What is a Project?
A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to
create a unique product, service or result
PROJECT CHARACTERISTICS
1. Temporary every project has a definite beginning and a
definite end.
End is reached when project objectives=achieved or objectives cannot be
met and the project is terminated
– not necessarily short in duration; duration of a project is finite; projects are not ongoing efforts
2. Deliverables: products, services or results
Projects can create:
• A product or artifact that is produced, is quantifiable, and can be either an
end item in itself or a component item
• A capability to perform a service
• A result, such as outcomes or documents
Uniqueness is an important characteristic of project deliverables
• The presence of repetitive elements does not change the fundamental
uniqueness of the project work.
3. Progressive Elaboration
• Developing in steps and continuing by increments
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
To have a successful software project, the
project objectives should be clearly
defined
S – specific, that is, concrete and well-defined
M – measurable, that is, satisfaction of the
objective can be objectively judged
A – achievable, that is, it is within the power of the
individual or group concerned to meet the target
R – relevant, the objective must relevant to the true
purpose of the project
T – time constrained: there is defined point in
time by which the objective should be achieved
Projects vs Operational Work
Organizations perform work (task) to achieve a set of objectives.
Generally, work can be categorized as either projects or operations, although
the two sometimes overlap.
They share many of the following characteristics:
• Performed by people
• Constrained by limited resources
• Planned, executed, and controlled.
Projects and operations differ primarily in that operations are ongoing and
repetitive, while projects are temporary and unique.
The objectives of projects and operations are fundamentally different.
The purpose of a project is to attain its objective and then terminate.
Conversely, the objective of an ongoing operation is to sustain the
business.
Project concludes when its specific objectives have been attained, while
operations adopt a new set of objectives and the work continues.
Are software projects really different from other projects?
Not really! …but…
• Invisibility
• Complexity
• Conformity
• Flexibility
make software more problematic to build
than other engineered artefacts.
What is management?
This involves the following activities:
• Planning – deciding what is to be done
• Organizing – making arrangements
• Staffing – selecting the right people for
the job
• Directing – giving instructions
• Monitoring – checking on progress
• Controlling – taking action to remedy hold-ups
• Innovating – coming up with solutions when
problems emerge
• Representing – liaising with clients, users,developers and other stakeholders
What is Project Management
Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and
techniques to project activities to meet project requirements.
• Project management is accomplished through the application and
integration of the project management processes of initiating,
planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing.
• The project manager is the person responsible for accomplishing the
project objectives
Managing a Project Includes:
• Identifying requirements
• Establishing clear and achievable objectives
• Balancing the competing demands for quality, scope, time and cost
• Adapting the specifications, plans, and approach to the different
concerns and
• expectations of the various stakeholders.
Project Managers often talk of a “triple constraint”
• Project Scope
• Schedule and
• Cost
• Customer satisfaction
The relationship among these factor is such that if any one of the three factor
changes, at least one other factor is likely to be affected.
Project Managers also Manage projects in response to uncertainty
Project risk is an uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a
positive or negative effect on at lease one project objective
The Project Management team has a professional responsibility to its
stakeholders including customers, the performing organization and the
public
Activities covered by project management
Feasibility study: Is project technically feasible and worthwhile from a
business point of view?
Planning: Only done if project is feasible
Execution: Implement plan, but plan may be changed as we go along
Project Management Knowledge Areas
Project Integration Management
Project Scope Management
Project Time Management
Project Cost Management
Project Quality Management
Project Human Resource Management
Project Communications Management
Project Risk Management
Project Procurement Management
Areas of Expertise Needed by the Project Team
Application Area Knowledge, Standards and Regulations
Functional departments and supporting disciplines, such as legal,
production and inventory management, marketing, logistics, and
personnel
Technical elements, such as software development or
engineering, and sometimes a specific kind of engineering, such
as water and sanitation engineering or construction engineering
Management specializations, such as government contracting,
community development, and new product development
Industry groups, such as automotive, chemical, agriculture, and
financial services.
• Understanding the Project Environment
Cultural and Social Environment
International and Political Environment
Physical Environment
• General Management Knowledge & Skills
• Interpersonal Skills
Effective Communication
Influencing the Organization
Leadership
Motivation
Negotiation and conflict Management
Problem Solving
PROJECT LIFE CYCLE
Phase 1 : Identification of Need
Need identification is the initial phase of the project life cycle.
The customer
identifies a need, a problem or an opportunity for a better way of doing
something and therefore sees some benefit to undertaking a project that will
result in an improvement or advantage over the existing condition.
