IT PROJECT MANAGEMENT

CLASS: B-TECH COMP. ACC.

Lecture 2
 Project Phases
• Projects, by definition, have a beginning and
an end.
• They also have defined phases between the
project kickoff and project closeout.
• A phase represents a grouping of similar
activities that has a very loosely defined
beginning and end.
 Project Phases
• Project has four life-cycle phases
– Initiation
– Planning
– Execution, and
– Closeout
 Initiation Phase
• The initiation phase - “starting the project”
• Includes all the activities necessary to begin
planning the project
• The initiation phase typically begins with the
assignment of the project manager and ends
when the project team has sufficient
information to begin developing a detailed
schedule and budget.
• Activities include:
– project kickoff meetings
– identifying the project team
– developing the resources needed to develop the
project plan, and
– identifying and acquiring the project management
infrastructure (space, computers).
• Unlike project milestones, some activities
associated with project initiation may be delayed
without delaying the end of the project.
• For example, it is advantageous for the project to have
the major project stakeholders aligned from the
beginning, but sometimes it is difficult to get the
commitment from stakeholders to invest the time and
resources to engage in an alignment process. Sometimes
it is only after stakeholders begin observing progress on a
project that the project manager can facilitate the
stakeholder alignment processes.
 Project Planning
• The planning phase, - “organizing and
preparing”
• Includes the development of more detailed
schedules and a budget
• The planning also includes developing detailed
staffing, procurement, and project controls
plans.
 Project Planning (cont)
• The emphasis of the planning phase is to
develop an understanding of how the project
will be executed and a plan for acquiring the
resources needed to execute it.
• NOTE:
– Although much of the planning activity takes
place during the planning phase, the project plan
will continue to be adjusted to respond to new
challenges and opportunities.
– Planning activities occur during the entire life of
the project.
 Execution
• The execution phase - “carrying out the work”
• Includes the major activities needed to
accomplish the work of the project.
• On a construction project, this would include the
design and construction activities.
• On an information technology (IT) project, this would
include the development of the software code.
• On a training project, this would include the
development and delivery of the training.
 Closeout
• The closeout phase—“closing of the project”
• Represents the final stage of a project
• Activities:
– Project staff is transferred off the project,
– Project documents are archived, and the
– The project client takes control of the product of
the project, and
– The project office is closed down.
 Trial question
• Identify and discuss the life-cycle phases of a
project
System Development Life Cycle
 System Development Life Cycle [SDLC]
• SDLC consists of the following stages:
1. Problem Definition
2. Feasibility Study
3. System Analysis
4. System Design
5. System Development
6. Implementation
7. Post Implementation Maintenance & Review
 Problem Definition
• Problems faced by organization or opportunities
which could be converted into profitable solutions
• Problems in the existing system or the decision of the
organization to acquire a new system may call for
designing a new system for information processing.
• The organization may face a problem or get an
opportunity due to:
– A new product/plant/branch/market/process
– Inefficiency or failure of an existing system
– Programming errors in the existing system
 Problem Definition (cont)
• Define the problem
• A general direction for solving the problem is
determined
• The project boundaries are also defined
• Management also establishes the terms of reference
as well as the resources to be provided for the
project.
• The Final output of this stage is Terms of Reference
•
 Feasibility Study
• The proposed system has to be viewed from the
practical utility and acceptability dimension
• Questions which need to be asked:
– Is the proposed system worth developing?
– Will the proposed system contribute by way of improved
efficiency, productivity or organizational effectiveness?
– Will the system improve information availability and be
cost – effective?
– What will be the system development costs and will these
be justifiable?
 Feasibility Study (cont)
– How will the user departments take this system?
– what will be the overall impact of this system on the
organization?
– What are the legal implications of the proposed system
• Key considerations involved in the feasibility analysis
are:
– Economic --cost/benefit analysis
– Technical -- focus on existing computer hardware
and software
– Behavioral – The study of the organizational behavior
– Legal implications
• The final output of this step is a Feasibility Report
 System Analysis
• This phase defines the way things are
• Review of the existing system including its
procedures and information flow
• Review of decision making and individual
information needs at various levels
• Primarily focuses on isolation or identifying
the deficiencies of the existing system.
