The document discusses the challenges of managing multi-country projects and proposes an approach using abstract and agile scheduling. It highlights difficulties like budget forecasting, resource management, and tracking across locations. The approach uses an abstract schedule for high-level planning and portfolio management, with agile detailed schedules managed quarterly by teams. Collaboration is enabled through a web tool for tasks, time tracking, documents and issues. This framework aims to provide simplicity and visibility while allowing flexibility.
The document discusses a new project management trend called Globally Distributed Delivery Model (GDDM). GDDM involves managing projects with teams located across multiple locations, time zones, cultures and service providers. The key challenges of GDDM include effective communication, collaboration and cultural differences across distributed teams. Some strategies to overcome these challenges are establishing clear communication frequencies and methods, developing trust among team members, and understanding cultural differences. The document provides best practices for project managers to successfully execute GDDM projects.
This document provides a case study of a successful project delivery by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) as the System Integrator for a telecom company. The project involved developing systems to launch new fixed mobile convergence services within an aggressive 12 week timeline. TCS faced challenges with the tight schedule, evolving requirements, and dependencies on multiple vendors. To overcome these, TCS adopted an agile approach with MoSCoW prioritization, time-boxed delivery waves, robust governance of vendors, and active stakeholder management. These practices helped TCS deliver the project on budget and meet the client's timelines, demonstrating effective project management.
This document discusses key challenges that organizations face when adapting agile methodologies. It outlines 7 main challenges: having no clear plan for agile adaptation; believing training is enough without coaching; lack of committed agile coaches; expecting revolutionary changes immediately; viewing openness as a threat; lack of self-discipline and teamwork; and communication gaps within the organization. The document provides an overview of agile methodology and principles and recommends a phased change management approach when transitioning to agile in order to address challenges and have a successful transformation.
This document discusses a case study of a 200-bed additional ward block project at an LD Hospital in Srinagar, India. It was a 48-month project with a budget of 31.07 crore INR (5.175 million USD). The document discusses some of the challenges faced in the project related to disconnect between stakeholders, missing change control processes, and lopsided budgets due to inadequate project definition in the early stages. It emphasizes the importance of entrepreneurial project management approaches and using a stage gate methodology to help address such challenges and ensure project success.
The document discusses satisfying customer expectations beyond contractual obligations in project management. It provides case studies where project managers went above the project scope to resolve issues and meet the true objectives. It argues that project managers should understand the overall goal, partner with the customer, leverage past experience to anticipate problems, and control budgets when additional needs arise. By taking these approaches, the customer's expectations can be met even if things weren't spelled out initially in contracts or statements of work.
This document discusses the qualities of an entrepreneurial project manager. It argues that entrepreneurial project managers see beyond the typical constraints of time, cost and scope, and understand how projects fit within an organization's strategic goals and culture. They are able to motivate teams by communicating the bigger picture and building strong relationships. Entrepreneurial managers also anticipate challenges and adapt to changing priorities. While they face barriers like lack of growth opportunities, organizations benefit from supporting entrepreneurial managers through training, mentoring and providing challenging assignments to help them grow with the company.
The document discusses key performance indicators (KPIs) in program governance and the value of a top-down alignment approach. It outlines a 4-step KPI process that begins with defining the client and organizational contexts to establish overarching goals and strategies. KPIs are then defined at the program level across four focus areas: delivery, client, people, and operations. With a top-down approach, KPIs align across all levels to ensure the program meets stakeholder needs while achieving schedule, budget, and value objectives.
This document discusses management problems faced by project managers in manufacturing industries. It identifies several key challenges: lack of clarity in project scope, lack of project management skills, unclear roles and responsibilities for project managers, communication deficits, shifting organizational priorities, and poorly managed project changes. The document provides examples and recommends establishing clear scope statements, applying change management processes, providing project management training, and defining project manager roles and authority to help address these issues.
The document discusses a new project management trend called Globally Distributed Delivery Model (GDDM). GDDM involves managing projects with teams located across multiple locations, time zones, cultures and service providers. The key challenges of GDDM include effective communication, collaboration and cultural differences across distributed teams. Some strategies to overcome these challenges are establishing clear communication frequencies and methods, developing trust among team members, and understanding cultural differences. The document provides best practices for project managers to successfully execute GDDM projects.
This document provides a case study of a successful project delivery by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) as the System Integrator for a telecom company. The project involved developing systems to launch new fixed mobile convergence services within an aggressive 12 week timeline. TCS faced challenges with the tight schedule, evolving requirements, and dependencies on multiple vendors. To overcome these, TCS adopted an agile approach with MoSCoW prioritization, time-boxed delivery waves, robust governance of vendors, and active stakeholder management. These practices helped TCS deliver the project on budget and meet the client's timelines, demonstrating effective project management.
This document discusses key challenges that organizations face when adapting agile methodologies. It outlines 7 main challenges: having no clear plan for agile adaptation; believing training is enough without coaching; lack of committed agile coaches; expecting revolutionary changes immediately; viewing openness as a threat; lack of self-discipline and teamwork; and communication gaps within the organization. The document provides an overview of agile methodology and principles and recommends a phased change management approach when transitioning to agile in order to address challenges and have a successful transformation.
This document discusses a case study of a 200-bed additional ward block project at an LD Hospital in Srinagar, India. It was a 48-month project with a budget of 31.07 crore INR (5.175 million USD). The document discusses some of the challenges faced in the project related to disconnect between stakeholders, missing change control processes, and lopsided budgets due to inadequate project definition in the early stages. It emphasizes the importance of entrepreneurial project management approaches and using a stage gate methodology to help address such challenges and ensure project success.
The document discusses satisfying customer expectations beyond contractual obligations in project management. It provides case studies where project managers went above the project scope to resolve issues and meet the true objectives. It argues that project managers should understand the overall goal, partner with the customer, leverage past experience to anticipate problems, and control budgets when additional needs arise. By taking these approaches, the customer's expectations can be met even if things weren't spelled out initially in contracts or statements of work.
This document discusses the qualities of an entrepreneurial project manager. It argues that entrepreneurial project managers see beyond the typical constraints of time, cost and scope, and understand how projects fit within an organization's strategic goals and culture. They are able to motivate teams by communicating the bigger picture and building strong relationships. Entrepreneurial managers also anticipate challenges and adapt to changing priorities. While they face barriers like lack of growth opportunities, organizations benefit from supporting entrepreneurial managers through training, mentoring and providing challenging assignments to help them grow with the company.
The document discusses key performance indicators (KPIs) in program governance and the value of a top-down alignment approach. It outlines a 4-step KPI process that begins with defining the client and organizational contexts to establish overarching goals and strategies. KPIs are then defined at the program level across four focus areas: delivery, client, people, and operations. With a top-down approach, KPIs align across all levels to ensure the program meets stakeholder needs while achieving schedule, budget, and value objectives.
This document discusses management problems faced by project managers in manufacturing industries. It identifies several key challenges: lack of clarity in project scope, lack of project management skills, unclear roles and responsibilities for project managers, communication deficits, shifting organizational priorities, and poorly managed project changes. The document provides examples and recommends establishing clear scope statements, applying change management processes, providing project management training, and defining project manager roles and authority to help address these issues.
The document describes Concept Prototyping on PMAAS Suite (CPOPS), an approach for managing entrepreneurial projects. CPOPS leverages a Project Management as a Service (PMAAS) framework to prototype concepts and manage project phases in a cost-effective way with minimal risk. Each phase follows an agile methodology and waterfall model to clarify requirements and release components incrementally. CPOPS allows tasks to be prioritized flexibly in the cloud. The approach aims to help entrepreneurs focus on their business while cloud consultants efficiently manage project work.
