Building a project plan can be done in three phases: build a plan, track and manage project, and close a project. Each phase contains one or more broad tasks that should be considered. (The following is a summary of information found here.)
Build and Plan
- Define a project
- Plan project activities
- Plan for and procure resources
- Plan project costs
- Plan for quality and risks
- Plan communication and security
- Optimize a project plan
- Distribute a project plan
Track and Manage a Project
- Track progress
- Manage a schedule
- Manage resources
- Manage costs
- Manage scope
- Manage risks
- Report project status
Close a Project
- Review final project information
Summary
It is tempting to stay in the planning stages of your project until the entire project has been completely planned before starting any of the project work. It is tempting, but not a good idea. In most projects the project team, or at least some of the project team members, can start to work on some project assignments early in the project while the details of planning are still be defined.
Consider a project to create a house for a client. Do you need to know exactly what type of cabinets the client will put in the kitchen pantry before the construction crews can clear the land? Before the foundation can be built? Some details, such as the size and specifications of the house, must be defined, but other details, such as the cabinets, do not need to be defined in great detail.
Other projects, especially smaller projects, may require the entire project to be planned before the project team gets to work on their activities. The best answer to this question is that it depends on the size of the project, the amount of resources available, and the type of decisions that need to be defined in order to allow the project work to commence. Certainly no project manager wants to have to do "undo" project work because of lacking decisions early in the project planning.
No comments:
Post a Comment