Project Management Chapter 1

97 Questions

The term systems approach emerged in the ____.a. 1940s b. 1950s c. 1960s d. 1970s

1960s

Systems ____ is a problem-solving approach that requires defining the scope of the system, dividing it into its components, and then identifying and evaluating its problems, opportunities, constraints, and needs.a. analysis b. philosophy c. management d. system

analysis

Organizational and ____ are both examples of spheres in the systems management model. a. analytical b. marketing c. philosophical d. technological

philosophical

The systems approach requires that project managers ____ view their projects in the context of the larger organization. a. never b. rarely c. sometimes d. always

always

The ____ frame of an organization focuses on producing harmony between the needs of the organization and the needs of the people. a. symbolic b. human resources c. structural d. political

symbolic

According to the 2001 Standish Group study, what is the most important factor for helping a project succeed?

User involvement

The head of information technology is often called the Chief ____ Officer.

Information

A definitive cost estimate is most likely to be produced in the ____ phase of a project.

close-out

Match the following systems development life cycle phases:

Concept and development phases = Project feasibility Implementation and close-out phases = Project execution and completion

Scrum sprints normally last ____ days.

What is a skill needed in every major information technology field, from database administrator to network specialist to technical writer?

Project management

Describe the structural frame of an organization.

The structural frame of an organization deals with how it is structured, focusing on roles and responsibilities to meet set goals and policies.

Managing projects often requires making trade-offs among the project’s scope, time, and cost.

True

Which knowledge area is listed in the PMBOK Guide 2000 as involved in initiation?

Project scope management

A business area analysis documents business processes that are central to achieving strategic goals and aids in discovering which ones could most benefit from information technology.

True

The first step in the information technology planning process is selecting which projects to do and assigning resources for working on them.

False

Hackett Best Practices found that companies in which the Chief Information Officer (CIO) reports directly to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) lowered their operational support costs.

True

It is often impossible to estimate the financial value of broad organizational projects, but everyone agrees that they do have a high value.

False

Even though many information technology projects can be completed quickly, it is still important to prioritize them.

True

Payment period is the amount of time it will take to recoup, in the form of net cash inflows, the net dollars invested in a project. (Fill in the blank)

payback

Project management consists of ____ knowledge areas.

nine

One of project management’s knowledge areas is ____.

procurement management

Projects involve ____ project management process groups.

five

One of the project management process groups is ____.a.initiating

initiating

____ processes include devising and maintaining a workable scheme to ensure the project addresses the company’s needs.

Planning

____ processes include actions to begin or end projects and project phases.

Initiating

A common ____ process is a performance review during which any necessary changes are identified, and a staff member is selected to analyze and manage those changes.

Controlling

____ processes include formalizing acceptance of the phase or project and ending it efficiently.

Closing

Examples of ____ processes include developing the project team, providing leadership, assuring project quality, disseminating information, procuring necessary resources, and delivering the actual work.

Executing

Creating an organizational ____ is an output involved in organizational planning.

chart

E-mail, real-time databases, and the Web make it easier to disseminate the most current project information.

True

For large projects, organizations are likely to benefit most from high-end software tools.

True

There are ____ main processes involved in project integration management.

four

Projects that are somewhat ambiguous at the beginning are often described as having a fuzzy ____.a.high-end c.back-end b.rear-end d.front-end

rear-end

Most people consider project integration ____ the key to overall project success.

management

____ management involves identifying and managing the points of interaction between various elements of the project.

Interface

The ____ process of project integration management is project plan development.

first

In order to integrate across project management knowledge areas and across the organization, there must be a good ____ plan.

project

Activity ____ involves reviewing the activities in the detailed WBS, detailed product descriptions, assumptions, and constraints to determine the relationships between activities.

sequencing

There are ____ basic reasons for creating dependencies among project activities.

five

Dependencies that are defined by the project team are Discretionary dependencies.

True

What is a Gantt chart?

