BUS605: Strategic Project Management

3a. Prepare a project charter for a given scenario

• What are the components of the project charter?
• How does a project charter assist the project team?
• Is a project charter always necessary? When can a project charter be skipped?

Every project is unique. While organizations may adopt project standards or use a Project Management Office to ensure that project consistency is maintained, there are still nuances of execution unique to each project. As a result, the project charter needs to be flexible enough to take into consideration the needs of each specific project.

Once approved, the project charter authorizes the project. It's important to include enough information so that leadership can make informed decisions. The preliminary scope should address the deliverables well enough that it is clear what success will look like. A preliminary budget and timeline help identify what the project will need in order to be complete.

A good project charter will include:

• An overview - a brief description of the project.
• Objectives- measurable, quantifiable goals for the project.
• Scope of work- a description of the work that will be performed during the project.
• Timeline with major milestones - milestones represent the completion of major deliverables throughout the project process.
• Deliverables - what tangible items are produced as a result of the project work.
• Assumptions - what we believe to be true that will impact the planning and work on the project.
• Constraints - the requirements with which we must work throughout the project.
• Business case - the reason we are doing the project or how the project aligns with the goals and objectives of the organization.
• Preliminary cost/budget - what we believe will be the financial needs to complete the project.
• Preliminary risks - what risks might we face while executing the project.
• Stakeholders - who are the primary stakeholders or interested parties.
• Approval signatures - validates the approval of the project sponsor for the project.

To review, read Developing the Project Charter and Baseline Project Plan.

 

3b. Align the preliminary description of the project and expected outcomes with the project boundaries, constraints, and assumptions

• What are SMART objectives?
• Why is it important to define both what is within the project boundaries and outside of the project boundaries?
• Why is the preliminary budget and schedule important to the project constraints?

Projects typically incur boundaries, constraints, and assumptions that must be acknowledged during project execution.

Boundaries refer to the scope of work that the project will and will not complete. It's important to identify the work that is within the scope or boundaries of the project as well as clearly identify any work that will be considered outside of the boundaries of the project. Think of a boundary as meaning that all of the work identified within the boundary will be included in the project, and anything outside of the boundaries will not.

Constraints refer to the limitations of resources a project must work within, typically schedule and budget. Constraints limit how the project team will complete their tasks. For example, a constraint might be that the team must complete their work by a specific date. The deadline constrains the project work.

Assumptions include any expectations that the project manager assumes to be true, such as the resources will be available when needed.

A well-defined preliminary scope of work will address boundaries, constraints, and assumptions so that the project sponsor or other approving authority has a clear picture of the project and can make an informed decision. Additionally, it's important that the preliminary project description carefully aligns with organizational goals. Goals should be SMART goals. This means goals should be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-based. SMART goals encourage the organization to keep focused on what's important with clearly stated, specific intentions. Measurable ensures that there is evidence that the goal has been achieved. Goals must be attainable. It is of no use to set a goal that can not be achieved and spend valuable resources working on that goal. By keeping goals relevant, we seek to align goals with values that are important. Finally, time-based means that a clock is ticking. We expect goals to be achieved within a reasonable time period and not simply sit on a "To Do" list.

To review, read Project Initiation and Developing the Project Charter and Baseline Project Plan.

 

3c. Develop a business case to support a given project scenario

• Why is a business case is being used?
• What are the components of the business case?
• How does the return on investment support the business case?

A business case is used in a project charter to demonstrate why the project needs to be done and how the project aligns with business goals and objectives. A good business case will identify the problem to be solved or the opportunity to be exploited. A thorough business case will also examine alternative approaches to the solution and clearly demonstrate why the project meets the best possible solution.

Components of a business case include:

• Business objectives, problem, or opportunity: this can often be expressed as the current state and future state based on the completion of the project.
• How the project solution addresses the problem or opportunity: what are the anticipated benefits?
• What are the alternatives: why is this project the best alternative for meeting the objectives?
• What is the expected value to the organization: for example, how much money will the project save the business? Often, but not always, organizational value is expressed in monetary terms.
• What metrics were used to determine value: here is where you show your work. There are several financial metrics that are used to determine the value of a project. Some of these include net present value, return on investment, total costs of ownership, opportunity costs, and payback period, to name a few.

To review, read Developing a Business Case.

 

3d. Identify project stakeholders and key roles

• Can you describe several types of project stakeholders and their roles in the project?
• What are some techniques for analyzing stakeholders?
• What are some elements that make up a project communications plan?

Project stakeholders are any individuals or groups of individuals that have an interest in the project or project outcome. Stakeholder satisfaction can make or break the success of a project. Identifying all stakeholders and planning to manage expectations and engagement is an important part of the project manager's job. Involving stakeholders early in the project can help ensure that unforeseen project problems may be avoided.

Stakeholders can be individuals, groups, or roles. For example, the CIO may be a project stakeholder or a role within the project. The same might be true for accountants or engineers. Identifying key roles can be helpful when defining the project resources needed in the work breakdown structure. Defining roles rather than naming individuals within the work breakdown structure ensures that the project documentation won't require as many changes should individuals come and go from the organization.

To review, read Stakeholder Management and Early Stakeholder Involvement in the Project Definition Phase: Case Renovation.

 

Unit 3 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms you will need to know to successfully complete the final exam.

• assumptions
• baseline
• boundaries
• constraints
• stakeholders