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2
Examining the Project Life Cycle and the Organization
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CERTIFICATION OBJECTIVES
Project management, the ability to get things done, must support the higher vision
of the organization in which the project management activities are occurring. Projects
must be in alignment with the organization’s vision, strategy, tactics, and goals.
Projects that are not in alignment with the higher vision of the organization won’t
be around long—or, at best, they are doomed to fail.
Project managers must realize and accept that their projects should be components
that support the vision of the organization where the project is being completed.
It occasionally happens that projects are chartered and initiated and are not in alignment
with the company strategy. Unless the company strategy changes, these projects can
face political and organizational cultural challenges.
At the launch of a project, the project manager must have inherited the vision of
the project. This person must understand why the project is being created and what
its purpose is in the organization. It’s also beneficial to know the priority of the
project and its effect on the organization. A project to install pencil sharpeners
throughout the company’s shop floor may be important, but it’s not as significant
as the project to install new manufacturing equipment on the shop floor.
In this chapter, we’ll cover how the life of a project, the interest of stakeholders,
and the organization’s environment influence the success and completion of projects.
CERTIFICATION OBJECTIVE 2.01
Identifying Organizational Models and Attributes
Projects are not islands. They are components of larger entities that work to create
a unique product or service. The larger entities, organizations, companies, or communities
will have direct influence over the project itself. Consider the values, maturity,
business model, culture, and traditions at work in any organization. All of these
variables can influence the progress and outcome of the project.
Project managers must also consider the legal requirements and influences over their
projects. In the United States, this includes laws and regulations such as Sarbanes-Oxley,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), Occupational Safety and
Health Act (OSHA), and others. Projects can also be influenced by communities, other
companies (when joint ventures exist), and professional associations. As a rule, the
larger the project scope, the more influencers the project manager can expect.
Project managers must recognize the role of the project as a component within an organization.
The role of the project, as a component, is to support the business model of the organization
as a whole—not replace it. You can see in Figure 2-1 the major layers and purpose of the components within most organizations. Notice
that each layer of the pyramid answers a specific question in relation to the project.
FIGURE 2-1 Each layer of an organization supports the layer above it.
The Executive Layer sets the vision and strategy of the organization. The Business
Layer asks, “Why is the project important to our organization? Our vision? Our strategy?” The Functional Management Layer of the pyramid must support the Executive Layer’s
objectives. Specifically, the Functional Management Layer is concerned with tactics
to accomplish the vision and strategy as established by upper management. The Functional
Management Layer asks, “What is the project purpose? What business processes are affected?”
The Operational Layer of the pyramid supports the Executive and Functional Management
Layers. This layer is concerned with the specifics of getting the work done. The Operational
Layer asks, “How can the work be accomplished? How can we reach the desired future
state with these requirements?”
Considering Organizational Systems
What kind of an organization are you in? Does your organization complete projects
for other entities? Does your organization treat every process of an operation as
an operation? Or does your organization not know what to do with people like you:
project managers?
When it comes to project management, organizations fall into one of three models:
Completing projects for others These entities swoop into other organizations and complete the project work based
on specifications, details, and specification documents. Classical examples of these
types of organizations include consultants, architectural firms, technology integration
companies, and advertising agencies.
Completing projects internally through a system These entities have adopted Management by Projects (discussed in Chapter 1). Recall that organizations using Management by Projects have accounting, time, and
management systems in place to account for the cost, time, and worth of each project.
Completing projects as needed These non-project–centric entities can complete projects successfully but may not
have the project systems in place to support projects efficiently. The lack of a project
support system can cause the project to succumb to additional risks, lack of organization,
and reporting difficulties. Some organizations may have special internal business
units to support the projects in motion that are separate from the accounting, time,
and management systems used by the rest of the organization.
Know that customers can be internal or external, but they all have the same theme:
Customers pay for or use the product deliverables. In some instances, they’ll pay
for and use the deliverables. When an organization partners with another entity to
complete a project, the organizational influence becomes more cumbersome. The two
entities can both affect how the project is managed.
Considering Organizational Culture
Imagine what it would be like to work as a project manager within a bank in downtown
London versus working as a project manager in a web development company in Las Vegas.
Can you picture a clear difference in the expected cultures within these two entities?
The organizational culture of an entity will have a direct influence on the success
of a project. Organizational culture includes the following:
Policies and procedures for managing projects in the organization
Industry regulations, policies, rules, and methods for doing the work
Values, beliefs, and expectations
Views of authority, management, labor, and workers
Work ethic
Expectations on hours worked and contributions made
Views toward organizational leadership
As you can imagine, projects with more risk (and expected reward) may be welcome in
an organization that readily accepts entrepreneurial ventures rather than in an organization
that is less willing to accept chance and risk. Project formality is typically in
alignment with the culture of an organization.
Another influence on the progress of a project is the management style of an organization.
A project manager who is autocratic in nature will face challenges and opposition
in organizations that allow and encourage self-led teams. A project manager must take
cues from management as to how the management style of a project should operate. In
other words, a project manager emulates the management style of the operating organization.
The unique style and culture within each organization is called the “cultural norm.”
It’s just a way to describe the expectations of behavior within an organization. You
won’t find the same cultural norm in my company, a small and limber management consulting
and training firm, as you would in a Wall Street-based international investment firm.
You should also know that the cultural norm in an organization is also an enterprise
environmental factor for the project manager.
As a general rule, the larger the project, the more people will be involved. More
people, as you might anticipate, means you’ve more communications work to do as the
project manager. Projects that span across the globe have additional challenges for
communications: languages, time zones, technological barriers, and cultural differences.
We’ll talk more about communications management in Chapter 10, but for now you’ll need to be aware that expectations for communications, available
technologies to communicate, and the cultural of the people involved in the communications
are all part of the organization’s influence on the project’s success.
Completing Projects in Different Organizational Structures
Organizations are structured into one of six models, the organizational structure
of which will affect the project in some aspect. In particular, the organizational
structure will set the level of authority, the level of autonomy, and the reporting
structure that the project manager can expect to have within the project. Figure 2-2 shows the level of authority in each of the organizational structures for the project
manager and the functional manager.
FIGURE 2-2 The organizational structure affects the project manager’s authority.
We’ll discuss the following organizational structures:
Functional
Weak matrix
Balanced matrix
Strong matrix
Projectized
Composite
Being able to recognize your organizational structure with regard to project management
will allow you to leverage and position your role effectively as a project manager.Functional Organizations
Functional organizations are entities that have a clear division regarding business
units and their associated responsibilities. For example, a functional organization
may have an accounting department, a manufacturing department, a research and development
department, a marketing department, and so on. Each department works as a separate
entity within the organization, and each employee works in a separate department.
In these classical organizations, there is a clear distinction between an employee
and a specific functional manager.
Functional organizations do complete projects, but these projects are specific to
the function of the department the project falls into. For example, the IT department
could implement new software for the finance department. The role of the IT department
is separate from the role of the finance department, but the coordination between
the two functional departments would be evident. Communication between departments
flows through functional managers down to the project team. Figure 2-3 depicts the relationships between business departments and the flow of communication
between projects and departments.
FIGURE 2-3 Projects in functional organizations route communications through the functional
managers.
Project managers in functional organizations have the following attributes:
Little power
Little autonomy
Report directly to a functional manager
May be known as project coordinators or team leaders
Have a part-time role (the project team will also be part-time as a result)
May have little or no administrative staff to expedite the project management activities
Matrix Structures
Matrix structures are organizations that utilize employees that perform a blend of
departmental and project duties. This type of structure allows for project team members
to be from multiple departments, yet all work toward the project completion. In these
instances, the project team members have more than one boss. Depending on the number
of projects a team member is participating in, he may have to report to multiple project
managers as well as to his functional manager.
Weak Matrix
Weak matrix structures map closely to a functional organization. The project team
may come from different departments, but the project manager reports directly to a
specific functional manager. In weak matrix organizations, the project manager has
the following attributes:
Limited authority
Management of a part-time project team
Project manager’s role is part-time
May be known as a project coordinator or team leader
May have part-time administrative staff to help expedite the project
Balanced Matrix
A balanced matrix structure has many of the same attributes as a weak matrix, but
the project manager has more time and power regarding the project. A balanced matrix
still has time-accountability issues for all of the project team members, since their
functional managers will want reports on their time spent on the project. Attributes
of a project manager in a balanced matrix include the following:
Reasonable authority
Management of a part-time project team
Full-time role as a project manager
May have part-time administrative staff to help expedite the project
Strong Matrix
A strong matrix equates to a strong project manager. In a strong matrix organization,
many of the same attributes for the project team exist, but the project manager gains
power and time when it comes to project work. The project team may also have more
time available for the project even though they may come from multiple departments
within the organization. Attributes of a project manager in a strong matrix include
the following:
A reasonable to high level of power
Management of a part-time to nearly full-time project team
A full-time role as a project manager
A full-time administrative staff to help expedite the project
Projectized Structure
At the pinnacle of project management structures is the projectized structure. These
organizational types group employees, collocated or not, by activities on a particular
project. The project manager in a projectized structure may have complete, or very
close to complete, power over the project team. Project managers in a projectized
structure enjoy a high level of autonomy over their projects, but they also have a
higher level of responsibility regarding the project’s success.
Project managers in a projectized structure have the following attributes:
High to complete authority over the project team
Work full-time on the project with their team (though there may be some slight variation)
A full-time administrative staff to help expedite the project
Composite Organizations
On paper, all of these organizational structures look great. In reality, there are
very few companies that map only to one of these structures all of the time. For example,
a company using the functional model may create a special project consisting of talent
from many different departments. Such project teams report directly to a project manager
and will work on a high-priority project for its duration. These entities are called
composite organizations, in that they may be a blend of multiple organizational types.
Figure 2-4 shows a sample of a composite structure. Although the AQQ Organization in the figure
operates as a traditional functional structure, they’ve created a special projectized
project where each department has contributed resources to the project team.
FIGURE 2-4 Composite structures are a blend of traditional organizational structures.
The functional manager controls the project’s budget in the functional, weak matrix,
and to some extent in the balanced matrix. The project manager gains budget control
in the strong matrix and projectized organizations.
Table 2-1 outlines the benefits and drawbacks of various organizational types.
