Project initiation
Maciej Grzenda
Warsaw University of Technology
Faculty of Mathematics and Information Science M.Grzenda@mini.pw.edu.pl
http://www.mini.pw.edu.pl/~grzendam
Project initiation
• Two processes:
– Develop project charter, – Identify stakeholders
• The initiation stage has been modified comparing to the previous PMBOK
edition:
– No preliminary scope statement
Processes
• 42 core processes
• Every process has the following form
INPUTS TOOLS OUTPUTS
&
TECHNIQUES
The definition of processes, their inputs, tools and techniques and outputs is the key contribution of PMBOK to project management methodology. It is important to note than not all the processes are supposed to be used in every project.
Project charter – part I
Sample content Document section
5.2011 installation, 10. 2011 trainings finished
1.2012 used in production, 3.2012 project finished Summary milestone schedule
The help-desk staff might be reluctant to accept new user interface
High-level risks
Software installation, configuration, trainings for help-desk staff, …
High-level project description
The system has to be integrated with an existing billing system to use the same database of customers
High-level requirements
1. The number of processed consumer requests 2. The reduction of consumer complaint factor Measurable project objectives
and related success criteria
Implementation of a new help-desk system:
1. reducing the time needed to handle consumer complaints by 50%
2. Increasing the number of fully processed consumer requests to 20 000/month
Project purpose or justification
Project charter – part II
Paul Important:
• allowed to:
– modify the budget,
– cancel/suspend the project,
• not allowed to change the objectives Sponsor:
• name,
• authority level
John Major, resp. for:
• finishing project in time, within budget,
• allowed to hire new employees,
• all the procurement can be done only after a prior consent of the sponsor
Project manager:
• name,
• responsibility,
• authority level
Who decides the project is successful and basing on what
Project approval requirements
252 200 Euro (e.g. based on a contract) Summary budget
Sample content Document section
Discussion
• In reality not all the project charter sections are clearly described/present,
• Some of typical problems:
– Not clear authority of a PM, – Not so clear objectives,
– Qualitative (hence: subjective and vague)
rather than quantitave success measures
Discussion: objectives
• Have to be stated.
• Ideally, just a few sentences could be
enough. They might be discussed in greater detail further on,
• The objectives of the project should be
possibly clear to let PM develop detailed
project management plan (PMP) being a
roadmap to these objectives.
ROI and project selection
• Usually, a selection of candidate projects is made, only some of them are started, or a sequence of projects is planned
• More and more frequently, Return on Investment (ROI) becomes the key criterion,
• In the case of IT systems, ROI can be generated by:
– Improved cash-flow,
– Improved execution of business processes i.e. less expensive,
– Better decisions (e.g. by the use of data mining tools, better reporting tools, on-line analytical processing).
In many cases, the expectation is to get 2yrs ROI period or even shorter. It is crucial to note that to achieve ROI in IT projects, the organisational change is needed.
Buying/installing the software is not enough. It has to be actually used. Frequently existing processes have to be redesigned.
Objectives: things to avoid
• „Improve the management of sales processes”:
– Sell more?
– Spend less time on handling one client?
– Increase consumer satisfaction level?
– Have more detailed data to plan better marketing campaign?
– Do not require so much data in the system to speed up the work of sales team?
It is extremely important to clarify the objectives for a project. Otherwise, substantial work may make the things even worse than at the beginning.
Discussion: project manager
• A project manager (PM) has to be assigned,
• The project charter should be formally authorised by a sponsor (being one of managers/directors influential enough for the topic) to provide formal basis for the PM to execute a project,
• The role of PM is to plan, execute, monitor and control a project until a successful closure
The responsibility of a Project Manager is defined partly also by the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. Responsibility, respect, fairness and honesty should be the key features of a project manager.
Discussion: sponsor
• A sponsor should be identified,
• The role of a sponsor is to provide the project with necessary resources (budget, human resources, tools,
machinery etc.)
A sponsor starts the projects and provides resources.
Starting from this moment, a PM should execute a project, by initiating and executing relevant processes. The underlying philosophy is that a PM should not involve a sponsor into everyday problems, unless resources assigned are found to be insufficient and/or significant problems are encountered. In the latter case, a PM should report all the problems that could negatively affect project objectives.
Project stakeholders
• Stakeholder: persons and organisations that can be positively or negatively affected by the
performance or completion of the project.
• Stakeholders include:
– Customers/users, – Sponsor,
– Program managers,
– PMO (Project Management Office),
– Portfolio managers/portfolio review board.
PM must identify the stakeholders and manage the influence of them on the project.
When some stakeholders are not identified early enough, significant delays and
increased expenses may occur in the project. For instance, the requirements of one of departments might be considered too late and result is substantial changes in already approved software requirements.
