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Has a specific purpose which can be readily defined.
Project Basics
What is a project?
In scientific language, A project is a one-shot, time-limited, goal-oriented, major undertaking,requiring the commitment of varied skills and resources. A project is a combination of human and non-humanresources pulled together in a temporary organization to achieve a specific purpose. It is said that a projecthas a single set of objectives and when these objectives are reached, the project is completed. It is alsodefined as a collection of linked activities, carried out in an organised manner with a clearly defined startpoint and finish point to achieve specific result that satisfy the need of an organization as derived from thecurrent business plan.
Characteristics of Project.
A project:
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Is unique because it is most unlikely to be repeated in exactly the same way by the same group ofpeople to give the same result.
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Is not usually routine work but may include routine type task.
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Is frequently complex because the wok involves people in different departments and even ondifferent sites.
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Has to be flexible to accommodate change as work proceeds.
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Has clearly defined and agreed time constraint – a date when the result are required.
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Has cost constraints which must be clearly defined and understood to ensure the project remainsviable at all times.
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Forces you to work in a different way because the ‘temporary’ management role is directlyassociated with the life of the project.
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Involves risk at every step of the process and you must manage these risks to sustain the focus onthe desired result.
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Is focused on the customer and customer satisfaction.
Dynamic Life Cycle of a Project.
Because the project has such specific characteristics, all limited by time, it naturally goes through alife cycle just like a product. The difference with a project is that the life cycle is dynamic and the subject toreiteration at any time during the project.All projects go through a similar lifecycle comprising four fundamental phases.
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Phase 1 –
Definition:
The start of the project once need have been clearly identified and the projectcan be defined with the agreement of those people with an interest in the outcomes.
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Phase 2 –
Planning :
The process of planning the project to derive a realistic schedule taking intoaccount the constraints imposed on the project.
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Phase 3 –
Execution:
Launching the project work ensuring everyone understands the plan, thecontrol you impose on the process and making sure the plan is always up to date with any changethat occur.
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Phase 4 –
Closure:
Preparing your customer for acceptance and hand over to ensure the projecthas delivered the agreed outcomes, any follow-on activities are identified and assigned and theproject evaluation process is completed.
Dynamic Action Cycle of Project.
In practice the life cycle is only a convenience for you to separate the project work in to blocks with adefined sequence. The reality is that is no project follows such a neat and simple process flow without asignificant amount of reiteration. At any stage of the project work you may have to
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Revise the project definition.
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Re-plan the part of the work.
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Revise the project schedule.
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Solve problem.
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Carry out recovery planning – to recover lost time.
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Carry out contingency planning – in case a high-risk part of the work goes wrong.
What is project management?
Project management is a dynamic process utilizing the appropriate resource of an organization,assigning them in to a task in a controlled and structured manner employed to accomplish a definedobjectiveusually within the limitations on time, scope, or cost. A project plan can be simple, for example, alist of tasks and their start and finish dates written on a notepad. Or it can be complex, for example,thousands of interdependent tasks and resources with a million-dollar budget. Whether simple or complex,however, all projects consist of three major phases:1. Build the plan2. Track and manage the project3. Close the projectThe more successful these phases are, the greater your chance of a successful project.
Characteristics of Project Management.
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Objective oriented – Without these you have no outcomes.
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Change oriented – Creating something you need but do not have.
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Multi-disciplined – Needs a wide range of skills to achieve success.
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Opportunistic – You must seek to take shortcuts and bypass old norms.
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Performance oriented – Setting appropriate standards and quality of outputs.
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Control oriented – Carefully designed controlled to maintain the schedule.
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Question tradition – Avoid getting trapped by the old ways of doing things.
The project triangle.
If only you could foresee your project's future....In a way you can, if you understand three factors that shape every project:
Time:
The time to complete the project as reflected in your project schedule.
Cost:
The project budget, based on the cost of the resources, that is, the people, equipment, and materialsrequired to do the tasks.
Scope:
The goals and tasks of the project and the work required to complete them.This trio of time, money, and scope is the project triangle. Adjusting one of these elements affects the othertwo. While all three elements are important, typically one will have the most influence on your project.The relationship between these elements differs in every project and determines the kinds ofproblems you'll encounter and the solutions you can implement. Knowing where your limitations and flexibilityreside makes it easier to plan and manage your project.
Your project strategy.
Before considering the tasks of your project or the resources you need, first set your strategy. Yourproject strategy helps you build the big picture of the project, so you and other projectstakeholders are veryclear about where you're headed.Gather or develop the following information.
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Objectives.The goals and outcomes of the project must be clearly understood.
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Assumptions.If you're making any assumptions that support the goals and successful outcome ofthe project, these assumptions need to be specified ahead of time.
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Limitations.Any limiting factors or project constraints should be spelled out. Identifying limits andconstraints can also help you plan contingencies for potential problems.
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Scope.The scope defines the tasks and deliverables of the project.This information helps you and others understand the project. It can also be instrumental when youneed to respond to changes that might occur in the midst of the project.When building your project plan, you enter the following types of information:
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Tasks
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Duration
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Task dependencies
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Resources
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Costs With this information, You can calculate your schedule, costs, and resource work load.
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Appendix – II for Project Basics
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