TABLE 2-1 Benefits and Drawbacks of Various Organizational Types
Relying on Organizational Process Assets
“Organizational process assets” is a nice way of referring to all of the resources
within an organization that can be used, leveraged, researched, or interviewed to
make a project successful. This means past projects, risk databases, procedures, plans,
processes, and methods of operations. Of course, organizational assets will vary from
industry to industry, but for the PMP exam, consider all of the following:
Standards, policies, and organizational procedures
Standardized guidelines and performance measurements
Templates for project documents such as contracts, work breakdown structures, project
network diagrams, and status reports
Guidelines for adapting project management processes to the current project—remember,
not every process needs to be completed on every project
Financial controls for purchasing, accounting codes, and procurement processes
Communication requirements within your organization, such as standard forms, procedures,
and reports that you must use as a project manager in your organization
Processes for project activities, such as change control, closing, communications,
financial controls, and risk control procedures
Project closing procedures for acceptance, product validation, and evaluations
Ideally, your organization has a method to catalog, archive, and retrieve information
from past projects and work. The PMBOK calls this the “corporate knowledge base.”
This can be a fancy electronic data storage and retrieval system, or it might just
be a hallway closet full of past project files. Things the corporate knowledge base
should provide include the following:
Process measurement for project performance
Project files
Historical information from past projects
Issue and defect databases
Configuration management databases
Financial databases
The corporate knowledge base is part of organizational process assets. This includes
information from past projects, organizational standards for costs and labor based
on the work in the project, central issue and defect management databases, process
measurement databases, and organizational standards.
Throughout this book, you’ll see the term “organizational process assets” used for
different processes and inputs for processes. It simply means that you’ll rely on
information that has been created to help you, the project manager, complete your
current job. Organizational process assets are templates, software, and historical
information that you can use on your current project. A template, by the way, doesn’t
always mean a shell of a document, as you might use in Microsoft Word. Templates in
project management can be past project plans, scope statements, and just about any
other document that you adapt for your current project. There is no reason to reinvent
the wheel—project management is tedious enough.
Utilizing Enterprise Environmental Factors
Enterprise environmental factors are the elements that directly influence the management
of the project, but the project manager has no direct control over the elements. For
example, your organization may have particular rules for bringing a project team member
onto your project. This rule is outside of your control, but you have to abide by
it. This rule might sometimes hinder you from zipping along in project execution,
but it also helps bring order and control to the projects within the organization.
Just as organizational process assets are inputs to many project management processes,
so, too, are enterprise environmental factors.
Here are some common enterprise environmental factors:
The organization’s structure, defined processes and rules, and the structure (functional,
matrix, projectized, or composite)
Government regulations and your industry standards
Organizational workflow, equipment, capabilities, facilities, and infrastructure
Marketplace conditions
The organization’s tolerance for risk
Stakeholder risk tolerances
Political climate
Marketplace conditions
Requirements for project management (communication channels, reporting requirements,
project management information systems, and staffing)
Project management information system (PMIS), such as a software program, that helps
the project manager manage the project
Enterprise environmental factors are the things you’re required to do by your organization
and industry as a project manager. These are rules and policies you’re required to
follow as you manage a project. Enterprise environmental factors define boundaries,
set expectations, and provide a level of governance for the project. Although it’s
tempting to see enterprise environmental factors as a hindrance to the project, they
can also help guide the project manager through expectations.
CERTIFICATION OBJECTIVE 2.02
Defining Key General Management Skills
There is more to project management than just getting the work done. Inherent to the
process of project management are general management skills that allow the project
manager to complete the project with some level of efficiency and control. In some
respects, managing a project is similar to running a business: There are risks and
rewards, finance and accounting activities, human resource issues, time management,
stress management, and a purpose for the project to exist.
The effective project manager will have experience, or guidance, in the general management
skills we’ll discuss in this section. These general management skills are needed in
just about every project type—from architectural design to manufacturing. Other management
skills are more specialized in nature, such as OSHA conformance in a manufacturing
environment, and aren’t needed in every project.
Leading the Project Team
Project managers manage things but lead people. What’s the difference? Management
is the process of getting the results that are expected by project stakeholders. Leadership
is the ability to motivate and inspire individuals to work toward those expected results.
Ever work for a project manager who wasn’t motivating or inspiring? A good project
manager can motivate and inspire the project team to see the vision and value of the
project. The project manager as a leader can inspire the project team to find a solution
to overcome the perceived obstacles to get the work done. Motivation is a constant
process and the project manager must be able to motivate the team to move toward completion—with
passion and a profound reason to complete the work. Finally, motivation and inspiration
must be real; the project manager must have a personal relationship with the project
team to help them achieve their goals.
Leadership and management are interrelated. You won’t have effective leadership without
management, and vice versa. Know that leadership can also come from project team members,
not just from the project manager.
Communicating Project Information
Project communication can be summed up as “who needs what information and when.” Project
managers spend the bulk of their time communicating information—not doing other activities.
Therefore, they must be good communicators, promoting a clear, unambiguous exchange
of information. Communication is a two-way street; it requires a sender and a receiver.
A key part of communication is active listening. This is the process by which the receiver restates what the sender has said to clarify
and confirm the message. For example, a project team member tells the project manager
that a work package will be done in seven days. The project manager clarifies and
confirms by stating the work package will be done a week from today. This gives the
project team member the opportunity to clarify that the work package will actually
be done nine days from today because of the upcoming weekend.
There are several communication avenues:
Listening and speaking
Written and oral
Internal to the project, such as project team member to team member
External to the project, such as the project manager to an external customer
Formal communications, such as reports and presentations
Informal communications, such as e-mails and “hallway” meetings
Vertical communications, which follow the organizational flow chart
Horizontal communications, such as director to director within the organizational
flow chart
Within management communication skills are also variables and elements unique to the
flow of communication. Although we’ll discuss communications in full in Chapter 10, here are some key facts for now:
Sender-receiver models Communication requires a sender and a receiver. Within this model may be multiple
avenues to complete the flow of communication, but barriers to effective communication
may be present as well. Other variables within this model include recipient feedback,
surveys, checklists, and confirmation of the sent message.
Media selection There are multiple choices when it comes to sending a message. Which one is appropriate?
Based on the audience and the message being sent, the media should be in alignment.
In other words, an ad-hoc hallway meeting is probably not the best communication avenue
to explain a large variance in the project schedule.
Style The tone, structure, and formality of the message being sent should be in alignment
with the audience and the content of the message.
Presentation When it comes to formal presentations, the presenter’s oral and body language,
visual aids, and handouts all influence the message being delivered.
Meeting management Meetings are forms of communication. How the meeting is led, managed, and controlled
all influence the message being delivered. Agendas, minutes, and order are mandatory
for effective communications within a meeting.
Negotiating Project Terms and Conditions
Project managers must negotiate for the good of the project. In any project, the project
manager, the project sponsor, and the project team will have to negotiate with stakeholders,
vendors, and customers to reach a level of agreement acceptable to all parties involved
in the negotiation process. In some instances, typically in less-than-pleasant circumstances,
negotiations may have to proceed with assistance. Specifically, mediation and arbitration
are examples of assisted negotiations. Negotiation proceedings typically center on
the following:
Priorities
Technical approach
Project scope
Schedule
Cost
Changes to the project scope, schedule, or budget
Vendor terms and conditions
Project team member assignments and schedules
Resource constraints, such as facilities, travel issues, and team members with highly
specialized skills
The purpose of negotiations is to reach a fair agreement among all parties.
Active Problem Solving
Like riddles, puzzles, and cryptology? If so, you’ll love this area of project management.
Problem solving is the ability to understand the heart of a problem, look for a viable
solution, and then make a decision to implement that solution. In any project, countless
problems require viable solutions. And like any good puzzle, the solution to one portion
of the problem may create more problems elsewhere.
The premise for problem solving is problem definition. Problem definition is the ability
to discern between the cause and effect of the problem. This centers on root-cause
analysis. If a project manager treats only the symptoms of a problem rather than its
cause, the symptoms will perpetuate and continue throughout the project’s life. Root-cause
analysis looks beyond the immediate symptoms to the cause of the symptoms—which then
affords opportunities for solutions.
Completing the PMP exam is an example of having problem-solving skills. Even though
you may argue that things described in this book don’t work this way in your environment,
know that the exam is not based on your environment. Learn the Project Management
Institute (PMI) method for passing the exam and allow that to influence your “real-world”
implementations.
Once the root of a problem has been identified, the project manager must make a decision
to address the problem effectively. Solutions can be presented from vendors, the project
team, the project manager, or various stakeholders. A viable solution focuses on more
than just the problem. It looks at the cause and effect of the solution itself. In
addition, a timely decision is needed, or the window of opportunity may pass and then
a new decision will be needed to address the problem. As in most cases, the worst
thing you can do is nothing.
Influencing the Organization
Project management is about getting things done. Every organization is different in
its policies, modes of operations, and underlying culture. There are political alliances,
differing motivations, conflicting interests, and power struggles within every organization.
So where does project management fit into this rowdy scheme? Right smack in the middle.
A project manager must understand all of the unspoken influences at work within an
organization—as well as the formal channels that exist. A balance between the implied
and the explicit will allow the project manager to take the project from launch to
completion. We all reference politics in organizations with disdain. However, politics
aren’t always a bad thing. Politics can be used as leverage to align and direct people
to accomplish activities—with motivation and purpose.
These exam questions are shallow. Don’t read too much into the questions as far as
political aspirations and influences go. Take each question at face value and assume
all of the information given in the question is correct.
Managing Social, Economic, and Environmental Project Influences
Social, economic, and environmental influences can cause a project to falter, stall,
or fail completely. Awareness of potential influences outside of traditional management
practices will help complete the project. The acknowledgement of such influences,
from internal or external sources, allows the project manager and the project team
to plan how to react to these influences in order for the project to succeed.
For example, consider a construction project that may reduce traffic flow to one lane
over a bridge. Obviously, stakeholders in this instance are the commuters who travel
over the bridge. Social influences are the people who are frustrated by the construction
project, the people who live in the vicinity of the project, and even individuals
or groups that believe their need for road repairs is more pressing than the need
to repair the bridge. These issues must all be addressed, on some level, for the project
team to complete the project work quickly and efficiently.
The economic conditions in any organization are always present. The cost of a project
must be weighed against the project’s benefits and perceived worth. Projects may succumb
to budget cuts, project priority, or their own failure based on the performance to
date. Economic factors inside the organization may also hinder a project from moving
forward. In other words, if the company sponsoring the project is not making money,
projects may get axed in an effort to curb costs.
