Project constraints are the general limitations of a project, including time, costs, and risks. Most project constraints impact one another, which is why constraint management is crucial for project success.

Constraints are a regular and unavoidable occurrence in project management and you are expected to deliver results while dealing with them regularly. You need to understand the areas where you can compromise on either the scope, timeline, budget, or any other constraint you have identified.

There are total six common project constraints. They are:-

1) Cost Constraint: Cost constraints include the project budget and anything of financial value required for the project. Effective cost control is necessary for the betterment of the project.

Cost constraint include items such as:

• Project cost

• Team member salaries

• Cost of equipment

• Cost of facilities

• Repair costs

• Material costs

2) Time Constraint: Proper scheduling is essential in time constraint. Time is very essential for any project. It is duty of project manager to estimate project time as accurately as possible, which requires a blend of research and experience. Overall project manager should provide stakeholders with the most accurate range possible in order to avoid surprises or making unrealistic promises.

Different elements in the project which may lead to time constraint are as follows:

• Overall project timeline

• Hours worked on project

• Internal calendars and goalposts

• Time allotted for planning and strategy

• Number of project phases

3) Scope Constraint: The project scope is extremely precise and comes with all the necessary information about the final project deliverable. The feature and functions identified in the scope have to be achieved in order to call any particular project a success. Time and money are dependencies of project scope, because as the project scope grows, the project will require more time and money to complete.

4) Risk Constraint: Risks are any unexpected occurrences that can affect your project. While most project risks are negative, some can be positive. For example, a new technology may be released while your project is in progress. This technology may help you finish your project quicker or it may cause more competition in the market and reduce your product value. Risk cannot be fully eliminated in a project.

Some risk constraints are as follows:

• Stretched resources

• Operational mishaps

• Low performance

• Lack of clarity

• High costs

• Time crunch

5) Budget constraint: Project budget indicates the maximum amount you are allowed to spend on a particular project. It does mean the associated costs of the required materials or processes only. The budget includes vendor payments, labor costs, and even contingency funds that are only required when you are in damage control mode if things don’t go as planned.

6) Quality constraint: It is one of the most important Constraints of project management. Quality of any product in a project is very important. Changing quality expectations will most certainly impact the project’s time, scope, and cost.

Quality constraint can be affected by following examples:

• If project manager is unable to meet a sudden rise in cost, the project scope may shrink and the quality may decline.

• If the project scope extends due to scope creep, you may not have the time or resources to deliver the promised quality.

• If delivery time is cut or rushed, project costs may rise and quality will very likely decline.