Introduction to Project
Management session 1
Project management
Over the course we will look at:
• Projects and their features.
• The project Life Cycle, Project Planning
and the Project Manager’s role.
• Over a dozen different tools and techniques
for effective project management.
Self Study (aka Homework)
• You will have a go at using the tools and
techniques both in class and through
homework, self-study which will be set at
the end of each taught session. You’ll need
to allow a few hours each week to ‘do’ the
self-study homework.
Self-study (aka homework)
• For this Project Management module it is
really important for you to do the
homework after each session, and before the
next session. Project management is a
practical as well as theoretical subject.
Unless you practice, through the homework,
the tools and techniques which we cover in
the sessions, you will not fully learn the
skills of effective project management.
Project Management - pitfalls
• One of the pitfalls with project management
is that there is a lot of jargon which can be
used: Gantt Charts, network diagrams,
activity on the arrow diagrams, critical path
analysis, work breakdown structures, PERT,
project scheduling, precedence diagrams,
dependency diagrams, et cetera. This course
will keep jargon to a minimum.
An introduction to
Project management
• This module will look at the tried and trusted tools
and techniques of project management, the ones
which actually work!
• Will also be doing some practical exercises; you
learn effective project management by working on
real life projects; it is not something you can learn
just from reading a book.
• We will not be looking at Microsoft project
Programme for today
Introductions and Expectations
Concepts of Project Management
Simulated project – Scoping
Comfort break ?
Simulated project – Stakeholders
Simulated project – Success Criteria
Summary and close
Why do we need project
management tools & techniques?
Because we live in a world of limited
resources and not enough time.
There will always be more to do than time
and resources will allow.
Project Management tool & techniques, if
used regularly & appropriately, help us
make more effective use of our time.
Introductions and Expectations
• Who are you?
name, job and responsibilities
what do you consider to be your strengths in
the work environment (e.g. decisive, good
communicator, assertive, good at
empathising, good listener, etc)
• What previous experience do you have of
managing projects?
• What are your expectations from today?
The aims for today’s session
• To clarify what we mean by the term
‘project’
• To introduce you to some of the tools to
begin defining and managing projects
• To give you the chance to try out some of
these tools
Project management
Concepts, Terms and Definitions.
What does the term ‘project’
mean to you?
Class group exercise
• What does the term ‘project’ mean to you
and your group?
• What do you and your group think of or
associate with the term ‘project’?
Definition of project
• “An activity with a fixed start and end
point, managed with finite resources,
involving change and often achieved by the
collective effort of the team of people”
(IPM)
Another definition of a project
• “A set of temporary activities conducted by
ad hoc organisations” (D. Olson, 2001)
Another definition of a project
• “ …..an endeavour in which the human (or
machine), material and financial resources
organised in a novel way, to undertake a
unique scope of work, of given
specification, within constraints of cost and
time,so as to deliver beneficial change
defined by quantitative and qualitative
objectives” (R.Turner 1995)
Yet another definition of project
• “A project is a sequence of unique,
complex, and connected activities. Having
one goal or purpose that must be completed
by a specific time, within budget, and
according to specification” (Artto, 2002)
Project Management – a definition ?
• Project Management might be defined as
“the application of knowledge, skills, tools
and techniques to project activities in order
to meet (or exceed?) stakeholder needs and
expectations from the project”
Features of a project
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•
A start and a finish
Is a unique activity with a visible output
May involve uncertainty and risk
Involves a team coming together specifically for the
project
A budget
Non repetitive tasks, sequential order
Use of resources (including human resources)
A single point of ultimate responsibility
Clearly defined team roles
Clear aims, objectives, goals
Terms often confused with
‘project’
• Process – a series of steps needed to
perform a routine activity (e.g. purchasing).
A project may contain many processes.
• Programme – work performed towards
achieving a long term goal (e.g. a health
awareness programme). Programmes may
never achieve all their goals, and may
comprise a series of projects.
Examples of types of project and
their size
• Individual – decorating your bedroom
• Group – organising a wedding
• Organisation – construction company, building the
Millennium bridge in London
• Project Organisation – creation of a separate
independent organisation specifically for
accomplishing a particular project, e.g. the
Olympic games committee
• Multinational – design construction of Concorde
The project life cycle
NOTE - We will be referring to this simple
model throughout the rest of the course
Project Life Cycle
(At its Simplest)
• PLAN
• DO
• REVIEW
Plaaaaaaaaan-Do
Plan-Do-Plan-Do-Plan-Do
Or Plan-Do, Re-plan, Re-do
Project Life Cycle
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Conception Phase (The Idea)
Definition Phase (The Plan)
Initiation Phase (The Team)
Implementation Phase (The Work)
Evaluation Phase (The Wrap-up)
PLAN
DO
REVIEW
We will now consider each stage
and what it involves
The Conception phase – the idea
• Essentially - What are we going to do?
