ILM level 5 Researchers into Management Managing projects ... · 5/2/2016 · ILM level 5 – Researchers into Management M.R.Harper. Draft 2. May 2016 Page 3 Supplementary information

ILM level 5 – Researchers into Management

M.R.Harper. Draft 2. May 2016 Page 1

Managing projects in the

organisation

Unit assessment guide and supplementary

resources

The materials in this guide complement the information you receive on the 1 day managing projects

module.



Managing projects is not necessarily a primary feature of the work of middle managers although ILM

have always recognised that people operating in fairly significant roles as project managers may not

have direct line management responsibilities. As a generic skill, the ability to manage a project is a

useful one to have particularly so as a researcher involved to a greater or lesser degree in designing,

bidding for support for, delivering and reporting about research projects. This makes the ‘managing

projects in the organisation’ an appropriate one to cover in the Researchers into Management

course.

Maylor (2003, p.4) offers a variety of definitions of a ‘project’ including:

Any non-repetitive activity

A low-volume, high-variety activity

A temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product or service

Any activity with a start and finish

We can thus regard a project as a connected series of activities aimed at achieving a time-bound

goal. Therefore, project management is the process of planning, organising, and co-ordinating the

activities and resources necessary to achieve the desired goal within the determined time period.

The Project Management Institute (PMI) offers the following definition for project management and

five groups of activities that comprise the project management process:

“Project management, then, is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project

activities to meet the project requirements.

Project management processes fall into five groups:

Initiating Planning Executing Monitoring and Controlling Closing”

Source PMI website: http://www.pmi.org/About-Us/About-Us-What-is-Project-Management.aspx 4.11.15

80% of the marks for the ILM assessment are achieved by providing an account of a project you have delivered, following an assessment of relevant project management tools and techniques. 20% (as usual for ILM level 5 units) is about gathering and analyzing feedback about your own performance as project manager and then offering a related development plan that builds on your strengths and addresses any weaknesses.

You therefore need to identify and deliver an actual project in order to be able to provide the

evidence and information necessary to complete your assessment. This can be a modest project but

it needs to be conducted in line with good project management practice and in a way that you can

produce a sensible narrative that addresses the ILM assessment criteria.

Below is the first of a number of handouts from www.goodpractice.net that might be of use:

http://www.pmi.org/About-Us/About-Us-What-is-Project-Management.aspx%204.11.15

http://www.pmi.org/About-Us/About-Us-What-is-Project-Management.aspx%204.11.15

http://www.goodpractice.net/



Supplementary information - Introducing and Defining Project Management

Project management is: ‘the planning, organising, directing, and controlling of resources for a finite period of time to complete specific goals and objectives.’[1] As a formal discipline, it was first developed by NASA in the 1960s to help them cope with the challenges of the space programme. It has subsequently been adopted by business as a means of reducing risk and increasing the likelihood of project success. In what follows, we discuss the important issues in contemporary project management and define the key terms.

Since its original development as an individual field of management practice, project management (PM) has reached a wide corporate audience. As a discipline, it is characterised by its practical, common sense approach. Project management thinking is fairly uniform and, although there are a wide range of tools and techniques, there is little dispute over best practice.

In addition, the launch of project management software, such as Microsoft Project, has enhanced both the level and ease of applying PM principles. For the most part, PM software programmes provide digital versions of the classic techniques. Their advantage is that they make the storing and application of large amounts of project information much easier.

It may be helpful to consider some of the key definitions in the field of project management.[2]

Project: a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product or service. A project can be any such endeavour from designing a bicycle, to setting up a new department, to putting a man on the moon.

Programme: a group of projects managed in a co-ordinated way.

Project lifecycle: organisations divide projects into phases to make them more manageable. The collective term for these phases is the project lifecycle. What the specific phases are called depends entirely on the project. So, for example, a pharmaceuticals project might include a rigorous clinical trials phase, whereas a NASA project would include a lengthy engineering phase. It is possible, however, to assign generic phases. These generally comprise:

planning and initiating

implementing and controlling

closing and evaluating

Project stakeholder: any organisation, group or individual who is involved actively with the project, or who will be affected by its development and implementation.

Project manager: the individual appointed to manage the entire process.

Sponsor: the individual or group within the organisation who provides the money for the project (n.b. The term ‘sponsor’ can have a range of meanings in relation to different research projects and disciplines)

Other stakeholders: suppliers, customers, colleagues, society, government, funders. Managing stakeholder expectations is a key skill in project management. As a general guideline, conflict resolutions should be biased towards the customer’s interests.

Other influencing factors

There are many other important influencing factors that, while not exclusively related to project management, play a key role in the successful completion of any project or programme.

