After this Module, the student will be able to:
• Explain each stage of the project life cycle
• Define project, program and portfolio, and differentiate projects from routine day-to-day operations
• Explain the importance of projects in implementing organization strategy
• Explain the importance of linking strategies and projects
• Describe a scheme for prioritizing projects to build a portfolio
• Apply an objective priority system to project selection
• Identify different project management structures and describe their strengths and weaknesses
• Explain the significance of organizational culture in managing projects
• Discuss how an integrative approach to Project Management works
• Describe the importance of the Stakeholder Register
The Concept of Project Management Stages
In the sector of the working of the project, it can be considered that there are different stages which are related to the life cycle. Each of the stages in the sector play an individual role which directly govern the working of the project. The stages are explained below:
- Initiation:In the phase which is related to the initiation the overall requirement of the project is considered. The main sector of the identification in the sector is related to the problem identification, the need of the project or the brainstorm and opportunity which is related to the project (Kerzner & Kerzner, 2017). The problem identification is one of the crucial parts in the sector due to the factor that it directly drives the project to the factor of success without involvement of factor of risk. During this phase the objective of the project is defined and according to this the execution of the project is taken into implementation.
- Planning:The stage which is related to the planning is done after the initiation phase. The stage which are focused in the sector is the project initiation planning phase, statement related to the work and the business cases which would be moving the project to the factor of success.
- Execution:This phase mainly involves the sector of the working and the execution of the project according to the planning and the initiation. It can be considered as a phase were the execution of the process and the different working of the project is taken into focus (Fleming & Koppelman, 2016). In this phase there is a predefined goal which is set according to which is working of the project would be done. It is the role of the employee of the project to redirect the project to the factor of success.
The concept of project can be stated as a set of predefined task which are usually done in a sequential order. In a project there is always a predefined goal which is set according to which the overall execution of the project is done. The overall team of the project work effectively towards to goal of the project. l
Program
Program usually means a set of tasks which directly relate to a set of activity which is predefined which directly engage the sector of the operation included into the organization. In majority of the cases most of the people tend to include into the working which directly focus on the aspect of the goal of the project (Marchewka, 2014).
Portfolio
The concept of the portfolio mainly includes the grouping of assists which are financial which deal to the bonds, stocks, cash equivalents and currencies. The concept directs a set of rules which govern the sector of the
In the day to day operation it can be stated that there is different sector of working which should be achieved so that there is different concern factor related to the approach. It can be stated that the each of the project may have different types of need attached to the concept. The functionality depends on the type of project the organization would be executing.
The project can be very much crucial in the implementation of the different organizational strategy. In most of the cases depending upon the project the organizational strategy is implementation taking into focus how the project would be manipulated and worked upon (Walker, 2015). Organization strategy directly govern the overall requirement which is related to the working of the organization so that there are focused on the working which is linked to the project.
The linkage of the strategy and the project can be one of the important factor which directly drives the project to the factor of success. Strategy can be important in the sector of implementing different framework which is related to the working so that crucial steps which are involved into the project can be executed properly. Strategy can be helpful in the sector of the planning and the execution of the different domains of the sector of the accomplishing the goal of the project.
The building of the portfolio can be useful in the selection of the different process which is related to the working of the project. It gives a guideline which is related to the working of the concept so that the project would be reaching the desired level of success factor (Heagney, 2016).
Objective priority can be considered as an integral part which is related to the working of the project. The concept can directly be related to the types of project the implementation would be working upon. In most of the cases there can be different sector of working which is related to the concept.
Understanding Program and Portfolio
There are mainly three types of project management structure which are implemented within the working of the project management. The types of project management structure are stated below:
- Strong structure matrix
- Balanced structure matrix
- Weak structure matrix.
Strong structure matrix
Weakness
The main weakness which is related to the type is that the overall working of the project would be dependent on the working of the team. If there are any type of issue seen within the working of the project the mitigation aspect can be stated to be area of concern (Verzuh, 2015).
Strength
The main strength which is related to the concept is that the overall power which is related to the working of the concept are in the hand of the project manager.
Balanced structure matrix
Weakness
In the aspect of the balanced structure matrix it can be stated that the role of the project manager is very much limited. This mainly deals with the higher authority access to the decision and the working of the concept.
Strength
The main strength which is related to the concept can be in the sector of the implementation of both types of organizational structure which is mainly the projected and functional.
Weak structure matrix
Weakness
The control of the budget is not in the hand of the project manager. This can be stated to be a problem in the sector that the project manager has the overall concept of the project and the budget and the sector can be managed well by the project manager. On the other hand, the team which would be working in the project can be stated to be a part time team.
Strength
The main strength which is related to the concept is that the aspect is directly linked to the aspect of the functional requirement of the organization.
The concept of the organizational culture can be very much beneficial in the sector of the managing the overall sector of working of the project (Mir & Pinnington, 2014). The cultural aspect can be very much useful in the sector of the implementation and the interaction of the different members of the project. The level of interaction can be very much beneficial in the sector of the implementation of the standard of the working which is related to the concept.
Integrative approach can be helpful in the sector of the working of the project management due to the factor that there are different sections of working which is related to the concept. Taking all the sections into one part and compiling them together is an integrative approach.
The stakeholder register can be considered as a document which is related to the project management. The document mainly consists of information which is related to the stakeholder of the project. It directly defines the group, people and the organization that have any kind of direct interest in the sector of the involvement of the working of the project.
Project scope is defined as a part of the planning that generally involves determination as well as documentation of specific project goals, deliverables, functions as well as tasks of the project (Binder, 2016). It is found that the scope of the project for development of cloud-based ERP system within a retail organization are generally elaborated below:
- Development of cloud-based ERP system within the retail organization
- Checking infrastructure as well as migration of data to the cloud
- Undertaking system integration testing
- Completion of the entire project within the expected schedule as well as budget
The Importance of Organizational Strategy
A work breakdown structure helps the project managers in planning the entire work of the project quite effectively. It is found that the entire project is mainly characterized by various time related project activities which are generally assigned within the fixed time frames as well as costs. It is found that with the help of the work breakdown structure, the entire project planning is made consistent that further assists in providing proper as well as effective execution of the entire project (Leach, 2014). It is found that the main purpose of the work breakdown structure is to reduce the tasks of the project that are very much complicated. In addition to this, it is found that WBS of the project is useful in tracking the project progress quite effectively so that the entire project can be completed effectively on time.
WBS is generally act as a database for planning as well controlling the entire project effectively. This is because, a WBS is mainly considered as the foundation for the entire project planning. It is found that WBS generally segregates the entire tasks of the project so that all the project activities can be completed effectively within the expected budget and time. Furthermore, all the activities that are needed for executing the activities of the project are present within the WBS.
Organizational breakdown structure or OBS is one of the hierarchical models that assists in describing the established organizational framework for resource management, project planning as well as time management (Schwalbe, 2015). Work breakdown structure helps in capturing all the elements of the project in a proper organized fashion. It is found that OBS assists in grouping all the activities of the project within a similar package that is mainly related to the organizational structure.
