PROJECT MANAGEMENT Project management is the science (and art) of organizing the components of a project, whether the project

is development of a new product, the launch of a new service, a marketing campaign, or a wedding. A project isn't something that's part of normal business operations. It's typically created once, it's temporary, and it's specific. Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing, and managing resources to achieve specific goals.

PHASES OF THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT CYCLE

Initiation In this stage the project manager defines what the project is and what the users hope to achieve by undertaking the project. This phase also includes a list of project deliverables, the outcome of a specific set of activities. The project manager works with the business sponsor or manager who wants to have the project implemented and other stakeholders -- those who have a vested interest in the outcome of the project. The first phase of a project is the initiation phase. During this phase a business problem or opportunity is identified and a business case providing various solution options is defined. Next, a feasibility study is conducted to investigate whether each option addresses the business problem and a final recommended solution is then put forward. Once the recommended solution is approved, a project is initiated to deliver the approved solution. Terms of reference are completed outlining the objectives, scope and structure of the new project, and a project manager is appointed. The project manager begins recruiting a project

team and establishes a project office environment. Approval is then sought to move into the detailed planning Phase. Planning Define all project activities. In this stage, the project manager lists all activities or tasks, how the tasks are related, how long each task will take, and how each tasks is tied to a specific deadline. This phase also allows the project manager to define relationships between tasks, so that, for example, if one task is x number of days late, the project tasks related to it will also reflect a comparable delay. Likewise, the project manager can set milestones, dates by which important aspects of the project need to be met. Define requirements for completing the project. In this stage, the project manager identifies how many people (often referred to as "resources") and how much expense ("cost") is involved in the project, as well as any other requirements that are necessary for completing the project. The project manager will also need to manage assumptions and risks related to the project. The project manager will also want to identify project constraints. Constraints typically relate to schedule, resources, budget, and scope. A change in one constraint will typically affect the other constraints. For example, a budget constraint may affect the number of people who can work on the project, thereby imposing a resource constraint. Once the scope of the project has been defined in the terms of reference, the project enters the planning phase. This involves creating a: Project plan outlining the activities, tasks, dependencies and timeframes; Resource plan listing the labor, equipment and materials required; Financial plan identifying the labor, equipment and materials costs; Quality plan providing quality targets, assurance and control measures; Risk plan highlighting potential risks and actions to be taken to mitigate those risks; Acceptance plan listing the criteria to be met to gain customer acceptance; Communications plan describing the information needed to inform stakeholders; Procurement plan identifying products to be sourced from external suppliers.

Execution In this phase, the project manager knows how many resources and how much he budget or she has to work with for the project. The project manager then assigns those resources and allocates budget to various tasks in the project. Now the work of the project begins. This phase involves implementing the plans created during the project planning phase. While each plan is being executed, a series of management processes are undertaken to monitor and control the deliverables being output by the project. This includes identifying change, risks and issues, reviewing deliverable quality and measuring each deliverable produced against acceptance criteria.

Monitoring Monitor and control: While the project team is physically producing each deliverable, the project manager implements a series of management processes to monitor and control the activities being undertaken by the project team Monitor and Control Perform Time Management Perform Cost Management Perform Quality Management Perform Change Management Perform Risk Management Perform Issue Management Perform Procurement Management

Perform Acceptance Management Perform Communications Management

Closure In this stage, the project manager and business owner pull together the project team and those who have an interest in the outcome of the project (stakeholders) to analyze the final outcome of the project. The Project Team assesses the outcome of the project, as well as the performance of the Project Team and the Performing Organization. This is accomplished primarily through soliciting and evaluating feedback from Customers, Project Team members, Consumers and other stakeholders. The primary purpose of this assessment is to document best practices and lessons learned for use on future projects. Project closure involves releasing the final deliverables to the customer, handing over project documentation to the business, terminating supplier contracts, releasing project resources and communicating the closure of the project to all stakeholders. The last remaining step is to undertake a post implementation review to quantify the level of project success and identify any lessons learnt for future projects.