• For small projects an informal discussion might
adequate
• For larger projects, a more formal review and
discussion processes required.
• Key questions to answer should be:
• Should you do it? What is the benefit and do the
benefits outweigh the costs?
• Can you do it? Is it technically feasible and are
there enough resources?
So…………Let’s get started
• That temptation at this point is to get started
(after minimal planning). This is the
traditional British approach.
• It gives the appearance of immediate
activity and progress. We are busy ‘doing’.
• But it leads to mistakes and waste.
• We end up with Plan-Do, Do-Re-Do, Replan, Re-Do, RE-Do, Re-Plan etc
Project Life Cycle
• Consequently…
– Projects over runs
– Cost too much
– Don’t achieve desired result
• So we...
– Hunt for the guilty
– Persecute the innocent
– Promote the uninvolved
But I am too busy to spend time
planning!…Planning allows you to:
• Ensure that people only work on activities which
are needed, and do them correctly the first time,
not waste time doing unnecessary activities.
• Anticipate potential problems and take
preventative action to deal with them before they
happen.
• Do things in the right order at the right time,
which should prevent things going wrong later.
What can go wrong !
The project manager’s adage
(a light hearted motto)
You can have any two of three things in a project:
– You can get it done on time
– You can get it done within budgeted cost
– You can get it done properly/well
• If you are willing to wait, you can get the job
done right, within cost.
• If you are willing to spend the money, you can get
the job done on time.
• Or you can get the job done on time and within
budget; only it might not do what it was supposed
to do.
Why do so many projects fail to
meet expectations?
A study by Hughes (1986) identified three
main reasons for projects failing.
• 1 a lack of understanding of project
management tools and an over reliance on
project management software
• 2 communication problems
• 3 failure to adequately adjust to changes
that occur during the course of the project
Why do so many projects fail to
meet expectations?
• Hughes notes that many managers are apt to
lose sight of the project. By focusing on the
project management software and managing
this rather than the actual project!
• Michalski (2000) observes that
“good communication is the key successful
project management”.
Remember
“If you fail to plan, you fail to do”.
“Proper Planning Prevents Poor performance”
So we will use a Project Life
Cycle like this
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Conception Phase (The Idea)
Definition Phase (The Plan)
Initiation Phase (The Team)
Implementation Phase (The Work)
Evaluation Phase (The Wrap-up)
PLAN
DO
REVIEW
The Definition phase – the plan
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Review the reasons for the project.
Describing detail what results are to be produced.
Create a list of all the work to be performed.
Produce a detailed project schedule.
Calculate budgets.
Describe how risk is to be managed.
Identify any assumptions about the project.
Identify and define the roles of the project’s team
members.
The Initiation phase – start up
• Assign people to project roles, ensure they are
available when needed. Negotiation may be
necessary.
• Give and explain all tasks to team members.
• Set up systems and accounts to track personnel
information and financial expenditure.
• Announce the project’s start, what it will produce.
When it will start when it will finish
Implementation phase – the do
• Doing the tasks as laid out in your plan
• Regularly comparing the actual
performance with the plan, knowing and
anticipating when things are not going
according to schedule
• Fixing problems that arise.
• Keeping everyone informed
The Evaluation phase – the
wrap up or review
• Get the customer’s approval of final results.
• There may be formal project hand over to
the client
• Complete any paperwork.
• Hold a post project evaluation to recognise
achievements and discuss lessons learned
Roles in projects – who is
responsible for what?
One of the the benefits of project management
techniques is the opportunity to clarify roles.
• Project sponsor – person who’s paying for it
• Project champion - person who wants to see it
happen
• Project manager – will ensure it happens
• Project team – will make it happen
• Stakeholders – those affected by it and with an
interest in it, but not necessarily part of it.
• Audience – we’ll consider them later!
Attributes of an effective project
manager
Group exercise
• What you think are the attributes/qualities
required to be an effective project manager?
Attributes of an effective project
manager – typically are
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Excellent time management skills
‘Can do’ proactive attitude
Adaptable, flexible.
Fair – respecting different people’s viewpoints
Committed to the team and the project’s goals
Decisive and realistic
Excellent communication skills
Leadership
Assertiveness
Attributes of an effective project
manager – typically are
• Be prepared to ‘roll up their sleeves and get
their hands dirty’
• Foresight
• Planning skills
• Knowledge of the subject / area of work
• Be prepared to walk, if necessary i.e. leave!
