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Contents
Chapter 1 (Introduction)
A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result.
Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements. Project management is accomplished through the appropriate application and integration of the project management processes identified for the project Project Initiation Context: Organizational leaders initiate projects in response to factors acting upon their organizations. There are four fundamental categories for these factors, which illustrate the context of a project Meet regulatory, legal, or social requirements; Satisfy stakeholder requests or needs; Implement or change business or technological strategies
Create, improve, or fix products, processes, or
services. Program is defined as a group of related projects, subsidiary programs, and program activities managed in a coordinated manner to obtain benefits not available from managing them individually. Programs are not large projects. A very large project may be referred to as a megaproject. As a guideline, megaprojects cost US$1billion or more, affect 1 million or more people, and run for years. Program and project management focus on doing programs and projects the “ right” way. And Portfolio management focuses on doing the “ right ” programs and projects Program management is defined as the application of knowledge, skills, and principles to a program to achieve the program objectives and to obtain benefits and control not available by managing program components individually Portfolio is defined as projects, programs, subsidiary portfolios, and operations managed as a group to achieve strategic objectives. Portfolio management is defined as the centralized management of one or more portfolios to achieve strategic objectives. The programs or projects of the portfolio may not necessarily be interdependent or directly related. Operations management is an area that is outside the scope of formal project management which is concerned with the ongoing production of goods and/or services. However, operations & scope might intersect at some points
Organizational Project Management (OPM) is defined as a framework in which portfolio, program, and project management are integrated with organizational enablers in order to achieve strategic objectives. The purpose of OPM is to ensure that the organization undertakes the right projects and allocates critical resources appropriately and ensure that all levels in the organization understand the strategic vision. Project life cycle is the series of phases that a project passes through from its start to its completion. It provides the basic framework for managing the project. The phases may be sequential , iterative , or overlapping Project life cycles can be predictive or adaptive, within a project life cycle, there are generally one or more phases that are associated with the development of the product, service, or result. These are called a development life cycle (they can be predictive , iterative , incremental , adaptive , or a hybrid model ). Predictive life cycle ( Waterfall ): the project scope, time, and cost are determined in the early phases of the life Iterative life cycle: project scope is generally determined early in the project life cycle, but time and cost estimates are routinely modified Incremental life cycle deliverable is produced through a series of iterations that successively add functionality within a predetermined time frame and it’s considered complete only after the final iteration Adaptive life cycles are agile, iterative, or incremental. The detailed scope is defined and approved before the start of an iteration. Adaptive life cycles are also referred to as agile or change-driven life cycles Hybrid life cycle is a combination of a predictive and an adaptive life cycle. Those elements of the project that are well known or have fixed requirements follow a predictive development life cycle, and those elements that are still evolving follow an adaptive development life cycle Project life cycles are independent of product life cycles, which may be produced by a project. A product life cycle is the series of phases that represent the evolution of a product, from concept through delivery, growth, maturity, and to retirement. Project Phase: Collection of logically related project activities that culminates in the completion of one or more deliverables. The phases in a life cycle can be described by a variety of attributes Phase gate : is held at the end of a phase. The project’s performance and progress are compared to project and business documents. Also Called (phase review, stage gate, kill point , and phase entrance or phase exit)
Methodology is a system of practices, techniques, procedures, and rules used by those who work in a discipline which project manager apply in their management. (PMBOK is NOT a methodology, but a recommended reference for tailoring). Tailoring is necessary because each project is unique.
