PROJECT ENVIRONMENT¶

The project environment is the environment in which the project is formulated, evaluated and implemented. Projects are limited by legal/contractual constraints, personnel/technical issues, etc. Recognising and taking into account the essential circumstances in good time helps to create a successful project. A PESTEL analysis is carried out to analyse the project environment[3] and identify the most important issues.

Political - political framework
Which ‘centres of power’ need to be considered? Are there different areas of interest? Important: This environment includes both government policy and corporate policy.

Economic - economic framework
Are there economic constraints? Important economic interests? Competitors? Do seasonal or cyclical fluctuations have to be taken into account?

Sociology - sociological framework
Is the project subject to ethical or moral constraints? Do you have to take the sentiments or emotions of people affected by the project into account?

Technology - technological framework
Do technical innovations have to be integrated in the project? Are the technologies tried and tested? Do you have to consider trade mark rights or licenses?

Legal - legal framework
What is the legal framework? Which laws and regulations apply to your project?

Environment - ecological framework
Will your project pollute the environment? Do you have to consider environmental regulations or restrictions?

Other important questions¶

In addition to the aspects relating to the individual points of the PESTEL analysis, other points should also be discussed:
- Is your own knowledge sufficient or is specialist support necessary?
- How will possible limitations be dealt with?
- Have issues emerged that make the project unfeasible? If so, how can these issues be justified and the project stopped now? It is sensible to terminate an unfeasible project at an early stage. Among other things, resources can then be used elsewhere!