Project Management
… an overview
Rodney Grubb, PE, PMP, PEM
February 28, 2013
Rev 11
4/13/2015
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Rodney Grubb, PE, PMP, PEM
Chairman, ASEM Professional Development &
Continuing Education
President RMX Technologies, LLC
rgrubb@rmxt.co
www.rmxtechnologies.net
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Today? – 45 minutes
 Why
do we care?
 Project Management as a Process
 Some supporting activities
– Communication, Earned Value, Risk
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Session Guidance
 Enjoy
and learn something useful
 Focus on communication, EV
management and risk
 Cheer or Boooo … just don’t ignore CWE
PM is a Professional Discipline
 Accepted
Body of Knowledge
 College Degrees
 Extensive Lessons Learned
 Professional Society – PMI
 Certification Program (s), PMP and
others
 Consistent Vocabulary
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Why Project Management?
Why Plan?
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In case something happens to the Lead person.
To obtain management / team buy-in.
– This is what I am going to do.
– This is what it will take.
– This is how long and how much.
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As a simulation of the project – don’t forget
something.
Resources are limited – use them wisely.
The tools are good even for small PROJECTS –
just use the graded approach.
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Why Plan – consequences?
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Why is there interest in Project
Management?
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Resources Are Limited
Jobs Are Regularly Underestimated
Missed Schedules Are Common
Staff / Support Downtime is a Wasted Resource
– Time Lost Cannot Be Recovered
To Get the Most For the $$ Invested – Value
Project Management Can Improve the Way We
Do Business – Plan, Do, Check, Act
Provides a consistent vocabulary and way to do
business
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What Is A Project?
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Single set of objectives
Finite life span
Organized team effort
Recognized project manager
Impose unique set of requirements on
organization
Authorized by top management
A PROJECT SHOULD BE VIEWED AS A
SINGLE ENTITY!
Project or Operations?
Another way to define a project – by comparison.
Scope: Owner to builder: “I said
the LEARNING TOWER of PISA.”
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A Project Management Process
Project Objectives – Value
 SOW – Alignment with Customer

– What are the deliverables?
– What is in and what is out of scope?
WBS – To the Action Level
 Schedule – Built on WBS
 Estimate – Resource Loaded Schedule
 Approval – Know the Decision Maker
 GO! – Now Manage All Changes
(PMBOK shows the process)

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Home improvement projects – issues?
(risk, scope, objective, cost)
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Do you see project issues?
Quality, risk, schedule, objective, scope
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Project Planning Overview
Have you heard:
“Scope, Schedule, or
Budget:
pick two”
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Scope
Project
Triple
Constraint
Cost/Budget
Time/Schedule
Plan begins with scope
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Write scope statement in clear and narrow
terms.
Provide statement of processes, internal
entities, systems, customers, and outside
entities that will /will not be part of project.
Cross-reference scope statement, project
objectives and project deliverables for
consistency.
Mark Twain – “I am sorry I did not have
time to write you a short letter.”
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Then we must manage scope
Scope Creep is the Leading Cause
of Project Failure
Soooooo … it is really important that we
document the scope and then manage
changes
Booooooooo!!
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Managing Teams is key to PM Success
If Teams are so important to Successful
Projects … what does a good team look like?
Sports?
Business?
Professional Organizations?
I know it when I see it …
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Do you see any team issues??
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L
7pXIC49R3c
Team Examples
 Think
about the best team you have
been a part of.
 Why
was it the best?
 Research
says that the most
effective teams have common
attributes … what are they?
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Any of these attributes?
 Challenging
Work
 Clear Objectives
 Over Communication
 Involvement in planning
 Team input
 Shared effort
 “Good” leader – Attributes?
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“In the Beginning” …Does your
organization charter teams / projects?

Why is it important?
– Management buy-in
– Team Understanding
– Definition of Objectives and plan
Do you have electronic Project
Information?
 How are project teams chartered in your
organization?
 You can control this process ... Even if
the organization does not require it.

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WBS Process – The Action List
WBS is Work Breakdown Structure –
The Preparation is a Process
 THINK Task List or Action Items
 Action list to complete the Scope
 Good Info in Your Book
 Hierarchy – manageable pieces
 ALL Of the Work
 Action Level At the Bottom
 There is Rarely “ONE Correct WBS”
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Intro to Schedules
The schedule is the heart of the plan
 Tie it to the WBS – Action Level –
Know who is responsible and involve
them in scheduling
 Understand Dependencies –
Predecessors and Successors
 Define your milestones
 Use scheduling tools
 Critical Path Concept – Critical Chain
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Once we are underway there are
execution processes
 Measuring Progress

(cost and schedule variance)
 Earned Value Concept
 Communication
 Human Resources
 Risk Management
Monitoring Progress
Track Against the Plan
 Communicate the Objectives Regularly
 Change Management is key
– Recognize, document and agree
 Report Progress – EARNED VALUE is
about THE WORK ACCOMPLISEHED not
the MONEY SPENT or TIME PASSED.
 Understand Variance
 Document what we learn and USE IT for
planning, estimating, and risks and
problems
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Communication is critical to
successful project plan & execution

