Textbook Successful Project Management How To Complete Projects On Time On Budget and On Target Fourth Edition Dobson Ebook All Chapter PDF

You might also like

Download as pdf or txt
Download as pdf or txt
You are on page 1of 53

Successful Project Management How to

Complete Projects on Time on Budget


and on Target Fourth Edition Dobson
Visit to download the full and correct content document:
https://textbookfull.com/product/successful-project-management-how-to-complete-pro
jects-on-time-on-budget-and-on-target-fourth-edition-dobson/
More products digital (pdf, epub, mobi) instant
download maybe you interests ...

PROJECT ONLINE INCOME Complete guide on how to make


money online in 2020 and beyond 2nd Edition Colen

https://textbookfull.com/product/project-online-income-complete-
guide-on-how-to-make-money-online-in-2020-and-beyond-2nd-edition-
colen/

Project Management Hacking How to Manage Projects More


Efficiently and Effectively in Less Time 1st Edition
Douglas Peyton Martin (Author)

https://textbookfull.com/product/project-management-hacking-how-
to-manage-projects-more-efficiently-and-effectively-in-less-
time-1st-edition-douglas-peyton-martin-author/

The rough guide to Europe on a budget Jonathan


Bousfield

https://textbookfull.com/product/the-rough-guide-to-europe-on-a-
budget-jonathan-bousfield/

Research on Project, Programme and Portfolio


Management: Integrating Sustainability into Project
Management 1st Edition Roxana Cuevas

https://textbookfull.com/product/research-on-project-programme-
and-portfolio-management-integrating-sustainability-into-project-
management-1st-edition-roxana-cuevas/
Forex on Five Hours a Week How to Make Money Trading on
Your Own Time 1st Edition Horner Raghee

https://textbookfull.com/product/forex-on-five-hours-a-week-how-
to-make-money-trading-on-your-own-time-1st-edition-horner-raghee/

Project Management in Practice A Guideline and Toolbox


for Successful Projects 1st Edition M. Daud Alam

https://textbookfull.com/product/project-management-in-practice-
a-guideline-and-toolbox-for-successful-projects-1st-edition-m-
daud-alam/

Successful Project Management Jack Gido

https://textbookfull.com/product/successful-project-management-
jack-gido/

Strategic Management Control Successful Strategies


Based on Dialogue and Collaboration Fredrik Nilsson

https://textbookfull.com/product/strategic-management-control-
successful-strategies-based-on-dialogue-and-collaboration-
fredrik-nilsson/

Successful project management Seventh Edition / Baker

https://textbookfull.com/product/successful-project-management-
seventh-edition-baker/
Successful Project Management
Fourth Edition

How to Complete Projects on Time,


on Budget, and on Target
This page intentionally left blank
Successful Project Management
Fourth Edition

How to Complete Projects on Time,


on Budget, and on Target

Michael S. Dobson
Successful Project Management, Fourth Edition
How to Complete Projects on Time, on Budget, and on Target
© 2015 American Management Association. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without the prior written permission of the publisher.
ISBN 13: 978-0-7612-1567-7
ISBN 10: 0-7612-1567-0
AMACOM Self-Study Program
http://www.amaselfstudy.org
AMERICAN MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION
http://www.amanet.org
Contents
About This Course xiii
How to Take This Course xv
Pre-Test xvii

1 Understanding Project Management 1


Origins of Modern Project Management
Projects and Project Management
Projects and the Organization
Programs and Portfolios
Project Management Office (PMO)
Organizational Structure and Project Management
The Process of Project Management
Project Initiation
Project Planning
Project Execution
Project Monitoring and Control
Project Closing
The Many Hats of a Project Manager
Project Time Management
Project Scope Management
Project Cost Management
Project Communications Management
Project Stakeholder Management
Project Human Resources Management
Project Quality Management
Project Procurement Management
Project Risk Management
Project Integration Management
Recap
Review Questions

2 Defining the Project 21


From Problem to Project
Project Initiation
Project or Phase
Stakeholders
© American Management Association. All rights reserved.
http://www.amanet.org/ v
vi SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Common Stakeholders
Other Stakeholders
Issues in Stakeholder Management
Constraints
Hierarchy of Constraints
Ranking Constraints
Assumptions
Project Charter
Obtaining Approval and Buy-In
Progressive Elaboration and the Project Objective
Recap
Review Questions

3 Planning the Activities 41


Iterative Planning
Statement of Work
Requirements Document
Work Breakdown Structure
Creating a Work Breakdown Structure
Phases, Deliverables, or Departments?
The One Hundred Percent Rule
Project Management Work in the WBS
Network Diagramming
Constructing an Activity List
Laying Out the Project
Determining the Critical Path
Additional Scheduling Relationships
Forward and Backward Pass
Gantt Chart
Recap
Review Questions

4 Estimating the Activities 65


Uncertainty in Project Planning
Estimating Methodologies
Standard Estimating Techniques
Analogous Estimating
Expert Judgment and Delphi Estimating
Parametric Estimating
Bottom-Up Estimating
Three-Point Estimating
Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
Monte Carlo Simulation
Issues in Estimating
Overoptimism
Parkinson’s Law
Rolling Wave Estimating

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
CONTENTS vii

Recap
Review Questions

5 Preparing a Project Plan 79


Progressive Elaboration and the Project Plan
Staffing and Resource Requirements
Building the Project Team
Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM)
Loading and Leveling the Schedule
Outsourcing
Procurement Planning
Critical Path Method (CPM) Analysis
The Northridge Overpass Disaster
Implications for Project Planning
Critical Path Method
Crashing a Project
Communications and Stakeholder Management Plan
Recap
Review Questions

6 Managing Risk and Quality 95


The Project Universe
Risk
Threats and Opportunities
Pricing Risk
Uncertainty About Uncertainty
Risk Tolerance
Risk Management Process
Planning Risk Management
Identifying Risks
Performing Qualitative Risk Analysis
Performing Quantitative Risk Analysis
Planning Risk Responses
Residual and Secondary Risk
Implementing Risk Responses
Quality
Is Quality Scope?
Process Quality and Product Quality
Process Quality
Product Quality
Quality Tools and Processes
Recap
Review Questions

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
viii SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

7 Transition to Execution 123


From Plan to Work
Plan Approval
Performance Measurement Baseline
Schedule
Scope Verification
Cost Baseline
Teams and Other Resources
Acquiring the Team
Team Development
Kickoff Meeting
Work Management
Change Management
Fundamentals of Change Management
Change Control Boards and Configuration Management
Solving Problems
Contingency Plans
Corrective Actions and Workarounds
Recap
Review Questions

