Project Management Introduction to Project Management

Lecture 1

Learning Objectives
Understand the growing need for better project management, especially for information technology projects. Explain what a project is, provide examples of information technology projects, list various attributes of projects, and describe the triple constraint of projects.
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Learning Objectives
Describe project management and discuss key elements of the project management framework, including project stakeholders, the project management knowledge areas, common tools and techniques, and project success factors.
Understand the role of the project manager by describing what project managers do, what skills they need, and what the career field is like for information technology project managers.
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Motivation for Studying Information Technology (IT) Project Management

IT projects have a terrible track record.
A 1995 Standish Group study (CHAOS) found that only 16.2 percent of IT projects were successful in meeting scope, time, and cost goals. Over 31 percent of IT projects were canceled before completion, costing over $81 billion in the U.S. alone.*
*The Standish Group, The CHAOS Report (www.standishgroup.com) (1995). Another reference is Johnson, Jim, CHAOS: The Dollar Drain of IT 4 Project Failures, Application Development Trends (January 1995).

Advantages of Using Formal Project Management

Better control of financial, physical, and human resources. Improved customer relations. Shorter development times. Lower costs. Higher quality and increased reliability. Higher profit margins. Improved productivity. Better internal coordination. Higher worker morale (less stress).

What Is a Project?
A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result.*
Operations is work done to sustain the business. A project ends when its objectives have been reached, or the project has been terminated. Projects can be large or small and take a short or long time to complete.
*PMI, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) (2004), p. 5.
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Project Attributes
A project:
Has a unique purpose. Is temporary. Is developed using progressive elaboration. Requires resources, often from various areas. Should have a primary customer or sponsor.
The project sponsor usually provides the direction and funding for the project.

Involves uncertainty.
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Project and Program Managers

Project managers work with project sponsors, project teams, and other people involved in projects to meet project goals. Program: A group of related projects managed in a coordinated way to obtain benefits and control not available from managing them individually.*
Program managers oversee programs and often act as bosses for project managers.
*PMI, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) (2004), p. 16.
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The Triple Constraint

Every project is constrained in different ways by its:
Scope goals: What work will be done? Time goals: How long should it take to complete? Cost goals: What should it cost? It is the project managers duty to balance these three often-competing goals.
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Figure 1-1. The Triple Constraint of Project Management

Successful project management means meeting all three goals (scope, time, and cost) and satisfying the projects sponsor! Not easy!!!
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What is Project Management?

Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements.*

*PMI, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) (2004), p. 8.
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Figure 1-2. Project Management Framework

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Project Stakeholders
Stakeholders are the people involved in or affected by project activities. Stakeholders include:
Project sponsor Project manager Project team Support staff Customers Users Suppliers Opponents to the project

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Nine Project Management Knowledge Areas

Knowledge areas describe the key competencies that project managers must develop. Four core knowledge areas lead to specific project objectives (scope, time, cost, and quality). Four facilitating knowledge areas are the means through which the project objectives are achieved (human resources, communication, risk, and procurement management). One knowledge area (project integration management) affects and is affected by all of the other knowledge areas. All knowledge areas are important! 14

Project Management Tools and Techniques

Project management tools and techniques assist project managers and their teams in various aspects of project management. Specific tools and techniques include:
Project charters, scope statements, and WBS (scope). Gantt charts, network diagrams, critical path analyses, critical chain scheduling (time). Cost estimates and earned value management (cost).
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Project Success Factors*

1. Executive support 2. User involvement 3. Experienced project manager 4. Clear business objectives 5. Minimized scope 6. Standard software infrastructure

7. Firm basic
requirements 8. Formal methodology 9. Reliable estimates 10. Other criteria, such as small milestones, proper planning, competent staff, and ownership

*The Standish Group, Extreme CHAOS (2001).

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Fifteen Project Management Job Functions*

Define scope of project. Identify stakeholders, decision-makers, and escalation procedures. Develop detailed task list (Work Breakdown Structures WBS). Estimate time requirements. Develop initial project management flow chart. Identify required resources and budget.
Evaluate project requirements. Identify and evaluate risks. Prepare contingency plan. Identify interdependencies. Identify and track critical milestones. Participate in project phase review. Secure needed resources. Manage the change control process. Report project status.