Organisational culture: the unique organisational values, attitudes and practices that will influence the project. For example, in a very cautious and bureaucratic organisation, it may prove difficult to successfully propose a risky venture. Furthermore, it may take longer to act in the event of a crisis if the project team is compelled to go through several layers of authority to win approval for a suggestion or solution. The formulation and implementation of projects should therefore carefully complement existing culture.

Organisational structure: a related factor is organisational structure. Flatter structures may be more receptive to cross-functional project teams, just as hierarchical structures might necessitate strong individual leadership.

Leadership: strong leadership skills are necessary. It is important to appoint individuals who can communicate the project vision, and who can inspire buy-in. However, there will also need to be strong



leadership at the team level, and among any specialists.

Communicating: communication skills are also an important part of the process. During the project process, these are likely to include:

written, oral and listening

presentations

upward and downward feedback

formal meetings

body language and non-verbal communication

General management skills: further relevant skills include negotiating, influencing and problem-solving.

External influences: depending on the sector, Government legislation (standards and regulations in particular) may affect the running of the process. Additional external influences include the macro economy, demographics, societal and cultural beliefs and globalisation.

[1] Harold Kerzner, Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling and Controlling, Second Edition, (Van Nostrand Co, New York Second Edition, 1984).

[2] Definitions are based on the 'Project Management Body of Knowledge' published by the Project Management Institute at www.pmi.org



AC 1.1 Assess the usefulness of project management tools and techniques for managing a project within own organisation

Referral [ca. 5/20] Pass [ca. 10/20] Good Pass [ca. 15/20] The usefulness of project

management tools and techniques for managing a project within own organisation is not addressed

Project management tools and techniques are assessed generically with no reference to their usefulness for managing a project within own organisation specifically

Project management tools and techniques are described rather than assessed with no judgement made as to their usefulness for managing a project within own organisation specifically

Project management tools and techniques are assessed rather than described and a judgement made as to their usefulness for managing a project within own organisation, although the criteria used may sometimes be limited or subjective

A range of objective criteria are used to assess project management tools and techniques as to their usefulness for managing a project within own organisation

This criterion provides you with the opportunity to talk about some of the range of project

management tools and techniques you covered during the course and are perhaps aware of from

your own reading and research or other training – several of these may be different than those

typically used for research projects in your disciplinary area – for example, stakeholder analysis, but

they may potentially be very useful. You have to then evaluate them using a ’range of objective

criteria’ in relation to the management of a project within your own organisation – feel free to

include approaches you might not usually use if you believe they might be valuable. The tools and

techniques need to cover the whole project management cycle not just the initiating or planning

stage. Therefore this is about producing an argument for using a particular project management

approach to manage a project for which you are responsible in your own part of the University. The

key questions to bear in mind is, “How well would these project management techniques work for

me given limitations of time, finance, people and other relevant resources and the political and

managerial context in which I need to deliver the project, the project goal/objective(s)/scope and

the views of relevant interested parties (for example, your own line manager, research funding

bodies)/stakeholders? What relevant objective criteria can I use to assess the tools and techniques?”

The scope of the project is perhaps a key determining factor in assessing the project management

tools and techniques. The approach you might need to take to source the purchase of a new piece

of lab equipment at a cost of no more than £5000 to be installed within 6 months is perhaps

different than that taken to set up a new cutting edge research centre employing 60 staff, in a new

purpose-designed and built building with annual operating costs of £5 million. However, there will

some common elements such as compiling and scheduling task lists. There is a bewildering array of

acronyms associated with the idea of project management from PERT to Prince 2. Below are links to

two websites that cover a range of options for you to consider:

https://www.vitae.ac.uk/doing-research/leadership-development-for-principal-investigators-

pis/leading-a-research-project/managing-a-research-project/project-management-tools-for-

researchers

http://www.businessballs.com/project.htm

https://www.vitae.ac.uk/doing-research/leadership-development-for-principal-investigators-pis/leading-a-research-project/managing-a-research-project/project-management-tools-for-researchers



http://www.businessballs.com/project.htm



An example of a brief assessment of the relative features and benefits of using a work breakdown

structure or product breakdown structure is set out by Yeates and Cadle (1996, pp. 74-79):

“Breaking the work down There are two basic approaches to this – the work breakdown structure and the project breakdown structure – though, as we shall see, these converge in developing a detailed list of the activities needed to execute the project. Work breakdown structure This is the more traditional approach and has been widely used in many industries for a long time. The basic idea is to take the overall ‘work’ – the project – and to break it down progressively into smaller and smaller chunks until we end up with individual tasks, or work packages, that we can estimate sensibly and assign to team members. Product breakdown structure In recent years, another approach to project planning has emerged, based upon the idea of considering the products that will result from the project. This approach underpins the PRINCE project management method. There are several advantages claimed for the product-based approach including:

It ensures that the project’s focus is on what is to be achieved rather than how; in other words on the ends rather than the means.

