CompTIA Project+ Certification Student Manual 2009 Edition

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition President, Axzo Press:

Jon Winder

Vice President, Product Development:

Charles G. Blum

Vice President, Operations:

Josh Pincus

Director of Publishing Systems Development:

Dan Quackenbush

Writer:

J. Furst

Developmental Editor:

Jim O’Shea

Copyeditor:

Robert Tillett

COPYRIGHT © 2009 Axzo Press. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced, transcribed, or used in any form or by any meansgraphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, Web distribution, or information storage and retrieval systemswithout the prior written permission of the publisher. For more information, go to www.axzopress.com.

Trademarks ILT Series is a trademark of Axzo Press. Some of the product names and company names used in this book have been used for identification purposes only and may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective manufacturers and sellers.

Disclaimers We reserve the right to revise this publication and make changes from time to time in its content without notice. The logo of the CompTIA Authorized Quality Curriculum (CAQC) program and the status of this or other training material as “Authorized” under the CompTIA Authorized Quality Curriculum program signifies that, in CompTIA’s opinion, such training material covers the content of CompTIA’s related exam. The contents of this training material were created for the CompTIA Project+ exam, 2009 Edition, covering CompTIA certification objectives that were current as of October2009. ISBN 10: 1-4260-1818-5 ISBN 13: 978-1-4260-1818-3 Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 GL 06 05 04 03

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Contents Introduction

iii

Topic A: About the manual............................................................................... iv Topic B: Setting your expectations...................................................................vii Topic C: Reviewing the course......................................................................... xi

Project management overview

1-1

Topic A: Introduction to project management ................................................. 1-2 Topic B: IT project management ..................................................................... 1-9 Topic C: Different types of organizational structures..................................... 1-11 Unit summary: Project management overview ............................................... 1-19

Project initiation

2-1

Topic A: Stakeholder requirements ................................................................. 2-2 Topic B: Business case .................................................................................... 2-8 Topic C: Requirements analysis ..................................................................... 2-12 Topic D: Key roles and responsibilities .......................................................... 2-17 Topic E: The project charter........................................................................... 2-20 Topic F: Stakeholder consensus and approval ............................................... 2-26 Unit summary: Project initiation ..................................................................... 2-31

Project planning, estimating and scheduling

3-1

Topic A: Planning phase .................................................................................. 3-2 Topic B: Defining scope .................................................................................. 3-5 Topic C: Creating a work breakdown structure............................................... 3-8 Topic D: Developing time and cost estimates ................................................ 3-16 Topic E: Creating a budget............................................................................. 3-24 Topic F: The project team .............................................................................. 3-27 Topic G: The project schedule ........................................................................ 3-33 Unit summary: Project planning, estimating and scheduling .......................... 3-43

Creating project plans

4-1

Topic A: The communications management plan ........................................... 4-2 Topic B: The procurement management plan................................................. 4-10 Topic C: The risk management plan............................................................... 4-20 Topic D: The quality management plan.......................................................... 4-26 Topic E: The project management plan.......................................................... 4-31 Unit summary: Creating project plans............................................................. 4-37

Managing people

5-1

Topic A: Managing the project team ............................................................... 5-2 Topic B: Relationship with customer and sponsor .......................................... 5-8 Unit summary: Managing people .................................................................... 5-11

Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6-1

Topic A: Tracking............................................................................................ 6-2 Topic B: Performance reporting ..................................................................... 6-12 Unit summary: Managing cost and evaluating project performance............... 6-23

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Managing change and quality

7-1

Topic A: Managing change ............................................................................. 7-2 Topic B: Managing quality............................................................................. 7-11 Unit summary: Managing change and quality ................................................ 7-18

Project closure

8-1

Topic A: Closing a project .............................................................................. 8-2 Unit summary: Project closure........................................................................ 8-10

Certification exam objectives map

A-1

Topic A: Comprehensive exam objectives ...................................................... A-2

Case Studies

B-1

Topic A: Billing System Conversion Project .................................................. B-2 Topic B: ABC Financials Product Database ................................................... B-4 Topic C: Case study tables .............................................................................. B-7

Course summary

S-1

Topic A: Course summary............................................................................... S-2 Topic B: Continued learning after class .......................................................... S-4

Glossary

G-1

Index

I-1

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iii

Introduction

After reading this introduction, you will know how to: A Use ILT Series manuals in general. B Use prerequisites, a target student

description, course objectives, and a skills inventory to properly set your expectations for the course. C Re-key this course after class.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: About the manual ILT Series philosophy Our manuals facilitate your learning by providing structured interaction with the software itself. While we provide text to explain difficult concepts, the hands-on activities are the focus of our courses. By paying close attention as your instructor leads you through these activities, you will learn the skills and concepts effectively. We believe strongly in the instructor-led class. During class, focus on your instructor. Our manuals are designed and written to facilitate your interaction with your instructor, and not to call attention to manuals themselves. We believe in the basic approach of setting expectations, delivering instruction, and providing summary and review afterwards. For this reason, lessons begin with objectives and end with summaries. We also provide overall course objectives and a course summary to provide both an introduction to and closure on the entire course.

Manual components The manuals contain these major components:  Table of contents  Introduction  Units  Appendices  Course summary  Glossary  Index Each element is described below. Table of contents The table of contents acts as a learning roadmap. Introduction The introduction contains information about our training philosophy and our manual components, features, and conventions. It contains target student, prerequisite, objective, and setup information for the specific course. Units Units are the largest structural component of the course content. A unit begins with a title page that lists objectives for each major subdivision, or topic, within the unit. Within each topic, conceptual and explanatory information alternates with hands-on activities. Units conclude with a summary comprising one paragraph for each topic, and an independent practice activity that gives you an opportunity to practice the skills you’ve learned. The conceptual information takes the form of text paragraphs, exhibits, lists, and tables. The activities are structured in two columns, one telling you what to do, the other providing explanations, descriptions, and graphics.

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Introduction

v

Appendices An appendix is similar to a unit in that it contains objectives and conceptual explanations. However, an appendix does not include hands-on activities, a summary, or an independent practice activity. Course summary This section provides a text summary of the entire course. It is useful for providing closure at the end of the course. The course summary also indicates the next course in this series, if there is one, and lists additional resources you might find useful as you continue to learn about the software. Glossary The glossary provides definitions for all of the key terms used in this course. Index The index at the end of this manual makes it easy for you to find information about a particular software component, feature, or concept.

Manual conventions We’ve tried to keep the number of elements and the types of formatting to a minimum in the manuals. This aids in clarity and makes the manuals more classically elegant looking. But there are some conventions and icons you should know about. Item

Description

Italic text

In conceptual text, indicates a new term or feature.

Bold text

In unit summaries, indicates a key term or concept. In an independent practice activity, indicates an explicit item that you select, choose, or type.

Code font

Indicates code or syntax.

Longer strings of ► code will look ► like this.

In the hands-on activities, any code that’s too long to fit on a single line is divided into segments by one or more continuation characters (►). This code should be entered as a continuous string of text.

Select bold item

In the left column of hands-on activities, bold sans-serif text indicates an explicit item that you select, choose, or type.

Keycaps like e

Indicate a key on the keyboard you must press.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Hands-on activities The hands-on activities are the most important parts of our manuals. They are divided into two primary columns. The “Here’s how” column gives short instructions to you about what to do. The “Here’s why” column provides explanations, graphics, and clarifications. Here’s a sample: Do it!

A-1:

Creating a commission formula

Here’s how 1 Open Sales

Here’s why This is an oversimplified sales compensation worksheet. It shows sales totals, commissions, and incentives for five sales reps.

2 Observe the contents of cell F4 The commission rate formulas use the name “C_Rate” instead of a value for the commission rate.

For these activities, we have provided a collection of data files designed to help you learn each skill in a real-world business context. As you work through the activities, you will modify and update these files. Of course, you might make a mistake and therefore want to re-key the activity starting from scratch. To make it easy to start over, you will rename each data file at the end of the first activity in which the file is modified. Our convention for renaming files is to add the word “My” to the beginning of the file name. In the above activity, for example, a file called “Sales” is being used for the first time. At the end of this activity, you would save the file as “My sales,” thus leaving the “Sales” file unchanged. If you make a mistake, you can start over using the original “Sales” file. In some activities, however, it might not be practical to rename the data file. If you want to retry one of these activities, ask your instructor for a fresh copy of the original data file.

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Introduction

vii

Topic B: Setting your expectations Properly setting your expectations is essential to your success. This topic will help you do that by providing:  Prerequisites for this course  A description of the target student  A list of the objectives for the course  A skills assessment for the course

Course prerequisites The only prerequisite for this course is a basic understanding of project management.

Target student You’ll get most out of this course if your goal is to manage projects efficiently and effectively.

CompTIA certification This course will prepare you to pass the CompTIA Project+ certification exam (2009 Objectives). CompTIA is a non-profit information technology (IT) trade association. CompTIA’s certifications are designed by subject matter experts from across the IT industry. Each CompTIA certification is vendor-neutral, covers multiple technologies, and requires demonstration of skills and knowledge widely sought after by the IT industry. In order to become CompTIA certified, you must: 1 Select a certification exam provider. For more information, you can visit http://www.comptia.org/certifications/testprep.aspx. 2 Find sample exam questions and test-taking tips at http://www.comptia.org/certifications/testprep.aspx. 3 Register for and schedule a time to take the CompTIA certification exam at a convenient location. 4 Read and sign the Candidate Agreement, which will be presented at the time of the exam. The text of the Candidate Agreement can be found at http://www.comptia.org/certifications/testprep/policies/agreement.aspx. 5 Take and pass the CompTIA certification exam(s). For additional information about CompTIA’s certifications, such as their industry acceptance, benefits, or program news, you should visit http://www.comptia.org/certifications.aspx. To contact CompTIA with any questions or comments, please call (630) 678-8300 or e-mail [email protected]. There are no prerequisites in order to take the CompTIA Project+ certification exam. The exam asks you to answer 130 questions in 120 minutes. Once you pass the exam, there are no continuing education or renewal requirements.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Course objectives These overall course objectives will give you an idea about what to expect from the course. It is also possible that they will help you see that this course is not the right one for you. If you think you either lack the prerequisite knowledge or already know most of the subject matter to be covered, you should let your instructor know that you think you are misplaced in the class. Note: In addition to the general objectives listed below, specific CompTIA Project+ exam objectives are listed at the beginning of each topic. For a complete mapping of exam objectives to course content, see Appendix A. After completing this course, you will know how to:  Discuss project and project management concepts, project management tools, and basic project management skills.  Identify stakeholder needs and expectations, business requirements, and roles and responsibilities; create a project charter; and identify strategies for building consensus among management and other project stakeholders.  Discuss the planning process; prepare a scope statement; create a work breakdown structure (WBS); develop time and cost estimates; build a project team; and create a project schedule.  Create a communications management plan, a procurement management plan, a risk management plan, quality management plan and put it all together in a project management plan.  Manage the project team and client relationships.  Create a budget; identify project tracking activities; and evaluate and measure the performance of a project.  Manage changes, resources, and quality.  Discuss project closure.

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ix

Introduction

Skills inventory Use the following form to gauge your skill level entering the class. For each skill listed, rate your familiarity from 1 to 5, with five being the most familiar. This is not a test. Rather, it is intended to provide you with an idea of where you’re starting from at the beginning of class. If you’re wholly unfamiliar with all the skills, you might not be ready for the class. If you think you already understand all of the skills, you might need to move on to the next course in the series. In either case, you should let your instructor know as soon as possible. Skill Understanding project and project management concepts Using project management tools Using project management skills Identifying stakeholders needs and expectations Identifying business requirements Identifying roles and responsibilities of stakeholders Creating a project charter Building consensus and gaining approval Discussing the planning process Defining the scope of a project Creating a work breakdown structure (WBS) Developing time and cost estimates Building a project team Creating a project schedule Creating a communications management plan Creating a human resource management plan Creating a procurement management plan Creating a risk management plan Creating a quality management plan Creating a comprehensive project plan Managing the project team

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1

2

3

4

5

x

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Skill Managing client relationships Creating budgets Identifying project tracking activities Evaluating project performance Managing change Managing quality Closing a project

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1

2

3

4

5

Introduction

xi

Topic C: Reviewing the course If you have the proper hardware and software, you can re-key this course after class. This section explains what you’ll need in order to do so, and how to do it.

Downloading the Solutions files There are no special setup instructions for reviewing this course. If necessary, you can download the Solutions files for the tables found in Appendix C: 1 Connect to www.axzopress.com. 2 Under Downloads, click Instructor-Led Training. 3 Browse the subject categories to locate your course. Then click the course title to display a list of available downloads. (You can also access these downloads through our Catalog listings.) 4 Click the link(s) for downloading the Solutions files, and follow the instructions that appear on your screen.

CertBlaster software CertBlaster pre- and post-assessment software is available for this course. To download and install this free software, complete the following steps: 1 Go to www.axzopress.com. 2 Under Downloads, click CertBlaster. 3 Click the link for CompTIA® Project+™ Certification, 2009 Objectives. 4 Save the .EXE file to a folder on your hard drive. (Note: If you skip this step, the CertBlaster software will not install correctly.) 5 Click Start and choose Run. 6 Click Browse and then navigate to the folder that contains the .EXE file. 7 Select the .EXE file and click Open. 8 Click OK and follow the on-screen instructions. When prompted for the password, enter c_prj+09.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

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1–1

Unit 1 Project management overview Unit time: 90 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Review project management basics. B Compare IT projects to non-IT projects. C Examine different types of organizational

structures.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Introduction to project management This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

1.2

Identify the characteristics of a project  Temporary endeavor  Delivers a unique product or service  Constrained by time  Resources and quality

1.5

Outline the process groups of the project life cycle  Initiating/Pre-Project Setup  Planning  Executing  Monitoring/controlling  Closing

Features of a project Explanation

A project can be defined as a one-time effort toward a specific goal. Its distinctive characteristic is that it creates a unique product or service. Every project has a definite start and end date, which makes it a temporary endeavor. A project:  Creates a unique product or service  Has defined start and end dates  Is a temporary endeavor

Project vs. operations A project is quite different from the operations of a business. While a project creates a brand-new, unique product or service (think of a new software application), operations creates a repetitive product or service (think of cars rolling off the assembly line every 3 minutes). Project

Operations

One-time effort

Ongoing effort

Unique product or service

Repetitive product or service

Progressive elaboration Projects are developed in steps that progress in increments, starting with a high level definition of the project and continuing on with progressively more detailed aspects of the project. This is considered progressive elaboration. Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Project management overview

1–3

Triple constraint A project has three specific components called the triple constraint, as shown in Exhibit 1-1:  Scope—Deliverable for the project  Time—Schedule for the project  Cost—Budget for the project

Exhibit 1-1: The triple constraint A project is considered successful when it’s delivered on time, within cost constraints, and meets the scope. Constraints are limitations imposed on your project and can be financial or resource-based.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Project management process groups Project management is an iterative process that involves the following five major phases, as shown in Exhibit 1-2:  Initiating  Planning  Executing  Monitoring/controlling  Closing Each of these phases demands careful planning and monitoring to ensure a successful project. Approaching any of the phases haphazardly might doom the project to failure. Collectively, these phases are called the project life-cycle. During each phase, one or more outputs are completed. Outputs have to be realistic and measurable; otherwise they have no meaning. Only when outputs are measurable can you determine whether the project is moving along on time and within budget.

Exhibit 1-2: The five phases of project management

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Project management overview

1–5

The following table describes each phase of the project life-cycle. Phase

Description

Outputs

Initiating

Initiating processes recognize the beginning of the project. You define and authorize the project, name the project manager, and define scope, deliverable, duration and resources.

Project charter

Planning

Planning processes identify the scope of the project and resource requirements. You identify stakeholders, define objectives and requirements, define scope, develop the schedule, define the budget, identify risks, identify resources, and plan procurement.

Project management plan

Executing

During executing processes, you implement the project management plan, complete the work, and coordinate staff.

Deliverable

Monitoring/ Controlling

Monitoring/controlling processes ensure the objectives are met by monitoring and tracking the project’s progress. You monitor performance against the project management plan, identify variances, undertake corrective action, and implement approved changes.

Corrective action

Closing

Closing processes formalize the acceptance of the project and ensure an orderly end. You gather project information, review of the project’s time and cost performance, compile lessons learned, and close contracts.

Sign-off from the customer or sponsor

Exhibit 1-3: The five phases of project management

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1–6

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition To manage a project, you need to understand the five phases of the project life-cycle as shown in Exhibit 1-3 which we will explain during the rest of the course.

Do it!

A-1:

Discussing project concepts

Questions and answers 1 What is a project?

2 What are the five phases of a project?

3 Would you consider launching a new product as a project and why?

4 Why is planning necessary for a project?

5 Why do you need to monitor your project?

6 When launching a new product, you’re asked to complete the campaign in five days. In your opinion, you need at least 12 days for the task. What type of constraint do you face?

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Project management overview

1–7

Management skills and the project life-cycle Explanation

Successful project management requires many skills. The ideal project manager is organized, has excellent communication skills, is detail-oriented, and has good interpersonal skills. These skills come into play throughout the life-cycle of the project. During the initiating and planning phases, the project manager must create a project plan based on the goals of the project. During the executing phase, the project manager must ensure that the project follows the plan and that the milestones and goals are met so the project finishes on time and within budget. During the closing phase, the project manager must ensure that the project is completed and closed out properly. Initiating and planning phase skills The initiating and planning phases are essential to a successful project. During these phases, project needs are identified, and the outcomes of the project are defined. After the scope of a project is defined, the project manager must put together a plan for delivering the project. The initiating and planning phases require the project manager to apply the following skills:  Identify the goal clearly.  Identify the project’s scope.  Translate business requirements into functional and technical requirements.  Estimate time and cost.  Link activities to performance and deliverables.  Establish priorities and ground rules.  Identify risks.  Negotiate, for example, for funding or resources. Executing phase skills The executing phase is when the project team accomplishes the actual activities and tasks of the project. After a project team is established, it is the project manager’s responsibility to manage the various parts of the project. It’s also critical to get and maintain management support during the execution phase. At this point, the project manager will:  Build a project team.  Manage changes.  Keep stakeholders informed.  Maintain executive management support.  Ensure the project’s ongoing relevance.  Manage handoffs between groups.  Manage scope creep.  Facilitate communication, cooperation, and collaboration.

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1–8

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Monitoring/controlling phase skills The monitoring/controlling phase is when the project manager monitors the performance against the plan. At this point, the project manager will:  Monitor performance against the project management plan.  Identify variances.  Undertake corrective action.  Implement approved changes. Closing phase skills During the closing phase, the project is brought to its completion. The closing phase includes the following skills:  Obtain sponsor or customer sign-off.  Turn over the deliverable and ensure that support/maintenance begins.  Review the project with all team members.  Identify lessons learned.  Generate a final project report.

Do it!

A-2:

Discussing project management

Questions and answers 1 True or false? Project management isn’t an iterative process.

2 What is achieved during the planning phase of a project?

3 Which of the following are included in the initiating and planning phases of a project? A

See the problem clearly.

B

Build project teams.

C

Assess risks.

D

Translate business requirements into functional and technical specifications.

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Project management overview

1–9

Topic B: IT project management IT projects compared to non-IT projects Explanation

One of the biggest challenges faced in information technology (IT) today is to complete projects successfully. Scope creep is a huge issue for projects if the requirements for the project are not clearly defined and adhered to. Scope creep refers to the addition of project requirements while a project is in progress. Understanding all aspects of project management is critical to ensure the project is delivered on time, on budget, and to its specifications. Extensive research and practical experience have shown that not all tasks in the various phases of a non-IT project are equivalent to the tasks and activities of an IT project. In an IT environment, the deliverable is often intangible (such as in a software application). Also, designers are often the implementers. IT departments often have multiple projects going on simultaneously that are linked. The initiation and success of one project might depend on the successful completion of another project. Scope creep is another factor, as is the constantly changing IT environment. Decision makers often read about a new technology and want to add it to a project without understanding what kind of effect their request will have on the project. This scenario is in contrast to managing a construction project (from which much of the prevailing project management theory is derived), where the work is linear and roles are clearly delineated. IT project management differs from traditional project management in the following ways:  The deliverable is often intangible.  The designers are often the implementers.  Most IT departments have multiple projects going on simultaneously that are linked. Project management versus product development Product development and project management methodologies are sometimes confused with one another. Product development methodologies provide details for how work is to be performed. For example, ISO 9001 requires that a design process include such activities as requirements definition, planning, verification, and validation. Project management also includes requirements definition and planning, but project requirements and plans tend to be broader than those needed strictly for product development and are more likely to change during the course of the project.

Project management software Some examples of project management software are Microsoft Project, Oracle Primavera, and Artemis Views. These types of tools give the project manager the ability to plan and track a project’s progress. To use such tools effectively, the project manager must have a sound understanding of project management processes and procedures. Choosing the appropriate tool depends on the project’s complexity, the project manager’s level of experience with the software, and specific organizational standards. There might be certain project management tools your organization will mandate that you to use. To learn more about the various software tools available, you can use search engines, such as Google.com and Yahoo.com, to get information about the latest versions of project management software. Authorized to be used in American Public University.

1–10 Do it!

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

B-1:

Discussing project management software

Questions and answers 1 In your experience, what are the major reasons for IT project failure?

2 In your experience, what are the major reasons for project success?

3 Name one common project management software tool.

4 How is IT project management different from non-IT project management?

5 On what factors does the choice of project management software depend?

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Project management overview

1–11

Topic C: Different types of organizational structures This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

1.6

Explain the different types of organizational structures  Functional  Weak matrix  Matrix  Strong matrix  Projectized

Organizational structure The structure of an organization strongly affects how projects are managed. The organizational structure of an organization is either functional, matrix, or projectized. Functional In a functional organization, team members are loyal to their department and report only to their functional manager. The project manager is part-time on the project and reports to a functional manager; the team members are part-time as well. The project manager has only limited control over team members because they report to the functional manager. Overall, a functional organization makes for an inefficient project organization. Examples of functional organizations include organizations that are dominated by silos (compartmentalized units such as a sales department, engineering department, and so on).

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Exhibit 1-4: Functional organizational structure Matrix In a matrix organization, team members maintain a home in their department and report to both the functional manager and the project manager. The project manager is fulltime on the project, while team members are part-time. Overall, a matrix organization constitutes a complex and costly but reasonably effective project organization. A weak matrix is between functional and a balanced matrix organization. A strong matrix is between a balanced matrix and projectized organization.

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Project management overview

Exhibit 1-5: Matrix organizational structure

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1–14

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Projectized In a projectized organization, team members have no department they belong to; they are loyal only to the project. Both the project manager and team members are full-time on the project, and the project manager has control over team members because they report only to him or her. Overall, a projectized organization makes for an efficient project organization. Examples of a projectized organization includes all organizations that exist solely to run projects (such as consulting firms or engineering firms).

Exhibit 1-6: Projectized organizational structure The following table illustrates the relationships found in each organizational structure. Relationship

Functional

Matrix

Projectized

Team members are loyal to

Functional department

Conflicted loyalty

Project

Team members report to

Functional manager

Both functional manager and project manager

Project manager

Project manager’s role is

Part-time

Full-time

Full-time

Team members’ role is

Part-time

Part-time

Full-time

Control of project manager over team members is

Low

Medium

High

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Project management overview

1–15

Why is project management needed? Many projects fail because they aren’t managed properly. To reduce the risk of such losses and to implement projects successfully to gain a competitive edge, companies need to pay attention to project management. High failure rates and high costs According to research, approximately 70% of IT projects fail (if we define failure as more than 50% over budget, over 50% behind schedule, or project cancellation). This equates to a waste of hundreds of billions of dollars per year in the U.S. alone. Two factors drive this poor performance:  Lack of project management skills.  Poor communication between the IT organization and business units. Project size A study done in the late 1990s found a 90% failure rate for projects with budgets of more than $6 million. Current industry studies show a positive correlation between project size and project failure (i.e., the larger the project, the more likely it will fail), but even small projects demand an experienced project manager.

Checklist for a doomed project You can avoid some of the common causes of failure by being aware of what has caused other projects to fail. Although there are a multitude of reasons why projects fail, there are some that are more common than others. A successful project manager attempts to anticipate and address these potential problems while planning the project. Research has identified the following items as major contributors to project failure:  Sponsor not involved  Poor project planning  Frequent project manager changes  Responsibilities not clear  Unclear benefits and deliverables  Poor or no change control  Changes in technology  Inappropriate or insufficient skills  Scope creep  Poor project manager Uninvolved sponsors A sponsor who isn’t actively involved in the project strategy and direction can quickly doom a project because, without the support of a sponsor, the project can lose its funding and support from senior management.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Poor project planning A project plan that’s nonexistent, out-of-date, incomplete, or poorly constructed means a project will fail because it’s impossible to manage a project without a well-written plan. Changes in project managers Frequent changes of project manager during the course of a project can cause a project to fail because the project team can’t be cohesive without a good leader. Trust and leadership are essential to the project and can only be built over time. Unclear responsibilities Often, projects use external contractors as well as internal resources to accomplish a project. When the responsibilities of the external service providers (ESPs) and in-house staff are not clearly defined, critical tasks often fall through the cracks. In addition, this issue can create a situation where everyone is claiming that a particular activity or task isn’t his or her job. Unclear benefits and deliverables If the benefits of the project and how those benefits will be delivered aren’t well defined to the affected parties, you won’t have buy-in for the project. Without buy-in, support from those affected is nonexistent, and the project will be undermined either intentionally or unintentionally. Everyone is tuned into the radio station WII-FM (what’s in it for me), and if the benefits don’t answer that question, the project can easily fail. Lack of change control If changes to the project are not carefully controlled, the project will quickly get out of hand. The project’s scope can balloon, and the project manager won’t be able to deliver on time. Since timely delivery is a key factor in a project, this can cause failure. Technology changes Changes in technology during a project can cause it to fail because the technology that was planned for is no longer utilized. Lack of required skills within the project team Inappropriate or insufficient skill sets among the project team members is an issue that causes projects to fail. If the project team members don’t have the required expertise, the deliverables will either be delivered late or fail completely. Scope creep Scope creep is an ongoing problem for projects. As defined earlier, it refers to the addition of project requirements while the project is in process. Often, scope creep occurs because the project sponsors or business unit managers don’t really understand their needs and business requirements. Scope creep also occurs because new technologies, which aren’t part of the project plan, become available and are suddenly added to the project as requirements. Finally, scope creep can occur because business unit managers outside the original project definition suddenly understand the benefits of a project’s deliverables and want their departments added to the project. A good project manager must handle scope creep in a diplomatic and productive manner to keep the project on track.

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Project management overview

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Poor project manager Poor project managers are either not trained in project management best practices or are a poor fit from a personality point of view (or at worst, both), which contributes significantly to project failure. Examples of poor project managers include the micromanager, and those who look the other way when problems crop up.

Leading contributors to project success Research has identified the following as leading contributors to project success:  Formal governance and change-approval guidelines.  Sponsors accountable for project results.  Project management training.  Formal procedures for change requests.  Regular communication with users.  Clear tracking of people, skills, time, and cost.  Inventory of skills-based competencies.  Project estimates based on several inputs.

The cost of failure: an example One midsize organization spent two years developing a business application which the business directors then refused to install. Ineffective project management was largely at fault for the following reasons:  No qualified project manager had negotiated the resources and the time required.  The IT organization and the business directors had seldom revisited the project’s scope, requirements, or relevance.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

C-1:

Identifying a project’s failure and success

Exercises 1 In your group, discuss the following: Based on the “Checklist for a doomed project” and “Leading contributors to project success” sections, what skills does a project manager need to have to be successful? At the end of your group’s discussion, be prepared to discuss your answers with the class.

2 In your group, discuss the factors that can make a project successful. Be prepared to discuss your answers with the entire class.

3 In your group, discuss the reasons why a project might fail. Be prepared to discuss your answers with the entire class.

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Unit summary: Project management overview Topic A

In this topic, you learned about project management concepts. You discussed the features of successful projects and learned about project management process groups. You learned that project management is an iterative process.

Topic B

In this topic, you learned about IT project management. You learned that project management methodology is different from product development methodology and about the different project management software tools.

Topic C

In this topic, you learned about different types of organizational structures and project management skills. Then, you learned common reasons for project failure and leading factors that contribute to success.

Review questions 1 What defines a successful project? When it’s delivered on time, within budget, and meets scope requirements.

2 Define the term “project life-cycle.” The project life-cycle is the sum of the five project phases: initiating, planning, executing, monitoring/controlling, and closing.

3 List three ways IT projects differ from non-IT projects. Answers might include:

 The deliverable is often intangible.  The designers are often the implementers.  Most IT departments have multiple projects going on at one time, and the projects might be dependent on each other.

4 Describe at least two responsibilities of a project manager. Answers might include:

 Identifies the high-level tasks for the project.  Assembles a team for the project.  Determines a timeline for the project.  Estimates costs.  Creates the project management plan.

5 What occurs during the initiating and planning phase? Needs are identified, and the scope of the project is defined. In addition, a budget and schedule are created.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 6 Why do projects fail? Answers might include:

 Uninvolved sponsors  Poor project planning  Changes in project managers  Lack of work definition and responsibility  Unclear benefits and deliverables  Lack of change control  Technology changes  Lack of required skills within the project team  Scope creep

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Unit 2 Project initiation Unit time: 240 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Identify stakeholder requirements. B Identify a business case. C Perform a requirements analysis. D Identify key roles and responsibilities. E Create a project charter. F Identify strategies for obtaining stakeholder

consensus and approval.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Stakeholder requirements This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

1.3

Summarize the steps required to validate a project  Identify and analyze stakeholders

Stakeholders Explanation

Stakeholders are individuals and organizations who are affected by and have an interest in the project. The main stakeholders include the sponsor, customer, seller (also referred to as vendor), end-user, project team, project manager, the organization involved, other organizations, and other entities or individuals connected with the project. Stakeholder requirements and their expectations of the project are recognized by means of various communication methods, including personal interviews, surveys, group meetings, and focus groups. Stakeholder requirements are noted, and this list is maintained and used throughout the project Stakeholders could be all of the following:  Sponsor  Customer  Project manager  Project team member  Subject matter expert  End-user  Seller (or vendor)  General public  Media

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Analysis and data gathering Some analysis and data gathering is helpful in identifying stakeholders. This analysis ensures that you consider all the issues and agendas that could affect the project. The end-result of your analysis is the stakeholder register which includes the major requirements and expectations of stakeholders by name. When identifying stakeholders, do the following:  Examine the environment. Identify the individuals or groups who might be affected by the project or who might have an influential opinion.  Determine the type of influence. Sort the individuals and groups according to the type of influence they might have. For example, one stakeholder could have direct contact with the project output or product. Another stakeholder might have control over some aspect of the project, such as financial control or influence over physical, infrastructure, technical, commercial, political, or legal aspects.  Categorize the level of influence. Categorize the level of influence each stakeholder could have over the project. Group stakeholders who might have a similar kind of influence together.  Gather information. Gather information, such as what you need to know about each stakeholder, where and how you can obtain the information, and who’ll be responsible for gathering, analyzing, and interpreting the data you collect about each stakeholder’s requirements.

