project design and management

Project Design and Management Andrew Zolnai

Kuwait City & Cambridge UK

blog.zolnai.ca

INTRODUCTION

Project Quality Assurance

- Find a Client

- Select a Topic

- Develop Initial Project

Concepts

Project Performance,

Monitoring and Closure

Project Implementation

Proposal Development

Project Definition

Find Work

Getting Started

• Select with a reasonable and manageable scope of work

• Select a reasonably sized project work area

• Know your data requirements and standards

• Know the data available and its quality including metadata

• Know what types of analysis you intend to perform and how

• Determine whether the analysis is static (one time) or dynamic (repetitive)

• Determine what type of application or tools you could develop

• Determine if the data or application should be published on the Web

• Identify the risks and finding contingencies

PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

SWOT Analysis

Environmental Scan

/ \

Initial Analysis External Analysis

/\ /\

Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats

I

SWOT Matrix

Strengths

• Patents

• Strong brand names

• Good reputation among customers

• Cost advantages from proprietary know-how

• Exclusive access to high grade natural resources

• Favorable access to distribution networks

Weaknesses

• Lack of patent protection

• A weak brand name

• Poor reputation among customers

• High cost of structure

• Lack of access to the best natural resources

• Lack of access to key distribution channels

Opportunities

• An unfulfilled customer need

• Arrival of new technologies

• Loosening of regulations

• Removal of international trade barriers

Threats

• Shift away from the firm's products

• Emergence of substitute products

• New regulations

• Increased trade barriers

SWOT Matrix

Strengths Weaknesses

Opportunities S-O Strategies opportunities that are a good fit to the companies strengths

W-O Strategies weaknesses to pursue opportunities

Threats S-T Strategies identify ways that the firm can use its strengths to reduce its vulnerability

to external threats

W-T Strategies establish a defensive plan to prevent the firm's weaknesses from making it highly susceptible to external threats

Example Workflow Process Diagram

Aerial Photo

Inventory

Load MDSD

Software

Enter Camera

Calibration Report

Specifications

Set-up DEMs and

DOQQs

Digitize

Delineations from

Photos

Select Point

Registration

Append Linework

and Clean

Create Polygon

Attributes

Create QC

Hardcopies

Linework and

Attribute QC

Final Sliver and

Attribute clean-up

Apply AML Tools

to Refine the Final

Linework

Deliver .e00 files

Planning

• Resource Requirements

• Required Level of Effort

• Risk Analysis and Contingency Planning

Business Case Development

• Staff responsibilities, tasks performed, and staff structure

• Data used, produced, and maintained in the course of business activities

• Current use of data, analysis practices, and application requirements

• Any necessary training to employ your completed MIP at the client site

Data Analysis

• Data Analysis and Inventory

• Conceptual Database Design

• Model the Client's View

• Model the Client's View

• Identify Representations of Entities

Application Development Process

• Avoid Classic Mistakes

• People-Related Mistakes

• Process-Related Mistakes

• Technology-Related Mistakes

• Develop Fundamentals

• Management Fundamentals

• Technical Fundamentals

PROPOSALS

Project Origin

• RFP

• RFB / RFQ

• ROM

• Spin-off work (sole-source proposals)

• Unsolicited proposals

• Advertising

• Trade shows

• Personal relationships/contacts

Selecting Opportunities

• General Information

• Technical Specifications

• Contract Terms and Conditions

• Proposal Specifications

Contract Types

• Firm, Fixed Price (FFP)

• Fixed Price Level-of-Effort (FPLOE)

• Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF)

• Cost Plus Award Fee (CPAF)

• Time and Materials (T&M)

• Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ)

• Ordering Agreement (BOA)

• Order (P.O.)

• Letter Contract

• Letter of Intent

Prime Contracting

• Pros

• Prime contractors maintain control of the project.

• Prime contractors retain larger revenue share.

• Prime contractors receive larger exposure for the program.