When approaching a new area of work, it is sometimes difficult to envisage exactly what you need to do – in other words, the work. However, it is somewhat easier to consider what you have to develop – in other words the products – and starting from the product end is more productive

Project managers who have used the product-based approach report that it is less easy to forget something in the plans than it is when using a work breakdown approach

Once you have identified all of the products, then you can associate other things with them: what quality standards will be applied; who will review them…and so on.”

The task of clarifying the objective for the project and agreeing this with stakeholders/sponsors is

logically at the start of the project management process (initiating stage). The planning of the

project then sensibly continues with an appraisal of what activities need to be delivered, what

resources including time are required and what risks or issues might arise in undertaking those

tasks/committing or utilising those resources. For simple projects general estimates of time

required to complete certain tasks may be all you feel necessary, however for larger/more critical

project you might decide to invest the time in estimated bands of probability for start and finish

times as in the PERT approach. As you undertake such work you will think about dependencies and

the sequence of activities and for a visual representation of the sequence of activities a GANTT chart

might work well. Whichever you choose remember to provide a rationale for the choice (objective

criteria) thereby assessing the usefulness of the approach for your needs.



AC 1.2 Plan the implementation of a project within own organisation

Referral [ca. 5/20] Pass [ca. 10/20] Good Pass [ca. 15/20]

The implementation of a project is not planned, or the planning is incorrect or incomplete, or the planning is generic with no reference to own organisation

The implementation of a project within own organisation is correctly planned using an appropriate project management tool and techniques, although some aspects of the implementation plan may be partial and not make full use of the capabilities of the project management tool and techniques used

The implementation of a project within own organisation is correctly planned making full use of the capabilities of an appropriate project management tool and techniques

This criterion is relatively clear – you need to provide a project implementation plan that makes ‘full

use of the capabilities’ of the project management tool(s) and techniques you’ve already assessed

(using objective criteria) for its usefulness in relation to the project you have chosen or been

allocated and your own organisation. Given the fact that some project management tools and

techniques are suited to different aspects or phases of the project management process you can use

a number of complementary techniques in which case just explain why you’ve selected these

particular ones in the narrative.

How big or important the project is, is not really important but it needs to be appropriate to a

middle manager role (if at all possible) and the full capabilities of the project management tool(s)

and techniques needs to be demonstrated in your implementation plan.

Below is another handout from www.goodpractice.net which might generate a few ideas:

Supplementary information - Planning and Initiating

The process of planning for the project is absolutely vital to its ultimate success. Evidence strongly suggests that a project team has the greatest degree of control over the outcome at the outset of the process. We consider best practice in this vital phase.

The first step of planning and initiating is to agree the overall objectives of the project and to set a series of goals. The more specific the long-term goals are, the better. For example, it is better to aim for a 10% increase in profits than to have ‘improve sales’ as a goal. Brainstorming is a useful technique for prompting ideas.

We can split goals into three categories: immediate, intermediate and ultimate.

Ultimate goals are those that the project team will have the least hands-on control over. These should typically be related to improving the bottom-line and should be quantifiably measurable.

Intermediate goals allow more control, but are still some distance from the team. These might include ‘reducing waste by 12%’ or ‘increasing productivity by 7%’.

Immediate goals are almost entirely within direct control.

The separate goals are represented below in the goodpractice.net Project Planning Pyramid.




The key lessons are:

Goals should be agreed at the outset.

These should be concrete and easily measured.

The degree of control falls over time so it is vital to be absolutely sure that the correct objectives have been agreed at the beginning.

The objectives form the basis for the project plan. This is a document that will include the following information:

objectives

key staff including a project team and project manager

a stakeholder analysis

a scope statement covering objectives for each stage and the deliverables for each of these

a work breakdown structure

costs estimates

agreed quality measures

target dates for completion of every phase of the project

an analysis of potential risks

Some of these factors will now be discussed in greater detail.



Project scope

The project scope is the sum of all the project objectives and tasks which will have to be performed, as well as the individual work which will have to go into these tasks.

The first phase of the scope is initiation. This involves putting together a project team of people with complementary skills and finding a project manager. Important stakeholders should be included in the project team, as well as individuals with specialist knowledge.

The team is then responsible for creating a scope statement, which will set out a plan for future actions. This plan should be developed by individuals with expert knowledge of the project and its requirements. At this stage it might also be useful to conduct a cost/benefit analysis. In addition, alternatives to the project plan should be decided upon in the event that circumstances change.