Key stakeholder roles Key stakeholders and their roles are described in the following table. Stakeholder

Role

Sponsor

The individual that’s initiating the work and providing the resources. A member of upper management is an example of a sponsor of an internal project.

Customer

The individual or organization that will receive the product or service generated by the project. The customer provides the resources of an external project.

End-user

The people who’ll be affected by the product or service generated by the project.

Seller

Those influenced and affected by the project (such as contractors and subcontractors).

Project team

The professionals or other specialists who serve on the project team.

Project manager

The individual responsible for managing the project.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

A-1:

Identifying key stakeholders

Exercises Read Part 1 of the case study in Appendix B, Topic A, Billing System Conversion Project and answer the following questions. 1 List the major types of stakeholders.

2 Describe the interest in the project for each type of stakeholder (that is, what they want to know or gain from the project).

3 Describe the role you feel each stakeholder should play in the project.

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Stakeholder requirements Explanation

You need to identify the stakeholders’ needs, expectations, and requirements in order to ensure a successful project. You also need to understand the way people think about the results of the project, and for each stakeholder, the meaning of success may vary. It is a good idea to identify stakeholders who’ll be affected by the project. By identifying their critical success criteria during initiation, you avoid expensive changes during later phases of a project. Requirements may relate to classic project management factors, such as scope, time, and cost. They might also relate to organizational issues, such as changes in influences, decision-making authority, and team membership. In addition, personal agendas, such as getting a raise or promotion, drive the interests of stakeholders. You need to determine to what extent scope, time, and cost are important to the various stakeholders, as well as work to uncover any personal agendas that could affect the project. Methods for identifying requirements There are several methods you can use to determine stakeholder needs:  Focus groups  Surveys  Interviews Each method should employ the following:  Open-ended questions to gather all points of view  Specific questions to focus on specific areas Stakeholder requirements vary depending on the perspective held by the individual. Focus groups often work well with customers and end-users, as do surveys. Interviews are more time consuming but tend to capture more detailed information because they allow for additional feedback from the interviewee. Also, you can examine body language and other factors during an interview. Reasons for inadequate requirements Requirements might be inadequate because they are:  Incorrect  Unclear  Missing  Inconsistent Each reason tends to have a different cause. It is a good idea to review the requirements with the stakeholders to be sure you have captured the information accurately. Inadequate requirements will cause problems throughout the project and can cause the project to fail.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Identify assumptions As you review the scope, document all assumptions clearly. A complete listing of the assumptions needs to be prepared and retained throughout the life of the project. It is a good idea to have the stakeholders sign off on the list of assumptions. That way you have documented proof and a starting point for any discussion about the assumptions later in the project. These assumptions might be relative to a number of project influences, for example:  Contingency  Risk  Resources  Design  Quality and reliability considerations  Management considerations  Target audience Identifying and documenting assumptions throughout the life of the project is critical to its success. Seller involvement If your project requires specialized expertise, you might need to contract with a seller to help with the implementation. Using a seller will require you to develop a Request for Proposal (RFP). This document requests that the seller provide a proposal for the project. The seller you have chosen in turn will produce a statement of work (SOW). This SOW should include a description of the product or service that needs to be performed for your company. Requirement conflicts Often you’ll find that the requirements of one group of stakeholders might be at odds with those of another. This can cause open conflict between stakeholders or worse, hidden sabotage of the project. In order to avoid such problems, you must spend time looking at all the requirements and determine how to resolve any conflicts. To manage conflicting requirements: 1 List all the requirements from all stakeholders and analyze them for similarities and differences. 2 Prioritize the requirements based on business needs. 3 Develop alternative solutions that encompass the requirements. 4 Select the requirements that closely align with the organization’s long-term goals. 5 Present your solutions to all the stakeholders. Keep in mind you probably won’t be able to satisfy everyone’s requirements. Your focus must be on the overall success of the project. It is a good idea to find advocates such as the sponsor that can help you present your solutions to the stakeholders.

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A-2:

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Defining stakeholder requirements

Questions and answers 1 Stakeholders aren’t always able to identify their requirements in clear, operational terms. You must learn to probe for information that provides some necessary building blocks for scope development. Refer back to the types of stakeholders listed previously and answer the following. What kind of questions should you ask stakeholders in order to gather more operational kinds of requirements? Be prepared to discuss your answers with the class.

2 How would you handle widely divergent or conflicting needs among the stakeholders?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic B: Business case This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

1.3

Summarize the steps required to validate a project  Validate business case

Business case Explanation

Projects should be driven by a business case that results in benefits to an organization. Various individuals and stakeholders in a project can have opinions about the project that differ. A balanced scorecard can be used to differentiate various stakeholders and their opinions along with the metrics to measure success. All projects are business projects and should have a business rationale from the outset. A business case is either based on strategic goals of the organization or is measured by financial metrics such as increased revenue, reduced cost, increased profit, or increased return on investment. A business case is identified and defined by answering the following questions:  Does the project deliver value to the business?  Does it deliver benefits that the business actually needs?  How well does the project anticipate future requirements?

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B-1:

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Determining the business case

Exercises Read Part 1 of the case study in Appendix B, Topic A, Billing System Conversion Project and answer the following questions. 1 What are the terms, methods, and measures used to define the business case in a project?

2 List the identified and likely business needs for the billing system conversion project. Be prepared to share your answers with the class.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Balanced Scorecard Explanation

The Balanced Scorecard, developed in the early 1990s by David Norton and Robert Kaplan (now of Renaissance Worldwide), recognizes that financial measures, by themselves, aren’t sufficient measures of enterprise performance and that a possibly narrow and short-sighted focus can lead to a competitive disadvantage. The following table identifies the four major perspectives of the Balanced Scorecard and typical stakeholders and metrics.

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Perspective

Stakeholder

Viewpoint

Typical metrics

Financial

Senior executives, board of directors, and stockholders

Economic viability

Earnings per share Revenue growth Profit growth

Customers

External customers

Value for the customer

Market share Customer satisfaction Referral rate Retention

Internal processes

People doing the work

Process duration or efficient use of resources

Cycle time Cost of services

Learning and growth

CEO and architects of the long-range business plan

How effectively the organization can adapt to changing conditions

Adaptability Employee satisfaction Willingness to share and gain knowledge Information availability

B-2:

Refining business needs

Exercise 1 Complete the following exercise based on Part 1 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project. In your group, use the list of business needs created in the previous activity. Refine the billing system conversion business needs to encompass the four Balanced Scorecard perspectives. Be prepared to discuss your answers with the class.

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Informal project drivers Explanation

Informal project drivers are reasons for the project that might not be captured in a charter. For example, the real driver of a project might be something other than a sound business justification, such as political or power factors. It is important to identify any informal project drivers in order to avoid a project that is driven by things other than sound business needs. Three common informal project drivers are:  Job security  Prestige  The need to spend budgeted dollars (to get more the following year) You can identify any informal project drivers through careful analysis of the stakeholder requirements and business needs of the organization. When performing the analysis, make sure you look for the following:  Customer needs and requirements  Long-term strategic goals  An actual business need for the project

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B-3:

Discussing informal drivers

Questions and answers 1 Why are informal drivers important?

2 What are some possible ways to identify these factors?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic C: Requirements analysis This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

1.1.

Explain the requirements to complete a pre-project setup  Prepare a project charter

Requirements analysis Explanation

A requirements analysis involves translating the business requirements into functional and technical requirements. This translation helps in preparing the project plan. Requirements need to include success and performance criteria against which the deliverable can be measured to see if the goals are met and completion criteria to ensure that everyone understands what the deliverable exactly is and under which circumstances it will be delivered. A requirements analysis is followed by a review and verification of the project requirements with the stakeholders. This is necessary to confirm all of the requirements and gather any missing information.

Business requirements review The project manager needs to maintain the project’s link to the business requirements and the business case to ensure the project doesn’t drift from its ultimate goal. Reviewing these requirements regularly helps the manager keep on top of potential pitfalls and issues. The business requirements should be carried forward from initiation to planning and then into execution (through formal and informal reviews).

Functional/technical requirements Functional requirements describe what the system must do to be successful. Technical requirements describe the context that the system must work in, including the operating environment, client/server topology and network protocols, hardware interfaces, and so on. Questions you should ask include:  What are the services required?  How should the system react to specific inputs?  How should the system behave in specific situations?  What shouldn’t the system do? Exhibit 2-1 serves as a template to determine how the business requirements relate to the functional and technical requirements of a project. Each of the requirements can be outlined under the appropriate header. Then a check mark can be used in the matrix, based on whether the functional/technical requirements satisfy the business requirements.

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Exhibit 2-1: The inter-relationship between business and functional/technical requirements

Success criteria Goals and objectives for a project should be clear. To ensure that you’ve clearly stated each goal or objective, make sure each one meets the following criteria. Criterion

Description

Meaningful

Addresses one or more business needs.

Measurable

Operationally defined so it can be reliably assessed by using quantitative or qualitative methods.

Manageable

Written to a level of detail that can be assigned, is sufficient to track progress, and has specified review and completion dates.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

C-1:

Identifying business and functional requirements

Questions and answers Answer the following questions based on Part 2 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project. 1 What are the new business requirements? Be prepared to share your answers with the class.

2 What’s the high-level value of the project to the sponsor and users?

3 What do the billing personnel and sales team want out of the new system?

4 Discuss the role of project value and its importance to individual and team effectiveness.

5 List the functional requirements defined or suggested in the scenario.

6 List the technical requirements defined or suggested in the scenario.

7 Describe how you would determine additional functional and technical requirements.

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Project initiation 8 Take a functional and/or technical requirement and define meaningful, measurable, and manageable success criteria.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Review and verify requirements Explanation

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The purpose of a requirements review is to verify mutual understanding of the requirements with the stakeholders. If any information is incomplete or missing, you need to address it before taking the project any further. Failing to do so can cause confusion and mistrust later because no clear understanding of what is required is established.

C-2:

Discussing requirements analysis

Questions and answers 1 In your group, list the points you must come to agreement on with stakeholders before beginning a project.

2 How does requirements analysis help in project management?

3 In requirements analysis, what do the functional and technical requirements describe?

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Topic D: Key roles and responsibilities This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

1.4

Explain the components of a project charter  Identify stakeholders

Key stakeholder roles Explanation

During the initiating and planning phases, several key players in a project, including the project manager, sponsor, and the project team members, are identified. A project manager is recognized as the person responsible for managing the project and for communicating regularly with the stakeholders. A sponsor takes an active role in financing and overseeing the overall project. The project team is the group that performs the actual work of the project. The project manager Many project managers do not manage; they administer, call meetings, take notes, and prepare minutes. To be effective, project managers must have the ability and authority to make decisions. Such authority usually needs credibility and trust from senior executives and business managers. The project manager leads the team that builds the solution. A project manager should do the following:  Direct project planning.  Define the scope (in conjunction with the sponsor or customer, team members, and other stakeholders).  Create the work breakdown structure (WBS, in conjunction with team members).  Estimate the time and the cost of the project with the help of team members.  Obtain staff.  Build and motivate the team.  Measure the project’s performance.  Identify training needs.  Recognize a crisis and be able to respond appropriately.  Communicate clearly and regularly with the project team and stakeholders.  Maintain a clear view of the project goals.  Make decisions.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition The sponsor The sponsor represents the business segment. A project sponsor should do the following:  Finance the project.  Take an informed and continuing interest in a project’s progress.  Share in project decisions.  Monitor the work for signs of slippage or scope creep.  Provide advice and consent on scope changes.  Employ simple project evaluation tools to help manage the project portfolio. The project team The role of the project team is to work on project deliverables. An effective project team has each member thinking like a project manager within the scope of his/her assigned work. This includes a willingness to make decisions within defined parameters. A project team should:  Work on project deliverables.  Assist the project manager during planning with time and cost estimates.  Assist the project manager during planning by identifying risks and creating the WBS.  Focus on the project requirements and scope.  Monitor and manage time.  Identify and communicate potential risks.

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D-1:

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Identifying typical roles

Exercises 1 Describe the typical roles and functions of the project manager. Be prepared to discuss your answers with the class.

2 Describe the typical roles and functions of the sponsor. Be prepared to discuss your answers with the class.

3 Describe the typical roles and functions of the project team. Be prepared to discuss your answers with the class.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic E: The project charter This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

1.1

Explain the requirements to complete a pre-project setup  Identify the project  Validate the project  Prepare a project charter  Obtain approval (signature) for project charter

1.4

Explain the components of a project charter  Key project deliverables  High-level milestones  High-level cost estimates  Identify stakeholders  General project approach  Problem statement  High-level assumptions  High-level constraints  High-level risks  Project objectives

Project charter Explanation

After the sponsor decides to sponsor a particular project, it is important to formally recognize a project and authorize the project manager via a project charter. The sponsor issues the project charter to acknowledge agreement on the need and intent of the project. The project charter is a key output of the initiation phase. Exhibit 2-2 provides a sample project charter. In a project charter, you do the following:  Authorize the project.  Identify the project manager.  Justify the project using cost-benefit analysis.  Identify stakeholders.  State the problem, business requirements, and product or service requirements.  List deliverables.  Describe the scope.  Make high-level time and cost estimates.  Define project phases and milestones.  Identify high-level risks.  List high-level assumptions and constraints.

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 Discuss general project management approach.  Determine acceptance criteria.

Business case The project charter also discusses the business case listing project costs and benefits.  Costs—All possible costs associated with the project at the time of approval.  Benefits—Includes the money that could be made from the project. Not all projects produce such a benefit.

Exhibit 2-2: Sample project charter

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition A project charter helps define requirements and expectations to all involved in the project. A project charter is issued by the sponsor, and it is important to create a formal charter to clarify roles and expectations. A project charter can be as simple as a one-page form for a very small project, briefly describing the project and listing the responsibilities and authority of the project manager. Charters can be much longer, however, depending on the size of the project.

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E-1:

Discussing the project charter

Questions and answers 1 What’s a project charter?

2 Discuss the sample project charter shown in Exhibit 2-2. Use the sample charter to prepare a project charter for your current project.

3 You’re working in the Internet division of your organization. You decide to upgrade from category 3 cables to category 5 cables, which is a large-scale project change. How should you modify the project charter? A

Issue a new project charter.

B

Update the current project charter.

C

Update the product outline.

D

Update the product description.

4 A project charter includes several elements. From the items listed below, identify the element that doesn’t belong to a project charter. A

Scope of the project

B

Organizational structure

C

Description of the product

D

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

5 Who issues the project charter?

6 Using the information in Part 1 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project write a concise concept definition for the project.

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Initial risk assessment Explanation

At this point, you should complete an initial risk assessment. All possible business and technical risks should be accounted for and their effect on the project evaluated. There are several software packages that might help you with such risk assessment, such as Predict! from Risk Decisions Ltd. Some potential business risks include:  Ambiguous or changing requirements  Multiple business system dependencies  Multiple IT systems  Project length and cost  Multiple business units  Project impacts business procedures  Customer not available  System disasters Some potential IT risks include:  Project specifications subject to change  Complex, intricate logic  New, unfamiliar technology  Inexperienced or limited team  Inflexible schedules Assessing risk is always difficult. Understanding the potential risks of a project requires that you understand the business needs and issues and can balance them effectively. Ask yourself as many questions as possible about the risks and use a rating system to categorize the risk factor for each item.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

E-2:

Performing preliminary risk assessment

Exercises 1 Using the information in Parts 1 and 2 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project assign each statement a severity level of high, medium, low, or not applicable. Is the customer population large and diverse? Are the functional requirements ambiguous? Are there multiple complex deliverables? Are there multiple business system dependencies? Is the technology (hardware and software) new and unfamiliar to the customer? What is the estimated length of the project? What is the cost of the project? Is the success of the business dependent on this project? Are multiple divisions or business units involved? Will the project create new customer maintenance procedures? Will the project impact business procedures? Does implementation of the project have the potential to interrupt mission-critical operations? What is the availability of customer staff during development? What is the time dependency on customer staff during development? How easily can business be resumed after a system disaster? How well does the project adhere to enterprise standards?

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2 Using the information in Parts 1 and 2 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project assign each risk a severity level of high, medium, low, or not applicable. Are project specifications subject to change during the project? What is the project’s estimated length? Does the project involve complex and intricate logic? Are multiple IT systems involved? Is the technology (hardware and software) new and unfamiliar to the IT personnel? Do multiple IT departments need to commit resources to the project? Are the project team members inexperienced with respect to the product or business areas involved in the project? Are significant hardware or software upgrades required? What’s the continuous availability of the staff for the term of the project? What’s the availability of the IT staff for post-project maintenance? Are there critical tasks outside the realm of the project team’s control? Is the project’s end-date fixed or flexible? Are multiple physical installations required for project completion? What’s the level of risk of putting the newly developed system into production? What’s the ability to tolerate change during and after implementation? What’s the complexity of system recovery after a disaster? Is the project part of the annual IT plan? Was a cost-of-ownership analysis completed?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic F: Stakeholder consensus and approval This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

1.3

Summarize the steps required to validate a project  Identify and analyze stakeholders

Building consensus Explanation

Gaining stakeholder consensus is an important step in assuring a successful project. Gaining consensus facilitates the progression of the project and prevents the various stakeholders from having their own agendas, a situation which can create obstacles for the project manager. A lack of consensus can cause various stakeholders to work in opposing directions. This opposition can be unintentional, especially when stakeholders have different perceptions of what the project is supposed to do and how they should support it. Stakeholders who don’t support the project might intentionally or unintentionally sabotage it by undermining the project manager’s authority, withholding resources, adding new requirements, or withholding approval of project deliverables. If consensus building doesn’t occur between the project manager and stakeholders, it can cause the project effort to double or triple over estimates. The project manager’s ability to meet project deadlines, cost estimates, and deliverable specifications is dependent on stakeholders agreeing on each component of the scope document from its inception and throughout the project as it evolves. Without an agreement on scope, additional requirements might be added later. Such scope creep will add to the project’s schedule and cost.

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Consensus decisions A consensus decision is one that the entire group agrees to support, though they might not all have selected it as their first choice. It’s achieved through an open communication process where all relevant issues are raised. Building consensus needs solid scope background information and a clear understanding of organizational influences that will encourage the stakeholders to support the project. It is difficult to achieve consensus, but once consensus is reached, it ensures that the stakeholders will continue to support the project because each group of stakeholders is represented in the consensus decision.

Gaining customer confirmation Gaining written confirmation of customer expectations is crucial for a successful project. If expectations aren’t clearly defined and agreed upon, problems can arise later in the project. Areas that should be confirmed include the following:  The reason for the project (problem/opportunity statement and so on)  Product description (what is the deliverable)  Targeted completion date  Available/anticipated budget and how the budget was determined  The risks the customer is willing or unwilling to accept  The project’s priority in relation to other projects  Availability of resources

Identifying sponsor and customer priority You need to identify which element of the triple constraint is most important to the sponsor (in case of an internal project) or customer (in case of an external project) and will take the highest priority throughout the project life cycle:  Scope  Time  Cost

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

F-1:

Building consensus and gaining customer confirmation

Questions and answers 1 What are some of the risks of not building consensus for a project?

2 List strategies you can use to help build consensus on a project.

3 List items for which you should obtain customer confirmation.

4 True or false? The overall anticipated budget always takes the highest priority for the customer.

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Strategies for building consensus Explanation

There are many ways to build consensus within a group. Although consensus means that no one group gets its own way to the exclusion of others, it provides the best mechanism for incorporating all the critical issues into the project scope. Effective strategies for building consensus are critical to the success of a project manager. When building consensus, you must find ways to ensure everyone’s voice is heard and that all opinions are given consideration. You might find that one or two stakeholders try to overwhelm other opinions and bend everyone in the group to their wills. As the project manager, it’s your job to make sure no individual dominates the consensus-building process. Some strategies for building consensus include the following:  Try to involve all key stakeholders.  Seek out differences of opinion.  Give people time to state their views and to voice concerns or opposition to decisions or others’ views.  Define as clearly and specifically as possible where the disagreement lies.  Listen to each individual and consider his/her viewpoint carefully before moving on.  Present the information in a clear and concise yet convincing manner.  Build consensus around a specific project-related decision.  Create an easy-to-read document that captures the goal of the proposed project.  Present the project scope to stakeholders and the sponsor by using a visually stimulating representation of the project goals, business requirements, and other components.  Consider not only immediate consensus by the stakeholders, but also whether the requirements are meaningful, manageable, and measurable.

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F-2:

Discussing strategies for building consensus

Questions and answers 1 List five strategies for building consensus.

2 What should you do when seeking differences of opinion?

3 What key milestone should you accomplish when building consensus?

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Unit summary: Project initiation Topic A

In this topic, you learned how to identify stakeholder requirements. You also learned how to identify various stakeholders of a project and their roles in the project.

Topic B

In this topic, you identified the business case of a project. You learned that all projects need a business rationale from the outset.

Topic C

In this topic, you learned about performing requirements analysis, including business, functional and technical requirements.

Topic D

In this topic, you learned about identifying the roles of stakeholders, such as the project manager, project sponsor, and project team.

Topic E

In this topic, you learned the importance of having a project charter to formally recognize a project and authorize the project manager . You learned about the key elements of a project charter.

Topic F

In this topic, you learned that stakeholder consensus building is important for a project. You also learned about the strategies you can use to build consensus.

Review questions 1 True or false? Risk assessment isn’t part of the project charter. False

2 True or false? To successfully complete a project, stakeholders’ consensus is necessary. True

3 List three stakeholders for a typical project. Answers might include:

 Sponsor  Customer  End-user  Project team  Project manager  Media  Public

4 List three ways to identify stakeholder requirements.  Focus groups  Surveys  Interviews

5 List two informal project drivers. Spending allocated budget and maintaining prestige.

6 Who creates a scope definition document? The project manager

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 7 List at least four components of a scope document. Answers might include:

 Project goals  Deliverables  Boundaries  Ownership

8 Why is it important to identify informal drivers? Informal drivers should be identified so a project isn’t initiated just on the basis of these drivers. Informal drivers usually have no business or strategic justification.

9 Who’s a stakeholder? An individual or entity that might be affected by a project.

10 Which of the following is the role performed by a sponsor? A Manage the project. B Initiate the project and finance it. C Form the project organizational team. D Receive the product or service generated by the project.

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Unit 3 Project planning, estimating and scheduling Unit time: 180 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Discuss the planning phase. B Define the scope. C Create a work breakdown structure (WBS). D Develop time and cost estimates. E Create a budget. F Create a project team. G Create a project schedule.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Planning phase This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

2.1

Prepare a project scope statement based on an approved project charter  Scope boundaries

What is planning? Explanation

Planning is one of the key responsibilities of the project manager and shouldn’t be delegated (although input and participation from various functions is essential). Moreover, planning isn’t a one-time activity. Plans must be continually reviewed and revised throughout the various phases of a project. As the project evolves, revisions might be driven by such factors as changes in requirements, changes in the environment, unsuccessful test results, inaccurate estimates, and changes in resource availability. Planning serves five primary functions, which are briefly described in the following table. Function

Description

Translate requirements into manageable tasks

The goal of the planning stage is to determine how to meet the business requirements that were initially defined during the initiating phase.

Define the resources needed

Detailed plans permit you to determine what people, equipment, and facilities will be needed when.

Coordinate project team work

A number of people, working semi-independently and in parallel, perform project activities. Plans provide coordination by determining who’s doing what and when.

Evaluate potential risks

While some risks can be identified while determining the project scope, many more surface only after detailed planning is performed. Knowing about these risks helps you prepare risk mitigation strategies.

Signal emerging problems

Plans serve the project manager as an initial expectation and base of comparison. Deviations between actual and plan signal emerging problems. If the project isn’t meeting expectations, then corrective actions should be taken.

Planning process overview Planning involves the following:  Defining a project from beginning to end  Breaking work into small, manageable pieces  Recognizing critical performance milestones

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Breaking work into smaller pieces makes it easier to make time and cost estimates, determine resource needs, coordinate work, identify risks, and notice deviations. Exhibit 3-1 shows planning as a translation of business requirements and project scope into detailed work activities. If the requirements describe why the project is being undertaken and the scope describes what is done during the project, then the planning activities describe how the requirements will be met. Exhibit 3-1 shows two elements that are included in the scope. These include risk assessment, and time and cost estimates. These are considered at a high level or based on top-down information. During planning, risks and estimates are determined in detail based on specific project activities. The term “allocate” in this diagram is used to denote work assignment and scheduling. The arrows in the diagram indicate that risks affect estimates and that estimates have to be allocated to people (as well as to equipment and facilities) over time.

Exhibit 3-1: A representation of the planning process Stakeholder participation during planning During the planning phase, it’s important to include all stakeholders in the planning process. Involvement of all stakeholders during this phase is necessary because each stakeholder has specific skills and knowledge that are necessary to create a valid, useful project management plan. If, as project manager, you don’t include all stakeholders during the planning phase, successful project completion is questionable, scope creep is likely, and other problems may arise. You need the expertise of the people involved in the project to plan the project.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

A-1:

Discussing the planning phase

Questions and answers 1 Explain the possible reasons that make it necessary for project planning to be reviewed and revised continually.

2 List the primary functions served by project planning.

3 Why is it important to include all stakeholders in the planning process?

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Topic B: Defining scope This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

2.1

Prepare a project scope statement based on an approved project charter  Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)  Scope boundaries  Constraints  Assumptions  Detailed objectives  Final project acceptance criteria  Validate scope statement with stakeholders

Scope definition Explanation

Defining a project’s scope means clearly identifying what is within the boundaries of the project. Project planning can be only as good as the project’s scope definition. The first activity in defining a scope for a project includes evaluating the business requirements and defining the efforts to meet those requirements. The next set of activities refines the project concept. Each activity adds more detailed information to the project definition and helps the organization define project boundaries. The scope definition is often given little attention. This is a critical mistake. It is essential to spend the time on scope definition at the beginning of the project to ensure success. Without a precise, well-documented scope, a project is doomed to fail because all subsequent project phases are based on the information gathered, documented, and agreed to during scope definition. Creating a carefully documented scope definition also helps avoid scope creep later in the project.

Scope Defining the scope means coming to a common understanding of the project’s major boundaries and the business functions the project will incorporate. The scope statement helps establish these boundaries and functions and sets a project scope baseline. Without this baseline, the time for completion and success criteria for final evaluation could expand to unmanageable or unrealistic proportions. Failure to define scope at the start of a project will leave the project manager unable to determine success criteria, cost, time, or resources needed for project completion. Changes to the scope of a project should be made only through an established change control process.

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The scope statement A scope statement contains the project requirements and overall direction for the project. A well-planned scope statement will help in winning consensus from stakeholders. A typical scope statement contains items such as project goals, deliverables, acceptance and success criteria, priority, ownership, and others. A scope statement typically defines the following: Item

What it defines

Objectives

What the project will accomplish.

Deliverables

What will exist at the completion of the project that didn’t exist before.

Boundaries

What will and won’t be included.

Acceptance criteria

The acceptance criteria based on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that must be met before the project can be considered successful.

Priority

The ranking of the three elements of the triple constraint: scope, time, and cost.

Assumptions

The assumptions made during planning (such as the availability of certain team members at agreed-upon times).

Constraints

The restrictions placed on the project, such as time, cost, quality, or other restrictions. (All projects have constraints—which ones are the most important and what impact they have often depends on the priority assigned by the customer to each.)

Ownership

The stakeholders with decision-making authority and their roles.

Milestones Milestones are specific points in the project where key deliverables are completed or specific tasks are accomplished. Milestones are high-level targets you can use to monitor the progress of the project. You should create a milestone chart that includes phase reviews as necessary and appropriate.

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Project planning, estimating and scheduling Do it!

B-1:

Discussing scope statement

Questions and answers 1 What does a scope statement contain?

2 What is the scope statement’s purpose at this point in the project?

3 Which of the following is not a component of a scope statement? A

Boundaries

B

Success criteria

C

Deliverables

D

Change control processes

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic C: Creating a work breakdown structure This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

2.2

Use a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and WBS dictionary to organize project planning  Explain the benefits of WBS  Explain the levels of a WBS  Explain the purpose of a WBS  Identify the planning processes which utilize the WBS as an input  Critique a given WBS  Explain the purpose of a WBS dictionary

What is a work breakdown structure? Explanation

After completing the scope statement, you need to further define the work to be done and break it into manageable sections (called decomposition). You do so by creating a work breakdown structure. A work breakdown structure (WBS) is an outcome-oriented analysis of the actual activities involved in a project. It provides the basis for making time and cost estimates and managing changes. All the work to be done on a project must be included in the WBS. For each activity, the WBS and the WBS dictionary describe:  Deliverables  Acceptance criteria  Quality requirements  Time estimates and milestones  Cost estimates  Contract information (if applicable)  Responsible individual or department The WBS is a hierarchical decomposition and organization of activities. The organization and level of detail of the activities should facilitate estimating, work assignment, and ongoing management. To achieve this, the WBS activities should meet the criteria described in the following table. Criterion

Description

Resource

The activities should be of a sufficient level of detail that a resource can be assigned.

Deliverables

The activity should have a deliverable that’s clearly understood by those who’ll be performing the work. The deliverable might be a design, decision, specification, document, test, and so on.

