Project Management 314 Summaries
Quality Student Notes
,Chapter 1: Introduction to project management
Project management is generally different from other management activities because every project is:
i. Different, therefore has unique aspects to manage (for example: requirements and scope)
ii. Under pressure to deliver on time, and within budget
iii. Required to meet quality standards
iv. Influenced by stakeholders and team members
v. Constrained by limited resources (for example: budget, staff and infrastructure)
Definition of a project
Organisations are faced with change, thus need to innovate, improve existing processes, technology,
products and services, and enter new markets – changes are managed as projects.
A project is a complex, non-routine, once-off, temporary effort undertaken to create a unique product, service,
or final outcome.
→ It requires the application of relevant knowledge, skills, tools and techniques in order to meet or
exceed stakeholder needs and expectations, as stated by the project objectives.
→ It is limited by time, budget, resource and performance specifications designed to meet customer
needs.
Classifying projects and types of projects
Consider four unique needs (criteria) of a project in terms of:
1. Industry – Different project lifecycle models exist for different industries; industries often have
unique requirements.
2. Project Size – Large projects require more detailed and complex planning and control, than smaller
projects.
3. Project Scope – What you aim to deliver to the customer at project completion.
4. Project Application – complexity of a project based on its unique focus and aim.
With these four criteria in mind, we can identify four types of projects:
1. Projects – refer to project definition
2. Megaprojects – refers to an extremely large-scale investment project (> $1 billion / R13 billion) with
a large impact on communities, environments and budgets. ‘Mega’ implies the size and associated
high risk involved. When broken down into sub elements, major and minor projects within one or
more categories can be identified.
3. Programmes – refers to a group of related projects, sub-programs, and program activities that are
managed in a coordinated manner to obtain benefits not available from managing them (the projects,
sub-programs and program activities) individually. Programmes vary in duration (for example: could
have an on-going nature) and aim toward some strategic objective
4. Portfolios – refer to a component collection of programmes, projects, or operations managed as a
group to achieve strategic objectives. A portfolio organises a series of projects and/ or programmes
into a single portfolio, which has strategic implication and a direct impact on the organisation and its
future direction. Different projects or programmes in a portfolio may not be interdependent or
directly related but should be balanced (include: large and small projects, high-risk (high-reward) and
low-risk projects, and quick turn-around and long-term projects).
Quality Student Notes
,Project characteristics
If we consider the definitions of a project and acknowledge that each project is unique, there are certain
attributes which each project mutually shares. Eight project characteristics, therefore, include:
1. a clearly defined objective
2. a series of interdependent tasks
3. the use of different resources to complete the tasks
4. a specific time frame and limited life span
5. a unique cope, or once-off event
6. a customer, also known as a sponsor
7. a degree of risk due to the level of uncertainty
8. quality, scope, cost and time which are equally important to a project
The project life cycle
Most projects go through similar stages from start to finish. This lifecycle confirms that a project has a start,
limited lifespan, end time and changes in level of effort and focus as the project evolves.
• Resources
reassigned
• Contributions
recognized
(written formal
• Identification project review)
Execution stage: Level
and assignment • Resources
of effort increases
of each task reassigned
• Define Outcome = project • Contributions
governance recognized
goal and objectives
process • Finalization of
payments
NB: reporting frequency and According to specifications!
communication channel
Quality Student Notes
,The project lifecycle refers to a logical sequence of activities to accomplish the project’s goals or objectives.
→ Regardless of scope or level of complexity, any project must be established and then grouped into
stages so that the project manager and project team can plan, organise and implement recourses for
each activity, efficiently.
→ The project manager can also measure the achievement of goals objectively and justify their
decisions to move ahead, correct, or terminate the project when applying control during the
execution stage.
Project Management
A project manager needs to consider:
i. the importance of different stakeholders associated with the project to establish an optimum
working context
ii. manage various constraints
iii. fulfil the management of tasks during the entire project lifecycle
Defining project management
Project management refers to the process of applying knowledge associated with the planning, organising,
leading and controlling of required project tasks and activities, effectively and efficiently, to achieve the set
project objectives.
→ It aims to ensure project success – focus on minimising or eliminating the impact pf project
constraints to attain a successful outcome (for example: completing a project within budget, on
schedule (time), within scope, meeting quality standards, optimising resources, minimising or
removing risks, optimising customer satisfaction, and maximising stakeholder support).
Project management constraints
Project constraints are internal or external restrictions or limitations to the project that will affect the
performance of the project.
Traditionally, there are four constraints impacting on the conditions of the project:
1. Scope – work to be done to produce all project deliverables
2. Time – schedule of the project i.e. start and end date / time for each activity & task
3. Cost – agreed payment for each acceptable project deliverable
4. Quality – expectations of the acceptable specifications for the project
Further constraints influencing the project include:
5. Risks – projects are change enablers, thus are accompanied with a level of uncertainty (risk). A risk is
the chance of an uncertain event having either a positive, or negative impact on project. Risk
management is critical to project management.
