Lecture 2_2
The Project Management Process
J. S. Chou, P.E., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Project Management Process Groups
A process is a series of actions directed toward a particular
result.
Project management can be viewed as a number of
interlinked processes.
The project management process groups include:
Initiating processes
Planning processes
Executing processes
Monitoring and controlling processes
Closing processes
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Figure 3-1. Level of Activity and Overlap of
Process Groups Over Time
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Mapping the Process Groups to the
Knowledge Areas
You can map the main activities of each PM process
group into the nine knowledge areas by using the
PMBOK Guide 2004.
Note that there are activities from each knowledge area
under the planning process group.
All initiating activities are part of the project
integration management knowledge area.
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Table 3-1. Relationships Among Process Groups
and Knowledge Areas
PMBOK Guide 2004, p. 69
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Table 3-1. Relationships Among Process Groups
and Knowledge Areas (contd)
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Project Initiation
Initiating a project includes recognizing and starting a new
project or project phase.
Some organizations use a pre-initiation phase, while others
include items such as developing a business case as part of the
initiation.
The main goal is to formally select and start off projects.
Key outputs include:
Assigning the project manager.
Identifying key stakeholders.
Completing a business case.
Completing a project charter and getting signatures on it.
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Project Initiation Documents
Business case: See pages 82-85.
Charter: See pages 77-78.
Every organization has its own variations of what
documents are required to initiate a project. Its
important to identify the project need, stakeholders,
and main goals.
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Project Planning
The main purpose of project planning is to guide execution.
Every knowledge area includes planning information (see
Table 3-5 on pages 87-89).
Key outputs included in the JWD project include:
A team contract.
A scope statement.
A work breakdown structure (WBS).
A project schedule, in the form of a Gantt chart with all
dependencies and resources entered.
A list of prioritized risks (part of a risk register).
See sample documents on pages 90-98.
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Figure 3-4. JWD Consulting Intranet Site
Project Baseline Gantt Chart
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Table 3-8. List of Prioritized Risks
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Project Executing
Project execution usually takes the most time and resources.
Project managers must use their leadership skills to handle
the many challenges that occur during project execution.
Table 3-9 on page 99 lists the executing processes and
outputs. Many project sponsors and customers focus on
deliverables related to providing the products, services, or
results desired from the project.
A milestone report (see example on page 100) can keep the
focus on completing major milestones.
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Table. 3-10. Part of Milestone Report
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Project Monitoring and Controlling
Involves measuring progress toward project objectives,
monitoring deviation from the plan, and taking
corrective action to match progress with the plan.
Affects all other process groups and occurs during all
phases of the project life cycle.
Outputs include performance reports, requested
changes, and updates to various plans.
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Project Closing
Involves gaining stakeholder and customer acceptance
of the final products and services.
Even if projects are not completed, they should be
formally closed in order to reflect on what can be
learned to improve future projects.
Outputs include project archives and lessons learned,
which are part of organizational process assets.
Most projects also include a final report and
presentation to the sponsor or senior management.
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