Project plan for new software

MGT 3302, Introduction to Project Management 1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit III Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

2. Discuss project management as a series of activities and tasks. 2.1 Discuss the activities and tasks for a project.

4. Develop a project plan.

4.1 Express project components, including the work breakdown structure (WBS), task descriptions, and organizational breakdown structure (OBS).

Course/Unit Learning Outcomes

Learning Activity

2.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 4, pp. 103–133 Unit III Course Project

4.1

Unit Lesson Chapter 4, pp. 103–133 Video: Project Quality Management Video: How to Meet Your Quality Targets – Project Management Unit III Course Project

Required Unit Resources Chapter 4: Defining Scope, Quality, Responsibility, and Activity Sequence, pp. 103–133 In order to access the following resources, click the links below. Lanceta, A. (2016, July 21). Project quality management [Video file]. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQ0GvN2DsFo Transcript for Project Quality Management video Project Management Videos. (2012, January 13). How to meet your quality targets – Project management

[Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDj0RBjYAdk Transcript for How to Meet Your Quality Targets – Project Management video

Unit Lesson In this unit, we discuss the importance of defining a project scope, ensuring project quality, determining activities, and assigning responsibilities. In your assignment for Unit II, you were starting the creation of a simple project plan to include the project overview. The project overview includes the basics for a project, including the purpose, scope, and objectives. We discussed the creation of a project proposal, which contains many of the elements that might go into a project scope. Project Quality It is important in any project to plan for project quality. In many cases, project quality is not a part of the project plan because it is assumed that all of the deliverables will meet acceptance criteria. This may be true, but we do not want to wait until we are delivering the product to find out that something was missed. There

UNIT III STUDY GUIDE

Expanding the Project Scope

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should be quality checks throughout the process. Thus, the project manager (PM) should create a project quality plan with built-in checks to make sure that quality standards are being met. For example, in information technology (IT), there are always compliance concerns. When creating a system for retail, there is Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance. The PCI Data Security Standard (DSS) is a set of rules to handle credit card transactions in a secure manner. In health care, we have to consider Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPPA) standards. In construction, we have to consider building codes. Imagine completely building a house and realizing you did not check to make sure the plumbing is up to code! The project quality plan will be different for every project. However, there is some basic information that should be included. Quality assurance: The first item in the project quality plan is written procedures for assuring quality. In a construction project, this might be accomplished by creating a list of inspections and instructions. In an IT project, this may involve a compliance checklist or a software testing strategy. The plan should include what tools, methods, and techniques will be involved. For complex projects, there may even be a quality inspector. Quality control: The second item in a project quality plan involves monitoring the quality of the project. How often do we need to check quality? The PM will need to develop a schedule for quality checks. Also, by what standards are we comparing? Do we have a baseline? Do we have industry best practices to which to compare? Project Scope As Gido, Clements, and Baker (2018) note, the project scope simply describes what needs to be done in the project. What activities need to be completed? In what sequence do those activities need to occur? Who needs to be responsible for those activities? What deliverables do we need to create? With whom do we need to communicate? What is the criteria by which we will measure customer satisfaction? The project scope should contain, at a minimum, the following elements:

 the requirements for the project,

 a statement of work (SOW),

 a list and discussion of the deliverables to be created,

 the acceptance criteria, and

 a work breakdown structure (WBS). The SOW includes all of the major tasks or activities to be performed for the project to be a success. We cannot produce our deliverables without having a list of major activities, can we? Let’s say, for example, that we want to plan an Employee Appreciation Day Fair for our 300 employees. What are the tasks that need to be involved to do this? Consider the following as starting activities:

 discuss potential locations,

 decide on a location,

 determine the date,

 communicate to all employees,

 order fun activities/games, and

 order food. This list sounds incredibly simplified, and it is. There are many decisions to be made and many moving parts to this type of event. For example, will we allow family members to come? If family members attend, we will have to have a lot more in the way of drinks and food. This means our budget will increase greatly. Will we have a theme? What are some options for location? How we plan this event will vary greatly if we decide to have the event on our property under a tent versus renting an amusement park, right? What kinds of activities and games will we have? Do we need to rent fun items like a dunking booth? In project planning, the PM has to be able to reduce the major tasks into simple activities. Then, the PM will have to determine who will be responsible for each task or activity. For example, based on our activity list, we need to discuss potential locations and then decide on a location. Will someone need to do some research to

