What are a project and its characteristics?

Ans- Project is a temporary attempt to create a unique product, service, or result.

The Project Management Institute provides the following definition of a project:

 The major goal of a project is to satisfy a customer’s need.

 Beyond this fundamental similarity, the characteristics of a project help
differentiate it from other endeavours of the organization.
The major characteristics of a project are as follows: OLDUTCP
1. An established objective.
2. A defined life span with a beginning and an end.
3. Usually, the involvement of several departments and professionals.
4. Typically, doing something that has never been done before. Unique
5. Specific time, cost, and performance requirements TCP

 First, projects have a defined objective—whether it is constructing a 12-story

apartment complex by January 1 or releasing version 2.0 of a specific software
package as quickly as possible. This singular purpose is often lacking in daily
organizational life in which workers perform repetitive operations each day.
 Second, because there is a specified objective, projects have a defined endpoint,
which is contrary to the ongoing duties and responsibilities of traditional jobs. In
many cases, individuals move from one project to the next as opposed to staying in
one job. After helping to install a security system, an IT engineer may be assigned to
develop a database for a different client.
 Third, unlike much organizational work that is segmented according to functional
specialty, projects typically require the combined efforts of a variety of specialists.
Instead of working in separate offices under separate managers, project participants,
whether they be engineers, financial analysts, marketing professionals, or quality
control specialists, work closely together under the guidance of a project manager to
complete a project.
 The fourth characteristic of a project is that it is nonroutine and has some unique
elements. This is not an either/or issue but a matter of degree. Obviously,
accomplishing something that has never been done before, such as building a hybrid
(electric/gas) automobile or landing two mechanical rovers on Mars, requires solving
previously unsolved problems and breakthrough technology. On the other hand,
even basic construction projects that involve established sets of routines and
procedures require some degree of customization that makes them unique.
 Finally, specific time, cost, and performance requirements bind projects. Projects are
evaluated according to accomplishment, cost, and time spent. These triple
constraints impose a higher degree of accountability than you typically find in most
jobs. These three also highlight one of the primary functions of project management,
 which is balancing the trade-offs between time, cost, and performance while
satisfying the customer
at do the following headlines have in common?

 Superbowl half-time show scores a touchdown

 Citywide WiFi system set to go live
 1000 acre Wind Farm turns on the juice
 Apple’s new iPhone hits the market
 City receives stimulus funds to expand light rail system
All these events represent projects.

What is project management and its importance?

Ans- Collection of skill, techniques and tools that help people define, plan and implement
projects to achieve their goals.

Importance of project management-

Project management is no longer special-need management. It is rapidly becoming a

standard way of doing business. An increasing percentage of the typical firm’s effort is being
devoted to projects. The future promises an increase in the importance and the role of
projects in contributing to the strategic direction of organizations. Several reasons why this
is the case are briefly discussed below.

 Compression of the Product Life Cycle- One of the most significant driving forces
behind the demand for project management is the shortening of the product life
cycle.
For example, today in high-tech industries the product life cycle is averaging 1 to 3
years. Only 30 years ago, life cycles of 10 to 15 years were not uncommon. Time to
market for new products with short life cycles has become increasingly important.
Speed, therefore, becomes a competitive advantage; more and more organizations
are relying on cross-functional project teams to get new products and services to the
market as quickly as possible.
 Knowledge Explosion- The growth in new knowledge has increased the complexity
of projects because projects encompass the latest advances.
For example, building a road 30 years ago was a somewhat simple process. Today,
each area has increased in complexity, including materials, specifications, codes,
aesthetics, equipment, and required specialists. Similarly, in today’s digital,
electronic age it is becoming hard to find a new product that does not contain at
least one microchip. Product complexity has increased the need to integrate
divergent technologies. Project management has emerged as an important discipline
for achieving this task.
 Triple Bottom Line (planet, people, profit)- The threat of global warming has
brought sustainable business practices to the forefront. Businesses can no longer
 simply focus on maximizing profit to the detriment of the environment and society.
Efforts to reduce carbon imprint and utilize renewable resources are realized
through effective project management. The impact of this movement towards
sustainability can be seen in changes in the objectives and techniques used to
complete projects.
 Corporate Downsizing- The last decade has seen a dramatic restructuring of
organizational life. Downsizing (or rightsizing if you are still employed) and sticking to
core competencies have become necessary for survival for many firms. Middle
management is a mere skeleton of the past. In today’s flatter and leaner
organizations, where change is a constant, project management is replacing middle
management as a way of ensuring that things get done. Corporate downsizing has
also led to a change in the way organizations approach projects. Companies
outsource significant segments of project work, and project managers have to
manage not only their own people but also their counterparts in different
organizations.
 Increased Customer Focus- Increased competition has placed a premium on
customer satisfaction. Customers no longer simply settle for generic products and
services. They want customized products and services that cater to their specific
needs. This mandate requires a much closer working relationship between the
provider and the receiver. Account executives and sales representatives are
assuming more of a project manager’s role as they work with their organization to
satisfy the unique needs and requests of clients.
Increased customer attention has also prompted the development of customized
products and services. For example, 10 years ago buying a set of golf clubs was a
relatively simple process: You picked out a set based on price and feel. Today, there
are golf clubs for tall players and short players, clubs for players who tend to slice
the ball and clubs for those who hook the ball, high-tech clubs with the latest
metallurgic discovery guaranteed to add distance, and so forth. Project management
is critical both to the development of customized products and services and to
sustaining lucrative relationships with customers.