*Northwest Center for Emerging Technologies, Building a Foundation for Tomorrow: Skills Standards for Information Technology, Belleview, WA, 1999. 17

Suggested Skills for Project Managers

Project managers need a wide variety of skills. They should: Be comfortable with change. Understand the organisations they work in and with. Lead teams to accomplish project goals.
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Suggested Skills for Project Managers

Project managers need both hard and soft skills.
Hard skills include product knowledge and knowing how to use various project management tools and techniques.

Soft skills include being able to work with various types of people.
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Suggested Skills for Project Managers

Communication skills: Listens, persuades, presents. Organizational skills: Plans, sets goals, analyzes. Team-building skills: Shows empathy, motivates, promotes esprit de corps. Leadership skills: Sets examples, provides vision (big picture), delegates, positive, energetic. Coping skills: Flexible, creative, patient, persistent. Technology skills: Experience, project knowledge.

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Most Significant Characteristics of Effective and Ineffective Project Managers

Effective Project Managers Leadership by example Visionary Technically competent Decisive Good communicator Good motivator Stands up to upper management when necessary Supports team members Encourages new ideas Ineffective Project Managers Sets bad example Not self-assured Lacks technical expertise Poor communicator Poor motivator

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UK Jobs Market

Project Managers >50k

www.itjobswatch.co.uk as at 15/01/08

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A key management tool - Sample Gantt Chart

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

The WBS is shown on the left, and each tasks start and finish dates are shown on the right. First used in 1917, early Gantt charts were drawn by hand. (Use MicroSoft Project or similar tool) 23

Sample Network Diagram

Each box is a project task from the WBS. Arrows show dependencies between tasks. The bolded tasks are on the critical path. If any task on the critical path takes longer to complete than planned, the whole project will slip unless something is done. Network diagrams were first used in 1958 on the Navy Polaris project before project management software was available. 24

Project Management Software

There are currently hundreds of different products to assist in performing project management. Three main categories of tools:
Low-end tools: Handle single or smaller projects well; cost under $200 per user. Midrange tools: Handle multiple projects and users; cost $200-500 per user; MS Project 2003 most popular (includes an enterprise version). High-end tools: Also called enterprise project management software; often licensed on a peruser basis; VPMi Enterprise Online 25 (www.vcsonline.com).

Project Management Process Groups

A process is a series of actions directed toward a particular result. Project management can be viewed as a number of interlinked processes. The project management process groups include:
Initiating processes Planning processes Executing processes Monitoring and controlling processes Closing processes

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Table 3-1. Relationships Among Process Groups and Knowledge Areas

PMBOK Guide 2004, p. 69

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Table 3-1. Relationships Among Process Groups and Knowledge Areas (contd)

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Project Initiation
Initiating a project includes recognising and starting a new project or project phase. Some organisations use a pre-initiation phase, while others include items such as developing a business case as part of the initiation. The main goal is to formally select and start off projects. Key outputs include:
Assigning the project manager. Identifying key stakeholders. Completing a business case. Project charter completion and getting signatures on it. 29

Project Planning
The main purpose of project planning is to guide execution. Every knowledge area includes planning information (see Table 3-5 on pages 87-89). Key outputs included in projects include:
A team contract. A scope statement. A work breakdown structure (WBS). A project schedule, in the form of a Gantt chart with all dependencies and resources entered. A list of prioritised risks (part of a risk register).
See sample documents on pages 90-98.
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Sample Intranet Site Project Baseline Gantt Chart

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Sample List of Prioritised Risks

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Part of Sample Milestone Report

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Project Monitoring and Controlling

Involves measuring progress toward project objectives, monitoring deviation from the plan, and taking corrective action to match progress with the plan. Affects all other process groups and occurs during all phases of the project life cycle. Outputs include performance reports, requested changes, and updates to various plans. 34

Project Closing
Involves gaining stakeholder and customer
acceptance of the final products and services. Even if projects are not completed, they should be formally closed in order to reflect on what can be learned to improve future projects. Outputs include project archives and lessons learned, which are part of organisational process assets. Most projects also include a final report and presentation to the sponsor or senior management. 35

Further Information
Refer to X-Stream Project Management module for further references & materials Recommended Reading:
Information Technology Project Management 4th ed by K Schwalbe Introduction to Project Management by K Schwalbe A hackers Guide to Project Management by A Johnston PRINCE 2 a practical handbook by Colin Bentley
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