Assignment

On

“Project Management”

Submitted To: Submitted By:

Prof. (Dr.) J P Saxena AMBUJ PURI
B-37

Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing

and managing resources to bring about the successful completion of specific engineering
project goals and objectives. It is sometimes conflated with program management,
however technically it is actually a higher level construction: a group of related and
somehow interdependent engineering projects. A project is a temporary endeavor, having
a defined beginning and end (usually constrained by date, but can be by funding or
deliverables), undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives, usually to bring about
beneficial change or added value. The temporary nature of projects stands in contrast
to business as usual (or operations), which are repetitive, permanent or semi-permanent
functional work to produce products or services. In practice, the management of these
two systems is often found to be quite different, and as such requires the development of
distinct technical skills and the adoption of separate management.

The primary challenge of project management is to achieve all of the engineering project
goals and objectives while honoring the preconceived project constraints. Typical
constraints are scope, time, and budget. The secondary—and more ambitious—challenge
is to optimize the allocation and integration of inputs necessary to meet pre-defined
objectives.

The traditional approach

A traditional phased approach identifies a sequence of steps to be completed. In the
"traditional approach", we can distinguish 5 components of a project (4 stages plus
control) in the development of a project:

Typical development phases of a engineering project

 Project initiation stage;

  Project planning and design stage;
 Project execution and construction stage;
 Project monitoring and controlling systems;
 Project completion.

Not all the projects will visit every stage as projects can be terminated before they reach
completion. Some projects do not follow a structured planning and/or monitoring stages.
Some projects will go through steps 2, 3 and 4 multiple times.

Many industries use variations on these project stages. For example, when working on a
brick and mortar design and construction, projects will typically progress through stages
like Pre-Planning, Conceptual Design, Schematic Design, Design Development,
Construction Drawings (or Contract Documents), and Construction Administration.
In software development, this approach is often known as the waterfall model,[16] i.e., one
series of tasks after another in linear sequence. In software development many
organizations have adapted the Rational Unified Process (RUP) to fit this methodology,
although RUP does not require or explicitly recommend this practice. Waterfall
development works well for small, well defined projects, but often fails in larger projects
of undefined and ambiguous nature. The Cone of Uncertainty explains some of this as the
planning made on the initial phase of the project suffers from a high degree of
uncertainty. This becomes especially true as software development is often the realization
of a new or novel product. In projects where requirements have not been finalized and
can change, requirements management is used to develop an accurate and complete
definition of the behavior of software that can serve as the basis for software
development.[17] While the terms may differ from industry to industry, the actual stages
typically follow common steps to problem solving — "defining the problem, weighing
options, choosing a path, implementation and evaluation."

Project Phases
In racing car driving, activities follow a tried and tested sequence. Any attempt to
shortcut the process will most likely lead to a crashed car and a lost race. The same is true
for managing projects. There is a sequence that needs to be followed if the project is to be
successful. This sequence and a short description of each project phase are described
here.

Initiate

In this first project management phase, the preliminary work is done to clarify the
problem or opportunity and how a solution would look. All interested parties (the project
stakeholders) are consulted and the project scope – what is in and what is out – is
clarified as well as initial costings and timelines.

Initiating Process Group Processes

The initiation processes determine the nature and scope of the project. If this stage is not
performed well, it is unlikely that the project will be successful in meeting the business’
needs. The key project controls needed here are an understanding of the business
environment and making sure that all necessary controls are incorporated into the project.
Any deficiencies should be reported and a recommendation should be made to fix them.

The initiation stage should include a plan that encompasses the following areas:

 Analyzing the business needs/requirements in measurable goals

 Reviewing of the current operations
 Financial analysis of the costs and benefits including a budget
 Stakeholder analysis, including users, and support personnel for the project
  Project charter including costs, tasks, deliverables, and schedule

Plan

Here, more work is done to determine whether the proposed project will be of real benefit
to the organization. If it is, the project is approved and more detailed planning starts.
Business benefits, project objectives, requirements, governance, scope and project
management methodology are agreed. The Project Manager draws up the detailed project
schedule and task and budget allocations.

