Projectized Organization

Project Management / By

At the pinnacle of project management structures is the projectized structure. These organizational types group employees, collocated or not, by activities on a particular project. The project manager in a projectized structure may have complete, or very close to complete, power over the project team. Project managers in a projectized structure enjoy a high level of autonomy over their projects, but also have a higher level of responsibility regarding the project’s success.

Project managers in a projectized structure have the following attributes:

  • High to complete authority over the project team
  • Works full-time on the project with his team (though there may be some slight variation)
  • Has a full-time administrative staff to help expedite the project
  • Majority of the organization’s resources are involved in project work and the project work is generally completed for the benefit of an external customer.
  • Projectized organization is a great organization for project managers indeed.
  • There is no home after the project is adjourned.
  • There is no job security in this type of the organization.
  • Project manager can utilize project management skill set completely.
  • Project manager have the complete resource allocation authority.
  • The project manager has authority and control of the budget and any escalation of issues
  • Project resources report into the project manager versus the functional area, there may be a decrease in the subject matter expertise of the team members.

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Projectized organization is aligned and managed by projects. This structure provides the highest level of authority as team reports to project manager.  If this is an advantage then it also has the disadvantage, like if the project ends the project manager and team will find the new home (project). So will be new boss and for boss new team.

Projectized organizations are almost opposite to functional organization. The focus of projectized organization is the project only. In this type of organization the loyalty is towards the project not to the functional manager. All resources are reporting to project manager and project manager reports to the highest authority to the organization or project management office.

In projectized organization supporting departments like IT, Finance & HR may also reports directly to project manager, because he is only accountable for project delivery. PM is having the full authority to making decisions about the project and acquiring and assigning resources.

Some efficiency exists in this kind of organization when it comes to resource utilization. If you are in a situation where you need a highly specialized skill at certain times throughout the project, the resource you’re using to perform this function might be idle during other times in the project.

For e.g. you’ve been appointed project manager for your company’s website design and implementation. You’re working in a projectized organization, so you have the authority to acquire and assign resources. You put together your team including programmers, technical writers, testers, and business analysts. Monica, a highly qualified graphic arts designer, is also part of your team. Monica’s specialized graphic arts skills are needed only at certain timesthroughout the project. When she has completed the graphics design portionof the screen she’s working on, there isn’t anything else for her to do until thenext page is ready. Depending on how involved the project is and how thework is structured, days or weeks might pass before Monica’s skills areneeded. This is where the inefficiency occurs in a purely projectized organization.The project manager will have to find other duties that Monica can performduring these downtimes. It’s not practical to let her go and then hire herback when she’s needed again.

In this situation, you might assign Monica to other project duties whenshe’s not working on graphics design. You might also share Monica’s time with another project manager in theorganization.

During the planning process, you will discover the skills and abilities of allyour team members so that you can plan their schedule accordingly andeliminate idle time.The second disadvantage of this organization is that what to do when project is over.

Advantages of the Projectized Organization Structure

  • Clear line of authority.
  • Strong communication with single reporting system.
  • Flexibility in trade-offs and decision making.
  • Fast decision making.
  • Usually responses to stakeholders’ concern are very fast.

Disadvantages of the Projectized Organization Structure

  • Authority and power can make project manager arrogant.
  • The work environment can be stressful because there is always a deadline (milestones).
  • Resources may be duplicated.
  • Team members have sense of insecurity because once the project finishes, they may lose their jobs.
  • If the project gets elongated, cost of employee and equipment can go higher.
  • If the organization has multiple projects, then there is very poor communication and co-operation among the different project teams.

Questions & Answers

  1. A project coordinator may typically found in a _________ organization.
    • A. Projectized.
    • B. Strong matrix.
    • C. Weak matrix.
    • D. Balanced matrix.

    Correct Answer: C

  2. The following are advantages of a projectized organization EXCEPT.
    • A. Loyalty of the project team towards to the project.
    • B. Home for the team members after the project is completed
    • C. More effective communication between team members
    • D. Efficient project organization

    Correct Answer: B

  3. You are one of the five full time project managers in your organization. You all share two administrative persons. There are generally 20-30 projects per year that involves about 25% of organizational employees – however these employees do not report to you. Your organization can best be classified as
    • A. Projectized.
    • B. Balanced.
    • C. Strong Matrix.
    • D. Weak Matrix.

    Correct Answer: B

  4. All of the followings are feature of projectized organization EXCEPT:
    • A. Team Members are often collocated.
    • B. There is a home for project team member after project is completed.
    • C. Project managers have great deal of authority and independence.
    • D. Organizational units (or departments) either report directly to project manager or provide support service to the various projects.

    Correct Answer: B

  5. A complex project will fit best in what type of organization?
    • A. Functional
    • B. Cross-functional
    • C. Balance matrix
    • D. Projectized

    Correct Answer: C

  6. In which type of organization is team building likely to be most difficult?
    • A. Functional
    • B. Projectized
    • C. Balance matrix
    • D. None of the above

    Correct Answer: C

  7. Communication is the prime responsibility of which of the following role.
    • A. Project manager in a weak matrix
    • B. Project manager in a projectized environment
    • C. Project coordinator
    • D. Project expeditor

    Correct Answer: D

  8. A type of organization in which the project manager is most likely to have the strongest influence is called:
    • A. Functional
    • B. Weak Matrix
    • C. Strong Matrix
    • D. Projectized

    Correct Answer: D

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About Aditi Malhotra

Aditi Malhotra is the Content Marketing Manager at Whizlabs. Having a Master in Journalism and Mass Communication, she helps businesses stop playing around with Content Marketing and start seeing tangible ROI. A writer by day and a reader by night, she is a fine blend of both reality and fantasy. Apart from her professional commitments, she is also endearing to publish a book authored by her very soon.

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