Priority matrix is defined as 2x2 matrix that is generally designed in order to help you discern which are very much critical as well as urgent for focussing on what that matters the most. The priority matrix is the prioritization as well as delegation tool that is generally designed in order to help the project team members to complete the entire work of the project quite effectively (Heldman, 2018). In addition to this, it is found that this application generally allows the team to communicate priorities, provide proper visibility into the shared projects as well as for tracking the various parts of the project, assignment and other. The priority matrix for this project is provided below:
Project priority matrix |
|||
Time |
Performance |
Cost |
|
CONSTRAIN |
|||
ENCHANCE |
|||
ACCEPT |
The matrix that is provided above reflects that during the development of cloud-based ERP system, the project managers was asked to reduce the project completion time by taking advantage of each of the possible opportunity. It is found that while managing the time, the budget that goes over is acceptable but not desirable. At the same time, it is found that proper performance of the project must be achieved by not compromising the quality.
The responsibility assignment matrix is also known as RACI matrix that generally assists in reflecting the roles and responsibilities of the project stakeholders in finishing the project tasks as well as deliverables of the project within the entire business process.
Activities |
Project manager |
Project planner |
Database manager |
Supervisor |
Hr manager |
Risk analyst |
Financial manager |
Tester |
Technical engineer |
Business case development |
R, A |
C, I |
|||||||
Checking feasibility study |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Project charter establishment |
C |
R, A |
I |
||||||
Team members appointment |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Project planning |
C, I |
R, A |
|||||||
Resource planning |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Financial planning |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Quality planning |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Risk management planning |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Acceptance planning |
R, |
A, |
I |
||||||
Communication plan |
R, A |
C, I |
|||||||
Development of procurement plan |
R, A |
C, I |
|||||||
Determining business needs |
I |
A |
C |
R |
|||||
Selection of cloud-based ERP system |
I |
A |
C |
R |
|||||
Work customization |
I |
R |
C |
A |
|||||
Migration of data |
I |
R, A |
C |
||||||
Infrastructure checking |
I |
C |
R, A |
||||||
Customization |
CI |
R, |
A |
||||||
Change management |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Technology and knowledge transfer |
C |
I |
R, A |
||||||
Project management testing |
C |
R, A |
I |
||||||
System integration testing |
C |
R, A |
I |
||||||
User acceptance testing |
C |
R, A |
I |
||||||
Post project review |
R, A |
C, I |
|||||||
Stakeholder sign off |
R, A |
C, I |
|||||||
Post go-live support |
Objective Priority and its Implementation
The communication plan for the development of cloud-based ERP system within the entire organization is mainly provided in the table below:
Audience |
Message |
Media |
Frequency |
Responsibility |
Project team members |
Provides information about the objectives as well as goals of the project |
Email/face to face meeting |
Once |
Project manager |
IT manager |
Providing details about any technical issue that rises within the project |
|
Whenever required |
Team leader |
Project manager |
Information about the status of the project is provided |
Email/face to face meeting |
During the project progress |
Team leader |
HR. resource manager |
Information related to the need of extra resources are communicated |
Email/Face to face meeting |
During the project progress |
Project manager |
It is found that project cost and time estimation is quite essential for the purpose of project control as well as planning. It is found that proper estimation of project cost generally helps in providing an overview about the entire project budget that is mainly needed in order to achieve success (Svejvig & Andersen, 2015). If proper information as well as knowledge about project planning is present they then project manager can be able to track as well as control the project by ensuring that the entire project gets completed successfully on the estimated budget and time. Similarly, project time estimation is also essential to in order to guide the entire project towards success so that the entire project can get completed within a certain time.
The uses, advantages as well as disadvantages of top down approach as well as bottom up approach is mainly elaborated in the table that is provided below:
Top down approach |
Bottom up estimation |
Uses: This approach is mainly used in different sectors as well as industries for achieving a balance within an investment portfolio. |
Uses: This approach is widely used within the projects in order to finish the work of the project. |
Advantages: The main advantage of this approach is that the decisions that are associated with the project can be made as well as implemented quite quickly. The other benefit of this approach is that it generally helps in aligning the entire goals and objectives of the project with the strategic goals for giving directions. |
Advantages: The main advantage of using this approach is that the team members who actively involved within the project planning makes decisions related with the project for achieving success. |
Disadvantages: As the project team is involved within the project planning they feel that they are left out and therefore they cannot raise their opinions for the entire project. |
Disadvantages: As the project plan that is developed is much more detailed, the planning phase of the project is found to be much more efficient as well as time consuming. |
The various kinds of costs that are mainly associated with the project are mainly listed below:
Human resource cost: The cost that is paid to the human resources during the progress of the project is considered as the human resource cost.
Material cost: The cost that is mainly needed for buying the materials that are generally needed for the project are categorized under the material cost.
Other additional cost: It is found that some amount of money is kept so that the different needs of the project can be fulfilled quite easily in order to finish the entire project quite easily.
Delphi method is one of the forecasting frameworks that is mainly based on the results of several round of questionnaires (Kerzner, 2017). It is found that several number of rounds for the questionnaires that are generally sent out and the anonymous responses which are generally aggregated as well as shared in group with each round. The experts are generally allowed for adjusting the answers within subsequent rounds.
It is found that the organizational culture generally helps in effecting the estimation of the project. It is found that project management generally happens within the organizational culture of the company and proper understanding about the culture of the organization assists in estimating the budget of the project so that the entire project can be completed successfully within the expected budget and time. Proper culture of the organization generally assists in making the estimation of the project quite effectively so that the entire project gets completed within the expected time and budget.
The estimating guidelines for the cost, time as well as resources of the project are generally elaborated below:
Proper market analysis: It is quite necessary to undertake market analysis before estimating the cost of the project for determining the each of each of the resources of the project.
Analysis the needs as well as requirements: It is found that before starting of the project, it is very much necessary to analyze the resources as well as needs that are generally required in order to finish the work that is associated with the project (Serra & Kunc, 2015).
Three Types of Project Management Structure
Analyzing the time that is needed for project completion: It is found that before the estimation of project time, it is quite necessary to analyze each of the activities of the project so that the time that is needed for the completion of the project can be estimated quite effectively.
The scheme for developing the estimating database for the for the project are generally elaborated in the steps which are provided below:
- Agreeing on the estimation basis
- Collecting information about the scope of the project
- Estimating the direct cost that is associated with the project
- Estimation of other costs as well as application of factors, escalation
- Undertaking peer review on the project cost estimation
- Finalizing the basis of cost estimation report and sending proper estimation for approval of the project
WBS generally helps in illustrating the work that is required to be done in order to accomplish the objectives and goals of the project however the project network diagram generally depicts the tasks within the project schedule string (Joslin & Muller, 2015). While project WBS helps in reflecting the tasks that are required to be accomplished, the network diagram of the project helps in showcasing the task that are required to be executed.
