About Project Management

Project Management is not just a cost – it’s an investment in the future success and stability of any restaurant.  Professional Project Management ensures that restaurants are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest quality standards.  It involves thorough planning, rigorous budget control, careful resource allocation, risk management, and experienced leadership – all of which reduce the likelihood of costly mistakes and greatly improve the chances of long-term success.

Furthermore, professional Project Management fosters a culture of accountability and continuous improvement.  Teams with strong Project Management support can more easily learn from past projects, implement best practices, and avoid previous pitfalls.  This leads to better decision-making, increased efficiency, improved productivity, and greater confidence in project success.

When you partner with The Ops Group, you get the unique combination of Project Management expertise and 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry.  That’s why The Ops Group is far more than just a cost – we are a strategic investment in the success of your next restaurant.

The Project Management Institute (PMI) defines a project as “a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result.”  There are two key takeaways from that definition:

1)      PROJECTS ARE TEMPORARY.  This does not necessarily mean that projects have a short duration – in fact, often quite the contrary.  It does mean, however, that projects are not open-ended; they have a distinct, recognizable beginning and a clearly defined end.

2)      PROJECTS ARE UNIQUE.  They are intended to create products that are one-of-a-kind, each defined by their own unique features and characteristics.  Furthermore, the environment in which each new project exists is different from any previous project, creating both unique opportunities and unique challenges.

For as long as there have been projects, there has been Project Management.  The Great Wall of China, the Pyramids of Giza, and the Colosseum in Rome were all built by managers who applied specialized skills and knowledge to their work in order to meet project objectives and satisfy stakeholder requirements.

Today, we think of Project Management as the application of specialized skills, knowledge, tools, and techniques which help a Project Manager guide a project from conception to completion.  Professional Project Managers utilize an array of proven systems and processes, all designed to maximize efficiency and provide a high degree of control to the Project Management team. This level of control and efficiency results in higher-quality projects with fewer mistakes, reduced costs, minimized delays, and greatly increased chances of long-term success.

It is important to differentiate between PROJECTS and OPERATIONS.  In a restaurant opening, project work focuses on everything required to launch the restaurant and begin operations.  The project generally ends shortly after regular operations commence, while operations are ongoing and (ideally) continue indefinitely.

Restaurant openings involve two very distinct, yet interdependent, components:

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT: Food, beverages, service, and atmosphere are the core products that most restaurants offer.  To be successful, each new restaurant must develop products that are unique to its brand and that define its individual concept.  Creating and testing menus, developing service standards and operational processes, designing the interiors and selecting FF&E - this is all part of the product development process.  This is where most restaurateurs excel, and this is what they should primarily focus on.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Project Management requires a completely different set of skills.  While Product Development is about where you are going, Project Management is the tool you use to get there. As restaurateurs are focused on developing on-going operations, Project Managers apply their specific skills and training to the temporary factors that drive the project to opening day.  This means defining the project scope, developing the project schedule, and determining the project budget.  This means managing project communications, directing and managing project work, and identifying and responding to project risks.  Most importantly, Project Management means integrating all the pieces of the puzzle in a way that delivers quality, confidence, control, and long-term success.

Simply put, a Project Manager’s primary role is to lead a project team to achieve a project’s objectives.  The Project Manager is not expected to perform every role on a project, but the Project Manager should possess both Project Management knowledge and technical expertise directly related to the project’s specific industry.  The Project Manager provides the project team with leadership, planning, and coordination - all with the aim of delivering a project that is on time, on budget, and within a clearly defined scope.

Opening a restaurant requires expertise from a variety of professional disciplines, each playing a crucial role in bringing the restaurant owner’s vision to life.  Architects, contractors, designers, accountants, lawyers, HR specialists, marketers, chefs, beverage experts, and restaurant managers all contribute their skills and knowledge to ensure a successful launch.

Professional Project Managers, meanwhile, specialize in orchestrating every step of the process.  While they don’t execute every task themselves, they oversee and coordinate the entire team to maximize efficiency and maintain control throughout the project.  Their expertise in Project Management is essential for delivering a smooth, well-executed opening.

Beyond Project Management, professional Project Managers often draw on expertise from related fields, taking on additional responsibilities traditionally handled by other consultants or subject matter experts.  The Ops Group exemplifies this integrated approach, providing not only Project Management services but also specialized expertise in restaurant design, construction oversight, financial management, human resources, business development, leadership and cultural development, front-of-house service, and restaurant operations.

There are many benefits to professional Project Management.  One of the most important is that it allows owners, managers, the operations team, and other resources to focus on what they do best.  Chefs stay focused on the culinary program and the culinary team; FOH managers concentrate on service and the beverage program; architects, designers, and contractors focus on designing and building a beautiful new space; and so on.  Meanwhile, Project Managers plan and coordinate it all, ensuring that the needs of all stakeholders are met and the right people are always doing the right work, at the right time, and in the right way.

The Project Management Institute (PMI) was founded in 1969, and later described it’s objectives as follows:  "to foster recognition of the need for professionalism in project management; provide a forum for the free exchange of project management problems, solutions and applications; coordinate industrial and academic research efforts; develop common terminology and techniques to improve communications; provide interface between users and suppliers of hardware and software systems; and to provide guidelines for instruction and career development in the field of project management."

Today, PMI is the world’s leading professional association for Project Management, serving more than five million professionals, including 680,000 members in 217 countries and territories around the world.  

Nathan Rostance of The Ops Group has been an active member of PMI since 2019, earning his CAPM certificate (Certified Associate in Project Management) in 2022.