Project Management Triangle – Balancing Scope, Timeline and Cost

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Customer expectations, the unpredictable nature of modern work environments, and limited resources make managing clients, teams, and projects a challenge.

That is why project managers have become an essential part of almost all companies, regardless of their size or sector, in order to manage projects and facilitate communication between clients and teams.

In this article we will explain what the project management triangle is, how it works, why it works, and how you can use project management tools to help you apply this triangle in your project management role.

What is the project management triangle and how does it work?
After decades of research devoted to project management best practices, one of the fundamental coo email list pillars of the work has come to be known as the Project Management Triangle (PMT).

The PMT, also known as the Golden Triangle, Iron Triangle, and Three Constraints Triangle, is the secret weapon in the project manager's arsenal, providing a visual aid and a conceptual and practical framework for successful management.

The Project Management Triangle has been around since the 1950s and continues to evolve. Today, there is a British and an American version (the one we will focus on), as well as an Agile Triangle reconstructed specifically for project management Agile Teams . However, 70 years later, the core principles of the Iron Triangle are still as effective today as they were in its inception.

Now let's see how it works.

The Golden Triangle of Project Management is a visual aid consisting of a triangle whose three sides represent the three basic principles of project management that affect the overall quality of a project's final product (represented by the flat space in the center of the triangle).

Here are the three elements of a project triangle:

Cost
**Time
Scope of application
Project Management Triangle

via kindpng.com The project manager's job is to manage these three factors as they affect the project team, the quality of the final product, and ultimately the success of the project.

The PMT works because it demonstrates how these three factors are linked in a simple way, making it ideal for client communication . Each project is established with a project budget (cost), a timeline (cost), and an end goal of varying size, magnitude, and complexity ( project scope ).

This triangle also represents the balance that must be maintained between the three constraints. In other words, if one variable changes, adjustments must be made to the other two to restore balance.

For example, if a deadline is extended and the time available is reduced, costs will have to be increased or scope reduced to ensure that the new deadline is met and that the product remains of quality.