FUNdamentals of Project Management
- 1. FUNdamentals of Project Management Cindy Leonard Consulting Team Leader Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management
- 2. What is a Project?
- 4. 5 Phases of Project Management •I •P •E •C •C
- 6. Project Objectives should be: •S •M •A •R •T
- 7. Phase 2: Planning “Planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal.” — Cornelius Fitchner, Project Mgmt Trainer, Author, Guru
- 8. Objective 1 Task 1.1 Task 1.2 Task 1.3 Objective 2 Task 2.1 Task 2.2 Task 2.3 Task 2.4 Objective 3 Task 3.1 Task 3.2 Project Name
- 11. Objective 1 Task 1.1 Task 1.2 Task 1.3 Objective 2 Task 2.1 Task 2.2 Task 2.3 Task 2.4 Objective 3 Task 3.1 Task 3.2 Project Name
- 12. Phase 3: Execution “Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there.” — Will Rogers
- 13. 4 Stages of Team Development Forming Storming Norming Performing
- 16. Phase 5: Closure
Editor's Notes
- #3: According to David Allen, a project is “any desired result that involves more than one action step. We can expand upon that by saying that a project Has clear start and end points Has a measurable set of objectives Has a sequence of activities between start and end points
- #4: Provides structure and methodology that promotes success. Saves: money, time, & resources. Promotes good communication. Keeps the focus on goals and outcomes. Usually insufficient time is spent on planning b/c people want to be "doing." Strategic vs. Tactical - strategic is the approach to be used, while tactical is the steps taken to implement the strategy or approach Every organization needs a methodology for planning projects.
- #5: Project management is accomplished through the use of the following 5 phases: Initiation – getting the project underway Planning – figuring out what will be done, how it will be done, resources Execution – actually doing the project Controlling – making sure the project stays on time, budget and within scope Closure – wrapping up the project
- #6: Define project scope Project scope statement (defines project boundaries) What will we do? For whom will we do it? How do we go about doing it? Identify key personnel to be involved in the planning phase and get them involved as early as possible.
- #7: Define desired objectives (AKA outcomes) Objectives should be SMART: Specific – target a specific area for improvement; what would you like to see happen as a result of doing this work? Measurable – quantify or at least suggest an indicator of progress. Achievable– Are your specific benchmarks realistic compared to past results? Relevant– why does this matter to your organization? Is it within the scope of our mission? Time-based – specify when the result(s) can be achieved. Choose start and end dates and designate adequate time to do the work (but not indefinitely).
- #8: Keeping the project scope statement and objectives in mind: Develop a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) List of all tasks to be performed to achieve project objectives Structure is: Project Task Subtask WBS can be done with a flowchart - add time per task to each task/subtask Good WBS Design Principles The 100% Rule The WBS defines 100% of the work of the project. Anything that isn’t defined in the WBS is outside the scope of the project. Upper levels are planned deliverables or objectives, not planned tasks or actions. Ends of WBS include the activities needed to create the project deliverables. Mutually-exclusive elements Work should only appear in one place in the WBS Must be easy to update Sequence activities in WBS Identify milestones and deliverables Estimate activity durations, resource requirements (people, equipment, materials, facilities, money) and costs Prepare master project schedule and budget Prepare responsibility chart (assign resources to activities)
- #13: This is the phase where the work is actually getting done. Execution is not mutually exclusive from the next phase, “controlling” the project. You are generally executing and controlling (or monitoring progress) throughout the rest of the project’s life cycle. Managing the project team is a large part of managing a project successfully. Large enough that we are going to devote some time talking about that before moving on to the next project management phase.
- #14: See handout
- #15: Establish control system How will we monitor project direction and progress? Methods, times, communication mechanisms? Example: Project manager will provide a written project status update to the project on the first of each month via email. A copy of the status update will be kept in the digital project folder on the shared drive. Risk areas (with contingencies, if possible) The identification of any event that if occurred, could have a negative or positive impact on your project. In this phase, we monitor/control the project’s progress. Is the project on target? If no, what needs to be done? Should the plan be changed?
- #16: Managing the Triple Constraint The triple constraint of project management is Project Scope, Time and Cost Project Scope This is the amount of work to be done. Increasing the scope causes more work to be done, and vice versa. Time This is the schedule of the project. Modifying the schedule alters the start and end dates for tasks in the project and can alter the project’s overall end date. Cost This is the cost required to accomplish the project’s objectives. Modifying the cost of the project generally has an impact on the scope, time, or quality of the project. Changes should only be made when a serious deviation occurs. Change control is necessary to keep scope creep from happening. Changes in scope must be identified and managed properly so project doesn't go over budget and/or behind schedule.
- #17: The closure phase wraps up the project. A finally review should be held, asking: What was done well? What should be improved? What other lessons did we learn? This is also the phase in which we should give recognition to the team and/or team members for outstanding work and achievement. We should also try to celebrate the project’s completion in some way.