The statement will outline the business case for the project and concrete objectives, describe explicitly the final deliverable(s) and list interim deliverables together with dates for completion. All tasks should be assigned in advance and individual responsibilities should be made explicit.

Having created the scope plan, the project will require a more complex plan known as the work breakdown structure (WBS).

The team should be prepared to have the original scope plan and WBS change as the process evolves.

Time

Time management is also critical. An important extension to the WBS is an activity list. This will comprise all the individual activities that make up the project. Each of these will have a start date and delivery date attached to them, and will be ordered chronologically. Obviously, this will involve estimation. One of the most popular techniques for estimating duration is comparison to previous, similar projects.

Two key techniques for planning and managing time on a project are Gantt charts and critical path analysis.

Cost

Cost management is another critical part of an efficient project process. As part of the project plan, the project team should create a resource plan, which will determine the human and capital resources needed to complete each activity. Again, these are estimates. However, they can be based on expert judgement, previous experience and industry benchmarking.

In practice, it is most efficient to make a cost estimate of each of the activities in the activity plan. Time management is again vital, as the duration of activities will have a significant impact on cost.



AC 1.3 Communicate the project plans with appropriate colleagues and stakeholders, gaining agreement where necessary


The project plans are not communicated, or the communications are inappropriate or incomplete, or there is no evidence that agreement for the project plans has been gained where necessary

The communication needs of appropriate colleagues and identified project stakeholders have been determined and the project plans are communicated appropriately to fulfil those communication needs, although the identification of communication needs is sometimes informal and subjective and a formal project communication plan may not be fully developed

Implicit or limited explicit evidence is provided that agreement has been reached for the project plans, where necessary, with appropriate colleagues and identified project stakeholders

The communication needs of appropriate colleagues and identified project stakeholders have been formally and objectively determined, and the project plans are communicated appropriately to fulfil those communication needs using a fully-developed formal project communication plan

Explicit evidence is provided that agreement has been reached for the project plans, where necessary, with appropriate colleagues and identified project stakeholders

Once again the phrasing of this assessment criterion assumes that you have devised a project plan

and communicated this to, and consulted with, relevant colleagues and stakeholders. In fact, for a

good pass, ILM want to see evidence of a ‘fully developed formal project communication plan’. This

is less challenging that it first sounds, especially if the project you are undertaking is relatively

modest. The plan might consist of a list of people who need to be involved in developing or

delivering the plan and/or those affected by the outcomes of the project and a sequenced schedule

of meetings designed to elicit information from and/or generate agreement with the people you

have identified.

However, ILM go further and want you to provide explicit evidence that agreement has been

reached which implies either minutes of meetings signed off by both parties, or copies of emails

confirming that particular colleagues/stakeholders are happy with the plan, and so on. This means

that, at some point(s) in the process, you’ll need to share you’ll well thought out and constructed

plan with relevant others and gain explicit agreement to your proposals, or agreement in principle if

the status of the project is a little more hypothetical.

An example of a project communication plan template from is shown below:



Source: http://www.project-skills.com/project-management-communication-plan.html 5.11.15

Logically you can link your communication plan to your stakeholder analysis, as shown above and

can schedule discussions on the plan at various stages of development in order to win understanding

from colleagues and support from stakeholders. Implementing a project often involves

organisational change and greater or lesser degrees of staff commitment so your communication

plan actually has a political as well as informational purpose.

http://www.project-skills.com/project-management-communication-plan.html%205.11.15



AC 1.4 Implement the project plan, monitoring progress against agreed targets


No implicit or explicit evidence is provided that the project plan is implemented, or is being implemented

There is no implicit or explicit evidence of monitoring progress against agreed targets

Implicit or limited explicit evidence is provided of implementing the project plan and monitoring progress against agreed targets

Explicit evidence is provided of implementing the project plan and monitoring progress against agreed targets

Some of ILM’s favourite managerial words are in evidence again here – monitoring and targets. A

target in a project management sense will usually relate to the delivery of a particular task or

sequence of tasks within the specified time period so that the project as a whole keeps on track. It

might also relate to checking the amount of resource consumed at particular points in time and

whether estimates (targets) for resource utilisation to that point have been met.

The key thing to note here is that ILM are talking about you implementing the project plan – they

want you to write about a real project, how you implemented it, how you monitored it, what went

right and wrong and what you did about things to keep them on track/target. Achievement against

this criterion is predicated on what you have done (and written about) for 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3. More

from www.goodpractice.net on this issue is shown below:

Supplementary information - Effectively Implement and Monitor a Project

The project plans and objectives are laid out in the planning and initiating phase, however, the project requires constant monitoring and controlling to ensure that everything stays on track. This article offers practical guidance on the implementing stage of project management, which may be used to supplement existing plans.