The document provides answers to questions about investment projects being considered by Pan-Europa Foods. It conducts financial analyses of 11 projects using NPV and lists them in order of ranking. It then discusses adjusting the analysis for risk, time value of money, project lifetimes, and size. Based on strategic fit, mandatory status, IRR, payback period, risk level, and other qualitative factors, the recommended projects are: Effluent Treatment, Eastward Expansion, Southward Expansion, Snack Foods, and Inventory Control.
This document outlines 10 commandments or principles for project success based on the concepts of mind, body, and soul. It begins with an introduction to the topic and definitions of key terms. It then describes 3 cardinal rules for project teams based on mind, body, and soul. The rest of the document outlines each of the 10 commandments for project success and discusses challenges in implementing them. For each commandment, it provides solutions categorized as knowledge/mind, action/body, and soul. The commandments focus on areas like scope management, cost estimation, team development, risk management, use of quality tools, and project monitoring and control.
The document discusses ways an offshore team improved engagement and ownership of a software project. The team increased communication, implemented regular status reporting, and delegated resources onsite. These changes built trust with partners and improved predictability. As a result, the offshore team took on more work, delivered additional features ahead of schedule, and received very positive feedback and requests for more offshoring from partners. However, challenges around testing automation, buffer management, and continuous learning remain.
The document discusses how fusing aspects of traditional waterfall project management and agile methodologies can improve the chances of project success, especially for large upgrade or migration projects. It provides examples of different "fusion approaches", such as using waterfall delivery within agile iterations or applying agile execution techniques within a waterfall framework. The success of a fusion approach depends on variables like organizational culture, risk appetite, and governance structures. When applied appropriately, a fusion model can help complete projects on time and budget while minimizing risks.
The presentation discusses implementing program management changes within the resistant environment of the Department of Commerce. The task was to establish a performance measurement baseline and common project management processes across the 12 operating bureaus. This was challenging due to the bureaus' independence and lean headquarters. The blueprint for change involved leadership, goal-setting, innovation, team-building, and balancing politics and culture. Through active cooperation and buy-in from the team, the new processes aimed to maximize efficiency while achieving positive results.
The document discusses using an agile approach called Hybrid ASAP methodology for SAP implementations to overcome the limitations of the traditional waterfall approach. Hybrid ASAP combines aspects of ASAP methodology and agile methods like Scrum. It involves dividing the project team into smaller groups to work in parallel sprints. An initial product backlog is created using SAP accelerators and baseline builds. Then a lean business blueprint is made along with a release plan. Multiple sprints are conducted with dynamic updates to the product backlog at each sprint completion to deliver incremental working software. This allows for faster deployment, reduced risks and improved customer satisfaction over the traditional waterfall approach.
This document proposes the EVA (Earned Value Analysis) model and performance dashboard to help track the relative performance of modules or projects within a large, complex program. The EVA model breaks down work into detailed tasks with planned start/end dates. Actual progress is tracked by binary questions on task completion. This rolls up to expected and actual percentage completions at the module level, addressing issues with subjective status updates. The performance dashboard then ranks modules based on their performance against schedule and cost targets using EVA data. This provides program managers and sponsors with an objective tool to monitor performance and take corrective actions.
This document discusses best practices for improving efficiency in distributed agile teams. It addresses common challenges such as limited time zone overlap, availability of stakeholders, and cultural differences. Some strategies proposed include daily video meetings to improve communication, assigning pseudo product owners at off-site locations to provide quick clarifications, and involving off-site teams in sprint planning and reviews to increase engagement. Recording important meetings allows off-site teams to review discussions later. Practices like these aim to enhance collaboration and trust between distributed scrum teams.
This document provides a project charter template for a mobile marketing project. The template includes sections for the project overview, description, key success factors, risk identification, stakeholders, communication plan, decision rights, and approval. The project description provides examples of the purpose, background, scope, deliverables, timeframe, and responsibilities that would be customized for a specific mobile marketing project.
This document provides an introduction and overview of the book "Project Management: A Managerial Approach" by Jack R. Meredith and Samuel J. Mantel. It discusses the growing use of project management in business and organizations. It positions the book as taking a managerial perspective on project management rather than a technical or specialized focus. The introduction explains that the book is intended to teach students how to manage projects from a holistic viewpoint.
The document discusses how project managers can leverage recent advances in psychology to better manage human aspects of projects. It provides a framework for applying concepts from evidence-based psychology, positive psychology, and organizational psychology across the project lifecycle. The framework identifies common project management challenges and shows how psychological solutions like focusing on process over results, breaking work into small tasks, and praising effort over talent can address issues around negotiation, team motivation, and performance. The document advocates using a scientific, evidence-based approach to incorporate psychology into project management.
The document describes a skill-based predictive model for talent forecasting developed by Piyush Jain and Vinay Prabhu of Infosys. It outlines the shortcomings of traditional talent forecasting models, which focus on overall headcount needs rather than skill utilization. The authors propose a model incorporating a talent skill repository and input/derived parameters for each skill. This allows for more accurate forecasting of skill needs and utilization over time, helping optimize talent acquisition costs and utilization levels.
This document discusses the use of program management standards and methodologies at Siemens. It summarizes two key international program management standards - PMI's Standard for Program Management and OGC's Managing Successful Programmes. It describes how Siemens is using aspects of both standards to implement organizational program management and support initiatives like improving project management maturity. A key focus is on defining programs versus projects, and using program management approaches like tranches, roles like the Business Change Manager, and focusing on benefits realization to improve organizational effectiveness and efficiency.
This document provides an overview of managing the business case for a programme using the Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) methodology. It discusses:
1. The contents and ongoing management of the business case, including costs, benefits, risks, and the net benefit line.
2. How the business case evolves throughout the programme lifecycle from initial identification through delivery and benefits realization.
3. The key roles involved in developing, reviewing, and ensuring achievement of the business case, including the Senior Responsible Owner, Programme Manager, and Business Change Managers.
This document provides information about two interactive courses on auditing and evaluating program performance to be held from March 29 to April 1, 2010 in Arlington, Virginia. The first course is on performance auditing and will cover understanding performance audits, assessing risks and vulnerabilities, developing objectives and methodologies. The second course is on program evaluation and will cover the Obama administration's focus on evaluation, developing an evaluation framework, carrying out evaluations and building an internal evaluation system. Both courses will be led by experts in the field and offer continuing education credits.
This document provides an overview of a PMP exam preparation training presented by Learnerstreet International Pvt Ltd. It includes disclaimers about the use of PMP and PMBOK trademarks. The agenda covers an introduction, project integration management, and other knowledge areas. Information is provided about PMP certification requirements, fees, and the exam format. Ground rules are established for the training and it is noted that the material is based on PMBOK 5th edition.
This document discusses communication and project management success. It identifies 11 key communication traits for project success, including trustworthiness, transparency, and respect. It also discusses how to develop an effective project team through clear goals, evaluating teamwork skills, and regular communication. The document concludes by emphasizing the importance of communication, team building, and learning lessons to ensure project and team success.
Macrosolutions Consulting Service: Resources and Investment Optimization thro...Macrosolutions SA
Achieve better results through the integrated and related projects management or projects that share resources, technology, suppliers and other stakeholders.
The document discusses utilizing an emotional intelligence model to maximize return on investment for human resources in the Indian IT industry. It proposes assessing emotional intelligence among project managers and team members, providing training to develop key emotional competencies, and creating a supportive work environment. Metrics like productivity, engagement, and turnover are cited from research to demonstrate the potential financial benefits of improving emotional intelligence in organizations.
This document discusses bridging the gap between traditional project management and the expectations of the "Facebook generation". It proposes adapting a new management style focused on transparency, value creation, and flattening hierarchies. Specifically:
1) The "Mirror-Mirror" concept helps managers understand their starting point and focus areas for improvement to achieve goals.
2) Emphasis is placed on winning stakeholder confidence through transparency.
3) Managers think long-term and include more people in planning for transparency.
4) Multiple solutions are explored during execution to maximize value for all parties.
