Software tools for

marketing projects

(Instrumente software pentru

proiecte de marketing)

Conf. univ. dr. Dana Maria BOLDEANU

E-mail: boldeanud@cig.ase.ro
 Course objectives
 Learning objectives/course
 Project Management basics & characteristics
 Project management methodology

 Project life cycle

 Using Microsoft Project and other applications as efficient

project management tools
 Other type of applications for managing projects (SAP)

 Applications/seminar
 To assure adequate usage of different project management
tools – Microsoft Project, SAP Project Systems, etc.

01.10.2020 Project Management 2

 Structure of the courses & seminars
3

 Defined in the syllabus (online.ase.ro)

 There are 14 courses and 14 seminars – all supporting
materials are going to be uploaded on the e-learning
platform
 Syllabus
4

 Introduction in project management – basic concepts

 Best practices and methodologies for project management (PMBOK). Project management
integration – project charter
 Stakeholder management and communication plan – define de scope of the project, objective
and communication ways
 RACI Matrix - matrix of roles and responsibilities
 Project scope and time management - defining and describing phases, activities, tasks,
deliverables, time constraints, deadlines, Work Breakdown Structure
 Project Human resources management (define resources, type of resources)
 Risk management
 Defining the working ways for managing a project using Microsoft Project 2016
 Monitoring the project processes – generate the Status Report
 Defining the working ways for managing a project using SAP application - Project Systems I –
1/2 lectures
 Evaluation
5

 Lab/seminar - 40%

 10% - participation to lab activities (answering questions, solve

on-spot requirements, assignments)

 30% - team project (2 persons)

 Exam - 60% - oral online exam

 References
6

 Boldeanu D., Geambaşu C., Tudor C. (2016) Modelarea proceselor şi managementul proiectelor
în administraţia publică, Editura ASE
 Cleland, David I., Ireland, Lewis R. (eds.) (2008) Project manager's handbook: applying best
practices across global industries, New York: McGraw-Hill
 PMBOK (2017): A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge: PMBOK Guide, Project
Management Institute, Incorporated, Jan 1, 2013, 6th edition
 Tarca, L. (2015), “Project Management Tools. The Basics”, course notes, ASE, November 2015
 Chatfield C., Johnson T. (2013) Microsoft Project 2013 Step by Step, 1st Edition, Microsoft Press
 Biafore B. (2013) Microsoft Project 2013: The Missing Manual, 1st Edition, O'Reilly Media
 Wideman Comparative Glossary of project Management Terms,
http://www.maxwideman.com/pmglossary/
 *** http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/project/project-management-planning-software-project-
standard-FX103996174.aspx
 *** https://www.wrike.com/blog/top-down-and-bottom-up-project-management-leveraging-
the-advantages-of-the-two-approaches/
 ***http://www.tutorialspoint.com/management_concepts/project_management_methodologies.
htm
 Course 1 agenda
7

 Project management key concepts

 Project

 Stakeholders

◼ Project manager
◼ Team
 Project management – scope and objectives

 Modern approaches in project management

 Project constrains, mistakes and success factors

 Project communications management

 Why need a project?

• Projects are sometimes used as a means of achieving a strategic

objective of an organization
• Project Management in day-to-day life:
• Solving a problem
• Designing a new product
• Improving a process
• Sometimes, projects may originate in response to:
- A market demand
- A business need/an organizational demand
- A request from the consumers / clients
- Promotion of new technologies
- Compliance with legislation
- A social need
01.10.2020 Project Management 8
 PM Key concepts

Project Management Catch-up

METHODOLOGY

01.10.2020 Project Management 9

10

What is a project?
 What is a project? - I

 A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a

unique product, service or result. (PMBOK® Guide, 2017)

 A project is temporary in that it has a defined beginning and end in time,

and therefore defined scope and resources.
 And a project is unique in that it is not a routine operation, but a specific
set of operations designed to accomplish a singular goal.
 So a project team often includes people who don’t usually work together –>
sometimes from different organizations and across multiple geographies.

01.10.2020 Project Management 11

 What is a project? - II
12

Every project has the following characteristics:

 Consists of temporary activities that have predetermined start and end
dates.
 It has a single goal or a set of goals.
 Uses restricted resources.
 Usually has a budget.
 All events are to be realized to develop a single and new output.
 Usually a project manager is responsible for coordinating all activities.
 Usually has a primary customer or a sponsor.
 Involves a certain level of risk.
 If the objectives are unclear, it appears difficult to estimate an accurate
completion time and costs and may depend on certain external factors.
 Necessitate quality requirements
01.10.2020 Project Management 12
 Before starting a project

How much
time will it
take?

What am I Who needs to

trying to know about
achieve? this & how do I
tell them?

01.10.2020 Project Management 13

 Projects are not Operations/Processes
14

Projects Operations

- Always have start - Ongoing process of

date & end date functions

- Produce an unique - Always produce the

result, product or same result, product
service or service
 Who are the project stakeholders?

Any person or organization that is actively involved in a project or

whose interests may be positively or negatively affected by execution
or completion of the project.
• The sponsor (initiator of the project)
• The Project manager and the team
• The promotor
• The customer
• The contractor and supplier
• The user
• The managers or any other persons from the organization
• The Influential groups and individuals who may be affected by the project or
its final results
• The Managers and employees from the partners organizations

01.10.2020 Project Management 15

 What is a project manager?
16

❖ A project manager is the person responsible for leading a project

from its inception to execution.

