INFO 420 Chapter 1 1

INFO 420 Chapter 1 1

SW Project ManagementNature of IT Projects

INFO 420Glenn Booker

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Intro

IT projects are organizational investmentsNeed to expect commitment of considerable

time, money, and peopleSome aspects of traditional project

management need to be tweaked for IT projects; take from software engineering and system analysis & design

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Intro

Focus: reducing costs, reducing cycle timeConnect organization’s strategy to its

deployment, help improve competitiveness PM and IS evolve in parallel timelines Three generations of PM strategy

The EDP era, micro era, and network era

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EDP era - 1960’s to early 1980’s

Central mainframe or minicomputer Automate separate tasks, e.g. inventory

mgmt, accounting, production scheduling Data processing manager Similar to early steam power use – same

process, with more power behind it

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Micro era - 1980’s to mid-90’s

Introduction of the PC, and soon client-server computingNetwork is contained within the organization

Lost central control over MIS – IT is everywhere, changing oftenSecurity, data integrity, support issuesFast, cross-area IT projects

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Network era - mid-1990s to now

Due to awareness of the Internet More strategic partners, alliances, vendors

Network focus is outside the organization Need scalable network architecture Digital convergence of data, AV, graphics

Creates new products and servicesNeeds new organization and strategy

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Globalization

The omnipresence of computers and the Internet is bringing about a globalization previously unimaginableWork with anyone, any place, any time Increases both risks and rewards

IT has some budget in both good times and bad, the question is how to use it best

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The key decision

So it boils down to: Which IT projects are worth supporting?Which will provide the most benefit and value

to the organization?

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IT project management

So far, we’re not doing well at managing IT projects In 1968 the software development crisis

was identified In 1994, CHAOS study said 16% of IT

projects were successful, 31% cancelled before completion, and 53% completed badly

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IT project management

More recent studies have shown improvement trend In 2006, 35% successful, 19% failed, and

46% weak Factors for successful projects, as

identified in both 2001 and 2006, includedUser involvement, clear business objectives,

and formal methodology


Why do we fail?

Partly a definition problem – how far from the plan is a ‘failure’? 5%? 10%? 20%?

Traits of failed or weak projects include Incomplete requirements, changing

requirements and specs, lack of exec support, technology illiteracy/incompetence, lack of resources, and unrealistic expectations


Why do we fail?

Communication is a key as wellThe #1 reason for project failure, and a factor

in many other causes Resource issues also include staffing,

training, tools, and facility issues


How help success?

Four approaches are themes throughoutA value-driven approachA socio-technical approachA project-management approachA knowledge-management approach


A value-driven approach

Make IT projects prove they provide value to the organization

The value the project delivers must more than offset its time, money, and opportunity costs


A socio-technical approach

Tools, techniques, and methodologies are not enoughNeed to consider the impact of the project on

its users, and other affected organizationsDoes anyone want the new system?Will they use it?


A project-management approach

Need to follow some methodology during the IT projectDon’t just wing it!What are the processes and infrastructure?What tools and controls are used?Plan appropriate resources, manage

expectations (communicate!), consider outsourcing; efficiency & effectiveness goals


A knowledge-management approach Have a systematic process for capturing

and sharing knowledge from past projects Record lessons learned and best practices How can we do it better next time?


Project management context

Our approach for project management is based on the Project Management Institute (PMI)’s Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK, 2004)

A project is a temporary effort to accomplish a product, service, or result


Project attributes

Time frame Purpose or goal – PM should meet or

exceed stakeholders’ needs and expectations

Ownership (mainly by sponsor) Resources; the triple constraints of scope,

schedule, and budget


Project attributes

Roles – project manager, subject matter experts (SME), technical experts, etc.

Risks and assumptionsRisks can be internal or external

Interdependent tasks in the project Organizational change may result Operating in a larger environment


Project life cycle

The project life cycle (PLC) defines the life of a project in phases

Any project should have one or more deliverables as its output(s)

Phases help control the projectProvide gates to decide whether to proceedFast tracking can be done; start next phase

early


PLC Phases

Define project goal Plan project Execute project plan Close project Evaluate project


Define project goal

Have at least one!!!How will this project provide value to its

organization? And make sure stakeholders agree Define not only the deliverables, but also

the way project success will be measured


Plan project

Effort (staffing levels) starts low, then rises until mid-project, then drops off

Risks are often highest initially Stakeholder input is highest initially Cost of correcting scope errors gets higher

as the project progresses


Plan project

Define the project’s plan: What will happen? Why? How? Who? How long will it take? How much will it cost?

What are the risks, and how will we manage them?

How did we estimate the duration and budget?

How are decisions reached?

Were we successful?


