Improving strategic planning across project-based organisations

As a result of globalisation, the application of new technologies and an ever-changing economic environment, more and more organisations rely on project work, programs and portfolios to conduct business. To stay competitive, organisations are embracing the knowledge, skills and tools associated with project management to successfully deal with temporary demands and produce unique outputs. Project management processes are being used to help project managers deliver new products and services, perform change and transformation, and help project teams get things done. 

Project management is often viewed as a rigorous administrative process that's only applicable to large projects. In reality, it's a multi-disciplinary process easily scaled to a project of any size. Project management methodologies can help standardise, structure and organise work methods to achieve things on time, on budget and to requirements. They help focus projects and allow organisations to repeat successful aspects and learn from mistakes, resulting in continuous improvement and enhanced project success. 

Associated schools, institutes & centres

Impact

Our research engages with the complexities of small and large projects to develop:   

  • better methods and tools to track projects or program success factors 
  • more effective solutions for managing uncertainties and risks in complex projects or program environments 
  • more agile and accurate decision-making tools for various phases of projects or programs life cycles 
  • improved achievement of goals and benefits in project-based organisations. 

Competitive advantage

The quality and impact of our research is made possible by our success in obtaining competitive grants and attracting HDR students. Our competitive advantage includes:

  • combining computational, mathematical and qualitative approaches to project, program and portfolio management and control
  • focusing on data-driven project management and scheduling approaches to better integrate business rules and principles along the line of conventional project management
  • utilising new approaches to incorporate various uncertainties and dynamic behaviours in complex project environments
  • developing advanced decision-making tools considering various criteria over time with proper implementation of advanced techniques (e.g. evolutionary algorithms, machine learning tools, multi-method approaches) to achieve high-quality results. 

Successful applications

  • Developing comprehensive dynamic risk assessment models based on risk interdependencies and uncertainties in various project life cycle phases. 
  • Development of robust project control tools considering multiple uncertainties in resources and overall material supply chain. 

Partners

We're proud to collaborate with several distinguished partners, networks and institutions including: 

Research projects

  • Advanced Approaches for Solving Portfolio of Projects Under Uncertain Environments. 
  • Developing a User-Friendly Interface to Predict Project Success and Control Budget by Considering Real-life Risks. 
  • Solving Resource Portfolio Problems: Mitigating Uncertainties and Preparing for the Unexpected. 
  • Integration of Supply Chain Concepts During Planning Portfolio of Projects.

Culture

We present our research findings and showcase the breadth of our work by giving talks at the Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM) ACT Chapter forum and Project Management national workshops and conferences.

Study with us

The following courses are available to postgraduate students wishing to pursue studies in Project Management: 

Our researchers

Senior Lecturer Faycal Bouhafs
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Program Coordinator of Master of Decision Analytics & Senior Lecturer - Systems Engineering & Decision Analytics Ripon Chakrabortty
Program Coordinator of Master of Decision Analytics & Senior Lecturer - Systems Engineering & Decision Analytics
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PG Systems Engineering Program Coordinator & Associate Professor -Engineering Management Sondoss El Sawah
PG Systems Engineering Program Coordinator & Associate Professor -Engineering Management
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Senior Lecturer in Test and Evaluation, Aircraft Systems Keith Joiner
Senior Lecturer in Test and Evaluation, Aircraft Systems
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Postgraduate Coordinator and Associate Professor of Human Resource Management Sue Williamson
Postgraduate Coordinator and Associate Professor of Human Resource Management
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