The number of different management methodologies that are currently being used in industry is staggering. There was a time not too long ago there were only two basic approaches. They were the Waterfall and Prototype Cyclic methodologies. As the industrial age came forth, so did new approaches to accomplishing businesses goals.
Most of the management methodologies do still have a few key components alike. There is the initialization of the project, control during the project, and then the closure. The path at which this is achieved is what makes them different.
Every project has the same starting point and that is with an idea. This idea can be a product, a service, or a new system of a business. Another commonality is that every manager wishes their project to be completed on time, under the budget, and for it to be successful in reaching the established goals that were set out in the business plan.
Each of the management methodologies will take a different approach to achieving these goals. The methodology that is chosen will decide how the objectives will be approached, what constraints will be established in the process of the deliverable, and how the risks and issues will be handled when they arise.
One of the most popular management methodologies that are used in the manufacturing industry is the Lean methodology or Just-In-Time. This approach takes into account the value of each and every step of the process and evaluates it. If there is no significant value added to the product from a step, then it is removed from the process. This makes the process more efficient in terms of time and costs.
When developing a software program, the Lean approach would not produce good results, if any. The Agile methodology is the most widely used for this type of project. Software applications take a different approach because the developers think differently. Necessity of what will make it function properly takes priority over the approach of what value it adds.
When deciding which of the management methodologies that is best suited for your project, it would be advised to look at what is working best in your industry at the present time. This approach can save you time and frustration from guessing what might work.