Project Management Business Documents
1 - Project business case
2 - Project benefits management plan
Project sponsor is generally accountable for the development and maintenance of the project business case document. The project manager is responsible for providing recommendations and oversight Project managers should appropriately tailor the noted project management documents, In some organizations, the business case and benefits management plan are maintained at the program level Business case is a documented economic feasibility study used to establish the validity of the benefits of a selected component lacking sufficient definition and that is used as a basis for the authorization of further project management activities it lists the objectives and reasons for project initiation. It helps measure the project success at the end of the project against the project objectives The business case may be used before the project initiation and may result in a go/no-go decision for the project. A business case may include (Business Needs, Analysis of the situation (Required, Desired, Optional), Evaluation) Project benefits management plan is the document that describes how and when the benefits of the project will be delivered, and describes the mechanisms that should be in place to measure those benefits. Development and maintenance of the project benefits management plan is an iterative activity Development of the benefits management plan begins early in the project life cycle with the definition of the target benefits to be realized and it may include (Target benefits, Strategic alignment, Timeframe for realizing benefits, benefits owner, metrics, assumptions, risks) Developing the benefits management plan makes use of the data and information documented in the business case and needs assessment. It is possible for a project to be successful from a scope/schedule/budget viewpoint, and to be unsuccessful from a business viewpoint. This can occur when there is a change in the business needs or the market environment
Examples of OPA’s (Organizational Knowledge Repositories) Configuration management Financial data repositories Historical information and lessons learned Issue and defect management data repositories for metrics Project files from previous projects A system is a collection of various components that together can produce results not obtainable by the individual components alone. A component is an identifiable element within the project or organization that provides a particular function or group of related functions Systems are Dynamic, can be optimized, but can’t be optimized with components at same time, Systems are nonlinear in responsiveness. Systems are typically the responsibility of an organization’s management Governance refers to organizational or structural arrangements at all levels of an organization designed to determine and influence the behavior of the organization’s members Project governance refers to the framework, functions, and processes that guide project management activities in order to create a unique product A project management office (PMO) is an organizational structure that standardizes the project-related governance processes and facilitates the sharing of resources, methodologies, tools, and techniques. Supportive PMOs provide a consultative role to projects by supplying templates, best practices, training, access to information, and lessons learned from other projects. This type of PMO serves as a project repository. The degree of control provided by the PMO is low. Controlling PMOs provide support and require compliance through various means. The degree of control provided by the PMO is moderate. Compliance may include (Adoption of project management frameworks or methodologies, use of specific templates, forms, and tools, conformance to governance frameworks) Directive PMOs take control of the projects by directly managing the projects. Project managers are assigned by and report to the PMO. The degree of control provided by the PMO is high PMO is the natural liaison between the organization’s portfolios, programs, projects, and the organizational measurement systems A primary function of a PMO is to support project managers
Develop Project Charter Inputs: 1 - Business Documents (Business Case & benefits management plan) Business Case is most commonly used to create the project charter. Business need and the cost benefit analysis are contained in the business case to justify and establish boundaries for the project Business case is created as a result of (Market demand, Organizational need, Customer request, Technological advance, legal requirement, Ecological impacts and Social need) The project manager does not update or modify the business documents since they are not project documents; however, the project manager may make recommendations. 2 - Agreements It may take the form of contracts, memorandums of understanding (MOUs), service level agreements (SLA), letters of agreement, letters of intent, verbal agreements, email, or other written agreements Typically, a contract is used when a project is being performed for an external customer 3 - Enterprise Environmental Factors 4 - Organizational Process Assets Develop Project Charter Tools and Techniques: 1 - Expert Judgment Provided by any group or person with specialized education, knowledge, skill, experience, or training. Expertise can be from (Organizational strategy, Benefits management, Technical knowledge of the industry, Duration and budget estimation, Risk identification) 2 - Data Gathering Brainstorming: technique is used to identify a list of ideas in a short period of time. It is conducted in a group environment and is led by a facilitator. Brainstorming comprises two parts: idea generation and analysis. Brainstorming can be used to gather data and solutions or ideas from stakeholders, subject matter experts (SME), and team members when developing the project charter. Focus Groups: bring together stakeholders and subject matter experts to learn about the perceived project risk, success criteria , and other topics in a more conversational way than a one-on-one interview. A trained moderator guides through an interactive discussion. Interviews: used to obtain information on high-level requirements , assumptions or constraints , approval criteria, and other information from stakeholders by talking directly to them.
3 - Interpersonal and Team Skills Conflict Management: Conflict management can be used to help bring stakeholders into alignment on the objectives, success criteria, high-level requirements, project description, summary milestones, and other elements of the charter. Facilitation: ability to effectively guide a group event to a successful decision, solution, or conclusion. A facilitator ensures that there is effective participation , that participants achieve a mutual understanding , that all contributions are considered, that conclusions or results have full buy-in according to the decision process established for the project, and that the actions and agreements achieved are appropriately dealt with afterward. Meeting Management: includes preparing the agenda , ensuring that a representative for each key stakeholder group is invited , and preparing and sending the follow-up minutes and actions. 4 - Meetings Meetings are held with key stakeholders to identify the project objectives, success criteria, key deliverables, high-level requirements, summary milestones, and other summary information Develop Project Charter Outputs: 1 - Project Charter It documents high-level information on the project/product or result the projects intended to satisfy such Project purpose Milestone schedule Project exit criteria Objectives and success criteria Preapproved financial resources Assigned project manager, responsibility and authority High-level requirements Key stakeholders list Name of sponsor or persons authorizing project charter Overall project risk Project Approval requirements 2 - Assumption Log High level strategic and operational assumptions and constraints are normally identified in the business case before the project is initiated and will flow into the project charter. Lower-level activity and task assumptions are generated throughout the project such as defining technical specifications, estimates, the schedule, risks, etc. The assumption log is used to record all assumptions and constraints throughout the project life cycle.