The document describes Concept Prototyping on PMAAS Suite (CPOPS), an approach for managing entrepreneurial projects. CPOPS leverages a Project Management as a Service (PMAAS) framework to prototype concepts and manage project phases in a cost-effective way with minimal risk. Each phase follows an agile methodology and waterfall model to clarify requirements and release components incrementally. CPOPS allows tasks to be prioritized flexibly in the cloud. The approach aims to help entrepreneurs focus on their business while cloud consultants efficiently manage project work.
The document provides answers to questions about investment projects being considered by Pan-Europa Foods. It conducts financial analyses of 11 projects using NPV and lists them in order of ranking. It then discusses adjusting the analysis for risk, time value of money, project lifetimes, and size. Based on strategic fit, mandatory status, IRR, payback period, risk level, and other qualitative factors, the recommended projects are: Effluent Treatment, Eastward Expansion, Southward Expansion, Snack Foods, and Inventory Control.
This document outlines 10 commandments or principles for project success based on the concepts of mind, body, and soul. It begins with an introduction to the topic and definitions of key terms. It then describes 3 cardinal rules for project teams based on mind, body, and soul. The rest of the document outlines each of the 10 commandments for project success and discusses challenges in implementing them. For each commandment, it provides solutions categorized as knowledge/mind, action/body, and soul. The commandments focus on areas like scope management, cost estimation, team development, risk management, use of quality tools, and project monitoring and control.
The document discusses ways an offshore team improved engagement and ownership of a software project. The team increased communication, implemented regular status reporting, and delegated resources onsite. These changes built trust with partners and improved predictability. As a result, the offshore team took on more work, delivered additional features ahead of schedule, and received very positive feedback and requests for more offshoring from partners. However, challenges around testing automation, buffer management, and continuous learning remain.
The document discusses how fusing aspects of traditional waterfall project management and agile methodologies can improve the chances of project success, especially for large upgrade or migration projects. It provides examples of different "fusion approaches", such as using waterfall delivery within agile iterations or applying agile execution techniques within a waterfall framework. The success of a fusion approach depends on variables like organizational culture, risk appetite, and governance structures. When applied appropriately, a fusion model can help complete projects on time and budget while minimizing risks.
The presentation discusses implementing program management changes within the resistant environment of the Department of Commerce. The task was to establish a performance measurement baseline and common project management processes across the 12 operating bureaus. This was challenging due to the bureaus' independence and lean headquarters. The blueprint for change involved leadership, goal-setting, innovation, team-building, and balancing politics and culture. Through active cooperation and buy-in from the team, the new processes aimed to maximize efficiency while achieving positive results.
The document discusses using an agile approach called Hybrid ASAP methodology for SAP implementations to overcome the limitations of the traditional waterfall approach. Hybrid ASAP combines aspects of ASAP methodology and agile methods like Scrum. It involves dividing the project team into smaller groups to work in parallel sprints. An initial product backlog is created using SAP accelerators and baseline builds. Then a lean business blueprint is made along with a release plan. Multiple sprints are conducted with dynamic updates to the product backlog at each sprint completion to deliver incremental working software. This allows for faster deployment, reduced risks and improved customer satisfaction over the traditional waterfall approach.
This document proposes the EVA (Earned Value Analysis) model and performance dashboard to help track the relative performance of modules or projects within a large, complex program. The EVA model breaks down work into detailed tasks with planned start/end dates. Actual progress is tracked by binary questions on task completion. This rolls up to expected and actual percentage completions at the module level, addressing issues with subjective status updates. The performance dashboard then ranks modules based on their performance against schedule and cost targets using EVA data. This provides program managers and sponsors with an objective tool to monitor performance and take corrective actions.
This document discusses best practices for improving efficiency in distributed agile teams. It addresses common challenges such as limited time zone overlap, availability of stakeholders, and cultural differences. Some strategies proposed include daily video meetings to improve communication, assigning pseudo product owners at off-site locations to provide quick clarifications, and involving off-site teams in sprint planning and reviews to increase engagement. Recording important meetings allows off-site teams to review discussions later. Practices like these aim to enhance collaboration and trust between distributed scrum teams.
This document provides a project charter template for a mobile marketing project. The template includes sections for the project overview, description, key success factors, risk identification, stakeholders, communication plan, decision rights, and approval. The project description provides examples of the purpose, background, scope, deliverables, timeframe, and responsibilities that would be customized for a specific mobile marketing project.
This document provides an introduction and overview of the book "Project Management: A Managerial Approach" by Jack R. Meredith and Samuel J. Mantel. It discusses the growing use of project management in business and organizations. It positions the book as taking a managerial perspective on project management rather than a technical or specialized focus. The introduction explains that the book is intended to teach students how to manage projects from a holistic viewpoint.
The document discusses how project managers can leverage recent advances in psychology to better manage human aspects of projects. It provides a framework for applying concepts from evidence-based psychology, positive psychology, and organizational psychology across the project lifecycle. The framework identifies common project management challenges and shows how psychological solutions like focusing on process over results, breaking work into small tasks, and praising effort over talent can address issues around negotiation, team motivation, and performance. The document advocates using a scientific, evidence-based approach to incorporate psychology into project management.
The document describes a skill-based predictive model for talent forecasting developed by Piyush Jain and Vinay Prabhu of Infosys. It outlines the shortcomings of traditional talent forecasting models, which focus on overall headcount needs rather than skill utilization. The authors propose a model incorporating a talent skill repository and input/derived parameters for each skill. This allows for more accurate forecasting of skill needs and utilization over time, helping optimize talent acquisition costs and utilization levels.
This document discusses the use of program management standards and methodologies at Siemens. It summarizes two key international program management standards - PMI's Standard for Program Management and OGC's Managing Successful Programmes. It describes how Siemens is using aspects of both standards to implement organizational program management and support initiatives like improving project management maturity. A key focus is on defining programs versus projects, and using program management approaches like tranches, roles like the Business Change Manager, and focusing on benefits realization to improve organizational effectiveness and efficiency.
This document provides an overview of managing the business case for a programme using the Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) methodology. It discusses:
1. The contents and ongoing management of the business case, including costs, benefits, risks, and the net benefit line.
2. How the business case evolves throughout the programme lifecycle from initial identification through delivery and benefits realization.
3. The key roles involved in developing, reviewing, and ensuring achievement of the business case, including the Senior Responsible Owner, Programme Manager, and Business Change Managers.
This document provides information about two interactive courses on auditing and evaluating program performance to be held from March 29 to April 1, 2010 in Arlington, Virginia. The first course is on performance auditing and will cover understanding performance audits, assessing risks and vulnerabilities, developing objectives and methodologies. The second course is on program evaluation and will cover the Obama administration's focus on evaluation, developing an evaluation framework, carrying out evaluations and building an internal evaluation system. Both courses will be led by experts in the field and offer continuing education credits.
This document provides an overview of a PMP exam preparation training presented by Learnerstreet International Pvt Ltd. It includes disclaimers about the use of PMP and PMBOK trademarks. The agenda covers an introduction, project integration management, and other knowledge areas. Information is provided about PMP certification requirements, fees, and the exam format. Ground rules are established for the training and it is noted that the material is based on PMBOK 5th edition.
This document discusses communication and project management success. It identifies 11 key communication traits for project success, including trustworthiness, transparency, and respect. It also discusses how to develop an effective project team through clear goals, evaluating teamwork skills, and regular communication. The document concludes by emphasizing the importance of communication, team building, and learning lessons to ensure project and team success.
Macrosolutions Consulting Service: Resources and Investment Optimization thro...Macrosolutions SA
Achieve better results through the integrated and related projects management or projects that share resources, technology, suppliers and other stakeholders.
The document discusses utilizing an emotional intelligence model to maximize return on investment for human resources in the Indian IT industry. It proposes assessing emotional intelligence among project managers and team members, providing training to develop key emotional competencies, and creating a supportive work environment. Metrics like productivity, engagement, and turnover are cited from research to demonstrate the potential financial benefits of improving emotional intelligence in organizations.
