Session 2: Introduction to Projects and Project Scope

Defining the project

What is a Project?

It's a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product, service or result.

A project is temporary in that it has a defined beginning and end in time, and therefore defined scope and resources.

And a project is unique in that it is not a routine operation, but a specific set of operations designed to accomplish a singular goal. So a project team often includes people who don’t usually work together – sometimes from different organizations and across multiple geographies.

https://www.pmi.org/about/learn-about-pmi/what-is-project-management





The following attributes relate to a project:

  • A project has a unique purpose. Every project should have a well-defined objective and should provide a unique product, service, or result.
  • A project is temporary. A project has a definite beginning and a definite end and must be completed within the time span.
  • A project requires resources, often from various areas. Resources include people, hardware, software, or other assets. Many projects cross-departmental or other boundaries in order to achieve their unique purposes.
  • A project should have a primary sponsor or customer. Most projects have many interested parties or stakeholders, but someone must take the primary role of sponsorship. The project sponsor usually provides the direction and funding for the project.
  • A project involves uncertainty. Because every project is unique, it is sometimes difficult to clearly define the project’s objectives, estimate how long it will take to complete, or how much it will cost. The uncertainty is one of the main reasons project management is so challenging, especially on projects involving new technologies.

Class Discussion

Can anyone think of a real project that they consider successful? How do you measure success?

Can anyone think of a real project that was NOT Successful? Why wasn't it successful?

What is Project Management?

According to PMI, “project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to a broad range of activities in order to meet the requirements of a particular project.” 

Project Life Cycle


Source: https://www.smartsheet.com/blog/demystifying-5-phases-project-management

Each of the Project Life Cycle phases has a number of related tasks. 
Project Charter
Project initiation
Scope and Budget
Work Breakdown structure
Gantt Chart
Communication plan
Risk Management
Status and Tracking
KPIs
Quality
Forecasts
Objectives
Quality Deliverables
Effort and Cost tracking
Performance
Post Mortem
Project Punchlist
Reporting

More information on the project life cycle

Read about it here:

Watch the video here:
https://youtu.be/qoY6VX_nRCs

For more information on Project Life Cycle - Watch the following YouTube clips:

What is Project Management, Association for project management 

Lord of the Rings movie clip Project Management, Manuel Solans

PMBOK Project Management THE PROJECT LIFECYCLE, The Daily Project manager

LinkedIn Learning - Project Management Foundations: The project management life cycle

Class Exercise/Example - Mysty River Regional Library Service Relocation Project

Mysty River Regional Library Services' new building has been completed and the old library needs to be relocated into the new premises. 

 New shelving has been delivered, but the old shelving needs to be dismantled so that it can be reused by the local secondary college and 2 primary schools. 

 It has been agreed, for WHS reasons, that the library will close during the transition. It is anticipated that the process will take 2 weeks, but the library will only be closed for 1 week.  

 There is a budget that allows for employment of extra staff, volunteers, outside contractors, and any other required resources.

Phase 1 - Project Charter and Project Initiation

This is your "big picture" view of the project. It contains a broad overview of your project and could include a feasibility study. A feasibility study will determine whether the project is likely to go ahead. It will look at any technical issues, WHS, financial constraints, environmental issues and government or legal ramifications.

Your project initiation document will outline the business need or reason for the project and will indicate details of all the project stakeholders.

Who is a project Stakeholder? A stakeholder is ANYONE who will be affected by the project.

Class Activity 1

1. Read the article Project Charter templates and guidelines every Business Need https://www.smartsheet.com/blog/project-charter-templates-and-guidelines-every-business-need

2. Using the Essential elements of a project charter from the above article, define the project charter for our class example - Mysty River Regional Library Service Relocation Project

Phase 2 - Project Definition and Planning

S.M.A.R.T Objectives

Objectives should follow the SMART method.


S.M.A.R.T objectives are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic or Relevant, Time-bound

Read an article on defining S.M.A.R.T objectives

Another article on S.M.A.R.T objectives

or read the section on SMART and CLEAR goals here
https://www.smartsheet.com/blog/demystifying-5-phases-project-management


Watch the video for a quick introduction to setting S.M.A.R.T. goals


Class Activity 2

For the class exercise outlined above define:
  • The Project Goal
  • Some Project Objectives (using S.M.A.R.T)

Scope

The project scope is the main part of project planning. As well as defining goals and objectives, scope involves creating a Project Plan. To develop a project plan, you need to look at the individual tasks that will make up your project. This is called a work breakdown structure (WBS). Breaking the project down into small manageable tasks will make it easier to estimate time and allocate resources. From the WBS, the project manager can easily create a schedule, as well as a budget for the required project resources. If you use MS Project or Open Project (ProjectLibre), the schedule is in the form of a GANTT chart and a network diagram. The Network Diagram will also define the project's "Critical Path". 

The Deliverables of a project are the actual outcome(s) from the project that are "delivered" to the Stakeholders.

