project management for phd research

Paddi LeinsterProgramme Manager, Digital Repository of Ireland Royal Irish Academy

Project ManagementDAH Institute, UCC 2014

What is a project?A project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a

unique product, service, or result.

Temporary means a definite beginning and endUnique means different in some distinguishing wayProjects can involve:•A single person•A single organisational unit•Multiple organisational units

Multi-disciplinary team:

software engineers, designers, social scientists, humanists, archivists, librarians, policy, Irish language, education & outreach, legal, project management.

Stakeholder Advisory Group

International Advisory Group

Management Board

Core Implementation

Team

Strand 1

Management, Operations

Strand 3

InfrastructureRollout

Strand 2

Policy, Requirements

DRI Structure

Strand 4

Demonstrators, E&O

RIA, NUIM, TCD, NUIG, DIT, (NCAD)

Metadata Guidelines

DRI Task Forces

Workflows

IP & Copyright

Data Protection

Sustainability Models

TDR – Trusted Digital

Repository

Irish Language

Launch Committee

Project Management defined…Application of...

...to project activities to meet project requirements

Knowledge

SkillsTools & Techniques

Copyright 2013 Institute Project Management

A project can create…1. A product that can be either a component of another

item, an enhancement of an item, or an end item in itself;

2. A service or a capability to perform a service3. An improvement in the existing product or service lines;

or4. A result, such as an outcome or document

Project Life Cycle

Copyright PMBOK

Scrum Methodology

PhD Life Cycle example

PhD Life Cycle / Project Life Cycle

Copyright PMBOK

1. Research proposal 2. Outline of methodology and

theoretical framework3. Primary, secondary research and

skills development4. Interpreting research data and

argument development5. Write up (may need to go back to

steps 3, 4 and even step 2)6. Submission (often an iterative

process in terms of drafts)7. Viva preparation and Viva8. Corrections if required and final

submission.9. Deposit research data in a TDR!

PhD Life Cycle / Project Life Cycle

Copyright PMBOK

1. Research proposal 2. Outline of methodology and

theoretical framework3. Primary, secondary research and

skills development4. Interpreting research data and

argument development5. Write up (may need to go back to

steps 3, 4 and even step 2)6. Submission (often an iterative

process in terms of drafts)7. Viva preparation and Viva8. Corrections if required and final

submission.9. Deposit research data in a TDR!

PhD Life Cycle / Project Life Cycle

Copyright PMBOK

1. Research proposal 2. Outline of methodology and

theoretical framework3. Primary, secondary research and

skills development4. Interpreting research data and

argument development5. Write up (may need to go back to

steps 3, 4 and even step 2)6. Submission (often an iterative

process in terms of drafts)7. Viva preparation and Viva8. Corrections if required and final

submission.9. Deposit research data in a TDR!

PhD Life Cycle / Project Life Cycle

Copyright PMBOK

1. Research proposal 2. Outline of methodology and

theoretical framework3. Primary, secondary research and

skills development4. Interpreting research data and

argument development5. Write up (may need to go back to

steps 3, 4 and even step 2)6. Submission (often an iterative

process in terms of drafts)7. Viva preparation and Viva8. Corrections if required and final

submission.9. Deposit research data in a TDR!

Why plan a project?... Control What is required How:

- it will be achieved- by whom- using what specialist equipment, skills and resources

When events or milestones will happen

Why plan a project?...Success!Planning is not a trivial exercise

It is vital to the success of the project

A plan must contain sufficient information and detail to confirm that the targets or goals of the plan are achievable.

Good Planning = Good Communications

Objective clearly stated

A clear brief

Communication of programme and schedule

Feedback

Copyright Day Communications www.dayadvertising.com

Factors effecting the project:

1.External Factors2.Working Factors3.Contribution of effective planning to project outcomes

Planning and Scheduling Environment

Copyright Denis Lock, 2007

Factors effecting the project:

1.External Factors2.Working Factors3.Contribution of effective planning to project outcomes

Planning and Scheduling Environment

The Diamond Model - Wikimedia Commons/Craig Brown, 2009/ Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

Copyright Denis Lock, 2007

Project Management Constraints

The Diamond Model - Wikimedia Commons/Craig Brown, 2009/ Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

PM

Planning Planning - the selection of objectives, the establishing of procedures, policies and programmes for achieving those objectives.

A plan is a listing or visual display that results when all project activities have been subjected to estimating, logical sequencing, target timing and the determination of priorities.

Planning – Logical Sequencing of Activities

There are two basic relationships:Activities in seriesActivities in parallel

What is a Project Plan?Document describing •how, •when and •by whom a specific target or set of targets is to be achieved

Design of how the following can be met:•Products (Scope)•Timescales•Costs•Quality

The Diamond Model - Wikimedia Commons/Craig Brown, 2009/ Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

SchedulingA schedule is obtained by doing additional work on the initial plan

So that resources needed to carry out all the project activities are taken into account.

Objectives of scheduling

1. Match resources to activities2. Schedule work according to the

defined sequence and dependencies

3. Smooth resource usage4. Identify surplus resource effort or

additional resource effort needed5. Calculate total cost of resources.

Copyright http://www.beprosoftware.com/

Resource SchedulingA project resource is any person, object, tool, machine or sum of money needed for work on a project – Dennis Lock

Three Main Classes of Project Resource:1. Exhaustible resources 2. Replenishable resources 3. Reusable resources

A typical project plan (Gantt Chart)

•Milestone•Critical Path

A typical project plan (Gantt Chart)

Copyright http://nonprofitprocessimprovement.wordpress.com/

Project Management Tools & ResourcesIssues Log• Tool for reporting and communicating• Ensures issues are raised, investigated and resolved quickly and effectively •A safe and reliable method for the team to raise issues.•Track and assign responsibility to specific people for each issue•Analyze and prioritize issues more easily•Record issue resolution for future reference and project learning•Monitor overall project health and status.

Project Management Tools & ResourcesUseful Websites:http://www.mindtools.com/http://scrummethodology.com/ http://www.pmi.org/ (for training)http://www.prince2.com (for training)http://opensource.com/business/14/1/top-project-management-tools-2014

Books:Dennis Lock , Project Management - publisher GowerHarold Kerzner , Project Management - publisher Wiley

Questions?

Thank You!

Email: p.leinster@ria.ie