info 420chapter 3 1 sw project management project charter and plan info 420 dr. jennifer booker
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter 3 2INFO 420
Digging deeper
So far we’ve looked at projects from a fairly high level or strategic perspectiveThe business case provided a high level
justification of the project Now it’s time to focus on a single project in
more detail, and start fleshing out the details needed to make it a reality
Chapter 3 3INFO 420
Project charter and plan
The second phase of the project life cycle develops the project charter and baseline project planThese are the foundation for guiding the
project through its implementationA major role is to define subplans that,
together, will achieve the project’s goals
Chapter 3 4INFO 420
Subplans
Subplans help manage specific aspects of the overall projectScope, schedule, budget, quality, risk, and
people could each be the basis for a subplanCombined with the project’s methodology,
processes, and tools, they define the project’s infrastructure and framework
Chapter 3 5INFO 420
Project planning overview
Much of the course will focus on the details of these various subplans
For now, introduce the project planning process and how it connects to the PMBOK And we’ll link the MOV to the project’s
scope, budget, and schedule
Chapter 3 6INFO 420
Project planning overview
Ultimately the project plan will answer the basic concerns Who is involved in the project?How much will it cost?How long will it take?What will the finished product be able to do?
Chapter 3 7INFO 420
Project processes
A process is a set of activities to achieve a particular purposeJust like a kitchen recipe, or a programming
algorithm A project uses two types of processes
Project management processesProduct-oriented processes
Chapter 3 8INFO 420
Project processes
Project management processes help run the project Initiation, execution, closing, managing, etc.
Product-oriented processes are those that actually create the system or productSystem development life cycle (SDLC)
processes mostly fit in this category You need both kinds of processes!
Chapter 3 9INFO 420
PM process groups
The five project management process groups in the PMBOK define a project by the kinds of work to be done
They often overlap different project phases
They are: Initiating Planning Executing Monitoring and
Controlling Closing
Chapter 3 10INFO 420
Initiating process group
Processes typically include Developing a business case Initializing a projectGetting approval of the business casePreparation of the project charter
Chapter 3 11INFO 420
Planning process group
Processes typically includePlanning of individual phases within a project,
as well as planning the overall projectPlanning project scope, activities, resources,
costs, schedule, and procurementScope of processes should be consistent with
the size of the project Includes updating plans during the project
Chapter 3 12INFO 420
Executing process group
Processes typically includeMatching people and resources to carry out
the plansDevelop the system (software engineering
processes, testing, etc.)QA, risk management, and team development
Chapter 3 13INFO 420
Monitoring and Controlling process group Processes typically include
Balancing project scope, schedule, budget, and quality objectives
Monitor variances between planned & actualsTake corrective action when neededScope, change, schedule, cost, & quality
control processes; and communications plan
Chapter 3 14INFO 420
Closing process group
Processes typically includeGetting customer approval for final
deliverablesContract closureAdministrative closureEvaluate project against its MOVDocument lessons learned
Chapter 3 15INFO 420
Project integration management
Project integration management (PIM) coordinates the other eight knowledge areas throughout a project life cycle Includes deciding where to concentrate
resources day to dayProactive risk managementCoordinating work, and making tradeoffs
among competing needs
Chapter 3 16INFO 420
Project integration management
In many ways, PIM is a key role of the project managerHow do you keep the project on track in spite
of personnel issues, resource issues, technical problems, etc.?
Understanding PIM processes is key to producing a good project plan
Chapter 3 17INFO 420
PIM processes
Define the project charterGives the project manager authority to
allocate resources Develop the preliminary scope statement
This is part of the business case – the broad scope of what is and isn’t part of the system
Develop project management plan
Chapter 3 18INFO 420
PIM processes
The subplans mentioned earlier need to be integrated within the overall PMP
Direct and manage project executionThe project manager integrates all the
processes into one coherent project. Hopefully.
Monitor and control project workCritical are corrective actions when project
strays from the plan
Chapter 3 19INFO 420
PIM processes
Preventative actions can be a good part of risk management
Defect repair and rework are needed to maintain quality
Integrated change controlChanges to the system need to be
documented, reviewed, and approved
Chapter 3 20INFO 420
PIM processes
Need to ensure all affected parties are aware of changes before approval is given
Close the projectThis could include premature closure of the
project, if needed In any event, closure should be orderly
Chapter 3 21INFO 420
Project management culture
Some organizations beg for trouble by pretending that project management isn’t really useful
To help instill a sense of the overall project management approach, follow these six principles
Chapter 3 22INFO 420
Project management culture
Define the job in detail – know the scope and boundaries precisely
Get the right people involved Estimate time and costs, including
allowances for risks and scope assumptions
Chapter 3 23INFO 420
Project management culture
Break the job down into a SOW The SOW is a contract of project objectives
Establish and follow a change procedure Agree on acceptance criteria – when are
you done with each deliverable?
Chapter 3 24INFO 420
Project sponsor
The project sponsor is a critical role for the success of any project
It’s someone outside the development team who is not only paying for the project, but also acts as a champion to support the project and protect it from outside threats
Chapter 3 25INFO 420
Project sponsor
The sponsor: Empowers the project managerMaintains project support (“buy-in”) from other
key stakeholdersClears political and organizational roadblocksEnsures availability of resourcesMonitors project status and progress
Chapter 3 26INFO 420
Project sponsor
Approves plans, schedules, budgets, and deliverables
Keeps the project focused on the goal Since the sponsor is outside the
development team, the project manager doesn’t control them
Loss of a sponsor can kill a project
Chapter 3 27INFO 420
Project charter
The project charter is a high level agreement between the project sponsor and the project teamDocuments the MOV, which may have been
refined since the business caseDefine project infrastructure
What resources, technology, methods, and PM processes will support the project?