Successful project implementation can ensure:

customers, stakeholders and/or project team members feel that they are kept well enough informed about how the project is progressing

the project is on track with the original agreed objectives/deliverables

there is consistency in the work undertaken by various project team members

you feel in control over the project timelines, budget and quality

‘fire-fighting’ is reduced

the progress of the project is measured

you can more easily gain acceptance for the changes that are happening as a result of the project

Methodology

Put quality control systems in place

After you have set out your strategy and standards, and defined the objectives/deliverables in relation to the customers’ needs during the planning phase, it is essential to have some kind of quality control system in place to ensure that these are being met.

It is crucial that projects are carried out on time, within budget and to an agreed standard of quality. You should therefore regularly monitor your project in terms of time, cost and quality against your original plan.




The project outputs should be measurable, so that they can be easily assessed at various stages. Hence the importance of setting SMART objectives and deliverables in the planning phase.

Quality Control Systems do not need to be elaborate or bureaucratic, as long as they can effectively measure what you need them to measure.

Quality can be difficult to define and measure. It is therefore very important that you set expectations – describing clearly what will be delivered and how – when setting the objectives and deliverables in the planning phase.

One way to measure quality is to compare the work that is being done on the project to the methods, procedures and standards that you outlined in the planning phase. You can measure the extent to which procedures are being followed, etc.

In terms of time, you should regularly measure:

1. what stage the tasks are at: have they still to be started, are they in progress, or are they completed?

2. the number of hours/days spent so far on tasks

3. the estimated number of hours still needed to complete the tasks

From the above, you can deduce whether tasks are still on target to be completed within the timescales, or whether you will need to rearrange resources to ensure that they meet their target completion dates.

In terms of cost, you should measure how much has been spent so far, and add this to the planned cost of tasks still to be completed, to calculate the estimated total of all costs that will be incurred. You can then compare this to the total budgeted cost that was agreed during the planning stage to see whether you are still on target or whether you need to make changes to your spending.

Create and encourage a culture of commitment to quality in your team, and lead by example. Demonstrate that good-quality work is essential to the success of the project.

Report progress regularly and communicate clearly

Customers/Stakeholders will expect to be updated regularly on the progress of the project. It is therefore crucial to have a system in place for communicating with them.

Clarify the following with the project stakeholders/customers very early on in the process:

1. what information they need

2. when/how regularly they need it

3. who needs it

4. how you will communicate it to them (email, letter, fax, face-to-face, e.g. by holding progress meetings, or perhaps just orally, by telephone)

5. what format it should take (spreadsheet, chart, graph, written report or perhaps just a simple table)

Standardise progress reports. This will mean that they can be easily completed by the project team/yourself, understood by the recipients, and compared to each other over a period of time.

Results and figures should be transparent. It may cause difficulties further down the line if progress is not clear to all involved.

Communicate regularly with your project team. Hold team meetings or teleconferences to check on progress, resolve any problems, and allow project team members to raise issues.

Advertise the team’s achievements, progress and milestones reached at various stages, to the



project team and customers/stakeholders, as well as other relevant departments within the organisation. This will motivate the project team, encourage buy-in from others outside the project, and convey a positive message to customers/stakeholders, creating expectations of success.

If any amendments have to be made to the original objectives/deliverables/scope, ensure that these are communicated clearly to the customers/stakeholders, to ensure that their needs are still being met, that they are satisfied, and to manage their expectations.

Manage the change process

Change can be an uncomfortable process for employees, and can create disruption, suspicion, fear and insecurity. If your project involves implementing major or radical changes, such as different working practices or procedures, new computer systems, departmental or organisational restructure, or changes to employee’s terms and conditions, it is essential to plan the management of change during the implementation phase. This will minimise resistance, help to create acceptance and buy-in, and ensure that the project runs smoothly.

Consider how you will communicate and manage change early on in the implementation phase, to ensure that the change does not happen suddenly and without warning.

Plan what you will communicate. Those affected by the changes will want to know:

1. what is changing

2. why it is changing

3. how it will affect them

Decide what methods you will use to communicate the change.

Continue to plan, plan and plan!

Things don’t always go according to plan, no matter how thorough the planning. Although the planning stage is over, it is nevertheless essential to continue to plan during the implementation phase to ensure that you keep tight control on the project. By closely monitoring how things are progressing, you can identify issues, step in quickly and take measures to avoid or rectify them before they become too serious.

