GRADUAL DEVELOPMENT OF DISTRIBUTED PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Abstract

The article is devoted to the topical issues of distributed project management in the presence of favorable tools, reassessment of processes and procedures, and individual learning of new skills for distributed work. The development of technologies and needs for larger and more complex software systems is analyzed and systematized. It is outlined that for successful management of complex projects, project management practices must evolve to work in a distributed world, focusing simultaneously on people, processes and technology. Accessibility technology is explored to support the needs of distributed project management, despite the fact that incompatible data formats and data exchange remain a challenge. A vision of project management in the future is explored through this lens. The evolution to distributed project management drives the need for proven processes and methods. The project management discipline is certainly better today than it was 20 years ago. However, while companies have been responding to internal issues, customer behavior, industry structure and the competitive environment have begun to change externally at an accelerated pace. The net effect has been to expand the limits to which organizations can effectively manage projects in today's environment. This effect, combined with the increasing speed of technological change, makes it clear that current initiatives are not enough. Customers are increasingly focusing on improving the entire life cycle, especially in the early stages, and are taking a broader approach to evaluating ROI in terms of enterprise productivity. To work effectively, software engineering teams need at least a minimum number of face-to-face meetings. Project managers are looking for communication systems that combine data, voice, video, and virtual presence, and these tools are available today. Looking at management activities, which largely depend on communication skills, sociability, and focus, it is easy to understand why cultural changes in the areas of conflict behavior, processes, and technologies are necessary for adequate management of distributed work.