Estimates

The activities should be of a sufficient level of detail that they can be estimated (time and cost).

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C-1:

Discussing uses of a WBS

Questions and answers 1 Discuss the possible uses of a WBS throughout a project.

2 Define a WBS.

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Approaches to develop a work breakdown structure Explanation

There are several approaches you can use to develop a work breakdown structure (WBS). These approaches include using:  Guidelines  The analogy approach  The top-down approach  The bottom-up approach Using guidelines If you are provided guidelines for developing a WBS, it is important to follow them. Some organizations, for example, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), prescribe the form and content for a WBS for particular projects. Many DoD projects require contractors to prepare proposals based on the DoD-provided WBS. These proposals must include cost estimates for each task in the WBS at a detailed and summary level. The cost for the entire project must be calculated by adding the cost of all of the lowerlevel WBS tasks. When DoD personnel evaluate cost proposals, they must compare the contractors’ costs with the DoD’s estimates. A large variation in costs for a certain WBS task often indicates lack of clarity about the nature of work. Consider a large automation project for the U.S. Air Force. In the mid-1980s, the Air Force requested proposals for the Local On-Line Network System (LONS) to automate 15 Air Force systems command bases. This $250 million project involved providing the hardware and developing the software for sharing documents, such as contracts, specifications, and requests for proposals. The Air Force proposal guidelines included a WBS that contractors were required to follow while preparing the cost proposals. Level 1 WBS items included hardware, software development, training, and project management. The hardware item was composed of several level 2 items, such as servers, workstations, printers, and network hardware. Air Force personnel reviewed the contractors’ cost proposals against their internal cost estimates, which were also based on this WBS. Having a prescribed WBS helped contractors prepare their cost proposals and the Air Force to evaluate them. The analogy approach Another approach for constructing a WBS is the analogy approach. In the analogy approach, you use a similar project’s WBS as a starting point. Boeing provides an example of using an analogy approach when creating a WBS. Boeing designs and manufactures several different types of fighter aircraft. When creating a WBS for a new aircraft design, the company starts by using 74 predefined subsystems for building a fighter aircraft based on past experience. There is a level 1 WBS item for the airframe composed of level 2 items, such as a forward fuselage, center fuselage, aft fuselage, and wings. This generic product-oriented WBS provides a starting point for defining the scope of new aircraft projects and developing cost estimates for new aircraft designs. Some organizations maintain a repository of WBSs and other project documentation on file to assist project teams. Viewing examples of other WBSs for similar projects allows project managers to understand different ways to create a WBS.

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The top-down and bottom-up approaches Two other approaches for creating WBSs are the top-down and bottom-up approaches. Most project managers consider the top-down approach of WBS construction as conventional. To use the top-down approach, start with the largest items of the project and break them into their subordinate items. This process involves progressively dividing the work into smaller levels of detail. The top-down approach is best suited to project managers who have vast experience and technical insight into several types of projects. In the bottom-up approach, team members first identify the maximum possible specific tasks related to the project. The team members then aggregate the specific tasks and organize them into summary activities or higher levels in the WBS. For example, a group of team members might be responsible for creating a WBS to create an intranet. These team members can directly focus on the tasks they need to perform to create an intranet. They group the tasks into categories, then they group these categories into high-level categories. Project managers often use the bottom-up approach for projects that represent entirely new systems or approaches to performing a task or to help create buy-in and synergy with a project team. Advice for creating a WBS Creating a good WBS can require several iterations. There are some basic principles that apply to creating a good WBS:  A unit of work must appear at only one instance in the WBS.  The work content of a WBS item is the sum of the WBS items below it.  A WBS item is the responsibility of only one individual, even though many team members might work on it.  The WBS must be consistent with the way in which work will be performed; it should serve the project team first and foremost.  Project team members should be involved in developing the WBS to ensure consistency and buy-in.  Each WBS item must be documented in the WBS dictionary to ensure accurate understanding of the scope of work included and excluded.  Items and phases that likely will require iterative planning should be identified.  The WBS must be a flexible tool used to accommodate inevitable changes (several iterations) while maintaining control of work in the project. The project plan should specifically allow for iterations throughout the project life cycle (for example at approval milestones, during project design, at deliverable handover, and so on.) The Project Management Institute has developed a Practice Standard for Work Breakdown Structures to provide guidance for developing a WBS.

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C-2:

Developing a WBS

Questions and answers 1 What are the four approaches for constructing a WBS?

Which of these approaches would be best for a project manager developing an IT project for your organization?

2 In your organization, have you or your project manager conducted meetings with the project team to review a WBS?

If you attended/conducted a meeting for reviewing your project’s WBS, how did the meeting impact the WBS?

3 The first step you should take to design and use a WBS includes which of the following: A

Reviewing the relevant historical information.

B

Listing the breakdown of deliverables.

C

Comparing project progress to the WBS.

D

Asking for expert recommendations about the WBS.

4 Consider a project in which you are helping a company construct a new office building. What’s the first step you take to create a good WBS? A

Identify data relevant to the WBS.

B

Examine use of resources.

C

Compare actual progress to scheduled progress.

D

List the breakdown of the deliverables.

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Importance of the WBS Explanation

Breaking work down into smaller pieces by identifying tasks helps make project goals manageable. Projects might have a few hundred tasks to complete, however, and a simple list of these tasks will be difficult to manage. The WBS is a means to organize tasks to simplify the jobs of estimating, scheduling, coordinating, and reviewing. Other plans that are based on the activities identified in the WBS include the following:  Project schedule  Resource allocation  Detailed budget  Risk assessment

Developing a WBS The following steps describe a process that could be followed when developing a WBS. 1 Working from the scope statement, identify the major business goal(s) of the project. 2 From the scope statement, identify the functional requirements that will meet the project goal(s). 3 Identify the major tasks needed to meet the functional needs. To make the project more manageable and to ensure that you have included all of the relevant tasks, it’s helpful to include an intermediate level of breakdown. Organize the tasks by using one of the following groupings or a combination (for example, systems alone, or first systems and then stages). – Deliverables (major hardware and software subsystems) – Stages (major development stages, such as concept, feasibility, design, development, integration, and test) – Organization (departments and geographic locations) 4 Subdivide the major tasks into smaller tasks that reflect how the work is going to be accomplished. 5 Build a hierarchical outline, creating as many layers as necessary to break the work down into small, manageable pieces at a level of detail sufficient to do the following: – Make time and cost estimates – Assign the work to an individual or group – Monitor and communicate work progress

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition An example of a WBS is shown in Exhibit 3-2.

Exhibit 3-2: An example of a WBS

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C-3:

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Creating a WBS

Exercise 1 Use Parts 1 and 2 of the case study in Appendix B, Topic A, named Billing System Conversion Project and create a WBS for the conversion project.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic D: Developing time and cost estimates This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

2.4

Develop a project schedule based on WBS, project scope and resource requirements  Schedule to milestones  Analyze Gantt chart  Identify dependency types  Determine the critical path of a project schedule  Establish schedule baselines

2.11

Identify components of a cost management plan  Control limits  Assign costs  Chart of accounts  Project budget  Cost estimates (bottom-up, top-down, parametric, expert judgment, analogous)  Cost baseline

Creating time and cost estimates Explanation

An important part of project planning is estimating the amount of time and cost associated with a project and using this process to create baselines for time and cost. The cost estimate includes costs for facilities, labor, and material. The time estimate encompasses the total hours of work needed to complete the project. In Exhibit 3-3, estimate has been expanded to highlight the components of time and cost. This section shows the relationship between these components.

Exhibit 3-3: The planning process with the time and cost estimate

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Causes of estimating failures Many late or over-budget projects deemed failures are actually only estimating failures. Bad estimates are, among others, due to the following factors:  Incomplete or changing requirements  Lack of familiarity of team members with tasks The first implication is that requirements must be clearly established. Estimating from incomplete requirements increases the risk of scope creep or delivery of an ill-fitting product (or service) needing major rework. One of the goals of the work breakdown structure is to describe tasks at a level of detail sufficient to facilitate the estimating process. Estimates may need to be revised throughout the project. Only with confidence in the relative accuracy of an estimate is time and cost tracking a valuable exercise. The following table defines the three major elements of estimating and their importance in the planning process. Element

Description

Effort time

The number of person hours or person days needed to complete an activity (not calendar-based).

Elapsed time

The time necessary to do the work, which includes off-time such as weekends and time lags (calendar-based).

Cost

Calculates the cost for the defined work (people, equipment, and facilities).

Estimates are important because they drive scheduling. However, the project manager has to revise them periodically, based on new information gained during planning and execution.

Effort time estimates Effort time is the total number of person hours (or person days) needed to complete a specified activity. If two people working full time (40 hours) for a week could do a system design, then the needed effort time estimate is 80 hours. Effort time is mostly reported in terms of full-time equivalents (FTEs). If 40 hours is defined as the regular number of hours that a resource is supposed to work in a week, then that is a single FTE. The total FTEs is the sum of all of the work hours put in by all resources divided by 40. The effort time estimate drives the needed number of resources.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

D-1:

Estimating time

Exercise 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project, and answer the following: How would you determine how much work is required for the Billing System Conversion project?

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Elapsed time estimates Explanation

An elapsed time estimate is a calculation of the amount of time it will take to finish the project, which includes off-time such as weekends and time lags (such as curing time for concrete). Time estimating highlights Elapsed time estimates are a function of effort time estimates and task dependencies. Once you have effort time estimates and identified the task dependencies within your project, you can estimate the elapsed time needed to complete a project. Activity duration is the process of estimating the time it will take to complete the tasks. For example, if you have estimated a task will take three days to complete, you will need to break this down into real person hours. If you have an employee assigned to the task, you need to determine how this impacts his or her work schedule. If the task will take 24 hours, three days times eight hours, will that individual have three consecutive eight-hour days to dedicate to the project? If not, you need to list the days and hours the individual can be allocated to complete the task along with his or her normal workload. You need to ask yourself whether the task work can be divided among multiple people. For example, if a system design could be done by two people working full time (40 hours) for a week, then the effort time is 80 hours, but the elapsed time is 40 hours. As you calculate the time, keep in mind that you need to include time estimates from team members directly involved in the day-to-day work of the project as well as subject matter experts, the project manager, and whomever the team consults with on an infrequent basis. How do you estimate the elapsed time it will take to complete a task? Will you guess? Generally you will use one of three categories to estimate task duration:  Analogous estimates—Sometimes referred to as top-down estimates, analogous estimating uses estimates based on an earlier, similar project for comparison. Based on similar activities, you can determine the duration of those activities and estimate a time for the new task.  Parametric estimates—Parametric estimating requires a multiplication to gauge the duration of the task that needs to be completed. For example, if it takes a cable crew one eight-hour day to cable 10 workstations, then it should take four days to cable 40 workstations.  Bottom-up estimates—These estimate at the lowest level of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), i.e., at the Work Package level, which are then consolidated to an overall estimate for the project.

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Time estimating highlights Accurate estimating uses one or more of the following techniques:  Experience—Acceptable when both the business problem and the technical problem are within the experience of the estimator.  Activity or deliverable—Based on activities or deliverables to produce an overall estimate. Requires an application development methodology that includes necessary activities or deliverables, a database of related metrics, and variance factors (for example, complexity).  Function point—Uses a function point (size) estimate and historical productivity metrics to calculate effort. Function points quantify the functions performed by software in relation to business needs. The International Function Point Users Group (IFPUG), in the IFPUG Counting Manual, describes the method for counting functions. Do it!

D-2:

Discussing time estimates

Questions and answers 1 How’s an effort time estimate different from an elapsed time estimate?

2 Identify various types of IT activities and determine which can be joint efforts among team members and which need to be performed solo.

3 You’re in the process of making time estimates. One of the members on your team has been a senior developer for 10 years and has extensive experience with the types of tasks she’s going to perform on this project. What type of time estimating technique would you use to estimate the amount of time it will take this team member to complete her assigned tasks?

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Cost estimates Explanation

Project costs typically fall into the following categories:  Labor  Equipment and material  Facilities The above costs are typically charged directly to a project (direct costs) while others are overhead (indirect costs). Direct labor costs include the costs for personnel actively involved in the project, and direct equipment and material costs are costs that are directly associated with the project. For example, computer and networking components are direct equipment and material costs. Indirect overhead costs include items used in support of the project, such as the cost of support and administrative personnel, and the cost of incidentals, such as office supplies, rent and electricity. Cost estimate types While you might realize that cost estimating provides just an estimate, some stakeholders look at this estimate as the final bottom line costs. Since these estimates can be improperly interpreted, you will want to make as accurate an estimate as possible for the project. You need to share with the stakeholders any changes in the cost estimates, supporting your changes with documentation as to why the estimate was off or the price changed. As you calculate the costs, keep in mind that you need to include labor costs such as engineers’ salaries, management’s salaries, and any costs for end-users who could possibly be included. Generally you will use one of three categories to estimate cost:  Analogous estimates—Sometimes referred to as top-down estimates, these use estimates based on earlier, similar projects for comparison.  Parametric estimates—Require a multiplication to gauge the cost of the task that needs to be completed. For example, if a square foot of hardwood flooring costs $ 15, then it should cost $ 3000 to put hardwood flooring in for 200 square feet.  Bottom-up estimates—Use estimates at the lowest level of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), i.e., at the Work Package level, which are then consolidated to an overall estimate for the project. Here is a list of tips you might want to consider as you do the cost estimates for your project:  Get contributions from your project team; work with them to brainstorm possible costs. This technique will help you to get by-in from the team.  When you formulate the cost estimates, document your cost estimates and calculations. This information will help answer questions from your stakeholders.  Use software or templates related to your project to help you.  Consolidate all estimates to an overall cost baseline (or budget) for the project.

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D-3:

Do it!

Discussing cost categories and cost estimate types

Questions and answers 1 Provide examples for each of the following main cost categories: Direct labor costs: Direct equipment and material costs: Direct facilities costs: Indirect overhead costs:

2 Which cost estimate type is also called analogous estimating?

Identifying estimating issues Explanation

Ask the following questions to help you review your estimates:  Are supportive data in the form of time and cost standards applicable?  Does experience indicate that these estimates are reasonable?  Are there resource requirements for each activity?  Are there factors other than time that have influence?

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D-4:

Listing assumptions for creating estimates

Exercise 1 Using Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project, list five assumptions you would make when creating effort time, elapsed time, and cost estimates for the conversion project.

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Estimate variation Explanation

The methods shown earlier are used to provide a cost estimate. The Project Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) describes a method for using the optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic estimates to calculate an estimate for cost and cost standard variation. The expected cost for an activity is calculated, as shown in Exhibit 3-4.

Exhibit 3-4: Formula to calculate the cost for an activity Where: c = cost o = optimistic cost estimate ml = most likely cost estimate p = pessimistic cost estimate The standard deviation for an activity is determined by the following equation, as shown in Exhibit 3-5.

Exhibit 3-5: Formula to calculate the standard deviation of cost for an activity Do it!

D-5:

Discussing time and cost estimates

Questions and answers 1 List the major elements of project estimation.

2 Identify possible techniques used in effort time estimation. A

Experience

B

Activity or deliverable

C

Function point

D

All the above

3 The_______________ describes a method for using the optimistic and pessimistic estimates to calculate standard deviation for time and cost estimates.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic E: Creating a budget This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

2.11

Identify components of a cost management plan  Control limits  Assign costs  Chart of accounts  Project budget  Cost estimates (bottom-up, top-down, parametric, expert judgment, analogous)  Cost baseline

Creating a bottom-up budget Explanation

Budget planning entails creating a bottom-up budget. Budgeting takes into consideration the timing of the expenses and the spending pattern of the project. Budget variance is used throughout the project’s life cycle to calculate the difference between initial allocated budget and the actual spending. A contingency reserve and/or management reserve is created that can be used in case of a budget shortage. A bottom-up budget starts with detailed cost estimates. In its simplest form, a bottom-up budget is just a roll-up of cost subtotals of various parts of the project. Project expenses are integrated with the chart of accounts kept by the accounting department. Such a budget can help demonstrate whether the project manager can meet the top-down budget that was developed during initiating. A budget has to provide an allocation over time and allowance for risk. Allocation Effective project budgets need to consider the timing of expenditures. Timing is needed for two reasons:  At the organizational level, high-cost projects can affect company cash flows and financial performance, so timing of expenditures has to be managed. Major expenditures, such as capital equipment, must be carefully planned for both project schedule and company financial impact.  At the project level, timing of expenditures helps monitoring to provide a warning if expectations aren’t being met. A comparison of planned-to-actual spending at various points in time throughout the project might give an early warning of impending cost overruns. The project manager should be able to describe the rate at which he or she expects to spend the budget:  Will there be weekly or monthly disbursements?  Will there be lump sum spending at specific times (such as month-end or project phase completion)?  Will the budget be spent in equal portions at each interval?

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Risk and variance The difference between the initial project budget and the actual spending on the project is called variance. Some factors that can influence variance include:  Accuracy of the estimates  Inflation  Availability of resources  Use of overtime  Seasonal fluctuations in prices Risk and budget contingency The budget should include a contingency reserve and/or management reserve. A contingency reserve helps meet unexpected costs from your project. The contingency reserve is money you have set aside to cover unexpected costs within the original scope of the project. The amount of the contingency reserve varies, but most project managers will place a percentage of the total project costs into this reserve. You, the project manager, manage this fund. The same principles apply to the management reserve as they do to the contingency fund. You would typically allocate a percentage of the total project funding to this account. However, senior management oversees the management reserve.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

E-1:

Developing budgets

Exercises 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project, and the Training cost table (located in Appendix B, Topic C) to prepare a bottomup budget for training costs. Assume the training will be provided on-site in ten different locations. Allocate the number and type of staff to meet a budget of $1 million realistically for internal staff. Consider interactions between internal and external personnel (for example, purchasing personnel and internal and external programmers/analysts). What assumptions have you made?

2 Discuss two potential tradeoffs that could be made to help ensure the project is finished on time, even though they would increase project costs.

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Topic F: The project team This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

2.9

Identify roles and resource requirements based on WBS and resource availability  Identify existing resource availability  Identify training needs/ outsourcing requirements  Assign resources to scheduled tasks

Creating a project team Explanation

Building a project team involves reviewing the tasks from the WBS and finding resources that are qualified to accomplish these tasks. Generally, team members are chosen on the merits of their business, technical, leadership, and communication skills. Essential steps to follow in building a cohesive project team include determining the skills needed for the project, interviewing the potential candidates, selecting the team members, clarifying roles and responsibilities, and establishing an open communication atmosphere. Project team members are selected based on their ability to do the work defined in the WBS (along with other criteria) and their availability. Sellers must be identified and procured to complete work that the internal team cannot or will not perform. Finally, a human resource management plan defines the specific assignments of people over the duration of the project. You will need to use some of your basic management skills in this process. You will need to interview the candidates that will support the various components of your project, and create an organizational chart to help you decide which people are necessary to fill the various positions required by the project. You will also need to negotiate with the functional managers to allocate their staff’s time to support the phases of the project.

Selecting team members Project success is determined by how well team members perform, both individually and collectively. Individually, team members must have the skills and knowledge to manage and perform their own work. Collectively, team members must be willing to share knowledge, evaluate concepts, and make decisions. The levels of individual team members’ skills and knowledge greatly affect project planning and project management. Members with greater skills and knowledge tend to need less detailed work requirement definitions and less ongoing work direction. The project manager can also have more confidence in outcomes, so there’s less need for intermediate reviews and verification. If skill levels are low, then frequent reviews can mitigate the risk that work is preceding in the wrong direction, and it might be a good idea to develop a training plan. This lets you bring team members up-to-speed with the skills required for the project tasks they need to carry out.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Individual skill and knowledge isn’t sufficient for team success. Team members have to be able to work together to achieve project goals. A good project manager can help bridge interpersonal differences or accommodate poor interpersonal communication and interaction skills between team members. The project manager has many other tasks to manage, however, and the greater the level of interpersonal skills on the team, the more time the project manager has to focus on other work. Team composition The project manager needs to be aware of the composition of the team in order to be prepared to manage it effectively. When selecting team members, consider the following points:  Experience and skills of the candidate to match the business, leadership, and technical requirements of the project.  Personal desire or interest of the candidate.  Availability of the candidate (be sure to ask about commitments to other projects or assignments).  Working style or personality of the candidate. An important factor to keep in mind when selecting team members is that there are costs and benefits associated with each of the selection factors. For example, high technical skills tend to have higher costs. Leadership and organizational skills might be more important for some tasks than technical skills. Another consideration is that compatible personalities can be valuable to promote group cohesiveness, but too much homogeneity among the team might promote groupthink and poor decision-making. Staff availability You’ll need to make sure team members you are considering are available for the duration of the project. Obtain written commitment from functional managers to use a specific team member for your project. Should conflicts arise down the road, you’ll have to resolve these issues by doing one or more of the following:  Convince the functional manager that the team member is crucial to the project. Schedule a meeting with the functional manager. If you have your facts straight and explain the business logic of your request to the functional manager, you might convince him or her to identify a different resource for his own current needs rather than removing the team member from your project.  Escalate the situation to a higher-level executive. This is a tricky situation, and you should do this only if you absolutely have to have the team member on the team and have not been able to convince the functional manager of your situation. Proceed with tact and stick to the facts when presenting your case to the higher-level executive.  Replace the team member with a new team member. If another person is available to take over the job, have him or her take over the leaving team member’s role. Make sure adequate training is provided and have the rest of the project team welcome the new person to the team.

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Steps to building a team A diverse team representing various styles, approaches, skills, and knowledge needs early and ongoing development. The process of establishing a sound basis for team development is described in the following table. Step

Description

Determine skill requirements

Determine the level of skills the work requires, and then determine how to acquire such skill levels on your team. Determine if the skills can be divided among various individuals.

Interview potential team members

Determine what individuals can bring to the team in tangible skills as well as valuable perspectives. Depending on the role a team member is going to play, consider technical, business, administrative and leadership skills.

Select team members

Make selections that provide the balance of capabilities the project needs. Team members might be assigned rather than selected; in such a case, identify the various skills, knowledge, approaches, and perspectives that the members bring to the team.

Clarify roles and expectations

Allow time for team member questions and comments about how they’ll be expected to support the project and what support they’ll receive.

Describe your management process

Explain how you’ll work with team members to gather their issues, assess progress, provide direction, and evaluate results.

Establish open communication

work actively with team members to promote open and honest communication.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

F-1:

Creating a project team

Exercises 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project to develop a list of people needed on the project team. The following people need to be on the project team:

2 Complete the Role assignment table (in Appendix B, Topic C) by assigning the appropriate team members to each role. Resource Initial Codes: A Assigned resource B Backup person I

Input

P Person accountable R Reviewer S Signature required

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3 Review the steps to create a project team that you identified in the planning phase and discuss their implications for team performance during execution.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

The human resource plan Explanation

A human resource management plan tracks all personnel on a project and how long they’ll be working on various tasks. A human resource management plan is a table or spreadsheet that shows the following:  Each human resource by job title or skill.  The hours that the individual will be working on the project in each time period (e.g., day, week, or month). To create a human resource management plan, do the following:  List the resources for each activity along with the hours they’ll be needed.  Add the hours on all activities for each resource for each time period to show the total hours the resource is assigned to the project. The human resource management plan describes when staff is needed and includes the following:  Resource acquisition  Resource timetable  Resource release and reassignment to other projects  Compliance  Safety  Training needs  Recognition

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F-2:

Creating a human resource management plan

Exercise 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project, and the Resource table (located in Appendix B, Topic C) to create a human resource plan for the conversion project. List the type of personnel required and how many work hours are needed for each activity for each month and in total. What key assumptions did you make in preparing this estimate?

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Topic G: The project schedule This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

2.4

Develop a project schedule based on WBS, project scope and resource requirements  Schedule to milestones  Analyze Gantt chart  Identify dependency types  Determine the critical path of a project schedule  Establish schedule baselines

2.5

Given a desired deliverable, apply the appropriate tool and/or method to produce the appropriate outcome  Tools  Methods

2.6

Given a scenario, interpret the results of using the following tools and/or methods  Tools  Methods

4.4

Given a scenario, execute appropriate resource leveling techniques  Fast tracking  Crashing  Delaying  Optimizing

Creating the project schedule Explanation

At a high level, the project schedule is the tool used to communicate the timeline of the project. At a low level, it identifies the start and finish dates for each task in the project, the milestones for achieving certain major tasks, task dependencies, and resource requirements and assignments. Several methods of tracking the project schedule include milestone chart, summary chart, Gantt chart, and network diagram.

Importance of scheduling The project schedule allocates activities over the duration of the project to ensure the project is completed on time.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition A project schedule is created to do the following:  Coordinate tasks with organization activities occurring outside the project. Projects exist within a larger organizational context, and it is important to ensure there are no scheduling conflicts between your project and other projects or business operations. Consider scheduling conflicts with holidays and events (for example, the company’s annual holiday party).  Coordinate task activities and dependencies within the project. The WBS doesn’t define any required order of activities. The schedule determines the order of the WBS tasks and ensures you do first things first.  Assign resources over time. The schedule defines what’s done when, but to decide whether the schedule is viable, the assignment of resources determines who will do what and when.  Identify potential scheduling conflicts and over-allocation of project resources. As part of determining schedule viability, make sure the key resources (people, equipment, and facilities) are available when needed. Timing for some activities is critical to on-time project completion, so ensure that you have the resources that can support the schedule.  Identify potential problems before they happen. You might notice potential problems arising that you won’t have noticed without establishing your expectations through the schedule. Schedule components The schedule is developed by using the time estimates for each WBS activity. A project schedule should include the following:  Planned start and finish dates for the various project activities.  Realistic and measurable milestones necessary to implement the project.  Entry and exit criteria for each milestone.  Dependencies and the sequence of those activities. There are four major ways to present project schedules visually, each with its strengths and weaknesses in terms of presenting the information.

Visual scheduling These project-scheduling diagrams are as follows:  Milestone chart  Summary chart  Gantt (bar) chart  Network diagram There are several project management software applications available, such as Microsoft Project and Oracle Primavera, that permit you create all four of these diagrams.

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Milestone chart The milestone chart shows milestones as diamonds indicating completion dates as shown in Exhibit 3-6.

Exhibit 3-6: A milestone chart

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Summary chart The summary chart displays activities as bars and shows beginning and completion dates as well as duration of a task as shown in Exhibit 3-7.

Exhibit 3-7: A summary chart

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Gantt (bar) chart The Gantt chart displays activities as bars, shown in Exhibit 3-8, as well as dependencies between activities. Percent completion may also be shown on the bars, as well as resource assignments.

Exhibit 3-8: A Gantt (bar) chart

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Network diagram The network diagram shows activity relationships, or dependencies, by using blocks and arrows, as shown in Exhibit 3-9. This network diagram shows task dependencies (predecessor and successor) by using the precedence diagramming method (PDM). The second alternative in using the critical path method is the now outdated arrow diagramming method (ADM). You can display a variety of information within the blocks. It’s common to show activity start and finish dates in the block. It’s also helpful to display the amount of float. Float represents the amount of schedule flexibility a particular activity has without changing the project completion date. When calculating float, determine the predecessor and successor tasks. A predecessor task has to be completed before the next activity can begin; a successor task can’t start until its predecessor task has been completed. Calculate float using dates for each task.

Exhibit 3-9: A network diagram The following table summarizes the four types of diagrams and their uses. Schedule display

Advantage

Drawback

Milestone chart and Summary chart

Simple display and commonly understood format.

Doesn’t display task dependencies, that is, what has to be completed before another task begins.

Gantt (bar) chart

Shows task dependencies

Format less familiar than a milestone chart. Complex sets of task dependencies are hard to understand.

Network diagram

Shows complex dependency relationships.

Least familiar format for users who aren’t familiar with project management. When showing complex dependencies, it’s difficult to show relative time as task-block spacing doesn’t necessarily follow a constant time scale.

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G-1:

3–39

Creating a project schedule

Exercises 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project, and the Schedule table (located in Appendix B, Topic C) to perform the following activity: Use the high-level list of activities in the following table to develop a rough schedule for the conversion project. Recall that the expected duration of the project is 9 months. Assume you’ll need to purchase 1,000 new PCs plus associated software and networking equipment. Create a project schedule using a Gantt chart of project tasks. In the document, fill in your estimates of when each of these activities would occur. Draw horizontal bars to illustrate when each activity starts and ends. Identify the milestones for each phase of the project along with an associated deliverable and its entry and exit criteria. 2 After reviewing the Gantt chart you created, you might see that you haven’t included many milestones or clear deliverables for the project. Determine at least one milestone and deliverable (interim or final) that could be produced in each phase. List specific information on the entry and exit criteria for each milestone. Use the Stage table (located in Appendix B, Topic C).

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Critical path Explanation

The critical path establishes the length of the project. If an activity on the critical path is completed a day late, the completion date of the entire project is moved out by a day (unless the subsequent activities on the critical path are completed more quickly than planned). If a critical path task is late, it threatens to delay the completion of the project. Tradeoff decisions must be made between time and cost. The project manager’s first priority is to identify the critical path activities early, monitor them closely, and create prevention and contingency plans to avoid project delays in the future. Critical path sequencing example The steps to determine the critical path are explained in detail. 1 List immediate successors for each WBS activity, as shown in the following table. Activity

Code

Duration

Successor

Select software

SS

4

DS, IS

Select hardware

SH

3

IH

Install hardware

IH

5

IS

Install software

IS

2

TM, TS

Develop scripts

DS

8

TS

Test modules

TM

12

AS

Test system

TS

8

AS

Accept system

AS

1

-

2 Lay out an arrow diagram, as shown in Exhibit 3-10, showing WBS activities, time, and sequence.

Exhibit 3-10: A network diagram depicting sequence

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3 Define activity start, finish, and float times as follows (forward pass): – Early start (ES) – Early finish (EF): EF = ES + duration - 1 – Late finish (LF) – Late start (LS): LS = LF - duration + 1 – Float: LS - ES or LF - EF Code

Duration

ES

EF

LF

LS

Float

SS

4

1

4

6

3

2

SH

3

1

3

3

1

0

IH

5

4

8

8

4

0

IS

2

9

10

10

9

0

DS

8

5

12

14

7

2

TM

12

11

22

22

11

0

TS

8

13

20

22

15

2

AS

1

23

23

23

23

0

4 Critical path with zero float is SH-IH-IS-TM-AS. LS and LF times for each activity are found by working backward from the end of the project to the beginning (backward pass).

