Module Three

Initiating a Project

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OV 3 - 1

Initiating a Project
Prepare a Project SOW
Create a Project Charter
Identify Project Stakeholders

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OV 3 - 2

Project SOW
A document that:
Describes the products or services that the project will supply.
Defines the business need that it is designed to meet.
Specifies the work that will be done during the project.

The project SOW for the OGC E-banking Portal project

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OV 3 - 3

How to Prepare a Project SOW

Guidelines
Review the product description.
Consult technical experts.
Determine the appropriate SOW format.
Present the information in a logical sequence.
Use consistent terminology and level of detail throughout the SOW.
Determine if collateral services are required.
Determine the acceptable criteria.
Ensure that the SOW includes key elements such as resource
requirements or estimated hours of work.
Ensure that the SOW is complete, correct, and understandable.

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OV 3 - 4

How to Prepare a Project SOW (Cont.)

Example: City of Butterfield Visitors Bureaus Carnival SOW.
To create the SOW, the project manager:
Enlisted help of the organization's chief negotiator and lawyer.
Hired a consultant to define specifications of the carnival rides.
Used SOWs created by other companies for similar events.
Recommended that the SOW be reviewed and validated by an
independent legal firm.

Copyright 2009 Element K Content LLC. All rights reserved.

OV 3 - 5

Project Team Roles

The project team will be made up of a variety of roles.
Roles refer to work that needs to be done on a project.

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OV 3 - 6

The Project Charter

A document that formally launches and authorizes a new project, or
authorizes an existing project to continue with its next phase.

The project charter for the OGC E-banking Portal project

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OV 3 - 7

Components of a Project Charter

Project purpose
Problem statement
Project authorization
Scope definition
Project objectives
Project description
Project deliverables
Project milestones and cost estimates
General project approach
Constraints and assumptions
Risks
Project stakeholders
Related documents
Project organizational structure
Issuing authority

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OV 3 - 8

How to Create a Project Charter

Guidelines
Gather the pre-requisites required to create a project charter.
Use a corporate template, if there is one.
Involve an expert if necessary.
Include project and authority ID information.
Include clear, concise description of the business need, opportunity, or
threat.
Include a summary descriptions of the project product or services.
Include a description of the projects relationships to need.
Consider any known constraints and assumptions.
Ensure that the people with the required knowledge and authority sign the
project charter.
Distribute the charter to stakeholders.
Example: Creating a project charter for an internal process improvement
project.
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OV 3 - 9

Stakeholder Analysis
The formal process of identifying all the stakeholders of a project.

The process of analyzing project stakeholders

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OV 3 - 10

Stakeholder Register
A document that identifies stakeholders of a project with information
that includes their identification, assessment, and stakeholder
classification.

Stakeholder register for the OGC E-banking Portal project

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OV 3 - 11

Stakeholder Management Strategy

A management strategy that is created to ensure maximum support
and minimize the negative impacts of stakeholders throughout the
project life cycle.
A stakeholder management strategy document can include:

Stakeholder identification.
Stakeholder map.
Stakeholder analysis influence and importance matrix.
Stakeholder list.
Stakeholder communication.
Communication efficiency.

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OV 3 - 12

The Stakeholder Analysis Matrix

A document that lists the project stakeholders and describes their
interests and the ways in which they influence the project.

Stakeholder

Stakeholder
Interest(s)

Assessment of Impact

Potential Strategies

A template for the stakeholder analysis matrix

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OV 3 - 13

Procurement Documents
Documents that are submitted to prospective sellers and service
providers to solicit their proposals for the work needed.
Document type used will depend on the type of project and the
product or service being procured.
Example: A Request for Proposal (RFP) is a specific type of
procurement document.

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OV 3 - 14

Purposes for the project

The charter contains several
pieces of information about the
charter

project that are more in-depth than the project concept

document but not as detailed as those found in the scope
statement.
o Acknowledges that the project should begin
o Commits resources to the project
o Ensures that everyone is on the same page
o Appoints the project manager
o Provides an overview of the project and its goals
Note: You may be asked to write the project charter document,
but it should be published under the name of the project
sponsor or other executive manager.
What is not on paper has not been said.

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OV 3 - 15

Project Charter for the Solutions 2.0 Project

I. Key Roles and Responsibilities
Project Manager Your Name
Project Sponsor Karen Whitmore
User/Functional Representative Joe Bailey
II. Business Needs
This project will help the company maintain a competitive advantage by continuing to provide quality training
materials in an adequate time frame.
III. Project Description
Update Solutions 1.0 to Solutions 2.0, including a tool for checking spelling and grammar errors and capabilities that
will automate specific Technical Writer administrative tasks related to the software, including entering information
regarding the project team, disclaimers and trademarks, course description, course objectives, course setup, course
requirements, and certification.
The new version of the software will enable Technical Writers to automatically check for spelling and grammar errors
and reduce the amount of time spent on administrative tasks related to the software, enabling improvement in the
timeliness of delivery and quality of training materials to our customers.
IV. Constraints
The project must be completed in three months by June 30.
The total cost of the project cannot exceed $125,000.
V. Assumptions
The Sr. Programmer has informed the VP of Software Development that he may have to hire a contractor to assist
him, as all of his Jr. Programmers are already working on other projects. Funding for an external contractor is
approved.
VI. Risks
If the project is not completed on time and within scope, the companys customer satisfaction will continue to
decrease affecting a number of items, including customer and employee retention and gross revenue.

VII. Approval
Original, signed charter is filed with project records.
Karen Whitmore, Vice President of Software Development, March 1, 2007
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OV 3 - 16

How to Identify Project Stakeholders

Guidelines
Ascertain the list of internal and external parties who may be impacted by
the project.
Use necessary documents, such as the project charter and procurement
documents, to identify the stakeholder needs.
Identify groups or individuals with specialized training or knowledge.
Interview the identified stakeholders.
Identify the key stakeholders of the project.
Classify the potential impact or support of each stakeholder.
Assess how stakeholders will react or respond in various situations
during the project life cycle.
Document stakeholder information in the stakeholder register.
Devise a stakeholder management strategy.
Example: Identifying the Computer Networks Upgrade project stakeholders.
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OV 3 - 17

Holding the Project Kickoff

Meeting
The purpose of the kickoff
meeting is to accomplish verbally
what you accomplished in writing, that is, communicate the
objective and purpose of the project, gain support and the
commitment of resources for the project, and explain the
roles and responsibilities of the key stakeholders.
Questions you may encounter during this first meeting will
include things like, "Can we really do this project?" "Can we
meet the deadline?" "Do we have the resources for this?"
"Whose bright idea was this anyway?" (this one's should be
your favorite) and so on. Answer what you can and of course
stay consistent with what's been documented in the project
charter.
The more ridiculous the deadline, the more it costs to try to meet it.

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OV 3 - 18

Reflective questions
1. How is the project initiation process group important while managing
a project in your organization?
2. Consider the benefits of identifying project stakeholders. How do
you think you can use this process to your advantage in your next
project?
3. How do you think creating the project SOWs in your organization
helps you manage your projects?

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OV 3 - 19

Quiz
1. What is the output of the Initiation process?
10Mins

2. Name at least three needs or demands that bring

about projects.
3. What is the purpose of the project concept
document?
4. What are the most common financial methods used
to weigh project selection criteria?
5. Describe the role of the project sponsor.
6. What is the last output of the project closing phase
called?
7. State the (2) purposes of the project charter.
8. Project Managers authority is HIGHEST in which
organizational structure?
9. Who should sign the project charter ?
10. What happens at a project kickoff meeting?

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OV 3 - 20