A Primer on Project Management_Metro

8/8/2019 A Primer on Project Management_Metro

1/33

1

A Primer on Project Management

Bill Altman

February 2008

Copyright 2008 Battelle Memorial Institute


2/33

2

Objective

To provide an overview of the fundamentals ofProject Management (PM)

Basic definitions

PM Philosophy

You will not be a PM but rather understand

PM philosophy so that you can use the principles inMetro School (and other) activities


3/33

3

and now a word from oursponsor.

Project Management Institute (PMI)Founded in 1969; headquartered in Newtown Square, PA

Over 253,000 members internationally (>170 countries)

- Growth: 17,000 (1995); 70,000 (2000); 149,500 (2004)

Over 200 chapters worldwide

Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)

Publications: PM Network; Project Management Journal

Over 267,000 Project Management Professionals (PMP)

- Worlds most recognized professional credential for individualsassociated with project management

- PMP Certification Growth: 2000 = 27,000; 2004 = 100,000

For more info, go to: www.pmi.org


4/33

4

What is a project?

A program or project is a temporary endeavorundertaken to create a unique product or service.

PMBOK definition

Temporary means definite beginning and definite endUnique means that the product or service is different in

some distinguishable way from all similar products orservices

Developing a new process or procedure is a project;

implementing the process on a daily basis is not aproject it is operational.


5/33

5

What is Project Management?

Project management is the application ofknowledge, skills , tools, and techniques to projectactivities in order to meet or exceed stakeholdersneeds and expectations from a project.

PMBOK Definition


6/33

6

Project Management is broken downinto nine knowledge areas:

1. Scope - defining the necessary work and deliverables to successfullycomplete the project

2. Time - involves defining the activities, putting them in sequence, makingduration estimates, and developing the schedule

3. Cost - includes resource planning, cost estimating, budgeting, and costcontrol

4. Quality - insuring the project meets it's quality objectives through

planning, quality assurance, and quality control5. Human Resources - all of the necessary processes to handle staff

acquisition, team development, and organizational planning

6. Communication - the procedures for performance reporting andinformation distribution

7. Risk - involves all the procedures to handle the project risks, such as

identification, qualitative and quantitative risk analysis, risk responseplan, along with risk monitoring and control

8. Procurement - the procedures used to handle procuring of resources,equipment, and material

9. Integration - defines how all the processes work together


7/33

7

and five phases


8/33

8

Step by Step Approach to PM

1. Scope the project

2. Schedule the project

3. Resource the project

4. Baseline the project

5. Track the project

6. Close the project

Plan the Work,

then Work the Plan


9/33

9

1. Scope the Project


10/33

10

Scope the Project

Define the work to be performed

Identify the deliverables and major milestones

Decompose the effort into a Work BreakdownStructure (WBS)


11/33

11

What is a WBS?

The basic building blocks of a project presented in alogical manner defined by the PM.

Created by PM to:

Define tasks at the desired management level

Create a list of activities or tasks which will be used tocreate budgets and track costs

Create a list of activities or tasks that can be scheduledand tracked

The WBS should only depict what needs to be doneDo not try to depict how or the order in which things are to

be done


12/33

12

Painting a room is a project An example of a work breakdown for painting a room is, to

state the obvious:1. Prepare materialsa) Buy paint

b) Buy a ladder

c) Buy brushes/rollers

d) Buy wallpaper remover

2. Prepare room

a) Remove old wallpaper

b) Remove detachable decorations

c) Cover floor with old newspapers

d) Cover electrical outlets/switches with tape

e) Cover furniture with sheets

3. Paint the room

4. Clean up the room

a) Dispose or store left over paint

b) Clean brushes/rollers

c) Dispose of old newspapers

d) Remove covers


13/33

13

Room Painting Project

Prepare Materials Prepare Room Paint the Room Clean up the Room

Buy paint

Buy a ladder

Buy brushes/rollers

Buy wallpaper

remover

Remove old wallpaper

Remove detachabledecorations

Cover floor with

old newspapers

Cover electrical

outlets/switches with tape

Dispose or storeleft over paint

Clean brushes/rollers

Dispose of

old newspapers

Remove covers

Cover furniture

with sheets

Graphical Representation of WBS


14/33

14

Scope Checklist

Do all the end elements of the WBS represent thetotality of all the work needed to successfullyperform the project?

Can responsibility be assigned for each work

package to a specific organization or person? Can responsibility be assigned for each work

package to a specific organization or person?

Does it contain milestones so progress can be

monitored? Does it show the logical breakdown of all end

deliverables required in the project?