This includes planning, execution and managing the people,

resources and scope of the project.

❖ Project managers:
• must have the discipline to create clear and attainable
objectives and to see them through to successful completion.
• have full responsibility and authority to complete the assigned
project.
• are professionals in the field of project management.
• are accountable for the success or failure of a project.
 Project manager - Roles and Responsibilities

Plans and organizes

the whole activity to
complete a project Informs and
Reconciles
performs
conflicts
briefings

Leading and
Shares Manager
motivating the
knowledge and
team
experience

Employing relevant Develops internal

project management and external
processes relations

01.10.2020 Project Management 17

 Who is the project team?
18

 A group of professionals committed to achieving

common objectives, wo work well together and who
relate directly and openly one with another to get
things done.
 Project team membership:
 Project manager (chosen before Initiation)

 Core team (chosen before Planning)

 Supporting team (chosen before Launching)

 What is project management?
 Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools
and techniques to project activities in order to meet or exceed
stakeholders needs and expectations from a project
(PMBOK® Guide, 2013)
 Meeting or exceeding stakeholders needs and expectations
invariably involves balancing competing demands among:
❖ Scope, time, cost and quality

❖ Stakeholders with different needs and expectations

❖ Identified requirements (needs) and unidentified requirements

(expectations).

01.10.2020 Project Management 19

 What is project management?

 Project management provides you with a set of tools for getting the
job done!
 Use the right tool(s) to fit the job

 Don’t use a tool if it is not needed

 Keep your tools clean and in good working order!

Note: only the basic tools are included in this toolbox –there are many
more available in the PMBOK Guide, which you can use if needed for
your particular project.

01.10.2020 Project Management 20

 Project Scope & Objectives
 The project scope – what has to be executed or made in order to achieve the
project objectives
➢ Scope creep – refers to uncontrolled changes or continuous growth in a project's
scope
• The projects objectives – must be clearly defined SMART Model
➢ Specific
➢ Measurable
➢ Attainable
➢ Realistic
➢ Time-related
• Projects requirements – functional and non-functional
 The functional requirement is describing the behavior of the system as it relates to
the system's functionality. The non-functional requirement elaborates a performance
characteristic of the system.
01.10.2020 Project Management 21
 The Iron Triangle model
(Harold Kerzner, 2008)

The success of a good project management requires the

meeting of 3 + 1 constrains:

 Scope
 Time
 Cost/resources
 Quality of the results and of the project expressed
through performance

01.10.2020 Project Management 22

 Modern approaches in project management

 Managing Projects Top-Down

 All the directions come from the top.

 Project objectives are established by the top management.

 Top managers provide guidelines, information, plans and fund

processes.
 All of the project manager’s expectations are clearly communicated to
each project participant.
 A top-down management often results in reduced productivity and
causes bottlenecks => lead to slow down a project’s completion.

01.10.2020 Project Management 23

 Modern approaches in project management

 Managing Projects Bottom-Up

 Team members are invited to participate in every step of the
management process => proactive team input.
 The decision on a course of action is taken by the whole team.
 Bottom-up style allows managers to communicate goals and value
through milestone planning. Then team members are encouraged to
develop personal to-do lists with the steps necessary to reach the
milestones on their own.
 The choice of methods and ways to perform their tasks is up to the
team.
 Bottom-up style alone is not the perfect solution =>it lacks clarity and
control.

01.10.2020 Project Management 24

Project constrains
 Project Constrains

From the table of elements of Project Management, the PMBOK Guide gives the
following as what can be called the “Modern Project Constraints”:
• Scope
• Quality
• Schedule
• Budget
• Resources
• Risk

(Source: Praval Raval, 2016)

01.10.2020 Project Management 26
 Mistakes in project management

Source: http://blog.commlabindia.com/elearning-design/mistakes-messing-elearning-projects

01.10.2020 Project Management 27

 Project Management Mistakes
28

 Not Assigning the Right Person to Manage the Project

 Failing to Get Everyone on the Team Behind the Project
 Lack of (Regular) Communication/Meetings
"Communication is the most important factor of successful project management," says Tim Parkin,
president, Parkin Web Development. "Without regularly and clearly communicating, the project
will fall apart.“
 Not Saying "No"
 Not Being Specific Enough with the Scope/Allowing the Scope to Frequently Change
 Providing Aggressive/Overly Optimistic Timelines.
 Not Being Flexible.
 Expecting Software to Solve All Your Project Management Issues.
 The Project Doesn't Follow A Standard Project Management Methodology (Inconsistent
Project Management Processes, Project Management Tools and Project Management
Templates)
 The Risk Assessment and Management Process was Skimped On
 Resources have Been Overallocated
 Project communications management
29

 Enables project managers to send the right messages to the

right people in the best possible way. Communications is
considered the glue that connects project stakeholders.
 Project managers follow a communications management
process from project planning through project closeout. This
allows them to develop and execute communication plans that
identify who should receive overall project information and
role-specific communications that enable them to contribute
effectively to the team.
 Project managers also must assign responsibility for
communicating appropriate information and data, and they
must determine how and when communications should be
delivered.
 Project Communication
Communications is considered the glue that connects project stakeholders. (PMBOK, 2017)

Top-down management
Team
management

Cross Relationships
Bottom-up Management
management

01.10.2020 Project Management 30