Software Project

Management
Introduction

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What is Management?
Basically, the management involves the following
activities:
Planning- deciding what is to be done
Organizing- making arrangements
Staffing- selecting the right people for the job
Directing- giving instructions
Monitoring- checking on progress
Controlling- taking action to remedy hold-ups
Innovating- coming up with new solutions
Representing- liaising with users, etc.

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What is Project Management?
Project Management is the art of maximizing the
probability that a project delivers its goals on Time, to
Budget and at the required Quality.
The art of planning for the future has always been a
human trait.
In essence a project can be captured on paper with a few
simple elements: a start date, an end date, the tasks that
have to be carried out and when they should be finished,
and some idea of the resources (people, machines etc)
that will be needed during the course of the project.

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Project management is the application of
knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project
activities to meet project requirements.
Project management is accomplished through the use
of the processes such as: initiating, planning,
executing, controlling, and closing.
It is important to note that many of the processes
within project management are iterative in nature.
This is in part due to the existence of and the necessity
for progressive elaboration in a project throughout the
project life cycle; i.e., the more you know about your
project, the better you are able to manage it.

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The term project management is sometimes used to
describe an organizational approach to the management of
ongoing operations.
This approach, more properly called management by
projects, treats many aspects of ongoing operations as
projects to apply project management techniques to them.
Almost any human activity that involves carrying out a
non- repetitive task can be a project.
So we are all project managers! We all practice project
management (PM).
But there is a big difference between carrying out a very
simple project involving one or two people and one
involving a complex mix of people, organizations and tasks.

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What is Software Project Management?
Concerned with activities involved in ensuring
that software is delivered on time and on
schedule and in accordance with the
requirements of the organizations developing
and procuring the software.
Project management is needed because software
development is always subject to budget and schedule
constraints that are set by the organization developing
the software

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Why do we need Software Project
Management?
The “software crisis” of the 1960’s and 1970’s was so called
because of a string of high profile software project failures:
over budget, overdue, etc.
The crisis arose in part because the greater power available
in computers meant that larger software projects were
tackled with techniques developed on much smaller
projects.
 Techniques were needed for software project management.
Good project management cannot guarantee success, but
poor management on significant projects always leads to
failure.
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What is Project?
A project is an activity with specific goals which takes place over a finite
period of time.
A temporary organization that is needed to produce a unique and pre-
defined outcome or result at a pre-specified time using pre-determined
resources.
Operations and projects differ primarily in that operations are ongoing
and repetitive while projects are temporary and unique.
A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique
product or service.
Temporary means that every project has a definite beginning and a
definite end.
Unique means that the product or service is different in some
distinguishing way from all other products or services.
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Projects create
A product or artifact that is produced, is quantifiable
and can be either an end item in itself or a component
item.
A capability to perform a service, such as business
functions supporting production or distribution.
A result, such as new knowledge. For example, a
research and development project develops knowledge
that can be used to determine whether or not a trend
is present or a new process will benefit society.

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Software Project
 Software projects have several properties that make them very
different from other kinds of engineering project.
The product is intangible.
Its hard to claim a bridge is 90% complete if there is not 90% of the
bridge there.
It is easy to claim that a software project is 90% complete, even if
there are no visible outcomes.
Large software projects are often “bespoke”.
Most large software systems are one-off, with experience gained in
one project being of little help in another.
The technology changes very quickly.
Software processes are variable and organization specific.
We still cannot reliably predict when a particular software process is
likely to lead to development problems 10
Success Criteria
Deliver the software to the customer at the agreed
time.
Keep overall costs within budget.
Deliver software that meets the customer’s
expectations.
Maintain a coherent and well-functioning
development team.

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Factors Influencing Project Management
Company size
Software customers
Software size
Software type
Organizational culture
Software development processes
These factors mean that project managers in different
organizations may work in quite different ways.

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Variables of Project Control
The 5 Variables of Project Control
1. Time
2. Cost
3. Quality
4. Scope
5. Risk

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Time
Amount of time required to complete the project.
Typically broken down for analytical purposes into the
time required to complete the components of the
project.
Which is then further broken down into the time
required to complete each task contributing to the
completion of each component.

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Cost
Cost is calculated from the time variable.
Cost to develop an internal project is time multiplied
by the cost of the team members involved.
When hiring an independent consultant for a project,
cost will typically be determined by the consultant or
firm's hourly rate multiplied by an estimated time to
complete.