Critical path process analysis is one of the techniques that is used in order to identify the project early start, early finish as well as critical path of the entire project that generally focusses on the development of cloud-based ERP system. The early start as well as early finish that is generally calculated with the help of critical analysis method is generally reflected below:
Task Name |
Duration |
Early Start |
Early Finish |
Late Start |
Late Finish |
Total Slack |
Development of Cloud based ERP system in retail store |
38 days |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
0 days |
Initiation phase |
14 days |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
0 days |
Business case development |
4 days |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Thu 11-10-18 |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Thu 11-10-18 |
0 days |
Checking feasibility study |
4 days |
Fri 12-10-18 |
Wed 17-10-18 |
Fri 12-10-18 |
Wed 17-10-18 |
0 days |
Project charter establishment |
5 days |
Fri 12-10-18 |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Fri 12-10-18 |
Thu 18-10-18 |
0 days |
Team members appointment |
6 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
0 days |
Milestone 1: Completion of initiation phase |
0 days |
Wed 17-10-18 |
Wed 17-10-18 |
Wed 17-10-18 |
Wed 17-10-18 |
0 days |
Planning phase |
13 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
0 days |
Project planning |
5 days |
Fri 19-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Fri 19-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
0 days |
Resource planning |
7 days |
Fri 19-10-18 |
Mon 29-10-18 |
Fri 19-10-18 |
Mon 29-10-18 |
0 days |
Financial planning |
6 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Fri 02-11-18 |
0 days |
Quality planning |
5 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Thu 01-11-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Thu 01-11-18 |
0 days |
Risk management planning |
7 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
0 days |
Acceptance planning |
6 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
0 days |
Communication plan |
5 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Thu 01-11-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Thu 01-11-18 |
0 days |
Development of procurement plan |
7 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
0 days |
Milestone 2: Completion of planning phase |
0 days |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
0 days |
Execution phase |
24 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
0 days |
Determining business needs |
15 days |
Tue 30-10-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
Tue 30-10-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
0 days |
Selection of cloud-based ERP system |
12 days |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Tue 20-11-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
6 days |
Work customization |
15 days |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Thu 22-11-18 |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
4 days |
Migration of data |
16 days |
Mon 29-10-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
Mon 29-10-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
7 days |
Infrastructure checking |
17 days |
Mon 29-10-18 |
Tue 20-11-18 |
Mon 29-10-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
6 days |
Customization |
19 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Wed 21-11-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
5 days |
Change management |
18 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Tue 20-11-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
6 days |
Technology and knowledge transfer |
17 days |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Mon 26-11-18 |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
2 days |
Project management testing |
15 days |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Thu 22-11-18 |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
4 days |
System integration testing |
16 days |
Tue 06-11-18 |
Tue 27-11-18 |
Tue 06-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
1 day |
User acceptance testing |
17 days |
Tue 06-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
Tue 06-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
0 days |
Milestone 3: Completion of execution phase |
0 days |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
0 days |
Closing phase |
27 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
0 days |
Post project review |
3 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Tue 30-10-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Tue 30-10-18 |
0 days |
Stakeholder sign off |
3 days |
Thu 29-11-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
Thu 29-11-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
0 days |
Post go-live support |
3 days |
Tue 20-11-18 |
Thu 22-11-18 |
Thu 29-11-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
7 days |
Milestone 4: Completion of closure phase |
0 days |
Mon 19-11-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
0 days |
In project management, float or slack is defined as the amount of time that a task or project network can get delayed without causing delay within other subsequent tasks or completion date of the project. Understanding the slack of project is considered to be quite important so that the project manager can be able to find out the right solution that will generally fit the needs as well as requirements of the project team for meeting the deadlines of the entire project.
The indulgence of the factor of risk into the working of the project can be considered to be very much important in the working of the project. It can be stated that there are different working of the projects which can include the factor of risk. It should be taken into consideration that the risk factor identification is very much important and the plan which is related to the mitigation is very much important in the sector of working.
In the sector of the response to project risk it should be taken into consideration that the risk plan does not get involved into the overall working of the project (Hornstein, 2015). In most of the cases it should be taken into consideration that the mitigation plan should be initiated into the working so that there is no error in the sector of the working of the process.
Risk factor |
Description |
Impact |
Probability |
Mitigation |
Cost factor |
The cost factor can be considered as one of the areas which directly deal with the sector of the budgeting. It can be one of the sectors which directly deal with the failure of the factor of success if it is not taken into consideration properly |
5 |
4 |
Planning of the budget can be stated to be very much important. Preplanning can be very much beneficial in the mitigation plan of the risk factor. |
Resources |
The risk factor which is related to the resources can be stated to be one of the factor which is linked to the working of the project. |
5 |
5 |
Pre-estimation of the budget can be useful in the sector of the working so that it does not impact the working which is related to the project. |
Schedule slippage |
The risk which is related to the timeline can directly impact the overall success factor of the project. In the concept of the timeline it can be stated that the factor of the time and budget can also be included. |
4 |
5 |
The main mitigation plan would be involvement of software which can be beneficial in the sector of the working which would be helping in the maintenance sector which is related to the proper execution of the project. |
Manpower |
The sector of the manpower can be considered as an integral part of the working so it can be stated that if there are any problem relating to it or risk factor it can directly impact the overall working which is related to the concept. |
5 |
3 |
The mitigation plan in the sector is the back up which can be implemented whenever there is any factor of the risk related to the manpower included into the process. |
The sector of the analysis can be considered to be one of the important factor which can be related to the identified risk factor so that there is implementation of a plan which would be directly mitigating the overall factor of the project relating to the risk. The main opportunity sector can be related to the sector of how the plan would be involved into order to mitigate the overall factor which is related to the risk.
Benefits of Integrative Approach and Organizational Culture
The sector of establishing the sector of contingency can be beneficial in the sector of the working which would be helping to resolve the issue which is related to the working of the project (Todorovic et al., 2015). There is different risk factor which should be into the sector of the project so that there is different mitigation plan which can be included into the working.
In most of the cases it can be stated that the control can be very much be important in order to achieve the desired standard of working which is related to the concept. The change in the sector would be in adjustment of the projects needs and the requirement which is related to the project.
The concept of PERT in project management directly can be considered as a tool which is related to the sector of the organizing scheduling and coordinate the task which is related to the project sector of execution. There are different techniques which are included into the project evaluation and Review technique (Kaiser, El Arbi & Ahlemann, 2015). The implementation is dependent on the type of project it would be getting included into. The concept of PERT can be considered as a graphic representation of the different criteria of the project. The diagram usually consists of different nodes which represent milestone or event which is linked to the labelled vector. These nodes are considered as serial task and they play an important role in the sector of the engagement of the deliverables of the project.
Project planning as well as project estimation technique is mainly used within the Microsoft project file in order to get proper overview about the duration as well as overview that is generally required in order to finish the work of the project effectively. It is found that effort is mainly estimated as an input to the project plan, iteration plan as well ad bidding rounds. With the help of proper planning as well as estimation technique both the effort as well as project duration can be estimated quite successfully.
Time constraints generally refers to the limitation on both the start as well as end time of the project on each of the task within the critical path which is mainly the task sequence which cannot be delayed without creating any delay within the project (Too & Weaver, 2014). Whereas it is found that resource constrained generally refers to the limitation that is present on the equipment, staffing as well as on the resources of the project which are generally required for finishing the project.
