Introduction to software
project management
What is a project?
One definition
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‘a specific design or plan’
Key elements
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non-routine
specific objectives
planned
predetermined timespan
constrained resources
What is a project?
More key elements
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work carried out for a third party
work involves several specialisms or phases
size and complexity
Are software projects really
different from other projects?
Not really, but:
invisibility
complexity
flexibility
need to conform to human ideas
all add to difficulties
Activities
The feasibility study
Planning
Execution
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Requirement analysis
Specification
Design
Coding
Verification and validation
Implementation/installation
Maintenance and support
Position of planning
Is it worth doing?
How do we do it?
feasibility study
Do it!
planning
project
Feasibility study - decide if project is worth
doing
Plan how you are going do it, then do it
Contents of a feasibility study report
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Introduction: identifies what the document is;
Description of current situation
Problem description
Proposed development
 business and financial aspects
 technical aspects
 organizational aspects
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Estimated costs
 development costs
 operational costs
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Envisaged benefits
Recommendations
requirements
gathering
stages typically
include
specification
design
code
testing
implement
Categories
Information system vs embedded system
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IS: Interface with organization
ES: interface with a machine
Objectives vs product
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Product  specification by client
Objectives  services
Project as a system
System, subsystem, & environment
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System: a set of interrelated parts
Subsystems: part of larger system
Environment: outside the system
Open System vs Closed System
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OS: interact with the environment
CS: _not_
Sub-optimization
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detrimental effect on optimization on a subsystem
Sociotechnical systems
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organization of technology and people
What is management?
Planning — deciding what is to be done
Organizing — making arrangement
Staffing — selecting the right people
Directing — giving instructions
Monitoring — checking on progress
Controlling — taking action to remedy hold-ups
Innovating — coming up with new solutions
Representing — liaising with users
Problems
Poor estimates and plans
Lack of quality standards and measures
Lack of guidance about making
organizational decisions
Lack of techniques to make progress
visible
Poor role definition
Incorrect success criteria
Management control
Management
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The process of setting objectives for a system
and then monitoring the system
Management control (2)
Project control cycle
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Data collection
Data processing
Making decisions/plans
Implementation
Objectives
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Should be clearly defined
Measures of effectiveness
Sub-objectives and goals
Stakeholders
They may be:
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Internal to the project team
External to the project team but within the same
organization
External to both the project team and the organization
External stakeholders may be
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customers or user affected by system
contractors
There will be different types of users with
different interests
Need for good communication!
Objectives
Different stakeholders will have different
objectives
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need for agreed objectives
Need for an identifiable project authority
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to set, monitor and modify objectives
can contain user, development and
management representatives
Objectives
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can be informally expressed as: ‘in order
for the project to be a success, the project
must….’
Objectives -continued
Objectives must be:
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concrete
have measures of success
Objectives can be:
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broken down into sub-objectives or goals
can be informally expressed as ‘in order to
achieve A, we must achieve B,C,D etc’
identifying sub-objectives involves
considering the ‘how’ as well as the ‘what’
Requirement Specification
Functional requirements
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what the system is to do
systems analysis aims to provide these
Quality requirements
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other attributes of the system e.g response time;
usability; reliability
Resource requirements
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cost
time
Trade-offs between the different factors
Information and control
Hierarchical information and control systems
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Management information flows up
Control flows down
Levels of decision making and information
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Strategic
Tactical
Operational
Differences in types of information
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Effectiveness: doing the right thing
Efficiency: making the best possible use of resources
Measurement
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Performance measures
Predictive measures
The control cycle
real world
actions
define
objectives
collect
data
data
process data
implement
information
modelling
make
decisions
decisions