Finally, environmental influence on, and created by, the project must be considered.
Let’s revisit the construction project on the bridge. The project must consider the
river below the bridge and how construction may affect the water and wildlife. Consideration
must be given not only to short-term effects that arise during the bridge’s construction
but also to long-term effects that the construction may have on the environment.
In most projects, the social, economic, and environmental concerns must be evaluated,
documented, and addressed within the project plan. Project managers can’t have a come-what-may
approach to these issues and expect to be successful.
Dealing with Standards and Regulations
Standards and regulations within any industry can affect a project’s success. But
what’s the difference between a standard and a regulation? Standards are accepted
practices that are not necessarily mandatory, while regulations are rules that must
be followed—otherwise, fines, penalties, or even criminal charges may result.
For example, within the information technology industry are standard sizes for CDs,
DVDs, and USB storage drives. Manufacturers generally map to these sizes for usability
purposes. However, manufacturers can, and have, created other media that are slightly
different in size and function from the standard. Consider the USB drives that companies
give away at trade shows and all of the different shapes and sizes of these drives.
Such products aren’t exactly standard regarding format, but they don’t break any regulations
either. After a time, though, standards can indeed become de facto regulations. They
may begin as guidelines and then, due to marketplace circumstances, grow into an informal
regulation.
An example of a regulation is a set rule or law. For example, in the food packaging
industry, particular regulations relate to the packaging and delivery of food items.
Violations of the regulations will result in fines or even more severe punishment.
Regulations are more than suggestions—they are project requirements.
Every industry has some standards and regulations. Knowing which ones affect your
project before you begin your work will not only help the project to unfold smoothly,
but will allow for effective risk analysis. In some instances, the requirements of
regulations can afford the project manager additional time and monies to complete
a project.
Considering International Influences
If a project spans the globe, how will the project manager effectively manage and
lead the project team? How will teams in Paris communicate with teams in Sydney? What
about the language barriers, time zone differences, currency differences, regulations,
laws, and social influences? All of these concerns must be considered early in the
project. Tools can include teleconferences, travel, face-to-face meetings, team leaders,
and subprojects.
As companies and projects span the globe to offer goods and services, the completion
of those projects will rely more and more on individuals from varying educational
backgrounds, social influences, and values. The project manager must create a plan
that takes these issues into account.
Cultural Influences
Project plans must deal with many cultural influences: geographical, political, organizational,
even relationships between individual team members. Projects in Dallas, Texas, have
different cultural influences than projects taking place in Dublin, Ireland. Culture
consists of the values, beliefs, political ties, religion, art, aspirations, and purpose
of being. A project manager must take into consideration these various cultural influences
and how they may affect the project’s completion, schedule, scope, and cost.
CERTIFICATION OBJECTIVE 2.03
Meeting the Project Stakeholders
Stakeholders are those fine folks and organizations who are actively involved in the
project or who will be affected by its outcome—in other words, people, groups, businesses,
customers, and communities that have a vested interest in the project.
Stakeholders may like, love, or hate your project. Consider an organization that is
hosting a project to move all their workers to a common word-processing application.
Everyone within this organization must now use the same word-processing application.
Your job, as the project manager, is to see that this happens.
Within your project, you’ll find three types of stakeholders. Positive stakeholders
are in love with your project and the benefits it will bring. They are advocates of
your project and want you to succeed. Negative stakeholders don’t want your project
to succeed and they are opposed to the changes the project will create. Neutral stakeholders,
such as the people in the purchasing department, are neither for nor against your
project, but they still must interact with you and your project. You’ll have to manage
all of these stakeholders to get your project to a successful closure.
In high-profile projects, where stakeholders will be in conflict over the project
purpose, deliverables, cost, and schedule, the project manager may want to use the
Delphi Technique to gain anonymous consensus among stakeholders. The Delphi Technique
allows stakeholders to offer opinions and input without fear of retribution from management.
More on this in Chapter 11.
INSIDE THE EXAM
Projects don’t last forever. Though projects may sometimes seem to last forever, they
fortunately do not. Operations, however, go on and on. Projects pass through logical
phases to reach their completion, while operations may be influenced, or even created,
by the outcome of a project.
The phases within a project create deliverables. The deliverables typically allow
the project to move forward to the next phase—or allow the project to be terminated
based on the quality, outcome, or condition of the phase deliverable. Some projects
may use stage gates. Recall that stage gates allow a project to continue (after performance
and deliverable review) against a set of predefined metrics. Other projects may use
kill points. Kill points, like phase gates, are preset times placed in the project
when it may, based on conditions and discovery within the phase, be “killed.”
The project life cycle is different from the project management life cycle. The project
management life cycle comprises the five project management processes (initiation,
planning, execution, control, and closure). The project life cycle, meanwhile, comprises
the logical phases within the project itself.
The project life cycle is affected by the project stakeholders. Project stakeholders
have a vested interest in the outcome of the project. Stakeholders include the project
manager, project team, management, customers, communities, and anyone affected by
the project outcome. Project managers should scan the project outcome to identify
all of the stakeholders and collect and record their expectations, concerns, and input
regarding the project processes.
The project manager’s power is relative to the organization structure he is operating
within. A project manager in a functional organization will have relatively low authority.
A project manager in a matrix environment can have low, balanced, or high authority
over the project. A project manager in a projectized organization, on the other hand,
will have a high level of authority on the project. Essentially, the project manager’s
authority is typically inverse to the authority of the functional manager.
Stakeholders, especially negative stakeholders, may try to influence the project itself.
This can be attempted in many ways, such as through the following:
Political capital leveraged to change the project deliverable
Change requests to alter the project deliverable
Scope addendums to add to the project deliverable
Adding overhead, including multiple reviews to slow progress, and even attempting
to cut resources
Sabotage, through physical acts or rumors, gossip, and negative influence
Your role as the project manager is to identify, align, and ascertain stakeholders
and their expectations of the project. Stakeholder identification is not always as
clear-cut as in the preceding example. Because stakeholders are identified as people
that are affected by the outcome of your project, external customers may be stakeholders
in your project, too.
Consider a company that is implementing a frequent customer discount project. External
customers will use a card that tracks their purchases and gives them discounts on
certain items they may buy. Is the customer in this instance a stakeholder? What if
the customer doesn’t want to use the card? Is she still a stakeholder?
Mystery Stakeholders
Stakeholders can go by many different names: internal and external customers, project
owners, financiers, contractors, family members, government regulatory agencies, communities,
cities, citizens, and more. The classification of stakeholders into categories is
not as important as realizing and understanding their concerns and expectations. The
identification and classification of stakeholders, however, does allow the project
manager to deliver effective and timely communications to the appropriate stakeholders.
Project managers must scan the project for hidden stakeholders. The project manager
should investigate all parties affected by the project to identify all of the stakeholders—not
just the obvious ones. Hidden stakeholders can influence the outcome of the project.
They can also add cost, scheduling requirements, or risk to a project.
Key Project Stakeholders
Beyond those stakeholders affected by the project deliverable, there are key stakeholders
on every project. Let’s meet them.
Project manager The project manager is the person—ahem, you—who is accountable for managing the
project. She guides the team through the project phases to completion.
Program manager The program manager coordinates the efforts of multiple projects working together
in the program. Programs are made up of projects, so it makes sense that the program
manager would be a stakeholder in each of the projects within the program, right?
Portfolio management review board Organizations have only so much capital to invest in projects. The portfolio management
review board is a collection of the decision-makers, usually executives, who will
review proposed projects and programs for their value and return on investment for
the organization.
Functional managers Most organizations are chopped up by functions or disciplines, such as information
technology, sales, marketing, and finance. Functional managers are the managers of
the permanent staff in each of these functions. Project managers and functional managers
interact on project decisions that affect functions, projects, and operations.
Project customer The customer is the person or group that will use the project deliverable. In some
instances, a project may have many different customers. Consider a company that creates
software for the financial industry. The company creates the software. Resellers sell
the software. End users utilize the software. Within each of these groups are different
stakeholders that have varying objectives for the software and how they’ll interact
with the organization and its project teams.
Operations managers The core business of an organization is supported primarily by operations management.
Operations managers deal directly with the income-generating products or services
the company provides. Projects often affect the core business, so these managers are
stakeholders in the project. Project deliverables that affect the core business usually
include an operational transfer plan that defines support, training, and maintenance
on the project deliverables.
Organizational groups The departments and groups within an organization that are affected by the project
or can affect a project are stakeholders. For example, a project to upgrade the sales
software directly affects the sales department, but the manufacturing department can
influence how the software is configured, so manufacturing is also a stakeholder in
the project.
Project team The project team is the collection of individuals who will, hopefully, work together
to ensure the success of the project. The project manager works with the project team
to guide, schedule, and oversee the project work. The project team completes the project
work.
Project management team These are the folks on the project team who are involved with managing the project.
Project sponsor The sponsor authorizes the project. This person or group ensures that the project
manager has the necessary resources, including monies, to get the work done. The project
sponsor is someone within the performing organization who has the power to authorize
and sanction the project work and is ultimately accountable for the project’s success.
Sellers and business partners Organizations often rely on vendors, contractors, and business partners to help
projects achieve their objectives. These business partners can affect the project’s
success, and they are considered stakeholders in the project.
The project management office If a PMO exists for the organization, it’s considered a stakeholder of the project
because it supports the project managers and is responsible for the project’s success.
PMOs typically provide administrative support, training for the project managers,
resource management for the project team and project staffing, and centralized communication.
You’ll need to know loads of terms and special vocabulary for this exam. Don’t let
the terms scare you—you can do this! Do yourself a favor and grab a stack of index
cards. As you go through this fascinating material, jot down every term that’s new
or interesting to you. Once you’ve read the chapter, you can create some fast flashcards.
If you start now, you’ll have a nice stack of cards by the time you reach the end
of the book. Keep going—we have confidence in you.
When it comes to stakeholder expectations, nothing beats documentation! Get stakeholder
expectations in writing as soon as possible.
Managing Stakeholder Expectations
Ever had an experience that didn’t live up to your expectations? Not much fun, is
it? With project management and a large number of stakeholders, it’s easy to see how
some stakeholders’ expectations won’t be realistic due to cost, schedule, or feasibility.
A project manager must find solutions to create win-win scenarios between stakeholders.
