Project management and project cycle management ----- A short training course in project cycle management for subdivisions of MFAR in Sri Lanka MFAR, ICEIDA and UNU-FTP Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DFAR) Sri Lanka Icelandic International Development Agency (ICEIDA) Iceland United Nations University Fisheries Training Programme (UNU-FTP) Iceland

Content of the lecture What is a project? How does project management benefit you? Project cycle management (PCM) PCM tools Project managers

Learning objectives After this lecture participants will understand the basics of project management, know the role of project manager and principles of project cycle management

A project What is a project Defined start and end, specific scope, cost and duration A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service or result A series of activities aimed at bringing about clearly specified objectives within a defined time period and with a defined budget (EU Aid delivery methods) is a unique set of coordinated activities, with a definite starting and finishing points, undertaken by an individual or organization to meet specific objectives within defined schedule, cost and performance parameters (British Standard 60971, 2000:2)

Benefits of project management Project management was developed to save time by properly planning a project and considering all relevant factors which may affect its outcome The benefits have been proven - it saves time and money - and generates a more successful outcome …. if guidelines are followed Even though project management gives you set of tools to schedule and organize, there are many factors that need to be considered if projects are to be successful. It is not a magical solution Project management does not do the work for you, but helps you to be specific and organized without losing the overview of what you are doing and why. Importance of project management With limited resources, project management can be very important by: Increasing productivity Boosting efficiency Making the most of every resource Making sure that deadlines are met

How does project management benefit you? You will have goal clarity and measurement Your resources will be coordinated Your risks will be identified and managed You will increase the possibilities of time savings You will increase the possibilities of cost savings You will increase the possibilities of achieving the agreed outcome You will increase the possibilities to deliver projects successfully Like with other things, experience can be a big factor. But just as with young people, if they have the guidance while they are developing their talents they are more likely to progress. In a way we can say that project management can guide people and help them to progress in their profession.

Improved quality Decision-making routes and processes are clearly defined Deadlines, costs and resources are controlled systematically All processes in the project management activity chain are coordinated to ensure they remain in harmony with one another The result will help you to get: more speed greater flexibility improved quality

What project management helps you to achieve Plan tasks in project Avoid dependencies problems Reduce risks Track progress accurately Organize project process and timeline Improve stakeholder - staff communication Improve management of stakeholders’ expectations Complete within budget and on time This is a list of favourable outcomes. But, just like when a contractor wants to build a house. it is not enough to bring the drawings and get the tools on location. He actually really has to do the work. The drawings guides him and the tools makes the labour easier for him.

Project success factors Stakeholder involvement Executive management support Clear statement of requirements Proper planning Realistic expectations Smaller project milestones Competent staff Ownership Clear vision and objectives Hard working and focused staff To increase the chances of positive outcome, project managers have to think about all of the factor that can influence positive outcome and the threat of failure, Tomorrow we will discuss and give you hands on practise on how to use set of tools that analyse different factors of outside- and internal elements that are useful for project management.

Stakeholder Relations The triple constraint Stakeholder Relations Time Cost Project management success indicators Project is completed within time, cost and quality requirements Will make: Sponsor/beneficiary satisfied Minimal scope or mutually agreed to scope changes No adverse impact/interruption to regular work flow of the organization No change to the corporate culture Quality

Project Cycle Management (PCM) Is a methodology for the preparation, implementation and evaluation of projects based on the principles of the logical framework approach It describes management activities and decision-making procedures used during the life cycle of a project (key tasks, roles and responsibilities, key documents and decision options)  Project cycle management - PCM PCM describes management activities and decision making procedures used during the life time of a project Tasks Roles Responsibility Key documents Decisions options The EC has adopted PCM as its primary set of project design and management tool based upon the Logical Framework Approach We will have special lecture on the logframe matrix that is used to decide further activities (after we have done proper analysis)

Project cycle management (PCM) Is useful in designing, implementing and monitoring a plan or a project A clear concise visual presentation of all the key components of a plan and a basis for monitoring It clarifies: How the project will work What it is going to achieve What factors relate to its success How progress will be measured

The project cycle Programming Identification Formulation Evaluation Financing decision The cycle is generally divided in 5 phases: Programming Identification Formulation Implementation Evaluation and audit The project cycle Follows the life of a project from the initial idea through to its completion Provides a structure to ensure that stakeholders are consulted Defines key decisions, information requirements and responsibilities at each phase Tomorrow we are going to talk about the tools that are used in the implementation-stage to analyse important factors that influence the project and stakeholders Implementation Formulation Financing decision

The three PCM principles Decision making criteria defined at each phase The phases in the cycle are progressive Project identification part of structured feedback

PCM is result based PCM requires the active participation of key stakeholders and aims to promote local ownership PCM incorporates key assessment criteria into each stage of the project cycle PCM requires the production of good quality key documents in each phase to support decision making

PCM helps to ensure that Projects are part of the country policy objectives Projects are relevant to the real problems of target groups / beneficiaries Clearly identified stakeholders (primary target groups and final beneficiaries) Projects are feasible (objectives are realistic) Clearly defined coordination, management, financing arrangements, monitoring and evaluation Benefits generated by projects are likely to be sustainable Before you evaluate what project you would like to implement, you will have to apply certain criteria on how to choose a project. And making shore that they will be able to serve certain role in the overall objectives that are stated in the mission/vision of a institute. To be able to find out what an organization or an institution is capable of performing we need to analyse them. This is for example being done right now here in Sri Lanka by FAO (the team of Richard Banks)

PCM tools The logical framework approach Quality assessment criteria Institutional capacity assessment Economic and financial analysis Promoting participatory approaches These are the large tools that is used in PCM - A set of tools in plannig and scheduling stage of implementation that we are going to take a look at tomorrow are: SWOT, PESTLE, Stakeholder analysis, Problem analysis, Objective analysis, strategic analysis. The logical frame work Matrix is the frame where you arrange the actions that you need to perform, and state their objectives The logframe matrix, as well connected with the activity schedules that is again linked with the budget. These large elements of the PCM analyse the resources that are available so activities can be adjusted accordingly.

