PMBOK BOOK Flashcards
What is “Organizational context”?
When the type of organization and other environmental factors greatly influence how a project is carried out.
Example: Pharmerica projects are dramatic due to limited operational support and resources available.
What is a process?
A process does or creates something necessary and valuable for the project.
What is “Identify Risks”?
Identify risks is the process where the list of risks is created.
Processes consist of only three types of ingredients…what are they?
I.T.T.Os
Inputs
Tools & Techniques
Outputs
What does each phase of a project produce?
A deliverable.
What is an “Exit Gate”?
An exit gate is the point at the end of a phase where the deliverable (what is produced at end of phase) will be evaluated to determine whether or not next phase should be started.
What are two characteristics of a project?
Time limited
A project is unique
What is project elaboration?
Simply means that you do not know all of the characteristics of a product when you begin the project.
Like a science experiment…you learn more as you go.
What is Historical Information?
Organizational Process Assets.
Used to help predict trends and avoid mistakes for the current project and to evaluate the project’s feasibility.
What is a “baseline”?
A version of a plan once it has been stabilized.
The plan cannot be changed whenever…any changes will need to be approved and documented through a change control process.
What is a “regulation”?
A regulation is a official document that provides a guideline.
Regulations are issued by government agencies or other official organizations.
What is a project manager?
The person who is ultimately responsible for the project.
Formally empowered
Authorized to spend money
Authorized to make decisions.
What is a project coordinator?
Sometimes project managers don’t exist - coordinators then step in.
- Weaker than a PM.
- may not have many abilities to spend or make decisions.
Found in weak or functional organizations.
What is a “project expeditor”?
Weakest role. Usually an assistant to an executive.
Part time.
Can be found in functional organizations.
What is a “functional manager”?
The departmental manager in most companies….like Director of Marketing.
Owns the resources. (Pharmacy example would be the Pharmacy Director.)
Functional managers tend to argue with project managers.
What is a “organic organization”?
Teams and groups naturally form to address priorities.
Who is In charge in an organic organization?
Varies based on company priority and personality of employees.
What is a benefit of an organic organization?
Due to its loose nature can be adaptive to environment.
Negatives of organic organization?
Lack of company maturity.
Short sighted.
RLH
What is a “functional organization”?
Most common organization type.
Company is separated in departments.
Project managers have low influence due to working with functional managers (directors).
Who is in charge in a functional organization?
Functional department manager.
What are benefits of a functional manager?
Deeper company expertise by area (ops, billing, marketing, IT)
High degree of specializations (pharmacists, masters in Marketing, etc)
Defined career paths for your team
Negatives of a functional organization
Project manager is weak.
Projects aren’t as big of a priority due to everyone having day to day tasks.
What is a “matrix organization”?
A hybrid organization where individuals (Melissa mannino) has a functional manager (olaitan) and a project manager (Jared).
Weak matrix has Melissa favoring olaitan. A strong matrix has Melissa favoring PM, Jared.
Balanced matrix has equal respect.
Who is in charge in a matrix organization?
Power is shared between a functional manager and a project manager.
Benefits of a matrix organization?
Best of both worlds.
Project managers can gain a deep expertise of a functional organization while still managing resources of a project.
Negatives of a matrix organization?
High overhead.
Individuals (melissa) get confused on who to report to.
High chance of conflict between functional and PM.
Staff tends to favor Functional Manager.
What is a “projectized organization”?
Company is structured around projects rather than departments.
Project manager is over both staff and project.
Consulting environments usually have this.
Who is in charge in a projectized environment?
Project managers
Benefits of a projectized environment?
PM has complete authority.
Communication is easy.
Loyalty is strong (no FM conflict)
Negatives of a projectized organization?
Team members aren’t as expertise.
Team members don’t have anywhere to go when job is done.
Development can be difficult.
What is a “virtual organization”?
Contains part time and full time workers.
Communication can be peer to peer.
Who is in charge in a virtual organization?
Varies.
Benefits of virtual organization
No cost of transportation
Projects can be worked around the clock due to time zones and part time hours.
Negatives of a virtual organization
Relationships are weak.
Accountability is challenging.
What is a “composite” organization
Has both functional and projectizer structures.
Combination of function, matrix and projectized.
Who is in charge in a compsote organization
Varies
Project life cycle phases
Cpctic
Concept
Planning
Construction
Testing
Implementation
Closure
What is the triple constraint (or iron triangle)?
Concept that scope, time, and cost are closely interrelated.
You can’t change one side without affecting the others.
What is a “work authorization system”?
Used to ensure that work gets performed at the right time and in the right sequence.
What is a project management plan?
A single approved document that guides how to execute, monitor & control and close a project.
What is an organizational process asset?
Anything that your organization owns or has developed to help you on a current or future project.
Example: templates, lessons learned , estimating data.
What are a few examples of enterprise environmental factors?
Company structure.
Corporate culture.
Stakeholder appetite for risk.
