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Project+/Initiating

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IDENTIFY PROJECT PURPOSE

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Key Points

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  • identify business objective i.e. stated goal of the project
  • define the opportunity/problem
  • desired end result
  • often synonymous with objective
  • may be a high-level objective that has less-than-complete definition

Objective

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  • something to be achieved
  • desired outcomes of the project or any part of the project
  • measued in in terms of concrete deliverables and behavioral outcomes
  • it has to be visualisez before

EVALUATE BUSINESS JUSTIFICATION

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Key Points

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  • Identify high-level business-related requirements, outcomes, and criteria for success
  • identify low-level needs and expectations
  • establish boundaries for project budget, duration, and risk

Triple Constraints

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  • scope
  • schedule
  • budget

Business Case

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  • the information that describes the justification for the project
  • project is justified if expected benefits outweigh estimated costs and risks
  • often complex
  • may require
    • Financial Analysis
    • technical analysis
    • organization impact analysis
    • feasibility study

Request for Proposal (RFP) AKA Request for Quote (RFQ).

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  • describes
    • need for products and/or services
    • conditions under which product/services are to be provided
  • purpose
    • solicit bids or proposals from prospective suppliers

IDENTIFY MAJOR STAKEHOLDERS & THEIR ROLES

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Project Manager

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  • key stakeholder
  • responsible and accountable for managing a project's planning and performance
  • single point of accountability for a project

Customer or Client

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  • key stakeholder
  • person or organization that is the principle beneficiary of the project
  • Generally has a significant authority regarding
    • scope definition
    • whether the project should be initiated and/or continued.

Performing Organization

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  • key stakeholder
  • company or group doing the work
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  • key stakeholder
  • builds and maintains executive commitment
  • allocates organization resources (capital, human, etc.)
  • provides direction
  • has authority to settle disputes between project staff & functional staff

Champion

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  • senior exec who promotes and defends the project

Project Steering Committee

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  • execs from functional areas that provide
    • guidance
    • strategic input and direction
    • enlist cooperation from their functional group
    • high level project approval

Project Team (decide later? In planning phase?)

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  • anybody who is doing work on the project
  • includes contractors and consultants

Authority

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  • ability to get other people to act based on your decisions
  • based on perception that a person has been officially empowered to issue binding orders

Power

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  • ability to influence the actions of others
  • may come from
    • formal delegation of authority
      • charter gives PM this
    • reference power
      • personality
    • subject matter expertise
      • respect earned from skills
    • ability to influence rewards and penalties
      • rewarded or coercive authority
    • other sources.

Stakeholder

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  • anybody and everybody with a stake in the project
    • clients
    • sponsors
    • performers
    • general public
    • family and friends of direct participants
    • others?

Managerial Structures

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  • functional
  • project
  • matrix

Matrix Organization

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  • business structure in which people are assigned to
    • functional group
      • departments, disciplines, etc
    • projects or processes
      • cut across the organization
      • require resources from multiple functional groups.

DEFINE THE SCOPE OR THE PROJECT

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Scope Components

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  • function
  • performance

Five (scope?) Constants

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  • project end date
  • project ownership
  • completion criteria
  • rigorous change control procedure
  • "best practices" life cycle for this type of project

Statement of Scope AKA Statement of Work (SOW)

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  • description of the scope of a project
  • centered on the major deliverables and constraints
  • develops and confirms an understanding of project scope
  • typically requires more time to create than WBS or charter
  • review of the scope documents held before proceeding to project planning phase
  • complete after the PM and the sponsor agree that objectives will be met
  • establishes procedure to request changes to a project scope
  • end-users representative approves technical changes

SOW-PROCS (mnemonic)

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  • (P) - Policies and Procedures
  • (R) - Requirements
  • (O) - Overview
  • (C) - Criteria for Vendor Purchase
  • (S) - Specifications

Scope: three dimensions

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  • product
    • full set of features and functions
  • project
    • work that has to be done to deliver the product
  • impact
    • involvement by performing and client organizations.
    • effect on performing and client organizations.

Scope Change

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  • any change in the definition of the project scope
  • can result from:
    • changes in client needs
    • discovery of defects or omissions
    • regulatory changes
    • other

Scope Change Control AKA Scope Change Management

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  • process of making sure that changes to the scope are consciously evaluated
  • making sure that implications are considered in making a decision to
    • make the change
    • postpone it
    • reject it

Scope Creep

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  • changes in scope over the life of a project
  • unconscious growth of the project scope
  • results from uncontrolled changes to requirements
  • managed by implementing a rigid change control process

Scope Definition

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  • breaks down major deliverables into more manageable components
  • makes verification, development, and project control, easier
  • may be part of requirements definition and/or design

Scope Planning

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  • development of a statement of project's
    • principle deliverables
    • justification (business case)
    • objectives
  • part of requirements definition

Scope Verification

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  • process to ensure that all project deliverables have been completed satisfactorily
  • associated with acceptance of the product by clients and sponsors.

BUILD CONSENSUS AND OBTAIN WRITTEN APPROVAL (objectives)

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Secure Written Confirmation Of

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  • customer expectations
  • problem/opportunity
  • deliverables
  • strategy
  • completion date
  • Budget
  • risks
  • priority
  • sponsor
  • resources
  • resources availability

- all the above documented in the charter?

Methods to build consensus

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  • negotiating
  • interviewing
  • meetings
  • memos

Strategies To build And Maintain Senior Management Support

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  • involve mgmt in defining project concept
  • involve mgmt in defining scope
  • involve mgmt in reviewing and approving deliverables
  • provide role for mgmt as spokesperson/advocate

Consensus

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  • unanimous agreement among the decision-makers
  • requires conviction that the decision will adequately achieve objectives
  • if one person is not in agreement then there is no consensus