It is found that both time constraint as well as resource constraint project generally helps in accelerating the project. It is found that within the time constraint project, as the time is limited, the project manager needs to complete the project within the time that is provided whereas within the resource constraint project, it is necessary to finish the project by using the available resources. Thus, it is found that both time constraint as well as resource constraint projects assists in the process of project acceleration.
The Significance of Stakeholder Register in Project Management
It is found that fuzzy set theory related technique is mainly used in order to minimize unavoidable delays within the project by utilizing the available resources by reducing the resource interruptions within the project (Sánchez, 2015). It is found that three types of criteria are generally used in order to measure the performance by using minimum late finish as well as minimum slack.
Crashing is one of the resource levelling technique that is mainly utilized in order to resolve the problem of resource overallocation. It is found that crashing generally refers to one of the methods through which extra resources are added in to addition to the existing resources of the project in order to complete the work of the project quite faster. It is found that by utilizing the technique of crashing, the cost that is mainly associated with the project generally increases.
The hidden critical path of the project is the sequence of the project stages that helps in determining the minimum time that is generally required for the operation. It is found that the stages of the project generally help in figuring out the least amount of time that is generally necessary in order to finish the entire project with least amount of project slack. Thus, the critical path of the project is considered as the longest length of time that is mainly required in order to finish the work of the project.
It is very much necessary to utilize proper software for creating proper resource constrained schedule so that the entire project can be completed successfully within the time that is approved (Conforto et al., 2014). One of the main strengths of the resource schedule constraint is that it generally helps in supporting the extensive what id analysis for the schedule of the project. It is found that proper resource scheduling assists in proper decision support for the resource constraint within multi project management.
The costs are generally translated into time phase baseline with the help of proper technique within the Microsoft project file. It is found that time phase baseline is generally known as cost baseline that assists in handling the amount of money that is generally predicted to be spent within an estimated duration of project. It is found that within the project cost baseline, te expenditure of the project cost is reflects in respect of time for giving proper overview of the amount that is generally needed for the completion of the project.
The circumstances under which the project manager generally tries for optimum cost duration are generally listed below:
Crashing: During the process of crashing, the project manager needs to focus on completing the project quite earlier by spending more the resources of the project (Marcelino-Sadaba et al., 20140.
Less number of resources: When the resources are not much, then the project manager generally utilizes optimum cost duration within the entire project.
The critical path that is mainly utilized in order to reduce the total time for the implementation of cloud-based ERP system
The alternative method for accelerating the projects are listed below:
Fast track dependent activities: It is found that most of the activities within the schedule the project schedule are generally linked with the finish to start relationships. It is quite necessary to think whether it is generally to wait until the project finishes. If not, then it is necessary to use first task finishes opportunity to move forward with the second early tasks.
Accelerate early: In order to accelerate the schedule of the project it is very much necessary to take proper steps in order to go ahead of the project schedule.
The risks that are associated with the schedule acceleration techniques are generally elaborated below:
Quality related issues: It is found that if the project manager focusses on completing the project as soon as possible then sometimes the chances of compromising with the quality of project can occur (Badewi, 2016).
Increased cost: In order to reduce the time of the project, it is very much necessary to use a greater number of project resources that generally enhances the cost of the project.
Successful management of project includes more than of management of triple constraints in terms of scope, cost and time. However, the involved project stakeholders are also needed to be well managed. The professional characteristics that must be possessed by the project managers include motivation, leadership and supporting communication. With the help of open communication, the project manager will be able to share their innovative ideas and creation to the project team members (Portny, 2017). In order to build such situation proper actions plans should be implemented by defining member’s roles and responsibilities.
It is the responsibility of the project manager to identify the “currencies” which a project manager can use to influence the rest of the stakeholders and other team members. The currencies include authority, expert’s knowledge, friendship, professional advancement, coercive behaviours, challenges faced during working period. However, motivation and professional leadership will influence the project team members become more attached and responsible to their job roles.
Management by Walking Around (MBWA) is a project management model which is focused on improving the overall performance of the business organization and individuals also. Different project management practices are there that should be followed by the project managers and team members to meet the objectives. However, during ongoing phase different challenges also may rise (Costantino, Di Gravio & Nonino, 2015). The MBWA model is comprises of different problem-solving abilities and collectively these activities will improve the performance of the project associates. The three levels of performance improvement are H2, H3 and H4. The H2 level can address all the high value problems, then it can also address the easy way that can be used to solve the problems. In addition to this, at the last level the managers make sure that all the identified problems are resolved from its root. Collectively these activities will influence the project team members to meet the expected performance.
Trust is referred to as one of the most important features that helps to lead any project towards success. As the employees are relied on their managers for career development therefore strong organizational structure will help to build trust among the project associates. If the employees face any challenge then they can freely discuss on that to their managers. Not only this but also, if they found any innovative problem-solving ideas or creativity then they can easily share that to their respective heads about that. A trustworthy project manager provides an independent platform to the project team members as a result, the project head also gets needful. Support from the team associates and stakeholders whenever required. Even the organizational changes can also be implemented easily and successfully based on trustworthy relationship between the project manager and the project team members.
Identification of characteristics of effective project managers are as follows:
Leadership and broad vision: A project manager will be nominated as a successful one if he or she possess professional leadership skills and respective broad organizational vision as well.
Communication skills: Open communication and effective professional interpersonal communication skills will improve the relationship between the project manager and the project team member. This will bring an independent platform to them where the managers will be able to share their innovative ideas with the project team members (Conforto et al., 2016).
Decision making ability: The project manager should have proper decision-making ability so that they can make appropriate decision for the future success of the projects.
Problem solving ability: The project manager should have proper problem-solving capability. With this skill the project will be able to both identify and analyze the problems. This approach will lead the company towards project progress and success
Different stages should be followed for the successful development of a project team. It is defined that a successful project team will help the project manager to meet the project objectives and project goal. Skilled and knowledgeable members can minimize the complexities of the activities. The stages of team development are as follows:
Forming: In this phase the team members are allowed to test each other including project manager efficiently. Depending on the skills the team members are allocated for the suitable job roles. In addition to this their skills and abilities are also compared in this phase (Kucharska & Kowalczyk, 2016).
Storming: the way through which the team will work together is determined in this phase. After comparing all suggestions, the effective one is chosen for the company.
Norming: Based on only trust how a team can effectively work together is determined in this phase.
Adjourning: As this is the last stage of the project team development thus in this phase they feel loss because they have to move to another new stage.
Quality of high performing project team |
Development strategy |
Solid communication and feedback |
With the help of open communication, the project team members will be able to communicate effectively with the members and similarly they will also feel free to share their ideas and creativity with the others. |
Desire for improvement |
In order to incorporate respective changes for further improvement it is mandatory to produce respective change management approach. |
Unified project goal |
Based on aim of the project the members should define one project gaol at the initiation phase so that, vulnerabilities can be avoided and constructive feedback can be generated as well. |
The project manager and the project team members should have the below features to encourage the functional conflict:
- Powerful communication skills
- Mutual understandings
- Conflict resolution power
- Strong tie up with the sponsors
The following are the ways through which the dysfunctional conflicts can be discouraged:
- Setting of strategic direction
- Assessment, implementation and evaluation of readiness
- Identification of the involved values
- Development of criteria for identifying the distinction
In order to avoid the challenges faced by the virtual project team the steps to be followed include:
- Implementation of effective team communication
- Access to the expertise with proper technical management
- Organization of proper training and development program for the team associates
- Resolving issues of cultural differences and social barriers
- Access for new team experts
In order to shape an effective team who can perform successfully it is important for the project manager to behave positively towards them. The two behavioural approaches that are most important include motivation and leadership. Motivation will make the job roles more attractive towards the project team members (Drouin, Sankaran & Muller,2016). The Rather motivation can keep the members more engaged to their roles and responsibilities. On the other hand, leadership can enhance emotional intelligence, capabilities to get success even under extreme pressure, growth in confidence and improved productivity.
