Practice Competence – CÔNG TY TNHH MỘT THÀNH VIÊN GIẢI PHÁP QUẢN LÝ DỰ ÁN VIỆT NAM

Project Management Through the Story of Building the Imperial City of Huế

quantri — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 08:52:15 +0000

Lessons from a National Mega‑Project 200 Years Ago

Truong Van Thien – PM Solutions Vietnam

Abstract

The Imperial City of Huế — a monumental royal architectural complex of the Nguyễn Dynasty, initiated in 1805 and completed in 1832 — is not only a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site but also a rare example of a state‑level project executed with remarkable managerial sophistication. Based on an analysis of the Nguyễn Dynasty Woodblock Archives, particularly the Đại Nam Thực Lục (First and Second Chronicles), this article systematizes the project management principles applied by the Nguyễn court and compares them with ISO 21500:2021 and the PMBOK® Guide 8th Edition.

Findings show that many principles of modern project management were effectively practiced in Vietnam more than two centuries ago, offering valuable implications for contemporary PM education and practice.

1. Introduction

Modern project management is often considered a product of the 20th century, associated with the establishment of PMI (1969) and standards such as PMBOK®, PRINCE2®, and ISO 21500. However, history demonstrates that core PM principles — strategic vision, governance, planning, quality control, stakeholder engagement — were practiced in many ancient civilizations.

In Vietnam, the construction of the Imperial City of Huế (1805–1832) is a prime case study that has not been fully explored from a PM perspective. This national‑scale project spanned nearly 30 years, mobilized tens of thousands of workers, required complex cross‑regional coordination, and was governed through a multi‑tier administrative system.

The Nguyễn Dynasty Woodblocks — a UNESCO Memory of the World heritage (2009) — document this process in detail, enabling a modern PM analysis.

This article addresses two research questions:

(1) Which project management principles did the Nguyễn Dynasty apply in constructing the Imperial City of Huế?

(2) How do these principles align with ISO 21500:2021 and the PMBOK® Guide 8th Edition?

2. Research Methodology

This study employs qualitative document analysis combined with comparative analysis. Sources include:

Đại Nam Thực Lục (First and Second Chronicles)
Secondary historical literature on the Imperial City of Huế
ISO 21500:2021 and PMBOK® Guide 8th Edition

The process includes extracting managerial events, categorizing them into PM domains, and comparing them with international standards.

3. The Story of Building the Imperial City of Huế

3.1. Vision and Site Survey (1803–1805)

After unifying the country, Emperor Gia Long established a long‑term strategic vision: building a durable capital “to last for countless generations.” He ordered a full survey of the Phú Xuân area: “He sent the superintendent Nguyễn Văn Yến to measure and mark the four sides outside the old Phú Xuân citadel for expansion.”

The court implemented a detailed compensation and resettlement policy: “Each household whose house was removed received 3 “quan”… the people were exempted from corvée labor.”

3.2. Mobilization and Construction (1805–1832)

In April 1805, the project officially began with more than 30,000 soldiers and laborers from Quảng Bình to Quy Nhơn. The Woodblocks record: “The four sides of the citadel measured 2,487 trượng 4 thước 7 tấc… with 10 gates.”

Workers were compensated: “Each person received 1 quan 5 per month and 1 phương 15 bát of rice.” The court also stationed medical teams at the construction sites.

3.3. Completion under Emperor Minh Mạng (1820–1832)

Emperor Minh Mạng continued the project with a clear philosophy of quality: “In all works, select the best materials and build firmly… toil once to enjoy peace for long.”

By 1832, the project was completed. The emperor reported: “From labor to materials, the total expenditure exceeded billions.”

4. Modern Project Management Principles Reflected in the Huế Citadel Project

4.1. Strategic Vision & Value Orientation

The Nguyễn Dynasty maintained a consistent long‑term vision across two reigns. This aligns with ISO 21500’s “Create Value” principle and PMBOK®’s Value Delivery Domain.

4.2. Multi‑Level Project Governance

The governance framework included five levels:

(1) Emperor – Project Sponsor

(2) Cabinet – Steering Committee

(3) Ministry of Public Works – PMO / Owner

(4) Construction Supervisors – Project Managers

(5) Guild Leaders – Package Managers

Communication flowed through imperial edicts (top‑down) and memorials (bottom‑up).

4.3. Systems Thinking & Master Planning

The geomantic survey functioned as a systems‑thinking site assessment. Detailed measurements and layouts were planned before construction — consistent with PMBOK®’s Planning Domain.