Project Life Cycle / Stages of A Project

Ans- Some project managers find it useful to use the project life cycle as the cornerstone
for managing projects. The life cycle recognizes that projects have a limited life span
and that there are predictable changes in the level of effort and focus over the life of
the project.

The project life cycle typically passes sequentially through four stages:

defining, planning, executing and delivering.

 The starting point begins the moment the project is given the go-ahead. Project effort
starts slowly, builds to a peak, and then declines to delivery of the project to the
customer.

ACTIVITY DEFINING PLANNING EXECUTING CLOSING

LEVEL OF Third Highest Second Highest Highest
EFFORT
Level of Second Highest Third Highest Highest
Challenges

 Defining stage: Specifications of the project are defined; project objectives are
established; teams are formed; major responsibilities are assigned.
 Planning stage: The level of effort increases, and plans are developed to
determine what the project will entail when it will be scheduled, whom it will
benefit, what quality level should be maintained, and what the budget will be.
 Executing stage: A major portion of the project work takes place—both physical
and mental. The physical product is produced (a bridge, a report, a software
program). Time, cost, and specification measures are used for control. Is the
project on schedule, on budget, and meeting specifications? What are the
forecasts for each of these measures? What revisions/changes are necessary?
 Closing stage: Closing includes three activities: delivering the project product to
the customer, redeploying project resources, and post-project review. Delivery of
the project might include customer training and transferring documents.
Redeployment usually involves releasing project equipment/materials to other
projects and finding new assignments for team members. Post-project reviews
include not only assessing performance but also capturing lessons learned.

Agile Project Management

Agile project management is an iterative approach that focuses on frequent value delivery
and getting fast feedback from the market to adapt to emerging changes quickly. It focuses
on:

 working on small batches.

 visualizing processes to create transparency.
 collaborative working with the customer, and 
 getting feedback as fast as possible.
This allows you to promptly adapt to changing requirements and produce higher-quality
products or services to better satisfy your customer's needs. 

Advantage; -

 Short-term deadlines encourage productivity and efficiency.

  There is a lot of flexibility to change project direction and experiment with new
directions.
 The methodology is client-facing, which means that the team shares progress and
incorporates feedback into the process.

Disadvantage: -

 Because team members are working on multiple phases at a time, there is potential
for overlap or unnecessary effort spent on later stages if an early phase needs to be
modified.
 The project timeline is more difficult to determine from the start, and it is also more
susceptible to change.
 Deliverables are not a requirement to progress to the following phase. It can be
harder to ensure the entire team is on the same page—especially if it’s a large team
with different departments.

Waterfall Methodology
 Approach: Hands-off; goals and outcome established from the beginning
 Flexibility: Low
 Requires: Completing deliverables to progress to the next phase
Waterfall methodology is a linear form of project management ideal for projects where the
end result is clearly established from the beginning of the project. The expectations for the
project and the deliverables of each stage are clear and are required to progress to the next
phase.
Advantage: -
 Provides a concrete plan of the project from start to finish
 The team establishes project requirements early on, which can save time
 Each phase of the project requires a deliverable to progress to the next phase,
making the workflow more structured

Disadvantage: -
 Because each project phase needs to be completed before progressing to the next
stage, the process can take longer.
 The Waterfall methodology requires that you outline the project from start to finish
before you begin. This doesn't allow for a lot of flexibility or change. 
  Traditional Agile
 Design upfront Continuous design
 Fixed Scope Flexible Scope
 Deliverables Features/requirements
 Freeze design as early as possible Freeze design as late as
possible
 Low uncertainty High uncertainty
 Avoid Change Embrace Change
 Low customer interaction High customer interactions
 Conventional Project teams Self – organized project
teams

ESTIMATE TIME COST & RESOURCES

The process of forecasting or approximating time, cost attached and resource allocation
for completing the deliverables of a project.