Laws and regs are different in states/countries.
Who writes the project charter?
The project sponsor and/or Customer.
Signed by the organizations sponsor.
What does a project charter do?
Explains a need.
Designates the project manager and assigns authority regarding $ or resources.
High level.
When is work performance data an input/output?
Output after the execution phase. That’s when you can pull it.
It is an input in the monitoring/controlling phase.
What is a project management information system?
Sharepoint.
Automated system that optimizes schedule and helps collect and distribute information.
What is the point of a configuration management?
To manage different configurations of a product.
Alpha
Beta
Final product
What is the process of Perform l integrated change control?
Requested changes within a project are evaluated for impact on whole project and ultimately approved/denied.
What is a methodology?
A set of processes and practices performed a specific way to accomplish a project.
Organizations with no methodology tend to rely on….
Organizations with no methodology rely on heroic effort of their employees.
No methodology means success is not repeatable and lessons from failures are not learned.
Types of Agile Methodology
Scrum
Lean
Kanban
Feature-driven development
Extreme programming
Describe predictive methodology
Plan
Do
Check
Act
Systems development life cycle (waterfall approach)
Analysis
Design
Implementation
Testing
Evaluation
What do agile projects value?
Self organizing teams w/ no formal manager.
Meetings and projects are conducted out in the open, with communication freely among all team members.
Describe scrum meetings
Daily
Each member communicates
What they covered yesterday, will do today
What obstacles they are encountering.
How does agile teams handle change?
They welcome change.
Team will meet, evaluate the change, and look at impact
What is Incremental development (destiny)
Usable features are delivered in each new version of the software.
What is iterative development?
The practice of performing small work circles/iterations/sprints that include planning, development and control activities.
How long does an iteration/sprint last?
21 days, performed in succession.
Benefit of delivering results in small updates would be….
Keeps teams focus sharp..priority
Gets feature to customer more quickly
Allows to get used tested and quicker feedback.
What is a spike in agile?
When problems come up and you don’t know which path to take a team will host a spike or experiment to determine best route.
What is a retrospective and when?
Retrospective is held at end of each iteration.
What went well vs what didn’t.
Goal is for continuous improvement.
What is kaizen?
Continuous improvement.
Difference between agile and traditional regarding customer.
Traditional includes customer in beginning then tends to keep them at arms length.
Agile includes customer throughout and gathers input.
What situation does an agile method work best in?
When there is complex decision making
When would a predictive methodology be the best choice?
When a project team knows most of the details and is rational.
What is a Stacy diagram?
Illustrates spectrum of environments….rational to chaos.
Helps determine agile vs traditional
Does an agile practice have a PM?
No coach or servant leader.
Do agile projects have a project plan?
No
What is the agile manifestos? (Agile vs traditional) 4 of em
Value individuals and interaction over processes and tools.
Working software over documentation
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Responding to change vs following a plan
Agile principles
1) our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software.
2) welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customers competitive advantage.
3) Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a preference to the shorter time scale.
4) business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.
5) build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.
6) the most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face to face conversation.
7) working software is the primary measure of progress.
8) agile processes promote sustainable development. The sponsors, developers, and users should be able to maintain a constant pace indefinitely.
9) continuous attention to technical excellence and good design enhances agility
10) simplicity - the art of maximizing the amount of work not done - is essential.
11) the best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from self-organizing teams.
12) at regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.
Agile principles (easy to remember)
1) continuous value
2) accept change
3) Deliver frequently and asap
4) no gap between AM and Ops
5) avoid micromanagement
6) face to face exchange
7) progress is results
8) constant pace/ development
9) better design, easier to maintain
10) simplicity is essential
11) teams are self organizing
12)daily stand up meetings
Ideal agile team description and team roles
Around 8 (plus or minus 3 team members)
Includes:
The development team
The product owner
Agile coach
What is the customer role in an agile methodology?
AKA product owner.
Customer works with project sponsor to make sure adequately funded.
Customer will help create the initial Backlog of features (tells us what they want)
Customer writes the user stories.
Agile team members (role)
Team members are highly interchangeable.
Should be cross functional
T shaped skills (broad skills with in depth knowledge)
Agile coach (role)
A servant leader.
When a new team member is hired, the coach helps this person understand how agile is interpreted.
Helps eliminate obstacles.
Can be called a team facilitator, Project manager, scrum master or a team lead. Title doesn’t matter.
Stakeholders (role)
Anyone involved in the project.
Cone of uncertainty
Beginning of project = large estimate variability
The longer the project, the more progress which means less margin of error for estimates.
Product roadmap
Overview of each planned release and its features
What is a wire frame
Rare agile documentation that shows user experience and user elements. It’s quick and dirty.
Agile theme relates to?
What you are accomplishing during the current initiation.
Describe a good agile user story (INVEST)
Independent
Negotiable
Valuable
Estimable
Small
Testable
Value stream mapping
Lean technique used to focus on value and identify waste.