Managing Expectations in Action
Consider a project to implement new customer relationship management software. In
this project, there are three primary stakeholders with differing expectations:
The sales director wants a technical solution that will ensure fast output of order
placements, proposals, and customer contact information—regardless of the cost.
The marketing director wants a technical solution that can track call volume, customer
sales history, and trends with the least cost to implement.
The IT director wants a technical solution that will fan into the existing network
topology and have considerable ease of use and reliability—without costing more than
20 percent of his budget for ongoing support.
In this scenario, the project manager will have to work with each of the stakeholders
to determine a winning solution that satisfies all of the project requirements while
appeasing the stakeholders’ demands. Specifically, the solution for the conflict of
stakeholders is to satisfy the needs of the customer first. Customer needs, or the
business need of why the project was initiated, should guide the project through the
project life cycle. Once the project scope is aligned with the customer’s needs, the
project manager may work to satisfy the differing expectations of the stakeholders.
Enforcing Project Governance
Project governance is a set of rules to ensure that the project manager, the project
sponsor, the project team, and the key stakeholders all follow defined practices for
the project success. It is the assurance that the project is aligned to the organization’s
strategy and business objectives. Project governance creates a model or framework
for all projects within an organization to follow and sets expectations for how projects
should operate for all project stakeholders. Project governance includes the following
elements:
Documented policies for the project’s processes and procedures
Definition of project success
Project chart of roles and responsibilities
Communication expectations and definitions
Definition of decision-making process and escalation process
Project life cycle approach
Stage gates and reviews for project phase completions
Change control processes for scope, schedule, costs, and contracts
Project governance is created at a level in the organization that’s usually above
the project manager. The PMO—or, if the project is part of a program, the program
manager—will define the project governance. The governance really creates the project
framework—how the project is to operate within the organization. The project governance
should be clearly communicated to the project team and other stakeholders so that
everyone understands the boundaries, options, and procedures the project manager will
follow and enforce within the project. Like most things in a project, communication
is crucial.
The project manager, the project sponsor, the organization’s management, and, depending
on the project, other stakeholders all want the project to be successful. Success,
however, is an esoteric concept that means different things to different people. Success
for the project should be defined as early as possible in the project timeline. Success
is often based on the constraints of schedule, costs, quality, resources, risks, and
the project scope. The project manager is the person responsible for determining the
boundaries of success. The baselines for project scope, schedule, and costs will be
defined and documented during project planning.
CERTIFICATION OBJECTIVE 2.04
Working with the Project Team
Projects are rarely a solo act, although they could be. In most projects, you, the
project manager, will rely on the expertise, labor, and input from your project team
members. The project team may include people from all parts of your organization and
even people that are outside of your organization—such as vendors and contracted help.
As the project manager, you’ll work to welcome the project team members, coach them
on the project rules and governance, and lead them through the project work they’ll
be executing according to the project plan. Early in the project, even during the
project kickoff meeting, the project manager must set expectations for the project
team.
Recall that the organizational structure will directly affect how you manage the project
team and how much the project team will interact with your project. For example, in
a functional structure, your project team may look to the project manager as a coordinator
of the project and someone with not much authority. Over in a strong matrix structure,
however, the project team may see the project manager as the person with the authority,
the insight, and the decision-making power for the project. In any structure, the
project manager must establish the rules and expectations of the project, provide
leadership, and serve as a hub for project communications.
The project manager communicates the project ground rules for the entire project team.
Once ground rules have been created it is the responsibility of the project team to
enforce the rules.
Identifying Project Team Roles
Although most of the project team members are likely working on project execution,
some of your project team members may serve in a more consultative role for decisions.
The PMBOK Guide will often refer to this consultative role as “expert judgment.” A role describes
the actions a person will take. For example, a software development project may have
roles such as developer, designer, tester, and database administrator. Roles are generic
descriptions and usually don’t identify specific people in the roles, such as Pat
the Designer—instead, it’s just designer. For your PMP examination you’ll need to
know some typical project team roles:
Project manager The person who leads, directs, and manages the project initiation, planning, execution,
monitoring and controlling, and closing of the project.
Project management staff People who perform some of the project management activities such as scheduling,
managing risks, quality assurance, and procurement. A PMO may serve as this role.
Supporting experts Often people on the project team will help plan the project work in addition to
executing the project work. Supporting experts are the individuals who advise the
project manager how the work should occur in the project and help build the project
plan and/or perform the project execution.
Users and customers The recipients of the project deliverables contribute to the project requirements,
verify the project scope, and may serve as liaisons for groups of stakeholders they
represent.
Sellers and business partners Sellers provide the resources and materials a project needs to be successful. In
some projects, the sellers may be completing a significant portion of the project
work, so the project manager considers the seller part of the project team. Business
partners are the entities that provide contracted help, such as experts, to work as
part of the project team to ensure the project’s success.
Building the Project Team
The organizational structure will determine how much authority the project manager
has over the project team, but it may also determine who’ll be on the project team
and how much time they’ll spend on the team. In other words, you might be in charge
and leading the project team, but you may not get to determine who’ll be part of the
team and when they’ll do the work you need them to do. The culture of an organization
also affects the perceived power the project manager has over the project team and
the respect they garner. Of course, there’s also an expectation for the project manager
to be likeable, professional, fair, and void of politics and favorites.
In projectized organizations and sometimes on larger projects, your project team may
be considered a dedicated project team. A dedicated project team is on your project full time. Dedicated project
teams are often, but not always, physically located in one geographical place for
ease of communications and team building, and to provide a concerted effort toward
completing the project work. This is the simplest project structure, because there’s
no competition for resources, no scheduling conflicts, and communication demands are
relatively low compared to other organizational structures.
In matrix and functional structures, the project team may be working on your project
on a part-time basis. The project team works on your project tasks, but they also
have their day-to-day operations and work on other projects to consider as well. Although
this structure isn’t ideal for the project manager, it’s not uncommon in organizations.
One of the advantages for the organization for a part-time project team is that the
team can perform multiple assignments for the company. The project team can work on
the core operations and also work on special work in the form of your project.
A primary disadvantage for this approach, however, is that team resources are spread
thin among your project assignments, their operational work, and assignments on other
projects. Project team members may not have the time, motivation, or energy to switch
efficiently between all of their tasks, which can cause delays in the project schedule
and an increase in communications, quality issues, and other problems within the project.
If an organization takes this part-time approach to the project team, there must be
reasonable expectations for the project schedule and communication demands for the
project manager.
In some instances, project managers may find themselves working in a partnership arrangement
or teaming agreement with another company. A partnership project team may be the result
of a contracted team comprising professionals from several different organizations
who work on the project. In a partnership structure, generally one company takes the
lead and provides the project manager and project management direction, while the
other companies serve as support and project team member roles. In this project team
structure, it’s mandatory for the project manager to communicate clearly the project
ground rules, communication expectations, and performance requirements for the entire
project team.
Virtual project teams aren’t collocated and they use technology such as web meeting
and collaboration software to communicate and work together. Virtual teams are project
teams that may not work side-by-side in the same physical space, but they do communicate
regularly and may even work together via web technologies. Although virtual teams
are a great approach to make use of talented resources around the globe, they do present
some drawbacks. The project manager must consider technology challenges, time zone
differences, language barriers, customs, holidays, and other factors that may hinder
the virtual project team from excelling.
CERTIFICATION OBJECTIVE 2.05
Revving Through Project Life Cycles
Consider any project, and you’ll also have to consider any phases within the project. Construction projects have definite phases. IT projects have
definite phases. Marketing, sales, and internal projects all have definite phases.
Projects—all projects—comprise phases. Phases make up the project life cycle, and
they are unique to each project. Furthermore, organizations, project managers, and
even third-party project frameworks (such as Agile or Scrum) can define phases within
a project life cycle. Just know this: The sum of a project’s phases equates to the
project’s life cycle.
In regard to the PMP exam, it’s rather tough for the PMI to ask questions about specific
project life cycles. Why? Because every organization may identify different phases
within all the different projects that exist. Bob may come from a construction background
and Susan from IT, each one being familiar with totally different disciplines and
totally different life cycles within their projects. However, all PMP candidates should
recognize that every project has a life cycle—and all life cycles comprise phases.
Phases are unique to each project. Phases are not the same as initiating, planning,
executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. These are the process groups and
are universal to all projects.
Because every project life cycle is made up of phases, it’s safe to assume that each
phase has a specific type of work that allows the project to move toward the next
phase in the project. When we talk in high-level terms about a project, we might say
that a project is launched, planned, executed, and finally closed, but it’s the type
of work, the activities the project team is completing, that more clearly defines
the project phases. In a simple construction example, this is easy to see:
Phase 1: Planning and pre-build
Phase 2: Permits and filings
Phase 3: Prep and excavation
Phase 4: Basement and foundation
Phase 5: Framing
Phase 6: Interior
Phase 7: Exterior
Typically, one phase is completed before the next phase begins; this relationship
between phases is called a “sequential relationship.” The phases follow a sequence
to reach the project completion—one phase after another. Sometimes project managers
allow phases to overlap because of time constraints, cost savings, and smarter work.
When time’s an issue and a project manager allows one phase to begin before the last
phase is completed, it’s called an “overlapping relationship” because the phases overlap.
You might also know this approach as “fast tracking.” Fast tracking, as handy as it
is, increases the risk within a project.
A project is an uncertain business—the larger the project, the more uncertainty. It’s
for this reason, among others, that projects are broken down into smaller, more manageable
phases. A project phase allows a project manager to see the project as a whole and
yet still focus on completing the project one phase at a time. You can also think
of the financial distribution and the effort required in the form of project life
cycles. Generally, labor and expenses are lowest at the start of the project, because
you’re planning and preparing for the work. You’ll spend the bulk of the project’s
budget on labor, materials, and resources during project execution, and then costs
will taper off as your project eases into its closing.
Working with Project Life Cycles
Projects are like snowflakes: No two are alike. Sure, sure, some may be similar, but
when you get down to it, each project has its own unique attributes, activities, and
requirements from stakeholders. One attribute that typically varies from project to
project is the project life cycle. As the name implies, the project life cycle determines
not only the start of the project, but also when the project should be completed.
All that stuff packed in between starting and ending? Those are the different phases
of the project.
In other words, the launch, a series of phases, and project completion make up the
project life cycle. Each project will have similar project management activities,
but the characteristics of the project life cycle will vary from project to project.
