Definition of Project Planning

Project planning is at the heart of the project life cycle, and tells everyone involved where you’re going
and how you’re going to get there. The planning phase is when the project plans are documented, the
project deliverables and requirements are defined, and the project schedule is created. It involves
creating a set of plans to help guide your team through the implementation and closure phases of the
project. The plans created during this phase will help you manage time, cost, quality, changes, risk, and
related issues. They will also help you control staff and external suppliers to ensure that you deliver the
project on time, within budget, and within schedule.

The project planning phase is often the most challenging phase for a project manager, as you need to
make an educated guess about the staff, resources, and equipment needed to complete your project.
You may also need to plan your communications and procurement activities, as well as contract any
third-party suppliers.

The purpose of the project planning phase is to:

Establish business requirements

Establish cost, schedule, list of deliverables, and delivery dates

Establish resources plans

Obtain management approval and proceed to the next phase

The basic processes of project planning are:

Scope planning – specifying the in-scope requirements for the project to facilitate creating the work
breakdown structure

Preparation of the work breakdown structure – spelling out the breakdown of the project into tasks and
sub-tasks

Project schedule development – listing the entire schedule of the activities and detailing their sequence
of implementation

Resource planning – indicating who will do what work, at which time, and if any special skills are needed
to accomplish the project tasks

Budget planning – specifying the budgeted cost to be incurred at the completion of the project

Procurement planning – focusing on vendors outside your company and subcontracting

Risk management – planning for possible risks and considering optional contingency plans and
mitigation strategies

Quality planning – assessing quality criteria to be used for the project

Communication planning – designing the communication strategy with all project stakeholders

Project Planning Fundamentals

Project Planning fundamentals are such as the following:

1. Determination of Scope, Cost, and Resources

The process of determining the scope, cost, and resources help estimate the time required to complete
the project, the number of people needed, and the skill set required.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) helps this process by dividing the whole task into smaller,
manageable segments

2. Identification of the Problem

A variety of techniques, like surveys or meetings, are used to collect information to assess problems

There can be multiple problems; then, the project team selects the issue that requires the most
immediate attention

3. Identification of Stakeholders 

Identification of stakeholders gives a clearer image of the real problem, specifically which function or
people might be affected by the project

Stakeholders work with the project team and contribute to the project's success

4. Definition of Project Objectives

A plan is made, keeping in mind the various expectations of the stakeholders

The success of the project entirely depends on how much of the expectations the project is able to meet

Project Planning Tools

This project planning tools are used when managers need to plan or schedule their tasks for their
projects, identify the critical paths, monitor the progress and all of the other important tasks that are
needed for a seamless project cycle. Let’s begin.

1. Network Diagrams
These diagrams are one of the most important tools in project management that can be used in the
process of project planning. Also known as an “Arrow” diagram, because the diagram consists of
different arrows that can be used to connect different activities and also to display precedence. By using
these arrows you can also show interdependencies between different activities of a project. In the
process of forming the Network Diagram, there are always some assumptions to be made. The first
assumption to be dreamt up is that all pending or ongoing activities have been completed before
starting new ones. The second assumption that has to be made is that all the arrows used in the
Network diagram indicate a logical priority. What that means is that the direction of the arrow is
displaying the unique sequence that needs to be followed for the proper execution of activities. The last
but not the least assumption is that Network Diagrams have no choice but to start with a single event
and end with a single event because there is no place for dual start and endpoints. If the project
manager wants to calculate the total duration of a specific project, they need to define a total of four
dates for each specific task.

The first two are the start dates. The first date in these two is Early Start which is the earliest date on
which the task can be started. The second date in those or Late Start is the date on which the task
absolutely has to start if it hasn’t already. This same logic goes for the latter two of the four dates
mentioned above. Those are the end dates. Another important element in the Network Diagram is the
Slack time. This is the time that is allowed for the task to be delayed but not more than that. Why?
Because eventually, it will cause a delay in the overall timeline.

2. Critical Path Method

CPM is an essential tool that is thoroughly used by project managers. This is because this tool can
monitor and assess the progress of the project in real-time. It is to ensure that all the ongoing projects
performed by the team are going to finish in time. The Critical Path of the project is the longest
sequence of activities performed on the network diagram. It is also characterized as having zero slack
time for all activities that are involved in a particular sequence. So, if there’s the slightest delay in any
activity, it will cause a delay in the overall project deployment.

Zero Slack time is bad but also good in some ways. Good because the project managers will remain more
vigilant when they will know that the slightest error can hinder the progress of the project. Also, project
managers can divert resources from a specific project to some other project if they need to. This makes
sure that the appropriate resources are used somewhere important and the project is not delayed. But
while doing that, the project manager has to ensure that the activity in question does not become a
critical path activity due to the reduction in the number of resources

3. Gantt Charts

A Gantt chart is a visual representation of all the tasks related to your project scheduled overtime. They
are used to plan projects of all sizes and shapes. Why? Because they are an incredible tool to show the
work that is scheduled to be done on a project on a specific day. They also show the whole tenure of a
particular project in one simple view.
Here are some of the features of a project you can monitor on a Gantt chart.

The start and end dates of a project

What are the project tasks

Who are the team members involved in each project

Who is working on each individual task

What is the duration of each individual task

How all of the tasks are linked or are they dependent on each other

Still don’t understand the importance of these charts? Well not long ago, people used to plan on paper
or show all of the projections with colored blocks because there wasn’t any digital solution available.
Gantt charts changed all that.

