Telone Centre For Learning

SOFTWARE PROJECT
MANAGEMENT

DIPLOMA IN SOFTWARE ENGINEERING 2.1

LECTURER: MS. J. CHIBHABHA

jchibhabha@hit.ac.zw
Project Planning
Introduction

Before starting a software project, it is essential to

determine the tasks to be performed.
Manage allocation of tasks among individuals involved.
Project planning is an organized and integrated
management process which focuses on activities required
for successful completion of the project.
Project Planning

Planning is about identifying activities and deliverables

produced by a project.
Managers should anticipate problems that are likely to
occur and come up with solutions
Project plan sets out available resources, work breakdown
and a schedule for carrying out the work.
Project Planning Objectives

It defines the roles and responsibilities of the project

management team members.
It ensures that the project management works according to
the business objectives.
It checks feasibility of the schedule and user requirements.
It determines project constraints.
Project Planning Process

Involves a set of interrelated activities followed in an

orderly manner to implement user requirements in
software.
Includes the description of a series of project planning
activities,
Individual(s) responsible for performing these activities.
Project Planning Process – Cont.

Comprises the following activities:

1. Identification of project requirements

Before starting a project.
Requirements comprise information such as project scope,
data and functionality required in the software.
Roles of the project management team members are
identified.
Project Planning Process – Cont.

2. Identification of cost estimates

Along with estimation of effort and time, it is essential to
estimate costs to be incurred on a project.
Includes the cost of hardware, network connections,
maintenance costs.
Also, costs for the individuals involved in the project.
Project Planning Process – Cont.

3. Identification of risks
Software projects involve risks such as technical, business
risks
Risks may affect the project schedule
May increase the cost of the project
Identifying risks before the project begins is essential
Project Planning Process – Cont.
4. Identification of critical success factors
Success factors refer to the conditions that ensure greater chances of
success of a project.
Include support from management, appropriate schedule,
appropriate budget and skilled software engineers.

5. Preparation of a project charter

Provides a brief description of the project scope,
Quality, time, cost, and resource constraints
Is prepared by the management
Project Planning Process – Cont.

6. Commencement of the project

Once project planning is complete and resources are assigned
to team members, the project commences.
Project Plan

Stores the outcome of project planning.

Provides information about the end date, milestones,
activities and deliverables of the project.
Describes the responsibilities of the team,
And resources required for the project.
Includes the hardware and software and the methods and
standards to be used.
Sample Project Plan Structure

1. Introduction – sets out project objectives and constraints.

2. Project Organization – team development and
involvement. (responsibilities assignment)
3. Risk Analysis – assess possible project risks, probability
of occurrence and mitigation strategies
4. Resource requirements – specifies H/w and S/w
availability and cost.
Sample Project Plan Structure

5. Work Breakdown – break down project activities and

identify deliverables for each activity
Also describes milestones
6. Project Schedule – show activity dependencies, time
frame and human resource allocation.
7. Monitoring and reporting mechanisms
Stepwise Project Planning
Introduction

There are different ways to project planning, one of them

is stepwise project planning.
Project planning is made up of a series of steps
Project Planning

STEP 0: SELECT PROJECT

This is done outside the main project planning process.
Some activities are carried out to consider which project is
worth undertaking as opposed to others.
This project evaluation may be done on an individual basis
or as part of strategic planning.
Stepwise Project Planning

STEP 0: SELECT PROJECT

This is done outside the main project planning process.
Some activities are carried out to consider which project is
worth undertaking as opposed to others.
This project evaluation may be done on an individual basis
or as part of strategic planning.
Stepwise Project Planning

STEP 1: IDENTIFY PROJECT SCOPE AND

OBJECTIVES
To ensure that all parties to the project agree on the
objectives and are committed to the project success.
Step 1.1 Identify objectives and practical measures of the
effectiveness in meeting those objectives.
Step 1.2 Establish a project authority – so that there is
unity of purpose between all those concerned.
STEP 1: IDENTIFY PROJECT SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES…….