The PMP exam will test your knowledge on the outcome of project phases rather than
the idealistic outputs of a project phase. Know that each phase creates a deliverable
and allows the project to move forward if the deliverables meet preset metrics.
Project feasibility studies can be a separate project.
Completing a Project Feasibility Study
The project’s feasibility is part of the initiating process. Once the need has been
identified, a feasibility study is called for to determine if the need can realistically
be met.
So how does a project get to be a project? In some organizations, it’s pure luck.
In most organizations, however, projects may begin with a feasibility study. Feasibility
studies can be, and often are, part of the initiation process of a project. In some
instances, however, a feasibility study may be treated as a stand-alone project.
Let’s assume that the feasibility of Project ABC is part of the project initiation
phase. The outcome of the feasibility study may tell management several things:
Whether the concept should be mapped into a project
If the project concept is worth moving forward with
The expected cost and time needed to complete the concept
The benefits and costs to implement the project concept
A report on the needs of the organization and how the project concept can satisfy
these needs
There is a difference between a feasibility study and a business case. A feasibility
study examines the potential project to see if it’s feasible to do the project work.
A business case examines the financial aspect of the project to see if the project
can be profitable, what the profit margin may be for the project, what the financial
risk exposure may be, and what the true costs of the project may be.
Examining the Project Life Cycle
By now, you’re more than familiar with the concept of a project life cycle. You also
know that each project is different and that some attributes are common across all
project life cycles. For example, the concept of breaking the project apart into manageable
phases to move toward completion is typical across most projects.
As we’ve discussed, at the completion of a project phase, an inspection or audit is
usually completed. This inspection confirms that the project is in alignment with
the requirements and expectations of the customer. If the results of the audit or
briefing are not in alignment, rework can happen, new expectations may be formulated,
or the project may be killed.
Exploring Different Project Life Cycles
As more and more projects are IT-centric, it makes perfect sense for the PMBOK Guide to acknowledge the life cycles that exist within technology projects. Even if you
don’t work in a technology project, it behooves you to understand the terminology
associated with these different life cycles for the PMP examination. You should know
about three IT-based life cycles:
Predictive life cycles
Iterative and incremental life cycles
Adaptive life cycles
Predictive Life Cycles The predictive approach requires the project scope, the project time, and project
costs to be defined early in the project timeline. Predictive life cycles have predefined
phases, where each phase completes a specific type of work and usually overlaps other
phases in the project. You might also see predictive life cycles described as plan-drive or waterfall methodologies, because the project phases “waterfall” into the subsequent phases.
Iterative and Incremental Life Cycles This approach requires that the project scope be defined at a high level at the
beginning of the project, but the costs and schedules are developed through iterations
of planning as the project deliverable is more fully understood. The project moves
through iterations of planning and definition based on discoveries during the project
execution. The project team focuses on increments of deliverables that can be released
while continuing to develop and create the final project deliverable.
Adaptive Life Cycles In this approach, change is highly probable, and the project team will be working
closely with the project stakeholders. You might also know this approach as agile or change-driven, because the team must be “agile” and the project scope and requirements are likely
to change throughout the project. In this approach there are also iterations of project
work, but the iterations are fast sessions of planning and execution that usually
last about two weeks. At the start of each phase, or iteration, of project work, the
project manager, project team, and stakeholders will determine what requirements will
be worked on next, based on the set of project requirements and what has been completed
in the project.
See the video “Project Life Cycles.”Working Through a Project Life Cycle
Phased project life cycles move the project along. They allow a project manager to
determine several things about the project:
What work will be completed in each phase of the project?
What resources, people, equipment, and facilities will be needed within each phase?
What are the expected deliverables of each phase?
What is the expected cost to complete a project phase?
Which phases pose the highest amount of risk?
Armed with the appropriate information for each project phase, the project manager
can plan for cost, schedules, resource availability, risk management, and other project
management activities to ensure that the project progresses successfully.
Although projects differ, other traits are common from project to project. Here are
a few examples:
Phases are generally sequential, as the completion of one phase allows the next
phase to begin.
Cost and resource requirements are lower at the beginning of a project but grow
as the project progresses. Projects spend the bulk of their budget and use the most
resources during the executing process. Once the project moves into the final closing
process, costs and resource requirements taper off dramatically.
Projects fail at the beginning, not at the end. In other words, the odds of completing
are low at launch and high at completion. It also means that decisions made at the
beginning of a project live with the project throughout its life cycle and that a
poor decision in the early phases can cause failure in the later phases.
The further the project is from completing, the higher the risk and uncertainty.
Risk and doubt decrease as the project moves closer to fulfilling the project vision.
Changes are easier and more likely at the early phases of the project life cycle
than at completion. Stakeholders can have a greater influence on the outcome of the
project deliverables in the early phases, but in the final phases of the project life
cycle, their influence on change diminishes. Thankfully, changes at the beginning
of the project generally cost less and have lower risk than changes at the end of
a project.
Usually there’s some review or audit at the end of each project phase to measure the
project’s success. Your company might call this end-of-phase review a stage gate,
phase review, phase gate, or just a milestone. If the project isn’t going as expected,
this creates an opportunity to cancel the project; this is called a kill point.
Project Life Cycles vs. Product Life Cycles
There is some distinction between the project life cycle and the product life cycle.
We’ve covered the project life cycle, the accumulation of phases from start to completion
within a project, but what is a product life cycle?
A product life cycle is the parent of projects. Consider a company that wants to sell
a new type of lemon soft drink. One of the projects the company may undertake to sell
its new lemon soft drink is to create television commercials showing how tasty the
beverage is. The creation of the television commercial may be considered one project
in support of the product creation.
Many other projects may fall under the creation of the lemon soft drink: research,
creation and testing, packaging, and more. Each project, however, needs to support
the ultimate product: the tasty lemon soft drink. Thus, the product life cycle oversees
the smaller projects within the process.
As a general rule, the product life cycle is the cradle-to-grave ongoing work of the
product. Projects affecting the product are just blips on the radar screen of the
whole product life cycle. Consider all of the projects that may happen to a home.
The home is the product, while all the projects are just things that make the product
better or sustain the existing product.
The Project Life Cycle in Action
Suppose you’re the project manager for HollyWorks Productions. Your company would
like to create a new video camera that allows consumers to make video productions
that can be transferred to different media types, such as VHS, DVDs, and PCs. The
video camera must be small, light, and affordable. This project life cycle has several
phases from concept to completion (see Figure 2-5). Remember that the project life cycle is unique to each project, so don’t assume
the phases within this sample will automatically map to any project you may be undertaking.
FIGURE 2-5 The project life cycle for Project HollyWorks
1. Proof-of-concept In this phase, you’ll work with business analysts, electrical engineers, customers,
and manufacturing experts to confirm that such a camera is feasible to make. You’ll
examine the projected costs and resources required to make the camera. If things go
well, management may even front you some cash to build a prototype.
2. First build Management loves the positive information you’ve discovered in the proof-of-concept
phase—they’ve set a budget for your project to continue into development. Now you’ll
lead your project team through the process of designing and building a video camera
according to the specifications from the stakeholders and management. Once the camera
is built, your team will test, document, and adjust your camera for usability and
feature-support.
3. Prototype manufacturing Things are going remarkably well with your video camera project. The project stakeholders
loved the first build and have made some refinements to the design. Your project team
builds a working model, thereby moving into prototyping the video camera’s manufacture
and testing its cost-effectiveness and ease of mass production. The vision of the
project is becoming a reality.
4. Final build The prototype of the camera went fairly well. The project team has documented flaws,
and adjustments are being made. The project team is also working with the manufacturer
to complete the requirements for materials and packaging. The project is nearing completion.
5. Operational transfer The project is complete. Your team has successfully designed, built, and moved
into production a wonderful, affordable video camera. Each phase of the project allowed
the camera to move toward completion. As the project came closer and closer to moving
into operations, risk and project fluctuation waned.
Project Phase Deliverables
Every phase has deliverables. It’s one of the main points to having phases. For example,
your manager gives you a wieldy project that will require four years to complete and
has a hefty budget of $16 million. Do you think management is going to say, “Have
fun—see you in four years”?
Oh, if only they would, right?
Of course, in most organizations, that’s not going to happen. Management wants to
see proof of progress, evidence of work completed, and good news of how well the project
is moving. Phases are an ideal method of keeping management informed of the project
progression. The following illustration depicts a project moving from conception to
completion. At the end of each phase there is some deliverable that the project manager
can show to management and customers.
Project Advancement
Once a phase concludes, how does the project manager know it’s safe to continue? Based
on the size and type of the project, some form of scope verification must take place.
Management and customers will want to see if the deliverable you have completed to
date is in alignment with what they’ve expected.
Project governance defines the rules for a project, and it’s up to the project manager
to enforce the project governance to ensure the project’s ability to reach its objectives.
The project management plan defines the project governance and how the project manager,
the project team, and the organization will all follow the rules and policies within
the project. Project governance can be seen as a constraint, but it really defines
the project’s boundaries and expectations.
Let’s go back to that juicy project with the $16 million budget. We know management
is not going to set us loose for four years. They’ll want a schedule of when we’ll
be spending their money and what they’ll be getting in return. And when will this
fun happen? At the end of a project phase. The project manager will be accountable
for several things at the end of a project phase.
The performance of the project to date
The performance of the project team to date
Proof of deliverables in the project phase
Verification of deliverables in alignment with the project scope
The verification of the performance and the project deliverables are key to management
determining whether the project (cross your fingers) should continue or not. Imagine
that your project with a $16 million budget has produced a lousy deliverable, outside
of the project scope, and you’ve blown a few hundred thousand more than you said it would take to get to this point in the project. Hmmm…. Do you think
the project will continue? An analysis by management will determine whether the project
should be killed or allowed to go on. The idea of killing a project at phases is why
phase completion is also called a kill point. (Uh, kill point for the project, not
the project manager—hopefully.) Who’s to blame or why the project should be killed
can be debated on a scenario-by-scenario basis.
Money already spent on a project is called “sunk costs” and should not be taken into
consideration when determining whether a project should continue. Instead, the cost
of the work to complete is one of the elements that should be taken into consideration
when deciding whether to kill a project.
Usually, one phase completes before the next phase begins—it’s called a sequential
relationship between phases. Each phase of a project relies on the phase before it.
However, if you’ve ever driven past a large construction project, you might have seen
something different at work. For example, we lived in Indianapolis during the construction
of the new stadium for the Indianapolis Colts. During construction, we could see the
foundation for one side of the stadium well underway and loads of construction happening.