Resource leveling and schedule compression Resource leveling minimizes peaks and valleys in resource utilization by splitting tasks or reallocating resources. Schedule compression shortens the schedule by using crashing or fast tracking.  Crashing—Crashing means adding or reallocating resources which often increases cost.  Fast tracking—Fast tracking turns sequential processes in parallel ones which typically increases risk.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

G-2:

Analyzing critical path

Exercises 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project, and the Predecessors table (Appendix B, Topic C) to create a network diagram and determine the critical path for the conversion project. 2 Create a network diagram showing WBS activities, times, and sequences. 3 Fill out the float table (located in Appendix B, Topic C). Define activity start, finish, and float times as follows: 

Earliest start (ES):



Earliest finish (EF): EF = ES + duration - 1



Latest finish (LF):



Latest start (LS): LS = LF - duration + 1



Float time: LS - ES or LF - EF

4 What is the critical path?

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Unit summary: Project planning, estimating and scheduling Topic A

In this topic, you learned about the planning process and the five primary functions served by planning. You learned that planning is not a one-time activity and that plans must be continually reviewed and revised throughout the project.

Topic B

In this topic, you learned about the scope statement which outlines what is within the boundaries of the project. You learned that the scope statement is critical in minimizing scope creep.

Topic C

In this topic, you learned about WBS and its uses and importance in project planning. You learned that a WBS is a hierarchical decomposition and organization of activities. You also learned how to develop a WBS.

Topic D

In this topic, you learned about the importance of estimating effort time, elapsed time, and cost associated with a project and how to identify the causes of estimation failures. You learned about the factors that influence cost estimates.

Topic E

In this topic, you learned about creating a bottom-up budget. You also learned about variance and contingency factors when creating a budget for a project.

Topic F

In this topic, you learned about the factors involved in creating a project team. You learned how to make the right team composition for a project. You also learned about the steps to follow when creating a project team.

Topic G

In this topic, you learned about schedule, which is the tool used to create and communicate the timeline of the project. You learned about the importance of scheduling and the four main visual scheduling tools: Milestone chart, summary chart, Gantt (bar) chart, and network diagram. You also learned about the critical path and its significance in a project.

Review questions 1 True or false? Planning is a one-time activity in a project. False

2 Explain the functions of the planning process. Defining a project from start to finish, breaking down work into smaller, manageable pieces, and recognizing critical performance milestones.

3 What is a work breakdown structure (WBS)? A detailed document describing the breakdown of a project’s work.

4 What is identified in a WBS? Tasks

5 True or false? If risks exist for a project, one should still proceed with the project. True. Knowing about these risks helps you prepare to address them.

6 What factors should you consider when estimating the cost of a project? Labor, equipment and material, and facilities

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 7 Describe critical path. Critical path establishes the length of a project. If any task in the critical path isn’t accomplished on time, the project won’t be finished on time.

8 List three factors to consider when choosing a project team member. Answers might include:

 Expertise and experience  Interest in working on the project  Availability 9 List two visual project-scheduling tools. Answers might include:

 Milestone chart  Summary chart  Gantt (bar) chart  Network diagram 10 What are strategies you can use during cost estimating? Get contributions from your project team, document your costs and calculations, and use software or templates related to the project.

11 List the activities to create a human resource management plan.

 List the resources for each activity in the Gantt chart along with the hours that they’ll be needed and the spread of the hours over the duration of the activity.

 Add the hours on all activities for each resource for each time period to show the total hours that the resource is assigned to the project.

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Unit 4 Creating project plans Unit time: 180 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Create a communications management

plan. B Create a procurement management plan. C Create a risk management plan. D Create a quality management plan. E Create a project management plan.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: The communications management plan This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

2.7

Identify components of an internal/ external communication plan  Frequency  Format (formal, informal, written and verbal)  Method of distribution  Distribution list

4.8.

Given a scenario, manage and implement information distribution based on communications plan  Manage stakeholders expectations  Schedule effective project meetings  Periodic stakeholders updates

4.9.

Recognize the special communication needs of remote and/ or indirect project team members  Time zones  Communication preferences  Functional or hierarchical barrier  Language barriers  Technology barriers  Cultural differences

Identify stakeholders A project manager identifies stakeholders that are impacted by the project. Examples of stakeholders include sponsor, customer, seller, project manager, project team members, subject matter expert, senior management, and possibly the public.

Why plan communication? Explanation

A communications management plan is needed for the smooth flow of information to stakeholders involved in a project, including the project sponsor, upper management, project team, end-users, and sellers. The plan describes who needs to receive information, what information they need, when they need it, and how it is disseminated. You can use either informal or formal methods of communicating (both written and verbal). Project communication is intended to ensure the project manager, team members, sponsor, stakeholders, sellers, and other people affected by the project can make reasonable, informed decisions throughout the life of a project.

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The purpose of a communications management plan The first purpose of a communication management plan is to ensure that communications does occur. The best intentions to have good communications might fall by the wayside as project managers are faced with requests from all sides. If communications are planned from the outset, then the project manager can allocate time to perform this critical function. A communications management plan must ensure that communication is done right. Too many status reports and meetings end up wasting the time of both the sender and the receiver. When information is unnecessarily communicated, the receiver might become desensitized. A good communication plan determines who needs what and when. The project manager must understand the communication requirements of stakeholders. Rather than routing an overly detailed report to everyone who might have a need to know some of the content, specific reports need be prepared that meet the specific communication requirements of different audiences. Once those requirements are understood, this can be done easily in the age of word processing software using supersets and subsets of the information to be communicated; information is prepared only once as a superset, but custom reports can easily be prepared by selecting appropriate subsets. Even when only one audience is identified for a significant piece of information, a form or template can reduce the level of effort in report creation by reminding the writer of what needs to be addressed in the document and by providing a format for presentation. Creating or identifying report forms or formats is a valuable part of a communication management plan.

Identifying who, what, when, and how An important aspect of the communications management plan is making sure the appropriate stakeholders receive relevant information at regular intervals throughout the project’s life cycle. As a project manager, you should create a plan identifying the stakeholders (who), the types of reports they should receive (what), their frequency (when) and how the information will be disseminated (how).

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

A-1:

Developing a communications management plan

Exercise 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study in Appendix B, Topic A, named Billing System Conversion Project to develop a communication plan for the conversion project. Identify at least three audiences. Identify all audiences who have an interest in the project (sponsor, team members, and so on). For each audience, describe the type of information that should be communicated (progress, scope changes, costs, and so on) and the level of detail needed. List the frequency of each communication (weekly, monthly, as needed, and so on). Audience: Type(s) of information: Frequency: Audience: Type(s) of information: Frequency: Audience: Type(s) of information: Frequency:

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Choosing between formal and informal communication Explanation

There are many ways to communicate and distribute project information, each of which might be appropriate to communicate a distinct type of information and to support various degrees of interaction. Several methods, with brief descriptions of their characteristics, are listed in the following table. Method

Audience

Frequency

Characteristics

Limitation

Team meeting

Team

Weekly

Supports group interaction and clarification, by which the sender of the information can check for understanding on the part of the recipients.

Wastes time for team members who don’t need all the information presented.

Report

Sponsor

Weekly or monthly

Brief, written document that provides quick reference on project issues.

Clarification can come only after delay and, typically, only if the recipient recognizes a need.

Report

Trainee Seller Client

As needed

Either detailed or executive overview, typically with supporting data that should provide sufficient information for review and assessment.

Clarification can come only after delay and, typically, only if the receiver recognizes a need.

Presentation

Team

As needed

Formal and organized, it permits information to be presented orally.

Tends to be primarily a one-way communication with some opportunity for receivers to seek clarification but not much opportunity for the sender to check for understanding.

Internet or intranet contact (including e-mail, chat, discussion lists, forums)

Team

As needed

Combination of formal and informal methods that support an interactive oneon-one or group session and offer a good and fast way to interact with remote resources and contacts.

Requires the communication channel between the two parties to be up and functioning reliably all of the time.

Informal contact (phone calls, brief office visits, and so on)

Team

As needed

Supports individual interaction and clarification, offering a good ability to check for understanding and providing a casual atmosphere that might facilitate more open collaboration.

Some messages might have to be repeated to multiple audiences, due to lack of group interaction.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Report types You should create and distribute different types of reports to different types of stakeholders, as outlined in the following table.

Do it!

Report type

Audience

Frequency

High-level report

Senior management

Monthly

Report

Sponsor

Weekly or monthly

Project report

Project team

Weekly

Task report

Individual team member

As needed

Seller report

External sellers

As needed

A-2:

Communicating and reporting

Exercises 1 Refer to the previous table on communication methods. For each of the following methods, identify when and why you might use it. Team meetings:

Reports:

Presentations:

Informal contacts (phone calls, office visits, and so on):

2 Discuss what types of project tracking mechanisms you would need for a project.

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3 List at least five reports needed to manage a project. Describe each report, being careful to consider the information needs of stakeholders. Report 1 Recipients: Description: Frequency: Report 2 Recipients: Description: Frequency: Report 3 Recipients: Description: Frequency: Report 4 Recipients: Description: Frequency: Report 5 Recipients: Description: Frequency:

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Communicating in various situations Explanation

A project manager plays a very critical role in communicating with various people in different situations during a project. As a project manager, it is your responsibility to always keep an open communication atmosphere and use your leadership skills to communicate effectively in any situation. A strict professional decorum and adherence to the organization’s business practices should be followed at all times. The project manager’s role in specific situations Certain situations require specific responses on the part of the project manager:  Personality conflicts between team members. Meet with the two team members separately and try to understand their individual issues and concerns. Then meet with them together to discuss and resolve the differences.  The project is significantly behind schedule. Discuss the issue with the sponsor.  Minor organizational changes have occurred. Discuss the issue with the project team during the team’s regular meeting.  An important milestone has been successfully completed. Notify the sponsor and senior management of the achievement.  A team member leaves the organization. Discuss the team member’s exit and its effect on the project during the team’s regular meeting.  A team member passed away unexpectedly. Immediately hold an emergency meeting with the project team to discuss its effect on the project.  The main seller is unresponsive. First meet with the seller and review the contract requirements and deliverables. Immediately following that, the sponsor should be notified. In order to protect your legal standing, document your objections to the seller in writing.  Significant budget cuts have occurred. Call an emergency meeting of your project team and announce the change and how it’s going to affect the scope, project, and resources needed for the project. If required, also meet with the seller and negotiate new contract terms.

Communicating with remote team members Communication with team members that are located remotely poses its own challenges. Among those challenges are the following:  Different time zones  Special communication preferences  Functional or hierarchical barriers  Language barriers  Technology barriers  Cultural differences

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A-3:

4–9

Communicating in various situations

Question and answer 1 Given the following potential situations on a project, discuss how you, as project manager, would communicate the information and to whom. Two team members are having personality conflicts:

The project is way behind schedule, and you aren’t sure what to do:

There have been some minor organizational changes on the project:

You have successfully completed an important milestone on the project:

One of the members of the project team is leaving for a new job:

One of the members of the project team passed away unexpectedly:

The main seller for your project has been unresponsive and hasn’t met several contract requirements:

Your project budget has been cut in half, and you have to rescope the project completely and reduce staff:

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic B: The procurement management plan This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

2.12

Explain the procurement process in a given situation  Project needs assessment/ gap analysis  Make or buy decision  RFI, RFQ, RFP (Request for: Information, Quote, Proposal)  Request seller response  Evaluate seller response  Vendor selection  Contract development

Procurement planning Explanation

Procurement planning is the process of identifying the project needs that can best be met by using products or services from sources external to the organization. The procurement management plan outlines the following:  Whether to procure  How to procure  What to procure  How much to procure  When to procure Input needed for procurement planning includes the scope statement, product descriptions, market conditions, constraints, and assumptions. For example, a large company might consider outsourcing the delivery, maintenance, and basic user training and support for laptops supplied to its international sales and marketing personnel. The company makes this decision according to the procurement planning input. If the suppliers can provide these services at a reasonable cost, the company can decide to outsource these services. Doing so reduces fixed and recurring costs for the company and enables it to focus on its core business. You must understand the need to procure products or services and the input required for procurement planning. You must clearly define the scope of the project, the products, market conditions, and constraints and assumptions before undertaking procurement planning.

Tools and techniques for procurement planning Tools and techniques of procurement management include:  Performing a make-or-buy analysis  Consulting internal experts

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Make-or-buy analysis Make-or-buy analysis is a management technique used to determine whether a particular product or service should be developed by the organization or purchased from a seller. The analysis involves estimating the internal costs of providing a product or service and comparing the estimate with the cost of outsourcing. Consider a company with an international sales force of 1,000 people who require laptops and need to be provided maintenance, training, and user support. Using make-or-buy analysis, the company estimates its cost as an initial investment of $3 million and annual support costs of $2 million. The estimate includes costs for hardware and software, travel, shipping, and technical support. Notice that a make-or-buy analysis must include the life cycle cost. The company can outsource this service if sellers quote less than the cost the company incurs in providing the deliverable itself. Thoroughly review each element of the WBS and determine which of the potential tasks and deliverables should be purchased from a seller. Consider the following:  Whether the task or deliverable can be provided internally.  If the task or deliverable can be provided internally, whether the risk is higher or lower than providing it externally.  If the internal resources are used, what the impact on other projects will be.  What the expected cost will be when providing the task or deliverable internally and externally. Ensure the cost comparison includes overhead cost for the internal resource and the additional cost of managing the seller (contract administration, which is often estimated to be 10 to 20 percent of the contract value).  Whether the organization will lose an opportunity to gain a critical competency if the deliverable is outsourced. Do it!

B-1:

Discussing make-or-buy analysis

Exercise 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project, to determine which tasks or deliverables can be purchased from sellers and then determine which ones, if any, you would recommend for seller purchase.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Internal experts Explanation

Internal experts must be consulted as part of procurement planning. Considering the laptop example again, experts might suggest that the company will be unable to provide quality maintenance, training, and service for laptops because the company is unable to station personnel with the required skills at different locations. Experts within the company might also be aware of competitors outsourcing this type of work and might help identify sellers that can undertake it. Experts external to the company, including potential sellers, can also provide valuable input. For example, sellers might suggest an option for salespeople to purchase the laptops themselves at a reduced cost. This option would solve problems of employee turnover, since exiting employees would own their own laptops and new employees would purchase laptops through the program. An internal expert might then suggest that employees receive a technology bonus to help offset what they might view as an added expense. Expert judgment, both internal and external, is important in making procurement decisions.

Do it!

B-2:

Discussing procurement planning

Questions and answers 1 What’s procurement planning?

2 What input is needed for procurement planning?

3 Which of the following are the tools and techniques of procurement management? A

Internal experts

B

Market conditions

C

Scope statement

D

Make-or-buy analysis

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Procurement documents Explanation

Procurement planning involves preparing the documents required and determining the evaluation criteria for the contract award. Three common examples of procurement documents include:  Requests for information (RFI)  Requests for proposals (RFP)  Requests for quotes (RFQ) Requests for Information A request for information (RFI) is a document used to solicit information about prospective sellers well before a RFP or RFQ is issued. A buyer uses an RFI in order to survey the landscape of sellers that could potentially bid at a later point in time. An RFI typically precedes an RFP or RFQ by many months. Requests for Proposal A request for proposal (RFP) is a document used to solicit proposals from prospective sellers which require a significant amount of negotiation. For example, if an agency wants to automate its work practices, it issues an RFP so sellers can respond with proposals. Sellers might propose various hardware, software, and networking solutions to meet the agency’s needs. Writing a good RFP is a critical part of procurement planning and, as with everything else, expertise is invaluable. Legal requirements are often involved in issuing RFPs and reviewing proposals, especially for government projects. It might be advantageous to consult experts familiar with procurement planning. To make sure the RFP contains the required information to provide the basis for a good proposal, the buying organization should ask the following questions:  Can the seller develop a good proposal based on the information in the RFP?  Can the seller determine detailed pricing and schedule information based on the RFP?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Exhibit 4-1 provides a basic outline for creating an RFP. Its main sections include a statement of the purpose, background information about the organization issuing the RFP, the basic requirements for the product or service being procured, the hardware and software environment, a description of the RFP process, the statement of work and schedule information, and appendices, if required. A simple RFP might be three to five pages long, while an RFP for a larger, more complicated procurement might be hundreds of pages.

Exhibit 4-1: Outline for a request for proposal (RFP) Request for Quote In contrast to a RFP, a request for quote (RFQ) is a document used to solicit quotes or bids, which require little negotiation, from prospective sellers for commodity items. For example, if the government wants to purchase 100 personal computers with specific features, it issues an RFQ to potential sellers. RFQs usually don’t take as long to prepare as RFPs, nor do responses to them. Procurement documents All procurement documents must be written to facilitate accurate and complete responses from prospective sellers. They should include background information about the organization and the project, the relevant statement of work, a schedule, a description of the desired form of response, evaluation criteria, pricing forms, and any required contractual provisions. They should also be comprehensive enough to ensure consistent, comparable responses, but flexible enough to allow consideration of seller suggestions for improved ways to meet the requirements.

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Evaluating proposals It’s essential for organizations to prepare evaluation criteria, preferably before they issue a formal RFP or RFQ. Organizations use criteria to rate or score proposals, and they often assign a weight to each criterion to indicate its importance. Some examples of criteria include the technical approach (30 percent weight), management approach (30 percent weight), past performance (20 percent weight), and price (20 percent weight). The criteria should be specific and objective. For example, if the buyer wants the seller’s project manager to be a certified Project Management Professional (PMP), this requirement must be stated clearly in the procurement documents and followed during the award process. Losing bidders might pursue legal recourse if the buyer doesn’t follow a fair and consistent evaluation process. Input, a firm with a focus on government contracts, provides market reports and buyer guides to assist organizations in outsourcing. One buyer guide offers suggestions on selection criteria, which include reputation and past performance, industry knowledge, strategic partnership, and ability to meet needs. Input’s research shows that most contracts include provisions to safeguard against unsatisfactory partnering, but most companies hesitate to exercise the provisions. Buyers should look for a supplier with a proven record of excellence and reputation for quality. It is critical to evaluate proposals on more than the appearance of the paperwork. A key factor in evaluating bids is the bidder’s past performance record. The RFP should require bidders to list similar projects they have worked on and provide customer references. Reviewing performance records and references helps reduce the risk of selecting a seller with a poor track record. Sellers should demonstrate their understanding of the buyer’s needs, their technical and financial capabilities, their management approach, and their price for delivering the desired goods and services. Some projects require potential sellers to deliver a technical presentation as part of their proposal. The proposed project manager should lead the potential seller’s presentation team. When the external project manager leads the proposal presentation, the organization can build a relationship with the potential seller. Visits to contractor sites can also help the buyer get information about the seller’s capabilities and project management style. Do it!

B-3:

Discussing procurement documents

Questions and answers 1 What is an RFP?

2 You are planning to install 150 computers in your organization. Design an RFP to send to prospective sellers.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Request seller response Explanation

Request seller response involves obtaining proposals from prospective sellers. Prospective sellers complete most of the work in this process, at no cost to the buyer. The buying organization might hold a bidders’ conference to answer questions about the procurement. Organizations can advertise in many different ways to procure products and services. Sometimes, a specific seller might be the buyer’s preferred seller. In this case, the buyer provides procurement information only to that seller. If the preferred seller responds favorably, both organizations proceed to work together. In many cases, however, several sellers might be qualified to provide the desired products and services. Solicitation from several potential sellers often provides the buyer the advantage of a competitive business environment and allows the development of competitive bidding strategies. As a result, the buyer might be able to procure products and services at a lower cost. A bidders’ conference is a meeting with prospective sellers prior to the preparation of a proposal. These conferences help ensure that everyone involved shares a clear and common understanding of the products or services the buyer desires. The buyer might incorporate responses to questions as amendments to the procurement documents before, during, or after the conference.

Seller selection Seller selection depends on several major factors, such as cost, support, and performance. Several sellers are interviewed for their services, and the final contender is selected on the basis of the response and previous work references. A well-written contract with the chosen seller is a necessary part of the procurement management. It must have unambiguous descriptions of all of the deliverables, delivery dates, performance requirements, and acceptance conditions for the product or services. Seller selection criteria Written selection criteria should be developed to evaluate potential sellers. Consider the following:  Quantitative criteria such as the following: – Initial cost – Management and administration costs – Ongoing maintenance cost  Qualitative criteria such as the following: – Compatibility with the existing support structure – Performance capability – Organizational ability to perform seller management

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Assessment methods Seller assessment methods include the following: Method

Description

Survey, questionnaire

Provide written questions to seller about their capabilities and their processes.

Audit

Sample seller systems, work processes, and related products or projects to assess capabilities and confirm survey responses.

Interview

Assess whether key players know what their prescribed systems and processes say they should be doing and how they intend to meet your requirements.

Review of previous work

Examine previous projects either separately or as part of an audit; determine the quality of work and how it was achieved.

Review of quality systems

Evaluate how the seller achieves quality and reputably ensures it.

Contract development The criteria for seller purchases should be clearly defined in a statement of work (SOW) that includes all of the following:  Clear description of the requirements for the deliverable  Delivery dates  Performance reporting requirements  Acceptance criteria These criteria become critical in defining the level of responsiveness of the seller and the justification for reimbursement for services. The SOW is critical because it contains the description and specifications for the contract. The SOW is your opportunity to list what you truly need from the seller. Make your description as specific and detailed as possible so the seller has a clear understanding of what you want. You will use the SOW as the description of work from which the sellers will bid. Since a contract with a seller is a legal and binding agreement that protects you and the seller from miscommunication, you will want to specify your needs clearly. Once the seller starts its portion of the project, the contract can be used to settle any questions regarding the company’s expectations and the seller’s costs. The project manager must also ensure the final testing and acceptance of the deliverables are both properly arranged.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Contract pricing types The following table describes the three major contract types: a fixed price contract, a cost reimbursable contract, and a time and materials contract. Fixed Price contract

Cost Reimbursable contract

Time and Materials contract

Defined:

Fixed price for the product or service.

Buyer reimburses costs plus profit to seller.

Buyer and seller agree on labor rates and material cost.

Use if:

Detailed SOW.

Simple SOW (such as in a research and development project).

Staff augmentation. Simple SOW.

Risk:

Little risk for the buyer because (a) the total price is known upfront, and (b) the seller tries to control cost.

Risk for the buyer since (a) a total price is unknown upfront, and (b) the seller does not try to control cost.

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B-4:

4–19

Discussing seller selection, management, and contracts

Exercises 1 Describe in detail one method to communicate performance criteria to a contractor or seller.

2 Seller selection depends on factors such as _________, _________, and _________.

3 _________ and _________ are two major categories of criteria for evaluating potential sellers.

4 List three seller assessment methods.

5 List the criteria for seller purchase that should be defined in the SOW.

6 What are three types of contract pricing?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic C: The risk management plan This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

2.8

Outline the components of a risk management plan  Initial risk assessment  Risk matrix  Risk register  Risk response strategies  Stakeholder risk tolerance

4.3

Using the risk management plan determine an appropriate response to potential risk/opportunity events  Perform qualitative and quantitative risk analysis  Opportunities  Risk register  Threats  Update risk register with appropriate changes

Why manage risks? Explanation

Risk planning involves the identification, quantification and control of risks. Risks are either opportunities (positive risk) or threats (negative risk). Plans are implemented at this stage to reduce the impact of risks and to manage them properly throughout the life of the project. Qualitative and quantitative risk analysis also reveals the practicality and probability of completing the project. Risk management is necessary because projects always involve risks. Risk management won’t eliminate risks. It will, however, prepare you to recognize and address them. Risk management serves to do the following:  Improve buy-in by alerting management to any factors that might interfere with project success.  Reduce risk by developing alternative strategies.

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Risk management process Risk management is an iterative process of identifying, quantifying, and controlling potential risk factors that might impact the ability to meet project requirements as well as broader business objectives. Action

Description

Risk identification

Identify risks.

Risk quantification

Quantify potential negative impact of risks to scope, time, or cost based on risk probability (probability that a risk will happen) and impact (dollar impact if a risk does happen).

Risk response planning

Use strategies to reduce the impact of negative risks. Approve changes to ensure that risk control is a deliberate process.

The risk management plan describes the process for identifying and quantifying project risks and outlines how risks will be addressed or controlled. Risk identification Risk identification is an important part of the planning phase. Risk identification is performed to identify all the risks involved with the project and to prioritize and analyze the effect each risk has on the project. The customer, technology, human resources, estimation, organizational factors, and many other factors can all drive risk. The risk register lists all identified risks.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

C-1:

Discussing project risks

Exercises 1 Use Parts 1 and 2 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project to review the requirements for the project and identify some possible risks.

2 Think about various projects and identify the types of problems they tend to have and what creates these problems.

3 Review the problem and list the causes you have developed and identify some additional risks for the Billing System Conversion project.

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Risk quantification Explanation

Rating risk probability and impact quantifies a given risk should it occur. Not all potential risks are equally problematic, and the project manager must maintain a focus on those that are important. Risk management should also be appropriate to the size and risk of the project. Evaluating risk probability and impact is helpful for prioritizing which risks need action to reduce the potential risk impact. The combination of impact and probability define the importance of the risk. A 5-point scale is often suitable for deciding on priorities, where 5 denotes the most severe risk in the categories of probability and impact (which can be used in a probability impact matrix). To assign a severity level effectively to a specified risk, each level needs a definition of what criteria are used to meet the identified level. Risk level

Severity

1

Minor issue, easily addressed

2

Limited potential for time or cost overrun

3

Some potential of project failure

4

Potential of project failure

5

Project will fail

The most sophisticated approach to risk quantification uses the following formula: Risk = probability in % * impact in $ Do it!

C-2:

Identifying risk severity criteria

Exercise 1 Identify examples for different risk levels. An example of a level 5 risk is an inability of the selected project concept to meet basic quality requirements.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Risk response planning Explanation

Once you prioritized risks, you develop options for the most important risks you have identified (risk response). A process to mitigate and remove negative risk involves engaging in one or more of the following strategies:  Risk avoidance—You engage in risk avoidance by eliminating that risk altogether.  Risk transfer—You engage in risk transfer by shifting the risk to another party through, for example, insurance or outsourcing.  Risk mitigation—You engage in risk mitigation by reducing the probability or impact of a given risk through, for example, less complex business processes or more tests. The amount of risk that is left after risk mitigation and risk transfer have taken place is called residual risk. It is unlikely that you will have the time to address minor risks; risk acceptance is a strategy to accept the consequences of an identified, minor risk. The risk response owner is responsible for looking out for risk triggers and for monitoring a given risk and implementing the risk response plan if necessary.

Do it!

C-3:

Identifying strategies to mitigate risks

Exercises 1 Use Parts 1 and 2 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project to review some of the risks you identified for the project and identify strategies to mitigate or remove those risks: The resources assigned initially aren’t enough to finish the project on time. The assigned resources aren’t experienced enough to execute their assigned project tasks. The project might go over the budget limit because of conversion issues at the subsidiaries. End-user dissatisfaction with the new system.

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2 Discuss the likelihood of completing the Billing System Conversion Project.

3 Use Part 3 of the Billing System Conversion Project and the Risk management table (located in Appendix B, Topic C) to evaluate the severity of the risks and rank each risk using the risk severity scale you developed earlier. Some of the major project activities are listed here. Identify two potential risks for each of these activities and identify procedures to reduce potential effects on the schedule. Award the contract for the software conversion effort.

Install new hardware and software for 1,000 users.

Train users on the new system.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic D: The quality management plan This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

2.10

Identify components of a quality management plan  Quality metrics, control limits, and frequency of measurement  Quality assurance processes  Quality control processes  Quality baseline

Quality management planning Explanation

Quality planning is the basis for turning over deliverables that meet expectations. A quality management plan involves identifying what constitutes a quality product (or service) and then devising methods to meet that goal. A project manager monitors quality by using methods such as testing, inspections, review by focus groups and users, and customer review meetings. A solid quality management plan needs to be in place to resolve any conflicts and differences that arise among the project team or between seller and buyer during the project. Methods such as voting, evaluations, and discussions help resolve such disagreements.

Quality management and quality monitoring Quality management involves planning, communication, monitoring, and response. During planning, you determine the quality requirements, how to communicate those requirements, what to monitor and how, and how to respond to various possible occurrences. To ensure quality, sponsor or customer acceptance and sign-off should be obtained at the completion of milestones. It is important to formalize quality monitoring as part of the project management processes. There are several benefits if you incorporate monitoring as a project management task, establish requirements for how and when to monitor, and allocate time and budget to perform this task throughout project execution:  Tasks tend to get completed if you plan them.  Tasks are easier to complete if you have an established system and routines.  There are more benefits from monitoring if you have taken the time to determine what you want to get out of the process.

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Quality needs to be paid for by using one of two strategies:  Reactive quality management—A reactive quality management policy is characterized by inspection which keeps errors out of product. It pays for quality primarily through failure cost. – Failure costs—These costs include (a) any cost for products that don’t pass inspection and are discarded or need rework, and (b) recalls once the product is in the hand of the customer (warranty work and customer site visits).  Proactive quality management—A proactive quality management policy is characterized by prevention which keeps errors out of processes. It pays for quality primarily through prevention and appraisal cost. – Prevention costs—These costs cover training, quality planning, and process improvement cost. – Appraisal costs—These costs keep defects from reaching the customer; they include testing, inspection, and quality audits. Proactive quality management is typically less expensive by a factor of 10 than reactive quality management.

Developing quality measures The first step in quality monitoring is to determine what needs to be measured (quality control). By working closely with the sponsor and team and by using the project scope statement, the project manager should do the following:  Identify applicable quality standards and determine how to satisfy them.  Develop the quality metrics that characterize it. These tasks normally go beyond the functional and technical requirements into such areas as:  Ease of use of the deliverable.  Customer acceptance of the deliverable.  Sponsor or customer assessment of project communication approaches. Do it!

D-1:

Developing quality measures

Exercise 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project and answer the following question: What are some of the quality measures you would recommend for the project?

