Introduction to Projects and

Project management
 What Is a Project?
• A project is “a temporary endeavor undertaken
to create a unique product, service, or result.”
• Operations is work done to sustain the business.
• A project ends when its objectives have been
reached, or the project has been terminated.
• Projects can be large or small and take a short or
long time to complete.

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 What Is a Project?
“A temporary endeavor undertaken to create
a unique product or service.”*
Te rm Me a n s th a t a P r o je c t
temporary Has a beginning and end
endeavor Involves effort, work
to create Has an intention to produce something
(project "deliverables"
unique One of a kind, rather than a collection of
identical items
product Tangible objects, but could include things like
computer software, film or stage works
service Might include the establishment of a day-care
center, for instance, but not its daily
operations.

*2000 PMBOK Guide (p. 4).

 Project Stakeholders
• Stakeholders are the people involved in or affected by
project activities.

• Stakeholders include:
– Project sponsor
– Project manager
– Project team
– Support staff
– Customers
– Users
– Suppliers
– Opponents to the project

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 History of Project Management
• Some people argue that building the Egyptian
pyramids was a project, as was building the Great
Wall of China.

• Most people consider the Manhattan Project to

be the first project to use “modern” project
management.
– This three-year, $2 billion (in 1946 dollars) project had
a separate project and technical managers.

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 Advantages of Using Formal
Project Management
• Better control of financial, physical, and human
resources.
• Improved customer relations.
• Shorter development times.
• Lower costs.
• Higher quality and increased reliability.
• Higher profit margins.
• Improved productivity.
• Better internal coordination.
• Higher worker morale (less stress).

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 Project Success Factors
1. Executive support 7. Firm basic requirements
2. User involvement 8. Formal methodology
3. Experienced project manager 9. Reliable estimates
4. Clear business objectives 10. Other criteria, such as small
5. Minimized scope milestones, proper planning,
6. Standard software competent staff, and
infrastructure ownership

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Project Management Knowledge Areas
Nine Project Management Knowledge Areas

1. Integration Management
2. Scope Management
3. Time Management
4. Cost Management
5. Quality Management
6. Human Resource Management
7. Communications Management
8. Risk Management
9. Procurement Management
 #1—Project Integration Management

• Bringing it All Together:

– Building the Project Plan
– Project Execution
– Integrated Change Control
• Project Management “Nerve Center”
 #2—Project Scope Management
• Staying Vigilant in Defining and Containing
Scope throughout the Project
– Project Initiation
– Scope Planning
– Scope Definition
– Scope Verification
– Scope Change Control
 #3—Project Time Management
• Determining What Gets Done and When
through:
– Activity Definition
– Activity Sequencing
– Activity Duration Estimating
– Schedule Development
– Schedule Control
 #4—Project Cost Management
• Planning for Resources
•
•
•
Estimating Costs
Creating the Budget 
Managing/Controlling
the Budget
 #5—Project Quality Management
• Quality Planning
• Quality Assurance
• Quality Control
#6—Project Human Resource Management

• Organizational Planning
• Staff Acquisition
• Team Development
#7—Project Communications Management

• Keeping Stakeholders Informed

(and Involved!)
– Communications Planning
– Dissemination of Information
– Progress Reporting
– Administrative Closure
 #8—Project Risk Management
• Expect the Unexpected!
– Risk Management Planning
– Risk Identification
– Qualitative Risk Analysis
– Quantitative Risk Analysis
– Risk Response Planning
– Risk Management and Control
#9—Project Procurement Management

For Projects Using Outside Resources:

– Procurement Planning
– Solicitation Planning
– Solicitation s
P ’
– Source Selection RF
– Contract Administration R
U s !!
– Contract Closeout
 Characteristics of Project
• Objective
• Life cycle
– Conception
– Design
– Implementation
– commissioning
• Defined time limit
• Uniqueness
• Team work
• Complexity
• Sub-contracting
• Risk and uncertainty
• Customer specific nature
• Change
• Response to environment
• Forecasting
• Rational choice
• Principle of succession
• Optimality
• Control mechanism
• Multi-disciplinary
• Conflicts
• Part of large programme
 The Role of the Project Manager
• Job descriptions vary, but most include
responsibilities such as planning, scheduling,
coordinating, and working with people to
achieve project goals.

