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HRMS/SIS
HRMS/SIS Project
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Project Management
Memo
Project Management
PM-ME-0002
Table of Contents
Overview .................................................................................................................................................................... 1
Project Milestones ..................................................................................................................................................... 1
Deliverables ............................................................................................................................................................... 2
Tasks ......................................................................................................................................................................... 2
Overview
Project planning and tracking occurs on different levels of detail and management. The highest level of tracking
is the project milestone. Project milestones are the appropriate level of detail to report to executive committees
and management. The next level of detail is the deliverable. The deliverable is a tool used by Project Managers
and Team Leads to measure and to verify a team's progress towards the completion of the project. Team
Leaders would track the team's completion or non-completion of deliverables and report their status to the Project
Manager. Team Leads and team members identify the tasks that are required to complete a deliverable.
Project Planning Item
Defined By
Tracked By
Project Milestones
Project Manager, Project Team
Project Manager
Deliverables
Project Manager, Project Team
Team Leads
Tasks
Team Leads, Team Members
Team Leads
Project Milestones
After the scope of the project has been defined, the project team identifies the key milestones in the project
lifecycle. The project manager, or a delegate, can create an initial project milestone plan to determine an
approximate timeline for key project phases and deliverables. Identify the key phases of the project (e.g.,
Requirements Analysis, Design, Development, Testing, Training and Documentation, Production Cut-Over).
Given an expected completion date, the project timeline can be adjusted by changing the scope or identifying
other resources to assist in the effort.
A project milestone is a significant event or goal that indicates a major accomplishment during the life of a
project. These milestones allow stakeholders, managers, and project team members to measure and to follow
the progress of a project. Internally, a milestone identifies a key deliverable or event that allows the manager to
determine if the project is still on track. A milestone may also represent a critical dependency on an external
entity (e.g., vendor, customer, another development team). Milestones may also mark a key executive or
stakeholder approval or decision. Sometimes, they represent go/no go decision points.
Milestones can be tracked in a variety of tools, including Microsoft Project or Excel. The Project Manager (or
delegate) is responsible for tracking and managing the project milestone list. The Project Manager uses this
information to determine whether the project team is behind schedule, on schedule or ahead of schedule. By
looking at the status of each milestone, the Project Manager should be able to make the appropriate adjustments
to the project timeline. For example, Project Manager may change the production live date, add the appropriate
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Project Management
Memo
Project Management
PM-ME-0002
resources, adjust deliverable due dates, and/or adjust scope to ensure that the project's goals and objectives are
met. The project milestones can be used as a tool for reporting status to executive sponsors or stakeholders.
The following information should be captured about each milestone:
 The event or name of the deliverable that should be tracked - also an indication of the expected status of
the deliverable (e.g., started, completed, received, delivered, turned over, designed)
 If the milestones represents a dependency on an external group; either the project requires something
from the external group or the external group requires something from the project
 The date by which the milestone will be met.
 The appropriate dependencies between milestones
Deliverables
A high-level deliverable is a major grouping of work products (e.g., completion of IUIE extract design). A
detailed deliverable is an artifact (e.g., design, approach paper, code, tested software, table specification, or
other specification) produced to meet some set of known project requirements. The deliverable must be verifiable
and measurable. The deliverable is usually subject to some approval or review by leads or stakeholders.
Deliverables can be tracked in a variety of tools including Microsoft Project or Excel. Team leads typically track
Deliverables, and their status is reported to the Project Manager, or delegate. Team Leads can use this
deliverable status as measure of progress across the team. Project Managers can use the deliverable status as
a measure of progress across the project. For example: one can measure number of deliverables due against
actual number of deliverables completed.
Deliverables should have the following pieces of information:





A description that clearly identifies the type of artifact or output that is expected
The dependencies associated with the deliverable (optional)
The date the deliverable is due
The team and individual responsible for completing the deliverable
A revised completion date for the deliverable.
Team Leads are responsible for reporting deliverable status to the Project Managers, or delegate. If deliverables
are changed or at risk of not being completed on time, the Team Lead should make that known and develop a
course of action to correct or mitigate the risk of not completing the deliverable on time.
Tasks
A task is an activity or a step that is required to complete a deliverable or a project. The team leader and the
team members typically define the tasks.
Tasks should have the following pieces of information (at the minimum):





A description that clearly identifies the activity required for completing a deliverable or some part of a
project
The dependencies associated with the task (optional)
The individual responsible for completing the task
The expected completion date of the task
The actual completion date of the task.
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Project Management
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Project Management
PM-ME-0002
Task owners will be responsible for giving task status updates to the leads. If any task is in danger of not being
completed, the team member should notify the lead when it becomes apparent to the team member.
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