The field of Project Scheduling has undergone a history of growth and evolution brought on, in no small way, by methodological and technological changes. Yet, the profession’s self-view has not kept pace with its increasingly prominent and diverse role in project management. As a result, it now lacks sufficient labels to describe the many different functions performed by the professional project scheduler. The term “scheduling” does not adequately describe the suite of products and services performed by an array of project management professionals whose only common thread is the project schedule. A complete set of definitions of roles and responsibilities is needed.
Looking forward, further radical changes in the profession are just around the corner. The encompassing field of project management, of which scheduling is a central part, is moving away from Newtonian structures to management models more aligned with chaos theory. As this transition occurs, the role of the project scheduler will give way to a new position — project facilitator. While the end goal may be the same - to assist the project manager in driving the project - the methodologies, technologies, and philosophies will be much different. Scheduling, as both a profession, is about to undergo a complete makeover.
Read more at: http://www.pmforum.org/library/papers/2005/1112papers.htm#01