On the other side of the stadium it was muddy and construction was just barely starting
on the foundation.
The construction company chose to allow phases of the construction to overlap as it
worked. Rather than completing all of the foundation for this giant stadium first,
the next phase of the project was started as soon as possible—even if not all of the
first phase was completed. Smart, huh? This approach to scheduling is called an “overlapping
relationship,” and you might also know it as “fast tracking.” Fast tracking allows
phases to overlap in order to compress the schedule and finish the job faster. Fast
tracking does, however, add some risk to the project, as errors that go undetected
in the prior phases could affect the current phase of the project work.
Finally, project managers can use an iterative relationship to manage project phases.
Iterative relationships are great for projects such as research and software development.
The idea is that the next phase of the project is not completely planned until the
current phase of the project is underway. The direction of the project can change
based on the current work in the project, the market conditions, or as more information
is discovered. PMI is embracing the idea of Agile project management and its iterative
approach to project management.
Stage Gates
Project phase completions are also known as stage gates. Stage gates are used often in manufacturing and product development; they allow
a project to continue after a performance and deliverable review against a set of
predefined metrics. If the deliverables of the phase, or stage, meet the predefined
metrics, the project is allowed to continue. Should the deliverables not meet the
metrics, the project may not be allowed to pass through the gate to move forward.
In these unfortunate cases, the project may be terminated or sent through revisions
to meet the predetermined metrics. The following illustration shows the advancement
of the project through phases.
As a project manager, you should identify the requirements and all of the stakeholders
as close to the project launch as possible. With the expectations and requirements,
the project manager can know what the exit criteria for a phase may be and can plan
accordingly. There are few things more frustrating than getting to the end of a project
phase only to learn the exit criteria you had in mind is different from what the customer
is expecting.
The completion of a phase may also be known as a phase exit. A phase exit requires that the project deliverables meet some predetermined exit
criteria. Exit criteria are typically inspection-specific and are scheduled events
in the project schedule. Exit criteria can include many different activities such
as the following:
Sign-offs from the customer
Regulatory inspections and audits
Quality metrics
Performance metrics
Security audits
The end of a project phase
CERTIFICATION SUMMARY
This chapter detailed the framework of projects. Project managers operate within the
framework of a project to coordinate all the parts and to move the project toward
completion. A project achieves momentum by completing project phases. Project phases
make up the project life cycle. The project life cycle corresponds to the project
management framework and provides several benefits:
Each phase results in some type of deliverable.
Phase completion shows accomplishment and progression.
Phase completion allows time for review to determine whether the project should
move forward.
Phases allow the project to be progressively elaborated.
Projects must operate within the organizational structure. Organizational structures
control how the project manager can obtain resources, the level of authority the project
manager can expect, and the participation of the project team. There are five organizational
structures: functional, weak matrix, balanced matrix, strong matrix, and projectized.
KEY TERMS
To pass the PMP exam, you will need to memorize these terms and their definitions.
For maximum value, create your own flashcards based on these definitions and review
them daily.
adaptive life cycles These life cycles anticipate frequent changes of the project scope, schedule, and
costs. Stakeholder involvement is high as the project develops quickly and future
phases are based on defined requirements and the results of preceding phases.
composite structure An organizational structure that uses a blend of the functional, matrix, and projectized
structures to operate and manage projects.
cultural norm The accepted practices, culture, ideas, vision, and nature of an organization.
dedicated project team This project team works full time on the project for the duration of the project.
enterprise environmental factors Elements that create the boundaries for the project manager. These may help or
hinder the project manager’s ability to navigate within the project. Examples include
rules, regulations, industry standards, and organizational procedures the project
manager is obliged to follow.
fast tracking A schedule-compression technique that allows phases to overlap in order to compress
the schedule and finish the job faster. Fast tracking does increase project risk.
functional managers The managers of the permanent staff in each organizational department, line of
business, or function such as sales, finance, and technology. Project managers and
functional managers interact on project decisions that affect functions, projects,
and operations.
functional organizations Entities that have a clear division regarding business units and their associated
responsibilities. Project managers in functional organizations have little power and
report to the functional managers. This is an organization that groups staff according
to their expertise—for example, sales, marketing, finance, and information technology.
Project managers in functional structures report to functional managers, and the project
team exists within one department.
iterative and incremental life cycles The project scope is defined early in the project, but the costs and scheduled
are iteratively developed. The project moves through iterations of processes better
to define the project’s product, time, and costs.
iterative relationships of project phases Ideal for projects such as research. The next phase of the project is not planned
until the current phase of the project is under way. The direction of the project
can change based on the current work in the project, market conditions, or as more
information is discovered.
kill point An opportunity to halt the project based on project performance in the previous
phase. Kill points typically come at the end of a project phase and are also known
as phase gates.
matrix structure An organization that groups staff by function but openly shares resources on project
teams throughout the organization. Project managers in a matrix structure share the
power with functional management. Three types of matrix structures—weak, balanced,
and strong—describe the amount of authority for the project manager.
operations management Operations managers deal directly with the income-generating products or services
the company provides. Projects often affect the core business, so these managers are
stakeholders in the project.
organizational process assets Resources that have been created to assist the project manager in managing the
project better. Examples include historical information, forms, project approaches,
defined procedures, and templates.
overlapping relationship of phases Allows project phases to overlap to compress the project duration. This is also
known as fast tracking.
part-time project team The project team works on the project for a percentage of their scheduled time.
The project team may work on core operations and other projects in addition to the
current project.
partnership project team Through teaming agreements or alliances, the project team may be formed from many
different organizations for the duration of the project.
predictive life cycles The project scope, budget, and schedule are defined early in the project. The predefined
phases of the project focus on specific project work so the project team members’
participation may fluctuate from phase to phase. This is also known as a waterfall
methodology or a plan-drive project.
portfolio management review board A collection of organizational decision-makers, usually executives, who will review
proposed projects and programs for their value and return on investment for the organization.
product life cycle The unique life, duration, and support of the thing a project creates. A product
life cycle is separate from the project life cycle.
program manager Coordinates the efforts of multiple projects working together in the program. Programs
comprise projects, so it makes sense that the program manager would be a stakeholder
in each of the projects within the program.
project customer/end user The person or group that will use the project deliverable. In some instances, a
project may have many different customers.
project governance Defines the rules for a project; it’s up to the project manager to enforce the
project governance to ensure the project’s ability to reach its objectives. The project
management plan defines the project governance and how the project manager, the project
team, and the organization will follow the rules and policies within the project.
project life cycle Unique to each project and made up of phases of work. Project life cycles typically
create a milestone and allow subsequent phases to begin.
project management office (PMO) A stakeholder of the project, because it supports the project managers and is responsible
for the project’s success. PMOs typically provide administrative support, training
for the project managers, resource management for the project team and project staffing,
and centralized communication.
project management team People on the project team who are involved with managing the project.
project manager The person accountable for managing the project and guiding the team through the
project phases to completion.
project sponsor This person or group authorizes the project and ensures that the project manager
has the necessary resources, including monies, to get the work done. The project sponsor
is within the performing organization and has the power to authorize and sanction
the project work and who is ultimately accountable for the project’s success.
project stakeholders Individuals and groups that may influence the project and/ or may be influenced
by the project. Examples include the project manager, project sponsor, project team,
customers, users, vendors, and the community within which the project operates.
project team The collection of individuals who will work together to ensure the success of the
project. The project manager works with the project team to guide, schedule, and oversee
the project. The project team completes the project work.
projectized structure Grouping employees, collocated or not, by activities on a particular project. The
project manager in a projectized structure may have complete, or very close to complete,
power over the project team.
sellers and business partners Vendors, contractors, and business partners that help projects achieve their objectives.
These business partners can affect the project’s success and are considered stakeholders
in the project.
sequential relationship of phases Each phase of a project relies on the completion of the previous phase before it
can begin.
virtual project team The project team is not located in one geographical space, but communicates and
works through web-based collaboration software.
TWO-MINUTE DRILLIdentifying Organizational Models and Attributes
Organizational structures have direct influence over the project. Organizational
structures determine the procedures that the project manager must follow and the amount
of authority the project manager possesses. A project office may oversee project management
activities and provide additional support in any of the organizational structures.
The organizational types and the level of authority a project manager can expect are
shown in the following table. Beyond the concept of completing the work, project managers must also consider the
social, political, economic, and environmental influences that may sway a project.
Specifically, the project manager must evaluate the project to determine its social,
political, economic, and environmental impact—as well as note the project’s surroundings.
The project manager may have some external guidance in these areas in the form of
standards and regulations.
Standards are guidelines that are generally followed but not enforced or mandated.
Regulations come in the form of laws and industry demands that are enforced by various
governing bodies.
Defining Key General Management Skills
Management is all about key results. It is about the project team getting things
done in the project. 0 Leadership is about motivating, inspiring, and directing people
to accomplish the project objectives and personal goals.
Project managers spend the bulk of their time communicating information—not doing
other activities. Therefore, they must be good communicators, promoting a clear, unambiguous
exchange of information. Communication is a two-way street; it requires a sender and
a receiver.
Project managers must negotiate for the good of the project. In any project, the
project manager, the project sponsor, and the project team will have to negotiate
with stakeholders, vendors, and customers to reach a level of agreement acceptable
to all parties involved in the negotiation process.
Project managers have to work with stakeholders to influence the decisions within
the project. This includes politics, tradeoffs, and managing requirements, changes,
and issues within the project.
Meeting the Project Stakeholders
Project stakeholders are individuals, businesses, or communities that have a vested
interest in the project’s outcome. Typically, project stakeholders are involved in
the project process, and their expectations drive the project requirements.
It is essential to scan for hidden stakeholders early in the project life cycle
to eliminate the need for change when addressing stakeholder needs later in the project.
Several key stakeholders have direct influence over the project:
Project manager Manages the project
Customer Pays for the project; uses the project deliverable
Performing organization The organization hosting the project
Project team The collection of individuals completing the project work
Project management team The collection of individuals that contribute to the management of a project
Project sponsor Authorizes the project work and budget
Influencers Influence the project for better or worse
PMO May have direct responsibility for the project’s success
Working with the Project Team
The project team comprises individuals who serve in different roles on the project.
Depending on the project phase, the type of project, and the organizational structure,
the involvement of the project team member may vary. Typical project team roles are
the project manager, the project management staff, supporting experts, users and customers,
and sellers and business partners.