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Monitoring quality measures Explanation

After the quality measures are identified, the project manager should implement a system to monitor them throughout the project’s life cycle (quality assurance and quality audit). Developing this system includes identifying quantitative and qualitative approaches to determine the extent to which these measures are being met, including the following:  Periodic inspections  Verification testing  Reviews by peers  Customer surveys  Focus groups  Quality review meetings Many organizations employ a quality system and quality policies that meet the requirements of the international standard for quality systems, ISO 9001. Each of the methods previously described might be part of the ISO 9001 requirements for design control verification, validation, and reviews.

Analyzing project constraints Analyzing the project constraints can help you determine whether client satisfaction can be achieved with respect to the quality of the project deliverable. This analysis will help you anticipate any rework that might need to be done in the foreseeable future. You first must address any government regulations that might affect your project or any industry standards you might need to follow. Once you have identified these constraints, you need to revisit your cost-benefits analysis to double-check for any changes to the project outcome. You might want to look again at your benchmarking; the quality standards you found and planned for need to make the project results more efficient for the users and business. For instance, in a software upgrade, you need to ask if the upgrade will allow more information to be gained or whether the upgrade will enable the customers to more easily input information into a Web site. Useful quality management tools include Pareto chart, control chart, fishbone diagram, flowchart and scatter diagram.

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D-2:

4–29

Monitoring quality measures and analyzing project constraints

Exercises 1 Use Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project and answer the following question: What methods would you recommend for monitoring quality?

2 What tools can you use with respect to quality management?

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Identifying methods for resolving disagreements Explanation

As part of the quality management plan, methods need to be devised for resolving disagreements among team members or between seller and buyer about the suitability of deliverables. Methods for resolving disagreements can include the following:  Individual and group evaluation by team members against written criteria. Checklists or rating scales are helpful when using this method.  Discussion followed by consensus among team members.  Approval by voting (majority rule).  Final decision made by preselected team members.  Final decision at the sole discretion of the project manager.  Final decision at the sole discretion of the sponsor or customer. The method for resolving disagreements on quality issues should be documented in the project management plan and shared with all team members before work on the project begins.

Do it!

D-3:

Resolving disagreements

Question and answer 1 Identify one advantage and one disadvantage from the following five disagreement resolution methods. Evaluation against criteria:

Discussion and consensus:

Majority rule voting:

Subteam decision:

Project manager decision:

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Topic E: The project management plan This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

2.13

Explain the purpose and common components of a transition plan  Ownership  Transition dates  Training  Extended support  Warranties

3.2

Explain the importance of a project kick-off meeting and outline the common activities performed during this meeting  Communicates stakeholder expectations, high level timeline, project goals and objectives, roles and responsibilities to the project team

What is a project management plan? Explanation

The project management plan is a collection of all of the subsidiary management plans created during the planning phase. It is put together at the end of the planning phase. The plan can contain either only summary level information or be highly detailed, depending on the project needs. The project manager uses the project management plan as a guide during the executing, monitoring/controlling, and closing phases of the project to bring the project to successful completion. Exhibit 4-2 shows major categories for the project management plan, including administrative information, outputs from the planning process, templates, checklists, reference material, and appendix.

Exhibit 4-2: Project management plan

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The components of the project management plan A project management plan typically contains, but isn’t limited to, the following components. Administrative information You will need to keep the project plan documentation organized and up-to-date. To this end, you should include some key elements in your documentation:  A table of contents—It’s important that the project plan contain a table of contents. Many people will access the plan, and the table of contents makes finding a particular section of the plan much easier.  Change control information—Creating and maintaining the project plan is an iterative process. You should identify a change control process for updating the project management plan, and this process needs to be part of the plan documentation. Without a change control process for the plan, the plan will become outdated very quickly. Things to consider include revision dates, revision numbers, who is responsible for making changes, and so on. You should also include information on where the project management plan can be accessed. This will depend a bit on whether the plan is in paper format or in electronic format, or a combination of both. A version and revisions page that is continually updated will help anyone associated with the project to easily find the latest information. Outputs from the planning processes The main body of the project management plan will include all the documents you created during the planning phase:  An executive summary/overview—The project plan should contain a summary that high level executives can access to quickly get an overview of the project. This summary needs to be written using non-technical language and should contain: – A high-level summary description of the business requirement that underlies the project. – The project goals in relation to company strategies and goals. Executives will want to know and be able to reference easily how the project fits in with the overall goals of the company. – The anticipated budget. – The targeted completion date.  Sponsor—Includes the name of the sponsor for the project.  Team members—Identifies project team members. If you created project team organizational charts, you can include these here.  The project charter and scope statement  Requirements—Includes technical, functional, and business requirements.  Constraints—Includes the constraints identified during planning.  Assumptions—Includes the assumptions identified during planning.  Resources—Lists resources such as equipment, facilities, software, hardware, and so on. If any of the work is contracted with sellers, you can also include seller information in this section.

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 Environmental issues—Lists any issues related to the environment, such as the physical, social, cultural, and political environment.  WBS—A copy of the work breakdown structure (WBS) lets anyone identify what specific tasks need to be accomplished during the project.  The various plans created during the planning phase—For example, the communications management, human resource management, procurement management, risk management, and quality management plans.  Milestones/deliverables—The project plan should identify the major milestones and deliverables as a high-level summary. Checklists and templates If you are using any checklists or templates for project processes and activities, they should be included in the project plan. For example, there might be templates used for the development of the various project plans, and quality control and change control checklists. Reference materials You might include reference materials that support corporate as well as other standards for the project. This can include company internal standards and policies, company internal methodologies, ISO 9001 standards, government standards, the PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge) Guide, and so on. Appendix The appendix can contain any of the documents that provide additional project detail, contact information, and any other documents not included elsewhere in the plan. Often, baseline information is added to the appendix. Baseline information includes time and cost baselines and is typically presented in high-level format. Keep in mind that what is included in the project management plan and the format in which the project plan is put together varies and your organization might have a format you’ll have to use for all of your projects.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

E-1:

Discussing the project management plan

Questions and answers 1 What is a project management plan?

2 What are some typical components of a project management plan?

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Putting together the project management plan Explanation

First, find out if there are existing standards for the project management plan in your organization. If so, follow the structure of these standards. Create the table of contents To create the table of contents (ToC), first start by assembling all of the project planning elements you want to include, such as time and cost, estimates, plans, checklists, and so on. Use the elements to create the table of contents. Design a project management plan change control process At this point, you want to define a project management plan control process. As part of this definition, you will describe how revisions are made, describe how a versioning system is implemented, and offer a set of guidelines for updating and distributing revisions. You will want to make your system as easy to use as possible to ensure stakeholder help and cooperation. Your project management plan is an iterative process. Any changes you make in one section of the plan can impact another area of the plan. When you consider your approach to updating the project management plan, be sure to provide a method to reference other areas of the plan that might be affected by the updated information. An example of an updating method is color-coding updates. If you have access to electronic process software, this method might also be a method you choose to keep the information up-to-date in a central location for everyone to access. Using a color-coding method either electronically or manually can ensure greater ease in finding the correct version. Sponsor review of the ToC You should meet with the sponsor and other key stakeholders to review the ToC. During this meeting, encourage stakeholders to provide feedback. The goal of the meeting is for participants to agree on the ToC, either as is or a revised version based on feedback given during the meeting. Write the project management plan After you have reviewed the ToC and obtained consensus on it from key stakeholders, you are ready to write the project management plan. Writing the project management plan involves more than just taking all of the project plan elements and placing them in a binder. Instead, activities include the following:  Integrate the planning elements you collected in accordance with the outline.  Add introductions, transitions, graphics, exhibits, and other elements as necessary or appropriate to create a document that flows logically from one area to the next.

Obtaining support for the project management plan Once completed, distribute the project management plan to all stakeholders for their review. If the plan is electronic, make sure all stakeholders have access to the location where the plan is stored and have the appropriate rights to view the plan. Stakeholders should not have rights to change an electronic plan; changes should be made only through the official project management plan change control process. To gain high level management support, verify with executives that the plan reflects their concerns and give them opportunity to provide their input.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Conducting a formal project management plan review The final step before heading into the executing phase is conducting a formal project management plan review meeting with all stakeholders. The activities that should take place during the review meeting include the following:  Assess the completion of the planning documentation.  Obtain feedback from stakeholders, making sure that their expectations for the project are in line with the project management plan.  If necessary, adjust the project management plan based on stakeholder feedback and resolve all planning issues that might be identified during the meeting. Make sure you use the change control process to make changes to the project plan.

Transition plan The project management plan also contains information about the processes and procedures that are necessary at the conclusion of the project to transition the product (or service) to operations (in case of an internal project) or the customer (in case of an external project). The transition plan discusses issues such as:  Ownership  Transition dates  Training of end-users  Extended support  Warranties

Kick-off meeting The kick-off meeting is typically held at the conclusion of planning. The project manager and the project team discuss, among others, the following topics:  Stakeholder expectations  High-level timeline  Project goals and objectives  Roles and responsibilities Do it!

E-2:

Conducting a project plan review meeting

Questions and answers 1 What are activities you should perform during the project management plan review meeting?

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Creating project plans

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Unit summary: Creating project plans Topic H

In this topic, you learned about the importance of a communications management plan. You learned that it is needed for the smooth flow of necessary information to the various stakeholders involved in the project. You also learned about the importance of identifying what information should go to whom and the different methods of communication.

Topic I

In this topic, you learned that procurement management includes the processes required to acquire products and services for a project from external sources. Then, you learned about procurement planning. You learned the two techniques of procurement management, performing make-or-buy analysis and consulting internal experts. Next, you learned about preparing the documents required for solicitation and determining the evaluation criteria for the contract award. You also learned about two common solicitation documents, requests for proposal (RFPs) and requests for quotes (RFQs). You learned about the factors that contribute to seller selection. You also learned about contract types.

Topic J

In this topic, you learned about risk management and its importance in project planning. You learned how to identify risks in a project and rate the severity of risk in a project. You also learned the methods to manage risks in a project.

Topic K

In this topic, you learned the importance of making a quality management plan for a project. You learned about identifying quality measures. You also learned how to identify methods for resolving disagreements among team members or between buyer and seller as part of the quality management plan.

Topic L

In this topic, you learned about the importance of putting together a project management plan. You learned about the components of the plan and how to write it. You also learned that a formal project management plan review meeting is necessary to address issues. The project management plan signals the end of the planning phase.

Review questions 1 True or false? Team meetings support group interaction and clarification and some ability for the sender of information to check for understanding by the recipients. True

2 What are three methods of communication in a project? Team meetings, memoranda and e-mails, and presentations.

3 Identify the communication medium that provides detailed documents, typically with supporting data to provide sufficient information for review and assessment. A Memoranda B Reports C Presentations D All the above

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 4 What's the recommended frequency for team meetings? A As needed B Daily C Weekly D Monthly 5 What's the recommended frequency for team meetings? A As needed B Daily C Weekly --- ANSWER D Monthly 6 What are the four main components of a seller contract? Requirements, delivery dates, performance reporting requirements, and acceptance criteria.

7 You should create high-level reports for what audience on a monthly basis? Senior management.

8 What are the three major components of risk management? Identification, quantification, and response

9 How will you monitor the quality of an ongoing project? Through periodic inspections, verification testing, reviews by peers, customer surveys, focus groups, and quality review meetings.

10 List the factors involved in quality management. Answers might include:

 Planning  Communication  Monitoring  Response 11 What are types of costs of quality management? Prevention costs, appraisal costs, and failure costs

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5–1

Unit 5 Managing people Unit time: 90 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Manage a project team. B Manage customer and sponsor relations.

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5–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Managing the project team This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

3.1

Coordinate human resources to maximize performance  Assemble and develop project team, build team cohesiveness, perform individual performance appraisals  Identify common causes of conflict  Detect conflict and apply conflict resolution techniques

Project team management Explanation

Managing a project team is a core part of a project manager’s responsibilities. A project manager needs to work closely with project team members to identify what motivates them. A project manager plays an important role, not only in coordinating the entire project, but also in providing leadership for the team. Strong leadership qualities are based on keeping channels of communication open, keeping on schedule, avoiding budget overruns, and providing encouragement and moral support for the team members. Motivation of project team members The project manager motivates team members with monetary rewards (such as salary and career advancement) and non-monetary rewards (such as appreciation, awards, and flexible work hours). Addressing team member needs It’s important for a project manager to try to address project members’ individual needs to make the project a success. Project team members have needs in the following areas:  Belonging and personal identification  Commitment and involvement  Self-actualization  Gratifying work  Opportunities for growth  Recognition of contributions and effort  Compensation  Adequate work environment  Interpersonal relationships No team is composed of a single personality type, function, or temperament. Project managers must be flexible and adaptable to get the most out of their teams. Often, addressing team member needs is possible without significant impact on the scope, time, cost, or quality of the project, and can lead to significantly better outcomes.

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Managing people

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Keep in mind that work benefits from knowledge of the context. Team members who understand how their work fits into the project or contribute to the final results will be able to adapt what they’re doing to the overall project. Addressing team member needs has the following benefits:  Helps avoid hidden agendas.  Provides development opportunity to provide new capabilities to future projects.  Builds trust, even if it’s decided that a specific need can’t be met on the project. Providing feedback Feedback should typically be given in a private meeting with the individual team member. While providing feedback, the following issues must be taken into consideration.  Ensure that expectations have been clearly communicated.  If the feedback is negative, try to start with some authentic positive feedback.  Ensure that your motives for providing feedback are really to assist the other person and not to put the other person down.  Use the word “we” as much as possible to show the person you are in it together.  Try to be specific about behaviors that don’t meet expectations; cite examples.  If you’ve struggled with a similar problem, say so, and offer the strategies you used for self-improvement. Do it!

A-1:

Providing feedback

Questions and answers 1 A project team member hasn’t been meeting the expectations of the job, continually showing up late for work, taking extended lunch breaks, and missing the last three project deadlines. How would you approach this member and provide feedback?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Managing individual performance issues Explanation

Project outcomes are only as good as the individuals who make up the project team. This is why managing individual performance is such an important component of project team management. An individual’s ability to accomplish tasks affects overall team performance. In addition, individuals who don’t perform up to standard can cause resentment and dissension in the team ranks. The following are some guidelines for dealing with individual performance issues.  Always try to deal with the issues in private.  Stress the impact of individual performance on team success.  Be sure that the expectations have been clearly communicated.  Try to get insight into the root cause of the behavior.  Work with the person to develop specific actions and expectations that can be monitored until the performance is up to par. It is important to recognize that individual performance problems might not be the fault of the individual or even within the individual’s control.

Do it!

A-2:

Discussing reasons for poor performance

Exercise 1 List possible reasons for an individual’s poor performance that are more the responsibility of the project manager or functional manager than of the individual.

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Managing people

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Managing team performance issues Explanation

Project managers need to manage team performance to ensure that project goals are met. Project managers must keep in mind that creating an effective team is an ongoing process. The difference between a good project and an excellent project is the ability of the project manager to keep the team motivated and working together effectively toward the common goal. The following are some guidelines for dealing with team performance issues.  Begin with a look at yourself and your own behavior to see what influence you have on team performance.  Make it clear to the team if expectations aren’t being met and ask if they have also observed that and know the reason.  Try to get at the root cause of the team’s performance issues.  Ensure the team has the resources and capability, such as training or compensation, to deal with the performance issues. Team performance has been identified as having the strongest overall influence on project success and is an important factor in all project phases.

Do it!

A-3:

Discussing team performance

Exercise 1 Identify causes and responses to team morale issues.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Providing leadership Explanation

An essential prerequisite for project success is the project manager’s ability to lead the team in what could be an unstructured environment. Project managers need to provide leadership throughout each phase of a project to motivate team members, keep the project on schedule, and ensure that milestones are met. Without this leadership, the project team might stall, unable to produce deliverables according to plan. The project manager must lead not only the team, but also the organization with respect to the project. As project risks arise, organization leadership might become nervous about the project’s viability and the benefit of continued investment. The project manager must be in command of project issues and be able to demonstrate this clearly to the stakeholders. Changing expectations in other parts of the organization also need leadership on the part of the project manager. The project manager must be sensitive to corporate strategy, the overall goals of corporate management, and the need to respond to corporate policy as defined and expressed by management. Personal leadership Project managers must not only communicate with people at various levels of the organization and across functional lines, but also process information and deliver it to the appropriate stakeholders. Project managers need to integrate individual demands, needs, and limitations into decisions that benefit overall project performance. Personal leadership of the project manager is made up of a set of inherent qualities and qualifications. In order to show leadership, a project manager must have the following characteristics:  The ability to motivate a team  Emphasis on constructive support for a project  Conspicuous honesty and a high degree of integrity  A command of a project’s technology  Business management competence  Alertness and quickness  Versatility and flexibility  Energy and toughness  Decision-making ability

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Managing people Do it!

A-4:

5–7

Managing a team

Exercises People make or break a project, and the project manager must know how to manage human resources effectively. Role-play what a good project manager would do in the following situations. Keep these questions in mind: How would you recognize and understand issues, conditions, and underlying problems? How could you identify corrective actions that would help improve productivity? 1 Sue, a senior business analyst with your consulting firm, has missed the last two meetings with the customer and hasn’t written much in her last two weekly status reports. She has been your right arm on this project, and you know she is a topnotch performer. You are afraid that she is looking for another position, but you know that your company would do anything to keep her. Your project will definitely fail if she leaves or doesn’t improve her performance.

2 You need to make up some lost time, and you have to convince your project team to work overtime for the next 2 months.

3 You have been trying to get approval from your sponsor regarding a change in scope you feel is necessary, but he keeps telling you he is too busy to get together to talk about this change. How should you proceed?

4 You are managing a virtual project team that includes professionals from various countries. Some people are very good at communicating their progress on a regular basis, but you hear very little from others.

5 Several sellers aren’t delivering products and services on time, or they are delivering products or services that aren’t of acceptable quality.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic B: Relationship with customer and sponsor Managing the relationship with customer and sponsor Explanation

Maintaining a good relationship with the person who pays for the project, the customer (in case of an external project) or the sponsor (in case of an internal project), is very important to a successful project outcome. Strategies for good customer and sponsor relationships To ensure a good ongoing relationship, employ the following strategies:  Communicate frequently. Just as during the initiation phase, keep the customer and sponsor involved throughout project planning and executing. Provide the customer or sponsor with updates and status reports on a regular basis and try to identify and address any concerns. Frequent communication can go a long way toward smoothing out any difficulties which inevitably arise on any project.  Gain consensus. Along with frequent communication, it is important to continue to obtain consensus from the customer or sponsor for changes and other issues that affect the scope of the project and the cost and timeliness of its deliverables. Involving the customer or sponsor in this manner throughout the project gives the customer or sponsor a sense of ownership of the project and is also important for the success of the project because you are developing the deliverables for the customer or sponsor, not for yourself or the project team.  Work on team building. Frequent communications and gaining consensus both help in the team building process, so by doing those two things you are already a long way toward team building with the customer (if applicable).  Manage expectations. The customer or sponsor will have expectations for the project and project deliverables. These expectations might become skewed over time as the customer or sponsor might not recall exactly the requirements, assumptions, constraints, goals, scope, and other relevant project information once the project is underway. Make sure you review project progress as well as the original or amended project plan so that expectations are in line with what is actually happening in the project.  Make timely decisions. Make sure you obtain necessary information from the customer or sponsor whenever a decision requires their input and make your decisions in a timely manner. Communicate to the customer or sponsor as to when decisions will be made. The customer or sponsor should have the feeling that this project has importance, and making timely decisions will help foster this feeling.  Manage by fact. During the course of a project, rumors and false information can cause negative feelings and disagreements. If the customer or sponsor is unhappy with a deliverable or some other aspect of the project, you need to find out why, and what the facts are. Then, depending on the situation, explain the situation and adjust the customer’s or sponsor’s expectation or, if there is indeed a problem with a deliverable or some other portion of the project, acknowledge this and implement strategies to solve the problem.

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Managing people

5–9

Dealing with wavering customer or sponsor Sometimes, during the course of a project, support might waver. If this is the case, you should try the following to regain support for the project:  Identify the source of doubts. You should meet with the customer or sponsor and explain that you are concerned about his or her support for the project and why you feel this way. Be prepared when you go to this meeting; you will have to support your statement with facts and observations you have made. Ask the customer or sponsor what his or her concern is regarding the project and why support has wavered. Together you can come up with a solution to rectify the situation. Look for body language and other clues that might help you identify what the issue is.  Be diplomatic. When you talk to the customer or sponsor, pay close attention to your message and how you deliver it. Don’t criticize, accuse, or judge; rather, stay factual and show the sincerity of your concern. Any negative behavior on your part might alienate the customer or sponsor and make matters worse.  Assess commitment. You need to assess whether your customer or sponsor is really committed to the project by answering the following questions in your mind: Does the customer or sponsor have something to lose? Will the customer or sponsor be held accountable in case of success or failure?  Utilize your allies and influences. If the customer sponsor denies that support is wavering, you might want to identify allies at the executive level who might be able to help you influence the customer or sponsor (assuming the allies agree with you and your view of the situation). Be very diplomatic when using allies and make sure you choose them carefully, as using allies can be a potentially problematic situation. (If not carried out tactfully and diplomatically, the customer or sponsor might see you involving others as undermining his or her authority or as disrespectful on your part.) A project without support is likely to fail, and there is no point in just letting the project linger on.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

B-1:

Managing customer and sponsor relations

Exercises 1 What are strategies you can employ to manage a good relationship with the customer or sponsor?

2 You are the project manager on a 1-year project. Six months into the project, a representative of the customer organization gives you a call and says he thinks the project is headed in the wrong direction. He says he heard from another person in the organization that changes have been made to the deliverables without the customer’s knowledge and that the project is no longer meeting his expectations. How do you handle the situation?

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Managing people

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Unit summary: Managing people Topic A

In this topic, you learned how to manage a project team and how this task is a core part of a project manager’s responsibilities. You also learned about the importance of addressing team member needs, providing feedback, managing individual performance issues, managing team performance issues, and providing leadership for the success of a project.

Topic B

In this topic, you learned about the importance of managing customer and sponsor relationships. You learned that there are a variety of strategies you can employ to maintain a good relationship with the customer or sponsor, including frequent communication, gaining consensus, working on team building, managing expectations, making timely decisions and managing by fact.

Review questions 1 List three guidelines for dealing with individual performance issues. Answers might include:

 Always try to deal with the issues in private.  Stress the impact of individual performance on team success.  Be sure the expectations have been clearly communicated.  Try to get insight into the root cause of the behavior.  Jointly develop specific actions and expectations to be monitored until the performance is up to par.

2 What types of written communication should you use to keep the customer or sponsor informed of what is going on with the project? Answers might include:

 Status reports  Other written updates

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

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6–1

Unit 6 Managing cost and evaluating project performance Unit time: 90 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Identify project-tracking activities. B Evaluate and measure the performance of a

project.

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6–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Tracking This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

4.7

Given a scenario, calculate and interpret the results of Earned Value Measurement (EVM)  EV  PV  AC

Explanation

It’s important to track a project’s progress and to make certain all milestones are met, deliverables are acceptable, and the project remains within the boundaries of scope, time, and cost. Project planning is an iterative process and plans might have to be modified during execution to include any new information.

Track the project and resolve issues A major component of project management is tracking the project and making sure it is on schedule and the resources assigned to the project are being used efficiently. The project tracking process starts with the identification of the project’s progress. Earned value measures such as actual cost (AC), earned value (EV) and planned value (PV) are used to track the project’s progress as far as scope, time, and cost is concerned. Project tracking activities Even the best-managed project, with well-defined objectives, adequate resources, and a sound plan, will fail without accurate information. The decisions leading to successful and timely completion of a project are based on the project manager’s collection of information through status reporting and tracking budget expenditures. These reporting and tracking tasks help the project manager learn about what is happening in the project environment so he or she can make any necessary adjustments. Many organizations have their own project status and variance report templates which are used to track a project’s periodic (daily, weekly, monthly) progress. The status report needs to contain the key tracking information the project manager can use to document how well the work is progressing according to the project plan. The information you gather for these reports enables you to perform the following activities on a regular basis:  Check the scope status. (Is a given project element in or out of scope?)  Check the evolution and the current status of project deliverables.  Check the project schedule.  Check the project cost.  Analyze variances from the project plan using a comparison between estimated and actual data. Items to check include resource time expenditures, cost expenditures, elapsed duration of activities, and milestones.  Report on the project status to stakeholders.  Identify activities that are ready to be closed out.

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–3

Tracking issues Status and variance reports are typically reviewed at scheduled intervals to monitor project status, progress made, and shortfalls experienced. The potential problem with these reports is that they tend to be reactive because:  The information is typically available to the project manager many days or even weeks after the effort—and any unfavorable variance—is incurred.  They tend to focus on existing problems rather than on anticipating potential problems. These formal tracking techniques need to be supplemented with informal and continual communication between the project manager and the project team. Project team members should be coached to think like project managers and to try to anticipate problems. All formal project reports must be supplemented with informal communication to get a true sense of the dynamics of the project’s progress. The key weakness of formal reports is that they aren’t necessarily predictive of future performance. To use only these reports would be like driving a car by using only the rear-view mirror. Discontinuing a project Sometimes projects have to be cancelled for a variety of reasons. Project reports, along with informal feedback, enable you to get a clear picture of where the project stands in terms of scope, cost, and time at regular intervals. If through this and other information you become aware the project is off course beyond what can be adjusted for in any of these areas, you will have to recommend to the customer or sponsor that the project be cancelled. If the project is not yet beyond the point of no return, report the problems that are occurring to the customer or sponsor and advise of strategies you are implementing in an effort to save the project. In either case you should meet with the customer or sponsor in person. This illustrates why planning and project tracking are so important; the better planned and tracked a project is, the less likely it is that the project has to be discontinued at some point.

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6–4 Do it!

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

A-1:

Tracking projects

Questions and answers 1 Discuss a system for tracking expenses against the plan. How would data be collected? What reports would be generated?

2 Informal communication in addition to formal project reports serve what purpose?

3 What is a weakness of project tracking reports?

4 When might you suggest that a project be canceled?

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–5

Manage a time or cost overrun Explanation

A time or cost overrun has business, project, and interpersonal issues associated with it, and each has to be addressed if it appears to exceed your plan. Business, project, and interpersonal issues The various business, project, and interpersonal issues for a time or cost overrun are as follows:  Business issues for a time or cost overrun – Failure to meet return on investment criteria – Non-financial benefits losing attention  Project issues for a time or cost overrun – Need to identify cost drivers – Use of less costly resources  Interpersonal issues for a time or cost overrun – Need to negotiate with customer or sponsor – Need to gain input and alternatives from project team members – Tendency to blame and scapegoat rather than solve the problem

Do it!

A-2:

Discussing time and cost overruns

Questions and answers 1 Describe and elaborate on the business, project, and interpersonal issues associated with a time or cost overrun. Business: new business requirements

Project: inexperienced resources

Interpersonal: lack of resources

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Mitigation of issues Explanation

Most projects don’t progress entirely according to the plan, which makes replanning a needed activity for any project manager. The replanning process requires the redefinition and re-establishment of project specifications and performance needs as work progresses. The process might force a goal or requirements change, which in turn might force a resource change. The solution to time and cost overruns, for example, is to recognize the actual project work might differ from the plan and then to initiate corrective action. Replanning should always be done within the scope of the business goals and objectives. Some replanning remedies might include making tradeoffs in time, cost, and scope, or perhaps defining new project activities and methods for completing the project. If resources are limited, then a precise redistribution or reallocation must be made. If resources aren’t limited, the additional personnel, financing, equipment, facilities, or information needed must be added to the revised project plan. This is further evidence that project management is an iterative process, generally requiring the original plan to be revised throughout the project’s life cycle.

Do it!

A-3:

Mitigation of issues

Questions and answers 1 What does the replanning process require?

2 Replanning should be done outside of the scope of the business goals and objectives. True or false?

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–7

Managing resources Explanation

Managing resources is one of the most important tasks that falls to the project manager. It includes tracking the schedule closely and making sure it isn’t falling behind. The red light/green light method is used to monitor the project status in terms of time. In case of schedule lag, the project manager negotiates with third parties, including the customer or sponsor, project team, and sellers. Schedule slippage The project manager must analyze the causes of schedule slippage. Some root causes might include:  Miscommunication—For example, an employee’s misperception of what’s expected.  Substandard ability—Substandard ability to perform according to expectations.  Lack of training—Self-explanatory.  Environmental considerations—Team members know what to do and how to do it but are held back by environmental problems.  Lack of adequate resources—This can include human as well as hardware, software, facility, and other materials needed to accomplish the project successfully and on time. Red light/green light method This is a simple approach to project management based on traffic lights (green, yellow, and red). Project reports highlight the project status as:  Green—The project is on schedule and on budget.  Yellow—The project is slightly behind schedule and/or over budget. The project manager should assess the situation and take action, such as: – Provide additional funding and/or a new target date. – Move to a multiple release plan to ensure that delivery takes place on time so that the risk of the follow-on project not being approved is removed.  Red—The project is significantly behind schedule and/or over budget. The customer or sponsor must provide more money and a new date or limit the scope or decide to kill it. Organizations that introduce this traffic light system typically find that 70 percent of projects go red at least once in the first 6 months. This is almost always due to scope creep.

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6–8 Do it!

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

A-4:

Addressing schedule slippage

Exercise 1 Consider the actions described in the red light/green light method and develop ways to address slippage.

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–9

Negotiation Explanation

Addressing slippage requires negotiation to gain additional resources or to adjust needs. Good negotiation involves preparation so you can describe the value of your proposal and answer any questions about risk and return. Entities with whom you’ll need to negotiate Throughout the project life cycle and during the evaluation and execution of specific change requests, you’ll need to negotiate with a variety of entities. These include the following:  Customer or sponsor  Project team members  Other project teams  Internal service organizations  External service organizations  Internal departments (finance/accounting, marketing, HR, and so on)  Users  Sellers Negotiate with sellers The project manager must ensure that sellers deliver items that actually meet the terms of the contract. The seller payments should be contingent upon full acceptance of deliverables. The responsibility for proper, on-time delivery, and quality is on the seller. Some difficulties in terms of acceptance, such as quality or number of items, might be subject to negotiation between the seller and project manager for proper consideration. Resolving disagreements with sellers At times, disagreements between sellers and the project team might arise. In this situation you’ll have to meet with the team member(s) that are involved in the disagreement, as well as with the seller (not necessarily at the same time) to be able to hear both sides of the story. Reasons for disagreements with a seller are many, but here are some examples:  Misunderstanding—Sometimes, disagreements stem simply from misunderstandings or miscommunication on either part (seller or team members). Getting to the bottom of the misunderstanding should resolve the disagreement.