Time management Defining project activities Activity scheduling Create and controlling the project activities An inch of time cannot be bought for an inch of gold." - Chinese proverb

Time management grid There's an old joke when it comes to project management time: 'The first 90 percent of a project schedule takes 90 percent of the time. The last 10 percent takes the other 90 percent of the time'

Managing the scope of the project Project scope management constitutes 'the processes to ensure that the project includes all of the work required, and only the work required, to complete the project successfully.‘ Project scope has several purposes: It defines what work is needed to complete the project objectives It determines what is included in the project It serves as a guide to determine what work is not needed to complete the project objectives It serves as a point of reference for what is not included in the project

Role of a project manager The role of a project manager is affected by the one-shot nature of the project The role of a project manager is difficult when team members are still linked to their permanent work areas Members may be assigned to several projects simultaneously Managers must rely on their communication skills and powers of persuasion If people are put in a project group, how do you make them work on the project as well as making them perform their normal duties as well? Be flexible jet firm Here it would be good to name an example from Sri Lanka – e.g. How did you manage to work on the project of making this course?

Project manager attributes Leader & manager Facilitator, coordinator Communicator Credibility: Technical/ Administrative Work under pressure Goal-oriented Innovator Versatilist Knowledgeable about the organization Political sensitivity Conflict: sense, confront, resolve Can deal with stress, chaos, ambiguity Planning and follow-through Ethical dilemmas Project manager has to be able to fulfil the needs and demands of the project

Project manager attributes X Specialist Versatilist Specialist Deep skills Narrow scope Peer-Recognized Unknown outside domain Generalist Shallow skills Broad scope Quick response Recognized in other Domains Versatilist Wide scope of roles Broad experience recognized in other domains Generalist

Project manager duties Reports to senior management Communicates with users Plans and schedules Obtains and allocates resources Controls risks Manages people Coordinates Implements quality assurance Controls the budget Delivers results Whatever needs to be done, has to be done by a project manager, even though it involves him/her decide that some one else should do the actual work!

Project teams Diversity of knowledge needed Cross-functional Self-directed Often ad-hoc or temporary Often distributed (geographically) Start and end dates Last lecture was about teams and culture so there is no need of spending to much time on this slide. The rule of thumb is, a group of many should be able to deliver more than one person, they can divide their work and be specialized in their fields, and the team should be more flexible regarding workload, time and knowledge.

Project personnel skills Technical Political Problem-oriented (vs. discipline-oriented) Goal-oriented Flexibility, adaptability High self-esteem can handle failure, risk, uncertainty, unexpected can share blame and credit It depends on the project when you select what kind of people are going to do the work on a project. But often you have to mix together specialists and versatileist, depending on the purpose of the project. The most important is to get the people that can get the job done! This slides describes several favorable elements of a project personnel.

Governmental projects Legal constraints on government projects Laws, statutes, ordinances, directives, regulations, budgets, and policies Accountability to the public Accountable to legislative & judicial bodies, interest groups, the press and the public Utilization of public resources Objective is not higher ROI, but public good In contrast to Government projects are for example, the development of new products within private companies. Such projects are normally run “under the radar” and do not have accountability to the general public. The success of such projects is measured in things like ROI, profits and sales. Official projects have different agenda, which are normally aimed for the benefit of the general public or improving elements of official bodies.

Project governance Risk planning Life cycle management Balancing risk avoidance and risk acceptance Life cycle management From concept to replacement Strategic change Balancing the solution and the ability to utilize Value management Adopting consistent processes, building in quality and adding value Within lifetime of projects, there are numeral factors that need to be taken care of. The people that work on a project have to remember that projects can be dynamic and decicions may need to be revised within the project lifetime. The project governance has to fit within the frame of numerous factors. And along the way there are questions that come up that need to be aswered, events that happens and may have to be responsed to. The plan has to be flexible enough to be able to bend and ajust to changes. Good governance has to be able to create the “flexibility” Project governance ensures: That the scope is defined according to all key stakeholders’ needs A clear understanding of roles and responsibilities exists An organizational perspective is honored The ultimate decisional authority is with an individual, not a committee The budget is adequate for the scope Necessary resources are available Overall project timelines are set and achieved

Project management methodology scope What is a methodology The way we do things around here ! Communication, consistency, understanding, accountability Project management vs. other activities This way project management uses the same approach for all situations There will be more coverage on methodology in the next lecture.

References British Standard 60971, 2000:2 European Commission (2004). Project Cycle Management Guidelines. Downloaded 1st March from:http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/qsm/documents/pcm_manual_2004_en.pdf