15/33

15

2. Schedule the Project


16/33

16

Schedule the Project

For each WBS element, determine what:How long each element will take days, weeks, etc

How much time is required for each staff member

Using the major milestones as a starting point,

schedule the workDetermine the ordering of activities asking the following

the questions:

- What activities must be performed in serial fashion

- What activities can be performed in parallel

- What are the linkages between activities


17/33

17

A Simple Approach to Develop ProjectSchedules

For smaller projects with relatively few tasks you canuse Post-Its as a tool for assembling the schedule

Write out WBS numbers and descriptions on Post-Its

Staring with a Post-It entitled Start organize the Post-Itson a large sheet of paper or white board such that thetasks are sequenced in the order the work is to be done

Align tasks that can be performed concurrently

Complete the network with a Finish Post-It

Draw arrows between Post-Its to show dependencies

Transition to software tool e.g. MS Project


18/33

18

Nominal Room Painting Schedule(Gantt Chart)


19/33

19

3. Resource the Project


20/33

20

Resource the Project

For each WBS element at the lowest level assign:

a staff member responsible for the WBS element and

the resources for the work including

- Staff and time associated with the work (e.g. Joe Smith 40 hours)- Equipment and supplies

- Vendors/outside partners

- Travel

On the Post-Its you used in scheduling, write downthe resources for each WBS element


21/33

21

Staffing Checklist

Is staff loading reasonable? Is staff over committed for the time frame you are

planning?

Can less experienced staff be utilized?

Are there training issues?

Do teachers/principals/students concur with studentcommitments?


22/33

22

4. Baseline the Project


23/33

23

Baseline the Project

Once you have completed steps 1 through 4, youneed to baseline the project.

Baselining says that This is my plan for completingthe project against which I will be measured.

To baseline the project, complete a Project Plan


24/33

24

Project Plan

The Project Plan includes:Project Manager

Objective

Deliverables

Schedule

Key Staff, Their Assignments, and Hours

WBS

Major Assumptions

Risks

External Interfaces (Vendors)

Signed by the Project Manager (and Supervisor)


25/33

25

Example Resource Matrix

Painting A Room

Days 1 2 3 4 5 6WBSPrepare Materials

Buy paint

Jesse 3Paint $100Buy ladder

Bob 1

Ladder $200Buy brushes/rollers

Jesse 1Brushes/rollers $50

Buy wallpaper remover

Carol 2Wallpaper remover $20

Prepare RoomRemove old wallpaper

Jesse 4Linda 4

Bob 4Carol 4

Remove detachable decorations

Jesse 1Linda 1

Bob 1Carol

over floor with old newspapers

JesseLinda 4

Bob

Carol 4


26/33

26

5. Track the Project


27/33

27

Tracking the Project

Up to now the entire process has been focused ondeveloping a plan

You cant control what you cant measure.

Things happen

A task takes longer than planned

Output from a task yields a higher cost

Someone gets reassigned

Someone gets sick

that will affect your original plan. Hence you mayneed to modify your original plan. This is part of thetracking (aka Executing/Controlling) process.


28/33

28

Tracking Process [1]

Periodically track the schedule and resourcesagainst the baseline

Periodic (e.g. daily) meetings can identify issues early andallow for some corrective action

Schedule

Examine the schedule to determine whether the end dateof any task will be done on time, late or early

Update the schedule

Resources

Examine your list of activities/tasks to determine whetherresource usage has gone according to plan and whetherany additional or fewer resources will be required tocomplete the effort

Update the resource table


29/33

29

Tracking Process [2]

Using the Project Plan as the baseline, update theschedule and resource table on a monthly basis and submit to management for review

Highlight any issues/concerns in not meeting:

Project ObjectiveSchedule

Resource Allocations

Deliverables

If there are issues, then present suggestedalternatives as to how to deal with them

Unlike fine wine and cheese,bad news does not get better with age.


30/33

30

6. Close the Project


31/33

31

Closing the Project

Each project should close out with as a minimum a one or two page report that documents ProjectResults vs. the Objectives

Provide the deliverable(s) as stated in the Project

Plan Identify Lessons Learned

If you dont use these lessons, they are only LessonsObserved


32/33

32

Final Thoughts

"If you fail to plan you are planningto fail."

"Planning is an unnatural process,doing something is much more fun.

The more you plan the luckier youget.

"Nothing will ever be attempted ifall possible objections must first beovercome."

"Fast - cheap - good: you can haveany two."

"The most valuable and least usedword in a project manager'svocabulary is "NO"."

"Those who cannot remember thepast are condemned to repeat it."

Time

Cost

Scope

The Triple Constraint of

Project Management


33/33

33

Questions?

Documents

A Primer on Project Management_Metro