Project Description, Project Management Approach, Responsibility Assignment Matrix

Project Description

The project description is a summary of the project and the deliverables or outcomes expected as a result of conducting the project. The project description typically includes a statement of the purpose of the project and the justification for undertaking the project from a business perspective. It also includes project objectives, high-level requirements, and how project success will be measured.

A project management approach or methodology defines the specific way that a project will be managed within an organization. There are a variety of project management methodologies available. The one that is chosen should match the needs of the organization and the characteristics of the project.  

Refer to Parts 1 and 2 of the St. Dismas Assisted Living Facility Case Study. Part 1 provides an overview of the project. Part 2 describes the steps that are being taken to plan the project. 

Formulate the project management approach that will be used to conduct the St. Dismas Assisted Living Facility project as follows:

1.Describe the similarities and differences between various approaches to managing projects. 

2.Describe the project management approach that will be used for this project. 

A Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM) is a tool that is used to document the roles and responsibilities of project resources. A RAM provides role clarity for project team members. One type of RAM, the RACI chart, designates responsibility and authority to project resources at the task level, making it clear who is responsible for what and who has decision-making authority.      

Refer to Part 1 of the St. Dismas Assisted Living Facility (ALF) project.

Fred Splient, MD, the President and CEO of St. Dismas Medical Center, formed the ALF Project Steering Committee, naming key stakeholders to participate. Fred is taking responsibility for managing the project. He has assigned other planning tasks to each member of the committee.

Using the table below, create a RAM:

In the top row of the RAM (Table 2), add the names and titles of the other members of the ALF Project Steering Committee. In the first column of the RAM (Table 2), add the planning tasks that have been assigned to the other members of the committee. Under the name and title of each individual, add one or more codes from the RAM Role (Table 1) that indicate the role each stakeholder is assigned for his or her respective tasks. NOTES: Add rows and columns to Table 2 as needed to document the committee members’ roles on the project. A stakeholder may have more than one role assigned for a task.  

Table 1: Responsibility Assignment Matrix Role

Table 2: Responsibility Assignment Matrix

Communicating with project team members/stakeholders who need to be consulted prior to executing a task requires a two-way exchange. One-way communication is used for those who need to be informed about the progress of the project.

Using the RAM you created, describe the communications plan for the St. Dismas ALF project.

1.Describe the methods that will be used to communicate with project team members/stakeholders who are to be consulted on project tasks. (2–3 paragraphs)

2.Describe the methods that will be used to communicate with project team members/stakeholders who are to be informed about project progress. (2–3 paragraphs)

Project scope defines all of the work that must be done to deliver the expected outcome or product of the project. The project scope statement describes precisely what is and what is not included in the project. The scope of the project is derived from stakeholder requirements and is used as input to create the Work Breakdown Structure.  

Refer to Table 4: St. Dismas ALF Construction Project Plan in the case study.

Compose a project scope statement. 

1.Describe, in detail, the scope of work required for each of the four phases of the construction project to build the ALF at St. Dismas. 

2.Describe, in detail, the deliverables from each of the four phases of the construction project to build the ALF at St. Dismas.