A schematic display of the logical relationships among project activities

Match the following project dependencies with their descriptions:

Mandatory = Inherent in the nature of the work Discretionary = Defined by the project team External = Between project and non-project activities Relationship = Involves project activities

What is the critical path method (CPM) used for?

Predicting total project duration

When constructing a WBS, in the ____ approach, team members first identify as many specific tasks related to the project as possible and then aggregate the specific tasks and organize them into summary activities or higher levels in the WBS.

bottom-up

The ____ approach is a technique that uses branches radiating out from a core idea to structure thoughts and ideas.

mind-mapping

The tendency for project scope to keep getting bigger and bigger is called ____ creep.

scope

The 1995 Standish Group CHAOS study found that key factors associated with information technology project success include user involvement and a clear statement of project ____.a.budget c.values b.requirements d.staff

requirements

Research and practice indicate that in order to verify project scope and control scope change, you need to improve user ____ and reduce incomplete and changing requirements and specifications.

input

JAD stands for joint ____ design.

application

Parametric modeling involves estimating individual work items and summing them to get a project total.

False

Earned value management involves calculating three values for each activity or summary activity from a project’s WBS.

True

If the cost performance index is equal to one or 100 percent, then the costs are exactly as budgeted.

True

If the schedule performance index is less than one or 100 percent, the project is ahead of schedule.

False

Putting all your projects in one database is the simplest level of project portfolio management.

True

The triple constraint of project management involves balancing ____, time, and cost goals.

scope

Many projects that are started never finish because of ____ management problems.

timeline

Most members of an executive board are more interested in financial terms than information technology terms.

True

Life cycle costing considers the total cost of ownership plus support costs for a project.

True

When constructing a WBS, in the ____ approach, team members first identify as many specific tasks related to the project as possible and then aggregate the specific tasks and organize them into summary activities, or higher levels in the WBS.

bottom-up

The ____ approach is a technique that uses branches radiating out from a core idea to structure thoughts and ideas.

mind-mapping

The tendency for project scope to keep getting bigger and bigger is called ____ creep.

scope

The 1995 Standish Group CHAOS study found that key factors associated with information technology project success include user involvement and a clear statement of project ____.

requirements

Common techniques for selecting projects include focusing on broad organization needs, categorizing projects, performing financial analyses, developing weighted scoring models, and using balanced ____.

scorecards

JAD stands for joint ____ design.

application

What does JAD stand for?

Joint Application Design

A type of software, called a(n) ____ management tool, aids in capturing and maintaining requirements information, provides immediate access to the information, and assists in establishing necessary relationships between requirements and information created by other tools.

requirements

What does WBS stand for?

Work Breakdown Structure

A 222 percent time overrun means that a project that was planned to take one year ended up taking 1.22 years to complete.

True

Schedule control involves analyzing activity sequences, activity duration estimates, and resource requirements to create the project schedule.

True

Until the 1980s, project management primarily focused on providing schedule and resource data to top management in the military and construction industries.

True

One attribute that helps define a project is that a project has a unique purpose.

True

Projects should go on indefinitely: they do not have a definite beginning, middle, or end.

False

A program is a group of projects managed in a coordinated way to obtain benefits not available from managing them individually.

True

A project never involves uncertainty.

False

Questions about how long a project’s schedule should be are related to the issue of the project’s scope.

False

Managing the triple constraint involves making trade-offs between scope, time, and cost goals for a project.

True

Much of the knowledge needed to manage projects is not unique to the discipline of project management.

True

Project managers must understand general management concepts such as organizational behavior, financial analysis, and planning techniques.

True

The role of a project manager is different from the role of a corporate manager or executive.

True

It would be very easy for someone with little or no background in information technology to become the project manager for a large information technology project.

False

Project management is the silver bullet that guarantees success on all projects.

False

Determining the relationships among tasks is not essential in helping to improve project scheduling.

False

The project manager’s challenge is to understand the concepts of project management and determine what tools and techniques should be applied on specific projects and in specific organizations.