Step 1.3 Stakeholder analysis – identify all stakeholders in

the project and their interests.
Step 1.4 Modify objectives in the light of stakeholder
analysis – in order to gain full cooperation of all
concerned.
Step 1.5 Establish methods of communication with
stakeholders.
STEP 2: IDENTIFY PROJECT INFRASTRUCTURE

To find out the precise nature of an existing infrastructure

into which the project can fit.
Step 2.1 Identify the relationship between the project and
strategic planning.
Step 2.2 Identify installation standards and procedures –
e.g. Change control and configuration management
standards, quality standards, measurement programme,
planning and control standards
STEP 2: IDENTIFY PROJECT INFRASTRUCTURE……

Step 2.3 Identify project team organization – the project

leader may have some control over the organizational
structure of the project team.
Sometimes the organization structured will be dictated to
them.
STEP 3: ANALYZE PROJECT CHARACTERISTICS

To ensure that appropriate methods are used for the project.

Step 3.1 Distinguish the project as either objective or
product driven.
As system development advances it tends to become more
product driven but the underlying objectives always
remain and must be respected.
Step 3.2 Analyze other project characteristics (including
quality-based ones)
STEP 3: ANALYZE PROJECT CHARACTERISTICS…..

Step 3.3 Identify high level project risks

Most risks can be attributed to the operational or development
environment, the technical nature of the project or the type of
product created.
Step 3.4 Take into account user requirements concerning
implementation.
Step 3.5 Select general life-cycle approach
Step 3.6 Review overall resource estimates
This would be a good point at which to re-estimate the effort
and other resources required to implement the project.
STEP 4: IDENTIFY PROJECT PRODUCTS AND ACTIVITIES

More detailed planning of individual activities

Step 4.1 Identify and describe project products (or
deliverables).
Products will form a hierarchy
The main products will have sets of component products
which in turn have sub-products etc.
These relationships can be documented in a Product
Breakdown Structure (PBS)
STEP 4: IDENTIFY PROJECT PRODUCTS AND
ACTIVITIES…

Step 4.2 Document generic product flows.

Some products will need some other product to exist first
before they can be crated.
These relationships can be portrayed in Product Flow
Diagram (PFD)
Step 4.3 Recognize product instances
Step 4.2 Produce ideal activity network on the tasks that
have to be carried out and the order in which they have to
be executed in order to generate one product from another.
STEP 4: IDENTIFY PROJECT PRODUCTS AND
ACTIVITIES…

Step 4.5 Modify the idea to take into account the need for
stages and check points.
Introduce milestones, i.e. activities which draw together
the products of preceding activities to check that they are
compatible.
STEP 5: ESTIMATE EFFORT FOR EACH ACTIVITY

Step 5.1 Carry out bottom-up estimates.

The method of arriving at each of these estimates will vary
depending on the type of activity.
The activities on the activity network can be annotated
with their elapsed times so that the overall duration of the
project can be calculated.

Step 5.2 Revise plan to create controllable activities –

long activities need to be broken down into a series of
smaller subtasks.
STEP 6: IDENTIFY ACTIVITY RISKS

Step 6.1 Identify quality and quantify activity based risks.

Look at each activity in turn and assess the risks to its
successful outcome.
The seriousness of each risk and likelihood of it occurring have
to be gauged.
Step 6.2 Plan risk reduction and contingency measures
where appropriate.
It may be possible to avoid or reduce some of the identified
risks.
Contingency plans specify action to be taken if a risk
materializes.
Adjust overall plans and estimates to take account of risks
STEP 7: ALLOCATE RESOURCES

Identify and allocate resources.

The type of staff needed for each activity is recorded.
The staff available for the project are identified and are
provisionally allocated to tasks.

Revise plans and estimates to take into account resource

constraints.
Some staff may be needed for more than one tasks at the same
time and an order of priority is established.
The decisions made here may have an effect on the overall
duration of the project when some tasks are delayed while
waiting for staff to become free.
STEP 8: REVIEW/ PUBLICISE PLAN

Review quality aspects of the project plan. Each task

should have “exit requirements”.
These are quality checks that have to be passed before the
activity can be “signed off” as completed.

Document plans and obtain agreement.

It is important that the plans be carefully documented and
that all the parties to the project understand and agree to
the commitments required of them in the plan.
STEP 9 & 10: EXECUTE PLAN/ LOWER LEVELS OF
PLANNING

Once the project is under way, plans will need to be drawn

up in greater detail for each activity as it becomes due.
Detailed planning of later stages will need to be delayed
since more information will be available near the start of
the stage.
Provisional plans for the more distant task should be made
because thinking about what needs to be done can help
unearth potential problems, however, these should remain
provisional.
THE END