This document discusses bridging the gap between traditional project management and the expectations of the "Facebook generation". It proposes adapting a new management style focused on transparency, value creation, and flattening hierarchies. Specifically:
1) The "Mirror-Mirror" concept helps managers understand their starting point and focus areas for improvement to achieve goals.
2) Emphasis is placed on winning stakeholder confidence through transparency.
3) Managers think long-term and include more people in planning for transparency.
4) Multiple solutions are explored during execution to maximize value for all parties.
The document discusses how emerging economies, the financial crisis, and Generation Y are changing the face of project management. It provides tips on how project managers can adapt to these changes, such as gaining knowledge of local business models in emerging economies and using agile approaches. It also presents a case study of how a project manager dealt with an existing project being opened to bidding due to the financial crisis. The document advocates that project managers embrace continuous improvement, generate peer pressure for accountability, and adopt an innovation framework to adapt to the changing project management landscape.
This document discusses proven practices for measuring learning impact. It explores eight initiatives for measuring learning that can demonstrate impact, including turning satisfaction surveys into predictive data, using the human capital approach to estimate performance change, and leveraging business impact templates. The challenges of demonstrating business impact, reducing "scrap learning", and measuring informal learning are also addressed.
This document discusses achieving delivery excellence in projects. It defines delivery excellence as going beyond just quality to be "extremely good". It identifies critical success factors for delivery excellence like customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and business growth. It also discusses key metrics for measuring delivery excellence like revenue growth, customer satisfaction levels, and defect density. Finally, it recommends tools and techniques for organizations to achieve delivery excellence, such as innovation, automation, and competency development.
This document summarizes an upcoming presentation on ethics versus business interests in project management. The presentation will use case studies and examples from professional forums to illustrate common ethical dilemmas project managers may face at different stages of a project's lifecycle. It will also discuss how ethical standards may vary in different regions and industries. The goal is for project managers to learn how to recognize and address potential ethical issues so they are prepared to handle similar situations in the future.
Technology and the changing face of educationdwesting
The document discusses how education needs to change to prepare students for the 21st century workforce. It notes that basic skills are no longer enough and that students need skills like problem solving, communication, and analyzing information. It also provides examples of new technologies and tools that can help develop these skills, such as mobile learning, virtual worlds, and social networking platforms. It advocates shifting education from the industrial age model to one focused on creativity, innovation, and digital literacy.
The document discusses various aspects of project planning and management including:
1. The planning process which involves project identification, formulation, and preparation including market analysis, technical factors, and project appraisal.
2. Methods of project budgeting, cost estimation, and risk management.
3. Tools used in project planning such as the work breakdown structure, scheduling, budgeting, and forecasting.
4. The importance of market analysis and demand forecasting in the planning process.
This document provides an overview of project planning, including definitions of key terms like project plan, work breakdown structure, scheduling, and monitoring. It discusses the need for and benefits of project planning. The main components of a project plan are defined as scope, schedule, and cost. Various project planning tools are introduced, including Gantt charts, network diagrams, critical path method, and program evaluation and review technique. The document also covers project objectives, policies, and scheduling considerations like manpower availability and fund releases.
The document discusses various tools and techniques for project planning including work breakdown structures, responsibility assignment matrices, Gantt charts, network diagrams, and critical path method. It explains how these tools are used to define activities, sequence tasks, estimate durations, develop schedules, and identify the critical path. Project planning is important for organizing, implementing, monitoring, and controlling projects to meet goals and objectives within constraints of time, budget, and requirements.
The key steps in the PERT planning process are:
1) Identifying the specific activities and milestones of the project.
2) Determining the proper sequence of activities by constructing a network diagram that shows the interdependencies.
3) Estimating the time required to complete each activity.
4) Identifying the critical path which is the longest sequence of activities that determines the minimum time to complete the project.
The document discusses key concepts in project management including defining a project, the attributes of a project, and the project life cycle. It notes that a project has specific objectives, tasks, resources, timelines, and is unique. The project life cycle includes initiation, planning, execution, monitoring/control, and closure phases. The document also covers benefits of project management like managing budgets/timelines, improving quality, and gaining competitive advantages. It emphasizes identifying needs through problem analysis and gathering stakeholder input before starting a project.
The document discusses various project management methodologies including Waterfall, Agile, Scrum, Kanban, and Critical Path Method (CPM). It provides descriptions of how each methodology works, when it should be used, advantages and disadvantages. The Critical Path Method in particular aims to identify the longest sequence of dependent tasks in a project in order to minimize the overall project duration.
IRJET- Application of Microsoft Project for Planning and Scheduling of a Resi...IRJET Journal
This document discusses planning and scheduling a residential construction project using Microsoft Project. It summarizes the key steps:
1) The activities of constructing two residential blocks were planned and scheduled in MSP, including allocating resources, determining task relationships, and generating a Gantt chart.
2) The total baseline duration of the project was estimated to be 632 days with a total cost of Rs. 154,394,081.
3) Planning and scheduling the project in MSP allowed determining the critical path and monitoring project progress and costs.
The document discusses project planning and outlines several key points:
1. Careful planning is important for project success and reduces time needed for implementation. Planning should not result in "paralysis by analysis" and must balance analysis with action.
2. The primary purpose of planning is to establish directions in sufficient detail to define what must be done, when, and with what resources to successfully complete deliverables.
3. Characteristics of a good plan include meeting organizational objectives, allowing for uncertainty and risk, and including means to control work.
Improving Project Performance in the DOEGlen Alleman
- The document discusses improving project performance at the US Department of Energy (DOE) by adopting aspects of the integrated master plan (IMP) and integrated master schedule (IMS) processes used by the US Department of Defense (DOD).
- The DOD IMP/IMS approach measures progress through increasing maturity of project outcomes and deliverables, rather than just cost and schedule performance. This provides better visibility into a project's effectiveness for customers.
- Adopting an event-based planning approach like the DOD's IMP, with accomplishments and criteria to measure maturity, would improve the probability of success for DOE projects.
PLANNING THE INTERNATIONAL PROJECT IN TERMS OF TIME, COS.docxstilliegeorgiana
PLANNING THE INTERNATIONAL
PROJECT IN TERMS OF TIME,
COST, AND QUALITY
Chapter 5
THE CHALLENGE OF PLANNING AN INTERNATIONAL PROJECT
Why planning a project?
Planning reduces uncertainty and brings structure into
chaos.
Issues with planning in international project.
Planning needs to be constantly revised due to a fast
changing international environment.
The international environment is complex and difficult to
predict.
More factors need to be included into project planning than
for planning standard projects.
2
THE PLANNING PROCESS
The planning process can be divided into four major tasks:
1. Planning time.
2. Scheduling under resource constraints.
3. Planning cost.
4. Planning quality.
The objective of planning is to:
Minimize project duration.
Minimize the resource availability cost.
Maximize quality.
3
Required inputs:
1
3
2
4
Planning
Time
Scheduling
under
resource
constraints
Planning
Cost
Planning
Quality
Planning
Time, Cost,
Quality of the
International
Project
1. Work Breakdown Structure
2. Organizational Breakdown
Structure
3. Analysis of skill sets of
available staff beyond
academic and job titles (based
on CVs and interviews)
4. Overview of holiday
entitlements of international
staff in different locations
Main output: Gantt chart or network
diagram
Required tools and
techniques:
- Project Network Diagram,
mainly Activity on Arrow
(AoA)
as basis for CPM, CPA,
PERT, PDM etc.
