Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28935 in Books
• Published on: 2004-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 380 pages

Customer Reviews

The beginning and end to all things
For those new to this book it is pretty much the project manager's bible in the same sense that "The C Programming Language" by Brian W Kernighan, Dennis M. Ritchie is to programming. That is to say this is the one to get off the ground with. It is also the basis of the PMP (Project Management Professional) test given by the PMI (Project Management Institute.)

It comes in both paper, and CD-ROM using Adobe Reader. I have seen the paper book but bought the CD version it includes a tutorial on how to use the CD-ROM media. The media is a mater of preference. There are 425 pages and a good index and references.

Be aware that there are earlier versions. At the time of this review this is the latest version; however as The Body of Knowledge advances so will the PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide .) There for it is advisable for people that have read the earlier version to now read this version as a few terms have changed and some emphases have shifted.

As with any institutional book this is a good starting place or a solid foundation. However it may not cover concentrating on the waterfall concept of project management many instances such as the Unified method among others. They also do not take in many external influences as FDA requirements. And it is up to the reader to reconcile the two institutions.

Some changes to the Third Edition:

* Differences in project life cycle and product life cycle are better explained.

* The number of process changed from 39 to 44.

* A greater emphasis is placed on the importance of Process Groups.

* Chapter three "Project Management Process for a Project" is moved and renamed "The Standard for Project Management of a Project."

* The project management processes now show process integration.

A good compilation of the PM knowledge areas. But, quite difficult to absorb.
This book was the textbook for a Project Management course I recently completed. We covered the project management methodologies, as promoted by the Project Management Institute (PMI). I found the format of this book somewhat difficult to absorb. However, I must admit that the PMI did a good job including many concepts that are important to the profession of project management.
The first three chapters give a good introduction to project management, while chapters 4 through 12 are dedicated to each of the 9 PM knowledge areas. The core of this book is the set of 44 processes, mapped out into the 5 process groups and the 9 knowledge area. Each process has corresponding Inputs, Tools and Techniques, and Outputs. One aspect of the formatting of the book I found unhelpful was that I think of the processes in terms of the process groups, while they are explained in the chapters corresponding to the knowledge areas.
The process groups are:
1. Initiating
2. Planning
3. Executing
4. Monitoring & Control
5. Closing
The knowledge areas are:
1. Project Integration Management
2. Project Scope Management
3. Project Time Management
4. Project Cost Management
5. Project Quality Management
6. Project Human Resources Management
7. Project Communications Management
8. Project Risk Management
9. Project Procurement Management
Looking beyond the difficulty to absorb the material, this is an American National Standard and is necessary reading for the PMP and CAPM designations. The PMP designation is valued in the industry and is a good boost to the careers of Project Managers. However, if you are taking the exam you should consider using other exam guides in addition to this book.

Very pedestrian...
This book is the same as the previous edition. The content can be found in other project management books. The explanations are not sufficient to figure out the usage of the project management tools. The analytical explanations are not described very thoroughly nor are they relevant with the subjects described. If you need to write the PM exam then you would want to go with this book since this book is the only official guide available... Other than that, I wouldn't recommend it.