Study Ideas generated from The Fast Forward MBA 3rd Edition by Eric Verzuh:
[CALMAT: BUS-528-PRJM-Study-Modules-12-Chap1~4]
Module-1 Chapter -1: Project Management is The New Critical Leadership Skill
(June 05) Chapter -2: Foundation Principles of Project Management
Ideas Leaned:
1. Concept changing on ‘Project’
'Project’ has been is big and critical and it won’t be completed within a short period to me. For
instance, in my life time of one 20 year period, I have worked with one Company for one
‘Project’; certainly there have many contracts, sub-contracts and stakeholders involved.
Now, due to the innovational technology growing and exploring, the world getting smaller
and changing faster; things have to be breaking down to more specific pieces to be able to
complete at a timely manner to keep up with the increasing speeded world path.
‘Project’, regardless its size, is defined with two essential characteristic of:
a) every project has a beginning and an end and b) to produce a unique product.
Therefore, even making a special breakfast is a unique ‘Project’.
2. Project Management vs. Project Manager
Project Management is the critical leadership skills that are carried or implemented by the
Project Manager (a Leader) with a set of Management discipline (methods, theories,
techniques…) across all the stages for a designed Project.
Modern project management, in addition to technical knowledge, managers of projects came
to need business skills and new skills related to managing temporary and unique projects, the
Project management techniques have now become industry-independent.
3. Project vs. On-Going Operation
Understanding project management begins with understanding the project environment;
different environment needs different discipline for managing project. Rang of activities in
any working place can be broken own to two groups of Project and On-Going operation.
Project is a work that be done one time, it is unique and temporary and has its own defined
schedule to be completed.
For the On-Going operations which involved repetitive work over and over within an
organization which is not a considerable Project; such as manufacturing and retails they have
no defined end date for their operations, always on-the-go.
4. Key concept for The Evolution of a Discipline vs. Challenge of Managing Project
[Quoted] If one of you decides to build a tower, will be not first sit down and calculate the
outlay to see if he has enough money to complete the project? He will do that for fear of
laying the foundation and then not being able to complete the work. -Luke 14:28-29
To understanding the development of project management as a disciple can lend insight into
its world to success a solution.
Some, but not limited to , Challenges and Difficulties that face project managers:
- Personnel different project requires different resources of skillful people , and availability to work …
- Estimating in-accurate estimates of cost and schedule, may contain more
assumptions than facts
- Authority un-clear decision making authorization can lead to political
maneuvering and to block the progress
- Control time frame for the cost and budget in accounting sysytem
may not sufficient to keep a project on track, may so far
out of control even beyond recovery?
5. Definition of Success for Project Manager
Three primary variables to the Project change one or more will cause remaining be changed:
- On Time (Schedule) Game is no good after the games are complete
- Within budget (Cost) over budget, over costing may lead a cancellation
- Quality Result (Quality) Scope and Performance must meet customers requirement
and expectation
A successful Project Manager essentially is able a) to guiding the Project through four stages
of Definition, Planning, Execution and Closeout in its life and b) to managing the Expectations,
such are:
- able to create an optimal Cost-Schedule- Quality equilibrium balance.
- exercise additional formula to success a powerful incentive to make sure that all
parties involved in the Project agree on the basics of:
- Set realistic expectations about the Cost-Schedule-Quality equilibrium with all the
project’s stakeholders
- Manage expectations throughout the Project, make sure all changes to be known
and accepted
- Deliver the promised product, on time and within budget
[*] The ultimate challenge for a project manager is to meet the optimal Cost-Schedule-Quality
goals without Damage to the people; the project ends with high moral, great relationships
with customers and vendors and look forward on the future projects.
6. SMART criteria
A Project can be is a small enough task that has a defined period of begin to end,
regardless its size. The essentials are how to complete it to meet the goals or targets of:
On-Time, Within Budget, Quality Result. The criteria for the
proceeding goals are based on the measurement scales of SMART:
o S (Specific definition for specific requirement)
o M (Measurable outcome by measurable skill, budgeting, …)
o A (Acceptable approach to accommodate defined definition, stakeholder)
o R (Realistic enough to meet the specified requirement and definition)
o T (Time critical to success a quality project within budget)
7. Definition - Differences of Project life cycle vs. Product development Life Cycle
A Project life cycle represents the liner progress of a project, from Defining the project
(ie. using Project Chart) through making a Plan, Executing the work and Closing out the
Project.
Product development life cycle starts defining the function and performance Requirements
for the product, through Designing conceives product that will meet the defined Requirements
and describes it in details, Construct the product and provide necessary documentations for
its operation, after the product is developed and constructed for operation, it has a life span in
which is it actually used (Operated). The operation phase can last for years and may contain
many projects.
Although new product development, like a project, has a beginning and an end to produce a
unique product, it may consist of more than at single project.
The Differences of Project life cycle vs. Product development life cycle are
- Project life cycle is industry –independent because the project management’s
theory is industry-independent.
- Product development life cycle is industry-specific, the specific steps for
building an airport is different from the steps for making an automobile.
*. PMP – PMO
PMP - Project Management Professional (certification)
Project management becomes more popular career track to success many
business reorganization. Many project managers would benefit from earning a PMP
certification.
PMO - Project Management Office, is the organizational entity responsible for
project management capabilities, commonly found through out all levels of
organization, is responsible for the project management infrastructure.