8 Controlling Time, Cost, and Scope 139


Planning Monitoring and Control
Monitoring Project Status
Status Reports
Status Meetings
Inspections and Reviews
Frequency of Reviews
Reporting Project Status
Risk Monitoring and Control
New Risk Cycle
Risk Reassessment
Risk Audits
Managing Reserves
Monitoring and Controlling Quality
Quality Assurance
Quality Control
Earned Value Management
Planned Value, Earned Value, and Actual Cost
Cost Variance and Schedule Variance
Cost and Schedule Performance Indices
Applying Earned Value
Advanced EVM
Updating the Project Plan and Baseline
Recap
Review Questions

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
CONTENTS ix

9 Evaluating and Reporting on 157


Project Performance
Project Closeout
Closeout Checklist
Transfer
Contract and Procurement Closure
Administrative Closure
Celebration and Reward
Lessons Learned
On to the Next Project!
Recap
Review Questions
Appendix A: Answers to Exercises and Case Studies 169
Exercise 1–1. Getting Started
Exercise 1–2. Knowledge Areas
Exercise 2–1. Stakeholder Register
Exercise 2–2. Hierarchy of Constraints
Exercise 2–3. PMO Project Constraints and Assumptions
Exercise 2–4. PMO Project Charter Outline
Exercise 3–1. Research and the SOW
Exercise 3–2. Different WBS Approaches
Exercise 3–3. Build a Work Breakdown Structure
Exercise 3–4. Activity List
Exercise 3–5. Network Diagram
Exercise 3–6. Forward and Backward Pass
Exercise 3–7. Create a Gantt Chart
Exercise 4–1. Types of Estimates
Exercise 4–2. Calculating PERT Estimates
Exercise 4–3. Estimating Review
Exercise 5–1. Skill Requirements
Exercise 5–2. Skill List
Exercise 5–3. Responsibility Assignment Matrix
Exercise 5–4. CPM Analysis
Exercise 5–5. Communications and Stakeholder Management Plan
Exercise 6–1. Risk Tolerance
Exercise 6–2. Risk Identification
Exercise 6–3. Qualitative Risk Analysis
Exercise 6–4. Sensitivity Analysis
Exercise 6–5. Risk Response Planning
Exercise 6–6. Functional and Nonfunctional Requirements
Exercise 7–1. Analyzing a Tracking Gantt Chart
Exercise 7–2. Problem Solving
Exercise 8–1. Earned Value Metrics
Exercise 8–2. Cost and Schedule Variance
Exercise 8–3. Performance Indices
Exercise 9–1. Closeout Checklist
Exercise 9–2. Implementing the PMO
Exercise 9–3. Lessons Learned Questions

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
x SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Appendix B: Glossary 195


Appendix C: Bibliography and Recommended Reading 209
Appendix D: Additional Resources 213
Post-Test 217
Index 223
List of Exercises
Exercise 1–1 Getting Started
Think About It…Organization
Think About It…New Projects
Think About It…Closing Out
Exercise 1–2 Knowledge Areas
Think About It…Problem Definition
Think About It…Project or Phase
Exercise 2–1 Stakeholder Register
Exercise 2–2 Hierarchy of Constraints
Exercise 2–3 PMO Project Constraints and Assumptions
Exercise 2–4 PMO Project Charter Outline
Exercise 3–1 Research and the SOW
Think About It…Top Down or Bottom Up
Exercise 3–2 Different WBS Approaches
Exercise 3–3 Build a Work Breakdown Structure
Exercise 3–4 Activity List
Exercise 3–5 Network Diagram
Think About It…Will You Make the Deadline?
Exercise 3–6 Identify Critical Path and Float
Exercise 3–7 Draw a Gantt Chart
Think About It…Uncertainties on Your Project
Exercise 4–1 Types of Estimates
Exercise 4–2 Calculating PERT Estimates
Think About It…Managing Uncertainty
Exercise 4–3 Estimating Review
Exercise 5–1 Skill Requirements
Exercise 5–2 Skill List
Exercise 5–3 Responsibility Assignment Matrix
Think About It…Loading and Leveling
Think About It…Make or Buy
Exercise 5–4 CPM Analysis
Exercise 5–5 Communications and Stakeholder Management Plan
Exercise 6–1 Risk Tolerance
Think About It…Risk Management Policy
Exercise 6–2 Risk Identification
Exercise 6–3 Qualitative Risk Analysis
Exercise 6–4 EMV Calculations and Sensitivity Analysis
Exercise 6–5 Risk Response Planning
Think About It…Process Quality
Exercise 6–6 Functional and Nonfunctional Requirements
Exercise 7–1 Analyzing a Tracking Gantt Chart
Think About It…Teams
Think About It…Change Management
Exercise 7–2 Problem Solving

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
CONTENTS xi

Think About It…Monitoring and Control


Think About It…Meeting Culture
Exercise 8–1 Earned Value Metrics
Exercise 8–2 Cost and Schedule Variance
Exercise 8–3 Performance Indices
Think About It…Earned Value
Think About It…Project Closeout
Exercise 9–1 Closeout Checklist
Exercise 9–2 Implementing the PMO
Think About It…Celebration
Exercise 9–3 Lessons Learned Questions
Think About It…Next Steps

List of Exhibits
Exhibit 1–1 Case Study: Establishing a Project Management Office (PMO)
Exhibit 1–2 The Five Project Management Process Groups
Exhibit 1–3 The Ten Project Management Knowledge Areas
Exhibit 2–1 Phases
Exhibit 2–2 Analyzing Stakeholders
Exhibit 2–3 The Triple Constraint
Exhibit 2–4 Hierarchy of Constraints
Exhibit 3–1 Statement of Work
Exhibit 3–2 Guidelines for Writing Requirements
Exhibit 3–3 Work Breakdown Structure in “Org Chart” and Outline Format
Exhibit 3–4 Department Based vs. Phase Based WBS
Exhibit 3–5 Network Diagram
Exhibit 3–6 Critical Path
Exhibit 3–7 Forward Pass
Exhibit 3–8 Forward Pass Summary
Exhibit 3–9 Backward Pass
Exhibit 3–10 Backward Pass Summary
Exhibit 3–11 Critical Path and Float
Exhibit 3–12 Critical Path and Float Summary
Exhibit 3–13 Gantt Chart
Exhibit 3–14 Gantt Chart Data
Exhibit 3–15 Completed Gantt Chart
Exhibit 4–1 PERT Formulas
Exhibit 4–2 Standard Deviation Diagram
Exhibit 4–3 Z Table
Exhibit 5–1 Skill Requirements
Exhibit 5–2 Team Skills
Exhibit 5–3 Responsibility Assignment Matrix
Exhibit 5–4 Crashing a Project Using CPM
Exhibit 5–5 Summary of Crashing Activities
Exhibit 5–6 Communications and Stakeholder Management Plan Template
Exhibit 6–1 The Project Environment
Exhibit 6–2 Risk Identification
Exhibit 6–3 Sample Risk Register
Exhibit 6–4 Risk Triage Flowchart
Exhibit 6–5 Probability and Impact Matrix
Exhibit 6–6 Expected Monetary Value

