Book: Information Technology Project Management 8th Edition Assignment Part 1 -
ID: 3861483 • Letter: B
Question
Book: Information Technology Project Management 8th Edition
Assignment
Part 1 - After reading chapter three, discuss the main differences between the two versions of the JWDConsulting case study. When should you use a more prescriptive or agile approach? Do you think users ofthe JWD Consulting Intranet site would prefer one release of the software or several incremental ones? Whatare some pros and cons of each approach?
Part 2 - Study the WBS and Gantt charts provided in Figures 3-3 and 3-4. Enter the WBS into Project,indenting tasks as shown to create the WBS hierarchy. Do not enter durations or dependencies. Submit ascreenshot of the resulting Gantt chart.
The entire assignment should be 2-3 pages of content not counting title page, reference page. Please followAPA format. Remember, all of this should be on ONE word document and submitted as an attachment forgrading.
Explanation / Answer
Each of the five project management process groups is characterized by the completion of certain tasks. During initiating processes for a new project, the organization recognizes that a new project exists, and completes a project charter as part of this recognition (see Chapter 4 for more information on project charters). Tables are provided later in this chapter with detailed lists of possible outputs for each process group by knowledge area. For example, Tables 3-3 through 3-7 list potential outputs for the initiating and planning process groups. Samples of some outputs are provided for each process group in a case study of JWD Consulting s Project Management Intranet Site project. Project managers and their teams must decide which outputs are required for their particular projects. Outputs of the planning process group include completing the project scope statement, the work breakdown structure, the project schedule, and many other items. Planning processes are especially important for information technology projects. Everyone who has ever worked on a large information technology project that involves new technology knows the saying, A dollar spent up front in planning is worth one hundred dollars spent after the system is implemented. Planning is crucial in information technology projects because once a project team implements a new system, it takes a considerable amount of effort to change the system. Research suggests that companies working to implement best practices should spend at least 20 percent of project time in initiating and planning. 4 This percentage is backed up by evidence from Alpha Project Managers, as described earlier. The executing process group takes the actions necessary to complete the work described in the planning activities. The main outcome of this process group is delivering the actual work of the project. For example, if an information technology project involves providing new hardware, software, and training, the executing processes would include leading the project team and other stakeholders to purchase the hardware, develop and test the software, and deliver and participate in the training. The executing process group should overlap the other process groups and generally requires the most resources. Monitoring and controlling processes measure progress toward the project objectives, monitor deviation from the plan, and take corrective action to match progress with the plan. Performance reports are common outputs of monitoring and controlling. The project manager should be monitoring progress closely to ensure that deliverables are being completed and objectives are being met. The project manager must work closely with the project team and other stakeholders and take appropriate actions to keep the project running smoothly. The ideal outcome of the monitoring and controlling process group is to complete a project successfully by delivering the agreed-upon project scope within time, cost, and quality constraints. If changes to project objectives or plans are required, monitoring and controlling processes ensure that these changes are made efficiently and effectively to meet stakeholder needs and expectations. Monitoring and controlling processes overlap all of the other project management process groups because changes can occur at any time. During the closing processes, the project team works to gain acceptance of the end products, services, or results and bring the phase or project to an orderly end. Key outcomes of this process group are formal acceptance of the work and creation of closing documents, such as a final project report and lessons-learned report.
information technology projects need to follow the project management process groups, so do other projects, such as the production of a movie. Processes involved in making movies might include screenwriting (initiating), producing (planning), acting and directing (executing), editing (monitoring and controlling), and releasing the movie to theaters (closing). Many people enjoy watching the extra features on a DVD that describe how these processes lead to the creation of a movie. For example, the DVD for Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Extended Edition includes detailed descriptions of how the script was created, how huge structures were built, how special effects were made, and how talented professionals overcame numerous obstacles to complete the project. This acted not as promotional filler but as a serious and meticulously detailed examination of the entire filmmaking process. 5 New Line Cinema made history by shooting all three Lord of the Rings films consecutively during one massive production. It took three years of preparation to build the sets, find the locations, write the scripts, and cast the actors. Director Peter Jackson said that the amount of early planning they did made it easier than he imagined to produce the films. Project managers in any field know how important it is to have good plans and to follow a good process.
Some organizations spend a great deal of time and money on training efforts for general project management skills, but after the training, project managers may still not know how to tailor their project management skills to the organization s particular needs. Because of this problem, some organizations develop their own internal information technology project management methodologies. The PMBOK® Guide is a standard that describes best practices for what should be done to manage a project. A methodology describes how things should be done, and different organizations often have different ways of doing things. In addition to using the PMBOK® Guide as a basis for project management methodology, many organizations use others, such as the following: PRojects IN Controlled Environments (PRINCE2): Originally developed for information technology projects, PRINCE2 was released in 1996 as a generic project management methodology by the U.K. Office of Government Commerce (OCG). It is the de facto standard in the United Kingdom and is used in over 50 countries. (See www.prince2.com for more information.) PRINCE2 defines 45 separate subprocesses and organizes these into eight process groups as follows: 1. Starting Up a Project 2. Planning 3. Initiating a Project 4. Directing a Project 5. Controlling a Stage 6. Managing Product Delivery 7. Managing Stage Boundaries 8. Closing a Project Agile methodologies: As described in Chapter 2, agile software development is a form of adaptive software development. All agile methodologies include an iterative workflow and incremental delivery of software in short iterations. Several popular agile methodologies include extreme programming, scrum, feature driven development, lean software development, Agile Unified Process (AUP), Crystal, and Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM). (See Web sites like www.agilealliance.org and the Suggested Readings on the companion Web site for this text for more information.) Rational Unified Process (RUP) framework: RUP is an iterative software development process that focuses on team productivity and delivers software best practices to all team members. According to RUP expert Bill Cottrell, RUP embodies industry-standard management and technical methods and techniques to provide a software engineering process particularly suited to creating and maintaining component-based software system solutions. 6 Cottrell explains that you can tailor RUP to include the PMBOK process groups, since several customers asked for that capability. There are several other project management methodologies specifically for software development projects such as Joint Application Development (JAD) and Rapid Application Development