• Cons

• Prime contractors are responsible for the cost and effort associated with assembling the proposal document.

• Prime contractors assume all of the risk

Subcontracting

• Pros

• In a non-exclusive role, the subcontractor can participate on many teams, thus increasing the chances of being on the winning team.

• Less risk for the subcontractor means less liability.

• Cons

• Subcontracting nonexclusively generally requires putting together several scopes of work, thus increasing the costs and resources expended in developing the proposal.

• Subcontractors have little or no control of the program.

• Subcontractors usually have less input into the proposal process (less effort and less cost).

• Subcontracting usually means less project revenue.

Quality assurance

• Acceptance Criteria Specifications

• QA/QC Workflow

• Automated Quality Control Checks

• Visual Quality Control Checks

• Sampling

• Process Monitoring and Documentation

PROPOSALS

Assembling Proposals

• Questions

• What you intend to provide for them

• How you intend to do the job

• What the time frame for completion is

• How much it will cost the client

• Roles

• Proposal Manger

• Proposal Coordinator

• Technical staff

• Contracts Administrator

• Cost Estimator

Typical Sections of a Proposal

• Executive Summary

• Solution Overview

• Scope of Work

• Schedule

• Qualifications

• Costs

• Exceptions and Comments

• Appendixes

Task Definition

• Common Design Tasks

• Common Application Design Tasks

• Common Database Development Tasks

• Scope of Work Development

• Schedule development

• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

• Costing

PROJECT START

Project Definition

Proposal Development

Project Implementation

Project Performance,

Monitoring, and Closure

Project

Management

Quality

Assurance

Project Implementation

• Components

• Project Initiation

• Project Planning

• Project Execution

• Performance, Monitoring, and Closure

• Controlling the Project

• Project Closeout

Project Phases

Project Management Phases

Initiation Planning

ExecutionControl

Closeout

Project Phases

• Project Initiation

• Project Planning

• Project Execution

• Project Monitoring and Control

• Scope of Work

• Schedule

• Budget

• Quality

Control

Closeout

Execution

Planning

Initiation

Time

Project

Start

Project

Finish

Le

ve

l o

f E

ffo

rt

Project Initiation

• WBS Element Review

• Project Manager Selection

• Project Staff Roles

• Provide a clear definition of skills and responsibilities required for specific project roles.

• Be known as a proactive project manager who appreciates the development team.

• Hold out for the most qualified staff, even if lesser qualified personnel are available immediately.

• Identify staff interested in the project domain.

• Recognize the need for training team members who lack specific competencies, and include staff training in the project plan, if needed

Project Staff Roles

• Project Manager

• Senior Management / Senior Consultant

• Consultants

• Solution Architect

• Domain Experts / Subject Matter Experts

• Database Architect

• Lead Software Engineer

• Technical Lead

• Database Analyst

• Quality Assurance Mgr.