Planning and design

Planning Process Group Activities

After the initiation stage, the project is planned to an appropriate level of detail. The main
purpose is to plan time, cost and resources adequately to estimate the work needed and to
effectively manage risk during project execution. As with the Initiation process group, a
failure to adequately plan greatly reduces the project's chances of successfully
accomplishing its goals.

Project planning generally consists of

 determining how to plan (e.g. by level of detail or rolling wave);

 developing the scope statement;
 selecting the planning team;
  identifying deliverables and creating the work breakdown structure;
 identifying the activities needed to complete those deliverables and networking
the activities in their logical sequence;
 estimating the resource requirements for the activities;
 estimating time and cost for activities;
 developing the schedule;
 developing the budget;
 risk planning;
 gaining formal approval to begin work.

Additional processes, such as planning for communications and for scope management,
identifying roles and responsibilities, determining what to purchase for the project and
holding a kick-off meeting are also generally advisable.

For new product development projects, conceptual design of the operation of the final
product may be performed concurrent with the project planning activities, and may help
to inform the planning team when identifying deliverables and planning activities.

Execute

This is where the nuts and bolts work actually gets done. Project stakeholders are
interviewed to ascertain the detailed requirements, possible solutions are discussed and
one decided upon. Next, the solution is designed, built and finally implemented. Project
management activities in this phase also include managing the project budget and
schedule, reporting project progress, communicating with stakeholders and responding to
project risks, issues and proposed changes.
Executing

Executing Process Group Processes

Executing consists of the processes used to complete the work defined in the project
management plan to accomplish the project's requirements. Execution process involves
coordinating people and resources, as well as integrating and performing the activities of
the project in accordance with the project management plan. The deliverables are
produced as outputs from the processes performed as defined in the project management
plan.

Evaluate

The purpose of this final phase is to determine whether the project was a success and
what learnings can be gleaned and applied to future projects. Evaluation is typically
conducted in order to answer three questions. Firstly, did the project deliver on time,
within budget and to scope and quality requirements? Secondly, were project
stakeholders and project team members satisfied with the project? Thirdly, did the project
achieve the envisaged business benefits?

Monitoring and controlling

Monitoring and controlling consists of those processes performed to observe project

execution so that potential problems can be identified in a timely manner and corrective
action can be taken, when necessary, to control the execution of the project. The key
benefit is that project performance is observed and measured regularly to identify
variances from the project management plan.

Monitoring and Controlling Process Group Processes

Monitoring and Controlling includes:

 Measuring the ongoing project activities ('where we are');

 Monitoring the project variables (cost, effort, scope, etc.) against the project
management plan and the project performance baseline (where we should be);
 Identify corrective actions to address issues and risks properly (How can we get
on track again);
 Influencing the factors that could circumvent integrated change control so only
approved changes are implemented

In multi-phase projects, the monitoring and controlling process also provides feedback
between project phases, in order to implement corrective or preventive actions to bring
the project into compliance with the project management plan.

Project Maintenance is an ongoing process, and it includes:

 Continuing support of end users

 Correction of errors
 Updates of the software over time
Monitoring and Controlling cycle

In this stage, auditors should pay attention to how effectively and quickly user problems
are resolved.

Over the course of any construction project, the work scope may change. Change is a
normal and expected part of the construction process. Changes can be the result of
necessary design modifications, differing site conditions, material availability, contractor-
requested changes, value engineering and impacts from third parties, to name a few.
Beyond executing the change in the field, the change normally needs to be documented to
show what was actually constructed. This is referred to as Change Management. Hence,
the owner usually requires a final record to show all changes or, more specifically, any
change that modifies the tangible portions of the finished work. The record is made on
the contract documents – usually, but not necessarily limited to, the design drawings. The
end product of this effort is what the industry terms as-built drawings, or more simply,
“as built.” The requirement for providing them is a norm in construction contracts.