• Remember that 97 percent of successful

projects were led by experienced project
managers.

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Fifteen Project Management Job Functions

• Define scope of project. • Evaluate project requirements.

• Identify and evaluate risks.
• Identify stakeholders, decision-
• Prepare contingency plan.
makers, and escalation
procedures. • Identify interdependencies.
• Identify and track critical milestones.
• Develop detailed task list (work
breakdown structures). • Participate in project phase review.
• Secure needed resources.
• Estimate time requirements.
• Manage the change control process.
• Develop initial project
• Report project status.
management flow chart.
• Identify required resources and
budget.

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 Suggested Skills for Project Managers

• Project managers need a wide variety of skills.

• They should:
– Be comfortable with change.

– Understand the organizations they work in and with.

– Lead teams to accomplish project goals.

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 Suggested Skills for Project Managers

• Project managers need both “hard” and

“soft” skills.
– Hard skills include product knowledge and
knowing how to use various project management
tools and techniques.

– Soft skills include being able to work with various

types of people.

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 Suggested Skills for Project Managers
• Communication skills: Listens, persuades.

• Organizational skills: Plans, sets goals, analyzes.

• Team-building skills: Shows empathy, motivates, promotes esprit

de corps.

• Leadership skills: Sets examples, provides vision (big picture),

delegates, positive, energetic.

• Coping skills: Flexible, creative, patient, persistent.

• Technology skills: Experience, project knowledge.

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 Most Significant Characteristics of Effective
and Ineffective Project Managers
Effective Project Managers Ineffective Project Managers
• Leadership by example • Sets bad example
• Visionary • Not self-assured
• Technically competent • Lacks technical expertise
• Decisive • Poor communicator
• Good communicator • Poor motivator
• Good motivator
• Stands up to upper
management when
necessary
• Supports team members
• Encourages new ideas
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The Triple Constraint
 The Triple Constraint

Time Cost

OR, IN
Quality/Scope
PLAIN
ENGLISH
Fast Cheap

Good
Triple Constraint Trade-Offs
Time Cost

Quality/Scope

Constraint Required Adjustment Alternatives (One or

Change Combination of Both)
Shorter Time Higher Cost Reduced Quality or Narrowed
Scope
Reduced Cost More Time Reduced Quality or Narrowed
Scope
Higher Quality or More Time Higher Cost
Increased Scope
 Triple Constraint: Setting Priorities
Priority Matrix
Constraint 1 2 3 Measurement
Time
Cost
Quality/Scope
•Must be set by customer and sponsor near startup.
•May change over time, but a change is a significant event!

E x am pl e o f a C o m pl e te d P r i o r i ty M a tr ix fo r a C o n str ucti o n Pr o je ct
Co ns tra int 1 2 3 Me a s ure m e n t
Building must be completed by
Time X October 31 of this year to
accommodate corporate move.
Costs for the project must not
Cost X exceed $22.5 million.
Must provide workspace for 120 call
Quality/Scope X center staff.
If these are the established priorities and measurements, what are
some of the implications for the project if the project starts running late
or shows signs of exceeding budget?
Project Selection
 How Projects Come to Be
• Project selection can be a difficult process,
especially when there are a large number of
potential projects competing for scarce
money.
• Some selection methods are highly intuitive;
others try to add rigor through more scientific
selection processes.
 Sacred Cows and Pressing Needs
• “Sacred Cow” selection—Senior Management wants it!
(it may often turn out well; many visionary projects
start here)
• Business opportunity (make more $$$)
• Savings potential (save $$$)
• Keeping up with competition (example, many e-commerce projects
were in response to competitor’s initiatives)
• Risk management (examples: disaster recovery initiatives, Y2K)
• Government or regulatory requirements

URGENT!!!
 First Selection Criterion
Sanity Check: Does the project fit in with the stated goals of the
organization?

Which of the following meet this criterion? Why or why not?

