Planning, Implementing and Managing an Initiative Welcome to MILESTONE Planning, Implementing and Managing an Initiative

Milestone Milestone is an interactive simulation game. Milestone is designed to give players an understanding of how to manage an initiative by balancing typical project metrics of budget, schedule and quality with stakeholder sentiment.

Milestone Experience a learning-by-doing environment: Understand the impact and planning for risk Decisions in information uncertainty Focus on achieving multiple conflicting objectives

Milestone Concepts include: Work Breakdown Structure Gantt chart Human resource planning Start, end and lag times including duration Activity sequencing Quality Communication planning Risk management Stakeholder management Leadership, culture, collaboration, expectations, perceptions, team development stages

What is a project? A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK™), Project Management Institute, 1999 One time Limited funds/time Specific resources utilized Performed by people - Single or multi-person team Planned, controlled Specific Deliverables Unique - similar, new Progressive elaboration

Major Characteristics of a Project Defined Life Span (a beginning and an end) Unique in nature – Tend have risk High degree of organization/individual focus Interdependencies Uniqueness Conflict

Introduction Examples of projects Split the atom Chunnel between England and France A marketing campaign A science or psychology experiment Building a pool A wedding A new IT system “Projects, rather than repetitive tasks, are now the basis for most value-added in business” -Tom Peters

What is a Project? Process Project Ongoing, day-to-day activities Use existing systems, properties, and capabilities Project Takes place outside the process world Unique and separate from normal organization work

Project Life Cycle FIGURE 1.1

Network of Stakeholders

Stakeholder Identification Whole Project Initiation Planning Execution Closure Sponsor I, N N N, B A IT etc Marketing I – Influence B – Benefit C – Input A – Approve N – Need their support

Work Breakdown Structure The WBS is an important document and can be tailored for use in a number of different ways It may illustrate how each piece of the project contributes to the whole in terms of performance, responsibility, schedule, and budget It may list the vendors or subcontractors associated with specific tasks It may serve as the basis for making cost estimates or estimates of task duration It may be used to document that all parties have signed off on their various commitments to the project

The Work Breakdown Structure The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) can take a variety of forms that serve a variety of purposes The WBS often appears as an outline with Level I tasks on the left and successive levels appropriately indented The WBS may also picture a project subdivided into hierarchical units of tasks, subtasks, work packages, etc.

How WBS Helps the Project Manager Facilitates evaluation of cost, time, and technical performance of the organization on a project. Provides management with information appropriate to each organizational level. Helps in the development of the organization breakdown structure (OBS). which assigns project responsibilities to organizational units and individuals Helps manage plan, schedule, and budget. Defines communication channels and assists in coordinating the various project elements. Dividing the work into major pieces, then subdividing into smaller, more manageable pieces

Example of WBS and a GANTT Chart

Project Management Trade-offs - Metrics

Scheduling A schedule is the conversion of a project action plan into an operating timetable It serves as the basis for monitoring and controlling project activity Taken together with the plan and budget, it is probably the major tool for the management of projects The basic approach of all scheduling techniques is to form a network of activity and event relationships This network should graphically portray the sequential relations between the tasks in a project Tasks that must precede or follow other tasks are then clearly identified, in time as well as function

Resources resource leveling - network analysis in which scheduling decisions are drive by resource management concerns (limited resource availability or difficult to manage changes in resource levels).

Risk Risk is the chance that an undesirable event will occur and the consequences of all its possible outcomes. Project risks are those events that, if they materialize can delay or kill a project Needs a Proactive approach to dealing with Risk Preventative process designed to reduce surprise and negative consequences

Risk Versus Uncertainty Analysis Under Uncertainty - The Management of Risk The difference between risk and uncertainty Risk - when the decision maker knows the probability of each and every state of nature and thus each and every outcome. An expected value of each alternative action can be determined Uncertainty - when a decision maker has information that is not complete and therefore cannot determine the expected value of each alternative

Negative Impacts of Risk Increased cost on projects Tighter scheduling Less flexibility Poor performance

Risk Management Process A proactive attempt to recognize and manage internal events and external threats that affect the likelihood of a project’s success. What can go wrong (risk event). How to minimize the risk event’s impact (consequences). What can be done before an event occurs (anticipation). What to do when an event occurs (contingency plans).

Risk Management’s Benefits A proactive rather than reactive approach. Reduces surprises and negative consequences. Prepares the project manager to take advantage of appropriate risks. Provides better control over the future. Improves chances of reaching project performance objectives within budget and on time.

Communication Planning Who needs What information, When, and How (where, what method), Why will it be done. WHO? Who must you communicate with? _____________. Challenge: N people have N * (N-1)/2 lines of communication. WHAT? Set expectations, -Project progress (cost/time/quality, trend/forecast) -Resource usage

HOW? Technology Use with Stakeholder Message Conversation (face to face) Conversation (phone) Meetings Memo Document E-mail On-line availability of info: Database /Internet Fax

The Implementation of a project Phases: Planning Monitoring Controlling Evaluation

Plans Change Differences between work scheduled and work planned can develop from several different causes: Official change orders in the work elements Informal alterations in the methods used Official or unofficial changes in the tasks to be accomplished If the plan is not altered to reflect such changes, comparisons between plan and actual are not meaningful

Getting Started Payment Access the student payment function and have  your credit card ready http://www.experientialsimulations.com Access the registration and login page at: Create a new student account and then login and do payment, once payment has been authorized. When registering enter the Game Number send to you by your professor. Note: that payment authorization might take up to 24 hours and that a student game account username similar or the same as your Paypal one is important for authorization.

Playing to Win Have Fun! Read the user manual Decide on your strategy Remember not all your actions within the game will be successful and you will have adjust your approach as the game progresses. This is the reality of initiatives. Have Fun!

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