Software Project Management Report

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Software project management

Technical report Page

Software Project Management

Maha Gomaa Talha

Dina Ibrahim HassanBassant Saied

Rabia Nasr

Alaa Mohamed Abdelsalm

13/12/2010




Technical report Page2

Abstract

Project management is the process of organizing the software product

construction. It helps project control and enhances product

performance.





Introduction:

Project management is needed because softwaredevelopment is always subject to budget and schedule

constraints that are set by the organisation developing the

software.

The project manager plans and guides the software

project.

The project manager is responsible for identifying theusers and determining their needs.

The project manager coordinates the team, ensuring that

each task has an appropriate software engineer assigned

and that each engineer has sufficient knowledge to

perform it.

To do this well, the project manager must be familiar withevery aspect of software engineering.





Outlines:

1. General talk about software project management:

1.1. What is project management?

1.2. Benefits of applying software project management.

2. Project manager:

2.1. Tasks of software project manager.

2.1. Required skills to be a project manager.

3. Project management steps:

3.1. Project planning.

3.2. Project scheduling.

4. Risk management:

4.1. Risk identification.

4.2. Risk analysis.

4.3. Risk planning.

5. Quality assurance:

5.1. Quality Basics.

5.2. Quality Assurance Activities in Projects.





1. General talk about software project

management:

1.1. What is project management?

<How to manage the what>

. Software project management is a methodical approach to

planning and guiding project processes from start to finish. Where

software projects are planned, monitored and controlled.

.Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing and managing resources to bring about the successful

completion of specific engineering project goals and objectives. It is

sometimes conflated with program management, however technically that

is actually a higher level construction: a group of related and somehow

interdependent engineering projects.

.Software project management remains different from project

management in other, more established fields for a number of reasons:Software is a “brain product” only, unconstrained by the laws of physicsor by the limits of manufacturing processes.

Who builds software?

- Business analysts or requirements analysts who talk to users and

determine the

behavioral of the software.- Designers and architects who plan the technical solution.- Programmers who write the code.

- Testers who verify that the software meets its requirements.

http://www.answers.com/topic/list-of-academic-disciplines

http://www.answers.com/topic/planning

http://www.answers.com/topic/organizing-1

http://www.answers.com/topic/management

http://www.answers.com/topic/resource

http://www.answers.com/topic/program-management-1

http://www.answers.com/topic/program-management-1

http://www.answers.com/topic/resource

http://www.answers.com/topic/management

http://www.answers.com/topic/organizing-1

http://www.answers.com/topic/planning

http://www.answers.com/topic/list-of-academic-disciplines





1.2. Benefits of applying software project

management.

- Shorter implementation time.

- Improved product quality.

- Improved team productivity.

- Better documentation.

- Risks will be identified and managed.

- Cost savings.

- Achieve an agreed outcome.

Project management has technique for measuring project progress in

an objective manner which is: Earned value management (EVM).

-Project manager:

- Manage events which depend on each other in different ways

- Be able to schedule the various members of the project team,

including specific tasks for each member

- Has the ability of predicting and dealing with uncertainties and

emergency situations which may arise during the project .

- Make sure that tasks are finished on time and that new tasks are

assigned

http://www.psaproject.com.au/APSA/Analyse/Risk.asp

http://www.psaproject.com.au/APSA/Analyse/Cost.asp

http://www.psaproject.com.au/APSA/Achieve/default.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_management

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_management

http://www.psaproject.com.au/APSA/Achieve/default.asp

http://www.psaproject.com.au/APSA/Analyse/Cost.asp

http://www.psaproject.com.au/APSA/Analyse/Risk.asp





2. Project Manager

2.1. Tasks of software project manager:

When they are appointed, project managers should be given termsof reference that define their:

- Objectives.

- Responsibilities.

- Limits of authority.

The objective of every project manager is to deliver the product ontime, within budget and with the required quality. Although the

precise responsibilities of a project manager will vary from

company to company and from project to project, they should

always include planning and forecasting.

2.1.1. Interpersonal responsibilities, which include:

- Leading the project team.

