MCPJ#2

MGT 6304, Managing Complex Projects 1

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

1. Analyze the elements of performance measures in the context of the triple constraint. 1.1 Outline a work breakdown structure (WBS), identifying all project deliverables. 1.2 Analyze the activities (tasks) required to produce each project deliverable.

Course/Unit

Learning Outcomes Learning Activity

1.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 4 Unit II Assignment

1.2 Unit Lesson Chapter 4 Unit II Assignment

Required Unit Resources Chapter 4: Defining Project Content Unit Lesson

Project Estimates Before any project is authorized with a project charter, the client and sponsor will undoubtedly want to know how much the project is going to cost and how much time it will take to deliver the result. Both parties typically want to know this information immediately far before any plan is developed. There is a fundamental flaw, however, in seeking immediate estimates; the earlier the estimate is provided, the less accurate it is going to be. Immediate action may be possible, but any action taken is not likely to have a foundation in accuracy. At the opposite end of the spectrum, some sponsors and clients may be so concerned about budget and schedule risk that they will wait for a more detailed and highly accurate estimate. A detailed estimate requires, at minimum, a high-level project plan. It takes resources to be able to create such a plan along with a detailed budget and schedule estimate (Marion, 2018). It therefore is a given that it takes time and money to estimate time and money. What happens if the effort to create the estimate takes so long that the opportunity has passed? This is the problem of analysis paralysis. Sponsors, clients, project managers, and stakeholders face a dilemma when choosing between taking too long to make a decision on a project or not taking long enough and ending up making an expensive mistake. This dilemma is amplified in the case of a company that is running many projects at once, many of which involve complex system development.

UNIT II STUDY GUIDE Project Work: What, When, and How Much?

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Resolving the Estimate Dilemma Given that early estimates are known to be less accurate, project managers employ the ROM, or rough order of magnitude, estimate when pressed for budget and schedule information prior to conducting any significant planning or analysis. The ROM analysis is acknowledged to be inaccurate when it comes to specifics, but it does tend to be accurate when it comes to the overall ballpark of the estimate. The ballpark is important because this estimate clarifies whether the project is a $10,000 project, a $100,000 project, or a $1 million project. The order of magnitude (estimates raised to the power of 10) helps managers understand whether moving forward with the project makes sense. For some clients, a $10,000 project would make sense but not a $100,000 or higher project.

Time and Money Some companies will break a project into pieces or phases and then estimate each phase just before the phase commences. Since the work being undertaken is less (because of phases) and the time frame between the estimate and the phase is less, the estimate tends to be more accurate. This approach can be effective within the complex project environment and not just because of project estimates. Since requirements, standards, and available resources tend to change over time, breaking projects into more manageable pieces makes more sense for project planning, monitoring, and control.

Scope: What Is Required? When the project estimates have been submitted and the project has the green light to move forward, the next most crucial step is determining exactly what it is that the project is expected to deliver. This may sound like a trivial matter, but it is not, particularly when complex projects are involved. To begin, the project scope is linked to client requirements. The problem is that client requirements are often not clearly stated. In many cases, the client may not fully understand the requirement nor understand the underlying needs. It is up to the project manager and team to conduct research, to ask probing questions, and to thoroughly vet the stated project requirements. If the project team glosses over requirements development, then it is likely that the project will start on the wrong path from the very beginning. There is, after all, the old saying, “If you don’t know where you are going, you may end up somewhere else!” Further, what the client requests today may be different from what is requested tomorrow. Finally, the client is free to ask for anything, and there is no penalty for being wrong. It pays then for the project team to understand the factors that underlie client requirements. It is not enough to know what is being requested. The project team must also know why.

Scope: What the Project Will Deliver In response to vetting client requirements, the project team defines the project scope. The project scope outlines exactly what is (and is not) to be delivered in the project. This begins with the simple scope statement. This statement captures the essence of what is to be delivered, and it is expressed in a succinct

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manner. As the scope is elaborated in the work breakdown structure (WBS), confusion or lack of clarity can be resolved by referring back to the scope statement. The WBS is a hierarchical and categorical structured outline of what is to be delivered. The WBS fully answers the question of what the project will produce. Because it answers what, the WBS will contain only nouns. Verbs are associated with activities, and activities are defined only after the deliverables are identified. Eventually activities must be defined as it is these that go into the project schedule. What then is the rationale for identifying deliverables first and activities only afterward? If activities are identified first, there is always the danger of listing tasks that do not contribute to the production of project deliverables. So then, the deliverables first, activities second approach is designed to avoid unnecessary work. A prudent project manager will, rather than immediately starting to create a task list, first identifies the what or project scope. The WBS deliverables first approach proves confusing to many. Examples abound of documents that are labeled “WBS” that actually contain a mixture of activities and deliverables. Such a “WBS” is not a true WBS in terms of the guidance found in the A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge: PMBOK® Guide (Project Management Institute, 2017).

Schedule: Answering When The activities or tasks defined in a project consist of those things that must be done in order to produce project deliverables. Each defined activity will also be associated with a duration. The project schedule should, therefore, be as simple as putting all activities in logical order. While this is true, there is more to it. Some activities in a project follow in sequence one after another. Others may be completed in parallel. The overall project duration is only determined once all serial and parallel relationships are mapped out, and this is done in the form of a network diagram. In the network diagram, predecessor and successor activities become clear. In a very simple project, predecessors, that which comes before, and successors, that which comes after, are obvious. For example, it is not possible to frame a house until the foundation is laid and the concrete is poured and dried. A more complex system project that employs an array of hardware and software components is likely to require far more analysis. It is the network diagram that is used for this level of analysis.

Schedule: How Much? After activities are sequenced in logical order, resources are assigned to activities. Resources incur costs, so once the sequence of activities is resourced, then an overall idea of the project budget begins to emerge. It is at this point that the difficulty of providing a detailed estimate becomes apparent. The detailed estimate can be presented once certain steps have been completed. See the table below. Detailed Estimate

1 The project scope is defined.

2 The activities required to produce project deliverables are identified.

3 The activities are sequenced in logical order, both serial and parallel.

4 Resources are assigned.

5 The total costs of the resources assigned to project activities is evaluated.

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It is clear that there are five significant steps that must be completed before the project budget and duration can be known with any level of certainty. Any amount prior to the completion of these steps is just an estimate, and the fewer the steps completed, the less accurate the estimate.

References Marion, J. W. (2018). Project management: A common sense guide to the PMBOK, part one—Framework

and schedule. Momentum Press Engineering. Project Management Institute. (2017). A guide to the project management body of knowledge: PMBOK®

guide (6th ed.). Suggested Unit Resources In order to access the following resources, click the links below. Learning from previous projects and experiences can help improve future outcomes. The below article provides some tips on ways to document those tips and use them in future projects: LaBrosse, M. (2010, Spring). Documenting the lessons learned for every project. Employment Relations

Today, 37(1), 93–97. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bsu&AN=49388937&site=ehost-live&scope=site

The below video segment shows the importance of project scope and how to avoid confusion: Seven Dimensions (Producer). (2016). Communicate, clarify, and control (Segment 3 of 6) [Video]. In

Managing projects effectively: Cutting edge communication comedy series. Films on Demand. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?auth=CAS&url=https://fod.infobase.com/PortalPl aylists.aspx?wID=273866&xtid=111692&loid=408700

The transcript for this video can be found by clicking on “Transcript” in the gray bar to the right of the video in the Films on Demand database. 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. Consider conducting a library or the internet search to learn more about project scopes. If available, review work breakdown structures (WBS), and consider their accuracy.