Software Project Management
1
PMI Knowledge Areas

Project Management Institute
Project Integration Management
Project Scope Management
Project Time Management
Project Cost Management
Project Quality Management
Project Risk Management
Project Human Resources Management
Project Communications Management
Project Procurement Management
2
Project Stakeholder Management

Project Integration Management
Processes required to ensure that the various elements
of the project are Properly coordinated.
Making tradeoffs among competing Objectives and
alternatives to meet or exceed stakeholder needs and
expectations.
•Plan Development
•Plan Execution
•Integrated Change Control
•Project Charter
•Life Cycle and Milestones
•Project Stakeholders 3
Needs vs. Expectation

Project Scope Management
Processes required to ensure that the project includes
the work requires and only the work requires, to
complete the project successfully.
•Initiation
•Scope Planning, Definition and Verification
•Scope Change Control
•Requirements Definition
•Work Breakdown Structure
•Product Baseline Control
•Project Baseline Control
4

Project Time Management
Processes required to ensure timely completion of the
project.
•Activity Definition
•Activity Sequencing
•Activity Duration Estimating
•Project Schedule Development
•Schedule Control
•Schedule Estimating
•Critical Path Analysis
•Schedule Tracking
5

Project Cost Management
Processes required to ensure that the project is
completed within the approved budget.
•Resource Planning
•Cost Estimating
•Cost Budgeting
•Cost Control
•Cost and Schedule Control System
•Cost Analysis
6

Project Quality Management
Processes required to ensure that the project will
satisfy the needs for which it was undertaken.
•Quality Assurance Plan
•Quality Management
•Quality Metrics, Measurements and Controls
•Continuous Quality Improvement
7

Project Human Resource Management
Processes required to make the most effective use of
the people involved with the project. Includes all of the
project stakeholders – sponsors, customers, and
individual contributors.
•Organizational Planning
•Staff Acquisition and Development
•Project Leadership
•Staffing Plan
•Project Organization
•Project Team Building
8

Project Communication Management
Processes required to ensure timely and appropriate
generation, collection, dissemination, storage and
ultimate disposition of project information. It provides
the critical links among people, ideas, and information
that are necessary for success.
•Communications Planning
•Information Distribution
•Program Reviews, Design Reviews and Reporting
•Project Documentation and Records
9

Project Risk Management
The systematic process of identifying, analyzing, and
responding to project risk. It includes maximizing the
probability and consequences of positive events and
minimizing the probability and consequences of adverse
events to project Objectives.
•Risk Management Plan
•Risk Identification
•Risk Element Analysis & Metrics
•Risk Avoidance & Mitigation
•Qualitative Risk Analysis
•Quantitative Risk Analysis
10

Project Procurement Management
Processes required to acquire goods and services, to
attain project scope, from outside the performing
organization.
•Procurement Planning
•Solicitation Planning
•Solicitation
•Source Selection
•Contract Administration
•Contract Closeout
11

Project Stakeholder Management (added in 2013)
Processes required to identify all individuals or
organizations impacted by the project, analyzing
stakeholder expectations and impact on the project,
and developing the appropriate management
strategies for effectively engaging stakeholders in
project decisions and execution.
• Identification of Stakeholders
• Planning Stakeholder Management
• Managing Stakeholder Engagement
• Controlling Stakeholder Engagement

What is going to be our Approach for the
Project?
• The first decision made on any project is what
methodology/approach is best suited for that
type of project
• One size/type Project Management approach
does not fit all projects…comfortably
What are some choices?

Taxonomy of Project Management Approaches
• Traditional/Waterfall Approach
– In play for 50 years….Origin in engineering / construction
– Projects will follow a very detailed plan that is built before any
work is done on the project…plan is linear
– “Best Practices”…… PMI doctrine
• Traditional Approach works well when:
– The project goal and solution are clearly defined
– You do not expect many scope change requests
– The projects are often routine, repetitive and linear
• NOTE: The completed project can be deployed
incrementally:
– To start harvesting business value
– To deal with the likelihood of some change requests

Linear and Incremental
Plan
Define
Execute
Close
Monitor
Control
Define
Plan
Execute
Monitor
Control
Monitor
Control
Partition the
Solution
Close
.....

Taxonomy of Project Management Approaches
• Adaptive (Agile) Approach
– What if the goal is clear but the solution is not clear?
– Project will follow a very detailed plan (not built at the
beginning of the project)…the plan is built in stages at the
completion of each project cycle/phase… it is iterative.
– The budget and time line is specified at the outset of the project
• Adaptive Approach works well:
– If you feel the requirements are apt to change
– If you feel you will learn about remaining requirements during
the course of doing the project
– If the project is oriented to new product development or
process improvement
– If the development schedule is tight and you can’t afford rework
or planning
– Requires that empowered individuals are readily available for
input.

Adaptive Approach (Iterative)
Define
Customer
Feedback
High end
Planning
Closing
Monitor &
Control
Incorp.
Feedback
Detailed
Planning
Launching

Taxonomy of Project Management Approaches
• Extreme Approach
– The goal is not clear…solution is not clear
– Projects do not follow a plan in the manner deployed
with the traditional or adaptive approaches
– The project proceeds based on informed, non-specific
“guesses” of what the final goal (or solution) will be
– At the conclusion of each cycle, what was learned or
discovered is factored into a newly specified goal
– Uses an open, elastic, undeterministic approach. Best
fitted for R&D Projects

Measuring and Reporting – Metrics
(Can build trust, communicate progress, expose problems and illustrate
effectiveness of the Process)
Traditional/Waterfall Adaptive/Agile
• Focus is on tracking efforts
on each activity
• GANTT Chart
• Percent complete
• Time per team member per
task
• Actual time versus
estimated time
• Focus on tracking what has been
incrementally delivered
• Velocity
• Burn Down – what features have
been completed
• Burn Up – what features have
been promised
• Running tested features
• Defect density
• Cycle time
• Code quality
• Earned Business Value