Push communication
– don’t wait … be proactive
– Use your process so something doesn’t get missed
– Five times rule – say it, write it, e-mail it …
Pull the string … if you feel uneasy then
ask the question.
 “Seek first to understand then to be
understood” – Covey
 Are you listening … or waiting your turn to
talk?
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COMMUNICATIONS –
Succinct? Why?
The Six-Word Novel – Hemmingway
"For sale: baby shoes, never worn.“
"Epitaph: He shouldn't have fed it.“
“machine. Unexpectedly, I’d invented a time “
"Will this do (lazy writer asked)?“
“He read his obituary with confusion.”
"Oh, that? It's nothing. Not contagious."
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Again … Communication
 Consider
a Communications
(Management) Plan
 Use Your Computer or PDA to Remind
You … Then Call or Visit
 Vary Communication Format
 Regularly with the Customer
 With Team Members – 5 TIMES Rule?
 With Management
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Actual PM Quotes
COMMUNICATIONS
 "We know that communication is a problem, but the company is
not going to discuss it with the employees.“
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"E-mail is not to be used to pass on information or data. It should
be used only for company business."
TEAMWORK
 Quote from the boss: "Teamwork is a lot of people doing what 'I'
say."
RISK
 "What I need is a list of specific unknown problems we will
encounter."
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"This project is so important, we can't let things that are more
important interfere with it."
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"Doing it right is no excuse for not meeting the schedule."
RISK Management and Contingency
Planning – part of planning AND execution
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What kinds of risk are there?
– Scope
– Schedule
– Financial
– Safety
Where are the tasks recorded?
Some Key questions – KEY TASKS
– What Could Go Wrong?
– Is it a Big Deal if That Happens?
– How Will I Prevent That? – ACTION
– What Will I Do When it Happens Anyway?
THE NEW ACTIONS GO INTO THE WBS.
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RISKS and Contingency Planning
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Know and use Potential Problem Analysis –
PPA
–
–
–
–
Identify the Critical Tasks from the WBS?
Ask what could go wrong at this step?
Ask “Is it a big deal if that happens?”
Is it is a big deal then how will I prevent it? – What
ACTION will I take? Document the action.
– What will I do when it happens anyway?

THE ACTIONS GO INTO THE WBS.
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Risk Management Planning
RISK IS:
An uncertain event that can have positive or
negative effects on our project.
 The WBS allows us to consider the
circumstances and conditions of each
deliverable for risks within our project.
 Once risks are identified, we can then run
them through qualitative and quantitative
analysis to capture which risks need
mitigation and which ones we can live with
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PPA Form
Action Item
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Potential
Problem
Risk
?
PA
CA
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Summary
Plan the work – Handle the details –
Document the results
 Use task list, schedule, and budget to
measure progress
 Actively manage and communicate
 Amount expended AND work completed
are necessary to know status
 When a project ends – document
 Again and again – Communicate

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Class Objectives – how did we do?
1.
2.
3.
4.
Define a project?
Introduce a PM Process
Show how PM elements fit together
Intro supporting processes –
communications, EV management,
risk management
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Questions?
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Using the Graded Approach to
Project Management
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First – It Has to Be Safe!
Think “VALUE ADDED”
– Value added
– Value enabling
– Waste
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Graded Approach to Planning and
Implementation
Don’t Spend a Dollar to Monitor a Nickel’s
Work
How Would I Do It At Home?
Start With Common Sense
BUT: Some Requirements are Not
Negotiable
– Safety
– Environmental permits
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– Waste management
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Project Management & Lean
Principles
Understand Value Added
 Flow – the Schedule – the Plan
 Recognize Value Added, Enabling, and
Waste in Your Planning, Tasks, and
Implementation
 Critical Path – Critical Chain
 References – “Building a Project Driven
Enterprise” and “Critical Chain”
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TEAM CHARTER – a form to use to
document “it” (setting up a project) – agreement / contract?
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Project Team Charter
Team – _______________ Date – _______________
Project Objective Statement: Mission / Desired Results:
Scope / Guidelines / Schedule: (what is included and
excluded)
Required Resources:
–
–
–
–
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Equipment:
Materials:
Support:
Budget:
Accountability / Communicating Results: (Who, how,
and how often)
Client:
Team:
Management:
Deliverables / Outcomes / Consequences:
Team Members:
Approvals – Sign offs
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Project Risk Management
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Project Risk Management processes include:
–
–
–
–
–
–
Risk Management Planning - deciding how to approach,
plan, and execute risk management activities for a project.
Risk Identification - determining which risks might affect
project and documenting their characteristics.
Qualitative Risk Analysis - prioritizing risks for subsequent
further analysis or action by assessing and combining their
probability of occurrence and impact.
Quantitative Risk Analysis - numerically analyzing effect
on overall project objectives of identified risks.
Risk Response Planning - developing options and actions to
enhance opportunities, and to reduce threats to project
objectives.
Risk Monitoring and Control - tracking identified risks,
monitoring residual risks, identifying new risks, executing risk
response plans, and evaluating their effectiveness throughout
project life cycle.
PM History Video
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C
1uxCBx2-UQ&feature=fvwrel
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