- Motivating all concerned until the project accomplishes its goal.- Liaising with initiators, senior management and suppliers.

- Being the 'figurehead', i.e. setting the example to the project

team and representing the project on formal occasions.

2.1.2. Informational responsibilities, which include:

- Monitoring the performance of staff and the implementation of

the project plan.

- Disseminating information about tasks to the project team.- Disseminating information about project status to initiators and

senior management.

2.1.3. Decisional responsibilities, which include:

- Allocating resources according to the project plan, and adjusting

those allocations when circumstances dictate (i.e. the project

manager has responsibility for the budget).





- Handling disturbances to the smooth progress of the project

such as equipment failures and personnel problems.

- Be able to manage uncertainty, rapid change, ambiguity,

surprises, and a less defined environment.

2.2. A manager can control 4 things:

- Resources.

- Time.

- Product.

- Risk.

2.3. Required skills to be a project manager:

Good project managers have high tolerance for surprises, uncertainty, and

ambiguity. Projects rarely progress the way that they are defined, and

managers need to manage the uncertainty that comes with that.

2.3.1. Personal Skills:

Project Managers must be able to motivate and sustain people. Projectteam members will look to the project manager to solve problems and

help with removing obstacles. Project managers must be able to address

and solve problems within the team, as well as those that occur outside

the team. There are numerous ways, both subtle and direct, in which

project managers can help team members.

2.3.1.1. Some examples include the following:

Team members will be closely watching all actions of the projectmanager. Therefore, project managers must be honest, direct,

straightforward, and knowledgeable in all dealings with people and

with the project. A good manager knows how to work hard andhave fun, and this approach becomes contagious.

A positive attitude. Project managers must always have a positive

attitude, even when there are substantial difficulties, problems, or

project obstacles.





Define expectations. Managers who manage must clearly define

what is expected of team members. It is important to do this in

writing — get agreement from the individual team members. Thisleaves no room for problems later, when someone states “It’s not

my job.” Performance expectations must be defined at the start of the project.

Be considerate. Project management is a demanding job with aneed for multiple skills at many levels. Above all, be considerate

and respectful, and give people and team members the time and

consideration they deserve. Make people aware that their efforts

are appreciated and the work that they do is important, because it

is. A letter, personal word, or e-mail of appreciation goes a long

way.

Be direct. Project managers are respected if they are direct, open,

and deal with all types of problems. Never conceal problems or

avoid addressing them. If a problem is bigger than the project

manager or the team can deal with, escalate it to senior

management. Never make commitments that cannot be delivered.

2.3.2.Technical Skills

There are two schools of thought about the level needed for technical

skills. Some project managers prefer to have little technical knowledgeabout the projects they manage, preferring to leave the technical

management to other junior managers, such as programming managers or

network managers. Others have detailed technical skills of computer

languages, software, and networks. There is no hard and fast rule. It really

depends on the type and size of projects, their structure, resources

available, and the project environment.

2.3.3.Management Skills

Project managers need other key skills besides those that are purely

technical to lead and deliver on their projects successfully. A good project

manager needs to understand many facets of the business aspect of

running a project, so critical skills touch on expertise in the areas of

organization, communication, finance, and human resources.





2.3.4. Coping Skills

Being flexible

Being persistent and firm when necessary

Being creative, even when the project does not call for it Absorbing large volumes of data from multiple sources

Being patient but able to differentiate between patience and action

Being able to handle large amounts of continuous, often

unrelenting stress




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3. Project management steps:

The initiation phase: The first phase of project management is the Initiation phase. It's during

this initial time that the project goal is established. During Phase 1, if a

project manager has been assigned, this person works with the involved

parties, otherwise known as the project stakeholders, to fully determine

how to measure the success of the project once all work is complete

.

3.1. Project planning.

The purpose of project planning is to identify the scope of the project,

estimate the work involved, and create a project schedule. Project

planning begins with requirements that define the software to be

developed. The project plan is then developed to describe the tasks that

will lead to completion.

The Project Planning Phase involves creating of a set of plans to helpguide your team through the execution and closure phases of the project.