Chapter 3 28INFO 420
Project charter
Identify key personnel, facilities and tools
Summarize the project plan Scope, schedule, budget, and quality objectives Deliverables, major milestones
Define roles and responsibilities Identify project sponsor, manager, key leads, and
how they will communicate and make decisions
Chapter 3 29INFO 420
Project charter
Express commitment to the project Describe the resources committed to the project Who will take ownership of the final product?
Define project control mechanisms What processes will be followed for requesting,
reviewing, and approving changes to project scope, cost, or schedule?
Chapter 3 30INFO 420
Charter contents
A charter typically can contain:Project identification, such as the name or
acronym or logo by which it’s known Critical for your team coffee mugs
Project stakeholders Who are they? What roles do they play? Who reports to whom?
Chapter 3 31INFO 420
Charter contents
Project description Give a nice overview of the project, for someone
who’s never heard of it Might include the project’s vision or overall goals
Measurable organizational value Yes, it’s important enough to get its own section
Project scope Could be a formal SOW, or less formal narrative
Chapter 3 32INFO 420
Charter contents
The project scope is less detailed than the project plan, but outlines the major features of the project, and what is not part of the project scope
Project schedule – at a high level, such as major phases and overall duration
Project budget – at least the totalsQuality issues, such as the standards to be
followed, or other overall quality objectives
Chapter 3 33INFO 420
Charter contents
Resources – who is providing people, technology, facilities, etc. to support the project
You don’t want an office in your daughter’s dorm room…
Assumptions and risks Key people availability Events that could change project scope, budget, or
duration
Chapter 3 34INFO 420
Charter contents
External constraints on the project, e.g. project interfaces to existing systems
Internal constraints, such as resource competition Project impact on other parts of the organization Environmental, political, economic, or other issues
Project administration What plans will be developed to support this
project? Scope mgmt, communications, quality mgmt, quality mgmt, change mgmt, HR, etc.
Chapter 3 35INFO 420
Charter contents
Acceptance and approval Who signs off on this puppy?
ReferencesTerminology
Particularly helpful if the project scope spans many technical specialties, who don’t know each others’ acronyms and phrases
Chapter 3 36INFO 420
Project planning framework
Now that the overall picture of the project has been defined (its charter), the detailed planning process can begin
The project planning framework describes the planning process
We start with the MOV
Chapter 3 37INFO 420
Project planning framework
The project plan seeks to answer our pet perennial management questionsWhat needs to be done?Who will do it?When will they do it?How long will it take?How much will it cost?
Chapter 3 38INFO 420
Project planning framework
MOV
Scope
Tasks Resources
Phases Sequence
Time estimates
Schedule
Budget}Adapted from Fig 3.4 of text
Chapter 3 39INFO 420
MOV
We start with the MOV, which hopefully was agreed upon by all key stakeholdersThe MOV also connects to your organization’s
strategic goals and mission, so making the project happy will also support your organization
Chapter 3 40INFO 420
Define the project’s scope
Now we need to establish what the scope of the project really isWhat features will be implemented?
Might help to look at broad categories of features (manufacturing, sales, HR management, etc.) then get more detailed in each category
What systems are/are not being replaced?What job roles will be affected?
Chapter 3 41INFO 420
Define the project’s scope
The planning stage of this defines the scope in a requirements document, or SOW, or use cases, or … something
Then the definition stage groups the scope into work packages, each with a set of related features (both in functionality and priority)
Chapter 3 42INFO 420
Define the project’s scope
Then verification must occur to make sure the MOV will be satisfied by the chosen scope
The change control process is critical to manage adjustments to the scope
Chapter 3 43INFO 420
Divide project into phases
The project development needs to be broken into phases of some kindWaterfall life cycle phases?RUP iterations? ‘n’ spirals, then another life cycle?
The phases are very SDLC-dependent, and a key source for assumptions
Chapter 3 44INFO 420
Divide project into phases
Each phase needs to have clearly defined deliverables
Phases also need decision points – milestonesHow do you know when the phase is done?Give the sponsor a chance to approve the
work, and start the next phase
Chapter 3 45INFO 420
Task sequence, time & resources
Once the phases have been defined, need to define the tasks within each phase, both for product development and for project management processesThat’s key to include both types of activities!
Tasks can be sequential, or parallel, or have to start or stop together
Chapter 3 46INFO 420
Task sequence, time & resources
Resources needed for a task might include development tools, facilities, test equipment, external system interfaces, …and peopleCost for labor needs to include overhead
costs, which typically totals 2.0 to 2.5 times their salary (roughly $100k to $300k/yr)
Chapter 3 47INFO 420
Task sequence, time & resources
Time for a task to be accomplished is the calendar timeNot everyone is devoted to a project 100% of
the timeSome tasks might require many people at
onceSome tasks can be done in parallel, other
require sequential action
Chapter 3 48INFO 420
Baseline schedule and budget
So all of the tasks, their costs, and other resources comprise the baseline plan for the project
From that plan, you can determine the overall schedule (calendar months) and cost for the projectThis baseline plan is the basis for all ‘planned
vs actual’ measurements during the project
Chapter 3 49INFO 420
Baseline schedule and budget
EVERYONE should review the baseline plan for consistency, completeness, and make sure it will really result in a system that will achieve its MOVRemember, can only control two of cost,
schedule, and scope – which one can you give up?
Chapter 3 50INFO 420
Kick-off meeting
Many projects start with a formal event to start them, a kick-off meeting
It provides a clear start to the project, helps introduce the major players (front line managers), and builds team morale