Assignment 1: Project Management:

Instructor: Dr. Paul Khoueiry.

Presented by: Rihame Hdede (Data Science Second Year).

CHAPTER1:
EX1: Why is there a new or renewed interest in the field of project
management?
• There is a new or renewed interest in the field of project management due to
the fact that there are new technologies that are considerably used in numerous
different countries and to keep in contact with these markets. World broad job
management is used to develop the numerous different tasks that are very
important within the markets.

EX2: What is a project, and what are its main attributes? How is a project
different from what most people do in their day-to-day jobs? What is the triple
constraint? What other factors affect a project?
• A project is a collaborative enterprise that is organized to achieve a particular
aim. The main attributes of project are scope, objective, resources, team, cost,
timelines. Projects are different from day-to-day activities primarily because they
have focused goals and definite beginning and ending dates. The triple constraint
is managing scope, time, and cost goals. Other factors include quality, resources,
and risks.
EX3: What is project management? Briefly describe the project management
framework, providing examples of stakeholders, knowledge areas, tools and
techniques, and project success factors.
• Project management has been defined as the application of knowledge, skill,
tools, and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements.
The project management framework can be used as a set of steps, tools, or
applications that can help manage a project through its lifecycle. Key areas of the
framework include project stakeholders, knowledge areas, tools and techniques,
and the addition of successful projects to the enterprise. Project stakeholders are
the people involved in or affected by project activities. Some examples of
stakeholders include the project sponsor, project team, support staff, customers,
users, suppliers, and even opponents of the project.
10 knowledge areas of project management:
1.Scope
2.Time
3.Cost
4.Quality
5.Human resources
6.Communications
7.Risk
8.Procurement
9.Stakeholder
10. Integration
Project management tools and techniques can assist project managers and their
teams in the 10 knowledge areas of project management. Some of these tools
may include diagrams, return on investment calculations, network diagrams, and
Gantt charts just to name a few.
Top 5 Factors that Lead to Project Success:

1. Intelligent People
2. Comprehensive Planning
3. Open Communication
4. Proper Risk Management
5. Strong Project Closure

EX5: What is the role of the project manager? What are suggested skills for all
project managers and for IT project managers? Why is leadership so important
for project managers? How is the job market for IT project managers?
• A project manager is a person who has the overall responsibility for the
successful initiation, planning, design, execution, monitoring, controlling and
closure of a project. Construction, petrochemical, architecture, information
technology and many different industries that produce products and services use
this job title.
Skills:
1. Leadership
2. Negotiation
3. Scheduling
4. Cost Control
5. Risk Management
6. Contract Management
7. Critical Thinking
8. Communication
9. Project Recovery
10. Coaching
11. Task Management
12. Quality Management
13. Meetings Management
14. Business Case Writing
15. A Sense of Humor
Developing leadership skills is important for project management because the
overall success of any project is determined by its leaders. Leaders, or project
managers, oversee projects and make critical decisions that can lead to their
success or failure.
IT project management skills are in high demand as an increasing number of
organizations prefer specialists and project-based methods to get the job done
right, the first time.

CHAPTER2:
EX1: What does it mean to take a systems view of a project? How does taking
this view apply to project management?
• A system view of Project is to take a look into the scope of the project and to
know how does that fit into the organization by analyzing the project using the
following interrelated elements,

1. Programmed Objectives
2. Rules, Regulations, Constraints and Policy Restrictions
3. Management Control
4. Inputs
5. Implementation Process
6. Output
7. Outcome
8. Impact
9. Feedback

It helps you to visualize and realize a project is made up of many smaller systems
that depend on each other.

EX2: Explain the four frames of organizations. How can they help project
managers understand the organizational context for their projects?
• Structural Frame: Roles and responsibilities, coordination and control
Human Resource frame: Providing harmony between needs of the organization
and needs of people

Political frame: Coalitions composed of varied individuals and interest groups.

Conflict and power are key issues

Symbolic Frame: Symbols and meanings related to events. Culture, language,

traditions and image are all parts of this frame.

EX3: Briefly explain the differences between functional, matrix, and project
organizations. Describe how each structure affects the management of a
project.
• 1. Functional organizational structure:
Functional organizational structure is to be managed in the current organization
hierarchical structure, once the project begins operation, the various components
of the project are taken by the functional units, each unit is responsible for its
charged component. If the project established, a functional area plays a dominant
role, functional areas on completion of the project, senior managers will be
responsible for project coordination.
2. Project-based organizational structure:

Project organizational structure refers to the creation of an independent project

team, the team’s management is separated from the parent organization’s other
units, have their own technical staff and management, enterprise assigns certain
resources to project team, and grant project manager of the largest free
implementation of the project.

3. Matrix organizational structure:

Matrix organizational structure is a hybrid form; it loads a level of project

management structure on the functional hierarchical structure. According to the
relative power of project managers and functional managers, in practice there are
different types of matrix systems, respectively,

Functional Matrix: in this matrix, functional managers have greater powers than
project managers);
Project Matrix: in this matrix, project managers have greater powers than
functional managers);

Balance Matrix: in this matrix, functional managers and project managers have
the equal powers.

EX6: What are the phases in a traditional project life cycle? How does a project
life cycle differ from a product life cycle? Why does a project manager need to
understand both?
• Phases of Project Life Cycles:
Origination:

Someone proposes an idea worth pursuing and solicits support for the idea in the
project origination phase. Costs and staffing needs are minimal at this stage. The
project gets sent to a committee for evaluation, and if the idea is selected further
commitment to the project progresses, including budget and preliminary needs. If
there is a long delay in the project life cycle, it is typically in the origination phase,
as the date between the idea and the selection may take some time.
Initiation:
At the onset of initiation, the team acknowledges the beginning of a project and
assigns a project manager to assess its feasibility and provide clear descriptions of
the project's objectives. The project manager evaluates alternatives and provides
reasons why the project is the best solution to satisfy requirements.
Planning:
The planning phase is the most important; time and effort invested in this phase
lays a solid foundation for the project. This phase identifies and defines the
project's costs, scope, risks, opportunities and constraints. Appropriate
stakeholders should be involved in the planning phase to provide feedback.
Execution:
The execution phase is where the project's tasks are directed and deliverables are
managed. Deliverables include not only the product, but the documents, plans,
budgets, schedule and blueprints to execute the project. During execution, the
quality management team focuses on finding defects or changes that need to be
made. Based on the analysis, adjustments are made to accommodate project
scope changes or to compensate for deliverables that have not occurred on
schedule. Once corrective action is approved, they are implemented in the
process.
Closure:
The closure phase hands over the deliverables to the client, finalizes contracts and
billing, and releases resources back into the organization for future projects.
Project materials are archived and a post-implementation review identifies both
the level of the project's success and room for improvement in the future.

Differences Between the Two:

A product life cycle is a conceptual map of where a product's sales are and where
they may be headed. However, it has no comment on what to do with the
product. If a company believes its product is entering the decline phase, it will
probably create a plan to either rejuvenate the product or cease production, but
that is not inherent in the product life cycle. By contrast, a project life cycle is all
about action. A project life cycle maps out the steps needed to complete a project
with specific targeted results.