• Quality Assurance Lead

• Quality Assurance Analyst

• Release Management Team

Customer

Project Manager Senior Advisor

, Consultant

Quality Assurance ,

Release

Management

Solution Architect Lead Developer Lead Database

Architect

Software

Developers

Database

Developers

Quality Assurance

Staff ,

Testers

Technical

Consultants Domain Experts

Building the Project Team

• Obtain Qualified Project Staff

• Schedule Staff Deployment During Project Stages

• Maintain Positive Team Dynamics

PROJECT PLAN

Develop the Project Plan • Project Overview

• Scope of Work

• Assumptions and Deliverables

• External Dependencies and Constraints

• Resource Requirements

• Project Organization and Structure

• Key Contact Information

• Work Flow Process

• Project Schedule

• Communication and Reporting

• Risk Management

Example Work Flow Chart

Conduct needs

analysis

RCTLMA trail

mapping

Design

Geodatabase

Develop terrain

modelDigitize trails

Develop

methodology

Finalize project

documentation

Review

methodology

Edit methodology

processNo Yes

Client review

No

Yes

Edit

documentation

Deliver final

product

Example Project Schedule

Defining the Quality Assurance Plan

• Quality audits and process analysis

• Statistical sampling

• Application testing

• Inspection

• Edit review

Change Control Process

PROJECT EXECUTION

Project Execution Process

ACTION

• Requirements Definition

• Analysis

• Design

• Development

• Testing

• Deployment

ACTOR

• Executive sponsor

• Department managers

• Technical users

• Development

• IT staff

Requirements Collection

• Inputs

• Task descriptions

• Outputs

• Hardware / software platform / architecture

• Data requirements

• Development environment

• User interface

• Operational requirements

• Security

• Maintenance and system administration

• Quality requirements

• Documentation requirements

Requirements Documentation

• User involvement

• Completeness

• Managed change control

• Describe the "what" not the "how“

• Testable requirements

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION LIFE CYCLE MODELS

Definitions

• Client-mandated implementation methodology

• Internal organizational standards

• Nature of the work

• Complexity and duration of the project

• Waterfall Methodology

• Evolutionary Prototyping

• Staged Delivery

Waterfall Methodology

• Requirements, product specifications, and technology environment are well known

• Quality requirements are more important than cost or schedule constraints

• Staff is inexperienced

• The project scope is small and short term

• The project is complex, but well understood

Evolutionary Prototyping

• Rapidly changing requirements or the application area is not well understood by developers or the client

• Project needs to show visible progress throughout

• End user driven application

• Schedule and cost constraints are not a primary concern

Staged Delivery (Incremental Implementation) • Requirements are well defined, but a framework is needed to

accommodate some changes including changes in implementation priorities.

• The project is complex with a mid- to long-term implementation timeframe and has different modules with considerable variability in terms of implementation priority.

• Showing continued progress in the form of production ready software components is important.

• Project management and technical staff are experienced, especially at the planning level.

• The project can absorb the overhead that comes with added planning and software release activities.

PROJECT PERFORMANCE, MONITORING, AND CLOSURE

How-to • Tracking Project Progress

including

• Deliverables

• Hours

• Budget

• Performance Assessment

• Monitoring Staff Performance

• Monitoring Subcontractor Performance

• Managing Client Expectations

• Effective Communication with Clients

• Dealing with Project Problems

• Contract Amendment Process

• Project Closure including

• Final Steps

• Follow-Up

• Project Acceptance including

• Acceptance Criteria

• Acceptance Process

• Technology Transfers

• Obtaining Payments from Client

• Project Presentations

Tracking Project Progress

• Tracking Technical Performance

• Tracking Schedule Performance

• Tracking Cost Performance

• Performance Assessment Methodologies

• How to Obtain Status Information

Example of Project Tasks and Their Status

Project Monitoring and Control

Project Planning

Project Monitoring

and Control

Project

Execution

Scope

Quality

Schedule

Cost Risks

Human Resources

Customer/ Stakeholder

Management

Requirements

Analysis

Design

Development

Testing

Deployment

Start

• Scope

• Quality

• Schedule

• Cost

• Risks

• Human Resources

• Customer/Stakeholder Management

• Analysis inputs

• Analysis based on standard methods and tools

• Analysis outputs

Scope

• Original scope of work from the project plan including work packages (i.e., work breakdown structure [WBS])

• Information on project performance including, for example, completed tasks, defect statistics, cost and resource utilization, and status of scheduled activities in the scope of work

• Approved change requests including changes in priorities that may lead to re-planning

Quality

• Quality audits and process analysis

• Statistical sampling

• Software testing

• Inspection

• Review of defect fixes

Schedule

• Analysis inputs typically identify which target dates have been met and the extent to which target dates

• To track schedule performance, project managers can then generate a number of reports to assess the current status of work packages

• A planned versus actual schedule comparison can be effectively illustrated graphically through bar charts.