Although it is an essential part of the planning process, risk analysis and contingency planning should continue to be a major priority in the implementation phase. Continue to analyse risks as you did at the outset, because new risks can arise at any stage of the project, and you may identify risks that previously had not occurred to you.

Should any problems/issues arise during the project, ‘Taskboarding’ and ‘Fishbone Analysis’ are two excellent techniques for examining their causes and finding solutions.

Another key element of project management planning is human resource management. Although you identified the staffing resources you needed in the planning phase, you will need to continue to plan them throughout the project, as circumstances can change. Be clear as to how many people you need, the skills required, and the time they will need to spend on the project. And, have a contingency plan in place in case circumstances change!

Regularly compare progress to the original objectives/ deliverables to check whether the project is on track and to allow you to plan changes to resources, etc., if necessary.



AC 2.1 Use feedback from others to critically evaluate own ability to plan and implement a project, identifying strengths and weaknesses


No feedback has been used, or feedback from others is limited, inappropriate, or insufficient for a meaningful critical evaluation

Feedback relates to planning or implementing, but not both

Planning and implementing a project is merely described, with no use of feedback, or no use of appropriate feedback, to critically evaluate own ability and identify strengths and weaknesses

Appropriate and sufficient feedback has been used to critically evaluate and identify strengths and weaknesses in own ability to plan and implement a project, although the range of colleagues and project stakeholders providing feedback is limited but sufficient and/or feedback does not address the full scope of planning and implementation

A wide range of colleagues and project stakeholders have provided comprehensive and objective feedback on all aspects of planning and implementation and this has been used to critically evaluate and identify strengths and weaknesses in own ability to plan and implement a project

AC 2.2 Create a self-development plan to improve own performance in managing projects


No self-development plan is created, or the self-development plan is inappropriate or incomplete, or the self-development plan is not based on the critical evaluation

An appropriate and complete self-development plan to improve own performance in managing projects is created and is based on the critical evaluation, although self-development objectives are not be prioritised or ranked

An appropriate and comprehensive self-development plan to improve own performance in managing projects is created that prioritises and ranks self-development objectives based on the critical evaluation

The final two assessment criterion turn the focus back on your abilities to project manage and

require you to generate/gather feedback from people involved in and/or affected by the plan that

identifies your strengths and weaknesses. Unsolicited comments (if you receive any) can be a useful

piece of evidence but you will probably need to devise some sort of short questionnaire and canvas

people to comment on specific aspects of your project management approach, for example,

How well do you believe that I managed the development of the project plan?

Did you think I kept you adequately involved informed about the plan and its

implementation?

Do you feel I communicated the project plan effectively and at appropriate points in time?

Do you believe that monitoring or project implementation was done in a sufficient and

timely way?

Have you any views about how I might improve my performance as a project manager?

As usual for ILM level 5 units ILM then want you to use the feedback to construct a self-development

plan aimed at building on your strengths and addressing any weaknesses in relation to your skills as

a project manager. This then rounds off this assessment but provides a foundation for future

progress. Don’t forget the authentication claim at the end of the assessment:

By submitting I confirm that this assessment is my own work

The following from www.goodpractice.net might help:




Supplementary information - Measuring Project Success

The traditional view on the success of a project is that it should be delivered on time, within budget and should meet quality requirements. From a process perspective, this is a reasonable definition. However, the aim of any project must surely be to satisfy customer needs and expectations. Recent work by Shenhar, Dvir and Levy[1] focuses on project success measurement. The authors devise a comprehensive framework for measuring success which is outlined below. In this model, the success of the project depends on the degree to which it is aligned with strategic goals.

The authors identify four categories of project success:

1. Project Efficiency: time, cost, resource and quality issues

2. Customer Impact: short and long-term effect on the customer

3. Business Success: the effect on the bottom-line

4. Future Success: competitive advantage generated by the project’s outputs or experiences

For each of these success categories, the authors identify measurable success indicators. These are displayed in the table below:

Success Category Key Success Indicators

Project efficiency completing the project in or under budget

meeting stakeholders' quality expectations

completing the budget on a previously agreed schedule

Customer impact fulfilling a need

solving a problem

hearing subsequently about the customer's satisfaction

fulfilling a technical brief

exceeding expectations

Business success generating more market share

reducing costs

increasing profits

building the brand

Future success create new market

generate a competitive advantage

make customers more competitive

[1] Shenhar, Dvir and Levy, ‘Mapping the Dimensions of Project Success’, Project Management Journal , Vol 28, no 2, (June 1997), pp 5-13.



Closing a Project and Evaluating Success

The final stage of the lifecycle of a successful project is to review the completed project and evaluate its effectiveness. Use this practical framework to guide you through the review and evaluation stage, helping you to ensure that current and future projects will be a success.