When changes are introduced to the project, the viability of the project has to be re-
assessed. It is important not to lose sight of the initial goals and targets of the projects.
When the changes accumulate, the forecasted result may not justify the original proposed
investment in the project.

Adhering to the project phases ensures that everything is done in the right order. This
way, quality is checked and management approvals are gained before the next piece of
work is started. Rework is minimized, saving frustration and costs all round.
Closing

Closing Process Group Processes.

Closing includes the formal acceptance of the project and the ending thereof.
Administrative activities include the archiving of the files and documenting lessons
learned.

This phase consists of:

 Project close: Finalize all activities across all of the process groups to formally
close the project or a project phase
 Contract closure: Complete and settle each contract (including the resolution of
any open items) and close each contract applicable to the project or project phase.

EXAMPLE OF THE PHASES OF PROJECT IN IT PROJECT

There are a number of inputs to consider for each phase of an IT project. Not all phases
have the same number of inputs, but all inputs are beneficial to the success of the end
product. Examples of inputs for each of the six IT project phases are listed below.

Planning phase. An example of a planning phase input is the information plan, which
contains an extensive description of the company's present systems and the objective of
the project.

Analysis phase. An example of an analysis phase input is the conceptual design, which
describes the scope, architecture, and other aspects of the new system in detail.

Design phase. An example of a design phase input is the business process prototype,
which depicts the working functions of the new system or product. It also highlights
crucial or problematic areas.

Construction phase. An example of a construction phase input is the design document.

The design document of the construction phase can include references or details on
application flow, database design, and a workflow design.

Testing phase. An example of a testing phase input is user documentation. This

documentation includes user instructions and procedures that the end users will require. It
also is appropriate to test the user documentation during this phase. This will help
uncover and eliminate documentation errors that could result in the delivery of
inappropriate instructions to the end user.

Rollout phase. An example of a rollout phase input is the current systems description.
When designing a new system, it is necessary to document any changes that must be
made to the old system to accommodate the new structure. These details are included in
the current systems description.
By being familiar with the inputs of each phase of an IT project, you and your team can
be more confident that you have given adequate consideration to all required tasks in the
development of your new system or product.
 Multiple Choice Questions on Phases of Project

Question 1 Work Breakdown Structure is a part of which phase of project?

Answer
1. Initiate
2. Plan
3. Execute
4. Closing

Question 2 Out of the following which is not a constraint for project

Answer
1. Time
2. Scope
3. Location
4. Budget

Question 3 With the decrease in Time constraint which of the following decreases?
Answer
1. Effort
2. Budget
3. Scope
4. Men power

Question 4. With the decrease in Budget which of the following increase?

Answer
1. Time
2. Scope
3. Safety
4. Monitoring & Control

Question 5 which of the following project management approach is an application of Theory of

Constraints?
Answer
1. Critical Chain Project Management
 2. Extreme Project Management
3. Event Chain Methodology
4. PRINCE 2

Question 6. Which of the following project management approach is well suited for Multi-Project
Company Environment?
Answer
1. Critical Chain Project Management
2. Extreme Project Management
3. Event Chain Methodology
4. PRINCE 2

Question 7 PRINCE 2 Approach of Project Management was released in

Answer
1. 1990
2. 1992
3. 1996
4. 1998

Question 8 Signature signoff is a part of which phase of project Management

Answer
1. Initiate
2. Plan
3. Execute
4. Closing

Question 9 which of the following Project Management approach combine PROMPT

Methodology and MITP Methodology?
Answer
1. Critical Chain Project Management
2. Extreme Project Management
3. Event Chain Methodology
4. PRINCE 2

Question 10 Out of the following what is considered as the foundation for Planning?
Answer
1. WBS
2. CCPM
3. TOC
4. PRINCE