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
xii SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Exhibit 6–7 Decision Tree


Exhibit 6–8 Risk Response Strategies
Exhibit 7–1 Tracking Gantt Chart
Exhibit 7–2 Cost Baseline
Exhibit 7–3 Work Management Form
Exhibit 7–4 Problem Solving Strategy
Exhibit 8–1 Team Member Status Report Form
Exhibit 8–2 Project Status Report
Exhibit 8–3 Earned Value
Exhibit 9–1 Closeout Checklist
Exhibit 9–2 Lessons Learned/Project Salvage

FOR QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS:


Please contact Self Study at 1-800-225-3215 or email
AMASelfStudy@amanet.org for information about
Self Study courses. And visit our website at www.amaselfstudy.org

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
About This Course

“Project management is one of those applications that everyone


knows someone else should be using.”
–Michael J. Miller, InfoWorld, 1988

The management of projects is often vital to the success and growth of organ-
izations. Unlike ongoing operations, projects are both temporary and unique.
Because they are temporary, they often do not have the benefit of fully devel-
oped, mature, and permanent organizations devoted to their success. Because
they are at least in some respects unique, they each involve special problems,
issues, and considerations.
Project management, in a nutshell, is the art, craft, and science of manag-
ing projects. It is a wide-ranging and complex discipline that incorporates and
uses elements from many different disciplines. Although project management
was once considered just an aspect of such fields as architecture or engineering,
today project management is considered to be a discipline in its own right.
In a fast-moving and fast-changing world, project management skills are
often a vital element in your career growth and ultimate success. Even when
managing projects is only an element of your overall job, success in managing
projects often has a disproportionate impact on your career.
Successful Project Management, Fourth Edition, is an introductory course in
project management. In this course, you will learn the fundamental concepts,
strategies, techniques, and approaches of modern project management. The
course is designed for active project managers, technical team members who
need to understand the overall project approach in order to perform their roles
effectively, and senior managers and executives who must hire, supervise, and
evaluate project managers in their employ.
We will follow the basic project management approach as laid out in A
Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), 5th Edition,
popularly known as the PMBOK® Guide, along with other sources listed in
the Bibliography and Recommended Reading section at the end of the course.
We strongly encourage you to read and study widely.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/ xiii
xiv SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Michael S. Dobson, PMP, is an internationally known authority on proj-


ect management and author of 62 books, including twelve on the topic of proj-
ect management. He has written eight books published by AMACOM.
As principal of Dobson Solutions (www.dobsonsolutions.com) and the
Sidewise Institute (www.sidewiseinsights.com), Michael consults, speaks, and
trains on project management topics throughout the world. His clients range
from the US Navy’s nuclear propulsion program to Calvin Klein Cosmetics.
As an operating executive and project manager, Michael has held the pos-
tions of Vice President, Discovery Software International; Vice President, Games
Workshop; and Director of Marketing and Games Development, TSR, Inc. He
was part of the team that built the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and
Space Museum in the 1970s. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University
of North Carolina at Charlotte.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
How to Take This Course

This course consists of text material for you to read and three types of activ-
ities (the Pre- and Post-Test, in-text exercises, and end-of-chapter Review
Questions) for you to complete. These activities are designed to reinforce the
concepts brought out in the text portion of the course and to enable you to
evaluate your progress.

Pre- and Post-Tests


Both a pre-test and a post-test are included in this course. Take the pre-test
before you study any of the course material to determine your existing knowl-
edge of the subject matter. To get instructions on taking the test and having
it graded, please email AMASelfStudy@amanet.org, and you will receive an
email back with details on taking your test and getting your grade. This email
will also include instructions on taking your post-test, which you should do
upon completion of the course material.

Certificate
Once you have taken your post-test, you will receive an email with your grade
and a certificate if you have passed the course successfully (70% or higher).
All tests are reviewed thoroughly by our instructors, and your grade and a
certificate will be returned to you promptly.

The Text
The most important component of this course is the text, for it is here that
the concepts and methods are first presented. Reading each chapter twice will
increase the likelihood of your understanding the text fully.
We recommend that you work on this course in a systematic way. Only
by reading the text and working through the exercises at a regular and steady
pace will you get the most out of this course and retain what you have learned.
In your first reading, concentrate on getting an overview of the chapter’s con-
tents. Read the learning objectives at the beginning of each chapter first. They
serve as guidelines to the major topics of the chapter and enumerate the skills

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/ xv
xvi SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

you should master as you study the text. As you read the chapter, pay attention
to the heading and subheadings. Find the general theme of the section and
see how that theme relates to others. Don’t let yourself get bogged down with
details during the first reading; simply concentrate on remembering and un-
derstanding the major themes.
In your second reading, look for the details that underlie the themes.
Read the entire chapter carefully and methodically, underlining key points,
working out the details of the examples, and making marginal notations as
you go. Complete the exercises.

Exercises and Activities


Interspersed with the text in each chapter you will find exercises that take a
variety of forms. In some cases, no specific or formal answers are provided.
Where appropriate, suggested responses or commentary follow the exercises.

The Review Questions


After reading a chapter and before going on to the next, work through the re-
view questions. By answering the questions and comparing your own answers
to the answers provided, you will find it easier to grasp the major ideas of that
chapter. If you perform these self-check exercises conscientiously, you will
develop a framework in which to place material presented in later chapters.

Questions About Grading/Retaking the Test


If you have questions regarding the tests, the grading, or the courses itself,
please email Self Study at AMASelfStudy@amanet.org .
If you fail the Post-Test, you have one year to retake the test for one year
after the course’s purchase date.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
Pre-Test

Successful Project Management


Fourth Edition

Course Code 98004


INSTRUCTIONS: To take this test and have it graded, please email AMASelfStudy
@amanet.org. You will receive an email back with details on taking your test and get-
ting your grade.

FOR QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS: You can also contact Self Study at 1-800-225-3215
or visit the website at www.amaselfstudy.org.