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition  Team member rigidity—Now and then, disagreements come from a team member thinking rigidly. For example, the team member might not want anything to change from the way things were done before. In this scenario, the seller isn’t doing anything wrong; rather, the team member is resisting perhaps a new technology he or she has to learn, or perhaps the team member is convinced that one technology is better than another. (This is often the case if a new product is being implemented; many IT people have strong preferences for one product over another.) In this scenario, you’ll have to convince the team member that going with the new technology is integral to the project’s success and try to get the team member’s buy-in. Sometimes, a team member simply thinks he or she knows what’s best for the project—even better than the seller. This can be a serious problem. Try to address it with the team member, but if he insists on being right and is unwilling to cooperate with the seller, he can jeopardize the success of the project. In this scenario, you might have to look to replace the team member.  Seller rigidity—In some cases, the seller is unwilling (or perhaps even unable) to be flexible in terms of their product offering and how it will fit into your project simply because their product is too complex and integrated for changes or adjustments to be made. In this scenario, you’re usually getting an integrated solution from one seller, making you dependent on them. The seller will show little to no flexibility in terms of how things are done when it comes to the product they are delivering. This is actually a point you should have anticipated before selecting the seller—if inflexibility of this type doesn’t work well for your organization and if sticking to the constraints of a particular product doesn’t work for the project, you might have selected the wrong seller. You might be completely aware of this constraint and might have to convince team members the seller is simply delivering what they were requested to deliver.

Escalating resource issues In many cases, the project manager can resolve resource issues without having to involve the sponsor. Sometimes, however, it is necessary to escalate these issues. For example, if a functional manager assigns one of the critical team members working on your project to a different project, you might find yourself in a situation you can’t resolve on your own. You can try to convince the functional manager of the importance of this team member’s contribution to the project; however, if the functional manager insists the person needs to be reassigned, you’ll have to escalate the issue to the sponsor.

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance Do it!

A-5:

6–11

Negotiation, disagreement resolution, and issue escalation

Exercises 1 Identify the individuals with whom you might need to negotiate to address each of the potential slippage causes and responses.

2 A seller is providing a database mapping routine that’s essential to the conversion project. The seller says the deadline for the deliverable can’t be met. Role-play this situation and negotiate terms with the seller to keep the project on track.

3 What are some possible reasons for disagreements between seller and team members?

4 You are managing a 6-month project to develop a new interface for your organization’s Web site. At the three-month mark, one of the key team members, the lead Web designer, is reassigned by his functional manager to a different project. How would you handle this situation?

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6–12

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic B: Performance reporting This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objective. #

Objective

4.7

Given a scenario, calculate and interpret the results of Earned Value Measurement (EVM)  EV  PV  AC  CPI  SPI  EAC  ETC  VAC  BAC

Collecting and distributing performance information Explanation

Performance reporting is part of a project’s communication system. The purpose of performance reporting is to collect and distribute information to stakeholders about the effective use of a project’s resources. The time between one performance report and the next is called a reporting period.

Measuring project performance Controlling a project involves measuring progress toward project objectives and taking corrective action when requested. Performance reports and performance reviews are two methods of measuring the performance of a project. Performance reviews Performance reviews are meetings conducted to discuss a project’s status. A project manager should hold performance reviews throughout the project to make sure project activities progress as planned. During performance reviews, a project manager should:  Ensure every project team member is included.  Inform the project team about any changes in the project.  Identify problems and encourage team members to brainstorm solutions.  Motivate team members.  Reaffirm the project’s goals.  Ask team members to put forth their questions regarding the project. Performance reviews are important because they bring the project team members together, which can help build a sense of teamwork. In addition, performance reviews give team members the opportunity to voice concerns about a project. The frequency of performance reviews depends on how the project progresses. Frequency might also depend on the size of the project because large projects are more likely to get off track than small ones. Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–13

Performance reports If any part of a project varies from the project’s plan, then the variance must be included in a performance report. Performance reports include both progress and status reports. A progress report is a summary of activities over a period of time such as a week or month. A status report is a summary of activities over a cumulative period of time such as yearto-date or since the start of the project. Some frequent problems with performance reports include:  Too much information or the wrong kind of information.  Information not distributed in a timely manner. To avoid these problems when reporting, it is important to:  Make sure information is current and relevant.  Create reminders for the due dates of progress reports. Performance reports can be classified by frequency and/or purpose. The following are common classifications of performance reports:  Routine  Exception  Special analysis Routine Routine or regular performance reports aren’t necessarily scheduled but might be distributed at intervals that coincide with project phases or milestones. The frequency of performance reports depends on how smoothly the project functions. Exception Exception performance reports provide project team members with information they need to make a decision on or notify them of a change that affects their work. Exception performance reports are also distributed to stakeholders to inform them that a decision has been made. Special analysis Special analysis performance reports contain information about the results of a special study. Special studies might be conducted as part of a project or to determine a solution to a problem encountered during a project. Special analysis reports are not only useful documents for a current project but are valuable records of lessons learned for future projects.

Using meetings for performance assessment In addition to the above performance reports, project performance can also be assessed via individual and team status meetings.

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6–14

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Individual status meetings Individual status meetings are important to project communication. One-on-one status meetings with members of a project’s team can be more informative than performance reviews because some members of the project team might not feel comfortable voicing opinions or concerns in a large group. Individual status meetings are also great opportunities for a project manager to offer evaluations, to receive feedback, and get to know project team members better. Team status meetings Team status meetings should occur on a regular basis and are an excellent opportunity to receive status updates, solve problems, get team members to interact, and distribute important information to the project team. Team meetings need to be organized and focused; otherwise, they can be a waste of time. Some guidelines to follow when planning and conducting team meetings include:  Schedule meetings at regular times and intervals. Talk with team members and identify a day and time each week that is good for everyone to meet. Stress that it is important to attend team meetings and require people who can’t attend to provide update information and other necessary data in writing prior to the meeting. You can require team members to send someone in their place if they can’t attend the meeting.  Prepare an agenda for the meeting. An agenda helps keep the meeting on track.  Distribute the meeting agenda. Make sure to distribute the agenda before the meeting so team members will know what topics will be discussed and be prepared to discuss them, as necessary.  Stick to the meeting agenda. During the meeting, you’ll need to stick to the time allotments for each agenda item; otherwise, the meeting will lose focus, run too long and be ineffective. If an item really requires more time than allotted, set it aside and perhaps schedule a separate meeting just for this item.  Stick to the specified meeting start and end times. It is important that meetings start and end on time. This shows respect for everyone’s time and schedule. If people are late and start asking about items already discussed, tell them to contact you or another team member after the meeting.  Make sure everyone contributes. Some people are more communicative than others and some might even try to take control of the meeting. It is important that everyone participates in the meeting, so don’t allow anyone to monopolize the meeting. Make sure you encourage those people who tend to be shier or quieter than others to also contribute.  Provide direction and clarify work instructions. Team meetings are a great opportunity for you to provide direction to team members and clarify any work instructions that might need clarifying.  Prepare and distribute meeting minutes. After the meeting, prepare meeting minutes and distribute them to team members. Written minutes ensure everyone knows the outcomes of the meeting and is on the same page. Without written confirmation of what took place and what was decided, different team members might have different ideas because people typically leave meetings with different impressions of what took place. Organized meetings give you a written document you can refer to later to check on progress.

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

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Improving team communication During team meetings, you’ll have an opportunity to see whether intra-team communication is adequate. Are team members aware of what is going on with the work of other team members? This is especially important where there are task dependencies between the work of one team member and that of another. These team members should be aware of each other’s work, where it stands, whether there are any issues, and so on. Of course, not everyone needs to know every detail about what every team member is doing at any given time, but team members should have sufficient communication among them and not operate in an isolated manner. If you feel team communication is inadequate, point this out to team members during the team meeting or, if the situation warrants it, schedule a private meeting with the team members who don’t seem to be communicating. Be sure to explain:  Why communication between team members is important.  The consequences of inadequate communication (perhaps a task has already fallen behind schedule because of lack of intra-team communication). Make sure team members understand your position and rationale. Don’t be accusatory—attacking people is usually not helpful in resolving issues. Stick to the facts and try to help team members to understand the importance of intra-team communication. You’ll also want to follow up with the team members involved to make sure communication between them has improved. If you find that a single team member is simply unwilling to share information, you’ll have to discuss this in a private meeting and, if no changes are made by the team member, you might have to find a replacement. Lack of communication between team members can be a serious threat to the successful outcome of your project.

Working with issue logs Another way to evaluate performance and keep performance of the project on track is to create and regularly review an issue log. A good time to review issue logs is during team meetings. The log should contain information about each issue, such as:  What the issue is  Who is working on it  What is being done to resolve it  Estimated completion time During team meetings, go over the items in the issue log with the team members and obtain status information for each item. If not yet done, prioritize issues based on their severity and possible impact, which will be easier to do once you obtain status and other information about each issue from team members. Make sure actions are being taken on all issues that will bring them to closure.

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6–16 Do it!

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

B-1:

Evaluating performance

Exercises 1 During performance reviews, a project manager should do which of the following? A

Reaffirm the project’s goals.

B

Test a new product’s functionality.

C

Discuss changes in processes.

D

Estimate the project’s remaining duration.

2 What are the classifications of performance reports?

3 Explain the importance of performance reviews.

4 What’s the importance of individual status meetings?

5 What’s the importance of team status meetings?

6 What are items you should consider for organizing and running team meetings?

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–17

7 During a team meeting, it becomes obvious that the lead programmer on your project has not been communicating with another programmer whose tasks are dependent on those of the lead programmer. What should you do to improve communication?

8 What is the purpose of issue logs?

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6–18

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Tools for measuring performance Explanation

The tools and techniques used to measure the performance of a project are:  Variance and trend analysis  Earned value analysis Variance and trend analysis Variance analysis is used to gauge how closely a project adheres to the scope, time, and cost estimates made during the planning phase. Trend analysis is used to evaluate a project’s progress over time. For example, trend analysis can be used to determine whether a solution to a problem is effective by determining whether or not the problem exists after its solution is implemented. Earned value analysis Earned value analysis (EVA) is a technique for measuring actual versus plan in terms of scope, time, and cost. Overall project performance is measured by completing an earned value analysis, which involves calculating a dollar amount for every project activity. Earned value analysis provides:  Progress status of work being performed  Comparison of planned schedule and cost to actual accomplishments  Objective, valid data  A method for estimating project completion The dollar amounts are calculated using the following values:  Planned Value—Planned Value (PV) is the planned cost of work you had planned to complete. For example, $1,000 is assigned to Activity A, which takes 6 days to complete.  Earned Value—Earned Value is the planned cost of work you have actually completed. For example, let’s say that Activity A is allotted $1,000. Activity A is only 40% complete at the time that EV is calculated. Only $400 of the $1,000 allotted for Activity A is included in EV.  Actual Cost—Actual Cost is the actual cost of work you have actually completed. For example, if the 6 days worth of work completed on Activity A actually cost $5,000, then $5,000 is your AC. Earned value analysis is important to performance reporting because it can give the project manager and team members the most accurate measure of whether or not a project’s activities are being completed as planned.

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–19

Calculations used during earned value analysis The following calculations are used during earned value analysis:  Cost variance = EV - AC  Schedule variance = EV - PV  Cost performance index = EV ÷ AC  Schedule performance index = EV ÷ PV Do it!

B-2:

Using tools to measure performance

Questions and answers 1 Which of these calculations is computed during earned value analysis? A

Schedule variance

B

Actual Cost

C

EV

2 What are the tools and techniques used to measure the performance of a project?

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6–20

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

An earned value example Explanation

Earned value uses original project estimates and actual progress to show whether the actual costs incurred are above, at, or below the budget. For example, a project with a baseline cost estimate of $100,000 that is half complete in terms of tasks accomplished has an earned value of $50,000. If only one third of the tasks have been accomplished and half the budget has been spent, the earned value would be $33,000 against an actual cost of $50,000, leading to a negative $17,000 cost variance. This indicates the project is over budget and behind in task completion. Earned value is a technique that permits you to quantify the overall progress of the project in monetary terms. Other earned value variables Budget at Completion (BAC): The original amount budgeted for the entire project to be completed. Estimate at Completion (EAC) = AC + ETC. An estimate of the total cost for the project, utilizing current project performance and work that still needs to be completed. Estimate to Complete (ETC) = EAC - AC. The estimated dollar amount for the project work still to be done. Variance at Completion (VAC) = BAC - EAC. The estimated dollar amount for final variance between the original estimate and the revised estimate of total project cost.

Exhibit 6-1: The earned value graph of a one week project with a BAC of $ 8,000 with AC and EV measured on Wednesday

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance Do it!

B-3:

6–21

Calculating earned value variables

Exercises A consultant is designing an application over a 2-month period for an estimated baseline cost of $20,000. The task is scheduled to begin on June 1 and end on August 1. Answer the following questions about each situation. 1 Assume a steady daily rate such that the costs are evenly distributed over the 2month period. What is the PV as of July 1?

2 The consultant reports that, as of July 1, she will have completed 60% of the work on the application design task. What is the EV as of July 1?

3 The consultant is paid at a rate of $500 per day. She is scheduled to work 20 days in a month. She worked 26 days in June. What is the AC as of July 1?

4 A positive SV indicates that a task is ahead of schedule and a negative SV indicates a task is behind schedule. What is the SV as of July 1? Is the project ahead of, behind, or on schedule?

5 A positive result for CV would indicate a budget underrun. A negative result for CV would indicate a budget overrun. What is the CV as of July 1? Is the project over, under, or on budget?

6 A CPI greater than 1 indicates a favorable result, and a value less than 1 indicates that more money is being spent than is being earned. What is the CPI as of July 1?

7 An SPI value greater than 1 indicates that the work is ahead of schedule. What is the SPI as of July 1?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 8 Given the information below for a 1-year project, calculate several earned value measures. Amount $450,000 $400,000 $500,000 $800,000

Earned Value Measure PV EV AC BAC

CV = SV = CPI = SPI = 9 How’s the project doing? Is it ahead of schedule or behind schedule? Is it under budget or over budget?

10 Given the information below for a 6-month project, calculate the estimate at completion. $200,000 = AC $300,000 = ETC EAC =

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Managing cost and evaluating project performance

6–23

Unit summary: Managing cost and evaluating project performance Topic A

In this topic, you learned about the various project tracking activities. You learned how to monitor progress and handle the mitigation of certain issues in the project.

Topic B

In this topic, you learned about project performance measuring and reporting. You learned about the importance of status meetings and about the tools you can use to measure performance such as earned value.

Review questions 1 Why is project tracking important? To track the overall progress and milestone achievements.

2 Define earned value. The technique used to monitor project progress in terms of scope, time, and cost.

3 Name the two reports commonly used to track a project. Project status report and variance report

4 Define variance. The difference between the plan and the actual.

5 List two reasons why a project might be behind schedule when it comes to managing resources. Miscommunication and lack of training

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6–24

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

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7–1

Unit 7 Managing change and quality Unit time: 120 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Manage changes. B Manage quality.

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7–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Managing change This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

2.3

Outline a process for managing changes to the project  Approvals required  Forms needed  Turnaround times  Document routing  Communication flow

4.1

Given a scenario, implement proper change management procedures  Identify change  Document using the appropriate change control forms  Perform impact analysis  Coordinate with the appropriate stakeholders to select the course of action  Update the appropriate project plan components based on the approved change request

4.2

Evaluate the impact of potential changes to triple constraint  Time/ schedule  Cost/ resources  Quality  Scope

3.4.

Given a scenario, select which component(s) of a project plan is affected and select what action(s) should be taken  Actions  Components

Change management Explanation

Managing change means evaluating and implementing changes. A change control process includes the identification, evaluation, notification, and actual change in scope, time, cost, schedule, and budget. All changes should be undertaken only through the change control process. The following are guidelines you can use for these changes. Use a standard change request form. This form should include a description of the change, the reason, and who is requesting the change.  Investigate the overall impact of the change request on your project.  Use a formal approval process to accept or reject the request.  Relay this information to the stakeholders.  Include the approved changes in the project plan documentation.

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Managing change and quality

7–3

Scope creep One significant problem encountered during many projects is scope creep. Scope creep is the gradual addition of new requirements to the original specification and can adversely affect time and cost. It is likely to happen if changes to the scope aren’t controlled through change control. As the requirements list increases, project complexity increases. Scope creep is the main reason for the failure of big projects. Some causes include:  Unclear deliverables at project start. Make sure a thorough analysis is done before the project planning phase by using methods, such as interviews, focus groups, and surveys to list all the project requirements and deliverables needed.  Evolving stakeholder expectations. Stakeholders should acknowledge the scope statement, which could state that only the deliverables defined in the scope statement will be produced and that no additions or changes to the scope statement are permitted.  Developers recognizing new possibilities. Team members should be given exact specifications to work with in order to produce the deliverables as specified in the scope statement. Their work should be periodically tested to make sure it matches the exact specifications, and they should be encouraged to discuss any new possibilities they think of before incorporating them. Do it!

A-1:

Preventing scope creep

Exercise 1 Describe methods to prevent scope creep for each of the causes mentioned in the previous “Scope Creep” section.

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7–4

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Apply a change control process Explanation

As a project evolves, understanding of the problems and possibilities also evolves. This evolution sometimes necessitates changes to the project scope statement. Change control is usually the weakest part of a project and, if not monitored, can lead to significant resource waste and missed schedules. Successful project managers do the following:  Place great emphasis on managing changes, insisting they are carefully defined, accurately budgeted in terms of cost, and formally approved.  Amend the project management plan to reflect the impact of any changes.  Use change orders for making changes.  Have a contract describing who pays for the changes. Examples of changes to a project include, but aren’t limited to, the following:  Scope—The customer redefines requirements after the project has begun.  Personnel—Promotions, hiring, downsizing, reassignments, illnesses, or accidents occur.  Management—A change in the organizational structure or corporate ownership takes place.  Economics—Reallocation of budgets due to financial factors affecting the organization happens.  Environment—The project or company moves to a new location, or data resources become unavailable.  Priorities—Management shifts organizational priorities.

Change control activities Change control includes the following activities:  Identifying and evaluating necessary changes.  Evaluating the impact of changes on scope, time, cost, performance indicators, resource availability, risks, and project goals.  Evaluating whether the change needs to be elevated to customer or sponsor.  Notifying the appropriate parties of the changes and their impact.  Documenting and implementing accepted changes.  Rejecting unacceptable changes.  Documenting unacceptable changes.  Reforecasting the scope, time and cost based on the changes. Identify and evaluate necessary changes As part of an overall change control process, change orders must be submitted in writing to the project manager. Change order documents can vary by the degree of detail, but certain minimal information is needed, such as:  Control number (might be assigned by the project manager if not known to the requestor).  Requestor’s name, telephone number, e-mail address, and best method of contact.  Date of request.

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Managing change and quality

7–5

 Recipient’s name, telephone number, and e-mail address.  A statement of needs, to include the business problem, reason for the request, and suggested solution.  Estimation of the impact of the change on other project aspects, including related tasks, deliverables, resource concerns, time, cost, risk and quality. The same change order document could also be used to track change status and disposition. The following information is needed:  Date received.  Disposition (approval versus deferral).  Action plan.  Appropriate signatures and dates (i.e., project manager, change control board, customer or sponsor) as determined by organizational policies. Change orders must be submitted in writing to the project manager. Impact of changes on scope, time, and cost, performance indicators, resource availability, risks, and project goals Change requests can fall into two categories:  Changes that are necessary.  Changes that are unnecessary but would still be beneficial. The project manager and stakeholders must agree on the necessity of each change request. After a change has been deemed necessary to the current project, you must evaluate the impact of change in terms of the following:  Scope—How will the change affect the deliverables?  Time—Can the change be accomplished without altering the length of the project? How is the completion date for any of the deliverables affected?  Cost—What effect will the change have on project costs?  Performance indicators—Do the established project performance indicators change as a result of the change?  Resource availability—Will resources (people, equipment, facilities) still be available given the proposed changes? How does a change in availability affect other areas of the project (time and cost)?  Risks—Does the change increase risk? Reduce it?  Project goals—How does the change effect project goals (do the goals change or are they unaffected)?

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CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

A-2:

Controlling resolution

Exercise 1 Use Part 4 of the case study in Appendix B, Topic A, named Billing System Conversion Project to discuss the alternative solutions.

Clearly identify the issue causing this potential increase in scope, time, and cost for the project.

Identify options for absorbing part or all of the increase in the overall budget for the project.

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Managing change and quality

7–7

Notify the appropriate parties Explanation

Changes and their impacts on the project scope, schedule, and budget need to be communicated clearly to the appropriate stakeholders, including the customer or sponsor, project team and sellers.  Scope—Scope changes should be communicated to all parties and documented.  Work breakdown structure (WBS) and schedule—The WBS and the schedule should be updated to reflect the change. A schedule change that affects the entire project should be communicated to all stakeholders.  Budget—The budget should be updated to reflect the change. Budget changes should to be reported to the customer or sponsor, and other stakeholders, as appropriate.

Do it!

A-3:

Communicating during change

Exercise 1 Use Part 4 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project and do the following: For each potential change, identify stakeholders who must be notified or who must give approval for changes to the project.

Develop a plan for advising them of the change, the rationale for the change, and the consequences, if not approved.

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7–8

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Document and implement the changes Explanation

Changes are documented and integrated into the project plan via the SOW, WBS, and other project documents. These include the following:  Project management plan  Scope statement  WBS  Schedule  Budget

Do it!

A-4:

Justifying changes

Exercise Use Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project to provide an example of a justifiable change to the conversion project based on each of the following conditions. 1 Resource changes

2 Schedule changes

3 Cost changes

4 Requirement changes

5 Infrastructure changes

6 As a response to scope creep

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Managing change and quality

7–9

Evaluating changes and identifying alternatives Explanation

Evaluating change requests and alternatives to the requests is an important task. The key areas that might be affected by changes must be evaluated as follows:  Budget—What actions can be taken to accommodate the scope change without increasing the budget? Examine alternatives, such as: – Reordering tasks – Outsourcing  Schedule—What can you do to accommodate the scope change without jeopardizing the schedule? Examine alternatives, such as: – Modifying the schedule  Quality—What actions can be taken to accommodate the scope change while minimizing the effect on quality? Examine alternatives, such as: – Modifying the work process – Increasing the number of test sites – Modifying the design – Using substitute materials Understanding stakeholder priorities and obtaining buy-in It’s important that you understand which aspect(s) of the project are most important to stakeholders (scope, time, or cost) and that you can identify tradeoffs that can be made to maximize aspect(s) that are most important to stakeholders. You will need to get buyin from stakeholders on most project changes, so doing your homework in evaluating changes, identifying alternatives, and understanding stakeholder priorities is imperative. Steps to take Faced with a specific problem, a project manager needs to take corrective action. Such corrective action might include:  Actions: – Meet with the project team to brainstorm solutions to a problem. – Closely track the progress of the project in order to be able to address a problem as quickly as possible.  Components: – Manage (and control) risk by utilizing the risk management plan and risk register. – Manage (and control) changes to the project.

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7–10 Do it!

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

A-5:

Obtaining buy-in on a project change

Exercises 1 In your group, use Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the case study named Billing System Conversion Project and provide an example of a justifiable change to the project based on the following. The head of the billing department is very upset after hearing about the major problems with converting the old data. She obviously doesn’t understand what is happening and is visibly under a lot of stress. She now questions the feasibility and usefulness of the whole project. What should you, the project manager, do?

2 In your group, use Parts 1 and 2 of the case study in Appendix B, Topic B, named ABC Financials Product Database and evaluate alternatives to upper management’s scope change request that your project stakeholders might find acceptable. Assume the key project stakeholders are upper management, potential users of the new system, technical project staff, and you, the project manager.

3 Use Part 3 of the case study in Appendix B, Topic B, named ABC Financials Product Database to identify which aspects of this project—scope, time or cost— are the most important to upper management, potential users of the new system, and technical project staff, respectively. Then discuss the tradeoffs that can be made. Be prepared to share your answers with the class.

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Managing change and quality

7–11

Topic B: Managing quality This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

3.3

Recognize the purpose and influence of organizational governance on a project’s execution  Standards compliance  Internal process compliance  Decision oversight  Phase gate approval

4.5

Explain the appropriate steps to ensure quality of project deliverables  Monitor work performance  Analyze performance information  Identify variances  Generate change requests  Implement change requests

4.6

Identify potential tools to use when a project deliverable is out of specification as defined in the quality baseline  Pareto charts  Histograms  Run charts  Ishikawa diagram

Quality management Explanation

Producing quality deliverables requires constant quality management throughout the project. Quality management starts with sound planning, by using the proper processes and industry standards during executing, and eventually testing and verifying deliverables. User documentation, training, and support are major parts of quality management.

Strategies for maintaining quality deliverables The purpose of quality management is to prevent or minimize errors of the deliverables. Quality originates from adequate planning and proper processes during executing. It is backed by verification and review of each task’s output before it’s passed on to the next dependent task. Actions that help maintain project quality include applying standards and using qualitative and quantitative evaluation and testing methods. Standards applied throughout the executing phase help to ensure that task outputs are consistent with project goals and objectives. Standards include the following:  Structured plans  Work standards and templates  Structured programming

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7–12

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Testing is a form of verification that demonstrates performance and checks whether the outputs meet the requirements. Other forms of verification include document examinations and qualitative assessments. Testing the project deliverables multiple times during execution helps to ensure that the outputs work effectively with other components of the system. Test results and other project status checks should be formally reviewed and approved throughout execution.

Quality tools Quality tools include the following:  Pareto chart—A Pareto chart is a histogram where items (such as number of defects) are ordered by frequency of occurrence, as shown in Exhibit 7-1.

Exhibit 7-1: Example of a Pareto chart  Control chart—A control chart charts a process over time, as shown in Exhibit 7-2. A process is in control if it remains within 3 standard deviations of the mean. Upper and lower control limits reflect the capability of the machine, operator, and/ or processes. Upper and lower specification limits reflect the customer’s quality requirements. A run chart is a control chart without control or specification limits.

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Managing change and quality

7–13

Exhibit 7-2: Example of a control chart  Fishbone diagram—A fishbone diagram shows cause and effect (as shown in Exhibit 7-3); as a result, it is also called a cause-and-effect diagram.

Exhibit 7-3: Example of a fishbone diagram

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7–14

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition  Flowchart—A flowchart is used to map process or information flow, or the flow of an item through the shop-floor, as shown in Exhibit 7-4.

Exhibit 7-4: Example of a flowchart  Scatter diagram—A scatter diagram shows a relation (correlation) between two variables, as shown in Exhibit 7-5.

Exhibit 7-5: Example of a scatter diagram

Quality testing There are many methods for quality testing. Different methods are appropriate for different types of projects, as well as for the various stages within a project. Quality testing methods include the following:  Functional  Compatibility  Usability testing  Performance testing  Feature benchmarking  User scenario

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Managing change and quality Do it!

B-1:

7–15

Applicability of testing methods

Exercise For each testing method listed below, describe an IT project that would use that method. 1 Functional 2 Compatibility 3 Usability testing 4 Performance testing 5 Feature benchmarking

6 User scenario

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7–16

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Acceptance testing Explanation

At the end of the executing, before turnover of the project deliverable and project closure, acceptance testing needs to be done. In an IT setting, this means that the final project deliverable needs to be tested for user acceptance, factory acceptance, and site acceptance. User acceptance testing During user acceptance testing (UAT), a selected group of users works with and tests the project deliverable. The deliverable should be considered complete and free of errors when it goes to user acceptance testing. Users are expected to test for and identify any bugs or other issues that have not been identified. Factory acceptance testing Factory acceptance testing (FAT) usually applies if a system is very large and requires that acceptance testing is done at the site of original development. After factory acceptance testing is complete, the deliverable is ready to be delivered to the client. Many government contracts involve factory acceptance testing because the systems developed usually are very large and complex. Site acceptance testing In contrast to factory acceptance testing, site acceptance testing is done at the customer site. Typically, site acceptance testing is done after factory acceptance testing to make sure the deliverable also functions properly in the customer’s environment.

Do it!

B-2:

Discussing acceptance testing

Questions and answers 1 Your 2-year, large-scale project is nearing its conclusion. The project deliverable has been tested by a group of users and suggested changes have been implemented. What is the next step in the acceptance testing process?

2 Acceptance testing that is done at the customer’s location is what type of acceptance testing?

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Managing change and quality

7–17

Quality assurance during and after turnover Explanation

IT projects aren’t typically complete at the end of the development effort. Support is needed during implementation of:  System documentation  User documentation  User training  Integrated help files  Help desk support Make sure you budget for these resources that are needed at the end of the project. If you have not yet created one, you should realize that a training plan might be necessary to ensure smooth implementation of the project deliverable after turnover.

Compliance Projects must comply with a multitude of standards. Those include the following:  Standards compliance—Local, state, and federal government  Process compliance—Audit trails, retention, version control  Decision oversight—Change Control Board Do it!

B-3:

Discussing quality management

Exercises 1 Describe potential quality assurance measures suitable during turnover.

2 List three quality testing methods.

3 What are the various development standards that help to ensure that task outputs are consistent with project goals and objectives?

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7–18

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Unit summary: Managing change and quality Topic A

In this topic, you learned how to manage changes that occur during a project. You also learned that managing changes includes preventing scope creep, and evaluating and implementing changes.

Topic B

In this topic, you learned how to manage quality in a project. You also learned about the strategies to be followed for maintaining quality deliverables and the various methods of quality and acceptance testing.

Review questions 1 How should any changes to the project be handled during the executing phase? By effectively using the change control process.

