INTRODUCTION TO IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT*

MOTIVATION FOR STUDYING IT PROJECT MANAGEMENTIT Projects have a terrible track recordA 1995 Standish Group study (CHAOS) found that only 16.2% of IT projects were successful and over 31% were canceled before completion, costing over $81 B in the U.S. aloneThe need for IT projects keeps increasing

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ADVANTAGES OF USING FORMAL PROJECT MANAGEMENTBetter control of financial, physical, and human resourcesImproved customer relationsShorter development timesLower costsHigher quality and increased reliabilityHigher profit marginsImproved productivityBetter internal coordinationHigher worker morale*

WHAT IS A PROJECT?A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to accomplish a unique purposeAttributes of projectsunique purposetemporaryrequire resources, often from various areasshould have a primary sponsor and/or customerinvolve uncertainty

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THE TRIPLE CONSTRAINTEvery project is constrained in different ways by itsScope goals: What is the project trying to accomplish?Time goals: How long should it take to complete?Cost goals: What should it cost?It is the project managers duty to balance these three often competing goals*

THE TRIPLE CONSTRAINT OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT*

WHAT IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT? Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities in order to meet project requirements (PMI*, Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide), 2000, p. 6)**The Project Management Institute (PMI) is an international professional society. Their web site is www.pmi.org.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK*

PROJECT STAKEHOLDERSStakeholders are the people involved in or affected by project activitiesStakeholders includethe project sponsor and project teamsupport staffcustomersuserssuppliersopponents to the project*

9 PROJECT MANAGEMENT KNOWLEDGE AREASKnowledge areas describe the key competencies that project managers must develop4 core knowledge areas lead to specific project objectives (scope, time, cost, and quality)4 facilitating knowledge areas are the means through which the project objectives are achieved (human resources, communication, risk, and procurement management1 knowledge area (project integration management) affects and is affected by all of the other knowledge areas

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PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOLS AND TECHNIQUESProject management tools and techniques assist project managers and their teams in various aspects of project managementSome specific ones includeProject Charter and WBS (scope)Gantt charts, network diagrams, critical path analysis, critical chain scheduling (time)Cost estimates and earned value management (cost)

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MORE ADVANTAGES OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT*Bosses, customers, and other stakeholders do not like surprisesGood project management (PM) provides assurance and reduces riskPM provides the tools and environment to plan, monitor, track, and manage schedules, resources, costs, and quality PM provides a history or metrics base for future planning as well as good documentationProject members learn and grow by working in a cross-functional team environment*Knutson, Joan, PM Network, December 1997, p. 13

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HOW PROJECT MANAGEMENT (PM) RELATES TO OTHER DISCIPLINESMuch of the knowledge needed to manage projects is unique to PMHowever, project managers must also have knowledge and experience ingeneral managementthe application area of the projectProject managers must focus on meeting specific project objectives*

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND OTHER DISCIPLINES*