sw project management project charter and plan

INFO 420 Chapter 3 1

SW Project ManagementProject Charter and Plan

INFO 420Dr. Jennifer Booker

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Digging deeper

So far we’ve looked at projects from a fairly high level or strategic perspectiveThe business case provided a high level

justification of the project Now it’s time to focus on a single project in

more detail, and start fleshing out the details needed to make it a reality

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Project charter and plan

The second phase of the project life cycle develops the project charter and baseline project planThese are the foundation for guiding the

project through its implementationA major role is to define subplans that,

together, will achieve the project’s goals

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Subplans

Subplans help manage specific aspects of the overall projectScope, schedule, budget, quality, risk, and

people could each be the basis for a subplanCombined with the project’s methodology,

processes, and tools, they define the project’s infrastructure and framework

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Project planning overview

Much of the course will focus on the details of these various subplans

For now, introduce the project planning process and how it connects to the PMBOK And we’ll link the MOV to the project’s

scope, budget, and schedule

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Project planning overview

Ultimately the project plan will answer the basic concerns Who is involved in the project?How much will it cost?How long will it take?What will the finished product be able to do?

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Project processes

A process is a set of activities to achieve a particular purposeJust like a kitchen recipe, or a programming

algorithm A project uses two types of processes

Project management processesProduct-oriented processes

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Project processes

Project management processes help run the project Initiation, execution, closing, managing, etc.

Product-oriented processes are those that actually create the system or productSystem development life cycle (SDLC)

processes mostly fit in this category You need both kinds of processes!

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PM process groups

The five project management process groups in the PMBOK define a project by the kinds of work to be done

They often overlap different project phases

They are: Initiating Planning Executing Monitoring and

Controlling Closing

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Initiating process group

Processes typically include Developing a business case Initializing a projectGetting approval of the business casePreparation of the project charter


Planning process group

Processes typically includePlanning of individual phases within a project,

as well as planning the overall projectPlanning project scope, activities, resources,

costs, schedule, and procurementScope of processes should be consistent with

the size of the project Includes updating plans during the project


Executing process group

Processes typically includeMatching people and resources to carry out

the plansDevelop the system (software engineering

processes, testing, etc.)QA, risk management, and team development


Monitoring and Controlling process group Processes typically include

Balancing project scope, schedule, budget, and quality objectives

Monitor variances between planned & actualsTake corrective action when neededScope, change, schedule, cost, & quality

control processes; and communications plan


Closing process group

Processes typically includeGetting customer approval for final

deliverablesContract closureAdministrative closureEvaluate project against its MOVDocument lessons learned


Project integration management

Project integration management (PIM) coordinates the other eight knowledge areas throughout a project life cycle Includes deciding where to concentrate

resources day to dayProactive risk managementCoordinating work, and making tradeoffs

among competing needs


Project integration management

In many ways, PIM is a key role of the project managerHow do you keep the project on track in spite

of personnel issues, resource issues, technical problems, etc.?

Understanding PIM processes is key to producing a good project plan


PIM processes

Define the project charterGives the project manager authority to

allocate resources Develop the preliminary scope statement

This is part of the business case – the broad scope of what is and isn’t part of the system

Develop project management plan


PIM processes

The subplans mentioned earlier need to be integrated within the overall PMP

Direct and manage project executionThe project manager integrates all the

processes into one coherent project. Hopefully.

Monitor and control project workCritical are corrective actions when project

strays from the plan


PIM processes

Preventative actions can be a good part of risk management

Defect repair and rework are needed to maintain quality

Integrated change controlChanges to the system need to be

documented, reviewed, and approved


PIM processes

Need to ensure all affected parties are aware of changes before approval is given

Close the projectThis could include premature closure of the

project, if needed In any event, closure should be orderly


Project management culture

Some organizations beg for trouble by pretending that project management isn’t really useful

To help instill a sense of the overall project management approach, follow these six principles



Define the job in detail – know the scope and boundaries precisely

Get the right people involved Estimate time and costs, including

allowances for risks and scope assumptions



Break the job down into a SOW The SOW is a contract of project objectives

Establish and follow a change procedure Agree on acceptance criteria – when are

you done with each deliverable?


Project sponsor

The project sponsor is a critical role for the success of any project

It’s someone outside the development team who is not only paying for the project, but also acts as a champion to support the project and protect it from outside threats


Project sponsor

The sponsor: Empowers the project managerMaintains project support (“buy-in”) from other

key stakeholdersClears political and organizational roadblocksEnsures availability of resourcesMonitors project status and progress


Project sponsor

Approves plans, schedules, budgets, and deliverables

Keeps the project focused on the goal Since the sponsor is outside the

development team, the project manager doesn’t control them

Loss of a sponsor can kill a project


Project charter

The project charter is a high level agreement between the project sponsor and the project teamDocuments the MOV, which may have been

refined since the business caseDefine project infrastructure

What resources, technology, methods, and PM processes will support the project?