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Quality
The amount of time put into individual tasks
determines the overall quality of the project.
Some tasks may require a given amount of time to
complete adequately, but given more time could be
completed exceptionally.
Over the course of a large project, quality can have a
significant impact on time and cost (or vice versa).

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Scope
Scope is the requirements specified for the end result.
The overall definition of what the project is supposed
to accomplish, and a specific description of what the
end result should be or accomplish.

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Risk
Risk are the potential points of failure.
Most risks or potential failures can be overcome or
resolved, given enough time and resources.

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Phases or Tasks
A project can be broken down into phases or tasks to
be done.
Each phase is defined by its
entry criteria,
exit criteria,
resources,
deliverables and
reports.

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Universal Management Activities
Project planning
Project managers are responsible for planning, estimating
and scheduling project development and assigning people
to tasks.
Risk management
 Project managers assess the risks that may affect a project,
monitor these risks and take action when problems arise.
People management
Project managers have to choose people for their team and
establish ways of working that leads to effective team
performance.
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Management Activities
Reporting
Project managers are usually responsible for reporting
on the progress of a project to customers and to the
managers of the company developing the software.
Proposal writing
The first stage in a software project may involve writing a
proposal to win a contract to carry out an item of work.
The proposal describes the objectives of the project and
how it will be carried out.

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Smart factors that helps success of the
Project
Smart people
Smart Planning
Open communication
Careful risk management
Strong project closure

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Smart People
Without the right team in place, any strategy and plan has the potential
of completely falling apart.
Because of this, the core project staff, expert resources, suppliers and all
stakeholders should be part of the team dynamic.
All of those involved must have commitment to the group, share similar
visions for the projects and strive for overall success.
Project managers can face serious trouble if inadequacy is present
within the team.
Inept leadership or an out-of-sync team can send a project towards
failure.
It is important to assign the right people to each aspect of the project
and make sure that they are working well together.
Additionally, the entire team should be completely informed and
involved in order to have the most successful outcome, which means
that communication has to be on balance.
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Smart Planning
Comprehensive planning sets up a project for success
from the start.
All stakeholders should be on board during the
planning process and always know in which direction
the project is going to go.
Planning can help the team to meet deadlines and stay
organized.
Good planning not only keeps the project team
focused and on track, but also keeps stakeholders
aware of project progress.
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There are many benefits to smart planning.
This first step in the project process allows for a
reliable and realistic time-scale to be created.
Assuring accurate time for cost estimates to be
produced and for clear documentation of milestones
and deliverables will make things much easier as the
project progresses.
A proficient plan details all resource requirements and
doubles as a warning system.
If task slippage is at risk, then a warning system will
provide clear visibility of what to expect

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Open Communication
Looking closely at details and listening to outside
sources of information is vital to the success of a project.
Keeping open communication within the team is
absolutely essential.
When working under a specific timetable, it is important
that the team remains well-informed.
If a problem arises on one part of a project, it can
negatively impact other parts as well.
Communication is the best way to prevent problems
from occurring

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Communication should also be focused internally within the
organization.
Keeping an organizational history of major projects will give
convenient access to improved policies and business processes. If
this isn’t done, then a team may repeat mistakes that have already
occurred.
Listening to stakeholders and paying attention is a very important
ingredient for success.
Good communication also includes knowing when to say no. A
project team should never promise anything they know they can’t
deliver.
Saying no in the beginning could save an overabundance of
unnecessary problems later.
Always be honest about what your team can do and when it can be
done by
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Careful Risk Management
Project managers know that things rarely go off exactly as
planned.
During the planning process, it is vital to produce a risk log
with an action plan for the risks that the project could face.
Make sure all key stakeholders are aware of your risk log and
know where they can find it.
If something happens, then the team can quickly resolve the
issue with the management plan that has already been set in
place.
This will give the team confidence when facing project risks and
help the clients feel comfortable with the project’s progression.

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Strong Project Closure
If a project does not have strong closure, then it has
the potential to continue to consume resources.
The project team must be firm and agree with the
customer that all critical success factors have been
met.
Confirmation of the project delivery, testing, and
release must be agreed upon and signed off.
Satisfaction surveys are good forms of documentation
to log and file for future reference and valuable
information for use in the future.
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It is the project manager’s job to ensure that
everything runs smoothly on a project, but having a
great project manager doesn’t guarantee a successful
project outcome.
The entire team paying attention to key factors is what
will help lead the project to true success.
This success will then lead to proactive, organized
project plans and an increase in quality of all future
projects.

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