Checklists: May guide the project manager to develop the plan or may help to verify that all the required information is included in the project management plan Focus Groups: bring together stakeholders to discuss the project management approach and the integration of the different components of the project management plan Interviews: Interviews are used to obtain specific information from stakeholders to develop the project management plan or any component plan or project document 3 - Interpersonal and Team Skills Conflict Management Facilitation Meeting Management 4 - Meetings Meetings are used to discuss the project approach, determine how work will be executed to accomplish the project objectives, and establish the way the project will be monitored and controlled kick-off meeting is usually associated with the end of planning and the start of executing. Its purpose is to communicate the objectives of the project, gain the commitment of the team for the project, and explain the roles and responsibilities of each stakeholder For small projects , there is usually only one team that performs the planning and the execution. In this case, the kick-off occurs shortly after initiation , in the Planning Process Group, because the team is involved in planning For large projects , a project management team normally does the majority of the planning, and the remainder of the project team is brought on when the initial planning is complete, at the start of the development/implementation. In this instance, the kick-off meeting takes place with processes in the Executing Process Group Multiphase projects will typically include a kick-off meeting at the beginning of each phase . Develop Project Management Plan Outputs: 1 - Project Management Plan Which includes Subsidiary management plans: (Scope Management plan, Requirements management plan, Schedule management plan, Cost management plan, Quality management plan, Resource management plan, Communications management plan, Risk management plan, Procurement management plan, Stakeholder engagement plan.)
Baselines Scope Baseline : approved version of a scope statement, work breakdown structure (WBS), and its associated WBS dictionary, which is used as a basis for comparison Schedule Baseline : The approved version of the schedule model that is used as a basis for comparison to the actual results. Cost Baseline : The approved version of the time-phased project budget that is used as a basis for comparison to the actual results. Additional components Change management plan : Describes how the change requests throughout the project will be formally authorized and incorporated. Configuration management plan : Describes how the information about the items of the project (and which items) will be recorded and updated so that the product, service, or result of the project remains consistent and/or operative. Performance measurement baseline : An integrated scope-schedule-cost plan for the project work against which project execution is compared to measure and manage performance. Project life cycle : Describes the series of phases that a project passes through from its initiation to its closure. Development approach : Describes the product, service, or result development approach, such as predictive, iterative, agile, or a hybrid model. Management reviews: Identifies the points in the project when the project manager and relevant stakeholders will review the project progress to determine if performance is as expected, or if preventive or corrective actions are necessary. Project management plan is one of the primary documents used to manage the project, other project documents are also used. These other documents are not part of the project management plan; however, they are necessary to manage the project effectively
The approved change request may be a corrective action, a preventive action, or a defect repair. Approved change requests are scheduled and implemented by the project team and can impact any area of the project or project management plan. The approved change requests can also modify the formally controlled project management plan components or project documents. 4 - Enterprise Environmental Factors 5 - Organizational Process Assets Direct and Manage Project Work Tools and Techniques: 1 - Expert Judgment 2 - Project Management Information System (PMIS) PMIS provides access to information technology (IT) software tools, such as scheduling software, work authorization systems, configuration management systems, information collection and distribution systems. Automated gathering and reporting on key performance indicators ( KPI ) can be part of this system. 3 - Meetings Type of meetings (Kick-off, technical, sprint, iteration planning, Scrum daily standups, steering group, problem solving, progress update and retrospective meetings) Direct and Manage Project Work Outputs: 1 - Deliverables A deliverable is any unique and verifiable product, result, or capability to perform a service that is required to be produced to complete a process, phase, or project Deliverables are typically the outcomes of the project and can include components of the project management plan Change control should be applied once the first version of a deliverable has been completed The control of multiple deliverable versions is supported by configuration management tools. 2 - Work Performance Data Data are often viewed as the lowest level of detail from which information is derived by other processes. Example of Work Performance Data is ( KPI , actual start and finish dates, deliverable status, technical performance, story points completed)
3 - Issue Log Project document where all the issues are recorded and tracked. Data on issues may include Issue log is created for the first time as an output of this process Issue log is updated as a result of the monitoring and control activities throughout the project’s life cycle. 4 - Change Requests Any project stakeholder may request a change Change requests can be initiated from inside or outside the project and they can be optional or legally/contractually mandated Change Requests can be (Corrective, Preventive, Defect repair (modify nonconforming product), Updates) 5 - Project Management Plans Updates 6 - Project Document Updates Activity list, Assumption log, Lessons learned register, Requirements documentation, Risk register, Stakeholder register 7 - Organizational Process Assets Updates