Bottom-up approach: This allows teams to estimate how long each sub-task will take. This
time then rolls up into an overall time-to-project completion estimate.

Example: You are embarking on an entirely new product based on feedback from your
customers. You need input from the entire team as this is a process you’ve never been
through before. A bottom-up approach works best in this situation.

Top-down approach: Starting with an estimate of how long the entire project will take, then
breaking it down into the various tasks.

Example: You need to update the FAQ section on your website. This is a task your team has
completed in the past. The scope is clear, the timeline defined, the subtasks straightforward.
A perfect time for a simple, top-down approach.

Project Scheduling: -

 Scheduling in project management is the listing of activities, deliverables, and

milestones within a project.
 A schedule also usually includes a planned start and finish date, duration,
and resources assigned to each activity. 
 Effective project scheduling is a critical component of successful time management,
especially for professional service businesses.
There are three main types of project schedules:

1. Master project schedule: A master schedule tends to be a simplified list of tasks

with a timeline or project calendar.

2. Milestone schedule or summary schedule: This type of project schedule tracks

major milestones and key deliverables, but not every task is required to complete the
project.

3. A detailed project schedule: This is the most thorough project schedule, as it

identifies and tracks every project activity. If you have a complex, large, or lengthy
project, it’s important to have a detailed project schedule to help track everything.

Critical Path-
When this term is used, it means the path(s) with the longest duration through the network;
if an activity on the path is delayed, the project is delayed the same amount of time.

Float
It is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without delaying any immediately
following (successor) activity. Or free slack is the amount of time an activity can exceed its
early finish date without affecting the early start date of any successor(s). Free slack can
never be negative.
WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE:
Work breakdown structure (WBS) in project management is a method for completing a
complex, multi-step project. It's a way to divide and conquer large projects to get things
done faster and more efficiently.
The goal of a WBS is to make a large project more manageable. Breaking it down into
smaller chunks means work can be done simultaneously by different team members,
leading to better team productivity and easier project management
Definition: A Work Breakdown Structure is a hierarchical decomposition of work tasks that
need to be performed by project team members to accomplish project goals and objectives
and create the required deliverable.
Element of WBS:
1. Project initiation
2. Planning
3. Execution
4. Monitoring and controlling
5. Project closeout
The Benefits of a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) are:
1. Organizes the project deliverables and tasks
2. Determines the program schedule
3. Enhances communication
4. Details tasks and dependencies
5. Identifies all products and services a system needs
6. Helps determine cost estimates
7. Identify Project Phases

What is PERT in Project Management?

Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) is a project management planning tool used
to calculate the amount of time it will take to realistically finish a project.

PERT charts are used to plan tasks within a project — making it easier to schedule and
coordinate team members. PERT is used to visualize the timeline and the work that must be
done for a project.

With PERT, you create three different time estimates for the project:

 Optimistic Time (OT) -The shortest possible amount of time each task will
take

 Most Likely Time (MLT) -The most probable amount of time

  Pessimistic Time (PT) - The longest amount of time tasks might take if things
don't go as planned.

Through these 3-time estimates, we calculate the estimated time. And the formula is,

Estimated Time (ET) = (OT + 4 * MLT + PT) / 6

Project Manager-
The project manager would simply implement the project plan and the project would be
completed. The project manager would work with others to formulate a schedule, organize
a project team, keep track of progress, and announce what needs to be done next, and then
everyone would charge along.

 Project managers perform the same functions as other managers. That is, they plan,
schedule, motivate, and control. However, what makes them unique is that they
manage temporary, nonrepetitive activities, to complete a fixed life project.
 Unlike functional managers, who take over existing operations, project managers
create a project team.
 They must decide what and how things should be done instead of simply managing
set processes.
 They must meet the challenges of each phase of the project life cycle and even
oversee the dissolution of their operation when the project is completed.
 They are typically the direct link to the customer and must manage the tension
between customer expectations and what is feasible and reasonable.
 Project managers provide direction, coordination, and integration to the project
team, which is often made up of part-time participants loyal to their functional
departments.
 Project managers are ultimately responsible for performance (frequently with too
little authority). They must ensure that appropriate trade-offs are made between the
time, cost, and performance requirements of the project.

Earned Value Analysis

 Earned Value Analysis (EVA) is a method that allows the project manager to measure
the amount of work performed on a project beyond the basic review of cost and
schedule reports. EVA provides a method that permits the project to be measured by
the progress achieved.
 The project manager is then able, using the progress measured, to forecast a
project’s total cost and date of completion, based on trend analysis.
 Oftentimes the term “earned value” is defined as the “budgeted cost of worked
performed” or BCWP. This budgeted cost of work performed measure enables the
project manager to compute performance.