True

No matter what industry you work in, you need to understand the problems at hand if you are to manage projects successfully.

True

The U.S. spends $2.3 trillion on projects every year, an amount equal to one-tenth of the nation’s gross domestic product.

False

Many organizations claim that one of the advantages of using project management is ____. a.lower profit margins b.lower costs c.lower quality d.lower worker morale

lower costs

Because a project often requires resources from various areas, many projects cross ____ or other boundaries to achieve their unique purpose. a.financial b.spatial c.departmental d.technological

spatial

The project ____ usually provides direction and funding for the project. a.leader b.sponsor c.manager d.director

sponsor

Project ____ is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities in order to meet project requirements. a.sponsorship b.advice c.technology d.management

management

____ are the people involved in or affected by project activities and include the project sponsor, project team, support staff, customers, users, suppliers, and even opponents to the project. a.Managers b.Stakeholders c.Directors d.Citizens

Stakeholders

In the example of the project of building a house, the sponsors would be the potential ____. a.contractors b.support staff c.managers d.homeowners

homeowners

Project ____ management ensures that the project will satisfy the stated or implied needs for which it was undertaken. a.scope b.quality c.time d.cost

quality

Project ____ management involves generating, collecting, disseminating, and storing project information. a.risk b.procurement c.communications d.resource

communications

Project ____ resource management is concerned with making effective use of the people involved with the project. a.human b.risk c.communications d.procurement

human

Project ____ management, the ninth knowledge area, is an overarching function that affects and is affected by all of the other knowledge areas. a.cost b.quality c.integration d.time

integration

What works on one project may not work on another, so it is essential for project managers to continue to develop their knowledge and ____ in managing projects. a.time b.resources c.funding d.skills

skills

Study Notes

Chapter 1: Introduction to Project Management

Project Management Definition*
A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service.
Focuses on integrating various activities to complete the project successfully.
Project vs. General Management*
Project managers focus on integrating activities for a specific project.
General managers focus on a particular discipline or functional area.
Triple Constraint*
Managing trade-offs between scope, time, and cost goals for a project.
Project Management Knowledge Areas*
Integration management
Scope management
Time management
Cost management
Quality management
Resource management
Communications management
Risk management
Procurement management
Project Stakeholders*
People involved in or affected by project activities.
Includes project sponsors, project team, support staff, customers, users, suppliers, and opponents.
Project Management Tools*
Gantt charts: display project schedule information in a calendar format.
Network diagrams: display project activities and their relationships.
Project Management Organization*
Project Management Office (PMO): coordinates project management function throughout an organization.
Project Management Institute (PMI): provides certification and resources for project managers.
Certification*
Project Management Professional (PMP): demonstrates knowledge and experience in project management.
Number of certified PMPs increased significantly over the years.

Chapter 2: The Project Management and Information Technology Context

Project Management Challenges*
Organizational issues are often the most difficult part of working on and managing projects.
Politics and power play a significant role in project management.
Project Organizational Structures*
Functional organization: project managers operate within a functional area.
Project organizational structure: project managers report directly to the CEO.
Matrix organizational structure: combines functional and project organizational structures.
Project Management Approach*
Systems approach: holistic and analytical approach to solving complex problems.
Prototyping life cycle model: requires heavy user involvement.
Information Technology Project Management*
Information technology project managers need to develop their knowledge and experience in project management, general management, and the industries they support.
Soft skills are essential for information technology project managers.### Project Management Concepts
A project manager's authority varies based on the organizational structure (e.g., functional, matrix, pure project)
The best way to kill a project is to withhold adequate resources
The spiral life cycle model was developed based on experience with refinements of the waterfall model in large government software projects
Ineffective project managers are not self-assured

Systems Approach

The systems approach emerged in the 1950s
It is a problem-solving approach that requires defining the scope of the system, dividing it into components, and identifying and evaluating problems, opportunities, constraints, and needs
It involves viewing projects in the context of the larger organization