• A sense of humour ?
The tools of & for project
management
• There are numerous tools which can be for
managing projects, some of them complex,
some of them simple.
• We will look at over a dozen tried and
tested tools and techniques which can be
used for effective project management.
Our tools for today
• QUAD Chart analysis
• The QUAD chart is a very simple yet
extremely effective tool. Project scoping –
enables you to define what you do before
you start.
• Stakeholder analysis – simple version helps
you understand and manage the different
relationships that matter to the project.
The QUAD chart
• A very simple yet powerful tool.
• Used to help us clarify exactly what our
project is all about.
Quad Chart
TITLE
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
DESIRED END RESULT
(CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
Project Management
Simulation Exercise
• We will carry out a simulated project
Project Management
Simulation Exercise
“The Gourmet Breakfast”
• We are going to use a relatively simple
example of something that you should be
familiar with in order for you to be able to
understand and practice on a real life
project.
The Problem
• Just got up?
• Feeling kind of hungry?
• Fancy a nice breakfast ?
• What choice do we have?
Decisions, Decisions
Let’s make a full cooked English
breakfast
Class exercise - Your Mission
• To produce a simple project plan for producing a
full English Breakfast.
• We will be using this project to illustrate the use of
the following:
– Quad Chart Analysis including
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Project Scoping
Stakeholders and Stakeholder Analysis
Desired Outcomes (Critical Success Factors)
Secondary benefits
Why a breakfast?
• We will use the Breakfast as it’s a simple example
of something where you should all have a similar
level of basic knowledge.
• Let’s view making the breakfast as a project in its
own right.
• It meets most of the criteria for/attributes of a
project doesn’t it? Does it? Let’s check
Attributes of a project
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
A start and a finish
Is a unique activity
May involve uncertainty and risk
Usually involves a team coming together specifically for
the project
A budget
Non repetitive tasks
Use of resources (including human resources)
A single point of ultimate responsibility
Clearly defined team roles
The Quad Chart
TITLE
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
DESIRED END RESULT
(CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
Guided Tour
TITLE
TITLE OF PROJECT – SNAPPY ACRONYM DESCRIPTOR
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
WHY IS PROJECT BEING DONE?
WHAT FOR?
WHAT IS THE RESULT?
DESIRED END RESULT
(CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
WHO IS PROJECT FOR?
WHO WILL BENEFIT (OR NOT)?
WHO WILL IT INVOLVE?
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
GOALS!
WHEN ARE WE FINISHED?
WHAT MAKES THE
PROJECT A SUCCESS?
WHAT CAN BE MEASURED?
HOW DO I
MEASURE SUCCESS?
First a simple example for making a
cup of tea.
Our first QUAD chart could look
something like the one on the next
slide
Example - Make A Cup of Tea
TITLE
To make a cup of tea!
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
1. To make a cup of tea
2. To quench the thirst
3. To stimulate the mind
1. The tea maker
2. The tea drinkers
DESIRED END RESULT
(CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS)
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
Example - Make A Cup of Tea
TITLE
To make a cup of tea to quench the thirst and stimulate the mind
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
1. To make a cup of tea
2. To quench the thirst
3. To stimulate the mind
1. The tea maker
2. The tea drinkers
DESIRED END RESULT
(CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS)
1. Made an acceptable cup of tea
2. Quenched the thirst
3. Stimulated the mind
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
1. Audible noises of satisfaction from
drinkers. Requests for a second cup
2. Increased conversation
Absence of snoring or yawning
But first another technique
Tool and Technique
BRAINSTORMING
Brainstorming
• Brainstorming was coined in the 1940s by Alex
Osborne a US advertising executive.
• It works by temporarily removing the social
blocks which we all have which prevent us from
being creative. Blocks such as:
– Feeling our ideas will be ridiculed
– Feeling we don’t know enough to voice an opinion
– Focusing on simple solutions rather than taking a risk
Brainstorming
• Brainstorming is essentially a method for
being creative in groups, particularly useful
for creative problem solving.
• ‘Popcorning’ is the new name for
brainstorming
The rules of brainstorming
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•
•
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No judgement or criticism of an idea
Quantity of ideas is more important than quality
Freewheeling - rapid a spontaneous ideas
Mutating and combining ideas – one person’s idea
stimulates ideas from another person
• No answer or idea belongs to a person, they
belong to the group
• Answers and ideas must be produced rapidly
Brainstorming how to do it
• 1 question or problem is posed
• 2 people in a group take turns to answer
• 3 each suggestion is written down by a note
taker
• 4 repeat the process until the group run out
of ideas
• 5 Select, filter and choose the most
appropriate ideas.
