EMGT 807, Project Management

Chapter 1
Modern Project Management
Why Project Management?
Why Not Just Management?
 Non-recurring unique tasks

 Task complexity

 Specialized knowledge requirements

 Teams of people needed

 Permanent organization is inappropriate

or inadequate
Major Characteristics of a Project

1. An established objective
2. A defined life span
• A beginning and an end
3. Several departments and people
4. Usually not been done before
5. Time, cost, performance objectives
 Three Project Objectives

1. Performance / scope / specifications

• What the client wants
• External requirements (building codes)
2. Cost / budget
• What the client is willing to pay
• How much the project has been budgeted
3. Schedule / time
• What has been promised
• What the business plan requires Cost
PM
Schedule

Golden
Triangle

Customer
Satisfaction
Project Life Cycle

FIGURE 1.1
The Project Life Cycle

 Stages of a Conventional Project:

 Slow beginning
 Buildup of size
 Peak
 Begin a decline
 Termination
The Project Life Cycle

Projects that are focused on an event

often follow a different pattern
 The Project Life Cycle

 It is essential for the Project Manager to

understand the life cycle curve for the
project

 The two life cycles play a critical role in the

development of budgets and schedules for
the project
 The 4-Phase Model

Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4

Execution
Plan Startup
Management Decision

Funding Funding

Management Decision
Request Approval
Transition
Contract
Project Charter

Approval to
Project Manager proceed Closeout
Assigned

Concept Development Concept Design Project Delivery Verification & Closeout

 Agile Project Management

 Emerged out of software development.

 Now being used for projects with high levels of
uncertainty.
 Employs an incremental, iterative process, ‘rolling wave’
 Active collaboration between the project and customer
representatives, breaking projects into small functional
pieces, adapting to changing requirements.
 Works best in small teams of four to eight members.

10
 Rolling Wave Development

 Iterations typically last from one to four weeks.

 The goal of each iteration is to make tangible progress such as
define a key requirement, solve a technical problem, or create
desired features to demonstrate to the customer.
 At the end of each iteration, progress is reviewed, adjustments are
made, and a different iterative cycle begins.
 Each new iteration subsumes the work of the previous iterations
until the project is completed and the customer is satisfied.
 The Project Manager

 Manages temporary, non-repetitive activities

 Frequently acts independently of the formal
organization
 Expected to gather resources to complete
the project
 PM is the direct link to the customer, must
manage the interface between customer
expectations and what is feasible
 The Project Manager

 Provide direction, coordination, integration

to the Project Team
 Responsibility without people authority
 Manage trade-offs of cost, time,
performance
 Usually are generalists, not specialists
 Must accomplish the mission through others
 Compression of the Product Life Cycle

 High-tech product life cycles are averaging

1 to 3 years
 30 years ago, life cycles were 10-15 years
 Time to market is a critical variable
 Speed is a competitive advantage
 Global Competition

 You are in competition with anyone in the

world who can do it faster, cheaper,
better
 Small projects

 Most projects are fairly small

 Often carry just as much risk as larger
projects
 Do not demand the resources and money of
the larger projects, so are viewed as having
little impact on the bottom line
 Because there are so many, they add up
 Integration of Projects with the
Strategic Plan

 Business strategies are often implemented

through projects
 Projects need to be prioritized so that scarce
resources are allocated to the right projects
 These are not always financially driven;
there can be many reasons for the project
Managing Expectations

 What is the client’s or Management’s

mission?
 Project goals further the mission
 Costs impede the mission
 Time is money
 To survive, you must meet expectations.
 Avoid surprising Management!
Scope Creep

 When you start something, you don’t

know all of the possibilities
 You learn as you go and need to adapt
 Take advantage of your new
knowledge
 Accommodating change poses
difficulties, but is necessary
Project Management Goals

 Make sure the client is making informed

choices
 Include the hidden requirements, such as
code compliance
 Scope, budget, and schedule all trade off
 Requires knowledge of the client’s
mission
 Jigsaw puzzle analogy - the pieces must
all fit (and all of the pieces are intertwined!)
 Tools for Project Management

 Help the project manager assess

status

 Guide corrective action when changes

are needed

 Helps communicate to the client that

disaster isn’t coming
Two sides to project management
 It’s not just planning

 Don’t get overly infatuated with the software

 You need to manage reality, not the computer
program
 Some engineers focus too much on the tools, and
not enough on the people
 Network diagrams & Gantt charts are tools, not the
end product
 Conversely, you need more than “seat of the pants”
management. It’s not just team dynamics and
organization politics, either