3. Defining Project
A Project is a work effort made over a finite
period of time with a ‘start’ and ‘finish’ to
create a unique product, service or result.
4. Project Characteristics
• Unique,
• Projects are temporary in nature and have a
definite beginning & ending date,
• A single, definable purpose & well-defined end-
terms or deliverables;
• Utilizing skills & talents from multiple professions
& organizations,
•The ‘process’ of working to achieve a goal;
• Progressive elaboration, i.e., developing in steps;
• A successful project is one that meets or
exceeds the expectations of the stakeholders.
5. Progressive Elaboration
• Because the product of each project is unique, the
characteristics that distinguish the product or service
must be progressively elaborated.
• Progressively means "proceeding in steps; continuing
steadily by increments."
• Elaborated means "worked out with care and detail;” e.g.
developed thoroughly.
• Progressive elaboration of product characteristics must
be carefully coordinated with proper project scope
definition, particularly if the project is performed under
contract.
6. Examples of Project
Project Outcome
(product/service/result)
Constructing a Fly-over. Product
Running a Parliamentary
election campaign.
Result : win or lose.
Product : documents.
Setting up a computer
network in a building.
Service.
Study literacy growth in
India.
Results: of the research
Product : Research paper.
7. Distinguishing ‘Project’ from ‘Operations’
The distinction between ‘projects’ and
‘operations’ can be made by sticking to the
definition of a project – that it is temporary &
unique, whereas ‘operations’ are generally
ongoing & repetitive;
Although projects & operations have
objectives, a project ends when objectives are
met, whereas operation continues toward
obtaining new set of objectives, when the
current set of objectives have been obtained;
8. Distinguishing ‘Project’ from ‘Operations’
(contd.)
However, projects & operations share some
characteristics, e.g.,
• Both require resources including human
resources (people);
• Both are constrained to limited, as
opposed to unlimited, resources;
• Both are managed – that is planned,
executed & controlled;
• Both have objectives.
9. Project ‘Goal’
For virtually every project, the goal is to hit a
three dimensional target –
• Complete the work for a customer or end-
user in accordance with :
a)Budget – specified or allowable ‘Cost’ for
the project;
b)Schedule – ‘Time’ period over which the
work is to be done;
10. Project ‘Goal’ (contd.)
c) Performance requirements – the required
features of the project end-term deliverables,
or final result, including necessary attributes
of the final product or service, technological
specifications, quality & quantity measures,
and whatever else is important to the
customer or end-user.
12. Projects & strategic planning
Since projects are often utilized as a means
of achieving an organization’s strategic plan,
projects are typically authorized as a result of
one or more of the following strategic
considerations :
• A market demand, e.g. an oil company
authorizes a project to build a new refinery in
response to chronic gasoline shortage;
• An organization need, e.g. a training
company authorizes a project to create a new
course in order to increase revenues;
13. Projects & strategic planning (contd.)
• A customer request, e.g. an electrical utility
company authorises a project to build a new
sub-station to serve a new industrial park;
• A technological advancement, e.g. a software
firm authorises a new project to develop a new
generation of video games;
• A legal requirement, e.g. a paint manufacturer
authorises a project to establish guidelines for
handling of a new toxic material.
14. Types of Projects
The following are the different types of projects
that project managers, new to project
management, might be involved with :
Construction projects,
Defense projects,
Petrochemical,
IT projects,
Product development projects,
Advertising & marketing projects,
15. Types of Projects (contd.)
Up-grade projects,
Bank projects,
Event management,
Music concerts,
Fashion shows,
Disaster recovery projects, etc.
17. Project Management
Project management is the application of
knowledge, skills, tools & techniques to project
activities to meet project requirements;
Project management is accomplished through
the application & integration of the project
management processes of initiating, planning,
executing, monitoring & controlling and
closing;
Almost every project must work within the
triple constraint combination of time, cost
(resources) and quality (performance).
19. Guidelines to Project management
• The organization is temporary & established for
the life of the project ;
• In many cases, a project forms part of a larger
project structure ;
• The project objectives & product characteristics
may be defined & achieved progressively
during the course of the project ;
• The result of a project may be the creation of one
or several units of a product ;
• The interaction between project activities may
be complex.
20. Elements of Project Management
• Identification of the project ;
• Technical & financial appraisal of the project ;
• Economic or socio-economic appraisal of the
project, when necessary ;
• Proper formulation of the project ;
• Plan for implementation of the project ;
• Actual implementation of the project ;
• Monitoring the implementation ;
• Control action / rectification ;
• Evaluation at the end of the project.
22. Traditionally, the management of projects was
considered more of an art than a science;
Most project managers would begin their careers in
a technical field and as they progressed, they would
become more involved in the management of their
projects;
This is when they would develop a need for project
management education;
The worldwide trend towards project management
has been accompanied by formal project management
education & training;
Background
23. There are now many academic and certification
programmes available from universities & colleges
around the world;
Historically, as the discipline of project
management grew and become established, so a
number of institutions & associations were formed
to represent the project management practitioners
with respect to education, professional
accreditation, ethics and body of knowledge;
Background
24. Background
The project management standards are
associated with the following :
• Body of knowledge,
• Certification of project managers (PMP) ,
• Unit standards,
• Ethics and governance,
• Global forum.