 System Analysis (cont)
• Fundamental activities:
– Definition of the overall system
– Separation of the system into smaller and manageable
parts.
– Understanding the nature, function and interrelationships
of various subsystems.
• Tools used for system analysis
– Review of Documentation
– Observation
– Conducting Interviews
– Questionnaire Administration
•
 Review of Documentation
• Review and analyze the existing system to
study the objectives, reports, procedures
being followed and equipment being used
• Limitation with this technique is that the
documentation on any existing system is
never complete and up-to-date
 Observation of the Situation
• Observed by getting involved in the system
– can work in the system or
– can be a mere observer
• Limitation:
– It is time consuming and costly
– The analyst may never be able to observe the
intricacies of the system
 Conducting Interviews
• Conduct interviews with the user managers
and ask questions related to their job
responsibilities
• Could be formal or informal
• Limitation
– The user manager may not be able to explain the
problem in detail
 Questionnaire Administration
• Administration of questionnaires to find out the
information needs of individual managers
• Can be structured or unstructured
• Helps in saving time as compared to interviews
• Limitation:
– It is impossible to design an exhaustive questionnaire to
cover various aspects of the system under study.
•
 System Analysis (cont)
• The analysis phase is a time consuming phase
and yet a very crucial phase
• The final output of this phase is a functional
specification report of the existing system.
 System Design
• This phase defines the way things should be
• The conceptual design is converted into a
logical design
• Understand the actual flow of data and the
development of a logical model
 System Design (cont)
• Includes the development of the following:
– Input Definitions
– Output Definitions
– Data Element Dictionary
– Program Specifications
– System Specifications
• Input Definitions
– Define and design the formats the system will use to
accept inputs
• Output Definitions
– Detailed reports, screen and file layouts which will be
outputted by the programs throughout the system
• Data Element Dictionary
– A document containing details of each and every data item
used in the system
– Contains the following details about the data items
• Name, Description, Source, Usage, Maintenance, Storage and
Organization
•
• Program Specifications
– Define the actual logic built up for individual programs
using decision tables, decision tress and program flow
charts
– The program flow charts could be drawn for individual
programs or parts of the programs
– Pseudocode can also be used
• System Specifications
– Include the description of the relationships of various
modules of the system among each other and
relationships between different programs within a
subsystem
 Tools used at the design stage
• Flowchart, pseudocode, decision tables, decision
trees, etc
• The common among them are flowchart and
pseodocode
• Pseodocode uses common English language
• A flowchart graphically shows the logic in a solution
algorithm using special symbols
 System Design (cont)
• The end result of this phase is a design
specification report which includes the
existing system, the proposed system, system
flow charts, modular design of the system,
print layout charts, data file designs etc.
 System Development
• Programmers are given the responsibility to
develop and test the programs
• Basic activities :
– Checking of the program specifications received
from the system design stage and expanding these
specifications.
– Breaking the system modules into smaller
programs and allocating these programs to the
members of the system development team
 System Development (cont)
– Producing the program code in the chosen
computer programming language.
– Defining the interfaces between various programs
and designing tests for checking their interfaces.
– Checking the quality of the code and its
adherence to the established standards.
– Prepare the documentation for each one of the
programs.
• Supports needed from management:
– Office space
– Relevant Data
– Secretarial Assistance
– Access to key functionaries throughout the system
development effort
• The final output of this phase is fully
developed and tested software system along
with complete documentation and testing
results.
 System Implementation
• User involvement in this stage is critical
• Includes the following activities
– Planning for implementation
– Procurement of hardware
– Installation of software
– Operating and testing of software on hardware
– Recruitment of operating personnel
– Training of selected personnel and users
– Conversion of data files from old system
– Final changeover
 Post-Implementation Maintenance & Review
• The tested and implemented system is never full
proof and errors may continue to exist
• System experts are needed to maintain it during its
operation
• SM could be due to:
– Errors detected during the processing
– Revision of the formats of the reports
– Revision of the formats of the data inputs
• It leads to integrated and standardized system
development.
 Assignment
• Identify and discuss the stages of System
Development Life Cycle (SDLC)