Aspects of the application of project management in business practice

Abstract

Purpose: Purpose of this article is the issue of the application of project management in business practice. The need to be more competitive is the driving force for the innovation of new business systems, one of which is project management. New business strategies are fundamental for continual business progress. The author of this article refers to the perception of project management in business practice, which can affect the future business development and leads to further growth. Scientific aim of the research was to find out the companies´ attitude towards the issue of the application of project management in business practice and also towards its advantages and disadvantages. As a part of the research, the respondents had the opportunity to expres themselves regarding the present business situation and to familiarize the experts with their experiences in this sphere. However, the majority of respondents did not use this opportunity. Methodology/methods: The methodology in the elaboration of this article comes from the author´s primary research, which formed the main part of the overall research. The new research was based on the previous one from the end of year 2009, which was done in co-operation, and the aim was to find out how the knowledge of project management can influence the business management. The present research was carried out at manufacturing corporations in the Czech Republic at the beginning of year 2010. Findings: From the previous research, carried out in 2009, results that larger manufacturing corporations use project management in business practice more often than others. Average sized companies are aware of project management but are cautious about putting it into practice. Small companies believe they use this system in their business practice, but in reality they only use a substitute of it. From the research it is apparent that companies can see both advantages and disadvantages of project management. As an advantage, they see the saving of expenses and time, the more effective risk management, easier monitoring of goals and gains and the increase of competitiveness. On the other side, there is the increased expense for software and experts, limited access to the market and worsened business strategy, which are considered to be disadvantages. Conclusions: Finally, we can say, that the application of project management in business practice in manufacturing corporations brings along not just advantages but also disadvantages. Nevertheless, we can say, that if a company wants to increase its competitiveness or streamline the manufacturing management, it is advisable to use the project management system.