Organizational Structure

The structural frame of an organization deals with how the organization is structured and focuses on different groups' roles and responsibilities
The human resources frame focuses on the people in the organization and how they work together
The symbolic frame focuses on the organization's culture and how it is presented to the outside world
The political frame focuses on power and competition among groups or individuals

ERP System

The R in an ERP system stands for "resource"
ERP systems integrate all aspects of business operations into a single system

Project Life Cycle

The concept and development phases of a project focus on planning
The implementation and close-out phases of a project focus on execution and delivery
A WBS (Work Breakdown Structure) is a hierarchical decomposition of the project into smaller, manageable tasks
A preliminary or rough cost estimate is developed in the concept phase
A definitive cost estimate is developed in the development phase

Agile Development

Agile development involves breaking projects into smaller, manageable chunks (sprints)
Scrum is an agile development framework that uses sprints to deliver working software in short iterations
XP (Extreme Programming) is an agile software development framework that emphasizes simplicity, flexibility, and customer satisfaction

Information Technology Project Management

Information technology project managers work in an environment where top management values information technology
The head of information technology is often called the Chief Information Officer (CIO)
Project management involves trade-offs among scope, time, and cost
The project management process groups are initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing

Project Management Process Groups

Initiating processes involve defining the project scope and obtaining authorization
Planning processes involve developing a detailed project plan
Executing processes involve carrying out the project plan
Controlling processes involve monitoring and controlling the project
Closing processes involve formalizing acceptance of the project and bringing it to an orderly end### Project Scope Management
A project scope statement is a document that outlines the project's objectives, deliverables, and stakeholders.
The scope statement serves as a guide for the project team and stakeholders to ensure everyone is on the same page.

Project Integration Management

Project integration management involves coordinating all project management knowledge areas throughout the project life cycle.
It ensures that all aspects of the project are properly planned, executed, monitored, and controlled.
Project integration management is critical to the success of a project.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

A WBS is a hierarchical decomposition of the project into smaller, more manageable tasks.
It helps to identify the scope of the project and break it down into smaller, more manageable pieces.
A WBS is used to organize and structure the project, and to ensure that all tasks are accounted for.

Project Planning

Project planning involves defining the project scope, goals, and deliverables.
It also involves identifying the project schedule, budget, and resources needed to complete the project.
Project planning is a critical step in the project management process.

Project Execution

Project execution involves carrying out the project plan by performing the activities included in it.
It involves coordinating and managing the project team, as well as tracking and controlling the project's progress.
Project execution is the phase of the project where the actual work is done.

Project Monitoring and Control

Project monitoring and control involves tracking and controlling the project's progress to ensure it is on track to meet its objectives.
It involves identifying and correcting any deviations from the project plan.
Project monitoring and control is critical to ensuring the project is completed successfully.

Project Closure

Project closure involves formally closing the project and documenting the lessons learned.
It involves evaluating the project's success and identifying areas for improvement.
Project closure is the final phase of the project management process.

Project Management Knowledge Areas

There are nine project management knowledge areas, which are:
- Integration management
- Scope management
- Time management
- Cost management
- Quality management
- Resource management
- Communications management
- Risk management
- Procurement management
Each knowledge area is critical to the success of a project.

Project Management Process Groups

There are five project management process groups, which are:
- Initiating
- Planning
- Executing
- Monitoring and controlling
- Closing
Each process group is a phase of the project management process.

Project Stakeholders

Project stakeholders are individuals or organizations that have an interest in the project.
They may be impacted by the project or have an impact on the project.
Stakeholders may include the project sponsor, customers, team members, and vendors.

Project Deliverables

Project deliverables are the products or services that the project will produce.
They may be tangible or intangible, and may include documents, software, hardware, or other items.
Deliverables are critical to the success of a project.

Configuration Management

Configuration management involves controlling and documenting the functional and physical characteristics of the project's products.
It ensures that the project's products are properly documented and controlled.
Configuration management is critical to ensuring the project's products are of high quality.