4.4. Stakeholder Management

The court identified all affected groups and applied tailored engagement strategies: compensation, tax exemptions, new farmland allocation, and relocation loans. This constitutes a complete Stakeholder Engagement Plan.

4.5. Resource & Financial Management

The project mobilized 30,000 workers organized by specialized guilds — equivalent to a modern Resource Breakdown Structure (RBS).

Fixed monthly wages formed a cost baseline, and the final expenditure report served as a cost performance summary.

4.6. Adaptive, Phased Delivery

The project followed two phases: earth‑rampart construction (1805–1818) and brick‑stone fortification (1818–1832). This reflects incremental delivery — a key PMBOK® principle.

4.7. Quality Management

The Nguyễn court implemented a two‑tier QA/QC system:

Twice‑monthly inspections
Quarterly audits by high‑ranking officials

The philosophy emphasized durability and total cost of ownership.

4.8. Risk Management

The court proactively addressed risks related to health, weather, natural disasters, and leadership transition — aligning with PMBOK®’s Uncertainty Domain.

5. Alignment with ISO 21500:2021 and PMBOK® 8th Edition

Findings show:

10 out of 12 PMBOK® 8th principles have clear evidence in the Huế project.
All ISO 21500 principles correspond to documented practices.

This demonstrates the universality of effective PM principles across time and geography.

6. Conclusion & Practical Implications

The Imperial City of Huế exemplifies that Vietnamese practitioners applied modern‑equivalent project management principles more than 200 years ago. The project featured clear governance, rigorous quality control, structured stakeholder engagement, and adaptive execution.

Two key implications:

(1) Vietnam should develop indigenous PM case studies for training.

(2) Traditional Vietnamese management culture — emphasizing hierarchy, responsibility, and community — is a valuable asset for shaping a distinct national PM identity.

The story of Huế reminds us that sustainable project success stems not only from tools and techniques but from vision, disciplined governance, responsibility, and commitment to enduring quality.

5 Reasons Why Managers Need to Learn Project Management Basics

vina_admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 01:42:58 +0000

Brianna Hansen

Author

Critical path, scope creep, Kanban. If these words are foreign to you, you probably aren’t a project manager. Additionally, you may not think you can learn much from the principles of project management. Think again.

We conducted a survey across 1,464 employees about their work management processes, and discovered 94% of respondents manage projects on a regular basis. But only 47% have “project manager” in their job title or description. So even though you might not be a project manager, chances are, you’re managing a project or two.

Although there are several reasons to study project management, you don’t need to become a certified project manager right away. We’re simply suggesting that you learn project management principles to enhance your leadership skills.

Without further ado, let’s dive into basic project management skills and how they can help you become a better manager:

1. Improves visibility

One of the more obvious reasons to invest in learning project management basics is that it will improve visibility across all ongoing work.

As a manager, it’s your responsibility to break through roadblocks and make sure work is evenly distributed across your team. With clear visibility into your team’s workload and a set process for how work gets done, you’re able to jump in when needed or shift tasks around to guarantee success.

Project management methodologies can also help you gain optimum visibility. Here are a few of the most popular techniques:

Waterfall: Since this method requires very clear goals and objectives, this style will ensure that goals are always top of mind with every step in the project.
Scrum: This technique allows you to focus on the little wins by bringing stakeholders in constantly so there’s no confusion around expectations.
Critical path: This style helps with resource planning by organizing your work into categories and mapping out the necessary resources for each task.

2. Encourages accountability

How often do you leave a meeting knowing exactly what you’re responsible for? According to our survey, 49% of respondents said “some of the time,” “rarely,” or “never.”

Having some solid project management techniques in your back pocket will keep your team accountable for their work and eliminate any confusion around responsibilities. When you see a task falling into the red zone, you can easily identify who should be nudged to get back in the green.

Project management tools and program management tools allow you to assign tasks out and measure the performance of each individual by tracking their completed tasks. Basic functionalities, such as Dashboards and Reporting, let you visualize your team’s productivity and address any opportunities to improve.

3. Strengthens communication & collaboration

Healthy communication is instrumental in managing a successful team. If your team is struggling with communication, using a few basic project management concepts will aid collaboration.

Here are some key strategies to maintain effective communication and keep projects on track:

Cancel status update meetings: Stop meeting to go over what everyone is working on. Instead, use a collaborative platform to track work so project progress is constantly visible.
Dump email: Tired of looking for the final, final version of the attachment? Instead of sending files via email, use a versioning tool and archive the latest file in a digital asset management (DAM) solution so it’s readily available.
Ditch spreadsheets: Spreadsheets aren’t made for collaboration — too much risk of outdated information. Leaving comments and direct feedback within the task ensures no communication falls through the cracks.

