Ignite Your Passion is a text book that is included as a part of a learning program. This text book and corresponding learning program is intended to teach you the discipline of project management in a simple and enjoyable way.

Ignite Your Passion

Project Management BasicsBy Dorcas M. T. Cox

AuthorHouse

Copyright © 2011 Dorcas M. T. Cox
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4634-0824-4

Contents

Preface............................................................ixIntroduction.......................................................xiChapter 1, Dream Big...............................................1Projects, Programs, and Portfolios.................................1Project Management.................................................6The Project Manager................................................11Initiate Your Project..............................................17Chapter 2, Make a Plan.............................................23Plan Your Project..................................................23Scope Out Your Project.............................................29Scheduling.........................................................37Let's Talk Money...................................................48Don't Forget Quality...............................................52Getting Good People................................................57Effective Communication Is Key.....................................61Assess the Risk....................................................66Make or Buy........................................................75Chapter 3, Work Hard...............................................84Acquire Your Team..................................................84Distribute Information and Manage Expectations.....................92Chapter 4, Follow Up...............................................103Monitor and Control Your Project...................................103Control Scope, Schedule, and Costs.................................113Report Performance and Control Risk................................121Chapter 5, Celebrate...............................................128Close Your Project.................................................128About the Author...................................................141Resources..........................................................143

Chapter One

Dream Big

Lesson 1: Projects, Programs, and Portfolios

After studying this lesson, you should be able to:

? define a project.

? explain how projects come about.

? describe a program.

? explain how programs are managed.

? define portfolios.

? explain what is included as a part of portfolio management.

? differentiate between projects, programs, and portfolios.

An Idea

Imagine this: you get an idea, a really, really big idea for a project that you believe might just work. This project is in an area that you are passionate about. It could be in any industry, music, construction, small business, the creative arts ... anything. Your project idea may have come about as a result of market demand, strategic opportunity, business need, customer request, technological advance, or even a legal requirement. Maybe your idea is to create a product that can either be a component of another item or an end in itself. Your project idea may be to perform a service or result, such as to produce a video, a concert, or an event.

Definition of a Project

So now what? What do you do next? Should you start planning the project? Maybe, but before you do, it may not be a bad idea to first figure out whether your idea actually fits the definition of a project. What exactly is a project? A project may be defined as any initiative that has a clear start date and a clear finish date, is intended to produce a unique product, service, or result, and is developed in greater detail as the work progresses.

Immediately you may see how your idea satisfies two of the three requirements according to the definition. Your idea may have a clear start and finish date and may be developed in greater detail as the work progresses. But what about the unique product, service, or result? What is meant by unique? Unique in this context does not mean that the methods, models, and principles used to produce your outcome are unique. These methods and principles may be standard in your profession or industry and are in place to govern the production of certain works.

Just because a standard method is used does not mean that you will not produce a unique outcome. For example, just because you use the principles of floral designing, which is a standard method used to design and develop floral arrangements, does not mean that the wedding contract that you will produce the floral arrangements for is not unique. That said; take a look at the components of your idea again to make sure that they satisfy the three requirements according to the definition of a project.

Programs

Now that you've determined that your project idea satisfies the definition of a project, you need to decide whether your project should be managed as a stand-alone project or whether it should be included as a part of a program or a portfolio. Your decision in this regard depends on the nature of your initiative. The terms program or portfolio are used to describe how projects are grouped based on similarities and differences. A program, for example, groups related projects together for enhanced efficiency.

Perhaps you are considering constructing a shopping center that has a number of attached and detached buildings. The construction of each building may be defined as a separate project. If managing the construction of each of these separate but related projects is achieved more efficiently and effectively by using the same techniques in a coordinated fashion, we would refer to this as a program.

Program Management

Programs are managed in a coordinated way. This allows you to gain access to benefits and control that may have been unavailable to you if each of the projects in the program were managed individually.

Portfolios

A portfolio, on the other hand, is a collection of projects or programs that are not necessarily similar. For example, a portfolio may include a home improvement project, an account cleanup project, an office renovation project, and a systems upgrade project.

Portfolio Management

Portfolio management focuses on making sure that projects and programs are reviewed so that resources can be allocated and prioritized. Another important aspect of portfolio management is the focus on making sure that projects included in the portfolio are managed in a way that is in keeping with the organization's strategies.

Key Points to Remember

? A project may be defined as any initiative that has a clear start date and clear finish date that produces a unique product, service, or result and is developed in greater detail as the work progresses.

? Just because a standard method is used does not mean that you will not produce a unique outcome.

? Program and portfolio are terms that are used to describe how projects are grouped based on similarities and differences.

? Program management allows you to gain access to benefits and control that may have been unavailable to you if each of the projects in the program were managed individually.

? A portfolio is a collection of projects or programs that are not necessarily similar.

? Portfolio management focuses on making sure that projects and programs are reviewed to prioritize resource allocation.

Discussion Questions

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