Change Management

Change management involves identifying, evaluating, and managing changes to the project.
It ensures that changes are properly documented and approved.
Change management is critical to ensuring that the project is completed successfully.

Status Review Meetings

Status review meetings are regular meetings held to review the project's progress.
They are used to track the project's progress, identify any issues, and make decisions about the project's direction.
Status review meetings are critical to ensuring the project is on track to meet its objectives.

Project Charter

A project charter is a document that outlines the project's objectives, scope, and stakeholders.
It is used to authorize the project and provide a high-level understanding of the project.
The project charter is critical to the success of a project.

Work Authorization System

A work authorization system is a method for ensuring that work is properly authorized and controlled.
It ensures that work is done by the right people at the right time and in the proper sequence.
A work authorization system is critical to ensuring the project is completed efficiently.

Joint Application Design (JAD)

JAD is a methodology used to develop software applications.
It involves working with stakeholders to define the requirements of the application.
JAD is a critical tool for developing software applications.

Project Management Software

Project management software is used to plan, execute, and control projects.
It may include tools for scheduling, resource allocation, and tracking progress.
Project management software is critical to ensuring the project is completed successfully.

Project Management Plan

A project management plan is a document that outlines the project's objectives, scope, schedule, budget, and resources.
It is used to guide the project team and ensure that the project is completed successfully.
The project management plan is critical to the success of a project.

Stakeholder Register

A stakeholder register is a document that outlines the stakeholders' names, organizations, roles, and unique facts.
It is used to identify and analyze the stakeholders' interests and needs.
A stakeholder register is critical to ensuring the project meets the stakeholders' needs.

Project Scope Statement

A project scope statement is a document that outlines the project's objectives, deliverables, and stakeholders.
It is used to ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding the project's scope.
The project scope statement is critical to the success of a project.

Project Integration Management Plan

A project integration management plan is a document that outlines the plan for integrating all project management knowledge areas.
It is used to ensure that all aspects of the project are properly planned, executed, monitored, and controlled.
The project integration management plan is critical to the success of a project.

Project Plan Execution

Project plan execution involves carrying out the project plan by performing the activities included in it.
It involves coordinating and managing the project team, as well as tracking and controlling the project's progress.
Project plan execution is the phase of the project where the actual work is done.

Project Controls

Project controls involve tracking and controlling the project's progress to ensure it is on track to meet its objectives.
It involves identifying and correcting any deviations from the project plan.
Project controls are critical to ensuring the project is completed successfully.

Project Status Reports

Project status reports are documents that provide status information on how the project is progressing.
They are used to track the project's progress and identify any issues.
Project status reports are critical to ensuring the project is on track to meet its objectives.

Change Control System

A change control system is a formal, documented process that describes when and how official project documents may be changed.
It ensures that changes are properly documented and approved.
A change control system is critical to ensuring the project is completed successfully.

Configuration Management Specialist

A configuration management specialist is responsible for controlling and documenting the functional and physical characteristics of the project's products.
They ensure that the project's products are properly documented and controlled.
A configuration management specialist is critical to ensuring the project's products are of high quality.

Project Management Methodologies

Project management methodologies are frameworks used to manage projects.
They provide a structured approach to managing projects.
Project management methodologies include Agile, Scrum, and Waterfall.

Project Management Knowledge Areas

There are nine project management knowledge areas, which are:
- Integration management
- Scope management
- Time management
- Cost management
- Quality management
- Resource management
- Communications management
- Risk management
- Procurement management
Each knowledge area is critical to the success of a project.

Project Management Process Groups

There are five project management process groups, which are:
- Initiating
- Planning
- Executing
- Monitoring and controlling
- Closing
Each process group is a phase of the project management process.

Project Closure

Project closure involves formally closing the project and documenting the lessons learned.
It involves evaluating the project's success and identifying areas for improvement.
Project closure is the final phase of the project management process.

Assess your knowledge of project management fundamentals with this introductory chapter quiz. Test your understanding of project management history, attribute definitions, and program management.

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