Description of Project Management - Essay Example

 Project management Part B Section 2 The planning methodology that I prefer is that of agile planning methodology. Agile planning basically refers to the repetitive process where software is developed and given to the owner (customer) in developmental increments. In this approach the system functionalities of individual increments are not planned prior to system development. What to include in an increment entirely depends on the customer’s priorities. Due to the likelihood of the change in the owner requirements it is important to put in place a flexible plan that house the changes. Figure 1: Agile planning process Initial agile development process There are two approaches to agile planning according to Schwaber (2004) and Beck (2000) corresponding to the phase in plan-driven development and development planning. These are: Release planning that looks ahead for a couple of months and determines the features that the system should be in the release of a system. Iteration planning that is short-term and concentrates on the planning of the subsequent system increment which is normally two to four weeks of team work. In extreme programming (XP), also called game planning, system specification is obtained from the user story and involved are the development team and the representatives of the customer. The first step is for the team and customer to identify set of stories that exhibits the system functionalities that the end product should possess. In the next stage the project team reads and discusses the stories obtained from the first stage and these stories are ordered according to the estimated duration of story implementation. Here big stories are disintegrated into small stories. There is always difficulty in estimating the effort required for a particular item. It is also difficult to estimate the time that the same may take. To solve this issue, several to-do things are availed so as one can easily make judgments regarding which stories are lengthy and time consuming. A story may have two to eight points depending on its difficulty. This is done for all the stories in the list. There are three phases of the iteration planning, namely: exploration phase, commitment phase, and steering phase. Planning tools However, the Gantt chart is simple and easy to use since it only includes the drawing and the painting of bars in different colors. Nicholas and Steyn (67) argue that the Gantt chart experiences delays which are especially true when multiple activities that require the same resources are scheduled for the same time. When resources are not sufficient to satisfy the needs of all of them, some activities must be delayed. There are uprising criticisms about the network methods because they incorporate assumptions and yield results that are unrealistic sometimes. The importance of networks is that they show precisely the interdependencies of the projects activities and also the scheduling affects the latter have on each other. I object this suggestion by Nicholas and Steyn (62) on the grounds that the resources are not always available. This therefore considers the scheduling of projects with resource constraints and the effects of these constraints on workload fluctuation and project duration. Section 4 A project is a sequence of activities that are organized and executed within a given time and budget where defined goals are achieved. For project implementers to realize success there should be proper planning and supervision from the start. The project managers should be aware of what is taking place in the project. There is the need for project managers to have details of the project at hand and understand that every project should have a detailed and thorough planning. All aspects of the project should be taken care of; the cost should be reasonable enough, the time should be enough and the user specification requirements should be provided on time. There are tools which are handy to project managers. This paper will look at the aspects that are required for a successful project. The main issues are the cost and budgeting of the project, having the right tools (Anderson, Grude & Haug 661). One aspect that Nicholas and Steyn (65) state is that each project is designed to achieve a new output which has not been achieved before. There is therefore a need to have a planning for each project that is undertaken. Nicholas and Steyn (154) say that there three things which take place in project management planning. These phases include the 1) prepration of the plan in the project conception and defintion phase, 2) the execution phase where the plan is performed and also the progress of the project is assessed and tracked and the last is 3) the phase of corrective action and the project requirements are revisited. I feel that there is something that Nicholas and Steyn (165) failed to specify which is in the executiion phase. The execution phase has a lot of activities which should be looked into. there is the user reurements and analysis which should be a different pohase of its own, Nicholas and Steyn (165) failed to include this. Project planning There are varioius aspecvts that need to be considered when undertaking planning. Planning is something that is done to bring some sense of organisation, to allocated resources, to allocate reponsibilities and to have a well coordinated workforce which knows what they are supposed to achieve. Project planning also help the project management to bring out project manager’s authority and roles so clearly in the project. It is also a tool for making the project to be an eye-opener for the project members so that they focus their energies beyond what they have right then. It is also worth noting this is the most time-consuming activity in undertaking the project. It is also worth noting that it is also the most important as the pace of the project will be determined during this time. Plannig steps This is the step where the management will require that planning starts immediately it is found out that there is a business need that is requred. In this level, there will be the need to have contract request for the project, write a request for proposal and authorise for funds to be released so that the budget can be prepared to be included in the project proposal. After the project has been approved and the funds has been released for use in the project, there will be the need to appoint the project manager who will take care of the overall project. The project manageer will then proceed and take on from this place. This is another aea I feel should be changed. I feel that the project manager is given too much freedom. There should be changes in management of project. All projects should have two project managers, one from the company (stakeholder) and the other one being a professiinal who is hired compettitvely. This will serve to check the work of the professional project manager. A project answers the questions such as: 1. The cost, purpose and the timeframe of the project. This is answered by defining the scope of the project, the project deliverables and the performance targets among other things. 2. How the project will be undertaken. This is achieved by defining the activities that will be undertaken by the project. 3. It will also answer the organization of the project so that the management of the project will be identified. 4. There will also be the need to define the cost and timing of the work activities. This is achieved by defining the project schedule. 5. The budget answers the amount of work that will be needed and the resource plan of the resources so that the various resources that is available for the project. 6. A work performance and work review is prepared so that the various projects are outlined. 7. Revision of the various project activities is. In this task, review and refining of the tasks is done. References Read More