- Gantt chart or bar chart
1. Project Scope Statement
2. Work Breakdown Structure
3. Estimates for activity duration
4. Establishment of relationships
between single activities in form of
precedence
5. Calendar with international holidays
relevant to the international project
Main output:
Resource loaded Gantt chart
Required tools and
techniques:
- Loaded Gantt chart
Required inputs:
1. Financial objective / available budget
2. Cost estimates
3. Overview of international locations
involved in the project
4. Overview of salaries, facilities,
equipment and other costs in the
relevant international locations
5. Cost for risk mitigation or contingency
plans (cf. Chapter 4)
6. Development of currency fluctuations
Required tools and techniques:
- Step counting cost-estimating techniques
- Exponential cost-estimating techniques
- Parametric cost-estimating techniques
- Even-loading, front-loading, back-loading budget
methods
- Periodic cost spreadsheet
- Cumulative cost spreadsheet
Required inputs:
Required inputs:
1. Project scope statement incl. cross-check of
customer’s expectation level
2. Cultural gap analysis regarding perception of quality
in involved countries and cultures
3. Functionality of product/service/project result
Not
discussed
in this book
Main output:
Budget spreadsheets
Required tools and techniques:
- Standard quality control techniques
- Pareto diagrams
- Checklists for pa ...
Running Head PROJECT PLAN OUTLINE1Project Plan Outline2.docxcharisellington63520
Running Head: PROJECT PLAN OUTLINE 1
Project Plan Outline
2
Project Plan Outline
FIN 575 / Budgetary Finance
Project Plan Outline
Like any professional team, project management requires a game plan for executing the plan. This paper will create an outline for a special project for the case study of Pontrelli Recycling, Inc. A description of the seven primary planning activities will be introduced. An evaluation of the project execution and alignment to the corporate strategy will be discussed. Finally, an illustration of how project control may mitigate risks for the organization will be given.
Project Charter
The start of any project should include the project charter. The project charter identifies the project scope. These would include “client goals and objectives, specific project goals, and information about the various stakeholders” (Callahan, Stetz, & Brooks, 2007, p. 157).
Project Deliverables
“Deliverables serve as a general term that encompasses the requirements of a project” (Investopedia Staff, 2013, p. 1). In other words, these are the goals and objectives of the organization brought to life. In the case of Pontrelli Recycling, these would be the realization of cost cutting initiatives, the realization of new revenue streams, and enhanced stakeholder value.
Tasks
Tasks are a description of the work that the project team members need to accomplish in order to deliver on the project. These could include a industry survey on the types of equipment used to handle different material streams for recycling or a business process analysis to identify opportunities to enhance process efficiency.
Resources
It would be impossible to deliver a project without identifying the resources needed to complete the deliverables. These would include “personnel (, equipment) and other resources” (Callahan, Stetz, & Brooks, 2007, p. 157). Identifying the resources needed is a key component to accomplishing the project deliverables in an efficient manner.
Estimate of Effort
An estimate of effort is needed to understand the amount and scope of the need from the resources. For example, how many person hours would be needed to accomplish the task of researching the process flows to identify efficiencies in production. This would help to realize the amount of each resource needed to accomplish each task.
Risks and Constraints
Listing the risks and constraints to the project and its resources is important to be identified earlier in the process. This would allow the project team to plan to overcome these if they arise. For example, if personnel assigned to the project become unavailable a contingency plan completed ahead of time may be activated to overcome this risk.
Project Schedule
Creating a project schedule begins with the end in mind. By scheduling the project milestones helps the project manager to assure that the process is on course to meet the project completion date. Additionally, by schedulin.
How To Develop A Project Management PlanOrangescrum
For project managers, a successful outcome is always preceded by a well-prepared project management plan. A lot of effort is put into planning which helps you prepare a better Project Management Plan.
The document discusses project scheduling and some key related concepts. It defines project scheduling as the process of converting a general project plan into a time-based graphic presentation given information on available resources and time constraints. It outlines the basic principles of project scheduling such as compartmentalizing tasks, determining interdependencies, allocating time, and defining responsibilities, outcomes and milestones. It also defines some basic terminology like tasks, activities, work products, and events. It then explains common scheduling techniques like network diagrams, bar charts, Gantt charts and milestones charts. Finally, it discusses objectives and applications of network analysis in project scheduling.
The document discusses project scheduling and some key concepts related to it. It defines project scheduling as the process of converting a general project plan into a time-based graphic presentation given information on available resources and time constraints. It outlines the basic principles of project scheduling such as compartmentalizing tasks, determining interdependencies, allocating time, and defining responsibilities, outcomes and milestones. It also discusses some basic scheduling terminology like tasks, activities, work products, and events. Finally, it explains common scheduling techniques like network diagrams and bar charts, as well as objectives and applications of network analysis in project scheduling.
Most Popular 20 Evergreen Project Management TermsSHAZEBALIKHAN1
Project management requires a deep understanding of the jargon and terminology for effective implementation of practices. The article presents 20 popular and common terms of project management
The document discusses various communication tools used to manage project time, including introducing the baseline schedule, change control plan, change requests, Gantt charts, logic network diagrams, project milestone lists, project scheduling tools, and schedule management plans. It provides details on each tool, how project managers can use them to communicate with stakeholders, and the benefits they provide for time management and tracking project progress.
The document discusses project planning and scheduling techniques for construction management. It describes planning as identifying all activities needed to complete a project, including defining the scope of work, sequencing tasks, and estimating time and resource requirements. The key aspects of construction planning covered are generating a work breakdown structure of all tasks, developing a schedule using techniques like critical path method, and creating resource plans for managing manpower, materials, equipment, and finances over the project timeline. Overall, the document emphasizes that thorough planning and scheduling of all project activities is essential for successful construction project completion on time and within budget.
Planning, Scheduling and Allocation of Resources for Multi-Storied Structure ...IRJET Journal
This document discusses planning, scheduling, and allocating resources for a multi-storied residential building project using Oracle's Primavera P6 software. It begins with an abstract that outlines the importance of project management tools in the growing construction industry. It then provides background on project management, planning, scheduling, and the benefits of Primavera P6, which include quick scheduling, identifying floats and critical paths, customizable reports, and resource allocation. The document aims to demonstrate the advantages of using Primavera P6 for construction project management.
The document provides an introduction to a course on project monitoring and evaluation. It will cover various topics related to project management over 15 sessions totaling 42 hours. Key concepts that will be discussed include the project cycle, monitoring and evaluation logic and cycle, evaluation techniques, indicators, and data collection for monitoring and evaluation. It emphasizes understanding the practical meanings and importance of concepts rather than mathematical equations.
This document discusses project dynamics, an emerging approach to understanding the complex dynamics of projects over time. It discusses how project dynamics can be applied to (1) understand features of projects like activities, phases and interdependencies, (2) model rework cycles and their compounding effects, and (3) evaluate the intended and unintended consequences of project control strategies. The document argues that applying a project dynamics approach can provide new insights to improve project management practices.
The document discusses delegating project management tasks from project managers to team members in order to improve organizational efficiency. Currently, project managers typically handle all project management tasks themselves. This leads to higher costs, lower team motivation, and missed opportunities. The document proposes a solution where project managers delegate appropriate project management tasks to team members. This would reduce costs by utilizing resources more efficiently. It would also increase team member motivation and involvement. The document addresses some concerns about this approach and provides recommendations for implementation at different organizational levels.
The document discusses sustainability in project management. It explores how sustainability relates to projects and project management. Key points include:
1) Sustainability involves balancing economic, social, and environmental factors over both the short and long term.
2) Project managers may have responsibility for sustainability aspects of projects and their outcomes.
3) Considering sustainability requires looking at a project's full lifecycle as well as the lifecycles of its outcomes and any associated products or assets.
The document discusses strategies for companies to achieve growth with existing resources through effective portfolio management. It finds that high growth companies expand sales channels while slower companies focus on cost reduction. Implementing portfolio management allows selecting the right projects and optimizing resource allocation. Benefits include increased effectiveness, reduced costs, and higher profits without additional investments. The key is to identify constraints, match capacity and pipeline, and select platforms that provide competitive advantage and accelerate innovation.
