‘Management by objectives’/management by projects. The term ‘management by objectives’ (MBO) has been around for several decades now. It refers to an approach that has been practised in different disguises for much longer but lacked public appeal because it didn’t have a trendy title. The essence of the approach is as follows. Staff, rather than being told how to carry out their work, are able to carry out their work in any reasonable way as long as they reach clearly defined targets. Progress is periodically reviewed and management assists wherever possible. The approach allows staff to take initiatives and accept responsibilities.

Targets alternatively might be called goals, key result areas etc. Note, the usage of the term ‘objective’ is not that used in systems theory.

Consider, now, project management (PM) or, in non-project situations, management by projects (MBP). The term ‘project management’ has also been around for several decades now. It too refers to an approach that has been practised in different disguises for much longer but lacked public appeal because it didn’t have a trendy title.

In project management, clearly defined project targets may be set. Typically these targets refer to cost, time and quality issues, but not exclusively. Projects are broken down into subprojects and even smaller for manageability reasons; each of these subprojects has targets which flow from the overall project targets. An hierarchical project team is established with work division and specialisation, in a parallel fashion to the project breakdown or work breakdown.

Is the essence of ‘management by objectives’ different to the essence of project management? Discuss.