1. In a PERT analysis, what is the probability that an activity will be


completed no later than the PERT estimate?
(a) 50.00%
(b) 84.13%
(c) 15.87%
(d) 61.79%

2. The triple constraints include:


(a) risk, quality, and procurement.
(b) time, risk, and quality.
(c) time, cost, and quality.
(d) time, cost, and performance.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


www.amanet.org xvii
xviii SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

3. A critical path activity can be compressed from eight weeks to four


weeks at a cost of $1,000 per week. The available float on the parallel
path is two weeks. There is a $1,200 bonus for each week early. How
would you crash this project?
(a) Crash four weeks from the critical path activity.
(b) Do not crash; it’s not financially appropriate.
(c) Crash two weeks from the critical path activity.
(d) Crash both critical and noncritical paths two weeks.
4. Which of the following is a step in project closeout?
(a) Charter
(b) Quality assurance
(c) Transfer
(d) Baseline
5. Which project management process includes activities needed to
define a new phase of an existing project?
(a) Progressive elaboration
(b) Project planning
(c) Project transfer
(d) Project initiation
6. What project management tool links resources to activities?
(a) WBS
(b) RAM
(c) PERT
(d) EVM
7. A particular business opportunity requires an investment of $150,000,
and has a 70% chance of success. If it succeeds, you will earn $275,000,
but if the investment fails, you will lose your entire investment. What is
the expected monetary value?
(a) $275,000
(b) -$150,000
(c) $125,000
(d) $147,500
8. What is a characteristic of a well-written requirement?
(a) Condition → Consequence
(b) Described in the project charter
(c) Unambiguous and verifiable
(d) Exists as a work package in the project’s WBS
9. The technique of adjusting your estimates as the project moves forward to
take advantage of improved knowledge and understanding is known as:
(a) the Monte Carlo simulation.
(b) the earned value method.
(c) rolling wave estimating.
(d) the program evaluation and review technique.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
PRE-TEST xix

10. Look at the WBS that follows this question. How is it organized?
(a) By department or work group
(b) By phase
(c) By cost account
(d) By difficulty or risk
Develop a Course

Instructional Systems
Production Operations Marketing
Design

Research Topic Design Graphics Assign Presenter Determine Topic

Arrange Beta Test Develop Promotional


Write Workbook Produce Materials
Site Materials

Ship Materials to
Develop Exercises Conduct Beta Test Approve New Course
Seminar Location

Incorporate Beta Test Train Additional


Market Course
Feedback Speakers

Finalize Course

11. For a particular activity, we determine that optimistically it will take 6


weeks, pessimistically it will take 30 weeks, but it will most likely take
12 weeks. What is the PERT estimated time and the standard
deviation?
(a) E = 12, 𝛔 = 6
(b) E = 14, 𝛔 = 4
(c) E = 8, 𝛔 = 4
(d) E = 30, 𝛔 = 12

12. An analogous estimate is considered accurate if the final project cost is


within the range:
(a) -25%, +100%.
(b) -10%, +25%.
(c) -5%, +10%.
(d) -5%, +0%.

13. The extent to which the project’s product, service, and result satisfy the
needs for which it was undertaken is known as:
(a) quality.
(b) scope.
(c) risk.
(d) WBS.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
xx SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

14. Look at the following network diagram. What is the critical path?
(a) A→B→D→H
(b) A→E→C→D→H
(c) A→E→F→G→H
(d) A→C→H
Activity B Activity D
4 days 3 days

Activity A Activity C Activity H


6 days 9 days 4 days

Activity E Activity F Activity G


2 days 3 days 1 day

15. Today, we were supposed to have completed four activities that were
planned to cost $2,500 each. We have actually accomplished only three
of those activities and we have spent $7,000 to date. In earned value
method terms, what is our cost performance index, rounded to the
nearest whole percent?
(a) 93%
(b) 107%
(c) 75%
(d) 133%

16. What document formally authorizes the existence of a project and


gives the project manager working authority to proceed?
(a) Project scope statement
(b) Project authorization document
(c) Project plan
(d) Project charter

17. What is “the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to


project activities to meet the project requirements”?
(a) Progressive elaboration
(b) Program evaluation and review technique
(c) Project management
(d) Iterative planning

18. What performance measurement baseline can serve as a metric for all
three triple constraints?
(a) Cost baseline
(b) Responsibility assignment matrix
(c) Tracking Gantt chart
(d) Weekly status reports

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
PRE-TEST xxi

19. The fundamental formula for risk is:


(a) P x I
(b) (O + 4M + P) / 6
(c) EV – AC
(d) BAC / CPI

20. How frequently should you hold status meetings or require status
reports?
(a) Preferably weekly, but no less often than monthly
(b) Whenever a problem or issue arises
(c) When the project sponsor or customer need an update
(d) Varies based on the speed of change within the project

21. What is defined as a “hierarchical decomposition of the total scope of


work to be carried out by the project team to accomplish the project
objectives and create the required deliverables”?
(a) Responsibility assignment matrix
(b) Work breakdown structure
(c) Critical path
(d) Project charter

22. What is one piece of information that should be included in a


communications and stakeholder management plan?
(a) To whom stakeholders report
(b) Ways to get around difficult stakeholders
(c) Stakeholder leadership roles in the project
(d) What we need/want from the stakeholder

23. The process of prioritizing risks for further analysis or action by


assessing and combining their probability of occurrence and impact is
known as:
(a) quantitative risk analysis.
(b) risk response planning.
(c) decision tree analysis.
(d) qualitative risk analysis.

24. What is a constraint?


(a) Something that limits your choices
(b) Something considered true for planning purposes
(c) Just the three elements of time, cost, and performance
(d) One of the nine knowledge areas of project management

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
xxii SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

25. You have identified a risk that the price of raw materials you need for
the project could potentially double in price by the time you would
normally purchase them. You decide you will buy the materials far in
advance of need to lock in the price. What risk response strategy have
you used?
(a) Avoid
(b) Mitigate
(c) Transfer
(d) Contingency plan

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
Understanding Project
1
Management

Learning Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you should be able
to:
• Describe the origins and growth of project
management as a discipline.
• Define projects and project management and
explain the concepts of progressive elabora-
tion and iterative activity as they apply to proj-
ect management.
• Describe the relationship between projects
and the organization, including the roles of
programs and portfolios, the function of a
Project Management Office (PMO), and the
characteristics of functional, projectized, and
matrix organizations.
• Identify and describe the five fundamental
processes of project management.
• List and define the ten knowledge areas of
project management.

