Every business grows from the nascent stage to a full-fledged business, provided that there existed sound governance and funds to get there. We are going to look at the big businesses and startups. Project planning for an entrepreneur is a huge domain. To start outright, we will take into account some foundation and a settling view:

Entrepreneurship and Project Management

Entrepreneurship relates to the building of a business with invested capital, various business solutions that materialized, risks taken and shock-absorbed, sound operations and maximum participation by every stakeholder. Characterized by the nature of this domain, it entwines the relation between project management and entrepreneurship. The entrepreneur can either own a land and wants to build upon that land so he becomes an owner who will hire a project manager to take care of business affairs since inception. An entrepreneur with or through the project manager will pitch leads to invest capital into the business. Once there are sponsors, the project team will get into various tasks such as cash flow estimations, documentation, different feasibility studies, recruitment & training, product positioning, manufacturing plant incurrences, building a network of suppliers, high-level vendors, lenders, etc., raw material consumption details, market strategies, manpower flexibility and viability, technicalities and legal formalities, machinery acquisition and technology integration, competitive analysis based on forecasts, well-thought project report & study, and project skeletons, and so on. All this entails project planning for entrepreneurs and by the project manager and his team. These ingredients are the actuals behind the business take-off. Moreover, the government has a role to pay such as recognition of the lease deeds, taxes, land cess, subsidies, location rules and regulations, licensing, etc. Finances are extensive when industrial development organisations and commercial banks are funding. All the many factors listed are conducive to project management for entrepreneurship.

Startups and Project Management

Startup is a shoestring operation with a few founders in the early stages of development catering to a specific market, confined to funding from family, friends, relatives and savings’ surplus. There are many startups today that are exclusive to niches and sections of a market. Today startups are thronging all over the place. Project management for startup is on the rise. Several startups in recent times include virtual assistant services, editing services, proofreaders, transcriptionists, audiobook readers, graphic designers, digital marketing executives, content executives, several freelancers working usually at home and tied up with a small-scale office of team members, and so on. There are all sorts of startups out there; to name many such as book reviewing, online surveys, book sourcing and sales thereof, blogging, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) writing, language translation services, dubbing, YouTube video editing, copywriting, life coaching, language mentoring, transcription services, social media marketing, web development and designing, self-publishing, making and running e-courses, printables’ services like motivation quotes, religious maxims, workmen anecdotes, and so on, career and higher education advice, resume writing, counselling services, commercial voiceovers, spiritual email marketing, seminars and workshop promotions, upselling, advertising classifieds, ad campaigns, and the like. The grass is greener on the other side of startup project management. The world is its oyster; however, they are only funded by near and dear ones and familiar relations. Yet it is a great place to start. Project managers have a lot to do with the range of startups as specified above. Project management for startup has been a great western influx and has scores of opportunities. The hierarchy is simple and even so has one or more dedicated project managers and his project team.

So even though project management has core principles as its bedrock, world over especially in developed countries with more and more technological advancement, project management for entrepreneurship has been emerging as a more transformational frame of work and startups are certainly an archetype of unique trends in business.