The document discusses the role of a Strategic Program Management Office (PMO) in managing organizational transformation. It describes what a Strategic PMO is and the framework it uses, including establishing a vision, mission, and work streams. It then discusses the structure of a Strategic PMO and its lifecycle. Finally, it provides examples of Strategic PMOs that were implemented to manage a merger integration, transition to a shared global delivery model, and drive innovation through centers of excellence.
This presentation discusses how project managers can incorporate social media tools like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and blogs into project communication and management. It explores how tools like these have changed communication from restricted exchanges to more open and collaborative interactions. The presentation also addresses challenges with social media like distraction and loss of productivity, and suggests ways for project managers to develop social media policies and guidelines for their teams.
This document discusses a business model for providing renewable energy to rural communities through partnerships between various stakeholders. The key stakeholders identified are village communities, NGOs, microfinance institutions, original equipment manufacturers, and government/state bodies. The model aims to improve rural livelihoods and alleviate poverty by providing energy access and creating new income opportunities through microloans to fund the installation of renewable energy technologies. Challenges and opportunities of this model are also analyzed.
This document provides an overview of how tools from psychology can be applied to improve project management. It discusses the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality assessment and describes two personality types: ENFP and ISTJ. It also summarizes Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) and how modifying beliefs can impact consequences. The document suggests project managers would benefit from understanding these psychological tools to improve team dynamics and expectations management.
The document presents the Influential and Inspirational Powers (IIP) model, a new self-evaluation tool for project managers. The IIP model maps levels of influence and inspiration on a grid with four quadrants based on two situations: 1) how team members are influenced and inspired by the project manager, and 2) how the project manager is influenced and inspired by the team. The tool is meant to help project managers identify strengths, weaknesses, and ways to improve team motivation, productivity, and innovation. A survey of project stakeholders provided initial support for the model.
This document discusses strategies for managing everyday conflicts at work. It suggests that minor unresolved conflicts can lead to major losses in productivity, satisfaction and focus within teams. Conflict is inevitable in team environments but can be minimized through awareness and effective conflict resolution strategies. The document explores how individual personality traits and interpersonal skills influence conflicts, and provides models for resolving conflicts at different levels from individual to team to organizational.
This technical paper explores the importance of soft skills like leadership for project managers. It discusses how leadership is crucial for project success as it helps integrate team members and motivate them. The paper outlines different leadership styles and techniques for developing leadership skills, including coaching and mentoring. Effective coaching and mentoring through situational leadership can help individuals and teams achieve their goals while also benefiting the overall organization.
The document discusses the need to tap into the power of informal project management techniques. It proposes a methodology to identify exemplary historical informal projects in India and analyze them to develop a database of proven informal techniques. This would help bridge gaps in formal project management education. A survey found most essential project management skills can be developed through both informal and formal means.
This document discusses a model for risk analysis and mitigation that accounts for dependencies between risks. It introduces concepts like Risk Influence Factors, risk networks, and risk prioritization. The model involves discovering risks through a "what if, why" analysis. It then generates a risk network by analyzing how risks within and across categories influence each other. Risks in the network are prioritized based on their costs, benefits, and other factors. Dependencies between risks are also analyzed to inform mitigation efforts over time.
This document discusses using statistical techniques to improve predictability in project performance. It provides three scenarios as examples: 1) Predicting critical activities on a schedule using a criticality index, 2) Estimating a project schedule and cost using Monte Carlo simulation, and 3) Building an early warning system for project monitoring and control. The document emphasizes that statistical methods can help project managers develop more accurate estimates and better manage project risks and performance.
The document discusses applying project cost management principles like earned value management (EVM) to software maintenance projects. It outlines the types of maintenance tasks, challenges in effort estimation, and proposes using a software maturity index and EVM to estimate maintenance costs and improve project measurement and control. Accurately estimating effort is key to the successful application of EVM for software maintenance projects.
The document discusses success factors for new product development processes. It categorizes 57 success factors into organizational, technological, market, and environmental factors. These factors are mapped to six phases of product development cycles: idea generation, product concept testing, product design, prototype development, market testing, and commercialization. Understanding which factors are most important in each phase can help organizations optimize resources and improve new product development.
The document discusses a model called MEKS for measuring employee performance. MEKS stands for Motivation, Effort, Knowledge and Skills. It proposes measuring performance as a function of these four factors, with motivation accounting for 45% of the score, skills and knowledge 30%, and effort 25%. Each factor has multiple parameters that are rated on a 1-10 scale and averaged. The model provides a way to measure performance objectively and identify areas for improvement.
The document discusses reasons why outsourcing projects often fail. It analyzes 7 common causes of outsourcing failure based on the authors' experience managing outsourcing projects. These include lack of outsourcing knowledge, overselling capabilities, lack of domain expertise, unrealistic expectations, poor commitment from clients, uncontrollable external challenges, and cultural differences between organizations. The authors provide case studies to illustrate examples of projects that failed due to these factors.
This document provides guidance on test estimation techniques. It discusses common issues in test estimation related to process, environment, resources and other factors. Several test estimation techniques are described at a high level, including SMC (Simple, Medium, Complex), top-down, bottom-up and test point analysis. Factors affecting test estimation and an example test estimation tool are also referenced. The author aims to help avoid missed deadlines by defining an estimation criterion.
The document discusses a program management framework for nonprofit organizations. It proposes using a balanced scorecard approach to evaluate performance beyond just financial metrics. The balanced scorecard considers financial measures as lagging indicators, and supplements them with leading indicators that drive future performance. These include perspectives like fundraising strategies, costs, resource allocation, and metrics related to beneficiaries. The framework is intended to provide execution certainty for small nonprofits using voluntary models, without requiring extensive resources.
At Techbox Square, in Singapore, we're not just creative web designers and developers, we're the driving force behind your brand identity. Contact us today.
Anny Serafina Love - Letter of Recommendation by Kellen Harkins, MS.AnnySerafinaLove
This letter, written by Kellen Harkins, Course Director at Full Sail University, commends Anny Love's exemplary performance in the Video Sharing Platforms class. It highlights her dedication, willingness to challenge herself, and exceptional skills in production, editing, and marketing across various video platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.
[To download this presentation, visit:
https://www.oeconsulting.com.sg/training-presentations]
This PowerPoint compilation offers a comprehensive overview of 20 leading innovation management frameworks and methodologies, selected for their broad applicability across various industries and organizational contexts. These frameworks are valuable resources for a wide range of users, including business professionals, educators, and consultants.
Each framework is presented with visually engaging diagrams and templates, ensuring the content is both informative and appealing. While this compilation is thorough, please note that the slides are intended as supplementary resources and may not be sufficient for standalone instructional purposes.
This compilation is ideal for anyone looking to enhance their understanding of innovation management and drive meaningful change within their organization. Whether you aim to improve product development processes, enhance customer experiences, or drive digital transformation, these frameworks offer valuable insights and tools to help you achieve your goals.
INCLUDED FRAMEWORKS/MODELS:
1. Stanford’s Design Thinking
2. IDEO’s Human-Centered Design
3. Strategyzer’s Business Model Innovation
4. Lean Startup Methodology
5. Agile Innovation Framework
6. Doblin’s Ten Types of Innovation
7. McKinsey’s Three Horizons of Growth
8. Customer Journey Map
9. Christensen’s Disruptive Innovation Theory
10. Blue Ocean Strategy
11. Strategyn’s Jobs-To-Be-Done (JTBD) Framework with Job Map
12. Design Sprint Framework
13. The Double Diamond
14. Lean Six Sigma DMAIC
15. TRIZ Problem-Solving Framework
16. Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats
17. Stage-Gate Model
18. Toyota’s Six Steps of Kaizen
19. Microsoft’s Digital Transformation Framework
20. Design for Six Sigma (DFSS)
To download this presentation, visit:
https://www.oeconsulting.com.sg/training-presentations
Taurus Zodiac Sign: Unveiling the Traits, Dates, and Horoscope Insights of th...my Pandit
Dive into the steadfast world of the Taurus Zodiac Sign. Discover the grounded, stable, and logical nature of Taurus individuals, and explore their key personality traits, important dates, and horoscope insights. Learn how the determination and patience of the Taurus sign make them the rock-steady achievers and anchors of the zodiac.
