Introduction of a Project (Meaning and Explanation)

We explain what the introduction of a project is and how to do it. Common mistakes to avoid and some examples.

What is a project introduction?

The term introduction comes from the verb introducewhich means that, within a set, the section with that name will be the person in charge of introducing or taking the reader into the topic and objective of the project. This section may exist under the names preface, preliminary or prologue, although they are not exactly synonyms.

In all cases, its function is to offer the reader all the information, concepts, contextual data, clarifications or general framework of the issue that they may need to enter the topic discussed on the right footing. In other words, we are talking about the reader's first contact with the written work, so it will be their starting point in the subject.

Every introduction must adapt to the spirit of the research that precedes it and of which it is a part, that is, it must be at the same time the initial moment of the text (be it a book, essay, monograph, etc.) and a separate chapter. It talks about the rest of the work, provides relevant information, notes possible weaknesses, or simply explains the motivations behind the project.

Therefore, there is no single or universal set of points or themes that apply to all introductions, nor a single way of approaching them. They can be written from the author's perspective, even in the first person singular (I) or plural (we), or adhere to a more detached and formal tone, in the impersonal third person (“it was done”, “it was tried”). .

How is the introduction of a project done?

The ideal thing when writing an introduction is to ask yourself questions regarding the project, and then try to answer them in the most didactic way possible. For example:

In what context does the project appear? What tradition does it belong to?
what motivates? Where did the idea come from?
That experiences Were there previous ones, if there were any?
That goals is the project proposed and why are they important?
That importance Do you have the project theme in today's world?

Once the appropriate questions have been formulated, the next step will be to organize them from the most general to the most specific, or according to a criterion that is attractive to us and that allows us to compose a useful text for the reader.

The challenge will be to make a fluid text that does not move in fits and starts, nor is it schematic. It is not a bad idea to help yourself with subtitles that divide it into the main topics to be covered: “background”, “objectives”, “importance of the research”, etc.

One last thing to consider is that The introduction of a project is always the last thing to be writtensince it is necessary to have an overview of it, from the beginning to the end.

Common mistakes to avoid in an introduction

Some of the most common mistakes made when making an introduction are:

Start with school phrases. Beginning with “This work is intended to…”, or some other similar formulas, will give the writing the appearance of a primary school work. A good introduction will undoubtedly touch on the project's mission, but it will do so by having something more to say about it. Plus, it's a tremendously boring beginning.
Ramble on too much. It's okay to offer some contextual information, show the broader perspectives, and shed light on the past. But not for pages and pages, risking boring or distracting the reader, who will no longer know if they are reading your project, or Wikipedia. Get to the point.
Not having anything to say. The opposite of the above: it is not normal for an introduction to take up only half a page, as that suggests that you have nothing to say. The same thing happens if your three pages repeat the same thing over and over again, using different words. Find something to say: maybe you should change your perspective, or give yourself some time to think, or maybe you should review a little the context of which your project is a part.

Examples of introducing a project

Below we will offer some introduction possibilities, which could be developed and appropriate to the nature of various projects:

Starting from the etymology of a word key in the title of the project, to offer the reader a history of the topic that covers the main background of the project, and ends by explaining the motivation for it.
Explain the main challenge of the project's area of interest, detailing previous attempts to address it and the failures they presented. Then explain how this inspired the project's authors to propose a new path.
Remember an anecdote of a personality recognized worldwide or at least in the specific area of the project's topic, and then use part of that anecdote as justification of the project's objectives, trying to pay tribute to the person remembered.
List previous unsuccessful experiencesdetailing what went wrong and why, and then telling a funny or interesting anecdote thanks to which the researchers got a lightbulb, and they can now try again without errors.
Starting from a complex technical concept but central to the topic of the project, to provide the reader with a new way of understanding it, which will serve as a spirit for the rest of the research. It is then explained in detail what the unexpected results of the project could be.

Scope and limitations of a project

It is common to talk about the scope and limitations of a project, either within the introduction or as a separate section. In any case, when it comes to talking about the scope of the project, we will only do explain how far we want to go with it, that is, how far we will go in a topic that we know is vaster and more complicated than what we plan to address.

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For example, if the project is about the elimination of fossil fuels, a titanic task as we well know, it is logical to explain that we will be content with exploring one of the many possible paths to do so.

By explaining the scope we can also explain the limitations of the project: budgetary, time, complexity, etc. We are not all-powerful, nor does anyone expect us to be, so it is important to explain what exactly we intend to do and within what limits.

References

“Introduction” on Wikipedia.
“How to write an introduction for a project” in Universia.
“How to write an introduction for a research paper?” at Arturo Prat University of the State of Chile (UNAP).
“How to write an introduction?” at Pontifical Catholic University of Chile.
“How to introduce a project?” on the Web and companies.
“How to make an introduction to a project” in Sinapps.