Project management in brief
What is project management?
Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, experience, methods, tools and techniques for the realization of project activities, therefore achieving its goals. The goal of any project management is to achieve work results within a specified time with appropriate resources. Six factors or project constraints are managed during the project (see Figure 1):
- Scope
- Time
- Resources
- Cost
- Quality
- Risks
Fig. 1. Project limiting factors or constraints (PMC Lounge, 2019)
In the Citizen Science activities, the scope and the time of the project can be
approximately defined, because such projects not only explore and look for the solutions to the problems, but they can turn into a stable community that deals with it
in the long term (by completing several projects).
The main resource in the Citizen Science projects are the human resources – the citizens, the amateur researchers, the volunteers who share their own resources: time, knowledge, skills, technical devices, cover their own transport expenses, etc. For the conduct of certain studies, for example, data collection, processing or analysis activity, as a resource, special equipment or a web-based platform may be required, which must be procured or access must be organized, and for the correct use of which training must be organized and offered to every participant of the Citizen Science project. To cover the costs, the project organizers can write the research project applications and participate in tenders or support programs announced by the funders.
Project quality can be measured in various ways, including in the Citizen Science projects. Undeniably, the quality of research depends on the participants knowledge and skills in the research methodology, so it is recommended to cooperate and involve researchers in such projects for sharing their knowledge. Every study is affected by data quality and the effectiveness of research data management (read more in the e-course module "Research and Data Management Skills for Librarians Involved in Citizen Science Projects"). Also the effectiveness of the cooperation and communication between the parties involved determines the quality, so it should be given a lot of attention (Laursen & Kaarsten, 2021).
Library specialists can participate in the Citizen science projects in many different ways: initiate project, work in the project management team, take care of the exchange of the knowledge and experience between researchers, amateur researchers, volunteers, library fields and others specialists, promote effective communication in various aspects, organize events and activities for the interest and the involvement of the population, help solve qualitative research data management (read more in the e-course modules "Skills and Training for Librarians Involved in Citizen Science Projects" and "Citizen Science and the Role of Libraries").