Plan project

Plan must define, for each project phase DeliverablesTasksResourcesTime

This defines the baseline project plan


Execute project plan

Now actually conduct the project! Manage project budget, scope, and

duration based on stakeholder needs Track progress against the baseline plan Keep an eye on the overall goal At the end, deliver the deliverables


Close project

End the project clearly Make sure all obligations have been met Document the processes used, final actual

budget and schedule data Give final report, presentation, etc. Have sponsor sign off the project


Evaluate project

The value of IT projects may be hard to measure – most don’t directly earn $$$

Document the lessons learned carefully What went well? Don’t forget that part! Define best practices, when possible Evaluate the team as well as the project


System Development Life Cycle

In contrast, the actual development of a system has its own life cycle, which takes place inside the project

The SDLC defines the phases needed to create a system, then maintain it

There are many versions of SDLC to choose from


Generic SDLC Phases

Planning Analysis Design Implementation Maintenance & support


Planning

Defines the problem to be solved, or opportunity to be taken, and outlines the goal and scope of the system

The plan for developing the system is definedShould include budget, schedule, technology,

development processes, methods, and tools


Analysis

Documents the existing system or processes (the ‘as is’ model)

Leads to requirements analysisMight use JAD, surveys, brainstorming,

interviews, etc. to determine requirements Define how the new system will work

(the ‘to be’ model)


Design

Define the high level design of the system (architecture) based on the requirements

Refine the design to produce the low level designDesigns include software, hardware, network,

databases, user interface concept, etc.


Implementation

Construct, test, and install the systemEasy to say, huh?

Also develop the documentation, training materials, and supporting information


Maintenance & support

Maintenance of a system is often a separate ongoing project

After installation, the system is in production mode for most of its lifeStill need to make improvements

(enhancements), and fix bugs (maintenance)May manage a call center or help desk


Retirement

Eventually, a production system becomes obsolete, leading to a new project to replace it

As part of that project, phasing out the old system will be done, until it’s completely offline


SDLC Examples

Implementing the SDLC can follow several types of approaches

The oldest is the structured approach, better known as the waterfall life cycle It’s simple and sequential – do each phase

completely before moving to the next oneRequirements, design, code, test, & deploy


Waterfall SDLC

Some versions of the waterfall model (DOD-STD-2167a, MIL-STD-498) defined very precisely how the results of each phase were documented

Waterfall depends on very clearly defined requirements and well known methodology and tools – rarely the case


Waterfall SDLC

Still useful for maintenance or small projects

Also good for inexperienced development teams

Can be good for shrink wrapped software development


Iterative system development

Need for faster development, and accommodation of changing requirements led to a variety of iterative SDLC models

Iterative approaches include: RAD Prototyping Spiral Agile RUP


RAD

Rapid Application Development (RAD) compresses the life cycle using special software development tools (CASE tools)

Each iteration produces more and more of the final product in usable form, until it’s completed


Prototyping

Generally, prototyping is used to refine or discover system requirements

Prototyping depends on close work between the developer and the customer to create a partially functional system

Then full system development takes place


Spiral

The spiral model (Boehm, 1988) is used to address big risks facing a projectEach spiral ‘miniproject’ is a short life cycle

devoted to resolving one key risk area After all the major risks have been

resolved, then another life cycle is used for full system development


Agile

Agile software development is defined loosely as: ‘An iterative and incremental (evolutionary) approach

to software development which is performed in a highly collaborative manner by self-organizing teams within an effective governance framework with "just enough" ceremony that produces high quality software in a cost effective and timely manner which meets the changing needs of its stakeholders.’

From http://www.agilemodeling.com/essays/agileSoftwareDevelopment.htm


Agile

Agile methods include various methodologies, such as SCRUMDSDM (Dynamic Systems Development

Method)ASD (Adaptive Software Development)XP (eXtreme Programming)


Extreme Project Management

Extreme Project Management (XPM) is a project management approach to go with eXtreme Programming (XP) It is designed for projects with very high rates

of requirements and environment changeChange is inevitable, so planning is iterativeHas been adapted for architectural projects


RUP

The Rational Unified Process (RUP), now owned by IBM, is an object oriented, iterative life cycle methodology“RUP promotes iterative development and

organizes the development of software and systems into four phases, each consisting of one or more executable iterations of the software at that stage of development.”

From http://www-01.ibm.com/software/awdtools/rup/


PLC vs. SDLC???

So how does the project life cycle relate to the software development life cycle?

The SDLC is conducted entirely within the PLC phase of “Execute project plan”

The structure and details of the project plan depend on your choice of SDLC


PMBOK

The Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge captures the major topics within project managementFirst defined in 1987Current version is ISBN 1933890517 (2008)

It has nine “knowledge areas”


PMBOK knowledge areas

Project integration management Coordinating changes to the project plan’s

development and execution Project scope management

Ensuring complete definition and completion of the project scope



Project time management Developing, monitoring, and managing the

project schedule Project cost management

Develop and complete project per its budget Project human resource management

Create, develop and manage the project team



Project quality managementCreate a quality environment to help project

meet stakeholder needs and expectations Project communications management

Ensure project communicates with stakeholders



Project risk management Identify and respond to risks facing the project

Project procurement managementManage procurement of products and

services from outside the organization


Summary

We’ve introduced the major topics in IT project managementHistory of IT project managementReasons for project failure and successOur approach for encouraging successDefine a projectProject and system development life cyclesPM body of knowledge

INFO 420 Chapter 1 1

Business

projects info

projects chapter

projectmanagement approach

project failure

project management context

project delivers

project dont

strategy chapter