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What are projects?

PMI & the PMBOK framework
Processes, Process Groups, Knowledge Areas

Some useful project management concepts

Samson Samuel

Meeting Minutes, WBS and estimation, Project Tracking, Change

Management, Risk/Issue Management, Status Reporting,
Dashboard Reviews

Project failures

ABC plumbing fixes leaks in 20 locations every

day; The method of fixing the leak varies (new
pipes, new tap, apply putty, etc.)

What are projects?

One of the leaks indicates a deeper problem.

The plumber informs the house owner he will
need to investigate changes in detail, come up
with a quotation, and an estimated time to fix.

A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken

to create a unique product or service.
A project outcome need not always be tangible;
It could be as simple as an answer to a question

Projects
Existence

Temporary & Unique

Ongoing

Scope

Create something new or

implement a change

Create value by repetitively

performing a task

Team

Usually heterogeneous

Usually homogeneous

Involvement

Leadership is required to plan and

execute a successful project

Operations / Processes are usually

managed, not led

Change

Catalyst for change

Resists change; Process change is

implemented through a project

Some examples:
Planning a wedding
Designing and implementing a computer system
Designing and producing a brochure

Operations / Processes

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The application of knowledge, skills, tools and

techniques to project activities in order to meet
or exceed stakeholder needs and expectations
from a project.

Time

Individual FII teams

The FII committee

Cost
Scope

Quality

PORTFOLIO

Program
A program is a group of related projects where
doing them together provides some sort of benefit
or efficiency.

PROGRAM 1
PROJECT 1-A

PROJECT 1-B
PROJECT 1-C

PROJECT P1

Portfolio

PROJECT P2

PROJECT P3

PROGRAM 2
PROJECT 2-A

PROJECT 2-B

A portfolio is all the projects/programs for an

organization created to meet their strategic goals.
This could be based on division structure, business
areas, etc..

TIME

Project Manager (PM)

Responsible for planning, managing and steering the
day-to-day activities of the project

Program Manager (PgM)

Responsible for coordinating the activities of a number
of projects toward a common goal or within the an
organisational division

Portfolio Manager (PfM)

Responsible for the governance of a portfolio of
projects/programs, ensuring that the whole remains
within projected expenditure and aligned to the
assigned goals

Management structure that standardizes the

project-related governance processes and
facilitates
the
sharing
of
resources,
methodologies, tools, and techniques.
Can be
Supportive (low degree of control)
Controlling (medium degree of control)
Directive (high degree of control)

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Worlds largest not-for-profit membership

association for the project management
profession (700k+ members).

PMI & the PMBOK

framework

PMI's standards for project, program and

portfolio management are the most widely
recognized standards in the profession and
increasingly the model for project management
in business and government.
Offers the PMP certification (held by 590k+)

A Guide to the Project Management Body of

Knowledge (PMBOK) is a book which presents a
set of standard terminology and guidelines for
project management.

Process based

Captures generally recognized good practice applicable to most projects most of the time
and there is a consensus about their value and
usefulness

Described in terms of

Input
1. Scope statement
2. Constraints
3. Assumptions
4. Other planning outputs
5. Historical information

Process
subdividing the major project
deliverables (as identified in the
scope statement) into smaller
more manageable components

Tools and Techniques

1. Work breakdown structure
templates
2. Decomposition

47 processes
5 process groups
10 knowledge areas

Inputs (documents, plans, designs, etc.)

Tools &Techniques (mechanisms applied to inputs)
Outputs (documents, plans, designs, etc.)

Output
1. Work breakdown structure

Initiating
Processes

Planning
Processes

Executing
Processes

Controlling
Processes

Closing
Processes

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Scope

Cost

Integration

Time

Human Resources
Communications
Risk
Procurement
Stakeholder

Quality

Some useful concepts

Meeting minutes

Some useful concepts

Project Tracking

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Some useful concepts

WBS and Estimation

Bottom-up estimation
Top-down (or Parametric) estimation

Some useful concepts

Analogous estimation
Expert judgment estimation

Change Management

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Some useful concepts

Risk/Issue Management

Some useful concepts

Status Reporting,
Dashboard Reviews

Project failures

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Ensure buy-in for major decision points

Walk through scope what are you going to

(and not going to) do; Request for a signoff

Regular updates : Keep key parties informed

Dont buckle in blindly to subsequent requests!
Timely escalations can avert disaster
In valid requests, follow the CR process;
Evaluate impact and revise timeline if needed

Create a meaningful schedule with detailed

milestones, and stick to it

Tracking risks and issues is critical, or they could

drop off the radar!

Review progress regularly against the plan

Assess all unresolved and potential risks/issues

while starting the project; Review at regular
intervals and watch out for new instances

In case of slippage, assess impact to project

success and communicate accordingly

Keep key stakeholders apprised

Padding is bad, but so is under-estimating;

Ensure you have a comfortable safety margin
For high-level sizing, try to derive the WBS and
roll up the work package estimates
Follow rolling wave planning as more details
become available and the activity list is formed,
re-assess the original sizing