Tasks of project management, project leadership and project control

What does (project) control mean in a project?

Many people have encountered the terms "project manager," "project leader," or "project control" at least once in their professional lives. In German-speaking countries, the term "project control" is now used almost as frequently as "project management." At first glance, everyone seems to know what these terms mean. It seems crystal clear. Or perhaps not? Upon closer examination, it turns out that everyone means something different. While the term "project management" is still somewhat associated with a form of project leadership, the connection to "project control" quickly becomes unclear. No one really knows for sure. This article aims to clarify the tasks of project management, project leadership, and project control and provide an overview of their respective fields of activity.

What is the difference between project management, project control, and project leadership in construction?

Project control is a term primarily used in Germany for the management of a project from the client's perspective. The German Association for Project Management (DVP) defines and differentiates the terms project management, project control, and project leadership within a construction project in its statutes. It divides the task of project management into project leadership and project control. Here is an excerpt from the statutes:

(1) Project management is the performance of client functions in the realization of construction and real estate projects in technical and economic terms; in some cases also in legal terms. Project management can include both project control and project leadership services.

(2) Project management involves the performance of client functions in the implementation of construction and real estate projects in an advisory capacity (staff function).

(3) Project management includes the performance of client functions in the realization of construction and real estate projects in the sense of authority to give instructions and make decisions and usually responsibility for the results (line function).

When reading these definitions, the distinction between project management, project leadership and project control may still not be entirely clear, therefore we will now establish the concrete link to practice in the construction of commercial and industrial building projects.

Responsibilities of the project controller, project manager and project management

Project management in construction:

This concerns exclusively tasks that must be performed on the client's side; not tasks that are part of the project management contract. The architect's management responsibilities are numerous and extensive. However, these are not the tasks that project management is responsible for.

Project management in construction:

Every building owner/client is obligated to manage the project. No building owner can escape this responsibility.

Project management in construction:

The client appoints a project manager from within their own ranks. Due to the associated budget and decision-making responsibilities, this is often a member of the management board; perhaps also the head of production. In any case, hardly anyone below that. This person is now expected to manage a highly complex project – usually in addition to their regular duties.

Given this situation, it usually becomes clear at this point that the project manager simply cannot handle all the tasks at hand, especially at the beginning of the project. Often, they don't even know which tasks need to be done. And this occurs during a phase where the course is set regarding costs and deadlines. A significant cost and schedule risk builds up latently—and is barely perceptible to the project manager—which is almost impossible to mitigate later. This risk can only be addressed with professional project management. This means the project manager should delegate a large portion of this task; for example, to an external project controller.

Conclusion

Project managers and project controllers essentially perform the same task: the project manager as an internal element of project management with decision-making authority, and the project controller as an external element with an advisory function.