The steps of procurement management process are as follows:
- Need proper recognition
- Need specification
- Source or examine all the options for the suppliers
- Order purchase based on price and terms
- Delivery and expedition
- Receipt and inspection
- Invoice approval and payment
- Record keeping
This contract is offered by the buyers to respective sellers where the buyers should not be bounded with specific objects. Agreement in any manner will be evidence agreement for the written agreement. The CPFF contract permits contracting for the efforts that may otherwise present too great a risk to contractors (Cagliano, Grimaldi & Rafele, 2015). Apart from this the time and material contract is paid based on actual cost of the direct labours, actual cost for the material usage, agreed on fixed add on to cover the contractors overhead and profit. The two major contract level risks that may interrupt the success of any procurement plan are a follow
Probability of loss: The probability of loss rises from buyers reneging on contract can opposed to the inability of payment of the buyers.
Risks with vendors: The vendors may face serious level risks while developing fixed price contract.
For different projects the impact of the environmental factors also varies. The corporate environmental factors in different countries are though not differs much and the environmental factors that may either negatively or positively affect project management in different countries are as follows:
- Legal factor
- Cultural factor
- Institutional factors
- Sociological factor
- Physical infrastructure
- Financial factor
Discussion on the cross-cultural issues that impacts working on the international project are as follows:
- Lack of encouragement towards positive communication and written communication
- Lack of communication ability
- Lack of usage of the visual aids wherever possible
- Creation of a central project information repository
If proper approach towards communication is not followed then project objectives will not be shared among the team members. Some project may comprise of distributed team members. This will cause cultural as well as communication gaps (Ahern, Leavy & Byrne, 2014). While working for an international project the gaps will lead towards intra organizational conflicts. It will interrupt the decision-making ability of the project team members and other associates. The stakeholders will also not feel free to share their point of view to the rest of the project team members and project managers.
Process through which organization track the performance of the project
The organization track the performance of the project by utilizing steps that are generally elaborated below:
Tracking time and project schedule: In order to track the performance of the project, it is very much necessary for the project managers to check whether the project is on track by ensuring that it will get completed within the approved budget and time.
Analyzing whether the project goals are met: It is found that if the goals as well as objectives of the project are met then it can be successfully analyzed that the goals as well as objectives of the project are properly met (Spundak, 2014).
Identifying the work done by the stakeholders: If the work that is done by the project stakeholders are analyzed properly then it will be easy to determine the project progress.
Earned value is considered as one of the management approaches that generally incorporates number of different types of programs including different levels of management with proper visibility into cost and time related problems as well as issues. It is found that earned value helps in providing the opportunity of accessing the progress of the project against baseline plan that is related to time and cost performance of the project. The earned value for the development of cloud-based ERP system with the help of different primary elements is calculated in the table that is given below:
Task Name |
Planned Value - PV (BCWS) |
Earned Value - EV (BCWP) |
AC (ACWP) |
SV |
CV |
EAC |
BAC |
VAC |
Development of cloud-based ERP system for retail store |
$179,440.00 |
$179,440.00 |
$179,440.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$179,440.00 |
$179,440.00 |
$0.00 |
Initiation phase |
$8,200.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$0.00 |
Business case development |
$2,400.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$0.00 |
Checking feasibility study |
$800.00 |
$800.00 |
$800.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$800.00 |
$800.00 |
$0.00 |
Project charter establishment |
$1,400.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$0.00 |
Team members appointment |
$3,600.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$0.00 |
Milestone 1: Completion of initiation phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
Planning phase |
$28,040.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$0.00 |
Project planning |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
Resource planning |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
Financial planning |
$2,880.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$0.00 |
Quality planning |
$3,400.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$0.00 |
Risk management planning |
$3,360.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$0.00 |
Acceptance planning |
$3,120.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$0.00 |
Communication plan |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
Development of procurement plan |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
Milestone 2: Completion of planning phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
Execution phase |
$140,560.00 |
$140,560.00 |
$140,560.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$140,560.00 |
$140,560.00 |
$0.00 |
Determining business needs |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
Selection of cloud-based ERP system |
$5,760.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$0.00 |
Work customization |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
Migration of data |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
Infrastructure checking |
$16,320.00 |
$16,320.00 |
$16,320.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$16,320.00 |
$16,320.00 |
$0.00 |
Customization |
$15,960.00 |
$15,960.00 |
$15,960.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$15,960.00 |
$15,960.00 |
$0.00 |
Change management |
$23,040.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$0.00 |
Technology and knowledge transfer |
$17,000.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$0.00 |
Project management testing |
$7,200.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$0.00 |
System integration testing |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
User acceptance testing |
$8,160.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$0.00 |
Milestone 3: Completion of execution phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
Closing phase |
$2,640.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$0.00 |
Post project review |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
Stakeholder sign off |
$960.00 |
$960.00 |
$960.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$960.00 |
$960.00 |
$0.00 |
Post go-live support |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
Milestone 4: Completion of closure phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
The project performance index includes cost performance index and schedule performance index. The cost performance index as well as schedule performance index of the project is provided in the table below:
Task Name |
Planned Value - PV (BCWS) |
Earned Value - EV (BCWP) |
AC (ACWP) |
SV |
CV |
EAC |
BAC |
VAC |
SPI |
CPI |
Development of Cloud based ERP system in retail store |
$179,440.00 |
$179,117.20 |
$179,440.00 |
-$322.80 |
-$322.80 |
$179,763.38 |
$179,440.00 |
-$323.38 |
1 |
1 |
Initiation phase |
$8,200.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$8,200.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Business case development |
$2,400.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$2,400.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Checking feasibility study |
$800.00 |
$800.00 |
$800.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$800.00 |
$800.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Project charter establishment |
$1,400.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$1,400.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Team members appointment |
$3,600.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$3,600.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Milestone 1: Completion of initiation phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
0 |
0 |
Planning phase |
$28,040.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$28,040.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Project planning |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Resource planning |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Financial planning |
$2,880.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$2,880.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Quality planning |
$3,400.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$3,400.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Risk management planning |
$3,360.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$3,360.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Acceptance planning |
$3,120.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$3,120.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Communication plan |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$2,600.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Development of procurement plan |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$5,040.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Milestone 2: Completion of planning phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
0 |
0 |
Execution phase |
$140,560.00 |