Estimated timing for this chapter:


Reading 1 hour 20 minutes
Exercises 1 hour 30 minutes
Review Questions 10 minutes
Total Time 3 hours

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/ 1
2 SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

ORIGINS OF MODERN PROJECT


MANAGEMENT
Though projects have been managed since the beginning of civilization, project
management as a discipline is of more recent vintage. Imhotep, builder of the
first pyramid, was an architect, a physician, and possibly most importantly the
equivalent of prime minister, able to command all the resources necessary to
manage the project.
Military leaders were often project managers as well, and not merely on
the battlefield. At the Battle of Alesia (52 BCE), Gaius Julius Caesar built 24
miles of fortifications with a fortlet every 80 feet to defend his small force
against the massive Gallic army of Vercingetorix.
As mechanical and civil engineering emerged as formal disciplines in the
late 18th and early 19th centuries, engineers often served as project managers.
Gustave Eiffel did not merely design the tower that bears his name, but over-
saw its construction as well. This allowed him to identify and respond to some
of the technical challenges, such as building elevators that ran on slanted
tracks—something that had never been done before.
The new concepts of engineering led to the consideration of manage-
ment as a scientific discipline. Mechanical engineer Frederick W. Taylor began
studying ways to improve industrial efficiency and became one of the first
management consultants. He became known as the “father of scientific man-
agement” for his empirical studies, and many of his concepts, ideas, and ap-
proaches remain in use to this day. Although general management and project
management each have their unique qualities, the systematic study of general
management had a great influence on the way projects were managed.
Taylor’s college roommate, Henry Gantt, continued to work with him
for 30 years. Gantt developed the concept of incentive pay, linking the bonus
paid to managers to how well they trained their employees. He is, however,
best remembered in the discipline of project management for his development
of a bar chart that shows project progress. Though the chart is today known
as the Gantt chart, much of its modern format was actually developed by Pol-
ish engineer Karol Adamiecki.
What is often thought of as modern project management is even more re-
cent, dating back to the late 1950s. The Program Evaluation and Review Tech-
nique (PERT), a creation of the US Navy and Booz Allen Hamilton, allows
schedule analysis when details and durations of individual activities are un-
certain. At roughly the same time, DuPont Corporation and Remington Rand
developed the Critical Path Method (CPM), based on earlier scheduling tech-
niques that had played a role in the management of the Manhattan Project.
As projects have expanded in size and complexity, so has project manage-
ment grown as a discipline and career field distinct from engineering, archi-
tecture, and the military. The International Project Management Association
(IPMA), established in 1965, is a federation of more than 50 national and in-
ternational project management associations, and offers the IPMA Compe-
tence Baseline (ICB®) certification. The United Kingdom’s Association for
Project Management (APM) offers a Registered Project Professional (RPP)
designation.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
UNDERSTANDING PROJECT MANAGEMENT 3

In the United States, the largest and best-known project management or-
ganization is the Project Management Institute (PMI), established in 1984. Its
standard terminology and guidelines for project management are contained
in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide), currently
in its fifth edition. The PMBOK® Guide is used by both the American National
Standards Institute (ANSI) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics En-
gineers (IEEE) as its official standard. The PMI offers a range of credentials
for project managers, most famously the Project Management Professional
(PMP®) designation. This course is designed to be compatible with the fifth
edition of the PMBOK® Guide.

PROJECTS AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT


The general concept of work can be subdivided into ongoing work efforts, also
known as operations, and projects. A project, according to the PMBOK® Guide, is
“a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or re-
sult.”
Unlike ongoing work efforts, projects always and necessarily end. Ideally,
the project ends when the “unique product, service, or result” has been deliv-
ered successfully. Projects also end when the attempt to do so has failed, or
when the customer no longer wants (or can pay for) it. Projects can also evolve
and change as they move forward, based on a better understanding of the ob-
jectives, the need to address problems or challenges as they arise, or changes
in the environment or circumstances surrounding the project.
Project management is defined as “the application of knowledge, skills, tools,
and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements.” Al-
though this definition is a bit self-referential, it does provide a sense of the
scope and breadth of the discipline. It’s extremely difficult to define the bor-
ders of project management, as project managers must often apply general
management knowledge, technical knowledge, organizational understanding,
and much more in order to accomplish the job. There’s no safe area in which
you can say, “This isn’t part of what a project manager needs to know.”
The concept of progressive elaboration lies at the heart of many project man-
agement concepts, tools, and techniques. When you are first given a project,
it may seem utterly impossible, and that’s not uncommon. But remember the
old joke: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. In project manage-
ment, progressive elaboration means that you take the big, unwieldy project,
and you break it into smaller pieces that you can get your arms around. Each
piece can be defined, and you can plan the steps necessary to accomplish it.
Often, people begin projects without a full understanding of the issues,
problems, and challenges involved. That leads to the other core concept at
the heart of project management: it is an iterative activity. You gain increasing
understanding and insight into the project, allowing you to expand on the de-
tails and confront the problems, risks, and challenges more effectively.
Exhibit 1–1 defines a sample project that we will use as a case study
throughout this course. In Exercise 1–1, you will take the first step toward
managing the project.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
4 SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

xhibit 1–1
Case Study: Establishing a Project Management Office (PMO)

You’ve learned that many organizations establish a Project Management Office (PMO) to provide
guidance, leadership, resources, and technical support to individual projects throughout the organ-
ization, and your CEO has expressed a desire to establish a PMO function in your own organization.
Because you are studying project management, you’ve been asked to lead this project.
In your initial discussions, you discover that the organization has relatively little understanding
of what a PMO is or what it does, and that some managers are skeptical of it. There is a concern
that managers may lose power and authority to the new PMO. On the other hand, several recent
projects have ended up failing, and there is a fear that your competitors, many of whom already
have PMOs, may pull ahead in the marketplace.
You have been directed to establish a PMO in time for the annual stockholders’ meeting, which
will take place in nine months.

Exercise 1–1
Getting Started

Instructions: We will use the Exhibit 1–1 case study, “Establishing a PMO,” throughout this book to
practice the skills we are learning.
When you are first given a project, it’s often the case that the project is not fully fleshed out,
and that’s okay. You normally must go through a process of gaining additional understanding and
insight about the project before you can manage it effectively. Read the following series of ques-
tions. Some of the answers are contained in the case study description, but not all of them. Answer
the questions to the best of your ability. Don’t worry if you can’t answer every question fully—that’s
quite normal at the beginning of a project.
When you have finished, turn to Appendix A: Answers to Exercises and Case Studies at the end
of this course to compare your responses with ours.

1. What is the project that must be accomplished?

2. Why are we doing this project? How will the project benefit us if it is successful?

Exercise 1-1 continues on next page.

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
UNDERSTANDING PROJECT MANAGEMENT 5

Exercise 1–1 continued from previous page.


3. When must the project be accomplished?

4. What people, resources, and budget are available to us?

5. What authority and power do we have to accomplish the work?

6. Who are the stakeholders—the people who will be affected by our project?

7. Does our project face opposition? What is the nature of that opposition? Why are some people
opposed? Can their issues be addressed?

8. Are there any major known risks that we can see at the beginning of the project?

9. How will we measure our success?

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
6 SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT

PROJECTS AND THE ORGANIZATION


Projects normally take place inside a larger organizational environment, and
no matter how important your project may be, it’s never the only game in town.
Here are some organizational issues that may affect your projects.