Project Selection involves :
1. Evaluating various needs or opportunities
2. Deciding which of these should move forward as a project to be
implemented
3. Benefits and consequences need to be considered and evaluated.
They could be quantitative and qualitative, tangible and intangible
The Steps in project Selection are :
– Develop a set of
criteria against which the opportunity will be
evaluated
– List assumptions that will be used as the basis for each opportunity
– Gather data and information for each opportunity to help ensure an
intelligent decision regarding project selection
• Preliminary Financial Estimates associated with each opportunity
• Gather information about each stakeholder
– Evaluate the opportunity against the criteria
Customer requesting proposals from individuals, a project team or
organizations to address the identified need or solve the problem.
The
need and requirements are usually written up by the customer
in a document called a Request for Proposal (RFP)
GOOD REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL:
1. Provide a statement of work (SOW)
A SOW deals with the scope of the project, outlining the tasks or work
elements the customer wants the contractor or project team to perform.
2. Include the customer requirements
3. State deliverables expected
4. List any customer-supplied items.
5. State the approvals required by the customer
6. Type of contract the customer intends to
use
7. Payment terms the customer intends to use
8. Required schedule for completion of the
project
9. Format and content of the contractor proposals
10. Due date to submit proposals
11. Evaluation criteria (experience, technical, schedule, cost)
12. Funds available to customer
Phase 2 : Develop a Proposed Solution
Submission of proposal(s) to the customer by one or
more individuals or organizations
After a customer evaluates the submissions and
selects the winning proposal, the customer and the
winning contractor negotiate and sign a contract
(agreement)
Bid/no bid decision
* Competition
* Risk
* Mission
* Extension of Capabilities
* Reputation
* Customer funds
* Proposal Resource
* Project resources
DEVELOPING A WINNING PROPOSAL
• A selling document – not a technical report
• Convince the customer that you are the best one to solve the problem. That is, the contractor
– Understands what the customer is looking for
– Can carry out the proposed project
– Will provide the greatest value to the customer
– Is the best contractor to solve the problem
– Will capitalize on its successful experience with previous related projects
– Will do the work professionally
– Will achieve the intended results
– Will complete the project within budge and on schedule
– Will satisfy the customer
• Highlight the unique factors that differentiate you from competing
contractors
• Emphasize the benefits to the customer
• Write in a simple, concise manner
• Address requirements as laid out in the RFP
• Be realistic in scope, cost, and schedule
Proposal preparation:
* Indiv/team
* Proposal mngr
* Time for review and approval
* few or 100 pages
3 sections:
* tech (understanding pblm, approach, benefits)
* mgmt (descriptn of tasks, deliverables, schedule, organization, experience, equipment and facilities)
* cost (labour, materials, subcontractors, equipment, travel, documentation, overhead, fee/profit)
Phase 3 : Implementation of Proposed Solution
• Detailed planning for the project
• Implementing the Plan the plan to accomplish the
project objective
Phase 4 : Terminating the Project
When a project is completed, certain close-out activities need to be
performed:
– Deliverables provided + accepted
– Payments collected
– Performance evaluation of project
– Feedback from customer
– Feedback form project team
Types of Contracts
Fixed-price contract
• Price remains fixed unless the customer and
contractor agree
• Customer - low risk, contractor - high risk
• Is most appropriate for projects that are well defined
and entail little risk
Cost-reimbursement contract
• Customer - high risk, contractor - low risk
• Is most appropriate for projects that involve risk
• Customer usually requires that the contractor
regularly compare actual expenditures with the
proposed budget and reforecast cost-at-completion
CONTRACT PROVISIONS
Misrepresentation of costs - states that it is illegal for the contractor to
overstate the hours or costs expended on the project.
Notice of cost overruns or schedule delays - outlines the
circumstances under which the contractor must notify the customer
any schedule delays.
Approval of subcontractor - indicates when the contractor needs to
obtain approval before hiring a subcontractor.
Customer-furnished equipment or information - lists the items that
the customer will provide to the contractor throughout the project and
the dates by which the customer will make these items available.
Patents - covers ownership of patents that may result from conducting
the project.
Disclosure of proprietary information - prohibits one party from
disclosing project confidential information, technologies, or processes.
Termination - states the conditions under which the customer can
terminate the contract, such as nonperformance by the contractor
Terms of payment - addresses the basis on which the customer will
make payments to the contractor.
Bonus/penalty payments - some contracts have a bonus provision,
whereby the customer will pay the contractor a bonus if the project
is completed ahead of schedule or exceeds other customer
performance requirements. On the other hand, some contracts
include a penalty provision, whereby the customer can reduce the
final payment to the contractor if the project is not completed on
schedule or if performance requirements are not met.
Changes:
Covers the procedure for proposing, approving, and
implementing changes to the project scope or schedule.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Project Management involves a process of first establishing a plan and
then implementing that plan to accomplish the project objective.
• Project management is an integrative endeavor — an
action, or failure to take action, in one area will usually
affect other areas.