The project manager’s authority over the project team is determined by the enterprise
environmental factors and the organizational structure. Projectized organizations
allow the project manager the most authority, while functional organizations give
the authority to the functional manager. The strong, balanced, and weak matrix structures
describe the anticipated amount of authority the project manager has over the project
team.
Dedicated project teams work on the project full-time. Part-time project teams,
such as in a matrix structure and functional structures, work on the project on a
part-time basis and work in core operations and on project teams. Project teams can
also be built from a partnership among different organizations in a teaming agreement.
Virtual project teams allow people in different geographical locations to work together
as part of a project team through web-based collaborative software, video conferencing,
and traditional e-mail.
Revving Through Project Life Cycles
Projects follow a logical sequence of phases to completion. Phases are typically
different from project to project, since the project work will differ from one project
to the next. The point of segmenting projects into phases is to allow for smaller,
manageable sections and to provide deliverables in support of the ongoing operations.
The collection of the project phases, as a whole, is known as the project life cycle.
Project life cycles define the beginning, middle, and end of a project. Projects
have a greater risk and uncertainty in the early phases of the project life cycle
than near their end. The project is also most susceptible to change, failure, and
stakeholder influences at the beginning of the life cycle than near its end.
In tandem, project costs and demand for resources are generally low at the beginning
of the project, have a tendency to peak near the end of the project work, and then
diminish.
SELF TEST
1. You are the project manager for the application deployment project. This project
will deploy software to 450 sites throughout North America and in Europe. You’re working
with several stakeholders to define the phases of the project life cycle, but some
of the stakeholders are confused with the concept of the project life cycle. The project
life cycle comprises which of the following?
A. Phases
B. Milestones
C. Estimates
D. Activities
2. Marcy, the project manager for the ERP Project, is about to complete the project
phase review. The completion of a project phase is also known as which of the following?
A. A lesson learned
B. A kill point
C. Earned value management
D. Conditional advancement
3. You are the project manager of the NHQ Project. Your project team consists of experts
from different companies and contractors from around the world. What type of project
team is this?
A. Virtual
B. Partnership
C. Noncollocated
D. Dedicated
4. Beth is a new project manager for her company and she’s working with her project
team to develop the project management plan. Beth knows that she must rely on several
different skills to make her first project successful. Of the following management
skills, which will a project manager use most?
A. Leading
B. Communicating
C. Influencing the organization
D. Negotiating
5. Harold is the manager of the manufacturing unit for your company, and he’ll be
a key stakeholder on your upcoming project. To get to know Harold better, you’re having
lunch with him and discussing some of the goals of the upcoming project. Harold doesn’t
quite understand what you do as a project manager, so you explain the concept to him.
Managing a project is best described as which one of the following?
A. Establishing direction
B. Functionally controlling the project team and stakeholders
C. Consistently producing key results expected by stakeholders
D. Motivating and inspiring the project team to produce results that are expected
by project stakeholders
6. You are the project manager of the Server Deployment Project for your company.
You’re meeting with the key stakeholders to gather the requirements and review the
intent of the project. You know that you’ll have to meet with the stakeholders throughout
the project and their influence can help or hinder the project’s success. When will
stakeholders have the most influence over a project’s product?
A. At the end of the project
B. During scope verification
C. At the start of a project
D. At the start of each phase
7. A construction project is allowing the multiple phases of the project to overlap
to save time and money, and to allow for better resource utilization. What type of
phase relationships are being employed in this scenario?
A. Overlapping phase relationships
B. Sequential phase relationships
C. Start-to-start phase relationships
D. Finish-to-start phase relationships
8. You are the project manager for your organization. Influencing your organization
requires which of the following?
A. An understanding of the organizational budget
B. Research and documentation of proven business cases
C. An understanding of formal and informal organizational structures
D. Positional power
9. Your global project is sabotaged by rumors and gossip about the project deliverable.
This is an example of which of the following?
A. Cultural achievability
B. Cultural influences within the project team
C. Project team mutiny
D. Ineffective planning
10. Bob is the project manager of a project for a company that manufactures pharmaceuticals.
In Bob’s industry, many standards and regulations affect his projects. What is the
difference between a standard and a regulation?
A. Standards are mandatory; regulations are not.
B. Standards are optional; regulations are not.
C. Regulations and standards are essentially the same.
D. Regulations are usually mandatory; standards may be seen as guidelines.
11. All of the following are examples of stakeholders that have a positive influence
on a project, except for which one?
A. Business leaders in a community affected by a commercial development project
B. Team members who will receive a bonus if the project is successful
C. Employees who prefer the older version of the software that a project is replacing
D. Functional managers who want your project to complete so their employees can move
onto other projects
12. Which of the following is an example of a deliverable at the end of the requirements-gathering
phase in a software design project?
A. Responsibility matrix creation
B. Detail design document
C. Business needs
D. Project team assembled
13. You are the project manager for the ERP Project. Your organization uses a PMO.
The primary purpose of a project management office is to do which of the following:
A. Support the project manager
B. Support the project sponsor
C. Support the project team
D. Identify the stakeholders
14. You are coaching your project team about the project you’re managing and how you’ll
be using the predictive life cycle. Some of the team members aren’t familiar with
this concept. Which of the following best describes a predictive life cycle?
A. The project scope, costs, and schedule are determined early in the project.
B. The project scope is determined early in the project, but the costs and schedule
will be defined as the project evolves.
C. The project requirements are defined, but the actual product is defined as the
project team becomes more familiar with the project work.
D. The entire project is planned in small increments throughout the project.
15. You are the project manager of a new project that is not performing well. Some
of the project team members have been late with their assignments, and this has caused
cost overruns and delays. Management is recommending a kill point. At what point in
a project would a kill point be acceptable?
A. When a project team member is not performing as planned
B. When a project reaches the end of a project phase
C. When a project reaches the end of its budget
D. When a project manager determines the project team cannot continue
16. You are the project manager of a multiphase project and you’ll be working with
stakeholders throughout the project. At the end of each phase, you’ll need several
factors to keep the project advancing. Of the following, which is not an exit criteria?
A. Customer sign-offs
B. Quality metrics
C. Stakeholder analysis
D. Regulatory inspections
17. The compilation of all the phases within a project equates to _______________.
A. The project life cycle
B. The product life cycle
C. Project completion
D. Project processes
18. Management has asked Nancy to determine whether a project concept is valid and
can be completed using a reasonable amount of time and finances. Management is asking
for which of the following?
A. Kill points
B. Cost and time estimates
C. A project case study
D. A feasibility study
19. Henry, the project manager of the MHB Project, has allowed a subsequent project
phase to begin before the preceding phase is complete. This is an example of which
of the following?
A. Crashing
B. Fast tracking
C. Risk management
D. Tandem scheduling
20. A company has hired you as a project manager to lead a new software development
project. You have an assigned budget and several milestones in the project. The project
is ready to begin its first phase. Which of the following describes the early stages
of a project?
A. High costs and high demand for resources
B. A high demand for change
C. A high demand for project team time
D. Low costs and low demand for resources
21. At which point is the risk of failure the least but the consequence of failure
the highest?
A. During the early stages
B. During the middle stages
C. During the final stages
D. Risk of failure is even across all project phases
22. Tracey is the project manager of the KHG Project. Her organization is a classic
functional environment. Her level of authority as a project manager can be best described
as which of the following?
A. Low
B. Moderate
C. Balanced
D. High
23. Project team members are most likely to work full time on a project in which of
the following organizational structures?
A. Functional
B. Weak matrix
C. Strong matrix
D. Projectized
24. A project with much risk and reward is most likely to be accepted in which of the
following?
A. An entrepreneurial company
B. A heavily regulated company
C. A nonprofit organization
D. A community
25. Stacey is the project manager of the GBN Project for her company. She’ll be using
several templates for a project, but she’s not certain where these templates should
originate. Where can a project manager usually expect to receive templates?
A. Commercial databases
B. The project management office
C. The project sponsor
D. Project Management Information System (PMIS)
SELF TEST ANSWERS
1. You are the project manager for the application deployment project. This project
will deploy software to 450 sites throughout North America and in Europe. You’re working
with several stakeholders to define the phases of the project life cycle, but some
of the stakeholders are confused with the concept of the project life cycle. The project
life cycle comprises which of the following?
A. Phases
B. Milestones
C. Estimates
D. Activities
A. The project life cycle comprises phases.
B is incorrect, since milestones may exist within the project plan, but they do not
make up the project life cycle. C is wrong because estimates are not directly related to the project life cycle. D, activities, make up the phases within the project life cycle but not the project
life cycle itself.
2. Marcy, the project manager for the ERP Project, is about to complete the project
phase review. The completion of a project phase is also known as which of the following?
A. A lesson learned
B. A kill point
C. Earned value management
D. Conditional advancement
B. The completion of a project phase may also be known as a kill point.
Lessons learned is a collection of information and knowledge gained through an experience,
typically a phase, within the project, so A is incorrect. EVM, earned value management, can happen at different times throughout
the project, not just at the end of a project phase; therefore, C is incorrect. D, conditional advancement, is a term used to describe the conditions that must be present
for the work to continue on a project. Conditional advancement, however, does not
have to happen only at the end of a project phase.
3. You are the project manager of the NHQ Project. Your project team consists of experts
from different companies and contractors from around the world. What type of project
team is this?
A. Virtual
B. Partnership
C. Noncollocated
D. Dedicated
B. This is an example of a partnership-based project team. The project team is made
up of people from different companies and contractors who are working together on
your project team.
A is incorrect because a virtual team describes people who are working remotely rather
than in one physical location. The question does hint that people are from around
the world, but it does not say that project team members are not working remotely.
C is incorrect because this isn’t a correct project management term. Noncollocated
can be used to describe a virtual project team, but this isn’t the best answer. D is also incorrect, because there’s no evidence that the people on this project team
will be working only on this project.
4. Beth is a new project manager for her company and she’s working with her project
team to develop the project management plan. Beth knows that she must rely on several
different skills to make her first project successful. Of the following management
skills, which will a project manager use most?
A. Leading
B. Communicating
C. Influencing the organization
D. Negotiating
B. Communication is the key general management skill a project manager will use the
most.
A, C, and D are necessary, but communication accounts for the majority of a project manager’s
time.
