Chapter 1:
Introduction to
Project Management
Information Technology
Project Management,
Eighth Edition
Note: See the text itself for full citations.
Introduction
Many organizations today have a new or renewed
interest in project management
Worldwide IT spending was $3.8 trillion in 2014, a
3.2 percent increase from 2013 spending
The Project Management Institute estimates
demand for 15.7 million project management jobs
from 2010 to 2020, with 6.2 million of those jobs in
the United States
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 2
Project Management Statistics
In 2013 (the most recent year of PMI’s salary survey), the
average salary in U.S. dollars for someone in the project
management profession was $108,000 per year in the
United States; $134,658 in Australia, (the highest-paid
country); and $24,201 in Egypt (the lowest-paid country)
The top skills employers look for in new college graduates
are all related to project management: team-work,
decision-making, problem-solving, and verbal
communications
Organizations waste $109 million for every $1 billion spent
on projects, according to PMI’s Pulse of the Profession®
report
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 3
Motivation for Studying Information
Technology (IT) Project Management
IT Projects have a terrible track record, as described in the
What Went Wrong?
A 1995 Standish Group study (CHAOS) found that only
16.2% of IT projects were successful in meeting scope,
time, and cost goals; over 31% of IT projects were
canceled before completion
A PricewaterhouseCoopers study found that overall half of
all projects fail and only 2.5% of corporations consistently
meet their targets for scope, time, and cost goals for all
types of project.
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 4
Advantages of Using Formal
Project Management
Better control of financial, physical, and human
resources
Improved customer relations
Shorter development times
Lower costs
Higher quality and increased reliability
Higher profit margins
Improved productivity
Better internal coordination
Higher worker morale
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 5
What Is a Project?
A project is “a temporary endeavor undertaken
to create a unique product, service, or result”
(PMBOK® Guide, Fifth Edition, 2013)
Operations is work done to sustain the business
Projects end when their objectives have been
reached or the project has been terminated
Projects can be large or small and take a short
or long time to complete
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 6
Examples of IT Projects
A team of students creates a smartphone
application and sells it online
A company develops a driverless car
A government group develops a system to track
child immunizations
A global bank acquires other financial institutions
and needs to consolidate systems and procedures
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 7
Top Strategic Technologies for 2012
(Gartner)
Computing everywhere
The Internet of things
3D printing
Advanced, pervasive, and invisible analytics
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 8
Media Snapshot: Unproductive Apps
Gartner predicted that by 2014, there would be more
than 70 billion mobile application downloads every
year, but it was almost double
Facebook is by far the most downloaded app, and
the most popular category of all apps continues to be
games
The challenge is to develop useful apps and get
workers to focus on them instead of the many
distracting options available
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 9
Project Attributes
A project
◦ has a unique purpose
◦ is temporary
◦ is developed using progressive elaboration
◦ requires resources, often from various areas
◦ should have a primary customer or sponsor
The project sponsor usually provides the direction and
funding for the project
◦ involves uncertainty
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 10
Project and Program Managers
Project managers work with project sponsors,
project team, and other people involved in a
project to meet project goals
Program: group of related projects managed in a
coordinated way to obtain benefits and control not
available from managing them individually
(PMBOK® Guide, Fifth Edition, 2013)
Program managers oversee programs; often act
as bosses for project managers
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 11
Figure 1-1 The Triple Constraint of
Project Management
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 12
What is Project Management?