• The interactions may be straightforward and wellunderstood,
or they may be subtle and uncertain.
• For example, a scope change will almost always affect
project cost, but it may or may not affect team morale or
product quality.
• Projects are composed of processes. A process is "a series of
actions bringing about a result"
• Project management processes can be organized into five following
groups
1. Initiating a process
• Initiation – Committing the organization to begin the next phase
of the project
2. Planning a Process
• Planning is of major importance to a project because the project
involves doing something which has not been done before.
• As a result, there are relatively more processes in this section.
However, the number of processes does not mean that project
management is primarily planning
• The amount of planning performed should be commensurate with the
scope of the project and the usefulness of the information developed.
• The relationships among the project planning processes are shown in
Figure on next slide
• These processes are subject to frequent iterations prior to completing
the plan. For example, if the initial completion date is unacceptable,
project resources, cost, or even scope may need to be redefined.
• In addition, planning is not an exact science—two different teams
could generate very different plans for the same project.
Core processes
• Some planning processes have clear dependencies that require
them to be performed in essentially the same order on most
projects. For example, activities must be defined before they can be
scheduled or costed. These core planning processes may be
iterated several times during any one phase of a project. They
include:
• Scope Planning — developing a written scope statement as the
basis for future project decisions.
• Scope Definition — subdividing the major project deliverables into
smaller, more manageable components.
• Activity Definition - identifying the specific activities that must be performed
to produce the various project deliverables
• Activity Sequencing —identifying an documenting interactivity
dependencies.
• Activity Duration Estimating — estimating the number of work
periods which will be needed to complete individual activities
• Schedule Development —analyzing activity sequences, activity
durations, and resource requirements to create the project schedule.
• Resource Planning —determining what resources (people,
equipment, ma-terials) and what quantities of each should be used
to perform project activities.
• Cost Estimating —developing an approximation (estimate) of the
costs of the resources needed to complete project activities.
• Cost Budgeting —allocating the overall cost estimate to individual
work items.
• Project Plan Development —taking the results of other planning
process-es and putting them into a consistent, coherent document
Facilitating processes
• Interactions among the other planning processes are more
dependent on the nature of the project.
– For example, on some projects there may be little or no identifiable
risk until after most of the planning has been done and the team
recognizes that the cost and schedule targets are extremely
aggressive and thus involve considerable risk.
Although these facilitating processes are performed
intermittently and as needed during project planning, they
are not optional. They include:
– Quality Planning —identifying which quality standards are relevant
to the project and determining how to satisfy them.
– Organizational Planning —identifying, documenting, and assigning
project roles, responsibilities, and reporting relationships.
– Staff Acquisition —getting the human resources needed assigned
to and working on the project.
– Communications Planning —determining the information and
communications needs of the stakeholders: who needs what
information, when will they need it, and how will it be given to them
– Risk Identification —determining which risks are likely to affect
the project and documenting the characteristics of each.
– Risk Quantification —evaluating risks and risk interactions to
assess the range of possible project outcomes.
– Risk Response Development —defining enhancement steps for
opportunities and responses to threats.
– Procurement Planning —determining what to procure and
when.
– Solicitation Planning —documenting product requirements and
identifying potential sources
3. Executing Processes
• The executing processes include core processes and facilitating
processes as described Planning Processes .Figure on the next
slide illustrates how the follow-ing processes interact:
– Project Plan Execution —carrying out the project plan by performing
the activities included therein.
– Scope Verification —formalizing acceptance of the project scope.
– Quality Assurance —evaluating overall project performance on a
regular basis to provide confidence that the project will satisfy the
relevant quality standards.
– Team Development —developing individual and group skills to
enhance project performance.
– Information Distribution —making needed information available to
project stakeholders in a timely manner.
– Solicitation —obtaining quotations, bids, offers, or proposals as
appropriate.
– Source Selection — choosing from among potential sellers.
– Contract Administration —managing the relationship with the seller
4. Controlling Processes
• Project performance must be measured regularly to identify
variances from the plan.
• Variances are fed into the control processes in the various
knowledge areas. To the extent that significant variances are
observed (i.e., those that jeopardize the project objectives),
adjustments to the plan are made by repeating the appropriate
project planning processes.
• For example, a missed activity finish date may require adjustments
to the current staffing plan, reliance on overtime, or tradeoffs
between bud-get and schedule objectives.
• Controlling also includes taking preventive action in anticipation of
possible problems.
Controlling Processes
• The controlling process group contains core processes and
facilitating processes as described in Planning Processes. Figure on
the next slide illustrates how the following processes interact:
– Overall Change Control —coordinating changes across the entire
project.
– Scope Change Control —controlling changes to project scope.
– Schedule Control —controlling changes to the project schedule.
