The first step in building a project plan is to validate the elements of the project definition document. Depending on the length of time between acceptance of the project definition and the start of detail planning, you might need to confirm that there have been no changes in the purpose, objectives, success criteria, and scope of the project with your key stakeholders.
• Validate project definition—This section should reference the project definition document and includes all required elements of a project definition document. The key task here is to re-validate the business case for the project. This is especially important if there has been a time lag between project definition and detail project planning, or if the planning exercise results in time and cost estimates significantly greater than originally estimated during project definition.
• Determine what needs to be done—This section should provide any additional details regarding the project approach (how this will be done),the targeted deliverables that will be produced, and all the work that is required to complete the project.
• Determine acceptance criteria—This information can be part of other components, such as deliverables list, WBS, project approach, or quality management plan, and might not be its own section. However, to validate that all required work has been identified and to improve the quality of
work estimates, it is best to clearly document (somewhere in the project plan) what the acceptance criteria is for each deliverable and for each project phase.
• Determine resource needs—Based upon the tasks and activities that need t o be performed, determine the type and quantity of resources needed. Resources include people (roles), facilities, and tools. These resource needs should be determined when developing the WBS with the team members who will be doing the work.
• To assist the acquisition and management of these resources, all resource needs should be documented (resource management plan). For people resources, document the role description and the prerequisite skills, skilllevels, and experiences. As part of the scheduling process, the timing of resource needs should be noted and finalized in the resource management plan. components, such as deliverables list, WBS, project approach, or quality management plan, and might not be its own section. However, to validate that all required work has been identified and to improve the quality of
work estimates, it is best to clearly document (somewhere in the project plan) what the acceptance criteria is for each deliverable and for each project phase.
• Determine resource needs—Based upon the tasks and activities that need to be performed, determine the type and quantity of resources needed. Resources include people (roles), facilities, and tools. These resource needs should be determined when developing the WBS with the team members who will be doing the work.
To assist the acquisition and management of these resources, all resource needs should be documented (resource management plan). For people resources, document the role description and the prerequisite skills, skill levels, and experiences.
As part of the scheduling process, the timing of resource needs should be noted and finalized in the resource management plan.
Acquire resources—After the resource needs are documented, you can now begin the process of acquiring those resources. The key questions to be answered here are
• Will I be able to get the quality of resource requested?
• Will I be able to get this resource in-house or will I need to obtain it from an external supplier/vendor?
• Will the resource be available when needed?
• How will this impact my cost estimates and budget?
Estimate the work—After we know what all the work activities are, and we know what level of resource will be doing the work, we can now estimate the effort and duration for each activity.
Develop the schedule—Now that we understand the required resources and estimated effort for each work task, we are now in position to identify the relationships between these tasks and build a schedule to complete the work.
Update roles and responsibilities—This step has two parts. First, if any new role has been identified, then update the stakeholder-role description table with the name of the required role and the specific responsibilities that role has. After specific individuals are assigned to roles, the project role responsibility chart can be updated to reflect role assignments.
Second, for each significant work package listed in the WBS, map the responsibility level that each role has regarding that item. This mapping is routinely captured in a responsibility assignment matrix. This summary map is a powerful tool to help stakeholders clearly understand their roles and what is expected of them.
Update project organization—Also previously mentioned in the project definition document, this section lists all the individuals, business units, and organizations involved in the project, the role(s) each is expected to play, and an indication of how they relate to one another.
Determine project costs and budget—Now that we have our resource needs and a preliminary schedule, we can tabulate estimated project costs and a phased project budget.
Determine project control system—Specifically, we need to get agreement on how the performance of the project will be measured, how often, and how it will be reported. In addition, we need to determine how performance variances should be managed. Frequently, this information is documented in either the project plan itself, the project communications plan, and in the quality management plan.
Plan for change—All plans are subject to change. The difference with successful projects is that they anticipate the changes and establish procedures in advance to review, assess, and manage any request or any factor that affects the key performance factors (scope, quality, time, and cost). These procedures help to ensure that the right people are involved in the process and that the right people are informed of any “change”decision.
Plan for project information—There are two primary objectives of this step:
• Where will the project repository be located? Who can access it? Who controls it?
• How will changes to project deliverables be managed and controlled?
This information is frequently maintained in a configuration management plan.
Plan for issues—All projects have issues and action that must be taken to resolve them. The difference on successful projects is that they establish a process in advance to closely track these issues and establish a procedure in advance to escalate any critical issue to the appropriate management stakeholders.
Plan for quality—Another proactive management approach to determine the quality standards and policies that project deliverables and processes must meet. For planning, the significance is that additional roles, work activities, and costs will likely affect the project schedule and the project
budget.
Plan for communications—A proactive management approach to determine the information and communication needs of each project stakeholder. These needs should be determined as part of the stakeholder analysis. The work efforts associated with delivering project communications should be accounted for in both the WBS and the project schedule.
Plan for team management—Although we have already taken key steps to lay the groundwork for an effective project team by involving them in the planning process, establishing clear role descriptions, and scheduling clear assignments, there are additional steps to consider, including training needs and performance evaluation.
Plan for procurement—This step is closely linked to resource planning. If resources need to be obtained externally, then the work to manage the procurement process must be planned and added to the WBS, project schedule, and project budget.
Here’s a quick checklist that can help you to determine whether your project is planned properly and whether you are ready to proceed to execute your project:
• Have you answered all the questions in the section, “Important Questions Project Planning Should Answer”?
• Have you reviewed your WBS, work effort estimates, project schedule, and project budget against their respective checklists?