.................................................................................................................................................................
Module- 2 Chapter - 3: Know Your Key Stakeholders and Win Their Cooperation
(June 19) Chapter - 4: Write The Results: Five Key Documents to Manage
Expectations and Define Success
Ideas Leaned:
1. Concept Definition and Identify Stakeholders
Stakeholders are the heart of a successful project and the heart of successful project
management involved satisfying the expectation of these stakeholders.
Stakeholder is the people who contributes to the Project or who is impacted by its result of
the Project; such as the group of Customer, decision maker, vendor, employee … some will
play more than one role and some roles will be filled by more than one person.
[Quoted] A ‘Tip’ to identifying/searching stakeholders is to ask
‘Who will make a contribution?’ and ‘Who will be affected by this Project?
2. Roles, contributions and functions of Stakeholder
- Project Manager identify and satisfy the stakeholders include self as well
- Project Team making all stakeholders are the Project participants
- Management be productively and supportively to managing involved
stakeholder’s contributions
- Sponsorship; has formal authority and is ultimately responsible for
the success of the project
- Resources ; as functional manager, acquiring and guiding the
involved stakeholders to archive goals of the project
- Decision Authority; responsible for making effective timely decision
- The Customer who have a final say to judge the success of the Project
because they supply requirements, provide funding
and approve the expenditure
- Representatives of External Constraints
Identify External Constraints interfaces to solving the
imposed law and regulation from government or other
approvals from outside people or other organizations
- Advocates, Opponents, and Innocent Bystanders
wider audience stake needs to be identified and
understood for a possible project failure’s prevention
3. Checklist Tool for Stakeholder Analysis
A Fast Foundation Stakeholder Analysis form ( p-49 in the text book) can be
downloaded to serve as a Checklist tool for making stakeholder identification
more methodical to finding project’s stakeholder and to prevent possible be
forgotten important stakeholders
4. Project Rules vs. a Success Project
Every project is different; its rules must be uniquely defined for the different.
Project rules also set up a means by which the project may be changed in midstream
including changing management, if necessary.
A general acceptance of project rules must be carefully writing based on at least three crucial
factors of a) agreement on the goals and guidelines of the project among all parties involved
and agreed, b) be able control over the
scope of the project and c) an essential of Management support.
A careful writing of the project rules is Key to keeping the project team focused and
productive and to success the project.
5. Methods to Create Project Rules
There are four methods can be developed concurrently and constitute the actual written
documents containing the Project Rules that everyone understands and agrees with a signed
signature. These Methods are:
- Project Charter
A simple powerful document tool that announces a new Project has
begun, demonstrate management support for the Project and Project
Manager and to establishing Project Manager’s position and Experts' authority.
It contains the name and purpose of the project, the project manager’s
name, and statement of support from the issuer; it brings the key players
out into the open where everyone can see and recognize.
[*] Project Managers don’t need secrecy, they need recognition.
- Statement of Work (SOW) – Project Rules
SOW is a clearly documented and accepted expectation statement; it lists
the purpose, goals, scope, constrains, chain of command and success criteria
for the Project. The rules of the Game is subject to negotiating and modification
by the involved stakeholders.
SOW is directed solely at stakeholders from the same legal entity. SOW
is used to manage expectations and establish agreement, much like a
contract, but SOW is Not a contract.
[*] Once SOW is formally agree to its content, it becomes Rules for the Project.
- Responsibilities Matrix (Matrix) - Project Rules
A document that precisely details the activities and responsibilities of
each stakeholder group involved in a project; an idea for showing cross-
organizational interaction and to avoid communication breakdown
in between the organizations.
Responsibilities Matrix contains and involves with, but not limited to:
. List the major activities of the Project
To emphasize the different roles required for each task
. List the stakeholder groups
To show how project team and user council are named rather than
individual team members, except whenever a single person will be
making decision or has complete responsibilities for a significant
part of the Project.
. Code the responsibilities matrix
The Code used to indicate the involvement level, authority role and
responsibility of each stakeholder; the most common used are as the
RACI coding system (Responsible for execution, Approval authority,
Consult to perform activity, Inform decision being made)
. Incorporate the responsibilities matrix into the Project Rules
Once the Matrix is accepted, all changes must be approved by those
who has approved the original version. The advantage is that the project
manager is always left with a written document to refer to in the event of
dispute since the proper authority has been clarified by the approved parties.
- Communication Plan
A communication Plan is the written strategy for getting the right information to the
right people to do right thing at the right time.
People make project happen; no matter what the task, every action of a project manager
includes communication. Careful planning reduces the risk of a communication
breakdown and by giving to the involved parties’ information they need for more
productive and can be more effectively to manage customers’ expectation.
An effective and efficiency communication Plan is created for stakeholders participate in
different ways, so each has different requirements for information, with tips for avoiding
common pitfalls:
- Who needs information?
Sponsor, Functional manager, Customer, Project team, Project manager
- What information is needed?
Authorization, Status changes, Coordination
- How to keep communication everyone up-to-date on next steps
. Keep the status report short
. Set up an escalation procedure
. Make information timely
. Include regular meetings in the Communication Plan
. Utilize available techniques, tools and opportunities
such as EMail, video, holding meeting formally, informally, expected,
unexpectedly ways are sufficient for communication to take place.
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