For more information on Project deliverables, you can read this article: Project Deliverables

Class Activity 3


What are the deliverables for "Mysty River Regional Library Service Relocation Project" project?

Class Activity 4

Project: Completing the Diploma of Library and Information Services

Does it fit the criteria of a project?
Who are the Stakeholders?
What are the constraints?
What are the Objectives? Goals? Deliverables?

Discuss

Introduction To Time Management

Project time management is one of the 10 PMP Knowledge Areas for project managers. It’s the discipline of project management that looks at controlling the amount of time it takes to do the work.

It sits under the Definition and Planning phase - Work breakdown Structure AND Gantt Chart.

Project time management in the PMBOK® Guide is made up of 7 processes. The project time management processes are:

  •     Plan schedule management
  •     Define activities
  •     Sequence activities
  •     Estimate activity resources
  •     Estimate activity durations
  •     Develop schedule
  •     Control schedule.

Source: https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-project-time-management-3879177

Read the above article on Time Management or the one below.

http://www.nutcache.com/blog/six-main-processes-pmbok-time-management/

Time

  • is easily and simply measured
  • is often used to determine success of a project
  • is inflexible
  • passes no matter what happens on a project

Time Management Processes

The main processes involved in time management are

  • Activity definition
  • Activity Sequencing
  • Activity Duration estimation
  • Schedule development
  • Schedule Control

Activity Definition

Activity Definition involves

  • identifying the specific activities that the project team members and stakeholders must perform to produce the project deliverables
  • An activity or task is an element of work
  • The end result of defining the activities is a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

Work Breakdown Structure

  • The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is an analysis of the work to be done to complete a project. It provides the basis for planning and managing project schedules, costs and changes.
  • The Work Breakdown Structure is usually depicted as a task-oriented list of activities, organised around project products or phases. It can be in the form of a chart, or alternatively as an indented list of tasks.

There are several approaches you can use to develop work breakdown structures. These include:
  • Using guidelines
  • The analogy approach
  • The top-down approach
  • The bottom-up approach

Using Guidelines

Some organisations, especially government departments, have guidelines that must be followed when developing a Work Breakdown Structure.

If you are developing a project for an organisation that does, it is important that you follow them.

The guidelines have been produced so that if a number of organisations tender for a project, it is easy to compare the costs and time allocations.

The Analogy Approach

With this method, you start with a WBS from a similar project and make the necessary changes to suit the new project.

Some organisations keep a library of WBSs and other documentation from previous projects that can be reviewed and used as a basis for other projects.

Top-Down Approach

The top-down approach is where you start with the largest items of the project and then break them into the smaller tasks.

As the tasks are broken down into the smaller items, more detail is included.

At the end of the process, all resources should be assigned at the work package level.

This approach is best suited to project managers who have vast technical insight and a big-picture perspective

Bottom-Up Approach

In this approach, team members start by identifying as many specific tasks related to the project as possible.

The tasks are then grouped into summary activities or higher levels in the WBS.

Activity Sequencing

From the WBS, the activities can be sequenced.

Sequencing involves putting the tasks into the order that they will be done or at least commenced.

Sequencing also involves looking at relationships and dependencies of each task

Sequencing Example - Tea making

I love a nice cup of tea – what individual tasks or activities are sequenced together for me to do this?
  • Put on jug to boil water
  • Get a mug from cupboard
  • Get teapot from bench
  • Put tea leaves in teapot
  • When jug boiled, pour water into teapot
  • Wait for tea to brew
  • Pour tea into mug
  • Add milk
  • Gently stir
  • Drink and enjoy (a couple of Tim Tams are often called for)
We have the tasks defined and put in order, but what about relationships and dependencies.

Are there any tasks that cannot commence until another has finished?

Can some tasks be done at the same time?

Are there some tasks where order doesn’t matter?

Will the order of the tasks change the timeframe?

Is there any "idle" time (waiting time)?

In our tea making exercise:
  • you cannot pour water until it is boiled
  • You need to have tea leaves in pot when adding water
  • The second and third activities can be done in any order 

Lead time and Lag

Read the following article on lead and lag times

http://www.leancxscore.com/lead-time-and-lag-time/

Class Activity 5

Work through defining the tasks and creating the Work Breakdown Structure for "Mysty River Regional Library Service Relocation Project". For projects that are new or that you don't have much experience in, I recommend the bottom up approach.

We will do this as a class exercise.

STEPS:
1. List all of the tasks that are required for "Mysty River Regional Library Service Relocation Project". At this stage do NOT worry about the order, just brainstorm the actual tasks. We will use the whiteboard or a document for this activity.

2. Once all the tasks have been defined, it is time to group them into stages. For our scenario, the stages could be:

Planning
Packing up old library
Transportation
Unpacking at New location
Opening Day

3. Group the tasks into the appropriate stages

****** SEE SCREENSHOT FROM LAST WEEK ******

4. Decide which order the activities need to be done in. Some activities will rely on another activity being completed before it can start.

5. Estimate how long each activity will take, how many people will be needed and any other resources that will be required.

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