 An environmental group proposes a project to raise money by selling
aerosol cans of a powerful new pesticide.
 A video store chain proposes to develop a web site for ordering and
distributing videos.
 A bank offers a free rifle to anyone opening a new savings account.
 A restaurant equipment manufacturer decides to introduce a line of high-
end refrigerators for the consumer market.
 Selection Tools
Nu m e ric Me th o d De sc riptio n
Payback Period Determines how quickly a project
recoups its costs
Net Present Value Estimates the current worth of
anticipated cash flows resulting from
the project
Unweighted Selection Scores multiple projects against a set
of selection criteria, with all criteria
being equal
Weighted Selection Scores multiple projects against a set
of selection criteria, with each
criterion assigned a numeric weight
Pairwise Priorities Rank ordering a number of candidate
projects by systematically comparing
one with each of the others
 Classification of projects
• Based on the type of activity
– Industrial
– Non-industrial
• Based on location of the project
– National
– International project
• Fully owned, joint ventures, M&A
• Based on the completion time
– Normal
– Crash
• Based on ownership
– Private sector
– Public sector
– Joint sector
• Based on size
– Small
– Medium
– Large
• Based on need
– New projects
– Balancing projects
– Expansion projects
– Modernization projects
– Replacement projects
– Diversification projects
– Backward integration
– Forward integration
 The Project Life Cycle
G e n e r a l F o r m o f a P r o je c t L ife C y c le

P r o je c t

P hase 1 P hase 2 P hase 3 P h a s e ... P h a s e "n "

 Project Life Cycles Are Like Snowflakes!
S im p le T h r e e - P h a s e P r o je c t L if e C y c le

P r o je c t

In itia tio n E x e c u tio n C lo s e - O u t

N in e - P h a s e P r o je c t L if e C y c le

P r o je c t

F o r m u la te C o n c e p t E v a lu a t e C o n c e p t V e r if y S c o p e D e s ig n C o n s tru c t D e p lo y M a in t a in C lo s e
 “Our” Project Life Cycle
P r o je c t L ife C y c le U s e d in th is W o r k s h o p

P r o je c t

In itia tio n D e f in it io n P la n n in g Im p le m e n ta tio n C lo s u r e

P h ase Pu r po se
Initiation Introduce proje ct to attain approval and cre ate proje ct
charte r
De finition Docume nt proje ct scope , de live rable s, and me thods for
containing scope .
Planning Cre ate plan docume nting the activitie s re quire d to
comple te the proje ct, along with se que nce of activitie s,
re source s assigne d to the activitie s, and re sulting
sche dule and budge ts.
Imple me ntation Exe cute and manage the plan, using artifacts cre ate d in
the planning phase .
Closure Formally re vie w the proje ct, including le ssons le arne d and
turnover of proje ct docume ntation.
 Continuous Improvement

Lessons
Learned

P r o je c t

I n it ia tio n D e fin itio n P la n n in g I m p le m e n ta tio n C lo s u r e

 A Word About Tools

• Many people assume that project

management is all about
management software.
• That’s like saying that residential
construction is all about hammers!
• Such tools will often make your
work simpler and handle complex
calculations with ease.
• However, without a solid
understanding of PM concepts, the
tools often provide an illusion of
project control that does not exist.
• Learn the concepts, then the tool.
Writing SMART Objectives

S pecific
Objectives should be stated in terms that include that include
some quantitative target for the end product.

M easuable
There should be some way of actually testing whether or not
that stated target has been met.

A ttainable
The desired objective must be one that is actually possible to
achieve within the time and cost parameters provided.

R elevant
The desired objective should relate directly to the
organization's business needs and stated mission.

T
The boundaries for completion date of the desired objective
should be either a specific date or time or an "offset" from the
beginning of the project. (For example, must be completed
within five months of project launch.)
ime-Bound
 Project Assumptions
• Almost every lesson includes
the reminder “Don’t Assume!!”
• Turn that around and make it
“Document Assumptions!”
– Don’t expect others to read your mind.
– Capture as many assumptions as possible to include in
your initial project charter.
– Don’t be surprised if others do not share all your
assumptions. This is the time to resolve differences—
before the project is underway!