5. Harold is the manager of the manufacturing unit for your company, and he’ll be
a key stakeholder on your upcoming project. To get to know Harold better, you’re having
lunch with him and discussing some of the goals of the upcoming project. Harold doesn’t
quite understand what you do as a project manager, so you explain the concept to him.
Managing a project is best described as which one of the following?
A. Establishing direction
B. Functionally controlling the project team and stakeholders
C. Consistently producing key results expected by stakeholders
D. Motivating and inspiring the project team to produce results that are expected
by project stakeholders
C. Managing has to do with consistently producing key results that are expected by stakeholders.
A and D describe the leadership processes a project manager must possess; therefore, they
are incorrect. B is incorrect, because it describes the functional management position over project
team members.
6. You are the project manager of the Server Deployment Project for your company.
You’re meeting with the key stakeholders to gather the requirements and review the
intent of the project. You know that you’ll have to meet with the stakeholders throughout
the project and their influence can help or hinder the project’s success. When will
stakeholders have the most influence over a project’s product?
A. At the end of the project
B. During scope verification
C. At the start of a project
D. At the start of each phase
C. Of all the choices presented, answer C is best. Stakeholders have the most influence over a project’s deliverable at the
start of the project.
A, B, and D are incorrect because the project is “in motion,” and change requests will likely
drive the project costs and schedule duration.
7. A construction project is allowing the multiple phases of the project to overlap
to save time and money, and to allow for better resource utilization. What type of
phase relationships are being employed in this scenario?
A. Overlapping phase relationships
B. Sequential phase relationships
C. Start-to-start phase relationships
D. Finish-to-start phase relationships
A. This is an example of overlapping phase relationships, because the phases in the
project are overlapping rather than being completed in a defined sequence.
B is incorrect because sequential phase relationships require that each phase of the
project be completed before the next phase of the project begins. C is incorrect because start-to-start is not a phase relationship type. Start-to-start
describes the relationship between individual activities, not phases. D is incorrect because finish-to-start relationships are not used to describe phases
but are a type of relationship among project activities.
8. You are the project manager for your organization. Influencing your organization
requires which of the following?
A. An understanding of the organizational budget
B. Research and documentation of proven business cases
C. An understanding of formal and informal organizational structures
D. Positional power
C. To influence an organization (to get things done), a project manager must understand
the explicit and implied organizational structures within an organization.
A is incorrect, since the project manager may not even have access to an organizational
budget. B is incorrect because a proven business case may not map to every scenario when influencing
an organization. Finally, D is incorrect because positional power may relate only to a small portion of an organization,
not to multiple facets of influence.
9. Your global project is sabotaged by rumors and gossip about the project deliverable.
This is an example of which of the following?
A. Cultural achievability
B. Cultural influences within the project team
C. Project team mutiny
D. Ineffective planning
A. Rumors and gossip can sabotage a project. This is an example of cultural achievability.
B and C are incorrect, since rumors and gossip may happen internally and externally to the
project team. D may be a tempting answer, but the rumors and gossip could happen outside of the effective
planning completed by the project manager and the project team.
10. Bob is the project manager of a project for a company that manufactures pharmaceuticals.
In Bob’s industry, many standards and regulations affect his projects. What is the
difference between a standard and a regulation?
A. Standards are mandatory; regulations are not.
B. Standards are optional; regulations are not.
C. Regulations and standards are essentially the same.
D. Regulations are usually mandatory; standards may be seen as guidelines.
B. Of all the choices presented, B is the best answer, because regulations are mandatory requirements.
A is incorrect because it does not accurately describe regulations and standards. C is incorrect—standards and regulations are not the same. D is incorrect since regulations are always mandatory.
11. All of the following are examples of stakeholders that have a positive influence
on a project, except for which one?
A. Business leaders in a community affected by a commercial development project
B. Team members who will receive a bonus if the project is successful
C. Employees who prefer the older version of the software that a project is replacing
D. Functional managers who want your project to complete so their employees can move
onto other projects
C. The employees who do not want the deliverable of a project are negative stakeholders.
A, B, and D are all greatly affected by the success of the project; they are positive stakeholders.
12. Which of the following is an example of a deliverable at the end of the requirements-gathering
phase in a software design project?
A. Responsibility matrix creation
B. Detail design document
C. Business needs
D. Project team assembled
B. The detail design document is an output of the design phase.
A is incorrect because the responsibility matrix creation is a process, not an output
of itself. C is incorrect because business needs may prompt the project to begin; they are not
an output of a phase. D is also incorrect because the project team assembled is part of the project process;
it is not an output.
13. You are the project manager for the ERP Project. Your organization uses a PMO.
The primary purpose of a project office is to:
A. Support the project manager
B. Support the project sponsor
C. Support the project team
D. Identify the stakeholders
A. The PMO supports the project manager.
B and C are incorrect because the project office does not support the project sponsor and
project team. D is incorrect because stakeholder objectives may vary from stakeholder to stakeholder.
14. You are coaching your project team about the project you’re managing and how you’ll
be using the predictive life cycle. Some of the team members aren’t familiar with
this concept. Which of the following best describes a predictive life cycle?
A. The project scope, costs, and schedule are determined early in the project.
B. The project scope is determined early in the project, but the costs and schedule
will be defined as the project evolves.
C. The project requirements are defined, but the actual product is defined as the
project team becomes more familiar with the project work.
D. The entire project is planned in small increments throughout the project.
A. The predictive life cycle, also known as a plan-driven approach or a waterfall methodology,
requires that the entire project scope, time, and cost be defined early in the project.
B is incorrect because this answer best describes the iterative and incremental project
life cycle. C is incorrect because this answer also describes the iterative and incremental life
cycle. D describes the adaptive life cycle, so this choice is incorrect.
15. You are the project manager of a new project that is not performing well. Some
of the project team members have been late with their assignments, and this has caused
cost overruns and delays. Management is recommending a kill point. At what point in
a project would a kill point be acceptable?
A. When a project team member is not performing as planned
B. When a project reaches the end of a project phase
C. When a project reaches the end of its budget
D. When a project manager determines the project team cannot continue
B. Kill points are typically executed at the end of a project phase. A kill point does
not mean the project is killed, just that the potential for termination exists.
A, C, and D may appear to be correct, but they do not adequately describe a kill point.
16. You are the project manager of a multiphase project and you’ll be working with
stakeholders throughout the project. At the end of each phase, you’ll need several
factors to keep the project advancing. Of the following, which is not an exit criteria?
A. Customer sign-offs
B. Quality metrics
C. Stakeholder analysis
D. Regulatory inspections
C. Exit criteria are activities or evidence that allow a project to move forward. Stakeholder
expectations are universal to the entire project, not just to one project phase.
A, B, and D are all examples of activities that can be considered exit criteria.
17. The compilation of all the phases within a project equates to _______________.
A. The project life cycle
B. The product life cycle
C. Project completion
D. Project processes
A. The project life cycle comprises all of the project phases within a project.
B is incorrect because it describes the life of many projects that create a unique
product or service. C and D are incorrect because they do not accurately describe the project life cycle.
18. Management has asked Nancy to determine whether a project concept is valid and
can be completed using a reasonable amount of time and finances. Management is asking
for which of the following?
A. Kill points
B. Cost and time estimates
C. A project case study
D. A feasibility study
D. Management is looking for a feasibility study to determine whether it is practicable
for a project to exist.
A is incorrect, since kill points are within a project and typically don’t prove project
feasibility. Cost and time estimates, answer B, are not the elements Nancy or management needs at this juncture. C, project case study, may seem correct, but D is a superior answer, since it is the formal name for the report documenting the
project’s feasibility.
19. Henry, the project manager of the MHB Project, has allowed a subsequent project
phase to begin before the preceding phase is complete. This is an example of which
of the following?
A. Crashing
B. Fast tracking
C. Risk management
D. Tandem scheduling
B. Fast tracking is the process of allowing successor phases (or activities) to begin
before preceding phases (or activities) are complete.
A is incorrect because crashing is the process of adding more resources to the project
in an attempt to complete the project sooner. C, risk management, happens throughout the project; therefore, it is incorrect. D is also incorrect because tandem scheduling is not a relevant term in this instance.
20. A company has hired you as a project manager to lead a new software development
project. You have an assigned budget and several milestones in the project. The project
is ready to begin its first phase. Which of the following describes the early stages
of a project?
A. High costs and high demand for resources
B. A high demand for change
C. A high demand for project team time
D. Low costs and low demand for resources
D. Projects typically have low costs and low demand for resources early in their life
cycle.
A, B, and C are incorrect statements with regard to the early stages of a project.
21. At which point is the risk of failure the least but the consequence of failure
the highest?
A. During the early stages
B. During the middle stages
C. During the final stages
D. Risk of failure is even across all project phases
C. As the project moves closer to completion, the likelihood of risk diminishes but
the consequences of failure are the highest.
A, B, and D are incorrect with regard to risk assessment in a project.
22. Tracey is the project manager of the KHG Project. Her organization is a classic
functional environment. Her level of authority as a project manager can be best described
as which of the following?
A. Low
B. Moderate
C. Balanced
D. High
A. Tracey will most likely have a low amount of authority in a functional organizational
structure.
B and C are incorrect because they describe matrix structures. D is incorrect, because it is relevant to a projectized structure.
23. Project team members are most likely to work full time on a project in which of
the following organizational structures?
A. Functional
B. Weak matrix
C. Strong matrix
D. Projectized
D. Projectized structures often have project team members assigned to the project on
a full-time basis.
A, B, and C are incorrect, because these structures require part-time project teams.
24. A project with much risk and reward is most likely to be accepted in which of the
following?
A. An entrepreneurial company
B. A heavily regulated company
C. A nonprofit organization
D. A community
A. Projects with much risk and reward are most likely to be accepted within an entrepreneurial
organization.
B, C, and D are incorrect because these organizations are typically more adverse to risk and
likely wouldn’t accept a project with a large amount of risk.
25. Stacey is the project manager of the GBN Project for her company. She’ll be using
several templates for a project, but she’s not certain where these templates should
originate. Where can a project manager usually expect to receive templates?
A. Commercial databases
B. The project management office
C. The project sponsor
D. PMIS
B. The project management office is the best choice, since its role is to support the
project manager.
A, commercial databases, may be feasible, but it is not the best choice presented. Project
sponsors, answer C, are not typically going to provide the project manager with templates. D, project management information systems, may have project templates available, but
the project management office is the best choice presented.