The plans created during this phase will help you to manage time, cost,

quality, change, risk and issues. They will also help you manage staff and

external suppliers, to ensure that you deliver the project on time and

within budget.

It consists of:

- A statement of work (SOW) that describes all work products that will

be produced and a list of people who will perform that work.

- A resource list that contains a list of all resources that will be needed

for the product and their availability.- A work breakdown structure and a set of estimates.

- A project schedule.

- A risk plan that identifies any risks that might be encountered and

indicates how those risks would be handled should they occur.





The project plan is used by many people in the

organization.

The project manager uses it to communicate the project’s status to the

stakeholders and senior managers, and to plan the team’s activities.

The team members use it to understand the context for the work they are

doing.

The senior managers use it to verif y that the project’s cost and schedule

are reasonable and under control.

Over view about planning phase:

The project team members should be identified before creating the project

plan. The project manager should first identify the key staff skills that are

needed on the project, then determine which resources best provide those

skills and the project manager must take care to ensure that the resources,

which are available, will meet project requirements.

To ensure team success, team guidelines, a meeting schedule, and status

reporting standards should be decided upon after the group is first

formed.

When all activity information has been collected, allocated resources

should be assigned to each activity. This will create an initial project

schedule. At this point, the schedule may need to be revised to reflect the

impact of allocated resources. Estimated one-time and recurring

expenditures should also be documented when appropriate.





3.2. Project scheduling.

The project schedule is a calendar that links the tasks to be done with the

resources that will do them. Before a project schedule can be created, the

project manager must have a work breakdown structure (WBS), an effortestimate for each task, and a resource list with availability for each

resource. If these are not yet available, it may be possible to create

something that looks like a schedule, but it will essentially be a work of fiction.

Identify Dependencies:

Once resources are allocated, the next step in creating a project schedule

is to identify dependencies between tasks. A task has a dependency if itinvolves an activity, resource, or work product that is subsequently

required by another task. Dependencies come in many forms: a test plan

can’t be executed until a build of the software is deliver ed; code mightdepend on classes or modules built in earlier stages; a user interface can’t

be built until the design is reviewed. If Wideband Delphi is used togenerate estimates, many of these dependencies will already be

represented in the assumptions.





4. Risk management:

.4.1. Defining Software Risk Management

Making informed decisions by consciously assessing what can go wrong,

as well as the likelihood and severity of the impact is at the heart of risk

management.

In fact, all areas in systems development are potential sources of software

risks (see Figure 1)

Software technical risk can be defined as a measure of the probability and

severity of adverse effects inherent in the development of software that

does not meet its intended functions and performance requirements.

The greater the risk, the greater the reward must be to make it worthwhileto take the chance. In software development, the possibility of reward is

high, but so is the potential for disaster. The need for software risk management is illustrated in Gilb’s risk principle. “If you don’t actively

attack the risks, they will actively attack you".There are basic risks that are generic to almost all software projects.

Although there is a basic component of risk management inherent in good

project management, risk management differs from project management

in the following ways:





• Within risk management the “emphasis is shifted from crisis

management to anticipatory management”

Four major reasons for implementing software risk management:

1. Avoiding software project disasters, including run away budgets

and schedules, defect-ridden software products, and operationalfailures.2. Avoiding rework caused by erroneous, missing, or ambiguous

requirements, design or code, which typically consumes 40-50% of

the total cost of software development.

3. Avoiding overkill with detection and prevention techniques in

areas of minimal or no risk.

4. Stimulating a win-win software solution where the customerreceives the product they need and the vendor makes the profits

they expect.

.4.2. Defining Risk

So, what are risks? Risks are simply potential problems. For example,

every time we cross the street, we run the risk of being hit by a car. Therisk does not start until we make the commitment, until we step in the

street. It ends when the problem occurs (the car hits us) or the possibility

of risk is eliminated (we safely step onto the sidewalk of the other side of

the street).

A software project may encounter various types of risks:• Technical risks include problems with languages, project size,

project functionality, platforms, methods, standards, or processes. These

risks may result from excessive constraints, lack of experience, poorly

defined parameters, or dependencies on organizations outside the direct

control of the project team.• Management risks include lack of planning, lack of management

experience and training, communications problems, organizational issues,

lack of authority, and control problems.