Basic project management training improves risk assessment and helps you spot mistakes and red flags before it’s too late. It also improves your problem solving, planning, and organizational skills. Learning and understanding basic project management tools will increase your credibility and may help you edge out your competition.

4. Supports agility

What happens when a project goes in a completely different direction or a stakeholder changes their expectations at the last minute? Deadlines shift, resources run dry, and chaos ensues. Your team’s agility will determine how quickly and efficiently you’re able to recover from these changes.

Understanding project management basics and learning Agile techniques, such as Lean and Kanban, will help your team become more proactive so you can quickly cope with change and bounce back. In fact, 63% of Agile marketers say they are “very satisfied” with the way their team manages work according to our Agile Marketing Report. You can’t avoid change, so may as well learn how to embrace it.

5. Builds confidence

Investing in solutions to drive your team’s success will not only make you stand out as an excellent manager, but it will help build confidence and trust across your team. Having a clear path that’s rigid enough to provide structure, but flexible enough to adapt to your workflow, will provide performance metrics and reveal where your team excels. This also allows you to showcase your team’s hard work and gives you a reason to celebrate all wins, both big and small.

Theo Wrike Blog.

Basic Understanding of Project Management

vina_admin — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 09:28:00 +0000

It was not until the 20th century that modern project management was refined and developed, with notable milestones such as:

+ In 1911, Frederick Taylor published “Principles of Management Science,” introducing the principles of division of labor and performance optimization.

+ In 1917, Henry Gantt developed the Gantt chart, a simple planning and progress control tool still used today.

+ In 1957, Dupont introduced the application of the Critical Path technique.

+ In 1958 and 1962, the US Department of Defense implemented the Program Review and Evaluation (PERT) technique and the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) technique.

+ In 1986, SCRUM (a term referring to the method of restarting a game in American football) was used to name a type of flexible project management.

+ In 1989, Earned Value Management (ERM) was introduced to evaluate the effectiveness and performance of projects.

+ Also in 1989, the Central Computing and Telecommunications Authority (CCTA) of the UK government developed the PRINCE2 (Projects in Controlled Environment) project management methodology to improve project management and administration.

+ In 1997, Eliyahu M. Goldratt developed and introduced the Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) methodology.

+ In 2001, the Agile Manifesto was drafted by 17 software developers to establish a more efficient software development methodology. Based on this, the Agile project management methodology was developed.

+ Since 2012, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has successively issued the ISO 21500:2012 Guidelines for Project Management, ISO 21504:2015 Guidelines for Project Portfolio Management, and ISO 21503:2017 Guidelines for Project Program Management.

So, what is a project, the subject of project management?

A project, as defined in ISO 21500, is a timed effort to achieve one or more defined objectives; while, according to the Project Management Institute (PMI), it is a timed effort to produce a unique product, service, or outcome.

Thus, a project has a start date, an end date, objectives to be achieved, and specific outputs upon completion.

Project management, as defined in ISO 21502, is the coordinated activities to direct and control the achievement of agreed-upon objectives; while, according to PMI, it is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to achieve project requirements.

According to ISO 21500 standards, projects are implemented to realize the strategy set by the organization or business.

The project is implemented through three main process groups: Project management processes; deliverables management processes; and support processes.

Project management processes are specific to project management, defining how the selected activities for the project are managed.

Delivery processes are processes outside the scope of project management and are related to the development of technical specification documents, creating a specific product, service, or outcome. They vary depending on the specific deliverable of the project.

Support processes are processes outside the scope of project management and provide necessary support to project management and deliverables management processes, such as: finance & financing, accounting, and logistics.

According to the ISO 21500 standard, project management processes are divided into the following five groups:

Preparation process group: used to initiate a project phase or a project, define the objectives of the project phase or project, and empower the project manager to implement the project.

Planning process group: used to develop a detailed plan and create baseline plans as benchmarks for managing project implementation and measuring and controlling project performance.

Execution process group: used to carry out project management activities and to support the formation of project deliverables that conform to the project plans.

Control process group: used to monitor, measure, and control project performance against the project plan; to propose corrective and preventive actions, as needed, to achieve project objectives.

The closing process group: used to formally confirm the completion of a project phase or project, and to provide lessons learned.