Programs and Portfolios


Projects are often grouped into programs and portfolios. A program is simply
a group of projects that are managed together. This is usually because their
subject matter is similar. The IT department normally manages most IT pro-
jects, because it has the expertise and technical capability to do so.
A portfolio, on the other hand, organizes projects in terms of their organi-
zational perspective. Individual IT projects support many different parts of
the organization. If we are developing a new product, it might include project
components in IT, engineering, marketing, warehousing and distribution, in-
dustrial design, and many other areas. The portfolio cuts across organizational
boundaries and ties these very different projects together to achieve an overall
strategic objective.
Your project may be part of both a program and a portfolio, giving you
two sets of stakeholders to manage. You must understand the needs and goals
of both in order to manage your project effectively.

Project Management Office (PMO)


Our case study project involves establishing a Project Management Office
(PMO), but exactly what that is can vary by organization.
PMOs consolidate various project-related functions into a central office.
Depending on the organization, the PMO may establish policies, allocate re-
sources, provide technical support to individual project managers and teams,
consolidate status reporting, improve project management skills through train-
ing and coaching, and provide centralized information to senior management.
PMOs come in various flavors: supportive, controlling, and directive. A
supportive PMO primarily provides technical support to projects: templates,
best practices, training, coaching, and lessons learned. Controlling PMOs set
and enforce policy. Directive PMOs control and manage the projects them-
selves, centralizing control. There may not always be a clear dividing line among
these functions, so your mileage may vary.

Organizational Structure and Project Management


Most organizations traditionally operate as functional organizations, in which
the individual departments have particular technical functions: IT, marketing,
HR, engineering, sales, etc. This is excellent for ongoing operational work,
but less effective for projects, because projects frequently cut across organi-
zational boundaries.
Projectized organizations are completely organized around projects, with
a small central core providing overall leadership. A movie studio is a good ex-
ample. Each individual movie is its own project, a business unit in itself. It
contains all the different departments: set builders, electricians, costumers,

© American Management Association. All rights reserved.


http://www.amanet.org/
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
Apollo

Pan is supposed to have taught music to Apollo, the god of Music


and of the Sun. You have seen statues of him with a lyre in his hands.
As Pan’s pupil he learned to play the syrinx so beautifully that he
won a prize in a contest with Marsyas, a mortal who played the flute
invented (according to the Greek legend), by Pallas Athene. This
goddess was sometimes known as Musica or Musician. When Cupid
saw her play the flute he laughed at her because she made such queer
faces. This angered her, and she flung her flute away. It fell down
from Mt. Olympus to the earth, and Marsyas picked it up and
became such a skilful player that he challenged the god Apollo to a
contest for flute championship of the world! The day came and
Apollo won the prize, but put Marsyas to death for daring to
challenge him—a god. Apollo afterwards was very sorry and broke all
the strings of his lyre and placed it with his flutes in a haunt of
Dionysus (god of Wine), to whom he consecrated these instruments.
These stories are not only a part of the ancient Greek religion but
they have become, on account of their beauty, a rich source of plot
and story for the works of musicians, artists and writers from the
days of antiquity to our own time.
Orpheus

One of the favorite Greek stories has been that of Orpheus, who
went down to Hades to bring his dead wife whom he adored, back to
earth, and about whom Peri, Gluck, and others wrote operas. He was
son of Apollo and of Calliope, the Muse of Epic Poetry, and became
such a fine performer on all instruments, that he charmed all things
animate and inanimate. He tamed wild birds and beasts, and even
the trees and rocks followed him as he played, the winds and the
waves obeyed him, and he soothed and made the Dragon, who
guarded the Golden Fleece, gentle and harmless.
On the cruise of the Argo in search of the Golden Fleece, Orpheus
not only succeeded in launching the boat when the strength of the
heroes had failed in the task, but when they were passing the islands
of the Sirens, he sang so loudly and so sweetly that the Sirens’ songs
could not be heard and the crew were saved.
Music in Their Daily Life

When a people have legends about music you may know that they
love it. Such was the case with the Greeks. They did not call their
schools high schools and colleges but Music schools, and everything
that we call learning they included under the name of music. Every
morning the little Greek boy was sent to the Music school where he
was taught the things that were considered necessary for a citizen to
know. Here he learned gymnastics, poetry, and music. At home too,
music was quite as important as in school, and we know that they
had folk songs which had to do with the deeds of ordinary life, such
as farming and winemaking and grape-picking, and the effect and
beauty of the seasons of the year. (See Chap. IX.) They can well be
divided into songs of joy and songs of sorrow, and seem to have
existed even before Homer the Blind Bard. If you ever have tried to
dance or do your daily dozen without music, you will understand at
once how much help music always has been to people as they
worked.
Harvest Songs

All harvest songs in Greece had the name of Lytiersis. Lytiersis was
the son of King Midas, known as the richest king in the world.
Lytiersis was a king himself but also a mighty reaper, and according
to Countess Martinengo-Cesaresco who has written a book called
Essays in the Study of Folk-Songs it was his “habit to indulge in
trials of strength with his companions and with strangers who were
passing by. He tied the vanquished up in sheaves and beat them. One
day he defied an unknown stranger, who proved too strong for him
and by whom he was slain.” The first harvest song was composed to
console King Midas for the death of his son. We can make a fable
from this story which means that Nature and Man are always
struggling against each other.
The harvest festivals founded in Greece led to others in Brittany,
France, North Germany and England. So does the deed of one race
affect other races.
The Liturgies

Among the taxes, or five special liturgies, that the Greeks had to
pay, was the obligation for certain rich citizens to supply the Greek
tragedies with the chorus. Every Greek play had its chorus and every
chorus had to have its structures; a choregic monument to celebrate
it; one or more flute players, costumes, crowns, decorations, teachers
for the chorus and everything else to make it succeed. This cost,
which would equal many thousands of dollars, was undertaken as a
duty quite as easily as our men of wealth pay their income taxes. You
can see a greatly enlarged copy of a choregic monument, the Soldiers’
and Sailors’ monument at 89th Street and Riverside Drive, in New
York City, and also one at the Metropolitan Museum.
In old Greece the musicians were also poets. Homer, Hesiod,
Pindar, Æschylus, Sophocles, Sappho, Euripides, Plato, not only
wrote their dramas but knew what music should be played with
them. In fact no play was complete without its chorus and its music
and its flute-player. You have heard of the Greek chorus. Don’t for a
moment think it was like our chorus. It consisted of a group of
masked actors (all actors in those days wore masks), who appeared
between the acts and intoned (chanted) the meaning of the play and
subsequent events. In fact the chorus took the place of a libretto,
—“words and music of the opera,” for it explained to the audience
what it should expect. It spoke and sang some of the most important
lines of the play and danced in appropriate rhythms. So it brought
together word, action and music, and was a remote ancestor of
opera, oratorio and ballet.
Festivals

