeds up the rate of working. The eleventh factor to the success of an aviation project management process is the need to have a well-motivated staff (Öztürk, 2012). It is needless to mention that human resources are a critical requirement of any project be it manufacturing, designing, or others. Aviation firms that have a large pool of skilled, well-motivated staff are likely to attain higher levels of success than one that struggles with staff motivation (Öztürk, 2012). Lastly, literature reports the need for the project managers to find quick and fair approaches to conflict resolution. Conflicts are inevitable, and they slow down the rate of work, which might jeopardize the success of a given aviation project. Therefore, the ability to resolve conflicts faster keeps the project management team focused on attaining the goals set.
In conclusion, project management is relevant to the aviation industry since projects exist within all industries. A change in the objectives of project management over the last few decades has translated in the nature of the process of project management. Project managers in the aviation industry are now required to deal with three critical objectives of each project, quality, time, and costs as opposed to only two, costs and quantity prevalent within the 60s and 70s. as much as there is no single formula that guarantees the success of aviation project management endeavors, this paper has identified the need to have proper human resources and proper communication interwoven among ten other factors as being determinants of the success of aviation project management processes.
References
Association for Project Management (n.d). What is project management ? Retrieved 12 May 2017, from https://www.apm.org.uk/resources/what-is-project-management/
Flouris, T. G., & Lock, D. (2016). Aviation project management . Routledge.
Flouris, T. G., & Lock, M. D. (2012). Managing aviation projects from concept to completion . Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
Öztürk, S. (2012). Main Factors of Unsuccessful Aviation Projects . Master Thesis Submitted to University Of Vaasa Faculty of Technology Department of Production
Project Management Institute (n.d). What is Project Management? Retrieved 12 May 2017, from https://www.pmi.org/about/learn-about-pmi/what-is-project-management