Rolling wave planning
Instead of planning everything in beginning you plan in phases.
What is Relative sizing
Estimating by ranking stories based on their relative size to other stories.
Goal is to rank one at a time not focusing being on precise but a rough estimate of most difficult to easiest tasks.
Once done the team will assign points to each story
Used when planning the next iteration.
What is wideband Delphi estimating?
Goal is to get expert estimates without group member bias.
During meeting, issue is discussed without assigning numbers. After the meeting, individuals prepare estimates alone.
Take data, graph it (without name of estimator) and then group discuss range.
What is planning poker?
Estimating technique.
Works with about 10 people…assign value at once at end of each user story.
What is affinity estimating?
A way to rapidly estimate your back log.
1) team decides ranking system (xl,l,m,s,xs)
2) each story is read out loud
3) with no discussion team assigns value
What is ideal time?
The literal definition of how much time a project would take without interruptions or distractions.
What is elapsed time?
Ideal time plus distractions or delays.
Ideal would be 6 hour drive. Elapsed time would be 8 hours.
What is iteration 0?
First iteration for planning
What is iteration h?
Last iteration where there are no need features.
What is Parkinsons law?
States an activity will take as much time as you allow it.
What is time boxing?
Sets a fixed reasonable time allotment for each user story.
Positive: maintains urgency and focus.
Negative: could result in wasted effort. Iteration stops regardless.
What is continuous integration?
All code changes are checked in and entire system is built and tested at end of each day.
Helps determine what change broke the system.
What is reported in an agile meeting?
1) What they have been working on
2) what they plan to do today
3) what obstacles they are encountering.
What is an information radiator?
Big visual in an effort for transparency.
Shows progress so nobody can lie and highlites who is failing.
Ideal physical environment for agile?
Large open environment where employees are face to face no head phones no large barriers.
Open door policy.
All about the team.
What is servant leadership?
Modeling the behaviors and values that you desire the team to adopt and not asking anything from your team that you would not do yourself.
Allows teammembers to take lead.
Egoless.
Mostly applies to the “coach” but could be anyone.
What is a Hybrid approach?
Can use agile type of meetings/communication bit the project plan is more traditional.
Can be traditional but use agile mindset to overcome hurdles.
Which approach is best (agile vs traditional)?
No one size fits all.
The more uncertain the more you should be agile.
Construction is usually more predictive/traditional
Gravitate toward answer where we work together to adapt to their needs and adopt a hybrid approach.
Hybrid is best!
What is an “input”?
just as ingredients are the building blocks for recipes.
inputs are raw materials.
What are “tools and techniques”?
action or method used to turn an input into an output.
tool could be a software to help plan the project.
technique could be flowcharting.
What are “outputs”
part of a bigger deliverable.
output is the result of our effort.
Words associated with “initiating”
Start
Begin
Words associated with “Planning” AND “Initiating”
Create
Develop
Identify
Words associated with “Planning”
Start, Begin
Words associated with “Executing”
Manage
Acquire
Do
Words associated with “Monitoring and Controlling”
Validate
Review
Control
Monitor
Compare
Adjust
Words associated with “Closing”
Close
What is one of the biggest misconceptions people have of project groups/ phases?
They think that you only do:
- initiating/ planning/ executing/ monitoring and controlling/ closing
once.
All 49 processes could be performed one or more times in each project phase.
What consists in Process Group One - Initiating? (3 items)
Made up of only two processes:
- Develop Project Charter
- Identify Stakeholders
- assumption list
When should the initiating process be performed?
should try to be done first or early on in the process.
This is important because we want the project to be initiated properly.
How do you know a project was initiated properly?
a project was initiated properly because it would have:
- clear business need defined (project charter)
- clear direction for scope of project (project charter)
- clear list of why the project was chosen (Project charter)
- list of project stakeholders (identify stakeholders)
Can you “initiate” a project more than once?
Yes - it can be beneficial to initiate the project during each phase of a long or riskier project to maintain focus
What makes Process Group Two - Planning? (25 processes memorize)
1) Develop Project Management Plan
2) Plan Scope Management
3) Collect Requirements
4) Define Scope
5) Create Work Breakdown Structure
6) Plan Schedule Management
7) Define Activities
8) Sequence Activities
9) Estimate Activity Durations
10) Develop Schedule
11) Plan Cost Management
12) Estimate Costs
13) Determine Budget
14) Plan Quality Management
15) Plan Resource Management
16) Estimate Activity Resources
17) Plan communication Management
20) Plan risk management
21) Identify Risks
22) Perform Risk Analysis
23) Plan Risk responses
24) Plan procurement management
25) Plan Stakeholder Engagement
What consists in Process Group Three - Executing?
This phase the work of the project actually gets carried out.
manage team
manage commnunications
manage stakeholder engagement (control scope creep)
direct and manage project work
manage project knowledge
manage quality
acquire resources
develop team
What consists in Process Group Four - Monitoring and Controlling?
taking results from the execution phase and comparing to the plan.
if the results differ - we either change the plan or we go back to the execution phase and change how we did something.