• Key outputs from the analysis include reports that document the status of the schedule as determined through performance measures and recommended corrective actions

• Typical corrective actions may include mechanisms for expediting work to allow completion within schedule or, at the least, to reduce delay.

Cost

• Analysis inputs such as information on expenditures obtained from the appropriate business systems.

• Many times, only cost overruns are considered of interest in project performance reviews because of their negative effect on project profitability

• Results of the earned value analysis and forecasting effort

• Recommendations on corrective actions, if variances are excessive

Risk Mitigating Strategy

Insufficient resources available to perform the work

Explore various channels to secure resources, including hiring new staff or involving subcontractors, or consider training staff who currently lack sufficient skills.

Consider alternative implementation approaches or rescheduling and reprioritizing work.

Hire top talent.

High turnover on the project team

Investigate reasons for turnover and provide feedback on possible corrective measures to management.

Improve team cohesion through proactive communication.

Work to establish a project environment for success.

Poor team dynamics Involve interactive team management to identify issues and act as facilitator to resolve team issues.

Implement processes to escalate conflict resolution to senior management if needed.

Friction between the project team and the customer

Establish clear lines of communication between the project team and the customer.

Proactively manage communication. Develop issue logs and plans to track and resolve issues. Follow up on action items. Ensure all project status information is accurate and up-

to-date.

Contractor failure Check references. Assess abilities prior to hiring. Provide a scope of work that clearly identifies

responsibilities. Actively manage the contractor relationship.

Overly optimistic schedule

Incorporate adequate time for planning, design, testing, bug fixing, retesting, changes, and documentation, and properly account for nonworking time such as weekends, holidays, and staff vacations.

Solicit feedback from the technical team when scheduling work.

Properly account for schedule dependencies including stakeholder dependencies that are not directly controllable.

Poorly defined requirements

Develop clear, complete, detailed, cohesive, attainable, and testable requirements that are agreed to by all players.

Use prototypes to help nail down requirements. In "agile"-type environments (fluid, changing

continually), frequent coordination with customers/end users is necessary.

Scope creep Work closely with customers when developing requirements.

Use issue logs for customer communication. Implement change control and configuration control

mechanisms that identify the processes and approvals needed to implement change.

Be prepared to defend against excessive changes and additions once development has begun, and be prepared to explain consequences.

Use incremental development practices.

Inadequate design Insist on approved requirements prior to initiating design.

Provide specifications on design standards. Allow sufficient time for design activities. Conduct design reviews.

Poor software quality

Insist on validating requirements and design specifications.

Require walk-throughs and inspections when appropriate.

Initiate review and testing early on; retest after fixes or changes.

Plan for adequate time for testing and bug fixing.

Analyze the causes of errors with the objective of implementing process improvements.

Use formal tools to track software discrepancies including their resolution.

Base technology/tools not ready for deployment

Explore alternate implementation approaches. Incorporate cost and schedule contingencies

into the project baseline.

Human Resources

• Staffing assignments and team roles and responsibilities, project performance reports

• Active participation in key project activities and continued interaction with the team

• Project Performance Appraisals

• Conflict Management

Customer/Stakeholder Management

• Communication methods

• Issue logs

MANAGING CLIENT RELATIONSHIPS

Balance Between Client Expectations and a Financially Successful Project

Client Communication

• Provide information in the form of a question, rather than just say “No”

• Use the team approach

• Avoid bringing in contract officers early

• Do not pass the buck

• Be informed on all relevant communication with the client

Managing Client Expectations

Dealing with Project Problems

• Contract Problems

• Insufficient Project Plan

• Lack of Control Over the Product Dev. Process

• Staffing Problems

• Excessive Optimism on Budget and Schedule

• Poor Control of Subcontractors

• Contract Problems

• Ambiguous definition of project deliverables

• Incomplete view of a product development approach

• Uncertainty regarding the client's involvement

• Unclear acceptance criteria

• Staffing Problems

• Inappropriate staff assignments (staff not matched to a task that best fits their skills)