$140,237.20 |
$140,560.00 |
-$322.80 |
-$322.80 |
$140,883.54 |
$140,560.00 |
-$323.54 |
1 |
1 |
Determining business needs |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Selection of cloud-based ERP system |
$5,760.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$5,760.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Work customization |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$11,400.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Migration of data |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Infrastructure checking |
$16,320.00 |
$16,156.80 |
$16,320.00 |
-$163.20 |
-$163.20 |
$16,484.85 |
$16,320.00 |
-$164.85 |
0.99 |
0.99 |
Customization |
$15,960.00 |
$15,800.40 |
$15,960.00 |
-$159.60 |
-$159.60 |
$16,121.21 |
$15,960.00 |
-$161.21 |
0.99 |
0.99 |
Change management |
$23,040.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$23,040.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Technology and knowledge transfer |
$17,000.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$17,000.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Project management testing |
$7,200.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$7,200.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
System integration testing |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$12,160.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
User acceptance testing |
$8,160.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$8,160.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Milestone 3: Completion of execution phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
0 |
0 |
Closing phase |
$2,640.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$2,640.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Post project review |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Stakeholder sign off |
$960.00 |
$960.00 |
$960.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$960.00 |
$960.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Post go-live support |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$840.00 |
$840.00 |
$0.00 |
1 |
1 |
Milestone 4: Completion of closure phase |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
0 |
0 |
Project status report is one of the reporting systems that is mainly utilized within the report in order to ensure that the entire project will get completed on expected budget and time. The project status report that is mainly developed for this project is mainly reflected in the table that is mainly given below:
Task Name |
Duration |
Start |
Finish |
% Complete |
Development of Cloud based ERP system in retail store |
38 days |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
75% |
Initiation phase |
14 days |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
100% |
Business case development |
4 days |
Mon 08-10-18 |
Thu 11-10-18 |
100% |
Checking feasibility study |
4 days |
Fri 12-10-18 |
Wed 17-10-18 |
100% |
Project charter establishment |
5 days |
Fri 12-10-18 |
Thu 18-10-18 |
100% |
Team members appointment |
6 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
100% |
Milestone 1: Completion of initiation phase |
0 days |
Wed 17-10-18 |
Wed 17-10-18 |
100% |
Planning phase |
13 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
100% |
Project planning |
5 days |
Fri 19-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
100% |
Resource planning |
7 days |
Fri 19-10-18 |
Mon 29-10-18 |
100% |
Financial planning |
6 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Fri 02-11-18 |
100% |
Qulaity planning |
5 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Thu 01-11-18 |
100% |
Risk management planning |
7 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Fri 26-10-18 |
100% |
Acceptance planning |
6 days |
Thu 18-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
100% |
Communication plan |
5 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Thu 01-11-18 |
100% |
Development of procurement plan |
7 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
100% |
Milestone 2: Completion of planning phase |
0 days |
Thu 25-10-18 |
Thu 25-10-18 |
100% |
Execution phase |
24 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
68% |
Determining business needs |
15 days |
Tue 30-10-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
83% |
Selection of cloud-based ERP system |
12 days |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Tue 20-11-18 |
70% |
Work customization |
15 days |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Thu 22-11-18 |
63% |
Migration of data |
16 days |
Mon 29-10-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
84% |
Infrastructure checking |
17 days |
Mon 29-10-18 |
Tue 20-11-18 |
79% |
Customization |
19 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Wed 21-11-18 |
76% |
Change management |
18 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Tue 20-11-18 |
80% |
Technology and knowledge transfer |
17 days |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Mon 26-11-18 |
55% |
Project management testing |
15 days |
Fri 02-11-18 |
Thu 22-11-18 |
63% |
System integration testing |
16 days |
Tue 06-11-18 |
Tue 27-11-18 |
46% |
User acceptance testing |
17 days |
Tue 06-11-18 |
Wed 28-11-18 |
44% |
Milestone 3: Completion of execution phase |
0 days |
Mon 05-11-18 |
Mon 05-11-18 |
100% |
Closing phase |
27 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
33% |
Post project review |
3 days |
Fri 26-10-18 |
Tue 30-10-18 |
100% |
Stakeholder sign off |
3 days |
Thu 29-11-18 |
Mon 03-12-18 |
0% |
Post go-live support |
3 days |
Tue 20-11-18 |
Thu 22-11-18 |
0% |
Milestone 4: Completion of closure phase |
0 days |
Mon 19-11-18 |
Mon 19-11-18 |
0% |
The project rollup mainly helps in pinpointing the progress the problems in two different dimensions. It is found that the problems that are associated with the project can either be mitigated or can be avoided. The project manager takes the responsibility of pinpointing the problems that are mainly associated with the project.
The reasons due to which the project is closed are mainly reflected below:
Confirmation about the achievement of project objectives is reflected: It is found that during the project closure phase, post project review is undertaken through which the project managers can be able to know whether the project have achieved its objectives or not. This confirmation helps in revealing that the objectives of the entire project is achieved or not.
Sense of project closure: This generally helps in confirming that the objectives of the project are successfully met that further helps in revealing information related with the project accomplishment as well as closure. It gives assists in providing proper as well as serious sense that the objectives of the project are met successfully (Andersen, 2016).
Improving future engagements: With the help of the project closure phase, a project team can be able to engage within the lessons learned meeting in order to ensure that the project that is undertaken reflects positive lesson which can be utilized in the future.
Project oversight is considered a safeguard which is against the project that is generally not finished within the approved time and budget within the specific parameters of the project for completion. This is generally considered as a guide that generally helps a business for running the entire project effectively. It is identified that project oversight generally occurs after the entire project started.
Phase gate technique is one of the project management technique in which the proper initiative is generally taken in order to divide the entire development, process improvement phases that is generally separated by decision points. It is found that at each gate of the project, continuation is generally decided by the project manager, steering committee as well as other governance board (Bentahar, & Cameron,2015). It is found that the decision that is generally made on the basis of forecasting as well as on the basis of the information that is available including the risk analysis, business case as well as on the resources that are generally available.
It is found that it is very much important to engage within project reviews as project review is one of the exercises that is generally undertaken at each of the phase of the project for identifying the current status of the project. It is found that project review assists in identifying the deliverables of the project that have generally been produced to date in order to determine whether the goals as well as objectives of the project are not met. Project review is mainly conducted at the end of the initiation, planning as well as execution phase of the project. In addition to this it is found that project reviews assist in providing information the current state of the project, budget allocated is sufficient or not as well as helps in highlighting the issues and challenges that are generally identified. Moreover, the project review helps in keeping the entire project on track.
The major elements that are mainly associated with the project review are generally highlighted below:
Gap analysis: With the help of the project review, the stakeholders of the project can be able to know about the gap that exists between the achievement as well as expected deliverables of the project. If any type of gap exists, then the gap can be resolved quite effectively (Batselier & Vanhoucke, 2015).
Project objectives: With the help of the project review, the project objectives that are associated with the project are reflected successfully and thus project objective is considered as one of the important elements of the project.
Stakeholders satisfaction: With the help of the project review, the project managers can be able to know whether the stakeholders who are generally involved with the project are happy or not. If the project stakeholders are not happy then the project managers generally take number of steps in order to make them happy as well as satisfied for achieving the project objectives quite effectively.