• Financial risks include cash flow, capital and budgetary issues, and

return on investment constraints.

• Contractual and legal risks include changing requirements, market-

driven schedules, health & safety issues, government regulation, andproduct warranty issues.

• Personnel risks include staffing lags, experience and training

problems, ethical and moral issues, staff conflicts, and productivity

issues.• Other resource risks include unavailability or late delivery of

equipment & supplies, inadequate tools, inadequate facilities, distributed

locations, unavailability of computer resources, and slow response times.•

4.3. Risk Management Process:• Risk identificationIdentify project, product and business risks.• Risk analysis

Assess the likelihood and consequences of these risks.• Risk planning

Draw up plans to avoid or minimize the effects of the risk.• Risk monitoring

Monitor the risks throughout the project.





5. Quality assurance:

What is Software Quality Assurance? Software QA involves the entire software development process thatimproving the process, making sure that any agreed-upon standards and

procedures are followed, and ensuring that problems are found and dealt

with.

Quality is obviously a subjective term; the accounting department might

define quality in terms of profits, an end-user might define quality as

user-friendly and a tester might define quality as bug-free.

The software quality assurance group works with the software projectduring its early stages to establish plans, standards, and procedures that

will add value to the software project and satisfy the constraints of the

project.

Compliance issues are first addressed within the software project and

resolved if possible. For issues not resolvable within the software project,

the software quality assurance group escalates the issue to an appropriatelevel of management for resolution.

Quality Basics.5.1.

What is Project Quality Plan?

It is a set of activities planned at the beginning of the project that helps

achieve Quality in the Project being executed. The Purpose of the Project

Quality Plan is to define activities that intend to deliver products while

focusing on achieving customer's quality expectations. These activities

are defined on the basis of the quality standards set by the organizationdelivering the product. These activities includes the implementation of

Quality Events (peer reviews, checklist execution).





Types of standards of software quality assurance:

Documentation Standards: it specifies form and content for

planning, control, and product documentation and provides

consistency throughout a project. Design Standards: They provide rules and methods for translating

the software requirements into the software design and forrepresenting it in the design documentation.

Code Standards: specify the language in which the code is to be

written and define any restrictions on use of language features.

They define legal language structures, style conventions, rules for

data structures and interfaces, and internal code documentation.

Guidelines to write the Project Quality Plan:

The following list provides you the various Quality Elements that should

be included in a detailed Project Quality Plan:

Management Responsibility: Describes the quality

responsibilities of all stakeholders.

Design Control: This specifies the procedures for Design Review.

Document Control: This defines the process to control Project

Documents at each Project Phase. Inspection Testing: This details the plans for Acceptance Testing

and Integration Testing.

Quality Records: This describes the procedures for maintaining

the Quality Records (variance reports, executed checklists, etc.)

during project execution as well as after the project completion.

Training: This should specify any training requirements for the

project team.





5.2. Quality Assurance Activities in Projects.

Evaluating your Project Quality Plan:

For quality assurance to be effective, two things must be ensured:

First, the Project Quality plan must be sufficient to achieve the

required quality standards expected of the organization. The plan must

be detailed listing all quality requirements and standards, but also

include all the steps taken to ensure that those requirements andstandards are met.

Secondly, quality assurance (i.e. final product testing) should be

independent of the project itself (as well as the project manager). Thiscomes down from the project management guidelines for effective

quality assurance, and builds on a broad-based, organizational

approach to standards-based product testing.





Project Closeout Phase

The Project Closeout Phase is the last phase in the project lifecycle.

Closeout begins when the user accepts the project deliverables and the

project oversight authority concludes that the project has met the goals

established. The major focus of project closeout is administrative closure

and logistics.

Project Closeout Task Turnover to Operations

The most important aspect of project closeout is the physical turnover of

control of the

Product, good, or service delivered by the project. All project deliverableswill need to be

Maintained and supported after the project team disbands. An operational

unit of the

Organization (for which the deliverable is developed) assumesresponsibility for the support of the deliverable.




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