– Cost Control —controlling changes to the project budget.
– Quality Control —monitoring specific project results to determine if
they comply with relevant quality standards and identifying ways to
eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance.
– Performance Reporting —collecting and disseminating performance
information. This includes status reporting, progress measurement, and
forecasting.
– Risk Response Control —responding to changes in risk over the course
of the project.
PLANNING
Project Plan
The project plan is a formal, approved document used to
manage and control project execution. It Includes :
– Project charter.
– A description of the project management approach or strategy (a summary
of the individual management plans from the other knowledge areas).
– Scope statement, which includes the project deliverables and the project
objectives.
– Work breakdown structure (WBS) to the level at which control will be
exercised.
– Cost estimates, scheduled start dates, and responsibility assignments to
the level of the WBS at which control will be exercised.
– Performance measurement baselines for schedule and cost.
– Major milestones and target dates for each.
– Key or required staff.
– Key risks, including constraints and assumptions, and planned responses
for each.
– Subsidiary management plans, including scope management plan,
schedule management plan, etc.
– Open issues and pending decisions.
PURPOSE OF PROJECT PLAN
• Guide project Execution
• Document Project Planning assumptions
• Document Project Planning decisions regarding
alternatives chosen
• Facilitate communication among stakeholders
• Define key management review as to content,
extend and timing
• Provide a baseline for progress measurement and
project control
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
• The second step is to determine what activities need to be performed.
– Approaches
• Small Projects : Brainstorm
• Complex Projects : WBS
• A list of all the activities must be developed.
• The WBS is a hierarchical tree of end items to be accomplished.
• A work item is one small piece of the project.
• A work package is the lowest-level item.
• Criteria for deciding the “How Many Levels in WBS
– The level at which a single individual or organization can be
assigned responsibility and accountability for accomplishing the
work package
– the level at which you want to control the budget and monitor and
collect cost data during the project.
Responsibility Matrix
• Displays in tabular format the individuals
responsible for accomplishing the work items in
WBS.
• It is a useful tool because it emphasizes who is
responsible for each work item and shows each
individual’s role in supporting the overall project
• “X” can be used to indicate who is responsible.
• “P” indicates who has primary responsibility.
• “S” indicates who has secondary responsibility.
Activities, Defined
• An activity is a piece of work that consumes time.
• It does not necessarily require the expenditure of effort
by people
Developing the Network Plan
• After all activities have been defined, they are
graphically portrayed in a network diagram that
shows the appropriate sequence and
interrelationships needed to accomplish the
overall project work scope.
• Two network planning techniques were developed
in the 1950’s:
– Program evaluation and review technique
(PERT)
– Critical path method (CPM)
• Network Diagram shows the sequential flow and
interrelationships of activities.
GANTT CHART
• Gantt charts, or bar charts, are popular due to their
simplicity.
• The Gantt Charts combines the two functions of
planning and scheduling
– Activities are listed down the left-hand side.
– A time scale is shown along the bottom.
– The estimated duration for each activity is indicated by a
line or bar spanning the period during which the activity
is expected to be accomplished
– Column that indicate who is responsible for each task
can be added to the chart.
• With Gantt Charts, the scheduling of activities
occurs simultaneously with their planning
• Do not display the interrelationships of activities.
• If one activity is delayed, it is not obvious how
that will affect other activities.
• Most project management software can show
interdependencies with arrows.
Total Slack, Defined
• The difference between the calculated earliest finish time of the very
last activity and the project’s required completion time is the total
slack (TS), sometimes called float.
• If total slack is positive, it represents the maximum amount of time
that the activities on a particular path can be delayed without
jeopardizing completion of the project by its required completion
time.
• On the other hand, if total slack is negative, it represents the amount
of time that the activities on a particular path must be accelerated in
order to complete the project by its required completion time.
• Total Slack = LF – EF or Total Slack = LS – ES
Free Slack
• Free slack is the amount of time a particular activity can
be delayed without delaying the earliest start time of its
immediately succeeding activities.
• It is the relative difference between the amounts of total
slack for activities entering into the same activity.
• It is always a positive value
Critical Path
• This longest path in the overall network diagram
is called the critical path.
• One way to determine which activities make up
the critical path is to find which ones have the
least slack.
• All the activities with this value are on the critical
path of activities.
PERT and CPM both are based on the network
representation of activities and their scheduling
that determines the most critical activities to be
controlled so as to meet the completion date of
the project.
It is an event-oriented network because in the analysis of
network emphasis is given on important stages of completion of
task rather than the activities required to be performed to reach
to a particular event or task
• A pert is normally used for projects involving activities of nonrepetitive
nature in which time estimates are uncertain.
• It helps in pin pointing critical areas in a project so that necessary
adjustment can be made to meet the scheduled completion date
of the project.