2 What’s scope creep? It’s the gradual addition of new system requirements to the original specifications. Evolving stakeholder expectations, the recognition of new possibilities by team members, or open-ended and unclear scope definition documents all can contribute to scope creep.

3 List the three compliance standards that can apply to a project. Standards compliance, Process compliance, and Decision oversight.

4 Change control is usually the _______ part of a project and, if not controlled, can lead to significant resource waste and missed schedules. A Strongest B Weakest 5 The deliverable for your project has been deemed complete and error-free by the project development team. What testing should you perform at this point? User acceptance testing

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8–1

Unit 8 Project closure Unit time: 90 minutes Complete this unit, and you’ll know how to: A Manage project closure.

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8–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Closing a project This topic covers the following CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives. #

Objective

5.1

Explain the importance and benefits of formal project closure  Confirm and document objectives were completed/not completed  Release resources  Provide historical information for future projects  Close contracts  Standards compliance  Post-project review

5.2

Identify circumstances in which project/ phase closure might occur and identify steps to take when closure occurs  Phase closure  Project completion  Stage completion  Component completion  Project cancellation

5.3

Identify the components and purpose of closing documentation  Lessons learned  Close report  Post mortem analysis  Final individual performance appraisal  Transition plan

Project closure Explanation

Orderly project closure can be as important as the project plan itself in terms of keeping customers happy and building stakeholder loyalty. Project closure should address the needs of all stakeholders who’ve been with the project from its beginning. Project closure occurs at the closure of a project or in case of its cancellation, but similar steps may also be taken at the completion of a phase, stage, or component of a large or very large project. After a project has been completed, it’s important to do the following:  Obtain customer sign-off.  Recognize the work the project team has done and provide a sense of closure.  Review the lessons that have been learned throughout the project.

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Project closure

8–3

There are a number of activities to perform as the project comes to an end. They include the following:  Verify that deliverable was completed correctly.  Ask sponsor (or customer) to accept deliverable.  Hand over the deliverable to the customer and begin support/maintenance.  Close out seller contracts.  Perform a project review.  Compile a project report.  Release project resources.  Collect project files and store them for future reference. Orderly closure ensures that all project tasks are completed satisfactorily and stakeholder needs are addressed. Following these steps ensures that all the project’s tasks are complete and ready for the sponsor or customer to accept the deliverable and sign-off on it. Confirm objectives were met The major goal of project management is to obtain customer acceptance of the deliverable. Ideally, completion of the project means that the deliverable solves the customer’s problems. The project closure phase begins with the customer acceptance meeting. Its purposes are as follows:  Verify that the acceptance criteria for the project have been met.  Obtain customer sign-off. During the customer acceptance meeting, the customer goes through a list of all deliverables, makes sure they have been tested for functionality and quality, and then formally accepts and signs-off on the project. If the customer isn’t satisfied that the acceptance criteria have been met, then the project manager and customer should come to an agreement, in writing, on the next steps. These may include the following:  Project acceptance with deviations and omissions noted and explained.  Project acceptance with monetary or other compensation to the customer for the deviations and omissions.  Continuation of the project until all acceptance criteria have been achieved, using an agreed-upon change control process for the additional scope. The result of the customer acceptance meeting should be contained in the final project report. Transition plan Once the customer has signed off on the project, the deliverable should be formally turned over to the customer and support and maintenance of the project deliverable should begin.

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8–4

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Close contracts At the end of a project, you have to make sure all seller contracts are closed out and signed-off (contract closeout). The following steps need to be taken to close out a contract: 1 Verify that deliverables were completed correctly. 2 Notify the seller that the deliverables have been accepted and that the contract is complete. 3 Make final payment. 4 Archive contract records. Procurement is responsible for dealing with seller contracts and as such, you need to inform the people responsible for procurement of the acceptance of seller deliverables so seller contracts can be closed out. You should notify procurement in writing and make sure all seller deliverables have been tested and their quality verified before sending this written notification. Once a seller contract is completed and closed out, you can’t go back and complain about poor quality deliverables or other issues.

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Project closure Do it!

A-1:

8–5

Discussing the closure phase

Questions and answers 1 True or false? The closure phase of a project cycle can be ignored for the sake of time.

2 True or false? At the customer acceptance meeting, you should obtain customer sign-off.

3 List at least five activities that take place during the closure phase.

4 How does orderly closure contribute to project success?

5 What’s the customer’s role at the customer acceptance meeting?

6 What happens after the customer has signed-off on the project?

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8–6

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Post-project review Explanation

A post-project review meeting (or post mortem analysis) should be held shortly after the customer acceptance meeting. The purpose of this meeting is to identify and review the lessons learned and to obtain project closure. Such a meeting should be preceded by a questionnaire that helps team members focus on the objectives of the meeting. A project review meeting should encompass the following:  Include all aspects of the project, such as planning, organizing, and execution of the plan, management, and financials.  Identify which aspects of the project were successful and which needed improvement.  Identify possible improvements to existing processes.  Hold the meeting as close to the end of the project as possible.  Assure that all team members attend the meeting (for very large projects, at least one representative from each major area should attend). A post-project review is critical to closing a project. During the process of the meeting, certain defined objectives and standard questions should be addressed. Objectives are as follows:  To learn from the experience.  To prepare to repeat successes.  To learn how to handle less successful events differently.  To provide information from which others might benefit.  To identify processes that need to be changed. The following table lists some questions that need to be discussed in detail. Project areas

Questions

Project scope and team building

Was the role of the project manager clearly defined? Did the project team include the right members? Were additional members needed? What changes would you recommend to the organizational structure? Did customers and stakeholders participate? Should they have? Did the team have adequate management support? Were the project/product objectives clearly defined? Were the product definition and needs clear? What caused product definition and requirement changes? Was the necessary documentation available?

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Project closure Project areas

Questions

Planning

Was planning done adequately?

8–7

Was the plan tracked adequately? Were changes to the plan well communicated? Did you have adequate input into planning? Do you have suggestions for improving the planning process? What caused deviation from the plan? Cost

Were costs adequately anticipated? Were there costs that weren’t anticipated? Why? What caused cost increase?

Resources

Were resources available when needed? Were the tools used in the project (such as project management software) adequate to the requirements?

Communications and meetings

Were communications timely and adequate? What about other means to communicate? Were meetings useful and necessary? Was the frequency of meetings sufficient? Were meetings run efficiently? Were team members prepared for meetings? Were the results of meetings delivered to all team members in a timely fashion? Did the process of decision-making work? Does it need refinement? Were conflicts resolved adequately?

Reflection

What did you enjoy most during the project? What did you find most frustrating during the project? What was successful? What wasn’t successful? What wasn’t achieved? If asked to be on another project team, what one thing would you make sure was in place? In hindsight, what would you have done differently?

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8–8

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition Lessons learned Organizations that take time to learn lessons from their projects, successful or unsuccessful, achieve consistently better results. Sponsors should insist on regular lessons learned reviews during the project and keep track of their implementation. Lessons learned constitute a good way of capturing an organization’s strengths and weaknesses in managing projects, and offer an avenue to generate new ideas and ways of working that can be valuable in the future. Keep a list of the processes and changes made throughout the life of the project. Lessons learned:  Should be gathered throughout the life of a project.  Should be reviewed at the end of each major phase.  Must be identified and analyzed in detail.  Are about processes and people. Provide project report for future projects When the post-project review meeting is over, the pertinent information should be summarized in a project report. The project report is the history of the entire project. It’s an account of the project—what went right and wrong, who worked on the project and in what capacity, and how the project was managed. The project report should include the following:  A brief description of the project.  A measure of its success.  The lessons learned.  Explanations for any variances in scope, time, or cost. In addition to the current project, the report can make recommendations for future projects based on the lessons learned. The primary goal of the project report is to improve future projects. Archive the project plan You should keep the project plan and all of the documentation that was created for this project for future reference. Even if you never completed the project, you should keep what material and documents you developed for the project for future reference. Document retention compliance is mandated either by company-internal policies or law. Among the items you need to archive are the following:  Acceptance of deliverable by the sponsor or customer  Project records  Change records  Project closure documents  Historical information  Lessons learned

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Project closure

8–9

Release team members Releasing the team with whom you worked on the project is another part of project closure. Let the functional managers know that you no longer need the resources for your project. Take the opportunity to contribute to the individual performance appraisal of team members and update their human resource files. Also, release other resources such as personal computers and the like. Do it!

A-2:

Conducting a post-project review meeting

Questions and answers 1 When should you hold a post-project review meeting?

2 What is the purpose of the post-project review meeting?

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8–10

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Unit summary: Project closure Topic A

In this topic, you learned about the last phase of the project management life cycle, closing. You learned about the importance of holding a customer acceptance meeting, handing over deliverables, closing out seller contracts, conducting a post-project review, identifying the lessons learned, compiling a project report and archiving the project plan.

Review questions 1 True or false? Customer sign-off isn’t part of the closure phase. False

2 How can the closure phase be useful in planning future projects? In identifying potential mistakes to avoid.

3 What’s the last step in the closure phase? Release resources

4 During the closure phase, the team is released from the project. Whom should you notify that you’ve released project team members? Functional managers

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A–1

Appendix A Certification exam objectives map This appendix provides the following information: A CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives

with references to corresponding coverage in this course manual.

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A–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Comprehensive exam objectives Explanation

This section lists all CompTIA Project+ 2009 exam objectives and indicates where each objective is covered in conceptual explanations, activities, or both.

DOMAIN 1.0: Pre-Project Setup/Initiating 1.1. — Explain the requirements to complete a pre-project setup Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Identify the project

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

Validate the project

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

Prepare a project charter

Unit 2, Topic C Unit 2, Topic E

C-1, C-2 E-1

Obtain approval (signature) for project charter

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Temporary endeavor

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

Delivers a unique product or service

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

Constrained by time

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

Resources and quality

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

1.2. — Identify the characteristics of a project

1.3. — Summarize the steps required to validate a project Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Validate business case

Unit 2, Topic B

B-1, B-2, B-3

Identify and analyze stakeholders

Unit 2, Topic A

A-1, A-2

Unit 2, Topic F

F-1, F-2, F-3

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Certification exam objectives map

A–3

1.4 — Explain the components of a project charter Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Key project deliverables

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

High level milestones

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

High level cost estimates

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

Identify stakeholders

Unit 2, Topic E Unit 2, Topic D

E-1 D-1

General project approach

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

Problem statement

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

High level assumptions

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

High level constraints

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

High level risks

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1, E-2

Project objectives

Unit 2, Topic E

E-1

1.5. — Outline the process groups of the project life cycle Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Initiating/Pre-Project Setup

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

Planning

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

Executing

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

Monitoring/controlling

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

Closing

Unit 1, Topic A

A-1

1.6. — Explain the different types of organizational structures Topic

Conceptual information

Functional

Unit 1, Topic C

Weak matrix

Unit 1, Topic C

Matrix

Unit 1, Topic C

Strong matrix

Unit 1, Topic C

Projectized

Unit 1, Topic C

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Supporting activities

A–4

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

DOMAIN 2.0: Project Planning 2.1. — Prepare a project scope document based on an approved project charter Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Unit 3, Topic B

Scope boundaries

Unit 3, Topic A Unit 3, Topic B

B-1

Constraints

Unit 3, Topic B

B-1

Assumptions

Unit 3, Topic B

B-1

Detailed objectives

Unit 3, Topic B

B-1

Final project acceptance criteria

Unit 3, Topic B

B-1

Validate scope statement with stakeholders

Unit 3, Topic B

B-1

2.2. — Use a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and WBS dictionary to organize project planning Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Explain the benefits of WBS

Unit 3, Topic C

C-1

Explain the levels of a WBS

Unit 3, Topic C

Explain the purpose of a WBS

Unit 3, Topic C

Identify the planning processes which utilize the WBS as an input

Unit 3, Topic C

Critique a given WBS

Unit 3, Topic C

Explain the purpose of a WBS dictionary

Unit 3, Topic C

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C-1, C-2

C-3

Certification exam objectives map

A–5

2.3. — Outline a process for managing changes to the project Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Approvals required

Unit 7, Topic A

A-3, A-4, A-5

Forms needed

Unit 7, Topic A

A-3, A-4

Turnaround times

Unit 7, Topic A

Document routing

Unit 7, Topic A

A-4

Communication flow

Unit 7, Topic A

A-3, A-4, A-5

2.4 — Develop a project schedule based on WBS, project scope and resource requirements Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Schedule to milestones

Unit 3, Topic D

D-1

Unit 3, Topic G

G-1, G-2

Analyze Gantt chart

Unit 3, Topic D Unit 3, Topic G

Identify dependency types

Unit 3, Topic D Unit 3, Topic G

Determine the critical path of a project schedule

G-1, G-2

Unit 3, Topic D Unit 3, Topic G

Establish schedule baselines

G-1, G-2

G-2

Unit 3, Topic D Unit 3, Topic G

G-1, G-2

2.5. — Given a desired deliverable, apply the appropriate tool and/or method to produce the appropriate outcome Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Tools such as PERT or Gantt

Unit 3, Topic G

G-1

Methods such as CPM

Unit 3, Topic G

G-2

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A–6

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 2.6. — Given a scenario, interpret the results of using the following tools and/or methods Topic

Conceptual information

Tools such as GERT

Unit 3, Topic G

Methods such as network diagram (ADM, PDM, CDM, CCM)

Unit 3, Topic G

Supporting activities

G-2

2.7. — Identify components of an internal/ external communication plan Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Frequency

Unit 4, Topic A

A-1, A-2, A-3

Format (formal, informal, written and verbal)

Unit 4, Topic A

A-1, A-2, A-3

Method of distribution

Unit 4, Topic A

A-1, A-2, A-3

Distribution list

Unit 4, Topic A

A-3

2.8. — Outline the components of a risk management plan Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Initial risk assessment

Unit 4, Topic C

C-1

Risk matrix

Unit 4, Topic C

C-2

Risk register

Unit 4, Topic C

C-1, C-2, C-3

Risk response strategies

Unit 4, Topic C

C-3

Stakeholder risk tolerance

Unit 4, Topic C

C-2, C-3

2.9. — Identify roles and resource requirements based on WBS and resource availability Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Identify existing resource availability

Unit 3, Topic F

F-1, F-2

Identify training needs / outsourcing requirements

Unit 3, Topic F

Assign resources to scheduled tasks

Unit 3, Topic F

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F-2

Certification exam objectives map

A–7

2.10. — Identify components of a quality management plan Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Quality metrics, control limits, and frequency of measurement

Unit 4, Topic D

D-1

Quality assurance processes

Unit 4, Topic D

D-2

Quality control processes

Unit 4, Topic D

D-2

Quality baseline

Unit 4, Topic D

2.11. — Identify components of a cost management plan Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Control limits

Unit 3, Topic D

D-3

Unit 3, Topic E Assign costs

Chart of accounts

Unit 3, Topic D

D-3

Unit 3, Topic E

E-1

Unit 3, Topic D

D-3

Unit 3, Topic E Unit 3, Topic D

D-3

Unit 3, Topic E

E-1

Cost estimates (bottom up, top down, parametric, expert judgment, analogous)

Unit 3, Topic D

D-3

Unit 3, Topic E

E-1

Cost baseline

Unit 3, Topic D

D-3

Unit 3, Topic E

E-1

Project budget

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A–8

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 2.12. — Explain the procurement process in a given situation Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Project needs assessment / gap analysis

Unit 4, Topic B

B-2

Make or buy decision

Unit 4, Topic B

B-1

RFI, RFQ, RFP (Request for: Information, Quote, Proposal)

Unit 4, Topic B

B-3

Request seller response

Unit 4, Topic B

B-4

Evaluate seller response

Unit 4, Topic B

B-4

Vendor selection

Unit 4, Topic B

B-4

Contract development

Unit 4, Topic B

B-4

2.13. — Explain the purpose and common components of a transition plan Topic

Conceptual information

Ownership

Unit 4, Topic E

Transition dates

Unit 4, Topic E

Training

Unit 4, Topic E

Extended support

Unit 4, Topic E

Warranties

Unit 4, Topic E

Supporting activities

DOMAIN 3.0: Project Execution and Delivery 3.1. — Coordinate human resources to maximize performance Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Assemble and develop project team, build team cohesiveness, perform individual performance appraisals

Unit 5, Topic A

A-1

Identify common causes of conflict

Unit 5, Topic A

Detect conflict and apply conflict resolution techniques

Unit 5, Topic A

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Certification exam objectives map

A–9

3.2. — Explain the importance of a project kick-off meeting and outline the common activities performed during this meeting Topic

Conceptual information

Communicates stakeholder expectations, high level timeline, project goals and objectives, roles and responsibilities to the project team

Unit 4, Topic E

Supporting activities

3.3. — Recognize the purpose and influence of organizational governance on a project’s execution Topic

Conceptual information

Standards compliance

Unit 7, Topic B

Internal process compliance

Unit 7, Topic B

Decision oversight

Unit 7, Topic B

Phase gate approval

Unit 7, Topic B

Supporting activities

3.4. — Given a scenario, select which component(s) of a project plan is affected and select what action(s) should be taken Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Actions

Unit 7, Topic A

A-1, A-2, A-3, A-4, A-5

Components

Unit 7, Topic A

A-4, A-5

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

A–10

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

DOMAIN 4.0: Change, Control and Communication 4.1. — Given a scenario, implement proper change management procedures Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Identify change

Unit 7, Topic A

A-1, A-2, A-5

Document using the appropriate change control forms

Unit 7, Topic A

A-3, A-4, A-5

Perform impact analysis

Unit 7, Topic A

A-2, A-4, A-5

Coordinate with the appropriate stakeholders to select the course of action

Unit 7, Topic A

A-1, A-2, A-3, A-5

Update the appropriate project plan components based on the approved change request

Unit 7, Topic A

A-1, A-2, A-4, A-5

4.2. — Evaluate the impact of potential changes to triple constraint Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Time / Schedule

Unit 7, Topic A

A-2, A-4, A-5

Cost / resources

Unit 7, Topic A

A-2, A-4, A-5

Quality

Unit 7, Topic A

A-3, A-5

Scope

Unit 7, Topic A

A-2, A-4, A-5

4.3. — Using the risk management plan determine an appropriate response to potential risk / opportunity events Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Perform qualitative and quantitative risk analysis

Unit 4, Topic C

C-1

Opportunities

Unit 4, Topic C

C-2

Threats

Unit 4, Topic C

C-1, C-2, C-3

Update risk register with appropriate changes

Unit 4, Topic C

C-2, C-3

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Certification exam objectives map

A–11

4.4. — Given a scenario, execute appropriate resource leveling techniques Topic

Conceptual information

Fast tracking

Unit 3, Topic G

Crashing

Unit 3, Topic G

Delaying

Unit 3, Topic G

Optimizing

Unit 3, Topic G

Supporting activities

4.5. — Explain the appropriate steps to ensure quality of project deliverables Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Monitor work performance

Unit 7, Topic B

B-1, B-2, B-3

Analyze performance information

Unit 7, Topic B

B-1, B-2, B-3

Identify variances

Unit 7, Topic B

B-1, B-2, B-3

Generate change requests

Unit 7, Topic B

Implement change requests

Unit 7, Topic B

4.6. — Identify potential tools to use when a project deliverable is out of specification as defined in the quality baseline Topic

Conceptual information

Pareto charts

Unit 7, Topic B

Histograms

Unit 7, Topic B

Run charts

Unit 7, Topic B

Ishikawa diagram

Unit 7, Topic B

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Supporting activities

A–12

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 4.7. — Given a scenario, calculate and interpret the results of Earned Value Measurement (EVM) Topic

Conceptual information

EV

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

PV

B-3

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

BAC

B-3

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

VAC

B-3

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

ETC

B-3

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

EAC

B-3

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

SPI

B-3

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

CPI

Supporting activities

B-3

Unit 6, Topic A Unit 6, Topic B

B-3

4.8. — Given a scenario, manage and implement information distribution based on communications plan Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Manage stakeholders expectations

Unit 4, Topic A

A-2

Schedule effective project meetings

Unit 4, Topic A

A-2

Periodic stakeholders updates

Unit 4, Topic A

A-1, A-2

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Certification exam objectives map

A–13

4.9. — Recognize the special communication needs of remote and/or indirect project team members Topic

Conceptual information

Time zones

Unit 4, Topic A

Communication preferences

Unit 4, Topic A

Functional or hierarchical barrier

Unit 4, Topic A

Language barriers

Unit 4, Topic A

Technology barriers

Unit 4, Topic A

Cultural differences

Unit 4, Topic A

Supporting activities

DOMAIN 5.0: Project Closure 5.1. — Explain the importance and benefits of formal project closure Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Confirm and document objectives were completed/not completed

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1

Release resources

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1

Provide historical information for future projects

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1

Close contracts

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1

Standards compliance

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1

Post-project review

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1, A-2

5.2. — Identify circumstances in which project/phase closure might occur and identify steps to take when closure occurs Topic

Conceptual information

Phase closure

Unit 8, Topic A

Project completion

Unit 8, Topic A

Stage completion

Unit 8, Topic A

Component completion

Unit 8, Topic A

Project cancellation

Unit 8, Topic A

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Supporting activities

A–14

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition 5.3. — Identify the components and purpose of closing documentation Topic

Conceptual information

Supporting activities

Lessons learned

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1, A-2

Close report

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1, A-2

Post mortem analysis

Unit 8, Topic A

A-1, A-2

Final individual performance appraisal

Unit 8, Topic A

Transition plan

Unit 8, Topic A

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

B–1

Appendix B Case Studies This appendix covers these additional topics: A Billing System Conversion Project case

study. B ABC Financials Product Database case

study. C Case study tables.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

B–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Billing System Conversion Project Part 1: Refining business needs Your company has budgeted $ 1 million for internal staffing for the billing system conversion project, and senior management wants it completed in nine months. You are the internal project manager. Your staff will include at least two people each from billing, sales, and IT. The main objective is to get all of the company’s billing (for insurance, loans, investments, etc.) into one integrated system. Customers will receive one statement from your company, ABC Financials. They will have the option of viewing their billing information and making payments over the Web or via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) from various financial institutions. There are currently several different applications for billing, and most of these systems run on IBM mainframes. Newly acquired subsidiaries also have their own billing systems, which must be converted to the new system. You are not sure yet what will be involved in converting data from those systems. The hardware and software costs for the new system have not yet been estimated, but the system will probably require the purchase of 1,000 new PCs for users of the new system, primarily billing personnel and sales staff. An outside consulting firm will manage the software conversion effort with assistance from internal staff. Your sponsor, the Chief Financial Officer, is adamant about completing the project on time. Competing firms are starting to offer similar services to their customers, and an integrated system is important for increasing profits through cross-selling products to existing customers and attracting new ones.

Part 2: Analyze requirements You have received some additional requirements/information for the billing system conversion project as follows:  The system will run on existing hardware and networks with the exception of purchasing new PCs to act as clients for the billing system users. ABC Financials recently upgraded its IT infrastructure for another large system, so the new billing system will run on that equipment.  The estimated benefits of the new system include an increase in profits of at least $10 million per year due to sales increases from cross-selling and attracting new customers. It is also estimated that costs will be reduced by $2 million per year due to faster collection of payments and lower administrative costs.  The sales department has recently been reorganized, and the new VP of Sales is one of the best in the financial world.  The project will start on March 1 and end on November 30.  Users of the new system, approximately 1,000 people at ten different offices, will receive training on general PC usage as well as the new billing system.  The security of making payments over the Web is still a concern for some customers.  The system will be designed to minimize later maintenance.  The new system will be easy to use and will include all of the functionality of the old system plus new features described earlier in the planning activity.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Case Studies

B–3

Part 3: Identify risks After meeting with several stakeholders on the billing system conversion project, you have learned the following:  There are rumors that the CEO may be replaced and along with him your sponsor, the CFO.  The new hardware and software for the IT infrastructure is working well and has plenty of capacity to add the new billing system, but an update to the operating system software coming out in a few months could be even better.  The head of the billing department has been under a lot of stress lately and has taken several sick days. There has also been a fair amount of turnover in that department.  Your IT staff knows the existing billing system well and has good documentation. They think it will be easy to convert the old data into a new system, but they have heard that some of the systems used by recently acquired companies are not well designed.  There are only two qualified sellers that can do a good job on the software conversion by using their off-the-shelf systems. Each system provides most of the features you need.  The internal programmers/analysts assigned to the project are below average in their technical and communications skills.  ABC Financials has EFT set up with many financial institutions but has never let customers make payments over the Web before.

Part 4: Change control The senior programmer/analyst on the billing system conversion project has discovered that it will be much more difficult than originally planned to load the old data into the new system. Apparently, the data from a recently purchased company is in a totally different format than the rest of the data. Three alternative solutions to this problem are as follows:  Purchasing or leasing new hardware and software to help convert the data. This will be very expensive but will only delay the project slightly.  Outsourcing the work to a third party, which will be expensive and will significantly delay the project.  Not converting that part of the data (about 20% of the total data) and maintaining two different billing systems. This solution will have low up-front costs but huge maintenance costs.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

B–4

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic B: ABC Financials Product Database Part 1 ABC Financials wants to initiate a project to create a product database that can be accessed on the corporate Web site. The database will include, at a minimum, product names, brief product descriptions, contact information, and links to other online information. ABC Financials has about 100 different products, including various types of insurance, loans, and investments. Some of the product information can be confusing to customers; some products have information on the Web, others do not. A potential part of the project includes developing ways to help customers determine which products are best for them. For example, there could be a short survey for customers to fill out about their insurance needs that would direct them to various products that ABC Financials offers. Another survey might assess a potential customer’s investment needs and direct them to different investment products. Another survey could assess loan needs and suggest different loan products. Role

Considerations

Project Manager, ABC Financials

Develop a list of questions you want answered before deciding to take on the role of project manager. Be sure to address various business, political, and interpersonal issues.

Project Manager, independent consultant

Develop a list of questions you want answered before deciding to take on the role of project manager. Be sure to address various business, political, and organizational issues. How would your questions be different if you were joining a project already in progress rather than joining the project at its inception?

CIO, ABC Financials

You need to decide if you should authorize funds for this project. Develop a list of questions you have about the project. Be sure to address various business, political, and interpersonal issues.

CFO, ABC Financials

You need to help develop and maintain the new system. Develop a list of questions you have about the project. Be sure to address various technical issues.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Case Studies

B–5

Part 2 ABC Financials has provided more information on the Product Database project. They have decided to limit the scope of this project to allowing Web access to a relational database that stores the data. It will also include developing a template.html file for each product; each product manager will be responsible for adding content to those Web pages. A different project will address helping potential customers decide which products are best for them and ensuring that product Web pages are developed. With this limited scope, management has decided that the database project can be completed within six months. The CIO has suggested creating a new database by using existing relational database management software as well as other software to make it available on the Web. She has said that she has a good database design staff, but they have developed only small prototypes to run on the Web. She suggests hiring consultants to help with that part of the project and buying a separate Web server for the project. The VP of Sales will be the sponsor but will leave the details to the CIO and project team. Here are some additional requirements for the project: Business requirements Competing financial services firms are beginning to provide more online information, and some are starting to sell their products directly over the Internet as well. ABC Financials sees this as the next step, and they are starting another project to develop that concept. The product database is a required component for continuing that project, so management wants the database running in six months. Potential customers will be able to query the product database. Therefore, the system must be very user-friendly and fast. Since some customers are in other countries, the system must also be available in Japanese, Spanish, German, and French. Technical requirements The main tables in the database will be products, product groups, contacts, and contact groups. The product table will include fields for the product ID, product name, product description, pricing information, contact information, and links to the product Web page. The contact table will include fields with the contact ID, last name, first name, email, phone, fax, etc. The product group table and contact group table are look-up tables that list the various product and contact groups (such as life insurance, homeowner’s insurance, renter’s insurance, mortgages, car loans, mutual funds, etc.). There are approximately 100 different products and 200 different contacts or sales representatives. Organizational requirements Individual sales representatives will be able to update their personal contact information, and product managers can update product information, both over the Internet. A security analyst at the corporate office will review these updates before they are incorporated in the system. Users must be involved in designing the project database, and training must be provided both in person and via videotape to each of the twenty sales offices.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

B–6

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Part 3 You are two months into the product database project. Your database analyst and programmer/analyst have created a prototype of the database. They are having difficulty, however, obtaining the real data to enter into the system in order to test it with the users. The potential users of the new system say they do not have time to work on the project because they are too busy doing their real jobs. They also do not understand how this database can help them increase sales and, thus, increase their commissions. Upper management is getting excited about the possibility of selling products over the Web, and now they want this database project done in four or five months instead of six. Someone suggested adding the ability to purchase products to this project, assuming that the project can still finish within six months. Management has said that money is not an issue, and they are very pleased with your performance so far. You have been working 60+ hours per week as project manager, and your family is anxiously awaiting the 10-day vacation to Florida you had planned six months ago.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Case Studies

B–7

Topic C: Case study tables Role assignment table Resource initials WBS elements Award contract for conversion Install new software on existing servers Install new PCs for billing personnel Customize new billing software Convert old data into new system Test new billing software Train users on the new system Evaluate performance of new system

Key to resource initials Initials

Term

A

Assigned resource

B

Backup person

I

Input

P

Person accountable

R

Review

S

Signature required

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

A

B

P

I

R

S

B–8

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Schedule table Mar

Initiating Scope Statement Develop scope statement Planning Analyze requirements Perform risk management Develop budget Plan for procurement Create detailed WBS and schedule Estimate project costs Create project team Create communication plans Executing Arrange/manage software conversion project Install new software on mainframe Install new hardware and software for users Test new billing system Train users on new system Evaluate performance of new system Migrate to new system Track performance standards and changes Closing

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sept

Oct

Nov

Case Studies

Stage table Project stage

Milestone

Deliverable

Initiating

Gaining sponsor approval

Planning

Creation of the WBS

Executing

Training new users

Closing

Sign-off by sponsor

Criteria

Predecessors table Activity

Code

Time

Predecessor

Award contract

AC

3

--

Install mainframe SW

IM

1

AC

Install user SW and HW

IU

2

AC

Test system

TS

4

IM, IU

Train users

TU

5

TS

Evaluate performance

EP

3

TS

Migrate to new system

MS

5

EP

Float table Code

Time

AC IM IU TS TU EP MS

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

ES

EF

LF

LS

Float

B–9

B–10

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Resource table Resource title

Mar

Apr

Project manager

Programmers/ analysts Billing department personnel Administrative personnel Sponsor

Sales and billing management Internal staff

Total hours per month

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Ma y

Jun

Jul

Au g

Sep t

Oct

No v

Total hours

Case Studies

Risk management table Risk

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Risk Severity (1 to 5)

Mitigation Strategies

B–11

B–12

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Training cost table Budget category

Cost/month

Project manager Programmers/analysts Billing department personnel Administrative personnel Senior management Other management Other Total:

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Total cost

S–1

Course summary

This summary contains information to help you bring the course to a successful conclusion. Using this information, you will be able to: A Use the summary text to reinforce what

you’ve learned in class. B Determine the next courses in this series (if

any), as well as any other resources that might help you continue to learn about project management.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

S–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic A: Course summary Use the following summary text to reinforce what you’ve learned in class.