- monitor and control project work
- perform integrated change control
- validate scope
- control scope
- control schedule
- control costs
- control quality
- control resources
- monitor communications
- monitor risks
- control procurements
- monitor stakeholder engagement
How many “inputs” will the monitoring and controlling processes have?
They will have two inputs.
One of these will be something that was planned - the other will be an actual result.
Comparing the product with the expectation.
Work experiment and project management plan.
What Makes Process Group Five - Closing?
The project does NOT end with customer acceptance.
After a project has been verified against scope and delivered to satisfaction - post project (update records, lessons learn, team release, project archives are carried out).
What is “Integration Management”?
7 processes that are soley on the project manager.
the practice of making certain that every part of the project is coordinated.
In integration management, the project is started, the project manager assembles the project plan, executes the plan, and verifies the results of the work, and then the project is closed.
What is the philosophy behind integration management (threefold):
Planning is a team activity - decision making in execution phase is not.
plans/ projects change over time and will need to be updated.
integration processes need to be tailored to fit the size and complexity of a project.
What are the 7 Integration Processes?
Develop Project Charter
Develop Project Management Plan
Direct and Manage Project Work
Manage Project Knowledge
Monitor and Control Project Work
Perform Integrated Change Control
Close Project
What is the Integration Management Process in the Initiation Process Group?
Develop Project Charter
What is the Integration Management Process in the Planning Process Group?
Develop Project Management Plan
What is the Integration Management Process in the Executing Process Group?
Direct and Manage Project Work
Manage Project Knowledge
What is the Integration Management Process in the Monitoring and Controlling Process Group?
Monitor and Control Project Work
Perform Integrated Change Control
What is the Integration Management Process in the Closing Process Group?
Close Project or Phase
What is the Primary Output for the “Develop Project Charter” Process?
Project Charter and Assumption Log
What is the Primary Output for the “Develop Project Management Plan” Process?
Project Management Plan
What is the Primary Output for the “Direct and Manage Project Work” Process?
Deliverables
Work Performance Data
Issue Log
What is the Primary Output for the “Manage Project Knowledge” Process?
Lessons Learned Register
What is the Primary Output for the “Monitor and Control Project Work” Process?
Work Performance Reports goes in. Work performance reports come out.
What is the Primary Output for the “Perform integrated Change Control” Process?
Approved Change Requests
Project Documents Updates (Change log)
What is the Primary Output for the “Close Project” Process?
Final Product
Final Report
Project Documents Updates
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is the project charter?
The project’s birth certificate.
document that starts the project.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
Why is the Project charter important?
Essential for creating a project.
No project charter = no official project = no official power as a Project Manager
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
When is the project charter performed?
Earliest performed.
some light pre-planning can occur before the charter but nothing is official until it is done.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
Input for a project charter?
Business case
Project benefit plan
Business case - describes the need for the project, the problem it will solve and its benefit cost analysis.
project benefits plan - describes how the project contributes to the organization
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What are project selection Methods?
Benefit Measurement methods - most common method used to quantify monetary benefits to selecting the project.
Constrained Optimization - calculus/ programming methods.
Benefit Cost Ratio
Economic Value Add
Internal Rate of Return
Net Present Value
Opportunity Cost
Payback Period
Return on Investment
Return on Invested Capital
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is the Benefit Cost Ratio?(BCR)
Ratio of benefits to cost.
cost of shrimp lights: $50
market rate for shrimp lights: $200
BCR/ Benefit Cost Ratio is $4:$1 profit.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is Economic Value Add (EVA)?
What you made minus what you could have made.
how much value a project has truly created for shareholders….factors in opportunity cost.
After tax profit - (capital expenditures x cost of capital) = Economic Value Added
Example:
invested into xbox: $175
returned net profit: $10
could have made 6% in interest = $10.50
$175 - (175 x 0.06) = -0.50
we would have been better off investing in savings.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is Internal Rate of Return (IRR)?
compares the projects value in a percentage…looks at it as an interest rate.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is Opportunity Cost?
Determines the cost of investing in other opportunities….the smaller the opportunity cost the better the project looks
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is Payback Period?
determines how long would it take to get back the money you invested in the project.
The goal would be the quicker the better.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is Present Value and Net Present Value?
Present value is the idea that a dollar today is worth more tomorrow. takes time out of the equation.
3 payments of $300; project is worth less than $300 since it won’t be paid until completion.
Bigger is better.
Net Present Value takes out time but factors in cost.
constructed an xbox for present value of $500 but it cost $350 to make the Net Present Value is actually $150.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is Return on Investment (ROI)?
shows % a company makes by investing.
Buy $20 in eggs but it normally costs $25; the ROI would be 25%
bigger the better.
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)?
For every dollar I invest, how many dollars will I get back in return?
