Project Management : Gaining Control

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Project Management Gaining Control

• Thomas L. Warren
• Technical Writing Program
• Oklahoma State University
• Stillwater, OK 74078-4069
• twarren_at_okstate.edu
• http//www.okstate.edu/artsci/techwr

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Overview of Talk

• Definition and uses of project management
• Project Scope
• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
• Conclusion
• Questions/Discussion

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Resources

• A Guide to Project Management Body of Knowledge
  (PMBOK). Newtown Square, PA Project Management
  Institute, 2000. http//www.pmi.org
  http//www.pmibookstore.org
• Penner, Donald D. The Project Managers Survival
  Guide The Handbook for Real-World Project
  Management, 2nd edition. Columbus, OH Battelle
  Press, 2002. http//www.battelle.org/bookstore

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Definition

• Management
• Applying knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques
  to meet or exceed stake holder's needs and
  expectations
• Project
• A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a
  unique product or service
• Definite beginning and ending (temporary)
• Different from all other products or services in
  some way (unique)

A Guide to Project Management Body of Knowledge
(PMBOK). Newtown Square, PA Project Management
Institute, 2000, pp. 4, 6.
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Key Issues and Topics

• Integration
• Collaborative project management and development
• Scopelimitations
• Time
• Cost

• Quality controls
• Human resources
• Communications
• Risk management
• Legal issues and proprietary information
• Procurement

Become the sections of Project Plan
A Guide to Project Management Body of Knowledge
(PMBOK). Newtown Square, PA Project Management
Institute, 2000, pp. 7-8.
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Sample Projects

• Develop documentation for a new product or
  service
• Change structure, style, or staffing of an
  organization or department
• Develop/acquire new or modified information
  system
• Develop appropriate format for conveying needed
  information
• Develop a five-year documentation plan

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Sample Projects

• Something more immediate
• Plan a spring conference
• Get an A in a course
• Prepare an outstanding seminar paper

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Key Issues

• What will be done and for whom?
• Who will do what?
• When must it all be done?
• When must the pieces be done?
• How much will it cost?
• What are the deliverables?
• What happens if . . . ?

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Focus of Talk

• Project Scope (assume charter agreed)
• Listing of all deliverables
• Tells what the project will and will not cover
• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
• Identify specific tasks
• Estimate time required

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Scope Inputs
Constraints
Assumptions
Expert Input
Scope Statement Written statement that is basis
for future project decisions
NOTE Same input types needed for all 11 sections
of the Project Plan
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Scope Constraints

• Project limits
• Time?
• Money/budget?
• Staff?
• Customer requirements (contractual provisions)?
• Environment?

Expert Input
Constraints
Assumptions
Scope Statement Written statement that is basis
for future project decisions
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Scope Assumptions

• Organization goals and objectives
• Product goals and objectives
• Customer needs
• Product complexity
• Project authorization (charter)
• Key personnel availability

Expert Input
Constraints
Assumptions
Scope Statement Written statement that is basis
for future project decisions
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Scope Expert Input

• Managers from similar projects
• Other organizational personnel (purchasing, human
  resources, e.g.)
• Consultants
• Stakeholders
• Professional and technical associations
• Industry groups

Expert Input
Constraints
Assumptions
Scope Statement Written statement that is basis
for future project decisions
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Scope Control

• Must prevent Scope creep
• Establish specific procedure for changing scope
• Changes submitted by whom?
• Changes approved by whom?
• Areas that cannot be changed?
• Scope change notification
• Scope is key to WBS that is key to time
  management that is the key to

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Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

• Sub-divide project deliverables into smaller and
  smaller units
• Identify major deliverables (from Scope
  statement)
• Use as criteria for subdividing adequate cost and
  duration
• Identify how work will be defined, organized, and
  accomplished
• Activity list itself is a deliverable
• Example FORUM, an International Conference

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Items to Prepare
Publications
PreSeedings
Program
Call for Papers
Post Harvest
Parts
Parts
Parts
Parts
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FORUM 2000
FORUM 2003
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Sample Activities List for FORUM 2003

• Call for Papers
• Poster
• Delegate folder
• Preliminary Programme
• PreSeedings

• Supplemental PreSeedings
• Final Programme
• Planning Guide for delegates
• Supplemental Final Programme
• PostHarvest

International spelling
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Call for Papers Activities List

• Logo and art
• Author Instructions
• Produce copy
• Design and layout cover and pages
• Format files
• Send for proofing

• Proof files
• Return for correcting
• Correct files
• Send to vendor
• Print
• Distribute

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WBS, cont.

• Develop WBS based on finer and finer granularity
• Logo development tasks
• Identify theme (comes from another team)
• Call for designs (separate publication)
• Evaluate designs based on criteria (from?)
• Feedback to designer(s) (by?)
• Revise design
• Proofs
• Reviewed (by?)
• Agreed

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WBS, cont.

• Develop WBS based on finer and finer
  granularitywhen do you stop?
• Who are your potential resource people?
• How professional are theyhow much do they
  know?
• Manager of Logo task
• Designer(s)
• Fine line between managing and micro-managing

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Screen shot of Word WBS for three of the
publications.
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Steps Time Management

• Define the activity
• Overall
• Major steps
• Tasks to accomplish steps
• Sequence activitiesdependencies especially
  important (A must happen before B)
• Estimate activity duration
• Develop a schedule
• Control the schedule

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Estimating Time

• Use past experience
• Should include a range
• 2 weeks ?2 days
• Time 8-12 working days
• Could indicate probability
• 15 probability finish in 3 weeks
• 85 probability finish within 3 weeks

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Class Paper Start

• Charter
• Standard practice
• Subject of seminar
• Requirements of instructor
• Class and personal goals
• Criteria for meeting goals
• Scope
• Syllabus
• Discussion by instructor

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Class Paper Tasks

• What steps do you normally follow?
• Select topichow does that happen? How long does
  it take? Relies on?
• Researchhow does that happen? How long does it
  take? Relies on?
• Drafthow does that happen? How long does it
  take? Relies on?
• Revisehow does that happen? How long does it
  take? Relies on?
• Final copyhow does that happen? How long does it
  take? Relies on?
• Proofreadhow does that happen? How long does it
  take? Relies on?

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Class Paper

• Other factors to consider
• Managing costsbudget for the project
• Quality controlmeasuring success
• People managementrely on whom?
• Communicationswith whom and how often?
• Risk managementwhatever can go wrong, will
• Lessons learned reportfor next time you do a
  paper

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Conclusion

• Project and time management
• an important part of any technical communicators
  job (and students)
• something you know how to do (planning a
  document)
• allows you to control your project
• Projects have beginnings and endings
• Management means handling the middle part

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Conclusion, cont.

• Been managing time and a project since you
  learned to write documents
• Good scheduling (scope, WBS, time allocation) the
  key to successful time and project management

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Questions
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Thank You

• Please feel free to contact me at
• twarren_at_okstate.edu
• Or see our web page
• www.okstate.edu/artsci/techwr
• We offer graduate courses in
• publications management