Project management is “the application of
knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project
activities to meet project requirements” (PMBOK®
Guide, Fourth Edition, 2013)
Project managers strive to meet the triple
constraint (project scope, time, and cost goals)
and also facilitate the entire process to meet the
needs and expectations of project stakeholders
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 13
Figure 1-2 Project Management
Framework
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 14
Project Stakeholders
Stakeholders are the people involved in or
affected by project activities
Stakeholders include
◦ the project sponsor
◦ the project manager
◦ the project team
◦ support staff
◦ customers
◦ users
◦ suppliers
◦ opponents to the project
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 15
10 Project Management Knowledge
Areas
Knowledge areas describe the key competencies
that project managers must develop
Project managers must have knowledge and skills
in all 10 knowledge areas (project integration,
scope, time, cost, quality, human resource,
communications, risk, procurement, and
stakeholder management)
This text includes an entire chapter on each
knowledge area
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 16
Project Management Tools and
Techniques
Project management tools and techniques assist
project managers and their teams in various
aspects of project management
Some specific ones include
◦ Project charter, scope statement, and WBS (scope)
◦ Gantt charts, network diagrams, critical path analysis,
critical chain scheduling (time)
◦ Cost estimates and earned value management (cost)
◦ See Table 1-1 for many more
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 17
Super Tools
“Super tools” are those tools that have high use and
high potential for improving project success, such as:
◦ Software for task scheduling (such as project management
software)
◦ Scope statements
◦ Requirements analyses
◦ Lessons-learned reports
Tools already extensively used that have been found to
improve project importance include:
◦ Progress reports
◦ Kick-off meetings
◦ Gantt charts
◦ Change requests
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 18
What Went Right? Improved
Project Performance
The Standish Group’s CHAOS studies show
improvements in IT projects in the past decade:
The number of successful IT projects has more than
doubled, from 16 percent in 1994 to 39 percent in 2012
The number of failed projects decreased from 31
percent in 1994 to 18 percent in 2012
Success rates were much higher for small projects
than large ones – 76 percent versus 10 percent
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 19
Project Success
There are several ways to define project success:
◦ The project met scope, time, and cost goals
◦ The project satisfied the customer/sponsor
◦ The results of the project met its main objective, such as
making or saving a certain amount of money, providing a
good return on investment, or simply making the
sponsors happy
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 20
Table 1-2: What Helps Projects Succeed?*
1. Executive support
2. User involvement
3. Clear business objectives
4. Emotional maturity
5. Optimizing scope
6. Agile process
7. Project management expertise
8. Skilled resources
9. Execution
10. Tools and infrastructure
*The Standish Group, “CHAOS Manifesto 2013: Think Big,
Act Small” (2013).
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 21
Top Three Reasons Why Federal
Technology Project Succeed
Adequate funding
Staff expertise
Engagement from all stakeholders
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 22
What the Winners Do…
Recent research findings show that companies that
excel in project delivery capability:
◦ Use an integrated project management toolbox
(use standard/advanced PM tools, lots of
templates)
◦ Grow project leaders, emphasizing business and
soft skills
◦ Develop a streamlined project delivery process
◦ Measure project health using metrics, like customer
satisfaction or return on investment
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 23
Program and Project Portfolio
Management
A program is “a group of related projects managed
in a coordinated way to obtain benefits and control
not available from managing them individually”
(PMBOK® Guide, Fifth Edition, 2013)
A program manager provides leadership and
direction for the project managers heading the
projects within the program
Examples of common programs in the IT field include
infrastructure, applications development, and user
support
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 24
Project Portfolio Management
As part of project portfolio management,
organizations group and manage projects and
programs as a portfolio of investments that
contribute to the entire enterprise’s success
Portfolio managers help their organizations make
wise investment decisions by helping to select and
analyze projects from a strategic perspective
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 25
Figure 1-3. Project Management Compared
to Project Portfolio Management
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 26
Best Practice
A best practice is “an optimal way recognized by
industry to achieve a stated goal or objective”*
Robert Butrick suggests that organizations need to
follow basic principles of project management, including
these two mentioned earlier in this chapter:
◦ Make sure your projects are driven by your strategy. Be able to
demonstrate how each project you undertake fits your business
strategy, and screen out unwanted projects as soon as possible
◦ Engage your stakeholders. Ignoring stakeholders often leads to
project failure. Be sure to engage stakeholders at all stages of a
project, and encourage teamwork and commitment at all times
*Project Management Institute, Organizational Project Management Maturity Model
(OPM3) Knowledge Foundation (2003), p. 13.