ROIC = Net income (after tax)from a project / total capital invested
Invested: $250
Generated: $60 in revenue
Cost: $20
Tax: $8
ROIC = $32/ $250
ROIC = 12.5% ROIC annually
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What are the tools/technology for a Project Charter?
Expert Judgement
Data Gathering
Interpersonal and Team Skills
Meetings
Initiating > Develop Project Charter > Project Charter & Assumption Log
What is the output for developing a Project Charter?
Project Charter
Assumption Log (allows us to move forward without fact checking everything we know)
Planning > Develop Project Management Plan > Project Management Plan
Why is a project Management plan important?
specifies the who, what, when, where and how.
guides the team’s work on the project.
Planning > Develop Project Management Plan > Project Management Plan
When is the Project Management Plan performed?
The plan is progressively elaborated; meaning it is continually updated.
Planning > Develop Project Management Plan > Project Management Plan
What would be the inputs for a project management plan?
Project Charter
Enterprise Environmental Factors
Organization Process Assets
Planning > Develop Project Management Plan > Project Management Plan
What would be the tools/ techniques used for a project management plan?
Expert Judgement
Data Gathering
Interpersonal and Team Skills
Meetings
Planning > Develop Project Management Plan > Project Management Plan
What would be the output of a Project Management Plan?
The output would be the Project Management Plan itself.
It is a formal, approved document that defines how the project is managed, executed and controlled.
Keys: Formal, single document.
Planning > Develop Project Management Plan > Project Management Plan
Who approves a Project Management Plan?
could be any of the following:
NOT THE CUSTOMER
- Project Manager
- Project Sponsor
- Functional Manager
- The team who is putting in the work.
Planning > Develop Project Management Plan > Project Management Plan
What is in a project management plan?
basically its a combination of all the other management plans and baselines in one formal document.
Scope management plan
REquirements management plan
schedule management plan
Cost management plan
quality management plan
resource management plan
communications management plan
risk management plan
procurement management plan
stakeholder engagement plan
change management plan
configuration management plan
scope baseline
schedule baseline
cost baseline
performance measurement baseline
project life cycle description
development approach
managmeent reviews
Executing > Direct and Manage Project Work > Deliverables, Work Performance and Issue Log
What is the Direct and Manage Project Work?
contrary to how it seems…..most of the time a PM spends is in execution phase.
This is where you create the project deliverables.
Executing > Direct and Manage Project Work > Deliverables, Work Performance and Issue Log
Why is the Direct and Manage Project Work so important?
This process is where you start to see real progress.
buildings get built; roads get paved; websites get coded, etc.
Executing > Direct and Manage Project Work > Deliverables, Work Performance and Issue Log
When is the Direct and Manage Project Work phase performed?
No finite amount of time. You could repeat this process multiple times.
this is not a singular occurrence - but occurs anytime you are creating deliverables.
Executing > Direct and Manage Project Work > Deliverables, Work Performance and Issue Log
What are the Inputs to Directing and Managing Project Work phase?
Inputs:
Project Management Plan (guides the management and execution of project)
Project Documents
Any approved change request (tells you new specifications of the deliverable you are making)
Enterprise Environmental Factors
Organized Process Assets
Executing > Direct and Manage Project Work > Deliverables, Work Performance and Issue Log
What are the tools/ techniques used during the Direct and Manage Project work phase?
Expert Judgement
Project Management Information System (keeps you on schedule, updates files)
Meetings
Executing > Direct and Manage Project Work > Deliverables, Work Performance and Issue Log
What are the outputs of the Direct and Manage Project work (within the execution phase)?
Deliverables (tasks accomplished to evaluate for project approval)
Work Performance Data (inputs into M and C)
Issue Log (unresolved problems)
Executing > Direct and Manage Project Work > Deliverables, Work Performance and Issue Log
What comes out of an issue log?
potential change requests
potential project management plan updates
project document updates
organizational process assets updates (lessons learned register, etc)
Executing > Manage Project Knowledge > Lessons Learned Register
What is managing project knowledge?
Use previous lessons learned to help during your own execution phase. also plan to update this as you go along a swell.
Executing > Manage Project Knowledge > Lessons Learned Register
Why is the managing project knowledge phase important?
history is doomed to repeat itself if we don’t learn from it.
Executing > Manage Project Knowledge > Lessons Learned Register
When do you manage project knowledge?
technically anytime
update AFTER a deliverable has been completed.
Executing > Manage Project Knowledge > Lessons Learned Register
Inputs for managing project knowledge
Project Management Plan (influences how you do your project)
Project Documents
Deliverables
Enterprise Environmental Factors
Organizational Process Assets
Executing > Manage Project Knowledge > Lessons Learned Register
What are tools and techniques for managing project knowledge?
Expert Judgement
Knowledge Management
Information Management System (sharepoint)
Executing > Manage Project Knowledge > Lessons Learned Register
What is the difference between explicit and tacit knoweldge?
explicit knowledge is info written down for future lessons learned.
tacit knowledge is belief or opinion or ability.