Unit summaries Unit 1 In this unit, you learned about project management concepts. You discussed IT project management and how project management methodology is different from product development methodology. Next, you learned about different types of organizational structures and project management skills. Then, you learned common reasons for project failure and leading factors that contribute to success. Unit 2 In this unit, you learned how to identify various stakeholders, their requirements, and their roles in the project. Next, you identified the business case of a project. Then, you learned about performing requirements analysis. You identified the roles of stakeholders, such as the project manager, project sponsor, and project team. Then, you learned about the key elements of a project charter. Lastly, you learned the importance of stakeholder consensus building. Unit 3 In this unit, you learned about the planning process and the five primary functions served by planning. Then, you learned about the scope statement and how it’s critical in minimizing scope creep. Next, you learned about WBS. Then, you learned about the importance of estimating effort time, elapsed time, and cost associated with a project and how to identify the causes of estimation failures. You learned about creating a bottom-up budget, as well as about variance and contingency factors when creating a budget for a project. Next, you learned about the factors involved in creating a project team. Finally, you learned about scheduling, scheduling tools, and about critical path and its significance in a project Unit 4 In this unit, you learned about the importance of a communications management plan. You also learned about procurement planning, risk management, and the importance of making a quality management plan. Lastly, you learned about the importance of putting together a project management plan. Unit 5 In this unit, you learned how to manage a project team and how this task is a core part of a project manager’s responsibilities. You also learned about the importance of managing customer and sponsor relationships. Unit 6 In this unit, you learned about the various project tracking activities. Then, you learned about project performance measuring and reporting. Lastly, you learned about the tools you can use to measure performance such as earned value.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Course summary

S–3

Unit 7 In this unit, you learned how to manage changes, prevent scope creep, evaluate and implement changes, and minimize the effects of the changes on the scope document. Finally, you learned how to manage quality in a project. Unit 8 In this unit, you learned about closing, the last phase of the project management life cycle. Next, you learned about the importance of holding a customer acceptance meeting, handing over deliverables, closing out seller contracts, conducting a postproject review, identifying the lessons learned, compiling a project report, and archiving the project plan.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

S–4

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Topic B: Continued learning after class It is impossible to learn about project management in single course. To get the most out of this class, you should begin using this information in practical situations as soon as possible. We also offer resources for continued learning.

Next courses in this series This is the only course in this series.

Other resources For more information, visit www.axzopress.com.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

G–1

Glossary Acceptance See formal acceptance. Acceptance criteria Requirements and conditions that must be met before the project deliverables are formally accepted. Acceptance test A group of end-users work with the final product to test it for unidentified issues that may appear during routine use. Also known as User Acceptance Testing (UAT). Activity A specified piece of work that needs to be completed. An activity typically has an expected duration, cost, and requires certain resources. Activity definition Identification of the activities that must be performed to complete the product deliverables. Activity duration estimating Estimating the number of work periods, in days or hours, needed to complete the project’s activities. Activity list A list of the defined activities that need to be completed for a project. Activity-on-Arrow (AOA) A method of diagramming the sequence of activities in a project using arrows to represent activities and small circles (nodes) connecting the activities to represent relationships. Dummy activities may be included to show activities that are dependent on one another. This method has only finish-to-start relationships. Also known as Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM). Activity-on-Node (AON) A method of diagramming the sequence of activities in a project where rectangles (nodes) represent the activities and arrows represent the relationship between the activities. This method uses four types of dependency relationships: finish to start, start to start, finish to finish, and start to finish. Also known as precedence diagramming method (PDM). Activity sequencing Identifying activity dependency relationships (how activities affect each other) and determining the best order to perform the activities to complete the project.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Actual cost (AC) The actual cost expended to complete a project activity or work package. Actual duration The number of hours or days expanded to complete a project activity. Actual effort The actual number of person hours or days expended to complete an activity. Administrative closure The gathering and disseminating of information needed to formalize the completion or termination of a project or phase. Consists of obtaining formal acceptance and completing the related activities to formally end the project work. Analogous estimating An estimating technique that uses historical project information to estimate the project duration of a similar project. Also known as top-down estimating. Arrow diagramming method (ADM) See Activity-on-Arrow (AOA). Assignment The activities team members are responsible to complete. Assumptions Factors that are believed to be true and which affect project planning. Assumptions may impact risk and should always be documented and validated. Backward pass Calculation of the late start and the late finish dates for uncompleted activities by working backwards through the network diagram from the project’s end date. Part of critical path method (CPM). Bar chart A schedule that shows project activities with associated start and completion dates. Also known as a Gantt chart. Baseline Represents the original approved plan for schedules, costs, etc. and is used to monitor and control ongoing project performance. Best practices A generally accepted set of standards for performing work.

G–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Bottom-up estimating An estimating technique where every activity is individually estimated and then added together to determine the total project estimate.

Consensus A decision that a group agrees to support. It is usually achieved by discussing the relevant issues and options.

Budget The amount of money allocated for a project.

Constraint A financial, schedule, risk, or resource-based limitation on a project.

Budget at completion (BAC) The budget estimate determined in the planning phase for an entire project. Business requirements The conditions that the product must meet to support the high-level processes and needs of the business. Business value The positive impact for the business that will be achieved with completion of the project (e.g., generate revenue, customer satisfaction, etc.). Change control board A group of stakeholders responsible for reviewing and accepting or rejecting changes to the project. Change control process A process that ensures changes to the project are identified, evaluated, approved, documented, and managed. Change management plan A plan that documents the process for managing changes to the project. Change request A document that is submitted to request a change to any part of the project management plan after the plan was approved.

Contingency reserve Allocation of resources to address possible adverse events. Contract A legal, mutually-binding document between buyer and seller covering the terms and conditions by which the work must be completed. Contract administration Managing the relationship with the seller and overseeing that all elements of the contract are met. Contract closeout The process of determining whether the work as outlined in the contract was completed accurately and settling the terms of the contract. Control chart Diagram of process results over time and against specified limits to determine whether processes are acceptable or need adjustment. Corrective action Actions taken to bring expected performance in line with the project plan. Cost-benefit analysis A benefit measurement method that weighs expected project costs against expected project benefits.

Communications Relaying information so that all concerned parties have an equal understanding.

Cost budgeting Assigning specific cost estimates to specific activities and creating the cost baseline.

Communications management plan A plan that documents who will receive information about the project, what information they will receive, when they will receive it, and how the information will be communicated. It also identifies the person who is responsible for providing the information.

Cost control Managing and controlling changes to the cost baseline.

Communications planning The planning process to determine the communication requirements. Identifying who will need what information, when they will need it, and how the information should be formatted and disseminated.

Cost performance index (CPI) A performance tracking method that compares earned value to the actual cost. CPI = EV ÷ AC.

Configuration management The process to ensure the project meets the desired outcome.

Authorized to be used in American Public University.

Cost estimating Estimating the cost of resources that will be required to complete each project activity.

Cost plus fixed fee contract (CPFC) A cost-reimbursable contract where the buyer pays for costs defined in the contract plus an additional defined amount (fixed fee).

Glossary Cost plus incentive fee contract (CPIF) A cost-reimbursable contract where the buyer pays for costs defined in the contract plus an additional amount if the seller meets performance criteria as outlined in the contract.

Dependency The relationship between project activities.

Cost plus percentage of cost contract (CPPC) A cost-reimbursable contract where the buyer pays for the costs defined in the contract plus an additional percentage of the costs if the seller meets performance criteria as outlined in the contract.

Dummy An arrow in an AOA diagram that does not represent any actual work but is used to show the relationship between two activities.

Cost of quality The costs incurred to ensure the quality of the project. Cost reimbursable contract A contract that provides for payment to the seller for actual costs incurred. Cost variance (CV) The difference between earned value and actual cost. CV = EV - AC. Crashing Adding resources to activities on the critical path to reduce project duration. Critical path The longest path through all project activities (as represented in a network diagram) that determines the duration of the project. The activities on the critical path usually have zero float. Critical path method (CPM) A technique used to determine the duration of a project by looking at the sequence of activities and their flexibility in scheduling. Customer The recipient of service or product that the project created. Also known as client in some organizations. Decomposition Breaking the project deliverables into smaller, more manageable components. Dedicated project time The amount of time that a resource is available to the project, taking into account the resource’s nonproject activities. Definitive estimate An estimating technique usually made during the planning phase that assigns a cost estimate range to each work package in the WBS. This estimate typically falls between -5% and +10% of the actual budget. Also known as bottom-up estimating. Deliverable Outcome or product that is produced to complete a work package or project. Authorized to be used in American Public University.

G–3

Discretionary dependency A preferred order of sequencing project activities.

Duration The length of time needed to complete an activity. Duration compression Shortening the project completion time without changing the scope of the project. Early finish date The earliest date that an activity may be completed in the activity sequence. Early start date The earliest date that an activity can be started in the activity sequence. Earned value (EV) A measurement used to determine a project’s progress that represents the value of the work completed to date. Earned value analysis The measurement of actual project status versus expected project status as of the measurement date. Effort time and elapsed time The number of person hours or person days needed to complete an activity (not calendar-based), the time necessary to do the work which includes off-time such as weekends and time lags (calendar-based), respectively. Effort estimate Calculation of the number of person hours or days needed to complete an activity. End user The person or group who will use the product produced by the project. Estimate at completion (EAC) The estimated total cost of the completed project at a particular time, using current project performance and work that still needs to be completed. EAC = AC + ETC Estimate to complete (ETC) The estimated amount of the work that still needs to be completed.

G–4

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Expert judgment Using subject matter experts to assist in decision making. External dependency A relationship between a project activity and a factor outside the scope of the project that influences the completion of that activity. Fast tracking A method of schedule compression where activities that would typically be performed sequentially are performed in parallel to decrease schedule duration. Feasibility study A study undertaken to determine whether a project is viable. Finish-to-finish dependency When the completion of an activity is dependent on the completion of the preceding activity. Finish-to-start dependency When the start of an activity is dependent on the completion of the previous activity. Fishbone diagram A graphical diagram that shows how causes or potential causes relate to create potential problems. Also known as Ishikawa diagram. Fixed cost A cost that remains constant regardless of a change in production. Fixed price contract (FPC) A contract where work is performed or a product is provided for a predetermined price. Fixed price incentive (FPI) fee contract A fixed price contract that contains incentives for meeting or exceeding predetermined specifications. Fixed resources An amount of a resource (human, equipment, material) that cannot be changed. Float The amount of time that the early start of an activity can be delayed without affecting the completion date of the project. Also known as slack time. Flowchart A diagram showing the steps in a process or system from beginning to end. Forecast A prediction of future project status.

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Formal acceptance When the sponsor or customer provides sign-off, indicating the product has been received and is acceptable. Forward pass Calculation of the early start and early finish times for project activities by working forward through the network diagram. Part of the Critical Path Method (CPM). Free float The amount of time that an activity can be delayed without affecting the early start of the next activity. Functional manager The person responsible for the activities of a specific functional department. Functional organization An organizational structure that groups staff by department. Functional requirements Conditions that the product must meet to support how the end users will interact with the product. Gantt chart A schedule that shows project activities with associated start and completion dates. Also known as a bar chart. Governance The overall structure of the roles, responsibilities, and relationships between the project decision makers and the organization’s long-term operational decision makers. High-level requirements See product description. Historical information Records of past projects that are used to assist in planning future projects. Human resource management plan A plan that documents the project team members along with their roles, responsibilities, and reporting structure and defines team development. Human resource planning The process of planning and hiring the project team, outlining roles, responsibilities, and reporting structure and defining team development. Information distribution Enacting the communications plan and providing stakeholders with needed information in a timely manner.

Glossary

G–5

Initiating Formal definition and authorization of a new project or continuation of an ongoing project.

Late start date The latest date an activity can begin without affecting the completion of the entire project.

Inputs Information that is required for a process to begin.

Lessons learned The documentation of the learning that takes place during the project to provide information on what went well and which aspects could have been improved. Lessons learned serve as references for future projects.

Inspection A quality control method to examine and measure work results against baseline specifications and requirements. Integrated change control Coordinating and managing change across the entire project scope, schedule, and budget. Integration management plan A plan that documents how elements of the project will be integrated and outlines how changes will be managed across the project. Integration planning The planning process to establish how all elements of the project will be coordinated and how changes will be managed throughout the project. Invitation for bid (IFB) See request for proposal (RFP). Ishikawa diagram See fishbone diagram. Issue An identified element or event that may have a negative impact on the project and needs to be avoided or resolved. Issue log A document that outlines each project issue, along with the person responsible for resolving it, its status, and its expected resolution date. Iterating Updating project plans to reflect changes that occur during the planning phase and throughout the project.

Management reserve An amount of money set aside by senior management to cover future unforeseen costs. It is typically a percentage of the total project cost. Mandatory dependency An activity that is dependent upon another activity. For example, a telephone pole must be put up before telephone wire can be strung. Matrix organization An organization where project team members answer to both a functional manager and a project manager. Milestone The completion of a significant event or major deliverable used to measure project progress. Monte Carlo technique A technique that uses computer simulations to assess potential risks. Negative variance The negative number that results from comparing planned project results with actual project results. A negative variance in the project schedule indicates the project is behind schedule. A negative variance in the budget indicates the project is over budget. Network diagram A method of determining the sequence of activities, including dependencies for a project. Types include the arrow diagramming method (ADM) and precedence diagramming method (PDM).

Kickoff meeting A meeting held at the end of major planning activities for all stakeholders to provide an overview of the project and outline expectations, ensure a common understanding of the project, and to build consensus and excitement about the project.

Operations and maintenance The turnover of a project to the operational staff of an organization for ongoing support and maintenance.

Lag

Opportunity cost The opportunity given up by choosing to do one project over another.

A mandatory delay between activities. Late finish date The latest date an activity can be completed without delaying the completion of the entire project.

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Opportunity A chance to increase project benefits.

G–6

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Order of magnitude estimate A high-level estimate usually made during the initiation phase that assigns a cost estimate range to the project based on a completed similar project. This estimate typically falls between - 25% and +75% of the actual budget. Organizational planning Consists of defining team member responsibilities, roles, and reporting structure, and preparing the staffing management plan. Output The outcome or end result of a process. Parametric estimating Requires a multiplication in order to estimate costs (e.g., cost per square foot). Pareto chart A graph that is used to rank the importance of a problem by the frequency with which it occurs. Performance reporting Reporting to the stakeholders to provide information about the project’s status, progress, accomplishments, and future project performance predictions. Phase A distinct stage of the project lifecycle. There are typically five phases in a project management lifecycle: Initiating, planning, executing, monitoring/controlling, and closing. Planned value (PV) The budgeted cost of work during a specified time period. Positive variance The positive number that results from comparing planned project results with actual project results. A positive variance in the project schedule indicates the project is ahead of schedule. A positive variance in the budget schedule indicates the project is under budget. Precedence diagramming method (PDM) See activity-on-node (AON). Predecessor An activity that is on the same network diagram path and occurs before another activity. Probability impact matrix A method of determining the severity of risk by looking at the probability of occurrence and impact on project objectives.

Procurement management plan A plan that documents which goods and services needed for the project will be acquired outside of the organization and outlines the process for acquiring the goods and services. Procurement planning The process of determining which goods and services should be purchased or performed outside of the organization and outlines the details of what, how and when the goods should be acquired. Product description An explanation of the major characteristics of the product including an explanation of why the product meets the business needs. Also known as high-level requirements. Product life cycle The phases required to develop the product. For example, creation of a software product may follow a software development lifecycle that consists of requirements-gathering, design, development, testing, and roll-out phases. Product verification Ensuring the stakeholders find the key deliverables to be satisfactorily completed. Program A group of related projects that are managed together. Program evaluation and review techniques (PERT) A weighted average time estimate of project duration using optimistic (O), pessimistic (P), and most likely (ML) estimates of project duration. Also known as three-point estimating. PERT = O + (4)ML + P Progressive elaboration The steps associated with developing and refining a project as needed during the course of the project. Project A temporary endeavor with defined start and end dates that creates a unique product or service. Project champion An individual who believes in, understands, and supports the project. Project charter A document that is created in the initiation phase that provides direction about the project’s objectives and management and authorizes the project to begin. Also known as a project initiation document. Project initiation document See project charter.

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Glossary

G–7

Project life-cycle The management phases of a project which includes: initiating, planning, executing, monitoring/controlling, and closing.

Quality assurance The evaluation of overall project performance on a regular basis to ensure quality management processes are followed.

Project management The process of initiating, planning, executing, monitoring/controlling, and closing out a project by applying skills, knowledge, tools, and techniques to fulfill requirements.

Quality audit Review and evaluation of the project performance to ensure quality management processes are followed.

Project management office (PMO) A group established by an organization to maintain standards, processes, and procedures for managing projects throughout the organization. Project management plan An overall project plan that contains all of the project management-related documents created during the phases of initiating and planning. Project manager The person responsible for providing leadership to the team and managing the project and its associated work to ensure that expected results are obtained. Project performance indicators Measures to determine whether the project is on track. Project scope The work required to produce the product of the project. Project selection Determining which proposed projects should move forward. Project team members The people who perform the work associated with the project. Projectized organization An organizational structure that is focused on projects. The project manager has authority over the resources assigned to the project. Proof of concept A project that attempts to prove whether an activity or an idea can be accomplished. Qualitative risk analysis Uses a subjective approach to determine the likelihood that risks will occur and the impact that risks will have on the project. This information enables the risk to be prioritized. Quality The degree to which the product of the project meets requirements.

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Quality control The process of measuring specific results to determine compliance with quality standards and taking corrective action if necessary. Quality management plan A plan that documents the quality activities and outlines the processes, procedures, responsibilities, and resources required for maintaining project quality. Quality planning The planning process to identify quality standards for the project and determine how these standards will be met. Quantitative risk analysis Uses a mathematical approach to analyze the probability that risks will occur and the impact that risks have on the project. This information enables the risks to be prioritized. Techniques used for computing quantitative risk analysis include sensitivity analysis, decision tree analysis, and Monte Carlo. Remote team Individuals in different locations working on the same project and collaborating electronically or by telephone. Request for proposal (RFP) A document provided to a prospective vendor requesting a proposal for work and or products to be provided. Request for quote (RFQ) A document that solicits quotes or bids from prospective sellers. Requirements A set of measurable customer wants and desires. See functional requirements, business requirements, and technical requirements. Residual risk Risk that is still present after risk responses have been planned. Resource Anything needed to complete the project. May be people, equipment, facilities, or money. Resource leveling Scheduling resource usage to be the same for each time period (e.g., monthly).

G–8

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Resource planning The process of defining the type and amount of resources needed to complete the project.

Risk register A formal document that outlines identified project risks.

Responsibility assignment matrix (RAM) Ensures that all activities in the work breakdown structure (WBS) are assigned to a team member and that each member understands the roles and responsibilities that have been assigned to him or her.

Risk response The procedures that are implemented if an identified risk occurs.

Return on investment (ROI) Determining whether the project outcomes will benefit the organization based on the resources used to complete the project. Rework An action to correct a deficiency that was identified by a quality activity. Risk A potential event, occurrence or result that can have positive or negative consequences. Risk acceptance A risk response that chooses to accept the consequences of the identified risk or the inability to identify another response strategy. Risk assessment Identifying risks to the project and determining the affect the risks will have on the project.

Risk response owner The person owning responsibility for monitoring a given risk and implementing the risk response plan if necessary. Risk response planning The process of reviewing items on the prioritized risk list from the qualitative and quantitative risk analysis to determine which, if any, action should be taken if the risk occurs. Risk response strategies include risk avoidance, risk mitigation, risk transference, and risk acceptance. Risk transference A risk response that shifts the liability of the identified risk to a third party. Risk trigger An event that indicates a risk is about to occur or has occurred. Root cause The main reason a particular situation occurs.

Risk avoidance A risk response that eliminates the identified risk or protects the project from the risk.

Schedule The timeline for the project including start and end dates for project activities.

Risk identification Identifying potential risks and their associated characteristics along with the positive or negative impact they may have on the project.

Schedule compression Methods to expedite the completion time of an activity or project (e.g., fast tracking and crashing).

Risk management plan A plan that documents the process for identifying and quantifying project risks and outlines how risks will be addressed or controlled. Risk mitigation A risk response that decreases the identified risk to an acceptable level. Risk monitoring and control Uses the risk management plan to identify risks, respond to risks, and monitor the effectiveness of the risk response. Risk planning The planning process to determine how to manage uncertainty within the project. It includes identifying potential risks, their impact, and an appropriate response.

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Schedule control Managing and controlling changes to the schedule. Schedule development The process of determining activity start and finish dates and finalizing the activity sequence and durations to create the schedule baseline. Schedule management plan A plan that documents the process to manage project schedules and any changes made to the schedules. Schedule performance index (SPI) A performance tracking method that compares earned value to planned value. SPI = EV ÷ PV. Schedule variance (SV) The difference between earned value and planned value. SV = EV - PV

Glossary Scope See scope of work. Scope change control Controlling changes to the project scope. Scope change request A form submitted to request a change to the project scope. Scope creep The addition of new features or requirements while the project is in progress. Scope definition The process of defining the boundaries of the project. Scope document A document that contains the project requirements and overall project direction. It should contain the goals, deliverables, budget, success criteria, and important milestones. Scope management plan A plan that documents the process to manage project scope and any changes to project scope. Scope of work The amount of work involved to complete the project. Includes identifying the problem to be addressed by the project including the goals and objectives, measures of success and risks, and obstacles and assumptions that may affect the project outcome. Also known as project scope. Scope planning The planning process to develop the scope statement and determine the work of the project. Scope statement Documents the project boundaries. It outlines the deliverables that are to be included in the project along with the functional, business, and technical requirements. Scope verification Formal acceptance by the stakeholders that deliverables and work results are completed to their satisfaction. Slack time See float time and free float. Solicitation Obtaining bids and proposals from vendors. Solicitation planning The process of identifying product requirements and potential sources.

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G–9

Source selection Choosing a vendor for a needed product, service, or resource. Sponsor An executive in the organization who can assign resources and can make final decisions on the project. Staff acquisition The process of getting people assigned to and working on the project. Staffing management plan A plan that documents when and how people will be added to or released from the project team and outlines the responsibilities of each team member. Stakeholder An individual or organization that affects or is affected by the project. Start-to-finish dependency The completion of an activity dependent on the start of the previous activity. Start-to-start dependency The beginning of an activity dependent on the start of the previous activity. Statement of work (SOW) A document that outlines the details and requirements of the product or service being procured. Successor An activity that is on the same network diagram path and occurs after another activity. Task See activity. Team development Creating an encouraging environment for team members to contribute, and developing the project team into a functional group that enhances project outcomes. Technical requirements The product characteristics that are required for the product to perform the functional requirements. Threat A negative risk that may or may not occur (as opposed to an opportunity, which is a positive risk). Time and material contract A contract based on a unit rate such as an hourly wage plus reimbursement for materials or other expenses incurred.

G–10

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Time estimate Calculation of the time required to complete an activity or the project. It may be obtained by analogous estimating, expert judgment, or by using an equation to calculate the duration of the activity.

War room A room where team members can work on project activities with a minimum of external interference, which helps create a project identity in matrix organizations.

To-complete performance index (TCPI) The performance that must be achieved during the remaining project to meet stated goals.

Workaround A response to deal with an unforeseen risk. A workaround is not planned in advance of the risk occurrence.

Top-down estimating See analogous estimating. Triple constraint The link between the project constraints of scope, time, and cost. Variance The difference between actual and planned values. Variance analysis The process of comparing planned project results against actual project results, determining the impact of the variance, and implementing corrective actions if needed. Virtual team Individuals in different reporting structures, departments, locations, or organizations working together on the same project.

Work authorization system A formal process to ensure work is done in the right sequence and at the right time. Work breakdown structure (WBS) A deliverable-oriented hierarchy that depicts the entire project work. WBS dictionary A document describing each work package in the WBS. Work effort The number of hours that it would take a person to complete an activity if they worked only on that activity. Work package The lowest level of the WBS. Includes activities required to fulfill a project deliverable or other project work. Work plan See schedule.

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I–1

Index A

E

Acceptance testing, 7-16 Actual cost (AC), 6-2, 6-18 Analogy approach, 3-10 Arrow diagramming method (ADM), 3-38

Earned value (EV), 6-2, 6-18 Earned value analysis (EVA), 6-18 Effort time estimates, 3-17 Elapsed time estimates, 3-19 Estimate at Completion (EAC), 6-20 Estimate to Complete (ETC), 6-20 Estimate variation, 3-23 Executing, 1-5, 1-7

B Balanced Scorecard, 2-10 Bar charts, 3-37 Bottom-up approach, 3-11 Budget at Completion (BAC), 6-20 Budgets Creating, 3-24 Business case, 2-8, 2-21

C Change control activities, 7-4 Change control process, 7-2 Change request forms, 7-2 Closing, 1-5, 1-8 Communications management plans, 4-2 Comprehensive exam objectives, A-2 Change, Control and Communication, A-10 Pre-Project Setup/Initiating, A-2 Project Closure, A-13 Project Execution and Delivery, A-8 Project Planning, A-4 Contingency reserves, 3-25 Contract closeout, 8-4 Contracts Developing, 4-17 Pricing types for, 4-18 Control charts, 7-12 Controlling, 1-5, 1-8 Cost estimates, 3-16, 3-21 Types of, 3-21 Cost overruns, 6-5 Cost reimbursable contracts, 4-18 Crashing, 3-41 Critical paths, 3-40

D Decomposition, 3-8 Deliverables Maintaining the quality of, 7-11

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F Factory acceptance testing (FAT), 7-16 Fast tracking, 3-41 Fishbone diagrams, 7-13 Fixed price contracts, 4-18 Float, 3-38 Flowcharts, 7-14 Functional organization, 1-11 Functional requirements, 2-12

G Gantt charts, 3-37

H Human resource management plans, 3-32

I Initiating, 1-5, 1-7 Internal reports, 4-12 Issue logs, 6-15

K Kick-off meetings, 4-36

M Make-or-buy analysis, 4-11 Milestone charts, 3-35 Milestones, 3-6 Monitoring, 1-5, 1-8

N Negotiating, 6-9 Network diagrams, 3-38

I–2

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

O

R

Organizational structures, 1-11

Replanning, 6-6 Reporting periods, 6-12 Reports Types of, 4-6 Request for information (RFI), 4-13 Request for proposal (RFP), 4-13 Request for Proposal (RFP), 2-6 Request for quote (RFQ), 4-14 Request seller response, 4-16 Requirements analysis, 2-12 Residual risk, 4-24 Resource leveling, 3-41 Resources Escalating issues with, 6-10 Managing, 6-7 Risk assessment, 2-23 Risk identification, 4-21 Risk management plans, 4-20 Risk quantification, 4-23 Risk response plans, 4-24

P Pareto charts, 7-12 Performance assessment reports, 6-12 Planned value (PV), 6-2, 6-18 Planning, 1-5, 1-7, 3-2 Post-project reviews, 8-6 Precedence diagramming method (PDM), 3-38 Procurement documents, 4-13 Procurement management plans, 4-10 Progress reports, 6-13 Progressive elaboration, 1-2 Project charters, 2-20 Project closure, 8-2 Project Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT), 323 Project management plans, 4-31 Developing, 4-35 Project management teams Managing performance issues with, 5-5 Providing feedback to, 5-3 Project managers, 2-17 Leadership role of, 5-6 Roles of, 4-8 Project schedules, 3-33 Visual, 3-34 Project teams, 2-18 Creating, 3-27 Improving communication with, 6-15 Managing, 5-2 Releasing, 8-9 Steps to building, 3-29 Projectized organization, 1-14 Projects, 1-2 Discontinuing, 6-3 Failure of, 1-15 Informal drivers for, 2-11 IT, 1-9 Life-cycle of, 1-4 Management software for, 1-9 Successful, 1-17 Tracking, 6-2 Proposals Evaluating, 4-15

Q Qualitative risk analysis, 4-20 Quality assurance, 7-17 Quality audits, 4-28 Quality control, 4-27 Quality management, 7-11 Quality management plans, 4-26 Quality testing, 7-14 Quality tools, 7-12

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S Scatter diagrams, 7-14 Schedule slippage, 6-7 Scope creep, 7-3 Scope definition, 3-5 Scope statements, 3-6 Sellers Selecting, 4-16 Site acceptance testing, 7-16 Sponsors, 2-18 Stakeholders, 2-2 Building consensus with, 2-26, 2-29 Identifying, 2-3 Managing relationships with, 5-8 Requirements of, 2-5 Roles of, 2-17 Statement of work (SOW), 2-6 Success criteria, 2-13 Summary charts, 3-36

T Technical requirements, 2-12 Time and materials contracts, 4-18 Time estimates, 3-16 Highlights of, 3-20 Time overruns, 6-5 Top-down approach, 3-11 Transition plans, 4-36, 8-3 Trend analysis, 6-18 Triple constraint, 1-3

U User acceptance testing (UAT), 7-16

Index

V

W

Variance, 3-25 Variance analysis, 6-18 Variance at Completion (VAC), 6-20

Work breakdown structure (WBS), 3-8 Advice for developing a, 3-11 Developing a, 3-10 Importance of a, 3-13

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I–3

I–4

CompTIA Project+ Certification, 2009 Edition

Authorized to be used in American Public University.