Successful project closure can ensure:

similar mistakes are not repeated from project to project

the intended outputs are delivered

customers are satisfied with the way the project has been run/delivered

Methodology

Tie up the loose ends

First, you will have some important logistical arrangements to make when closing down the project:

Decide on the relevant documents and correspondence that need to be archived, and where you will store these files.

Even if the project has been signed off, it is important to establish a contact for future enquiries and let everyone know whom it is.

Prepare and work with the incoming team to hand over the project (if appropriate).

Reallocate any remaining project resources, e.g. money that was not spent, materials that were unused, etc.

Recognise achievements and disengage team relationships

Sometimes, concluding the operations of a team can be distressing for team members, especially if they have worked together for long periods of time. The ‘adjournment’[1] stage of a project should therefore be carefully managed.

You may wish to hold an event to formally mark the end of the team relationship. This could be in the form of a final project team meeting, party, night out or away-day. Whichever way you choose to mark the end of the team relationship, ensure that you do the following:

1. Recognise and praise team members’ efforts and thank them for their contributions. This could be in the form of some kind of bonus or reward, or by simply expressing your thanks and appreciation in a letter or email.

2. Make the achievements known and celebrate them. You may wish to do this by circulating an email outlining the project’s successes to the rest of the department or organisation, or by posting an article on your organisation’s intranet or bulletin board.

Analyse how effectively the team worked together by asking team members for feedback.

Make sure that you communicate the way forward to team members. (For example, does the team have a future role and, if so, how might it reform?)

Review the project after completion

The project management process does not stop after the project has been implemented. Reviewing and evaluating the success of a project is crucial for identifying if any further work needs to be done, and if any lessons have been learned that can be applied to increase the success of future projects.

Assess project success



It is at the evaluation stage that the need for defining clear objectives, goals and deliverables at the outset becomes clear. Without a gauge against which to measure the project, it is impossible to determine its success. The more carefully the project is planned, the easier the evaluation stage will be. Compare the initial objectives and deliverables agreed at the outset to the actual outputs.

It is quite possible that the original objectives and deliverables may differ in some respects from the actual final outputs. What is important is that there is a clear explanation for this, that the causes are examined, and that there is a definite line of accountability. In most cases, ultimate accountability must lie with the project manager.

If the objectives or deliverables were revised during the course of the project, review why this happened. Do you need to focus more attention on defining the objectives in the planning phase, or conduct a more detailed assessment of the potential problems and risks?

In the event of some disparity, examine the impact and identify whether further work needs to be done.

Examine whether the project was completed on or under budget, and whether it was completed within the agreed timescales.

Review whether the project met the agreed quality controls.

Review the success of the project from a strategic point of view. Did it build the brand, increase profits, reduce costs, generate more market share, or create competitive advantage for the business?

Evaluate customer satisfaction

The degree to which outputs meet stakeholders’ (and particularly customers’) requirements is vital.

Review whether the outcomes/deliverables fulfilled, or even exceeded, the customers’/stakeholders needs and expectations.

Review how satisfied customers/stakeholders were with the project.

Reflect on lessons learned

Review any unforeseen problems that were encountered while working on the project. Examine:

why they happened

whether they could have been avoided

what their impact was

how you will deal with them if they arise again in the future

If there are any lessons to be learned, ensure that these are noted, communicated to the project team, and that action is taken to apply the lessons learned in order to improve future projects. Reviewing project success is a pointless exercise if the lessons learned are not applied to improve future working practices.

[1] B W Tuckman, a psychology professor, identified four crucial stages of team development in ‘Developmental Sequence in Small Groups’, Psychological Bulletin, 63, 1965. Following another period of research, he identified a fifth crucial stage, ‘adjourning’, which involves the disengagement of relationships between team members and a short period of recognition for the team’s achievements.



Appendix 1: Summary guidance - Managing projects in the organisation

Centre Number Centre Name

Learner Registration No Learner Name

TASK

The purpose of this unit is to develop understanding and ability to be able to manage projects as required by a practising or potential middle manager. If

you are not currently in a management position please see the notes of guidance in the final column below about how to frame your answers

NOTE

An ILM Assessment Task provides an opportunity to relate your learning directly to your current organisation. It is recommended that you discuss the

assignment with your line manager to explore and agree how the task could be used to support the needs of your employer (as well as evidencing your

learning as part of completing your ILM qualification).

If you are not currently working within an organisation, then you may complete this task in relation to an organisation with which you are familiar. This could

include experience working in a voluntary capacity

The nominal word count for this assignment is 2500 words: The suggested range is between 2000 and 3000 words, however individuals have different

writing styles, and there is no penalty if the word-count range is exceeded.