Project costs and benefits: It is found that with the help of the project review, the costs as well as benefits that are associated with the project can be properly determined.
Lessons learned: With the help of the project review, the project managers can be able to know about the lessons that are achieved with the help of the project which can be used further within some other projects.
The key issues as well as challenges that are mainly associated with the closure of the project are mainly reflected below:
Technical challenges: It is found that there can be number of start up issues and problems with the new product and new design. In addition to this, technical issue during the time of project closure can occur through loss of control on the charges of the entire project (Martens & Carvalho, 2017).
Project team challenges: It is found that the project team can face number of challenges and issues due to loss of functionality of the team or due to the loss of interest of the project team members within the procedure of documentation.
Customer challenges: It is found that during the process of project closure, the customers faces number of issues and challenges due to the agreement on the process of commitment as well as due to the availability of the key personnel as well as the difficulty on agreeing on the sign off of the project.
It is found that following are the advice that must be provided before undertaking a performance review within the project:
Asking for feedback: Feedback must be taken from the employees of the organization in order to influence the entire performance of the employees and for determining the negative points that are generally associated with the project.
Taking proper time: It is necessary to allocate proper time for reflecting the weaknesses as well as strengths of the individuals so that the accomplishments of the staff members cannot be overlooked (Fernandes et al., 2015).
Providing examples: It is necessary to provide proper examples while undertaking the process of project review so that the employees or staffs who are mainly associated with the project can be able to know about the project goals and objectives.
Finding solid solutions: It is found that performance reviews are generally intended to reward for the proper performance and for addressing the problems that generally arises within the entire project (Alias et al., 2014).Thus, finding proper solutions generally helps in improving performance as well as creating stronger relationships.
It is found that with the help of the lessons learned tool, the insights that is mainly gained within the project can be identified so that it can be applied within the future projects. It is found that with the help of the lessons learned, the experiences are generally distilled form the project that must be actively taken in account within the future projects.
The five levels of project management maturity model are listed below:
Initial process: The initial level generally reflects that the organization generally operates in a proper random manner (Zheng et al., 2016).
Structured process and standard: It is found that he companies that generally operate within the structured level generally adhere some of the practices of the project management at an individual level of the project.
Organizational standard: it is found that the organizational level generally helps in indicating the well-defined organizational procedures which are generally documented and used for various standards of operations.
Managed: It is found that the managed level generally helps in measuring the project performance by utilizing proper well-defined metrics.
Optimized: It is found that the organization that generally focusses on the deliberate as well as continual process improvement are considered to be operating within the optimizing level (Khan & Rasheed, 2015).
It is found that the operational environment of a project generally plays a great role in achieving the success of the project. If the project team members get proper working environment then they can be able to work effectively within the organization in order to complete the project so that the project goals as well as objectives are achieved quite effectively. Thus, it is quite necessary to build proper working environment as it generally helps in creating in positive impact on the success of the project.
The types of the projects that are generally suited for the agile project management are generally listed below:
Small to medium software development projects: It is found that agile project management methodology is mainly useful for the small to medium size of the software developments projects.
Product development: It is analyzed that product development where there is a need of multiple number of variants, then in those projects it is generally necessary to use agile project management methodology (Lee et al., 2015).
Project where the main deliverable can be broken: It is found that that in projects where the deliverables can be segregated and generally can be produced in number of discrete packages then there is a major consideration to utilize agile project management methodology.
Agile project management is considered as one of an iterative approach of project management that mainly reflects on the delivery of project requirements iteratively for exhibiting central values within the entire life cycle of the project (Zwikael, 2016). Agile project management methodology mainly focusses on the empowerment of people and their interactions for constant delivery of value within an enterprise. It is found that agile project management generally focusses on delivering the value against the various priorities of the business within the allowed budget and time especially for delivering priorities of the business within the allowed budget and time. The principles that are mainly followed by agile project management include:
- The project generally helps in breaking the requirements into smaller activities which are after then prioritized by the project team in context to their importance
- The agile project management methodology mainly assists in promoting collaborative work with the customers of the organization (Jalal & Koosha, 2015).
- It is found that agile project generally assists in reflecting, learning as well as adjusting at regular intervals for ensuring that the customers of the organizations are always satisfied with the benefits as well as outcomes of the entire project.
- Agile project management methodology mainly integrates project planning with the execution in order to allow the organization to create proper working mindset for helping the team in order to respond to the changing needs as well as requirements of the project effectively.
The advantages of agile project management methodology are mainly elaborated below:
High quality: In agile project management methodology, the testing phase is generally integrated during the entire cycle that reflects that regular check up will ensure that the development of the product is working appropriately within the project (Tsaturyan & Muller, 2015). This is quite helpful as this allows the owner of the project to make necessary changes if they are aware of any type of risks that are associated with the project.
Enhanced control on the project: When agile project methodology is used within the projects then the entire control within the project can be increased. This is generally due to the sprint meetings as well as transparency of this methodology.
Reduced risks: Agile project methodology generally helps in eliminating the chances that are associated with the failure of the project. In addition to this, it is found that agile helps in giving freedom in order to make changes that are required within the project and thus the chances of occurring project risks generally reduces.
Faster ROI: It is found that as agile development is one of the iterative method that helps in delivering projects incrementally, thus the benefits that are related with the project can be realized before the development process of the project.
The disadvantages that are associated with the use of agile project methodology within the project are generally reflected below:
Lack of emphasis: It is found that due to lack of emphasis, when agile project management methodology is mainly used, designing as well as documentation of the project are not done properly.
Difficult to assess efforts: It is found that in context to software deliverables of the projects, it is very much difficult to access the efforts that are generally needed during the design of the various software development project cycle (Bresnen, 2016).
Project can be taken off track: It is found that the project can easily goes off track if the representatives of the customers generally does not have clear idea related to the outcome of the project.
It is found that agile project management methodology is basically used in SCRUM. It is found that SCRUM is one of the agile ways for managing a project quite effectively usually in context to software development. It is found that agile software development in context to SCRUM generally depends on the self-organizing as well as cross functional team. It is mainly considered as one of the innovative approaches in order to finish the work of the project quite effectively in a very much efficient way (Eskerod, Huemann & Ringhofer, 2015). In addition to this, this methodology is considered as one of incremental as well as iterative agile software development methodology that requires proper sprint planning related estimation in order to finish the work of the project.
References
Ahern, T., Leavy, B., & Byrne, P. J. (2014). Complex project management as complex problem solving: A distributed knowledge management perspective. International Journal of Project Management, 32(8), 1371-1381.
Alias, Z., Zawawi, E. M. A., Yusof, K., & Aris, N. M. (2014). Determining critical success factors of project management practice: A conceptual framework. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 153, 61-69.
Andersen, E. S. (2016). Do project managers have different perspectives on project management?. International Journal of Project Management, 34(1), 58-65.
Badewi, A. (2016). The impact of project management (PM) and benefits management (BM) practices on project success: Towards developing a project benefits governance framework. International Journal of Project Management, 34(4), 761-778.
Batselier, J., & Vanhoucke, M. (2015). Evaluation of deterministic state-of-the-art forecasting approaches for project duration based on earned value management. International Journal of Project Management, 33(7), 1588-1596.