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 27
Figure 1-4. Sample Project Portfolio
Approach
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 28
Figure 1-5. Microsoft project portfolio
management capabilities
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 29
The Role of the Project Manager
Job descriptions vary, but most include
responsibilities like planning, scheduling,
coordinating, and working with people to achieve
project goals
Remember that 97% of successful projects were
led by experienced project managers, who can
often help influence success factors
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 30
Suggested Skills for Project
Managers
The Project Management Body of Knowledge
Application area knowledge, standards, and
regulations
Project environment knowledge
General management knowledge and skills
Soft skills or human relations skills
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 31
Table 1-3 Ten Most Important Skills and
Competencies for Project Managers
1. People skills
2. Leadership
3. Listening
4. Integrity, ethical behavior, consistent
5. Strong at building trust
6. Verbal communication
7. Strong at building teams
8. Conflict resolution, conflict management
9. Critical thinking, problem solving
10. Understands, balances priorities
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 32
Different Skills Needed in Different
Situations
Large projects: Leadership, relevant prior experience,
planning, people skills, verbal communication, and team-
building skills were most important
High uncertainty projects: Risk management,
expectation management, leadership, people skills, and
planning skills were most important
Very novel projects: Leadership, people skills, having
vision and goals, self confidence, expectations
management, and listening skills were most important
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 33
Importance of Leadership Skills
Effective project managers provide leadership by
example
A leader focuses on long-term goals and big-
picture objectives while inspiring people to reach
those goals
A manager deals with the day-to-day details of
meeting specific goals
Project managers often take on the role of both
leader and manager
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 34
Careers for IT Project Managers
In a 2014 survey, IT executives listed the “ten
hottest skills” they planned to hire for in 2015
Project management was second only to
programming and application development
Even if you choose to stay in a technical role, you
still need project management knowledge and
skills to help your team and organization
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 35
Table 1-4. Ten Hottest IT Skills
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 36
The Project Management Profession
The profession of project management is growing
at a very rapid pace
It is helpful to understand the history of the field,
the role of professional societies like the Project
Management Institute, and the growth in project
management software
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 37
History of Project Management
Some people argue that building the Egyptian
pyramids was a project, as was building the Great
Wall of China
Most people consider the Manhattan Project to
be the first project to use “modern” project
management
This three-year, $2 billion (in 1946 dollars) project
had a separate project manager and a technical
manager
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 38
Figure 1-6. Sample Gantt Chart
Created with Project 2013
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 39
Figure 1-7. Sample Network Diagram
Created with Project 2013
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 40
Project Management Offices
In the 100s, many companies began creating
PMOs to help them handle the increasing number
and complexity of projects
A Project Management Office (PMO) is an
organizational group responsible for coordinating
the project management function throughout an
organization
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 41
Figure 1-8. Growth in the Number of
Project Management Offices
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 42
Global Issues
Several global dynamics are forcing organizations to
rethink their practices:
◦ Talent development for project and program managers is a
top concern
◦ Good project portfolio management is crucial in tight
economic conditions
◦ Basic project management techniques are core
competencies
◦ Organizations want to use more agile approaches to
project management
◦ Benefits realization of projects is a key metric
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 43
The Project Management Institute
The Project Management Institute (PMI) is an international
professional society for project managers founded in 1969
PMI has continued to attract and retain members,
reporting more than 449,000 members worldwide by late
2014
There are communities of practices in many areas, like
information systems, financial services, and health care
Project management research and certification programs
continue to grow
Students can join PMI at a reduced fee and earn the
Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)
certification(see www.pmi.org for details)
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 44
Project Management Certification
PMI provides certification as a Project
Management Professional (PMP)
A PMP has documented sufficient project
experience, agreed to follow a code of ethics, and
passed the PMP exam
The number of people earning PMP certification is
increasing quickly
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 45
Figure 1-9 Growth in PMP
Certification, 1993-2014
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 46
Ethics in Project Management
Ethics, loosely defined, is a set of principles that
guide our decision making based on personal values
of what is “right” and “wrong”
Project managers often face ethical dilemmas
In order to earn PMP certification, applicants must
agree to PMI’s Code of Ethics and Professional
Conduct
Several questions on the PMP exam are related to
professional responsibility, including ethics
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 47
Project Management Software
There are hundreds of different products to assist in
performing project management
Three main categories of tools:
◦ Low-end tools: Handle single or smaller projects well, cost
under $200 per user
◦ Midrange tools: Handle multiple projects and users, cost
$200-$1,000 per user, Project 2013 most popular
◦ High-end tools: Also called enterprise project management
software, often licensed on a per-user basis
Several free or open-source tools are also available
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Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 48
Chapter Summary
A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a
unique product, service, or result
Project management is the application of knowledge, skills,
tools, and techniques to project activities to meet project
requirements
A program is a group of related projects managed in a
coordinated way
Project portfolio management involves organizing and
managing projects and programs as a portfolio of investments
Project managers play a key role in helping projects and
organizations succeed
The project management profession continues to grow and
mature
Information Technology Project
Management, Eighth Edition Copyright 2016 49