Besides the occupational songs and those for the drama festivals,
the Greeks had the great game festivals where in some, not only
competitions in sports took place but also flute playing and singing.
The oldest of these festivals was the Olympic games, first held in 776
B.C. and every four years thereafter. These games played so important
a part in the lives of the Greeks that their calendar was divided into
Olympiads instead of years. While music was evident in the Olympic
games, music and poetry were never among the competitions.
The Pythian games were chiefly musical and poetic contests and
were started in Delphi, 586 B.C., where they were held every nine
years in honor of the Delphian Apollo whose shrine was at Delphi.
The Isthmian and Nemean games were also based on poetic and
musical contests. Warriors, statesmen, philosophers, artists and
writers went to these games and took part in them. Maybe some time
we will realize the power of music as did the Greeks nearly one
thousand years before the birth of Jesus.
The Greek Scales

While, as we said before, we know very little about the melodies of


the Greeks, we do know something about their scales, upon which
the church music of the Middle Ages was based, as are our own
major and minor scales. In fact the most important contribution
Greece made to our music was the scale. They had a very
complicated system and no one is quite sure how it worked.
We have the two modes or kinds of scales, major and minor, which
we use in different keys, but the Greeks had at least seven different
modes used in many different ways. They used one mode for martial
or military music, another for funeral ceremonies, another for their
temple music, and curiously enough, our own C major scale they
used for their popular music, for drinking songs, and light festivities.
The Greek scales were based on tetrachords, from the Greek words
tetra-four, chord-string that is, a group of four strings. If you play on
the piano B C D E and C D E F and D E F G you will find the three
tetrachords that formed the primary modes of the Greeks:—Dorian,
Phrygian and Lydian.
Perhaps you have heard in Greek architecture of the Doric column
which came from Doria, a province in Greece, and the Ionic column,
from Ionia, and so on. In the same way the scales were named for
sections of the country from which they first came, Dorian mode,
Ionian, Æolian, Phrygian, Lydian, etc.
The Greek tetrachord was formed on the interval of a fourth, for
example from E to A—these were called standing tones, because the
intervals between the two standing tones or permanent tones could
be changed but the first and the fourth always remained the same—
By putting two tetrachords together all the other Greek scales were
formed. These fell into two classes, and according to Cecil Forsyth in
his History of Music these classes were called the join and the break.
When the second tetrachord began on the fourth tone of the first
tetrachord, Mr. Forsyth calls it the joining method, thus.

When the second tetrachord began on the tone above the fourth
tone of the first tetrachord, he calls it the breaking method, thus:

By using the join and the break with each of the three modes,
Dorian, Phrygian and Lydian, you can see to what a great variety of
scales and names this would lead. The Greeks spoke of their scales
from the top note down, instead of from the lowest note up, as we do.
The first kithara was supposed to have been an instrument of four
strings that could be tuned in any of these different ways, with the
half-step either between the first and second strings, or between the
second and third, or between the third and fourth. Two instruments
tuned differently formed the complete scale, but it did not take long
to add strings to their lyres and kitharas so that they could play an
entire scale on one instrument.
The little Greek boy was taught in school to tune the scale
according to the fourth string of his lyre, which was the home tone or
what we should call tonic. Our tonic falls on the first degree of the
scale, but in the primary modes of the Greeks, the tonic fell on the
fourth degree, and was called the final. When the final was on pitch
all the other strings had to be tuned to it.
These tetrachords are supposed to have been perfected by
Terpander, in the six hundreds before Christ. His melodies were
called nomes and were supposed to have had a fine moral effect on
the Spartan youth in giving him spirit and courage. The Greeks
thought that all music and that every one of their modes had a
special effect on conduct and character.
After the Messenian war, Sparta was in such a state of upheaval
that the Delphian oracle was consulted. The answer was:
“When Terpander’s Cithar shall sound
Contention in Sparta shall cease.”

So the Spartans called upon Terpander to help them, and through


the power of his song all was peace again.
Terpander collected Asiatic, Egyptian, Æolian and Bœotian
melodies all of which are unfortunately lost; he invented a new
notation and enlarged the kithara from four strings to seven. Arion,
Alcæus and the great poetess Sappho were his pupils, and Sappho is
often shown in statues with a six stringed kithara.
Most of these poet singers were called “lyric poets” because they
sang to the accompaniment of the lyre.
Pythagoras

The Greeks were the first to write down their music, or to make a
musical notation whereby the singers and players knew what tones to
use. Their system was their alphabet with certain alterations. They
had names describing each tone not unlike our use of the word tonic
for the first degree of the scale, and dominant for the fifth and so on.
Of course they did not have the staff and treble and bass clefs as
we have, but they were groping for some way of recording music in
those far away days.
Pythagoras as far back as 584–504 B.C., not only influenced the
music in the classical Greek period (400 B.C.), but down to and
throughout the Middle Ages to the Renaissance (1500s). To this day
music is based on his mathematical discovery. He worked out a
theory of numbers based on the idea that all nature was governed by
the law of numbers and modern scientists have proven that he was
correct in many of his ideas. In fact our orchestras and pianos are
tuned in accordance with his theories.
He invented an instrument called the monochord which consisted
of a hollow wooden box with one string and movable fret. He
discovered that when he divided the string exactly in half by means
of the fret, the tone produced was an octave higher than the tone
given out by striking the entire string; one-third of the string
produced the interval of a fifth above the octave; one-fourth the
length of the string produced a fourth above the fifth; one-fifth
produced a third (large or major) above the fourth; one-sixth
produced a third (small or minor); one-seventh produced a slightly
smaller third and one-eighth produced a large second, three octaves
above the sound of the entire string:
The truth of Pythagoras’ theory of tone relationship has been
proven by an experiment in physics showing that all of the above
tones belong to the same tone family. An amusing experiment can be
made by pressing silently any one of the tones marked 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or
8, and striking the fundamental tone sharply, the key you are
pressing silently will sound so that you can distinctly hear its pitch.
The Greeks seem to have had no harmony (that is, combining of
two or more tones in chords) outside of the natural result of men’s
voices and women’s singing together. But they had groups of singers
answering each other in what is called antiphony (anti-against,
phony-sound). Even our American Indians have their song leader
and chorus answering each other.
Greek rhythm followed the rhythm of the spoken word and was
considered a part of their poetic system.
Greek Instruments