Executing > Manage Project Knowledge > Lessons Learned Register
What is the output of managing project knowledge?
updates the lessons learned register with what did and did not work out.
Monitoring and Controlling > Monitor and Control Project Work > Work Performance Reports
What is the process of monitoring and controlling project work?
takes a look at the work being done on a project and compares the deliverables to the project plan
Monitoring and Controlling > Monitor and Control Project Work > Work Performance Reports
What is the process of Monitor and Control Project Work?
Compares the work already done (deliverable) with the project maanagement plan to make sure everything is gravy.
Monitoring and Controlling > Monitor and Control Project Work > Work Performance Reports
Why is the M & C project work important?
identifies any necessary changes that need to happen to either the work process or the project management plan itself.
Monitoring and Controlling > Monitor and Control Project Work > Work Performance Reports
When is M&C performed?
closely tied to the Direct and Manage Project Work phase and takes place as long as there is work on the project to be carried out.
Monitoring and Controlling > Monitor and Control Project Work > Work Performance Reports
What are inputs for Monitoring and Controlling?
Project Management Plan
Project Documents (assumption Log, estimates)
Cost Forecasts (issue log, lessons learned, milestone list, quality reports, risk register, risk report)
Schedule Forecasts
Work Performance Information
Monitoring and Controlling > Monitor and Control Project Work > Work Performance Reports
What are the tools/techniques used for M & C?
Expert Judgement
Data Analysis
Decision Making
Meetings
Monitoring and Controlling > Monitor and Control Project Work > Work Performance Reports
What is the output for the M and C phase?
Work Performance Reports (they go in…they go out…actionable items)
Change Requests (if work performance is bad then we need to make changes)
Project management plan updates (if we need to fix something)
Project Document Updates (if we change one we change them all)
Monitoring and Controlling > Perform Integrated Change Control > Approved Change Requests and Update Change Log
What does it mean to perform integrated change control?
one of the most important processes.
every change (whether requested or not) needs to be processed through Perform Integrated Change Control.
Allows you to assess real impact on a project.
Change the project to accept the deliverable or change the plan to create a diff deliverable.
Monitoring and Controlling > Perform Integrated Change Control > Approved Change Requests and Update Change Log
Why is the Perform Integrated Change Control Log important?
assesses real impact across project.
Monitor and Controlling manages the way the work is carried out - Integrated Change Control is how we decide if its responsible to allow the change.
Monitoring and Controlling > Perform Integrated Change Control > Approved Change Requests and Update Change Log
When is Perform Integrated change control performed?
takes place as long a sthere is work on the project to be carried out.
some organizations have a change control board that reviews the change requests.
Monitoring and Controlling > Perform Integrated Change Control > Approved Change Requests and Update Change Log
What are the inputs to perform integrated change control?
Inputs:
Project Management Plan
Project Documents
Work Performance Reports
Change Requests (enterprise Environmental Factors and Organizational Process Assets)
Monitoring and Controlling > Perform Integrated Change Control > Approved Change Requests and Update Change Log
What tools/techniques are used for the perform integrated change control phase?
Expert Judgement
Change Control Tools (any system or if there is a formal board)
data analysis
decision making
meetings
Monitoring and Controlling > Perform Integrated Change Control > Approved Change Requests and Update Change Log
What type of outputs come from a perform integrated change control request?
An approved Change Request (or denial)
Update of change log and lessons learned (formal documents)
Closing>Close a project or phase > Final Product, Service or Result; Final report; Project Document Updates
What does it mean to close a project?
projects are temporary.
all about shutting down a project properly. Includes the paperwork to do so like archives, lessons learned, and updating all organizational process assets.
Closing>Close a project or phase > Final Product, Service or Result; Final report; Project Document Updates
Why is closing a project important?
projects that skip this are left open and ongoing.
ensures these documents become organizational process assets for future use on new projects.
Closing>Close a project or phase > Final Product, Service or Result; Final report; Project Document Updates
When is closing a project performed?
performed as the last process on a project or phase.
Closing>Close a project or phase > Final Product, Service or Result; Final report; Project Document Updates
What are inputs to closing a project?
Project charter - charter shows exit criteria so we can validate it is truly complete.
Project management plan - confirm all requirements are completed
Project documents - need to complete
accepted deliverables (make sure we are done)
business documents (closed out)
organizational procsss assets
procurement documentation
Closing>Close a project or phase > Final Product, Service or Result; Final report; Project Document Updates
What tools are used for closing a project?
Expert Judgement
Data Analysis
Meetings
Closing>Close a project or phase > Final Product, Service or Result; Final report; Project Document Updates
What are the outputs for closing a project?
Lessons learned updated (project documents updated)
final product or service
final report
What is the “Agile perspective on integration management”?
- the team does the work of the pm
- project charter is developed by team
- Project Management plan is used to mitigate risk; agile welcomes and embraces the change.