Please use the headings shown

below when writing up your

assignment

Assessment Criteria

Additional Guidance/Considerations for Those Not Currently in a

Management Position

Be able to manage a project in

an organisation

Assess project management tools

and techniques using relevant

criteria to make a judgement as to

their usefulness for managing a

Assess the usefulness of project management tools and techniques for managing a project within own organisation (20 marks)

The best way to think about this is to review how research projects are carried out

within your area – is there an accepted existing methodology, what tools are

currently used and how well do they work, if the project tools you covered in the

course are not used or could be further developed please explain how. In assessing

the use of project tools you might use criteria such as ease of understanding, fit with

requirements of projects within your area, fit with organisational culture, accessibility



project within own organisation.

You are then required to plan a

project within own organisation

using an appropriate project

management tool and techniques;

Communicate the project plans to

meet the identified communication

needs of appropriate colleagues

and project stakeholders, reaching

agreement for the project where

necessary,

and then implement the project

plan, monitoring progress against

agreed targets.

Plan the implementation of a project within own organisation (20 marks)

Communicate the project plans with appropriate colleagues and stakeholders, gaining agreement where necessary (20 marks)

Implement the project plan, monitoring progress against agreed targets (20 marks)

to others and so – to gain a high mark you should make absolutely explicit the

criteria you are using to assess the usefulness of the tools and techniques to your

own area.

Identify an existing or new substantial piece of work or research that is or will be

carried out within your area. Set out how you would organise this piece of work as a

project. In order to gain a high mark you should use as full and comprehensive a

range of recognised project tools/techniques as you can in your answer including

planning, project appraisal techniques and processes, risk analysis, stakeholder

analysis etc

This requires you to set out a communications plan that identifies key colleagues

and stakeholders who would be involved in the implementation of your project. Set

out what their communications needs would be/what they need to know about, how

and with what frequency you would communicate with them, and the methods of

communicating with them. Set out clearly how you would gain the agreement of

these colleagues and stakeholders to the project plan

If you are not currently in a management position describe how you would go about

implementing the project plan. Take care to describe explicitly how you would set

targets and monitor progress on the project plan, what you would do if progress falls

behind the plan and how you would ensure that all involved keep on track

Be able to evaluate own ability

to manage a project

Use feedback from others to critically evaluate own ability to plan and implement a project, identifying strengths and weaknesses (12 marks)

If you are currently in a management position seek feedback from perhaps your

direct reports, peers, manager and any relevant others on their perceptions of your

ability to both PLAN and IMPLEMENT a project – to this end you might use a

checklist listing items under PLANNING and IMPLEMENTING to prompt views of

others . Ensure that you summarise who has given feedback and make sure that



Use feedback from others to

critically evaluate and identify

strengths and areas for

improvement in own ability to plan

and implement a project, and then

to create a self-development plan

to improve own performance in

managing projects based on the

critical evaluation.

Create a self-development plan to improve own performance in managing projects (8 marks)

you distinguish between your strengths and weaknesses in both PLANNING and

IMPLEMENTATION. If you are not currently in a management position then your

feedback may be more speculative based on others’ assessment of your potential

to manage projects or their existing knowledge of your planning and organisational

skills – where this is the case do though make sure that you are explicit about who

has provided feedback to you and how many people.

Working from the above assessment set out a personal development plan that

summarises how you will consolidate and build on current strengths and develop

your weaknesses in managing projects. Ensure that the plan links to the above

assessment. Make sure that you vary the development activities you will undertake.

It would be most helpful if you set out your development plan in a table that

identifies: 1. General Area for Development 2. Specific Learning Goals i.e. the

things you want to be able to do differently 3. The Relative Priority for the

Development 4. The specific activity you will undertake 5. The Target Date for

action – an example format for the plan is set out below.

By submitting I confirm that this assessment is my own work Please ensure that this declaration is appended at the foot of your assignment



References

Maylor, H. (2003) Project Management, 3rd Edition. Pearson Education

Yeates, D. and Cadle, J. (1996) Project management for information systems, 2nd edition. Pitman Publishing

1) http://www.pmi.org/About-Us/About-Us-What-is-Project-Management.aspx, 4.11.15

2) http://www.project-skills.com/project-management-communication-plan.html 5.11.15

3) Multiple examples from www.goodpractice.net

http://www.pmi.org/About-Us/About-Us-What-is-Project-Management.aspx

http://www.project-skills.com/project-management-communication-plan.html%205.11.15


Documents

ILM level 5 Researchers into Management Managing projects ... · 5/2/2016 · ILM level 5 – Researchers into Management M.R.Harper. Draft 2. May 2016 Page 3 Supplementary information