25. Body of Knowledge
Over the past fifty years, a considerable body of
knowledge has been built up around project
management tools, skills, techniques & processes;
This data base of information has been developed
into what the Project Management Institute (PMI) call
the Project Management Body Of Knowledge
(PMBOK);
There are number of institutes, associations and
government bodies around the world which have
produced a body of knowledge, unit standards &
competency standards – they all have presence in the
internet;
26. Body of Knowledge
Some of the institutes are :
• Project Management Institute (PMI), USA;
(PMBOK)
• Association for Project Management (AIM), UK
[BOK];
• Australian Institute of Project Management
(AIPM);
• International Project management Association
(IPMA);
• Association for construction Project Managers
(ACPM), etc.
27. Body of Knowledge
There are number of standards published by
different bodies;
Project management techniques
• nearly all the special project management
techniques used today, were developed during
the 1950s and 1960s by US defense – aerospace
industry (DoD & NASA);
• this includes – CPM/PERT, Earned value (EV),
configuration management, value engineering &
work breakdown structure (WBS), etc.
29. Areas of Expertise
Understanding & applying the knowledge, skills, tools
& techniques which are recognized as good practices,
are not sufficient alone for project management;
Effective project management requires that the project
management team understand and use knowledge &
skills from at least five areas of expertise:
1. The project management body of knowledge
(PMBOK);
2. Application area knowledge, standards&
regulations;
3. Understanding project environment;
4. General management knowledge & skills;
5. Interpersonal skills.
30. Area of expertise (contd.)
Project management body of knowledge
• The knowledge of project management
described in PMBOK guide consists of :
1. Project life-cycle definition,
2. Five project management process groups,
3. Nine knowledge areas.
31. Area of expertise (contd.)
Application area knowledge, standards &
regulations
• Each application area generally has a set of accepted
standards & practices, often codified in regulations.
These application areas are :
1. Functional departments & supporting disciplines,
such as legal, production & inventory mgmt,
marketing, logistics & personnel,
2. Technical elements, such as software development,
water & sanitation engg, or construction engg,
3. Management specializations, such as government
contracting, community development, etc.,
4. Industry groups, such as automotive, chemical,
agricultural & financial services.
32. Area of expertise (contd.)
Understanding the project environment
• The project team should consider the project in
the contexts of :
1. Cultural & social environment,
2. International & political environment,
3. Physical environment.
General management knowledge & skills
• This encompasses planning, organizing, staffing,
directing & controlling the operations of an
enterprise.
• It includes supporting disciplines, such as –
Financial mgmt / sales & marketing/ contracts &
commercial law /SCM /Personnel administration /
OB / compensation / Health & safety / IT, etc.
33. Area of expertise (contd.)
Interpersonal skills
• The management of interpersonal relations
include :
Effective communication,
Influencing the organization,
Leadership,
Motivation,
Negotiation & conflict management,
Problem-solving.
34. 34
PROJECT
MANAGEMENT
KNOWLEDGE
AREA
GENERAL
MANAGEMENT
SKILLS
TECHNICAL
MANAGEMENT
SKILLS
Project -
• Integration management
• Scope Management
• Time Management
• Cost Management
• Quality management
• Human resource Management
• Communication Management
• Risk management
• Procurement management
• Economics
• Legal (Negotiations & Contracts)
• Human Resources
• Finance & Accounts
• Marketing & Sales
• Technical Expertise Areas
e.g. Mechanical
Electrical
Civil
Electronics
Computers
Telecommunications etc.
Main Knowledge & Skill Areas for managing Projects
36. Project Life Cycle
• The collection of phases that are performed in
completing a project.
• Each project phase is marked by completion of one
or more deliverables.
• The conclusion of a project phase is generally
marked by a review of both key deliverables and
project performance to date.
Determine if the project should continue into its
next phase.
Detect and correct errors.
37. Project Life Cycle
• The project life cycle defines the beginning and the
end of a project.
• Project life cycles generally define:
- What technical work should be done in
each phase;
- When the deliverables are to be generated in
each phase & how each deliverable is
reviewed, verified & validated;
- Who should be involved in each phase;
- How to control & approve each phase.
38. Project Lifecycle
The PMBOK (4th
edition) states that as projects
are unique & involve a certain degree of risk,
organizations performing projects will generally
sub-divide their projects into several project
phases to provide better management control;
Collectively these project phases are called the
‘project life cycle’;
The four-phase project life-cycle is given below :
1. Concept & initiation phase,
2. Design & development phase,
3. Execution phase,
4. Commissioning & handover phase.
39. Typical Project Life Cycle
Concept or
Defining
Design &
development or
Planning
Execution Commissioning
or Delivery
•Goals,
•Specns.
•Feasibility,
•Tasks,
•Responsibilities,
•Teams.
•Schedules-
Gantt/Network,
•Budgets,
•Resources,
•Risks,
•Staffing.
•Status
Reports,
•Changes,
•Quality.
•Train customers,
•Transfer
documents,
•Release
resources,
•Reassign staff,
•Lessons learned.
Level of
Effort
40. Life-cycle characteristics
Most project life cycles share a number of
characteristics :
• Phases are generally sequential & are usually
defined by some form of technical information transfer;
• Cost & staffing levels are low at the start, peak during
the intermediate phase & drop rapidly as the project
draws to a conclusion;
• The level of uncertainty is highest, and hence, risk of
failing to achieve the objectives is greatest at the start
of the project - the certainty of completion generally
gets progressively better as the project continues;
41. Life-cycle characteristics (contd.)
• The ability of the stakeholders to influence the
final characteristics of the project’s product and
the final cost of the project is highest at the start &
gets progressively lower as the project continues;
• A major contributor to the phenomenon is that
the cost of changes and correcting errors
generally increases as the project continues.