• Has the project plan been reviewed and approved?
• Was the project plan signed off in a review meeting? In person?
• Validate project definition—This section should reference the project definition document and includes all required elements of a project definition document. The key task here is to re-validate the business case for the project. This is especially important if there has been a time lag between project definition and detail project planning, or if the planning exercise results in time and cost estimates significantly greater than originally estimated during project definition.
• Determine what needs to be done—This section should provide any additional details regarding the project approach (how this will be done),the targeted deliverables that will be produced, and all the work that is required to complete the project.
• Determine acceptance criteria—This information can be part of other components, such as deliverables list, WBS, project approach, or quality management plan, and might not be its own section. However, to validate that all required work has been identified and to improve the quality of
work estimates, it is best to clearly document (somewhere in the project plan) what the acceptance criteria is for each deliverable and for each project phase.
• Determine resource needs—Based upon the tasks and activities that need t o be performed, determine the type and quantity of resources needed. Resources include people (roles), facilities, and tools. These resource needs should be determined when developing the WBS with the team members who will be doing the work.
• To assist the acquisition and management of these resources, all resource needs should be documented (resource management plan). For people resources, document the role description and the prerequisite skills, skilllevels, and experiences. As part of the scheduling process, the timing of resource needs should be noted and finalized in the resource management plan. components, such as deliverables list, WBS, project approach, or quality management plan, and might not be its own section. However, to validate that all required work has been identified and to improve the quality of
work estimates, it is best to clearly document (somewhere in the project plan) what the acceptance criteria is for each deliverable and for each project phase.
• Determine resource needs—Based upon the tasks and activities that need to be performed, determine the type and quantity of resources needed. Resources include people (roles), facilities, and tools. These resource needs should be determined when developing the WBS with the team members who will be doing the work.
To assist the acquisition and management of these resources, all resource needs should be documented (resource management plan). For people resources, document the role description and the prerequisite skills, skill levels, and experiences.
As part of the scheduling process, the timing of resource needs should be noted and finalized in the resource management plan.
Acquire resources—After the resource needs are documented, you can now begin the process of acquiring those resources. The key questions to be answered here are
• Will I be able to get the quality of resource requested?
• Will I be able to get this resource in-house or will I need to obtain it from an external supplier/vendor?
• Will the resource be available when needed?
• How will this impact my cost estimates and budget?
Estimate the work—After we know what all the work activities are, and we know what level of resource will be doing the work, we can now estimate the effort and duration for each activity.
Develop the schedule—Now that we understand the required resources and estimated effort for each work task, we are now in position to identify the relationships between these tasks and build a schedule to complete the work.
Update roles and responsibilities—This step has two parts. First, if any new role has been identified, then update the stakeholder-role description table with the name of the required role and the specific responsibilities that role has. After specific individuals are assigned to roles, the project role responsibility chart can be updated to reflect role assignments.
Second, for each significant work package listed in the WBS, map the responsibility level that each role has regarding that item. This mapping is routinely captured in a responsibility assignment matrix. This summary map is a powerful tool to help stakeholders clearly understand their roles and what is expected of them.
Update project organization—Also previously mentioned in the project definition document, this section lists all the individuals, business units, and organizations involved in the project, the role(s) each is expected to play, and an indication of how they relate to one another.
Determine project costs and budget—Now that we have our resource needs and a preliminary schedule, we can tabulate estimated project costs and a phased project budget.
Determine project control system—Specifically, we need to get agreement on how the performance of the project will be measured, how often, and how it will be reported. In addition, we need to determine how performance variances should be managed. Frequently, this information is documented in either the project plan itself, the project communications plan, and in the quality management plan.
Plan for change—All plans are subject to change. The difference with successful projects is that they anticipate the changes and establish procedures in advance to review, assess, and manage any request or any factor that affects the key performance factors (scope, quality, time, and cost). These procedures help to ensure that the right people are involved in the process and that the right people are informed of any “change”decision.
Plan for project information—There are two primary objectives of this step:
• Where will the project repository be located? Who can access it? Who controls it?
• How will changes to project deliverables be managed and controlled?
This information is frequently maintained in a configuration management plan.
Plan for issues—All projects have issues and action that must be taken to resolve them. The difference on successful projects is that they establish a process in advance to closely track these issues and establish a procedure in advance to escalate any critical issue to the appropriate management stakeholders.
Plan for quality—Another proactive management approach to determine the quality standards and policies that project deliverables and processes must meet. For planning, the significance is that additional roles, work activities, and costs will likely affect the project schedule and the project
budget.
Plan for communications—A proactive management approach to determine the information and communication needs of each project stakeholder. These needs should be determined as part of the stakeholder analysis. The work efforts associated with delivering project communications should be accounted for in both the WBS and the project schedule.
Plan for team management—Although we have already taken key steps to lay the groundwork for an effective project team by involving them in the planning process, establishing clear role descriptions, and scheduling clear assignments, there are additional steps to consider, including training needs and performance evaluation.
Plan for procurement—This step is closely linked to resource planning. If resources need to be obtained externally, then the work to manage the procurement process must be planned and added to the WBS, project schedule, and project budget.
Here’s a quick checklist that can help you to determine whether your project is planned properly and whether you are ready to proceed to execute your project:
• Have you answered all the questions in the section, “Important Questions Project Planning Should Answer”?
• Have you reviewed your WBS, work effort estimates, project schedule, and project budget against their respective checklists?
• Has the project plan been reviewed and approved?
• Was the project plan signed off in a review meeting? In person?
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