• Not enough staff assigned to a project (understaffing)

• Too many staff assigned to a project, making them difficult to manage (overstaffing)

• Poor communication between team members

• High staff turnover (trained team members leave, and costs associated with training new staff negatively impact project)

• Poor training of staff

• Poor Control of Subcontractors

• Fail to make scheduled deliveries

• Provide poor quality deliverables

• Have communication problems

Mitigating Project Problems

• Unrealistic Promises Have Been Made to the Client

• Client Is Disinterested and Detached

• Client Breaks Established Lines of Communication

• Client Will Not Pay

Best Practices for Dealing with Project Problems • Open Communication

• Evolution of Problems

• Correcting Budget Problems

• Correcting Schedule Problems

• Managing Client Expectations

• Involving Clients in the Development Process

• What to Do When the Client Project Team Changes

• Correcting Budget Problems

• Reduce overall staffing levels.

• Reassign existing staff to different tasks.

• Replace existing staff who are not performing up to expectations.

• Improve the development methodology.

• Make more efficient use of computing resources

• Involving Clients in the Development Process

• Provide for client reviews of intermediate deliveries.

• Conduct training programs.

• Plan for technology transfer.

• Have clients assist in resolving issues that arise

• What to Do When the Client Project Team Changes

• Organize a meeting between both project teams.

• Have a joint review of project requirements, goals, and deliverables.

• Review management structure, responsibilities, and channels of communication.

• Identify any new perceived requirements of needs and weigh them against the project budget and schedule.

Project Closure

• Returning Client Materials

• Hard-Copy Archiving

• Reports

• Correspondence

• Data samples

• Plots

• Meeting notes

• Copies of invoices

• Subcontractor's files

• Original correspondence between you and the client

Project Acceptance

• Acceptance Criteria

• Examples

• Database Products

• Software Products

• Technology Transfer Plan

• The Acceptance Process

• Acceptance examples

• Conformance to database design specifications.

• Meeting a minimum error rate (i.e., 95% of addresses will be geocoded).

• Applications will have specific functionality.

• Meeting a specific delivery schedule.

• Readability of transfer media.

Administrative Closure

• The client has formally accepted all delivered products.

• The client has been invoiced and has paid in full.

• If subcontractors have been utilized for a project, ensure that all subcontractors have invoiced in full for their services and have been paid.

• All material transfers have taken place.

• No one else is charging to the project

References

• ESRI, 2004, Managing a GIS. Redlands, California, ESRI Press: 133.

• McConnell, Steve, 1998, Software Project Survival Guide. How to Be Sure Your First Important Project Isn't Your Last. Redmond, Washington, Microsoft Press: 288.

• McConnell, Steve, 1996, Rapid Development, Taming Wild Software Schedules. Redmond, Washington, Microsoft Press: 646.

• Project Management Institute, 2004, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, 3rd Edition. Newton Square, Pennsylvania, Project Management Institute: 388

With permission from University of Redlands, CA, International Master of Science, 2005

Full text for GIS class available upon request (Appendix list follows)

Appendices

• Glossary • Example Business Case

Documentation • Example Data Analysis and

Inventory Form • Example Request for Proposal

(RFP) • Example of Proposal Submittal

Information for a Request for Proposal (RFP)

• Example of Technical Specifications for a Request for Proposal (RFP)

• Example of Contract Terms and Conditions from an RFP

• Example of Evaluation Criteria from a Request for Proposal (RFP)

• Example of an Executive Summary from a Proposal

• Example of Workflow Diagram • Example of an Executive

Summary from a Proposal • Example One of Workflow

Diagram • Example of Task Definition and

WBS Structure

• Example of Blank Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) Spreadsheet

• Project Plan Template • Example of Quality Assurance

(QA) Plan Template • Example of Test and Acceptance

Plan Template

• Corrective/Preventive Action Plan

• Project Completion Report