4. Project Evaluation and Review Technique

The Project Evaluation and Review Technique, more commonly known as PERT is a form of Network
Diagram PM tool that is also used to figure out the critical path of the project. This technique makes
scheduling complex projects easier while creating realistic estimates of the duration of each individual
activity. It is a form of Network Diagram but it’s different in a way that it uses three kinds of estimates
rather than just one. The first estimate, also known as T-O, assumes that the activity will never falter and
all the factors that are related to the activity are going to be in favor of it. The second estimate, also
known as ‘most likely’ assumes that the activity will eventually encounter some issues during the
execution phase. It will also provide some contingency buffers to fix the issues. The final estimate is
known as the pessimistic estimate which assumes that whatever factor that can possibly go wrong and
ruin the activity is bound to happen no matter what.

5. Work Breakdown Structure

WBS is an amazing tool in the project management paradigm. It shows a hierarchical breakdown of work
activities that are used to define the scope of the project. It is also used to identify all of the required
deliverables that are needed in the development of the project. Having all these details spread out in
the open enables not just the project managers but also all the other stakeholders to understand the
project scope. Also, it helps the teams to understand exactly what needs to be developed. The beauty of
WBS is that it divides the project deliverables and the work required into very small components that
are easily manageable. The lowest level items also known as Work Packages can be monitored assessed,
controlled and easily cost estimated.

6. Project Documentation

Lastly, project documentation is to conclude all of the work that we discussed above in one document.
These documents provide all the details about the project and everything inside it. There are created to
eliminate any confusion about the project and also prevent any conflict between the stakeholders on
the status of the project.

Project Planning Steps

Project planning includes the following 10 steps:

Define stakeholders. Stakeholders include anyone with an interest in the project. They can include the
customer or end user, members of the project team, other people in the organization the project will
affect and outside organizations or individuals with an interest.

Define roles. Each stakeholder's role should be clearly defined. Some people will fill multiple roles,
however.

Introduce stakeholders. Hold a meeting to bring stakeholders together and unify the vision behind the
project. The topics covered should include scope, goals, budget, schedule and roles.

Set goals. Take what is gleaned from the meeting and refine it into a project plan. It should include goals
and deliverables that define what the product or service will result in.

Prioritize tasks. List tasks necessary to meet goals and prioritize them based on importance and
interdependencies. A Gantt chart can be helpful for mapping project dependencies.

Create a schedule. Establish a timeline that considers the resources needed for all the tasks.

Assess risks. Identify project risks and develop strategies for mitigating them.

Communicate. Share the plan with all stakeholders and provide communications updates in the format
and frequency stakeholders expect.

Reassess. As milestones are met, revisit the project plan and revise any areas that are not meeting
expectations.
Final evaluation. Once the project is completed, performance should be evaluated to learn from the
experience and identify areas to improve.

Triple/Quadruple Constraints

The triple constraint theory is often referred to as the project management triangle. Each side or point
of the triangle represents the triple constraints of project management: scope, time, and cost.

Triple constraint: Scope

Scope creep has a funny way of sneaking up on you. Before you know it, “just one more thing” has
turned into a completely different project deliverable. That’s why it’s important to define—and
document—project goals and requirements before work begins. That way everyone knows what “done”
looks like, and you have a project truth to refer back to if the scope starts to creep.  Adding more
features can stretch a project’s time and budget constraints. You’ll either need to extend the deadline or
assign more people to the work, increasing project costs. Monitoring scope changes enables you to
discuss trade-offs early and make necessary adjustments before your project gets off course.

Triple constraint: Time (schedule)

In project management, most folks know, if you want a project done fast, it’s gonna cost you—especially
if you’re not willing to bend on the scope. That’s because a short deadline requires more resources to
get the work done on time. A detailed scope document provides the perfect foundation for
understanding your project’s time constraint because you can use it to build out a project estimate. Be
sure to bring your team into the discussion and look beyond task hours. The time you spend in meetings
or holding a stakeholder’s hand through the process counts too. The more accurate your estimate, the
better. After all, it’s what you’ll use to schedule work and drive project decisions if tough choices need to
be made to meet the project deadline.

Triple constraint: Cost (budget)

Estimating a project’s time and effort also forms the basis for your project budget. Here are a few costs
to consider when formulating a project budget:

Resource costs, based on estimated hours (or story points in Agile)

Materials

Equipment

When it comes to budget constraints, remember, it’s best to communicate early and often. No one likes
being surprised by a big bill (or the tense conversation that inevitably follows). If an unexpected expense
pops up, take time to explain how it will impact the rest of your project, and let your client decide
whether or not it’s worth the extra dough. Your client isn’t a project expert and may not realize how
much that shiny new feature will cost them in the end.

Fourth constraint: Quality is a combination of the standards

and criteria to which the project’s products must be
delivered for them to perform effectively. The product
must perform to provide the functionality expected, solve
the identified problem, and deliver the benefit and value
expected. It must also meet other performance
requirements, or service levels, such as availability,
reliability, and maintainability, and have acceptable finish
and polish. Quality on a project is controlled through
quality assurance (QA), which is the process of evaluating
overall project performance on a regular basis to provide
confidence that the project will satisfy the relevant quality
standards.