- Direct and Manage project work has an output of deliverables, work performance data and issue log. this is delivered in smaller iterations during an agile.
- managing project knowledge is shared in a lessons learned register for PM; shared in daily meetings iwth agile.
- managing and controlling work is done through daily meetings with hurdles and face to face discussions
- agile teams do not need an integrated change control. they welcome change.
- agile teams don’t produce much documentation so not as formal of a closure.
What is Scope Management?
Scope Management is a logical group of processes to help you understand:
- requirements how many rooms do we paint
- breakdown how do we paint, when do we paint
- control Scope make sure we are painting and quality of paint
- verify project was completed. Ensure all rooms have been painted.
What does scope mean?
Everything that must be completed to meet the product requirement.
work needed to successfully complete the project AND ONLY the work.
What is the two philosophies behind scope management?
Project manager is ALWAYS in control.
Any change should be handled in a structured way.
What would be “good” scope management?
Makes sure the scope (what is needed to be accomplished to be succesful) is well communicated.
un-necessary changes are limited.
What are the overall goals of scope management?
define the need
set stakeholder expectations
deliver expectations (communicate)
manage changes
minimizes surprises
What is “gold plating”?
deliver more than agreed upon
exceed quality - sometimes customers will ask for more.
what are negatives to “gold plating”?
increase risk
increase uncertainty
increase cost
potentially add probelms
What is the formal Scope Management Process?
Plan Scope Management - figure out how to stop Microsoft from changing the specs of xbox.
Gather the requirements - what do we need to do to create the xbox.
Define the Scope - break project into objectives
Create the Work Breakdown - break objectives into activities Structure (and baseline)
Validate and Control the Scope make sure we are making xbox well.
What process groups does Scope Management engage in?
Planning
Monitoring and Controlling
Planning > Plan Scope Management > Scope Management and Requirements Management Plan
What would be an input for Planning Scope Management?
Inputs:
- Project Charter
- Project Management Plan
- Enterprise Environmental FActors
- Organizational Assets
Planning > Plan Scope Management > Scope Management and Requirements Management Plan
What would be the Tools/Techniques for Planning Scope Management?
Expert Judgement
Data Analysis
Meetings
Planning > Plan Scope Management
What would be the output for when you Plan Scope Management?
Create the Scope Management Plan
Create the Requirements Management Plan
Planning > Plan Scope Management > Scope Management and Requirements Management Plan
What is a Requirements Management Plan?
Defines the activities the team will perform in order to gather and manage the project requirements.
This is the PLAN for how the requirements will be managed.
DOES not contain the requirements itself.
Planning > Plan Scope Management > Scope Management and Requirements Management Plan
Why is the Requirements Management Plan important?
Shows how requirements will be gathered.
Shows how decisions will be made.
How requirements will be documented.
Planning > Collect Requirements > Requirement Documentation
What is Collecting Requirements?
Process of understanding what it will take to satisfy the stakeholders. Then documenting that understanding.
Planning > Collect Requirements > Requirement Documentation
Why is Collecting Requirements important?
This document helps keep everyone focused on the stakeholders expectations.
Refers to this document during scheduling, budgeting, quality specifications, risk factoring and resource planning.
Planning > Collect Requirements > Requirement Documentation
What are inputs when collecting requirements?
Inputs:
- Stakeholder Engagement plan
- Project Charter
- Project Management Plan
- Project Documents (Assumption Log, Lessons Learned, Stakeholder Register)
- Business Agreements
- Enterprise Environmental Factors
- Organizational Process Assets
Planning > Collect Requirements > Requirement Documentation
What are the Tools/ Techniques for Collecting Requirements?
T&T:
- Data Gathering (brainstorming, interviews, focus groups, questionaires, benchmarking)
- Data Analysis
- Decision Making
- Data Representation
Planning > Collect Requirements >
What are the outputs for Collecting Requirements?
Outputs:
- Requirement Documentation
- Requirements Traceability Matrix
Planning > Collect Requirements > Requirement Documentation
What is a “Requirements Traceability Matrix”?
A document that identifies the source of each requirement (product feature needed or service completed).
Can include information about who owns the requirement, the status of the requirement, etc.
Planning > Define Scope> Project Statement and Project Documents
What is defining Scope?
Develop a clear understanding of the requirements to be:
- executed
- verified
- delivered
Planning > Define Scope> Project Statement and Project Documents
Why is defining scope important?
Scope is what drives the execution of a project.
The importance of defining scope correlates with the amount of risk you are willing to tolerate.
The greater you define the exact needs - the more likely you are to succeed.
Planning > Define Scope> Project Statement and Project Documents
When do you ‘define scope’?
As soon as the collect requirements process has been completed.
you need to know the requirements before you can plan how you accomplish them/ how you get there.
Planning > Define Scope> Project Statement and Project Documents
Inputs for Defining Scope?
