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Project

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a temporary undertaking that has a definite beginning and an end and something that has a distinct and definitive purpose. It is undertaken to create a unique product, service or result.

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Gannt Chart

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Created in 1910

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Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)

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created in 1958 as part of the Polaris missile submarine program. Later extended to create WBS

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Project Management

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The a methodical approach to planning and guiding project processes from start to finish to bring about the successful completion of specific project goals and objectives. The processes are guided through five stages: initiation, planning, execution, controlling and closing.

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5 stages of project management

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1. Initiation 2. Planning 3. Execution 4. Controlling 5. Closing

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5 Impacts of Project Management

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1. Business advantage 2. competitive advantage 3. accurate and timely information to keep competitive edge 4. clear roles and responsibilities helps minimize conflicts and confusion 5. Effective communication

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Scope

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provides the parameters within which you do the project

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Process areas

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First the project initiation state, the project planning or design stage, project execution or production stage, the project monitoring and controlling systems and project completion

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Reasons for initiating and approving a project

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1. Opportunity a. Market demands b. technological advances 2. Challenges - customer requests and social needs 3. Business Requirements

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Role of the PM

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executing a vision through: Planning, Execution, Monitoring, Control, Closure. in Project planning: Identify & document project requirements Build the project team Establish clear project objectives Understand stakeholders' expectations Prevent unnecessary scope changes Ensure team understands project objectives Develop project plans

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Project Success Factors

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- Strong Executive Support - Plenty of User Involvement - An Experienced Project Manager - Clear Business Objectives

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Key challenges to success

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1. Lack of Planning 2. Lack of Resources- Skills, Time, Money 3. Scope Creep

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Elements for PM

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1. PM elements- process groups, processes 2. Life cycles- linear, iterative, adaptive, and agile 3. Phases- life cycle phases for reviews, milestone, and deliverables 4. Organizations-

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Successful elements of PM

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A process is a set of related actions directed at accomplishing a specific result, e.g., to estimate project costs, create a plan, collect requirements. Knowledge is required in multiple areas, e.g., managing people, time, cost, risk, and communications

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Processes and Process Groups

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1. Initiating- 2. Planning- : develop a project management plan, estimate costs, plan communications 3. Executing- direct execution of the project, procure materials and services 4. Monitoring and Controlling- : report on project performance, control cost and schedule 5. Closing- bring project activities to a close, obtain final approval from customer

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Scope

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Define the work and ensure that the project includes only the required work

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Product Life Cycles

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1. Linear- Define the work and ensure that the project includes only the required work 2. Iterative- Develop or deliver in increments 3. Adaptive- Build in flexibility to adapt during the project 4. Agile- Collaborate closely with customers in highly flexible, change-driven style

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Functional organization

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projects operate within a single functional unit or across multiple units

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Matrix organization

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project staff have dual loyalties, to the project and their functional unit

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Project-based organization

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work gets done directly through project managers

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Key roles of project initiation

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1. Stakeholder 2. Champion - principal advocate committed to the project and its success 3. Sponsor - provides the funding for the project 4. Customer - determines if the project is successful or not 5. User - uses the products of the project

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Project Charter

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Gain approval and formally authorize the existence and start of the project. Issued by project initiator or sponsor

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Effective management of stakeholders

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Defines the approach to managing project stakeholders during the project life cycle Maximize support from stakeholders and minimize disruptive effects on project

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Kick-off meeting

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- Gain support for the project - Engage stakeholders so they can resolve any questions or issues before project planning

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Keys for a successful project meeting

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- Project sponsor should introduce the project: introduce stakeholders -Review roles and responsibilities of stakeholders -Review elements from project charter: project objectives, business case, projected timeline, funding status, deliverables - Discuss project organizational structure - Dedicate a staff person to support the meeting

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Project planning

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Project planning can begin at the completion of two key project initiation processes: (1) the project charter is created and approved by the project sponsor, and (2) the project stakeholders are identified The standard student response is that a project is successful if it is completed on time (schedule), within budget (cost), and producing deliverables which meet customers expectations (scope, quality, requirements). But they can go as far as Proper project documentation Clearly defined and assigned roles & responsibilities Senior management or executive support Stakeholder buy-in Periodic team meetings held (kickoff, progress, etc.) Periodic meetings with the customer Competent project manager & team

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Features of unsuccessful projects

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Unnecessary & / or unapproved scope changes Lack of a change control management procedure Not using or improperly following change procedures Not following the project management plan Poor project monitoring & controlling Continuously gathering requirements Requirements that are poorly defined and are not understood Undefined or poorly defined scope Over-optimistic or unrealistic assumptions Unclear project roles & responsibilities

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Project Management Plan

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Is used as a roadmap to guide the team through execution of project, a communication doc for stakeholders, and a comprehensive doc that integrates strategic and other planning: Scope management plan Requirements management plan Schedule management plan Cost management plan Quality management plan Process improvement plan HR management plan Communication management plan Risk management plan Procurement management plan Change management plan Schedule, cost performance, and scope baselines

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Project Scope Management

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Collect requirements define scope create a WBS

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Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