Your Mission
• Class exercise
• To produce a simple project plan QUAD and
associated List of Assumptions for approval by
Andrew for producing a full English Breakfast.
• We will do a brainstorm first and then in groups
you will have a go at producing a QUAD chart.
Or
• You can try one of the following projects if
you prefer.
• Organise a stag do or hen party night out
• Plan a staff away day social event
• Plan a family holiday
Guided Tour
TITLE
PROJECT NAME SNAPPY ACRONYM
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
WHY IS PROJECT BEING DONE?
WHAT FOR?
WHAT IS THE RESULT?
WHO IS PROJECT FOR?
WHO WILL BENEFIT (OR NOT)?
WHO WILL IT INVOLVE?
DESIRED END RESULT
(CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS)
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
GOALS!
WHEN ARE WE FINISHED?
WHAT MAKES THE
PROJECT A SUCCESS?
WHAT CAN BE MEASURED?
HOW DO I
MEASURE SUCCESS?
Assumptions
• If we assume too much then we make an ass of
you and me (ass u me)
• So….make a list of assumptions which go with
your QUAD chart. Then we can be sure that we,
as project manager, have the same base set of
assumptions and understandings as everyone else
involved in the project.
Mind your Language !
“The project is structured around a multifaceted incremental
work plan combining novel content design based on new
pedagogical paradigms blended with the e-learning
environments to facilitate hybrid mode of delivery”
Extract from GENIUS project based at Reading University –
one of nominees for a Golden Bull award for
gobbledygook from Plain English campaign 2005
Make sure you use appropriate language – Plain English is best
http://www.plainenglish.co.uk/goldenbull.html
Plain English web site also has free guide on alternative words to use
Stakeholder - definition
A stakeholder is, for our purposes at the
moment, “a person or organisation who is
affected by or impacted by what you are
trying to do”
– This may of course be negatively as
well as positively!
– It includes the members of the Project Team
and the Customer(s)
Stakeholders
4 things to do with them
• List them
• Try to understand their likely perspective how might they react to the project?
• Assess their relative importance
• Act appropriately with the stakeholder
throughout the project – identify and decide
what action you may need to take
Stakeholders
• In the next session we will look at
stakeholders in more detail – and compare
stakeholders with audiences
• Taking account of them and their views is
important to the success of your project.
Group exercise
• Produce a stakeholder analysis chart, using
the simple version on the next slide, or the
handout.
One version of the stakeholder
analysis
Stakeholder analysis
Priority
H/M/L
Stakeholder
Stakeholder's
Perspective
Action
Website has other versions
• www.hull.ac.uk/workbasedlearning/
Where Have We Been?
TITLE
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
DESIRED END RESULT
(CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
Were might we go ?
TITLE
PURPOSE
(AIMS/OBJECTIVES)
CUSTOMERS
(STAKEHOLDERS)
VALUES
WHAT IS THE
CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS
MOTIVATION?
(NOT JUST DESIRED END RESULT)
PASSION
SECONDARY BENEFITS
(UNMEASURABLE)
MEASURES OF SUCCESS
(STANDARDS / CRITERIA)
ETHICS
What Does This Give Us?
• The beginnings of a project definition
• A document to confirm that what we (as
Project Manager) see the project as, is what
the Line Manager/Customer was thinking
of.
• Remember we have NOT started ‘doing’
the project yet. We are still planning it.
Next Session
• Stakeholders or Audience and categorising
them further
• Risk and how to categorise it
• Clarifying your project’s definition
• We will review the homework self study.
Your homework self-study
• Produce your own QUAD chart, either for a
project which you are going to do, or for a project
which you have completed in the past, or for a
project which you are currently working on.
Produce a list of assumptions.
• Once you have done it leave it for 2 days and then
review it; and amend it. Save a copy. Keep on rerefining it. Developing a good project definition
using the QUAD chart is an iterative process
which requires thinking time.
• Also have a go at doing a simple stakeholder
analysis grid
Homework self-study
Remember that you need to use the tools and
techniques in order to learn them and should
start practising them. Will be building upon
homework in future weeks – it is important
that you get started.
Also remember that project management
requires good time management skills and
an ability to work under pressure.
What if you can’t think of a project?
• Make up a realistic scenario.
For example:
• Cleaning and servicing your car.
• Installing a bathroom suite
• Marketing a new product
• Digging up and concreting over the garden
• The choice is yours……
Website with forms
• http://www.hull.ac.uk/workbasedlearning/