Storytelling is an incredibly valuable tool to share data and information. To get the most impact from stories there are a number of key ingredients. These are based on science and human nature. Using these elements in a story you can deliver information impactfully, ensure action and drive change.
Digital Marketing with a Focus on Sustainabilitysssourabhsharma
Digital Marketing best practices including influencer marketing, content creators, and omnichannel marketing for Sustainable Brands at the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit 2024 in New York
Best practices for project execution and deliveryCLIVE MINCHIN
A select set of project management best practices to keep your project on-track, on-cost and aligned to scope. Many firms have don't have the necessary skills, diligence, methods and oversight of their projects; this leads to slippage, higher costs and longer timeframes. Often firms have a history of projects that simply failed to move the needle. These best practices will help your firm avoid these pitfalls but they require fortitude to apply.
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Use our simple KYC verification guide to make sure your Binance account is safe and compliant. Discover the fundamentals, appreciate the significance of KYC, and trade on one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges with confidence.
Event Report - SAP Sapphire 2024 Orlando - lots of innovation and old challengesHolger Mueller
Holger Mueller of Constellation Research shares his key takeaways from SAP's Sapphire confernece, held in Orlando, June 3rd till 5th 2024, in the Orange Convention Center.
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IMPACT Silver is a pure silver zinc producer with over $260 million in revenue since 2008 and a large 100% owned 210km Mexico land package - 2024 catalysts includes new 14% grade zinc Plomosas mine and 20,000m of fully funded exploration drilling.
Zodiac Signs and Food Preferences_ What Your Sign Says About Your Tastemy Pandit
Know what your zodiac sign says about your taste in food! Explore how the 12 zodiac signs influence your culinary preferences with insights from MyPandit. Dive into astrology and flavors!
Understanding User Needs and Satisfying ThemAggregage
https://www.productmanagementtoday.com/frs/26903918/understanding-user-needs-and-satisfying-them
We know we want to create products which our customers find to be valuable. Whether we label it as customer-centric or product-led depends on how long we've been doing product management. There are three challenges we face when doing this. The obvious challenge is figuring out what our users need; the non-obvious challenges are in creating a shared understanding of those needs and in sensing if what we're doing is meeting those needs.
In this webinar, we won't focus on the research methods for discovering user-needs. We will focus on synthesis of the needs we discover, communication and alignment tools, and how we operationalize addressing those needs.
Industry expert Scott Sehlhorst will:
• Introduce a taxonomy for user goals with real world examples
• Present the Onion Diagram, a tool for contextualizing task-level goals
• Illustrate how customer journey maps capture activity-level and task-level goals
• Demonstrate the best approach to selection and prioritization of user-goals to address
• Highlight the crucial benchmarks, observable changes, in ensuring fulfillment of customer needs
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The structural design process is explained: Follow our step-by-step guide to understand building design intricacies and ensure structural integrity. Learn how to build wonderful buildings with the help of our detailed information. Learn how to create structures with durability and reliability and also gain insights on ways of managing structures.
3. 1.1 Abstract
Project Management of the R&D projects that involve resource organizations located
in different countries have unique challenges in terms of budgeting, milestone tracking
and detailed scheduling. The competency levels, productivity, labor rates, holiday list,
currency rates, process…etc. are all different in each center while the project is same.
The VPs expect the five quarter forecast on project budgeting where as historical data
to use for estimation may not be good enough as the new technology project has
nothing in common with previous one. The effort estimates from other centers also
need to be converted to cost based on the labor and currency rates.
Tracking the project's actual cost, work completed may pose another difficulty due to
geographical distance, limited communication and different time reporting methods in
each center.
The PM may find it difficult to decide on the level of detailed scheduling that is needed.
This is so as more strict execution may impact technical innovation and flexibility. The
resource assignment is another challenging area as each center resource manager
expects to have freedom on assigning the resources to the project. They also expect
to view the resource utilization of their department and balance the same with this
flexibility.
The PMO of such an organization has responsibility of presenting the portfolio, project
status, loading of different resource centers, the budget allocation etc. at an abstract
level that's easy to understand while ensuring it's based on facts.
In brief the challenge is to provide an abstract view of all the involved organizations
while ensuring the detailed planning is not overlooked. It must provide agility in
planning while keeping a strong synchronization between abstract view for
management and agile detailed plan for team members working on the project.
To summarize, the key problems in such an environment are,
How to forecast the budget for each center working on a project and improve it
during project execution,
How to allow the multiple resource managers in these locations to assign
resources on the project,
How to track the milestones at an abstract level that is based on actual effort of
resources located in different countries,
What are key indicators to track in such an environment,
How to enable each center to have their own detailed plan that is agile and used
for tracking the progress,
How to collaborate to ensure a strong synchronization between abstract and
detailed view ,
Some of the challenges can be met by planning and tracking at stage gate level to
bring simplicity. The detailed scheduling can be managed by detailing the near term
task while keeping the one line abstraction on future tasks. The whole approach of
collaboration can be achieved through proper web based tool deployment.
3|Page
4. The paper is an attempt to highlight the project management difficulties faced by PMs
in such an environment and present a workable solution through a case study.
1.2 Introduction
The more and more MNCs are opting for multi-location R&D centers to take
advantage of talent availability, lower cost and proximity to customers. These R&D
centers need to work in a collaborative environment based on forecast, actual and
refinement to forecast. They need to collaborate on budget, list of projects, resource
needs, assignments, competencies and actual of all these from project execution
perspective.
The projects have team members located in different countries and working in
collaboration to execute different work packages of the same project. The business
unit head need to forecast the projects, budget and resource requirements at each
resource center.
The local resource managers need to plan the staffing based on this forecast and
deploy and monitor the efficient utilization of these resources. They need to account
for actual effort spent and report it back to global planning. The resources need to be
communicated the projects they are assigned on and need to charge there time on
project or non project activities.
The project manager needs to plan the project at abstract level indicating stage gate
dates, project type, different resources centers involved, the work packages of each
resource center, their planned cost and its distribution. He needs to capture the actual
cost of each center and present reports in terms of S curve, earned value and
expected completion. He also needs to have detailed schedule indicating tasks that
need to be completed by team members at each center. Considering the size and
duration of project a lot of changes make the detail schedule to be updated frequently
and it becomes a haunting task due to interdependency and complexity. In most case
the schedule activities and actual activities being performed at any time do no match.
1.3 Challenges in multi country projects
The major challenges in these projects may be listed as follows,
Project forecast for each center,
Allocation of project budget to each center,
Estimation, forecast, collection of actual cost, realignment of forecast,
Detailed scheduling and keeping it updated,
Reports at abstract and detailed scheduled level,
Strong collaboration to share the plan, actual and issues,
Tracking the project and achieving
Though there may be different methods to deal with these the challenge is to have a
consistent framework that can be implemented across organization meeting abstract
and detailed needs of different stakeholders.
4|Page
5. The figure 1 shows the framework the can be used to address the challenges
mentioned above.
Figure 1: Abstract & Agile Schedule
1.4 Abstract Schedule
The purpose of abstract schedule is to meet the needs of portfolio management and
abstract planning and tracking. It shall provide the visibility on capacity utilization, type
of projects being planned or under execution, the distribution of projects across global
centers, the planned budget and its consumption, the projects status etc.