Bentahar, O., & Cameron, R. (2015). Design and Implementation of a Mixed Method Research Study in Project Management. Electronic Journal of Business Research Methods, 13(1).
Binder, J. (2016). Global project management: communication, collaboration and management across borders. Routledge.
Bresnen, M. (2016). Institutional development, divergence and change in the discipline of project management. International journal of project management, 34(2), 328-338.
Cagliano, A. C., Grimaldi, S., & Rafele, C. (2015). Choosing project risk management techniques. A theoretical framework. Journal of Risk Research, 18(2), 232-248.
Conforto, E. C., Salum, F., Amaral, D. C., da Silva, S. L., & de Almeida, L. F. M. (2014). Can agile project management be adopted by industries other than software development?. Project Management Journal, 45(3), 21-34.
Conforto, E. C., Amaral, D. C., da Silva, S. L., Di Felippo, A., & Kamikawachi, D. S. L. (2016). The agility construct on project management theory. International Journal of Project Management, 34(4), 660-674.
Costantino, F., Di Gravio, G., & Nonino, F. (2015). Project selection in project portfolio management: An artificial neural network model based on critical success factors. International Journal of Project Management, 33(8), 1744-1754.
Drouin, N., Sankaran, S., & Muller, R. (2016). The nature of organizational project management and its role as an organizational capability. Manageable Cooperation?.
Eskerod, P., Huemann, M., & Ringhofer, C. (2015). Stakeholder inclusiveness: Enriching project management with general stakeholder theory. Project Management Journal, 46(6), 42-53.
Fernandes, G., Ward, S., & Araújo, M. (2015). Improving and embedding project management practice in organisations—A qualitative study. International Journal of Project Management, 33(5), 1052-1067.
Fleming, Q. W., & Koppelman, J. M. (2016, December). Earned value project management. Project Management Institute.
Heagney, J. (2016). Fundamentals of project management. Amacom.
Heldman, K. (2018). PMP: project management professional exam study guide. John Wiley & Sons.
Hornstein, H. A. (2015). The integration of project management and organizational change management is now a necessity. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2), 291-298.
Jalal, M. P., & Koosha, S. M. (2015). Identifying organizational variables affecting project management office characteristics and analyzing their correlations in the Iranian project-oriented organizations of the construction industry. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2), 458-466.
Joslin, R., & Müller, R. (2015). Relationships between a project management methodology and project success in different project governance contexts. International Journal of Project Management, 33(6), 1377-1392.
Kaiser, M. G., El Arbi, F., & Ahlemann, F. (2015). Successful project portfolio management beyond project selection techniques: Understanding the role of structural alignment. International Journal of Project Management, 33(1), 126-139.
Kerzner, H., & Kerzner, H. R. (2017). Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
Kerzner, H. (2017). Project management metrics, KPIs, and dashboards: a guide to measuring and monitoring project performance. John Wiley & Sons.
Khan, A. S., & Rasheed, F. (2015). Human resource management practices and project success, a moderating role of Islamic Work Ethics in Pakistani project-based organizations. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2), 435-445.
Kucharska, W., & Kowalczyk, R. (2016). Trust, collaborative culture and tacit knowledge sharing in project management–A relationship model.
Leach, L. P. (2014). Critical chain project management. Artech House.
Lee, L., Reinicke, B., Sarkar, R., & Anderson, R. (2015). Learning through interactions: improving project management through communities of practice. Project Management Journal, 46(1), 40-52.
Marcelino-Sádaba, S., Pérez-Ezcurdia, A., Lazcano, A. M. E., & Villanueva, P. (2014). Project risk management methodology for small firms. International journal of project management, 32(2), 327-340.
Marchewka, J. T. (2014). Information technology project management. John Wiley & Sons.
Martens, M. L., & Carvalho, M. M. (2017). Key factors of sustainability in project management context: A survey exploring the project managers' perspective. International Journal of Project Management, 35(6), 1084-1102.
Mir, F. A., & Pinnington, A. H. (2014). Exploring the value of project management: linking project management performance and project success. International journal of project management, 32(2), 202-217.
Portny, S. E. (2017). Project management for dummies. John Wiley & Sons.
Sánchez, M. A. (2015). Integrating sustainability issues into project management. Journal of Cleaner Production, 96, 319-330.
Schwalbe, K. (2015). Information technology project management. Cengage Learning.
Serra, C. E. M., & Kunc, M. (2015). Benefits realisation management and its influence on project success and on the execution of business strategies. International Journal of Project Management, 33(1), 53-66.
Špundak, M. (2014). Mixed agile/traditional project management methodology–reality or illusion?. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 119, 939-948.
Svejvig, P., & Andersen, P. (2015). Rethinking project management: A structured literature review with a critical look at the brave new world. International Journal of Project Management, 33(2), 278-290.
Todorovi?, M. L., Petrovi?, D. ?., Mihi?, M. M., Obradovi?, V. L., & Bushuyev, S. D. (2015). Project success analysis framework: A knowledge-based approach in project management. International Journal of Project Management, 33(4), 772-783.
Too, E. G., & Weaver, P. (2014). The management of project management: A conceptual framework for project governance. International Journal of Project Management, 32(8), 1382-1394.
Tsaturyan, T., & Müller, R. (2015). Integration and governance of multiple project management offices (PMOs) at large organizations. International Journal of Project Management, 33(5), 1098-1110.
Verzuh, E. (2015). The fast forward MBA in project management. John Wiley & Sons.
Walker, A. (2015). Project management in construction. John Wiley & Sons.
Zheng, X., Le, Y., Chan, A. P., Hu, Y., & Li, Y. (2016). Review of the application of social network analysis (SNA) in construction project management research. International journal of project management, 34(7), 1214-1225.
Zwikael, O. (2016). International journal of project management special issue on “project benefit management”.
To export a reference to this article please select a referencing stye below:
My Assignment Help. (2021). Understanding Project Management Stages, Types, And Strategies Is Crucial For Effective Essay. (70 Characters). Retrieved from https://myassignmenthelp.com/free-samples/msds475-project-management/development-strategy.html.
"Understanding Project Management Stages, Types, And Strategies Is Crucial For Effective Essay. (70 Characters)." My Assignment Help, 2021, https://myassignmenthelp.com/free-samples/msds475-project-management/development-strategy.html.
My Assignment Help (2021) Understanding Project Management Stages, Types, And Strategies Is Crucial For Effective Essay. (70 Characters) [Online]. Available from: https://myassignmenthelp.com/free-samples/msds475-project-management/development-strategy.html
[Accessed 06 October 2024].
My Assignment Help. 'Understanding Project Management Stages, Types, And Strategies Is Crucial For Effective Essay. (70 Characters)' (My Assignment Help, 2021) <https://myassignmenthelp.com/free-samples/msds475-project-management/development-strategy.html> accessed 06 October 2024.
My Assignment Help. Understanding Project Management Stages, Types, And Strategies Is Crucial For Effective Essay. (70 Characters) [Internet]. My Assignment Help. 2021 [cited 06 October 2024]. Available from: https://myassignmenthelp.com/free-samples/msds475-project-management/development-strategy.html.