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Initiating Process: Inputs, Outputs, Tools and Techniques

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Software Project Management (CS615)
LECTURE # 21
3. Processes
3.5
Initiating Process
Inputs
·  Product Description
·  Strategic Plan
·  Selection Criteria
·  Historical Information
Outputs
·  Project Charter
·  Project Manager assignments
·  Constraints
·  Assumptions
Tools and Techniques
·  Project selection methods
·  Expert judgment
The tasks performed for project initiation are mentioned below:
·
Requirement gathering: The first task is to gather the customer requirements.
Customer requirements may be spoken or unspoken. Therefore, the challenge for
the project manager is to elicit the requirements in such a way that both the
spoken and unspoken customer needs and wants are gathered. After collecting the
required information, you need to translate the customer requirements into
technical specifications for the software project.
·
Scope determination: The scope of a software project can be defined as the
combination of the software product arid services to be delivered to the customer.
You carry out the scope determination exercise to define the scope of the software
project. The scope determination exercise enables you to refine and understand
the customer requirements. You can refine the scope definition further by
breaking down each deliverable into smaller and more manageable activities. The
scope determination exercise also helps you identify the technology for creating
the software product.
·
Resource allocation: During project initiation, you identify the resources required
and allocate them to the software project. The resources identified may be people,
reusable software components, and hardware or software tools. You allocate the
resource to the software project on the basis of the activities defined in the scope
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Software Project Management (CS615)
determination exercise. While allocating appropriate resources for a software
project, you also need to calculate the cost of each resource. The cost of a
resource is calculated according to the duration of the resource in the software
project. Estimating the cost of resources also helps you prepare a budget for the
software project.
·
Initial project plan: Another exercise that you carry out during project initiation
is the creation of a rough project plan. This plan is a draft version and carries only
the primitive project plan features. This project plan carries the initial risk
analysis of the software project, the initial start and end dates, the duration of the
activities in the project, and the sequencing of these activities.
3.6
Planning Process
Devising and maintaining a workable scheme to accomplish the business need
that the project was undertaken to address
Planning is setting the direction for something -- some system -- and then guiding
the system to follow the direction.
The basic planning process typically includes similar nature of activities carried
out in similar sequence.
The phases are carried out carefully or -- in some cases -- intuitively, for example,
when planning a very small, straightforward effort the complexity of the various
phases (and their duplication throughout the system) depend on the scope of the
system.
For example, in a large corporation, the following phases would be carried out in
the corporate offices:
·
In each division
·
In each department
·
In each group, etc.
Planning typically includes use of the following basic terms
·
Goals: Goals are specific accomplishments that must be accomplished in total, or
in some combination, in order to achieve some larger, overall result preferred
from the system, for example, the mission of an organization. (goals are outputs
from the system.)
·
Strategies or Activities: These are the methods or processes required in total, or
in some combination, to achieve the goals. (strategies are processes in the
system.)
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Software Project Management (CS615)
·
Objectives: Objectives are specific accomplishments that must be accomplished
in total, or in some combination, to achieve the goals in the plan. Objectives are
usually "milestones" along the way when implementing the strategies
·
Tasks: Particularly in small organizations, people are assigned various tasks
required to implement the plan. If the scope of the plan is very small, tasks and
activities are often essentially the same.
·
Resources (and Budgets): Resources include the people, materials, technologies,
money, etc., required to implement the strategies or processes. The costs of these
resources are often depicted in the form of a budget. (Going back to our reference
to systems, resources are input to the system.)
Goals and Objectives Should Be SMARTER
SMARTER is an acronym, that is, a word composed by joining letters from
different words in a phrase or set of words. In this case, a SMARTER goal or
objective is:
Specific:
For example, it's difficult to know what someone should be doing if they are to
pursue the goal to "work harder". It's easier to recognize "Write a paper".
Measurable:
It's difficult to know what the scope of "Writing a paper" really is. It's easier to
appreciate that effort if the goal is "Write a 30-page paper".
Acceptable:
If I'm to take responsibility for pursuit of a goal, the goal should be acceptable to
me. For example, I'm not likely to follow the directions of someone telling me to
write a 30-page paper when I also have to five other papers to write.
However, if you involve me in setting the goal so I can change my other
commitments or modify the goal, I'm much more likely to accept pursuit of the
goal as well.
Realistic: Even if I do accept responsibility to pursue a goal that is specific and
measurable, the goal won't be useful to me or others if, for example, the goal is to
"Write a 30-page paper in the next 10 seconds".
Time frame: It may mean more to others if I commit to a realistic goal to "Write
a 30-page paper in one week". However, it'll mean more to others (particularly if
they are planning to help me or guide me to reach the goal) if I specify that I will
write one page a day for 30 days, rather than including the possibility that I will
write all 30 pages in last day of the 30-day period.
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Software Project Management (CS615)
Extending: The goal should stretch the performer's capabilities. For example, I
might be more interested in writing a 30-page paper if the topic of the paper or the
way that I write it will extend my capabilities.
Rewarding: I'm more inclined to write the paper if the paper will contribute to an
effort in such a way that I might be rewarded for my effort.
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Table of Contents:
  1. Introduction & Fundamentals
  2. Goals of Project management
  3. Project Dimensions, Software Development Lifecycle
  4. Cost Management, Project vs. Program Management, Project Success
  5. Project Management’s nine Knowledge Areas
  6. Team leader, Project Organization, Organizational structure
  7. Project Execution Fundamentals Tracking
  8. Organizational Issues and Project Management
  9. Managing Processes: Project Plan, Managing Quality, Project Execution, Project Initiation
  10. Project Execution: Product Implementation, Project Closedown
  11. Problems in Software Projects, Process- related Problems
  12. Product-related Problems, Technology-related problems
  13. Requirements Management, Requirements analysis
  14. Requirements Elicitation for Software
  15. The Software Requirements Specification
  16. Attributes of Software Design, Key Features of Design
  17. Software Configuration Management Vs Software Maintenance
  18. Quality Assurance Management, Quality Factors
  19. Software Quality Assurance Activities
  20. Software Process, PM Process Groups, Links, PM Phase interactions
  21. Initiating Process: Inputs, Outputs, Tools and Techniques
  22. Planning Process Tasks, Executing Process Tasks, Controlling Process Tasks
  23. Project Planning Objectives, Primary Planning Steps
  24. Tools and Techniques for SDP, Outputs from SDP, SDP Execution
  25. PLANNING: Elements of SDP
  26. Life cycle Models: Spiral Model, Statement of Requirement, Data Item Descriptions
  27. Organizational Systems
  28. ORGANIZATIONAL PLANNING, Organizational Management Tools
  29. Estimation - Concepts
  30. Decomposition Techniques, Estimation – Tools
  31. Estimation – Tools
  32. Work Breakdown Structure
  33. WBS- A Mandatory Management Tool
  34. Characteristics of a High-Quality WBS
  35. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
  36. WBS- Major Steps, WBS Implementation, high level WBS tasks
  37. Schedule: Scheduling Fundamentals
  38. Scheduling Tools: GANTT CHARTS, PERT, CPM
  39. Risk and Change Management: Risk Management Concepts
  40. Risk & Change Management Concepts
  41. Risk Management Process
  42. Quality Concept, Producing quality software, Quality Control
  43. Managing Tasks in Microsoft Project 2000
  44. Commissioning & Migration