Project Management

Why do projects fail? Technical Reasons

inexperience with language/environment last minute efforts lack of standards fantasy factor lack of configuration control failure to follow review/inspection processes

Reasons for Failed Projects continued

Personal Factors motivation heavy load failure to admit need for assistance (ego) opinionated individuals (ego)

Management Factors poor team selection lack of team growth poor coordination of team meetings struggles for leadership (ego) poor communication

Project Management Concepts: 4 P’s

People Recruitment, training, organization, team

development

Product Define project scope and design of product

Process Establish framework for software development

Project Understand complexities of project development

Process Management

Select process model provides framework for activities

Process decomposition Task sets - scheduling, milestones, deliverables,

QA points Umbrella activities

Software QA SW Configuration management Measure

People Management

People work in groups Want a good balance of skills, experience and

personalities Group is a team not just collection of individuals

• Group standards, work closely, egoless

People Management

Team Building clear purpose and commitment open communication and support, shared

leadership, and constructive feedback focus on behaviors and not personalities

Stages of Team Development forming (awareness) storming (conflict) norming (cooperation) performing (accomplishing)

People Management

Team Empowerment self-governing decision-making latitude: leader decides “what” is

to be done, team sets intermediate deadlines, team determines own organizational structure

leader “hands-off” until needed

Self-Evaluation of Team schedule slips, causal analysis of team difficulties,

done as a team and individually

People Management

Project Managers Solve technical and non-technical problems using

people on their teams Motivate people

• Satisfy Needs: social, esteem, self-realization

Plan and organize their work Ensure work is being done properly

3 Team Organizations

DD - democratic, decentralized task coordinators, group consensus

CD - controlled, decentralized defined leader, problem solving group

CC - controlled, centralized Top-level problem solving and communication

between leader and team members

3 Team Organizations

Centralized (CD or CC) – simple problems Decentralized (DD) – more and better

solutions for difficult problems CC or CD - very large problems when

subgrouping easily accommodated (to reduce communication paths)

DD – problems with low modularity when higher volume of communication necessary

DD – high morale and job satisfaction (long team life)

CC and CD – produce fewer defects

Two Examples

Chief Programmer Team Concept (CD) senior engineer (design, implementation, install),

backup engineer(validation), tech staff, librarian (configuration mgmt and finalizing documentation), support (clerical/tech writers), specialists

Risks? Structure Open Team (DD)

project is a joint effort egoless programming thorough reviews side-by side work Risks?

Problem Management

Problem: objectives and scope must be defined alternative solutions explored technical and management constraints (deadlines,

budge, personnel) identified with information define cost estimates, assess

risks, breakdown tasks, and create schedule

Problem Management Activities (1-4)

1. Define scope/objectives, alternative solutions, constraints

2. Metrics: collect information to define cost estimates,

assess risks, breakdown tasks, and create schedule

measure product to assure quality

3. Cost Estimation: provides info for remaining activities (manpower,

project duration, $)

4. Risk analysis: identify, assess, prioritize, management, resolve

and monitor

Problem Management Activities (5-6)

5. Scheduling: evolve or plan in advance, establish milestones,

determine task dependencies, assign resources

6. Tracking and Control note each task in schedule, assess impact of

delayed task, redirect resources, modify delivery commitments

Determining Software Scope

Function tasks and performance Quantitative data stated explicitly (#users,

size of list, response time) constraints and/or limitations noted mitigating factors described interfaces reliability issues

Task Network

Graphic, shows task sequences and dependencies

Design

TestsDeveloped

Coding

UnitTesting

IntegrationTestingAnalysis/Specs

REFINE

Scheduling Methods and Tools

PERT (program evaluation and review technique)

Uses effort estimates, decomposition of product

function, process model, project type, task set, task network

determine critical paths, time estimates, boundary times (earliest and latest start times, earliest and latest end times, float times)

produce a timeline or GANTT chart should also allocate resources

Microsoft Project : PERT and GANTT charts

Project Management Phases (POMA)

Planning Organizing Monitoring Adjusting

Project Monitoring

Monitoring or Tracking conduct periodic status meetings: report progress

and problems evaluate results of all reviews milestones accomplished by scheduled date? Compare dates informal meetings on subjective assessments visualize and report

• use charts, histograms, Pareto diagram,

Project Adjusting

Adjusting light if everything going well if not: diagnose problem, reassign resources,

redefine schedule

Project Plan

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