Figure 2: Project budgeting across centers
The planning must be easier and must present the stage gate dates, the different
global centers involved, the planned budget for each center, the project type, its status,
its unique IDs, the financial gains with or without the project, the global PM and cost
distribution across timeline.
5|Page
6. Figure 3: Abstract Schedule
1.5 Abstract Schedule Collaboration
The each center's budget line appears as the work package for the center. The local
PM shall discuss the budget, the competency & headcount requirements. He/she
declares the need in resource planning and time tracking component of collaboration.
The resource manager of the center shall assign the resources and the PM publishes
the project to make it visible to assigned resource.
Table 1 : Abstract Schedule
The assigned resource notices the one line item "PRJ 1/RC A" that is assigned to
him/her. He/she charges his/her time on daily/weekly basis based on the hours spent
on performing activities on the work package.
The RM approves the timesheet by end of the month and the actual cost of each work
package appears in abstract schedule. The local PM and Global PM needs to keep
aligning the budget based on need or the need based on revision in budget.
6|Page
7. The Global PM needs to present the project status to PSC (project steering committee)
at each stage gate. The PSC can take decisions for GO, No-Go or GO with restriction
at each stage gate based on the project status presentation.
The S curve, 45 degree, Earned Value, Predicted closure date, actual cost, risks,
team composition, issues, accomplishments, next targeted milestones etc. shall form
part of project status presentation.
The centers shall monitor the planned vs. actual cost, resource utilization in terms of
project vs. non-project activities. The 5Q forecast in terms of budget and competency
requirements shall help for staffing and training.
The abstraction in terms of stage gate tracking offers a lot of simplicity. To revise the
schedule only dates or budget distributions need to be changed. The deviations are
captured from the initial baseline of duration and cost. The resource need to charge
the time against one line, irrespective of the activity that they are working on. They
account for total eight hours of effort on daily basis. This effort is distributed among
project and non-project activities.
The local PM ensures a good synchronization between the budget forecast and need.
He/she updated one of these based on ground reality and consensus. The resource
manager updated the assignment based on needs and resource availability. The PMO
publishes the project upon agreement between local PM and local RM. The resources
are communicated about new assignment through publishing and MyWork area.
1.6 Agile Detailed Schedule
Preparing a detailed schedule for the complete project of a year plus duration and
involving multi sites is always a daunting task. The dependencies, estimations and
changes in tasks or resources that are integral part of project dynamics, consume a lot
of effort. In most of case the activities actually being performed by resources fails to
reflect in the planning.
The following approach is suggested to reap the benefits of agility.
Figure 4 : Agile Detailed Schedule
The schedule backlog represents the abstract schedule with major milestones and few
parent task of minimum one month duration. These parent task dependencies are
adjusted based on project dynamics. The priority of task is determined by its early
7|Page
8. completion requirement, effort required to complete and its criticality in the project.
Thus the tasks such as architecture, design, COTS selection etc may have higher
priority.
The team along with local PM chooses the list of tasks appearing at top with highest
priority level. The number of tasks chosen shall be possible to complete within one
quarter team effort. The teams breaks down these backlog task to further details and
performs estimation and prepares mini schedule taking into account the previous
experience and newly evolved project scenario. The team executes this mini schedule
and no changes are allowed while its under execution. The team tracks the progress
of execution with daily standing meeting of 10 to 15 minute duration.
The project documents are updated, the issues are logged, and the resolutions are
sought. The PM empowers the team for estimation, issue resolution and facilitates
them by working towards removing bottlenecks. At regular intervals the
synchronization meetings are organized with global PM to update the progress.
Towards the end an hour daily is reserved for retrospection and recording the lessons
learnt. Any unfinished task is taken in next quarter for completion. The estimation is
done for remaining work. The new set of abstract parent activities are taken the in the
next Qn. The complete cycle is repeated once again.
Figure 5 : Detailed at near term
The advantages of agile scheduling may be listed as follows,
The estimations are more accurate due to shorter effort and lower ambiguity in
tasks,
The schedule is used for tracking as team has sense of ownership on estimation,
The PM has more bandwidth to resolve the hurdles and take care of risks as most
of schedule is prepared and executed by the team,
8|Page
9. PM has more control as he adjusts the priorities of tasks in Schedule Backlog
The chances of slippage are lower due to shorter duration and team commitment,
The lessons learnt are more relevant and used of next quarter planning,
The overall team health is better.
1.7 Agile Detailed Schedule Collaboration
The teams working on agile schedule collaborate more frequently than the traditional
schedule. The daily standing meeting offers a unique opportunity to state the
yesterday's completed task, today's planned task and issue if any by each team
member. The complete schedule containing parents for future and detailed children for
current and past parents is web shared with adequate permissions.
The PM can update the parents and their order and publish the project. The team
members can view the assigned tasks from anywhere and work accordingly on daily
basis. The local PM updates the task completion on daily basis. Each task completion
is either 0% or 100%. The project issues are logged and assigned. The assignee
update the status on issues and its closure is tracked. The team uploads the project
documents for reviews. The new topics discussion threads can be started. The
lessons learnt are captures and shared.
The complete agile schedule is available to all stakeholders at any point of time
through web access and adequate permissions on collaboration. The required reports
on project metrics are computed and keep getting updated based on project updates.
The new reports can be designed using appropriate fields to meet the needs of the
organization.
1.8 The sample deployment
The above suggestion is deployed using PSNext 3.0. The snapshots related to topics
discussed above are as shown below for reference.
Abstract planning
The different project attributes such as dates, centers, cost distribution, PM, applicable
gates, project type, its ranking and financial analysis is planned in a very simplistic
way.
9|Page
10. Abstract collaboration
The resource needs are expressed detailing competency and timeline. The
assignments are done at work pack package level. This offers simplicity manage
assignments and charge time to track the actual cost.
Agile Schedule
Figure 6 : Agile Schedule
Agile Schedule Collaboration
10 | P a g e
11. Figure 7 : Project documents, Issues, Topics Collaboration
1.9 Conclusion
The project involving multi country teams have unique challenges on planning,
tracking and reporting front. The collaboration on planning, project documents, issues
and status tracking can be dealt with proper abstraction and agile detailing.
The abstraction with only stage gate scheduling, resource assignment and effort
tracking offers a lot of simplicity while providing accurate project status. The different
centers can build agile schedule that offers a detailed plan for immediate quarter while
keeping it as a one line item for future quarters. The PM feels comfortable to detail
and track quarter based plans and keeps it updated reflected the actual minute tasks
that are under execution. The detailing of next quarter happens while incorporating the
new changes and lessons learnt and thus brings more reliability. Thus following this
approach eliminates the needs of preparing giant detailed schedule of two year
duration in the beginning of project. This may take more rework effort and may be
difficult to manage as 20% changes cause 80% of plan to be changed.
The web based deployment using industry standard tool such as PSNext makes the
collaboration very easy and increases the project status visibility to a large extent. The
users can access Planner, MyWork, Collaboration etc components from anywhere.
This brings them together. The email notification feature is useful to inform the
approaching dates, team member assignments etc.
1.10 Acronyms & Abbreviations
1. PM Project Manager
2. RM Resource Manager
3. PMO Project Management Office
4. Planner A component in web based tool for task planning
5. MyWork A component in web based tool for resources to
charge their time.
6. Collaboration A component in web based tool for collaboration
project documents, issues, topics
Table 2 : References
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12. 1.11 Author(s) Profile
Shivmani Tripathi an Electronics Engineer with MBA (Marketing) and MS
(Software Systems) is currently working at AOCI, Schneider Electric as PMO
Head. In 2004 he started the SoftwareOperations for the company in
Bangalore. He has been engaged with HCL Technologies,Celstream,
Thomson Multimedia and ONIDA during his last 17 years. During this period
heworked in USA, France, Germany, Singapore and Israel in different
capacities. He is a Certified SCRUM Master.
E-mail: shivmanit@yahoo.com
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