Project Planning in Teams - Coursework Example

Project Planning in Teams Planning is essentially the first step towards a project and is one of the major dependencies for success Defining ProjectPlanning Project Planning is essentially a subset of project management that mainly deals with allocation of resources; these resources can vary in types for example human resources, technological equipment, time scheduling, etc. (Kerzner, 2003). Following is an illustration of the process of project management to depict the importance of project planning phase: Overview of Project Planning While planning a project, the initial step is defining its scope and the relevant procedures, following which; the project can be moved to the completion stage. By this means, the time-period of various tasks involved in the completion procedure can be determined and then schedules can be formed accordingly. This also allows the formation of work breakdown structure and defining the dependencies and relationships. Using the same, network activity diagram can be formulated which assists in identification of critical activities and paths and time for completion of projects i.e. minimum and maximum. (Thayer, 2000). Following up with the same, the essential cost and time factors can be allocated to each activity allowing the final estimate to be calculated for the project on the whole. Once the plan is in its final shape, it is referred to as the baseline of the project that eventually serves as a benchmark for comparison of each activity's completion. Such comparison lead to creation of experience and knowledge which betters the future planning by individuals involved in the process (Fleming, 2005). Following is the project management process defined by phases, showing the essential activities of the planning phase (Wysocki, 2003): Knowledge Area Project ... Management Processes by Phase Initiation Planning Execution Close-Out Scope Initiation Scope Planning Scope Definition Scope Verification Scope Change Control Time Activity Definition Activity Sequencing Activity Duration Estimating Schedule Development Schedule Control Cost Resource Planning Cost Estimating Cost Budgeting Cost Control Integration Project Plan Development Project Plan Execution Overall Change Control Quality Quality Planning Quality Assurance Quality Control Human Resource Organizational Planning Staff Acquisition Team Development Communications Communications Planning Information Distribution Performance Reporting Administrative Closure Risk Risk Identification Risk Quantification Risk Response Development Risk Response Control Procurement Procurement Planning Solicitation Planning Solicitation Source Selection Contract Administration Contract Close-Out Specifications A specification document is mainly a written foundation that specifies the major set of requirements of a project. These set of specifications are generally vague in nature. Later an agreement is reached between the customer and the vendor that is a refined form of specifications document and has a legal value and it contains in finalized format what actually a customer needs (Pinto, Jun 2006). Structuring a Project Structuring a project is rather an essentiality to proceed with the work. Based on the set of requirements agreed upon by the customer, the project manager formulates a structure according to which resources are allocated (Pinto, Jun 2006). Work Breakdown Structure Work Breakdown Structure or WBS is an important tool in structuring a project that mainly requires breaking a requirement in small bits and pieces that would be later compiled to form the whole of a project. WBS is extremely useful because it defines precisely the requirements of each bit of a project, and secondly, it also assists in formulation of milestones in the project, alongside the ease of having parallel running activities (Pinto, Jun 2006). Task Allocation One the WBS is formed; tasks are allocated to individuals and in the form of teams. This is a much more complicated task as it may sound because after the task allocation, the resources also need to be handed over to the respective working units (Pinto, Jun 2006). Establishment of Controls When all teams are planned, there is need of establishing the controls, which is an essentiality in the planning phase because it deals with the checks and balances that would be needed for ensuring the timely completion and quality of tasks. Two of the major elements in this issue are (Maylor, Jun 2005): Formulation of clear and precise milestones Establishing appropriate means of communication These two activities are essentially important for the activities that are running parallel or are dependent because in either case, exceeding schedule (late completion) can hamper the progress of other activities. Risk Management An area highlighted over the years, in recent times, in the field of project management has been that of risk management. As is known, over 80% of the projects fail across the board and many of which have been identified as a failure due to inappropriate planning. Therefore, managing risks that lead to such failures need to be managed appropriately (Newton, Apr 2005). Conclusion Over the years, authors have always stressed the importance of the planning phase, and it was very much visible during the research of this assignment. This is also quite visible from the above discussion as well, and its interesting that during the planning phase, all the variables are well defined to ensure the appropriate processing of the project on the whole. However, it has been very irregular that things go as planned, yet appropriate planning is needed, and the variation in the final completion works as the guidelines and knowledge for the next project planning. Incorporation of such experiences and knowledge, at a later stage, reduces the variation and with the gain of sheer experience and knowledge, there comes a time in the future when planning becomes close to perfection and things start working according to the plan. In the initial times too, it is essential to have planning as close to the actual as possible because customers do not like late delivery and feedback about the same is not very motivating for the team on the whole. Apart from these, it also harms the reputation in the prevailing industry (Buttrick, 2005). Conclusively, with appropriate planning, however, it is possible to complete projects within the framework of the given time, cost, and other resources. There are exceptions, and that customers do understand as well, but planning should also compensate these by means of keeping margins appropriate to compensate the lateness due to any unforeseen events. Bibliography 1. Fleming, Quentin (2005). Earned Value Project Management, Third Edition, Project Management Institute. 2. Harold Kerzner (2003). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling, 8th Ed., Wiley. 3. Harvey Maylor (Jun 2005) Project Management Media Edition with MS Project CD. 3rd Edition. Pearson Education. 4. Jeffrey Pinto (Jun 2006) Project Management: Achieving Competitive Advantage and MS Project. Pearson Education. 5. Jeffery Pinto, Bernard Burnes (Jun 2006) Project Management: Achieving Competitive Advantage with Managing Change. Pearson Education. 6. Richard H. Thayer, Edward Yourdon (2000). Software Engineering Project Management, 2nd Ed., Wiley-IEEE Computer Society Press. 7. Richard Newton (Apr 2005) The Project Manager: mastering the art of delivery in project management. Pearson Education. 8. Robert Buttrick (Jan 2005) Project Workout: A Toolkit for reaping the rewards from all your business projects. 3rd Edition. Pearson Education. 9. Wysocki, R. K., Beck, R., & Crane, D. B. (2003). Effective Project Management. 3rd edition. John Wiley & Sons. Read More