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For almost 50 years, project management was viewed as a process that might be nice to have but not one that was necessary for the survival of the firm. Project management practices were restricted in many companies to traditional or operational projects with well-defined scopes rather than strategic or innovation activities that may be based upon just an idea or strategic business objective. Companies reluctantly invested in some training courses simply to provide their personnel with basic knowledge of planning and scheduling. Project management was viewed as a threat to established lines of authority, and in many companies, only partial project management was used. This halfhearted implementation occurred simply to placate lower-and middle-level personnel as well as select customers. During this 50-year period, many companies did everything possible to prevent excellence in project management from occurring. Companies provided only lip service to empowerment, teamwork, and trust. They hoarded information because the control of information was viewed as power. They placed personal and functional interests ahead of the best interest of the company in the hierarchy of priorities, including innovation and other strategic necessities, and maintained the faulty belief that time was a luxury rather than a constraint. By the mid-1990s, this mentality began to subside, largely due to two recessions. Companies were under severe competitive pressure to create new high-quality products in a shorter period of time. Innovation was now considered a necessity for growth and survival. The importance of developing a long-term trusting relationship with the customers had come to the forefront as customers wanted more innovations. Businesses were being forced by the stakeholders to change for the better and become innovative. The survival of the firm was now at stake. Today, businesses have changed for the better, and innovative project management was a large part of the change. Trust between the customer and contractor is at an all-time high as well as trust between management and the project teams. New products resulting from better project management practices are being developed at a faster rate than ever before. Innovation project management practices have become a competitive weapon during competitive bidding. Some companies are receiving sole-source contracts for innovative products and services because of the faith that the customer has in the contractor’s ability to deliver a continuous stream of successful projects using a project management methodology that today appears more like a framework or flexible methodology than a rigid approach. All of these factors have allowed a multitude of companies to achieve some degree of excellence in project management. Business decisions are now being emphasized ahead of personal decisions. Words that were commonplace 20 years ago have taken on new meanings today. Change resulting from better project execution is no longer being viewed as being entirely bad. Today, change implies continuous improvement. Conflicts are no longer seen as detrimental. Conflicts managed well can be beneficial. Project management is no longer viewed as a system entirely internal to the organization. Strategic partnerships may be required. Project management is now a competitive weapon that brings higher levels of quality and increased value-added opportunities for the customer. In many companies, project management is treated as a strategic competency that is one of the four or five career paths in the company that are critical for the company’s future. Companies that were considered excellent in management in the past may no longer be regarded as excellent today, especially with regard to project management. Consider the book entitled In Search of Excellence, written by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman in 1982 (published in New York by Harper & Row). How many of the companies identified in their book are still considered excellent today? How many of those companies have won the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige Award? How many of those companies that have won the award are excellent in project management today? Excellence in project management is a never-ending journey. Companies that are reluctant to invest in continuous improvements in project management soon find themselves with low customer satisfaction ratings. This book covers the advanced project management topics necessary for implementation of and excellence in project management. The book contains numerous quotes from people in the field who have benchmarked best practices in project management and are currently implementing these processes within their own firms. Quotes in this book were provided by several senior corporate officers as well as others.