We have already spoken of the syrinx, Pan’s Pipes, the instrument


of Pan, the satyrs and of the shepherds; the monochord, Pythagoras’
invention; the lyre and kithara; and the flute or aulos.
The lyre, of the family of stringed instruments, was the Greek
national instrument. It was the first to be used in their musical
competitions, and helped in the forming of the Greek modes. These
were of two types, the lyre and the kithara. The first lyres which came
down from the age of myths and fables were originally made of the
shell of a tortoise and had four strings (the tetrachord) and later
seven and even more strings. This form of the lyre was called chelys,
or the tortoise, and was used for accompanying drinking songs and
popular love songs.
The kithara was also called lyre, but was not made of the body of
the tortoise, and it became the Greek concert instrument, and was
only used by professionals, while the chelys was used in the home. It
came originally from Asia Minor and Egypt. It had four strings at
first but these were gradually added to, until there were fifteen and
eighteen strings. It was sometimes small and sometimes large, and
was held to the body by means of a sling and was played with a
plectrum or pick.
The Greek flute or aulos was a wood-wind instrument more like
our oboe than our flute. It was usually played in pairs, that is, one
person played two flutes or auloi of different sizes at one time, and
they were V shaped. There was a group of auloi differing in range like
the human voice differs, and covering three octaves from the bass
aulos to the soprano.
The aulos was first a single wooden pipe with three or four finger
holes which later were increased to fifteen or sixteen so that the three
modes Dorian, Phrygian and Lydian, could be played on one pair of
auloi. About six centuries before the Christian era, the double flute
became the instrument of the Delphian and Pythian musical
competitions.
In the chorus too, we read that for each drama there was a special
aulos soloist who always played the double flute.
There were other type instruments such as the war trumpets,
trumpets used in the temple services, and harps (magadis) that were
brought from Egypt, but the real instruments of the Greeks pictured
in their sculpture and on their vases and urns, and spoken of in their
literature, are the lyres and auloi.
Roman Music

The Romans, law givers, world conquerors and road builders, gave
little new to music, for they did not show a great talent for art. They
were influenced by Greek ideals and Greek methods. They were
warlike by nature, and from defenders of their state they became
conquerors. As they grew nationally stronger and more secure, they
learned music, oratory, architecture and sculpture from Greek
teachers. Many Romans well known in history were singers and
gifted players on the Greek kithara, lyre, and flute (aulos).
The Romans seemed to have cared more about the performing of
music than for the composing of it, and “offered prizes to those who
had the greatest dexterity, could blow the loudest or play the fastest.”
(Familiar Talks on History of Music.—Gantvoort.)
As they come to America today the musicians of other lands
flocked to Rome, especially those who played or sang, because they
were received with honor and were richly paid.
The Romans, among them Boethius (6th century B.C.), wrote
treatises on the Greek modes, were very much interested in the
theory of music, and built their scales like the Greeks. To each of the
seven tones within an octave they gave the name of a planet, and to
every fourth tone which was the beginning of a new tetrachord, the
name of a day of the week which is named for the planet.
B C D E F G A
Saturn Jupiter Mars Sun Venus Mercury Moon
Saturday Sunday Monday

B C D E F G A
Saturn Jupiter Mars Sun Venus Mercury Moon
Tuesday Wednesday

B C D E F G A
Saturn Jupiter Mars Sun Venus Mercury Moon
Thursday Friday

The days of the week in French show much more clearly than in
English the names of the planets, in the case of Tuesday—mardi,
(Mars); Wednesday—mercredi (Mercury); Thursday—jeudi,
(Jupiter); Friday—vendredi, (Venus).
The Greeks brought their instrument, the kithara, to Rome, and
with it a style of song called a kitharoedic chant, which was usually a
hymn sung to some god or goddess. The words, until three hundred
years after the birth of Jesus, were in the Greek language; the Latin
kitharoedic songs like those of the poets Horace and Catullus were
sung at banquets and private parties, Cicero too, was musical.
Courtesy of the
Metropolitan
Museum of Art.

Chinese
Instruments.

Fig. 5.—Trumpets.
Fig. 6.—Te’ch’ing—sonorous stone.
Fig. 7.—Yang-Ch’in or Dulcimer.
Fiddles from Arabia (Fig. 8, Rebab); Japan (Fig. 9, Kokin);
Corea (Fig. 10, Haggrine) and Siam (Fig. 11, See Saw Duang).

Edward MacDowell in Critical and Historical Essays, says that


instrumental music was no longer used merely to accompany voices
and had become quite independent. The flute (aulos) players
performed better than the lyre and kithara players and were liked
better. They played “dressed in long feminine, saffron (yellow)-
colored robes, with veiled faces, and straps around their cheeks to
support the muscles of the mouth.” They played with an astonishing
amount of technical skill. “Even women became flute players,
although this was considered disgraceful.” The prices paid to these
flute players were higher than the amounts received by our opera
singers.
The Roman theatre, unlike the Greek, was not a place to honor
their gods. Greek plays, both tragedy and comedy, were replaced
with pantomime, usually accompanied by orchestra and singing. The
orchestra was made up of “cymbals, gongs, castanets, foot castanets,
rattles, flutes, bagpipes, gigantic lyres, and a kind of shell or crockery
cymbals, which were clashed together.”
The Roman tibia or bagpipe is still popular today with the
peasants of Italy. Although the bagpipe is first mentioned in Rome,
there are some Persian terra cotta figures made before the Roman
era, showing players of the bagpipes. It is always said that Nero
played the fiddle while Rome burned and even our motion pictures
show him playing the violin to the accompaniment of flames. How
could he have played on a violin when it had not as yet been
invented? If he played any instrument while Rome burned, it was
probably the tibia.
CHAPTER V
The Orientals Make Their Music—Chinese, Japanese, Siamese,
Burmese, and Javanese

To hear two Chinamen exchanging greetings on a street corner, you


would think they were singing or rather chanting, not because their
tones are particularly pleasant for they are high and nasal and hard,
but because they are talking in their own peculiar way. The Chinese
have what is called an inflected language in which they use many
tones. For example the syllable “hi” in one tone will mean one thing
and it will mean something else entirely in each different inflection.
Here again is a case where it is hard to say where speech ends and
song begins. Another amusing thing about the Chinese is the way,
according to our ideas, they seem to twist every thing around, so that
what we call high tones they call low tones; they wear white for
mourning and we wear black; their guests of honor sit at the left of
the host and ours sit at the right; they consider taking off the hat very
bad manners and of course we consider it bad manners for a man to
keep it on in the house or when talking to a lady.
They never used their music as a way of expressing beauty as other
nations have done, but treated it as we would a problem in
arithmetic or a cross-word puzzle, and they loved to write articles on
the subject that would seem long and dull to us. However, as far back
as 2255 B.C. Ta Shao composed a piece of music which Confucius,
1600 years later, said, “enchanted him to such an extent that he did
not know the taste of food for months.”
After a print by
Gakutei—about
1840.

The Koto-Player.

You might also like