PM652: Project Selection and Initiation

Learning Module 1: Project Strategic Alignment

Welcome to the class. If you have not reviewed the course syllabus and the calendar within the syllabus, please
review it carefully. I included important information that you must know. It assumes greater importance as we
have revised administrative policies and procedures for all our MPM courses. Failure to review the syllabus may
lead to miscommunication.

About the Program

In PM650, you were introduced to the basic project management concepts along with working in project teams
in PM650. The purpose of this overview was to provide a common knowledge and background information for
the professional practices and for the remaining five courses in this program.

The remainder of the degree program is organized around the PM process groups that can be considered a
generic project life cycle: Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring and Controlling, and Closing. Although
PMBOK clarifies that these process groups do not necessarily reflect a project lifecycle (rather they reflect
project management lifecycle), for purposes of this discussion, we refer to them as such.

• - PM652: investigate various processes of initiating and early stages of planning.

• - PM654: dig deeper into the details of building a specific project plan
• - PM656: understand project implementation issues such as change, quality assurance
• - PM658: focus on project execution, monitoring, and control
• - PM660: advanced project management topics and development of PM Manual

Introduction

It is common that every business faces a situation that compels a change. Some of these changes usually are
starting a new office, launching a new product or service, improving an existing work process, installing a new
computer system, merging with another company, moving to a new location, entering a new market, meeting a
social need and so on. These changes are necessary to meet operational or strategic goals of an organization.
And these goals are accomplished using projects and projects are the instruments by which an enterprise
accomplishes its strategic objectives.

A project can be seen as a new time-bound effort to create a unique product or service that adds value. As
it is a new effort, often, we do not have complete knowledge or experience about planning and executing the
project. Needless to say, projects are characterized with unknown factors and ambiguity, which delay the
development of detailed scope and specifications to later stages of project planning. Further, any project
requires resources such as materials, tools, equipment, and people to execute it. Considering these additional
facets of a project and to extend the definition of a project further, a project can be defined as a complex, non-
routine, one-time effort limited by time, budget, resources, and performance specifications designed to meet
customer needs and add value to all key stakeholders.
 PM 652: Project Initiation and Selection

Project Management (PM) is an integration of several academic disciplines such as accountancy, decision
sciences, economics, finance, and management. It uses systems approach in integrating these disciplines.

Organizations design and execute projects that can be classified as internally and externally funded projects
based on the nature of their business. If the primary line of business of the organization is service, manufacturing,
or research; the projects in the organization are probably internally funded, and the missions of project teams
are to create increased operational efficiency, new products, or new markets. Internally funded projects also
play an important role in the profit margin, albeit indirectly. In the case of a nonprofit organization, the projects
are executed either internally or externally and are conceived to serve its main purpose, which is a social cause
and not profit.

Projects evolve through a distinct life cycle of processes, the first phase of which is frequently termed as
Initiation Phase. The initiation phase may be preceded by a project proposal and various project portfolio and
selection considerations. Sometimes, a feasibility study becomes necessary. Transition to the next project phase
usually takes place only after the formal approval by the project client (customer acceptance) or the sponsor of
the project (senior management team).

Use of resources gradually increases as we move from the project initiation phase to planning and execution and
control phases. Resources will be gradually withdrawn from the project during the project closeout phase. As
resources are limited, project selection assumes greater importance to engage these resources to maximize
revenue and accomplish strategic objectives. One of the important tenets of project management is to make
effective and efficient use of resources.

Strategic Alignment

Projects are means to accomplish strategic objectives and goals of organizations. Project selection should be
based on the corporate strategic plan and investment strategies. Thus, each project must have a business
objective that is aligned with the strategic plan; it will serve as the foundation for the project investment
proposal. In addition, a project must conform to a broader purpose than a set of internally derived objectives. It
must support overarching strategies of their parent company or its clients. To be successful, the project manager
and the team should clearly understand the vision and mission of their clients; such understanding is more likely
to deliver products and services that meet demanding customer requirements, which eventually results in
customer satisfaction.

Organizations ensure that people in every division are meaningfully engaged in productive work through
operations or projects. Consequently, portfolio management has its focus on selecting and prioritizing projects
for execution based on strategic objectives, organizational needs within the constraints of availability of
resources and budget.

The coursework for LM1 and LM2 reflects on the steps organizations should take as they formulate objectives to
leverage their market positions and develop new projects to support those objectives. Your work in the
assignments will lead your team to identify additional criteria that should increase your understanding of project
selection according to the PMBOK methodology and give you a sense of senior management’s challenges as
they struggle to effectively build project portfolios.

References:

• Gray C.F. & Larson E.W. (2006). Project Management: The Managerial Process. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
• Rad P.F. & Anantatmula V. (2005). Project Planning Techniques. Vienna, VA: Management Concepts.

© Master of Project Management, Western Carolina University

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 PM 652: Project Initiation and Selection

LM1 Assignments

Reading assignments:

• PMBOK Chapters 2 and 3

• Chapter 2 of Meredith and Mantel

Individual Assignment:

1a

Please list your organization’s strategic main objectives and describe the decision-making process and criteria for selecting
a project proposal. Briefly explain the project portfolio management process in your organization. Your submission should
not exceed 500 words.

Post your work as 1a to your team’s discussion forum and to the Individual link provided with the assignment. Please follow
the file-name protocol as specified in the syllabus. Your individual work needs to be completed with sufficient time for its use
in the composition of the team assignment 1b. I encourage you to set this deadline on or before the weekend to enable the
team assignment below to be carried out.

Team Assignment:

1b

Individual assignments of your team members will serve as input for your team assignment. As a team, choose a project
manager for this week and develop an executive summary of the project selection process.

The assignment is designed to assist the team in understanding important tenets of the project selection process. Your
submission should consist of the following items:

• Organizational strategic objectives generally acceptable in for-profit organizations

• Project selection process
• Portfolio management approach
• List assumptions, if any

All the team members are encouraged to analyze individual assignments, and develop this document on a consensus basis.
Your submission should not exceed 500 words.

Best,

Dr. Vittal Anantatmula

© Master of Project Management, Western Carolina University

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