Project charter

Identify key personnel, facilities and tools

Summarize the project plan Scope, schedule, budget, and quality objectives Deliverables, major milestones

Define roles and responsibilities Identify project sponsor, manager, key leads, and

how they will communicate and make decisions


Project charter

Express commitment to the project Describe the resources committed to the project Who will take ownership of the final product?

Define project control mechanisms What processes will be followed for requesting,

reviewing, and approving changes to project scope, cost, or schedule?


Charter contents

A charter typically can contain:Project identification, such as the name or

acronym or logo by which it’s known Critical for your team coffee mugs

Project stakeholders Who are they? What roles do they play? Who reports to whom?


Charter contents

Project description Give a nice overview of the project, for someone

who’s never heard of it Might include the project’s vision or overall goals

Measurable organizational value Yes, it’s important enough to get its own section

Project scope Could be a formal SOW, or less formal narrative


Charter contents

The project scope is less detailed than the project plan, but outlines the major features of the project, and what is not part of the project scope

Project schedule – at a high level, such as major phases and overall duration

Project budget – at least the totalsQuality issues, such as the standards to be

followed, or other overall quality objectives


Charter contents

Resources – who is providing people, technology, facilities, etc. to support the project

You don’t want an office in your daughter’s dorm room…

Assumptions and risks Key people availability Events that could change project scope, budget, or

duration


Charter contents

External constraints on the project, e.g. project interfaces to existing systems

Internal constraints, such as resource competition Project impact on other parts of the organization Environmental, political, economic, or other issues

Project administration What plans will be developed to support this

project? Scope mgmt, communications, quality mgmt, quality mgmt, change mgmt, HR, etc.


Charter contents

Acceptance and approval Who signs off on this puppy?

ReferencesTerminology

Particularly helpful if the project scope spans many technical specialties, who don’t know each others’ acronyms and phrases


Project planning framework

Now that the overall picture of the project has been defined (its charter), the detailed planning process can begin

The project planning framework describes the planning process

We start with the MOV



The project plan seeks to answer our pet perennial management questionsWhat needs to be done?Who will do it?When will they do it?How long will it take?How much will it cost?



MOV

Scope

Tasks Resources

Phases Sequence

Time estimates

Schedule

Budget}Adapted from Fig 3.4 of text


MOV

We start with the MOV, which hopefully was agreed upon by all key stakeholdersThe MOV also connects to your organization’s

strategic goals and mission, so making the project happy will also support your organization


Define the project’s scope

Now we need to establish what the scope of the project really isWhat features will be implemented?

Might help to look at broad categories of features (manufacturing, sales, HR management, etc.) then get more detailed in each category

What systems are/are not being replaced?What job roles will be affected?



The planning stage of this defines the scope in a requirements document, or SOW, or use cases, or … something

Then the definition stage groups the scope into work packages, each with a set of related features (both in functionality and priority)



Then verification must occur to make sure the MOV will be satisfied by the chosen scope

The change control process is critical to manage adjustments to the scope


Divide project into phases

The project development needs to be broken into phases of some kindWaterfall life cycle phases?RUP iterations? ‘n’ spirals, then another life cycle?

The phases are very SDLC-dependent, and a key source for assumptions


Divide project into phases

Each phase needs to have clearly defined deliverables

Phases also need decision points – milestonesHow do you know when the phase is done?Give the sponsor a chance to approve the

work, and start the next phase


Task sequence, time & resources

Once the phases have been defined, need to define the tasks within each phase, both for product development and for project management processesThat’s key to include both types of activities!

Tasks can be sequential, or parallel, or have to start or stop together



Resources needed for a task might include development tools, facilities, test equipment, external system interfaces, …and peopleCost for labor needs to include overhead

costs, which typically totals 2.0 to 2.5 times their salary (roughly $100k to $300k/yr)



Time for a task to be accomplished is the calendar timeNot everyone is devoted to a project 100% of

the timeSome tasks might require many people at

onceSome tasks can be done in parallel, other

require sequential action


Baseline schedule and budget

So all of the tasks, their costs, and other resources comprise the baseline plan for the project

From that plan, you can determine the overall schedule (calendar months) and cost for the projectThis baseline plan is the basis for all ‘planned

vs actual’ measurements during the project


Baseline schedule and budget

EVERYONE should review the baseline plan for consistency, completeness, and make sure it will really result in a system that will achieve its MOVRemember, can only control two of cost,

schedule, and scope – which one can you give up?


Kick-off meeting

Many projects start with a formal event to start them, a kick-off meeting

It provides a clear start to the project, helps introduce the major players (front line managers), and builds team morale


Summary

We’ve examined the key processes, both to develop a product and to manage a project

Reviewed the role of project integration management

Outlined a project charter and the process for developing the baseline project plan