Inputs:
Project Charter
Project Management Plan
Project Documents (assumption log, requirements documentation, risk register)
Environmental Factors
Organizational Process Assets
Planning > Define Scope> Project Statement and Project Documents
What are the Tools and Techniques for Defining Scope?
T&T:
Expert Judgement
Data Analysis
Decision Making
Product Analysis
Planning > Define Scope>
What are the outputs for defining scope?
Outputs:
- Project Scope Statement
- Project Documents Updates
Planning > Define Scope> Project Statement and Project Documents
What is included in a Project Scope Statement (6)?
Contains:
- Goal of the project
- Project Description
- Requirements of a Project
- Constraints of a Project
- Assumption of a Project
- Identified Risks related to the scope
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure> Scope Baseline (includes actual Work Breakdown Structure)
Why is the Work Breakdown Structure Important?
Once created, is a hub of info. and is most important component of a project plan.
A WBS is used when creating risk analysis, activities, costs, quality attributes and procurement decisions.
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure> Scope Baseline (includes actual Work Breakdown Structure)
What is the primary tool for verifying and controlling the project scope?
The primary tool is Creating a Work Breakdown Structure
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure> Scope Baseline (includes actual Work Breakdown Structure)
When do you create a WBS?
After a project charter is created, you identify who is making these expectations (stakeholders), after you collect their expectations (requirements) and the scope has been defined (determined how you are going to meet their expectations).
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure> Scope Baseline (includes actual Work Breakdown Structure)
What are Inputs for WBS?
Inputs:
- Project Management Plan
- Project Scope Statement
- Project Requirements Documentation
- Enterprise Environmental Factors
- Organizational Process Assets
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure> Scope Baseline (includes actual Work Breakdown Structure)
What are the Tools and Techniques for creating a WBS?
T & T:
- Expert Judgement
- Decomposition (main tool - breaks down deliverables into smaller components
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure> Scope Baseline (includes actual Work Breakdown Structure)
How do you know you have broken down your work flow small enough for a WBS to be effective?
Ask yourself:
- are your work packages small enough to be estimated for time and cost?
- is the team satisifed that the current level of detail provides enough info to proceed?
- is each “work package” small enough that you can assign a value to a single person?
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure>
What is the outputs when you create a Work Breakdown Structure?
The Scope Baseline:
A baseline is the original plan plus all approved changes.
Work Breakdown Structure:
A document that defines each language in a WBS
Planning > Create Work Breakdown Structure> Scope Baseline (includes actual Work Breakdown Structure)
What is the following:
Control Account
Planning Package
Work Package
How you break down your wbs
Control Account = Monthly Concur/ Online Purchasing App
Planning Package = Onboarding Supplies
Work Package = Blue Books (assigned to one specific person)
Monitor and Controlling > Validate Scope > Accepted Deliverables & Work Performance
What is Validating Scope?
Validate Scope is the process of ensuring the product, service or result that matches the documented scope.
Making sure we aren’t wasting our time.
Monitor and Controlling > Validate Scope > Accepted Deliverables & Work Performance
What is the difference between controlling quality vs validating scope?
Controlling quality is done before you validate.
Control quality is concerned with correctness
Control Scope is concerned with completeness
Monitor and Controlling > Validate Scope > Accepted Deliverables & Work Performance
Why is validating Scope important?
Once the validation of scope is completed - the project goes to be accepted by:
- Project Manager
- Customer
- The Sponsor
Sometimes functional manager or stakeholder
Monitor and Controlling > Validate Scope > Accepted Deliverables & Work Performance
When do you validate scope?
Validate scope after the quality has been controlled.
Can be performed multiple times throughout a project
usually performed after at least some of the product components have been delivered
Monitor and Controlling > Validate Scope > Accepted Deliverables & Work Performance
What are the inputs to Validating Scope?
Main one is a verified deliverable
Work performance data
Remember you are in the monitoring and controlling phase
Monitor and Controlling > Validate Scope > Accepted Deliverables & Work Performance
What would be the T&T for validating scope?
Inspections
Decision Making
Monitor and Controlling > Validate Scope >
What are the outputs for Validating Scope?
“Accepted” Deliverables
MandC - input work data you get back work data
Change Requests (assuming the output sucks)
Project Document Updates
Monitor and Controlling > Control Scope > Work Performance Data/ Change Requests
What is Controlling Scope?
Maintain Control by preventing scope change requests from overwhelming the project.
Keeps the scope baseline current.
Monitor and Controlling > Control Scope > Work Performance Data/ Change Requests
Why is controlling scope important?
Makes sure all change requests are understood and managed.
This prevents un-necessary changes from occuring.
Monitor and Controlling > Control Scope > Work Performance Data/ Change Requests
When is controlling scope performed?
ongoing process.
Begins as soon as the scope baseline is created. Aka after WBS
Monitor and Controlling > Control Scope > Work Performance Data/ Change Requests
What are the Inputs of Controlling Scope?
Work Performance Data
Updates to Project Management Plan
Updates to Project Documents/ Process Assets