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determine a list of potential locations along with cost? Let’s assume that we want to have a location where we can put up a tent and have picnic tables. Consider the more refined list below:

 determine some potential dates for the fair;

 research potential available locations for a tent and space for 300 employees;

 discuss potential locations and cost;

 decide on a location;

 reserve the location;

 research companies that have fun day activities, such as dunking booths;

 discuss potential activities and cost;

 reserve the activities;

 gather a list of all other items needed (e.g., tables, chairs, garbage cans);

 research potential companies to provide food, including lunch and fun fair food;

 discuss food options and cost;

 determine a potential menu;

 determine a company to hire;

 order food; and

 communicate fun day to all employees. Is this better? Now, who will be in charge of each of these tasks? Perhaps the procurement department will be involved in researching the activities and games. Logistics might be involved in finding space for the tent and games. Human resources (HR) might be involved in acquiring food. Facility services may handle acquiring the other items such as tables and chairs. The next step in the process is to create a WBS. This just means that we are taking the activities and putting them into logical work packages. Many times, this is achieved based on department. For example, if you need your IT department involved in a project, then all of the IT tasks would likely be put into an IT work package. Below is an example of some of our fair activities placed in a project WBS.

Example Project WBS Breakdown Description WBS Code

Employee Appreciation Day Fair 1.0

Deliverable 1 Report on potential dates for Fair

1.1

Deliverable 2 Location Selection 1.2

WP1 Research potential available locations and cost

1.2.1

WP2 Discuss locations and cost

1.2.2

WP3 Meet and make decision

1.2.3

WP4 Reserve the location 1.2.4

Deliverable 3 Report on activity list

1.3

WP1 Research companies with activities and games

1.3.1

WP2 Discuss potential list and costs

1.3.2

WP3 Meet and make decision

1.3.3

WP4 Reserve the activities and games

1.3.4

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Once this report is complete, the PM can develop a responsibility assignment matrix (RAM). The RAM is used to provide a visual of who will be responsible for what work. As you can see in the example below, there are certain employees who are responsible for certain activities, but you could also have employees who act as support, who give approval, or who need to be notified.

Example RAM

Then, once the RAM is complete, the PM can determine the activity predecessors. This step is especially important because the rest of your project is based on these predecessors. For example, the predecessors need to be solidified in order to create an effective Gantt chart. A Gantt chart is a visual depiction used to track projects from start to finish by managing activities and resources. When determining predecessors for each activity, the PM has to consider which activities have to finish before another activity can start. Which activities can occur at the same time? For example, in our fair project, it is assumed that research in each area can occur at the same time. However, we cannot communicate about the fair until all decisions have been made and until we have successfully made reservations for the location, activities, and food.

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The predecessor information can be put into a table, such as the one shown below.

Activity Description Predecessors

A Determine some potential dates for the fair. None

B Research potential available locations for a tent and space for 300 employees.

A

C Discuss potential locations and cost. B

D Decide on a location. C

E Reserve the location. D

F Research companies that have fun day activities, such as dunking booths.

A

G Discuss potential activities and cost. F

H Reserve the activities. G

I Gather a list of all other items needed (e.g., tables, chairs, garbage cans).

E, N, H

J Research potential companies that will provide food, including lunch and fun fair food.

A

K Discuss food options and cost. J

L Determine a potential menu. K

M Determine a company to hire. L

N Order food. M

O Communicate fun day to all employees. I

The PM will use this information to create an activity network diagram. We will discuss an activity network diagram in Unit IV.

Reference Gido, J., Clements, J. P., & Baker, R. (2018). Successful project management (7th ed.). Boston, MA:

Cengage Learning.

Suggested Unit Resources In order to access the following resource, click the link below. Steinman, J. (2017). Defining and measuring project quality. Control Engineering, 64(5), 46–48. Retrieved

from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bsu&AN=123237807&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Learning Activities (Nongraded) Nongraded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information. In each chapter, there are questions to “Reinforce Your Learning” found in the left margin on some of the pages. For example, in Chapter 4, questions are found on pp. 105, 106, 110, 111, 112, 116, 118, 119, 122, and 123. Answer the questions to check your knowledge. The answers may be found starting on page 487.