Project Management Ch.1

The project management process

Clearly define the project objective. The definition must be agreed upon by the customer and individual or organization who will perform the project.
Divide and subdivide the project scope into major pieces or work packages. A work breakdown structure (WBS) is a hierarchical tree of work elements or items accomplished or produced by the project team during the project. The work breakdown structure usually identifies the organization or individual's responsible for each work package.
Define the specific activities that need to be performed for each work package in order to accomplish the project objective.
Graphically portray the activities in the form of a network diagram. This diagram shows the necessary sequence and interdependencies of activities to achieve the project objective.
Make a time estimate for how long will take to complete each activity. It is also necessary to determine which types of resources and how many of each resource are needed for each activity to be completed within the estimated duration.
Make a cost estimate for each activity. The cost is based on the types and quantities of resources required for each activity.
Calculate a project schedule and budget to determine whether the project can be completed within the required time, with the allotted funds, and with the available resources. If not, adjustments must be made to the project scope, activity time estimates, or resource assignments until an achievable, realistic baseline play and can be established.

Critical success factors

Planning and communication are critical to successful project management. They prevent problems from occurring or minimize their impact on the achievement of the project objectives when they do occur.
Taking the time to develop a well thought out plan before the start of the project is critical to the successful accomplishment of any project.
A project must have a well defined objective -- unexpected result or product, defined in terms of scope, schedule, and cost, and agreed upon by the customer.
Involve the customer as a partner and the successful outcome of the project through active participation during the project.
Achieving customer satisfaction requires ongoing communication with the customer to keep the customer informed and to determine whether expectations have changed.
The key to effective project control is measuring actual progress and comparing it to planned progress on a timely and regular basis and taking corrective action immediately, if necessary.
After the conclusion of a project, the project performance should be evaluated to learn what could be improved if a similar project were to be done in the future. Feedback should be obtained from the customer and the project team.

Chapter 1 summary

A project is an endeavor to accomplish a specific objective through a unique set of interrelated tasks and the effective utilization of resources. It has a clearly defined objective stated in terms of scope, schedule, and cost. The responsibility of the project manager is to make sure that the project objective is accomplished and that the work scope is completed in a quality manner, within budget, and on time, to the customer satisfaction.

The first phase of the project life cycle involves the identification of a need, problem, or opportunity that can result in the customer's requesting proposals from individuals, a project team, or contractors to address and identified need or solve a problem. The second phase of the project lifecycle is the development of a proposed solution to the need or problem. This phase results and the submission of a proposal to the customer by one or more individuals or contractors or the project team. The third phase of the project lifecycle is the implementation of the proposed solution. This phase, which is referred to as performing the project, results in accomplishment of the project objective, leaving the customer satisfied that the work scope was completed in a quality manner, within budget, and on time. The final phase of the project lifecycle is terminating the project, which includes evaluating the execution of the project in order to enhance work on future projects.

Project management involves a process of first establishing a plan and then implementing that planned to accomplish the project objective. This planning effort includes clearly defined objectives, dividing and subdividing the project scope into major pieces called work packages, defining the specific activities that need to be performed for each work package, graphically portraying the activities in the form of network diagrams, estimating how long each activity will take to complete, the finding the types of resources and how many of each resource are needed for each activity, estimating the cost of each activity, and calculating a project schedule and budget.

Taking the time to develop a well thought out plan is critical to the successful or compost of any project. Once the project starts, project management involves monitoring the progress to ensure that everything is going according to plan. The key to effective project control is measuring actual progress and comparing it to planned progress on a timely and regular basis and taking corrective action immediately when necessary.

The ultimate benefit of implementing project management techniques is having a satisfied customer -- whether you are the customer of your own project or a business being paid by a customer to perform the project. Completing the full project scope in a quality manner, on time, and within budget provides a great feeling of satisfaction to everyone involved in the project.