Download 7. IT project plan

IS 488 Information Technology Project
Management
Dr. Henry Deng
Assistant Professor
MIS Department
UNLV
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Ch7. IT Project plan
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7. Why IT plan
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Is it clear what the project is supposed to deliver?
Is it clear who will be working on the project?
Do you have a breakdown of activities?
Is it clear when deliverables are due?
Do you have established communication channels?
Are you clear who the stakeholders are?
Do you have milestones and due dates for them?
Do you know what resources are available?
Do you know what to do if you run into obstacles?
Do you know what to do if you need more
cooperation from functional areas?
Are you aware of project risks and their impact?
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7. IT project plan
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In its simplest form, a project plan should
clarify what the project is about and how it
will be accomplished.
It helps coordination, communication, and
negotiation.
Planning is often avoided, arguments include:
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“It is time consuming.”
“The project is too small to warrant a plan.”
“Plans do not often get implemented.”
“ We need action not planning.”
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7. Characteristics
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Positions the project in a broad perspective.
Must be comprehensive and inclusive of
important dimensions.
Must guide execution.
Must start with the project scope that defines
the project outcome.
Must guide activities that accomplish what is
described in the project scope statement.
Must be treated as a living document.
Must be adhered to by all stakeholders
especially the project manager and team
members.
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7. Project planning process
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Confirm Executive Approval
Understand Project Requirements
Reflect on Issues
Identify Milestones
Identify Phases
Identify Activities Within Phases
Identify Tasks within Activities
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7. Project planning process
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Confirm Executive Approval
All sources of power and influence that could
impact a project must be identified.
 Executive support must be secured.
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Understand Project Requirements
All requirements of the project must be
identified.
 Requirements must be linked to business
needs.
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7. Project planning process
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Reflect on Issues
The project manager is ultimately responsible
for the fate of a project.
 Issues to address include:
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 Strategic
Items - long term viability of a project
 Tactical Items - day to day operations of project
 Resourcing Items - human, technology and
other physical resources
 Acceptance Criteria - to assess deliverables
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7. Project planning process
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Identify Milestones
Milestones are clearly defined events that
have significant importance.
 A milestone should lead toward the successful
completion of a project.
 A milestone is typically accompanied by a
deliverable, which can be defined, measured
and demonstrated.
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7. Project planning process
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Identify Phases
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Project phases allow large projects to be
divided into manageable pieces.
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Based on prioritized list of user requirements.
Phases are constructed to implement
deliverables in a priority order that serves
those functions that have the highest needs
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Risk to business units must be minimized in all
situations.
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7. Project planning process
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Identify Activities within Phases
Each phase should be divided into activities
so that each activity produces a single
deliverable.
 An activity is defined by a start date and time,
an end date and time, and with resources
allocated to it.
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Identify Tasks within Activities
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You can further break down activities into the
distinct tasks that are necessary to fulfill the
activity.
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7. Project planning constraints
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The constraints applicable to most projects
are:
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Budget
Time
Resources
 Human
Skills, IS hardware/software, overhead
requirements.
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7. Project planning constraints
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Budget
A Budget is generally assigned to a project
during the proposal stage.
 Budgetary limitations are also applied at other
levels of a project, such as the design phase.
 Budget amounts are sometimes shifted
between phases to shift project priorities.
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7. Project planning constraints
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Time
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A project starts and ends on specific target
dates.
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Sometimes the start and end dates are
flexible.
The project duration is usually divided into
shorter times for different phases, activities
and tasks.
 PERT/CPM is a good estimating tool for time
constraints.
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7. Project planning constraints
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Resources
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Human Skills
Required skill-set for the project.
 Required skills can sometimes overlap among
people.
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IS Hardware/Software
It is important to plan for the availability of
technology ahead of time.
 It project manager must ensure that correct
hardware/software combination has been
selected and ordered in a timely manner.
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7. Project planning constraints
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Resources
Various resources are applied to a project.
 Some are only required at specific times while
others are required for the duration of the
project.
 If timing is critical, resource availability must
be carefully planned in response to time
constraint.
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7. Project planning pitfalls
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Every project has unique aspects that make
the planning process unique and problematic.
Following a generic recipe is not possible and
should be avoided.
 Experience from past projects must be well
understood and carefully used otherwise it
may prove counter productive.
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Human nature is another pitfall
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People have the tendency to do the easier
tasks; often without realizing it.
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7. Project planning pitfalls
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Factors that cause projects to fail include:
Lack of good project plan
 Requirements not understood by the project
team
 Insufficient funding
 Unrealistic expectations of stakeholders
 Lack of project management and leadership
skills
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7. Project planning tools
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Gantt Charts
Work Breakdown Structures (WBS)
Critical Path Method (CPM)
Program Evaluation and Review Technique
(PERT)
Microsoft Project
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7. Project planning and success
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Acts like a road map for execution.
Used as means of primary communication
with all stakeholders.
Reflects acceptance by all stakeholders.
Reflects collective efforts.
Requires broad involvement.
Identifies exceptions and contingencies.
Provides flexibility due to unpredictable
nature of some events and activities.
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7. Project planning and success
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It clarifies what needs to be done before the work
starts
It makes work manageable by breaking down the
project into phases
It defines the confines of each work unit in terms of
time and budget
It clarifies who is responsible for a task
It gives perspective and links work units to the overall
project
It links the project to organizational goals and
objectives
It is a source of reference for clarifying issues
It provides a base for performance evaluation
It provides a base to monitor progress
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7. Project planning and success
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It provides a base for measuring success
It provides a base for establishing communication
channels
It helps to create realistic expectations.
It helps to generate support for the project.
It provides boundaries for triple constraints: cost,
time, requirements
It provides the project manager with the opportunity
to demonstrate administrative and leadership skills
It provides the project manager with the opportunity
to set standards and describe expectations
It reduces uncertainty
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7. Challenges
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While not cast in stone, a plan must provide a
sense of stability, continuity, and focus.
Early adaptors rely on self-training and their
expectations are often changed.
Reluctant users may know the business but
are often hesitant to apply new technology in
their work.
Expectation gap – between technology
potential and its actual benefits.
Knowledge gap – between individuals who
know the business and those who know the
technology.
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7. Challenges
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The technology may become mature in the
future and be able to meet current
expectations, but it is not fulfilling those
expectations now.
Sometimes users are not prepared to wait;
they expect the best features now.
Sometimes users develop false expectations
because of over sell phenomenon by the
internal developers or external vendors.
A good project plan helps form realistic
expectations.
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7. Discussion question
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It is suggested in this chapter that an ‘action’
oriented system development approach is
often concerned with short-term objectives
and sometimes at the expense of long-term
goals. Does this mean that action is not
necessary? What is your interpretation?
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