6. Resource constraints - availability or unavailability of people, equipment and material needed to
complete the project (for example: consider how limited resources can impact the timeliness of
fulfilling project tasks, producing project deliverables and ultimately realising project objectives).
7. Customer satisfaction – goes beyond hygiene factors (Hertzberg’s theory) i.e. achievement of
satisfiers, or a good working relationship to ensure optimum interaction, communication and
performance.
8. Stakeholders – people or groups who have vested interests in the outcome of a project (internal or
external). It is essential to optimise the working relationship amongst all stakeholders, and to limit
negative conflict.
Quality Student Notes
,A historical perspective of project management
Project management can be traced back to as early as the great wonders of the ancient world, including
Roman structures, the Egyptian pyramids, and the Great Wall of China.
→ Modern project management began in the 1900s. Key events of the evolution of project
management since the early 20th century include:
Time Project management development
1917 The Gantt Chart developed by Henry Laurence
Gantt
1954 Bernard Shriever (US Air Force) coins the term
project management
1957 The critical path method (CPM) invented by Du
Pont employees
1958 The program evaluation and review technique
(PERT) method invented (used by US Navy)
1962 NASA publish description of the work breakdown
structure (WBS)
1965 International Project Management Association
(IPMA) founded in Europe
1980 First ‘on screen’ bar chart on early PCs
1989 Earned value management (EVM) emerged as a
project management methodology
2001 Agile Alliance formed to promote ‘lightweight’
software development projects known as the
Agile Manifesto
2006 Total cost management framework released by
AACE International
2012 ISO 21 500:2012 Standard for Project
Management released by International Standards
Organisation
Project management methodologies
There are different ways to manage a project – a particular method often depends on the industry and what
type of project you are managing. A defined series of steps are described in sufficient detail to ensure that
sufficient guidance is provided to project teams when implementing a project. Methodologies should,
therefore, be set out in precise terms different inputs, outputs and performance criteria, standard operating
procedures as well as different roles and responsibilities, workflows, control and evaluation systems.
Methodologies eliminate uncertainty in two ways:
i. By ensuring effective decision making through assisting team members in focusing on getting the
work done.
ii. By mitigating for risk through ensuring the likelihood of achieving project objectives.
Two broad categories exist: Traditional and Agile.
A. Traditional methodologies
Traditional methodologies include linear, non-iterative approaches with a predetermined sequence of steps
or stages - each stage starting only once the previous stage has been completed.
Quality Student Notes
, The six most common types of traditional methodologies include:
1. Waterfall
System requirements are defined in conjunction with the client.
→ Client must have clear idea of requirements upfront. If this is not achieved, to necessitate
changes as the project progresses or when final product is delivered can be a costly
redevelopment.
→ During implementation, the system is developed, and it is tested before being handed over
to the client.
There are five clear benefits to this methodology:
i. Projects are delivered according to prescribed specifications which results in client
satisfaction and project success.
– Negative: This method does not allow much iteration; therefore, requirements and
output specifications cannot change during design and implementation (no
innovation).
ii. There is greater certainty i.t.o. work allocation, scheduling and budgeting.
iii. Risk is minimised as errors are identified and dealt with prior to implementation.
iv. The structured nature of this methodology makes the monitoring and assessment of project
performance easier.
v. Technical documentation is critical, which makes for better easier post-handover
development.
2. Precedence diagramming method (PDM) and critical path method (CPM)
PDM is used to construct network diagrams. Nodes represent activities which are connected with
arrows to form paths. Activities cannot begin until their predecessors have been completed.
CPM is used in conjunction with PDM. A critical path is the sequence of project network activities
which add up to the longest overall duration. Forward and backward passes are constructed in order
to determine the critical path. The critical path requires careful management, as any delays to the
critical path will result in a delay to the project as a whole.
3. Critical chain project management methodology (CCPM)
A critical chain refers to the longest chain of dependent activities. CCPM differs from COM such that
dependency is premised on resource requirements across tasks together with the sequence and
logical dependencies between tasks i.e. resources allocation is prioritised according to tasks on the
critical chain.
Conventionally, time estimates for activities are premised on building in ‘safety’, such that a median
50%, completion tie is usually adjusted upwards to accommodate any challenges. However,
resources often overestimate time requirements and add more “required” hours as needed. To avoid
padding, CCPM only allows for 50% of time estimation by resources. Then, CCPM adopts the notion
of ‘buffers’ to control for any uncertainty. Three types of buffers are envisaged:
Quality Student Notes