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should not be confused with a schedule. The WBS does not show activity relationships, sequence of activities, or activity dependencies. The WBS is developed before the schedule. The work packages are further decomposed into activity lists which is an input into developing the project schedule. - created after the SOW - considered one of the most important project documents which is created in project planning -scope statement is broken down into small manageable components through a technique called decomposition -decomposition continues until all project work is eventually broken down to the lowest level of the WBS called a work package -in theory work packages are typically 80 hours to 8 hours of work. PM should break the work down until a realistic chunk of work (deliverable) is reached that can be scheduled, assigned to be performed, cost estimated, monitored and controlled

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Time management planning process

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1. Define activities 2. sequence activities 3. estimate activity resources 4. estimate activity durations 5. develop a schedule

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an Activity On Node (AON) diagram

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1) activities are sequenced (predecessors and successors are determined) 2) activity paths are determined 3) duration of each path is calculated 4) critical path is identified (longest path & determines the soonest the project will complete)

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Schedule management plan

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document within the project management plan containing information on how the schedule will be developed and controlled, how schedule processes will be measured, and what scheduling tool will be used.

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Project schedule network diagrams

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schematic depiction of scheduled activities and dependencies (logical relationships of activities); model of sequenced activities

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Activity relationships

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a diagramming technique to illustrate the activity's logical relationships: Finish to Start, Start to Start, Finish to Finish, and Start to Finish

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quality management plan

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in the project management plan. a diagramming technique to illustrate the activity's logical relationships: Finish to Start, Start to Start, Finish to Finish, and Start to Finish

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Human Resources Management Plan

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Assigned team member roles & responsibilities Approach for managing team members and staffing policies Describes how project resources will be acquired and released Describes how team members will be managed. After the project team has identified all activities that must be performed they determine resource requirements which are used to develop a human resource plan

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Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM)

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is a diagram which correlates the project organizational structure to the WBS. The matrix diagram depicts the work which must be performed and the assigned individual or team responsible for performing the work.

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a communications management plan

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contains a description of the identified project stakeholder information needs and defines approach for communicating during the project.

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Methods of communication

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1. Interactive communication: meetings, phone calls, etc. 2. Push communication: memos, reports, faxes, etc. 3. Pull communication: intranet sites, knowledge repositories, etc.

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Project risk planning processes

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1. Plan Risk Management 2. Identify Risks 3. Perform Qualitative Risk Analysis 4. Perform Quantitative Risk Analysis 5. Plan Risk Responses

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Risk Management

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Goal is to increase the probability and impact of positive events and decrease the probability and impact of negative events in the project. Project manager needs to understand the risk tolerance levels of the stakeholders (i.e. risk averse, risk seeker, risk neutral).

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Risk Management plan

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Document describes how project risk management will be structured & performed on the project. -Approach to managing project risks -Roles & responsibilities in managing risks -Budgeting for managing risks -Risk categories (RBS) -Definition of risk probability & impact -Risk probability & impact matrix -Stakeholders' risk tolerances -Tracking risks

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Risk Register

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Risk register is a document which is developed early in project planning and progressively elaborated in the risk management planning process. At a minimum, the risk register contains identified risks, description of risks, results of the qualitative and quantitative risk analysis, risk triggers, risk owners, and planned risk response strategies: 1. Pr of event 2. Impact of event

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Procurement Management Plan

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plan documents the goods and services which will be procured from outside the project organization and the procurement approach.

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Triple Constraint for scope

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Scope is constrained by 1. Cost 2. Schedule 3. Quality

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Risk Management Framework

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Identify Analyze and Prioritize Develop a response Establish Reserves Continuous risk management (through monitoring, updates, etc)

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monitoring and control

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monitoring and control is a set of ongoing activities that span the entire project.

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Enterprise Environmental Factors

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policies for staff hiring and firing, facilities and equipment being used in the project, tools to help you as a project manager

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Organizational Process Assets

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standards and guidelines that apply to the work being done in the project. Your organization may have IT standards that must be followed. There may be requirements for document processing or security that must be followed.

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project management information system (PMIS)

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Information is gathered, integrated, and disseminated to support the project from initiation to closure

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Outputs for project execution

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1. Deliverables 2. Data and information about tasks performed: 3. Change requests 4. Updates to organizational assets

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Key Baselines

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1. Scope: Tasks and work packages in Work Breakdown Structure 2. Time: Planned start and end times for all work packages 3. Cost: Estimated cost for each work package

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Earned Value Management (EVM

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EVM is a technique for monitoring and controlling your scope, time, and cost baselines. With EVM, you can calculate variances that show you if your project is on track. -Planned values for cost and start/end times - Actual costs - Estimate of how much work was completed

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Why's it important to manage scope

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- Failure to manage scope is a leading cause of project failure - ensures team is working within their resource parameters

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tips to control scope creep

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- ensure team knows project scope - Understands the importance of detecting activities, events, or statements that violate project scope, and informing the project manager for immediate attention

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Techniques for Handling Change Requests

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1. Use a Project Steering Team or Change Control Board (CCB) with members approved by stakeholders 2. Use configuration management procedures and tools to control the design and characteristics of products and their documentation 3. Document all change requests - even oral, informal, and minor ones

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