Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning
Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning
Project management has been quite enriching career for many project management experts. And interestingly, many of them believe they became project manager by accident. But today, quite a few under-graduates, post graduate and industry professionals are making the choice consciously to become a project manager or project management professionals.
So, what does it take to be the project manager: someone will think in in terms of passion-calling, salary, academic background or career progression or someone even think about project management software. But before you jump in for any conclusion, let’s try to understand what all activities a project manager performs. Project management is like a huge canvas, but let me present a basic guide for a beginner to understand project management and project planning.
Please click on the links underneath this image as you hover the mouse and navigate to respective area of project planning
Project Planning Overview
In this first part of project planning, let’s get an overview of project planning, why it is required, when project actually starts is it project charter or project schedule? To the contrary of popular misconception; and it is indeed important to understand that project planning is not about task schedule. This part gives you the glimpse of what all activities project planning process should cover.
Project Scope Planning
More often than not, project scope is never readily available. It is in fact good for the project manager and the project team. How can one sign up for delivery when stakeholders have not defined the outcome/delivery boundaries? This is a crucial phase of a project where one can’t go wrong. If you go wrong here, it becomes very difficult for the project team to deliver as per undefined or loosely defined project scope. Seasoned project manager is careful, mindful before signing a project scope document.
Project Schedule Planning
Here comes the most popular part of the project management process. Newbie project manager things this is the only and the most important part of project management. Though not entirely true, project scheduling plan is important. Some organizations have specific people, designation called project scheduler or project planner to take care of project scheduling process. It involves taking into account deliverables, milestones, task schedules, dependencies, resources, cost, baseline, critical path, Gantt chart, etc.
Project Resource Planning
Project resource planning is one critical area where most of the project managers struggles. Most project managers spend countless hours in deploying, re-deploying, relocating, assigning, un-assigning resources to projects, activities. Though it is not common, many organizations have Resource Manager role to take care of project resource planning. Enterprise organizations have large programs and resources are typically assigned/re-assigned within programs.
Project Cost Planning
Money Money Money. Words speak about this process is about. You will find that a project may get approved without actual resources or in absence of meticulous plan but it will not be approved without having budget. Unlike earlier days, organizations have been pretty cautious about their spending. We are living in the days when market capitalizations of listed companies is washed away by billion dollars because of one or two news articles, raising questions about their business fundamentals. It is imperative that companies will turn highly cautious about where they are spending if business turns upside down. Yeah, other-way-round is also true – unless you spend wisely, prudently on newer tech, processes or innovations, your business will turn obsolete. This section talks about project budgeting process, cost tracking aspects.
Project Risk Planning
Unfortunately risk planning is ignored by most project managers however it is equally crucial for a successful project delivery. Without sound risk management process, a business can not succeed, it can not scale. Planning right risks in a project is a result of awareness, experience as well as maturity of the processes and also people involved.
Project Quality Planning
Project Communication
You have to plan project communication right from the beginning. Unlike previous days, stakeholders are well informed and have clear expectations. It is better to agree and declare the project communication plan right in the beginning.
As You Start Planning or Managing Project
- Before you start managing projects, you need to understand goals and objectives
- You also need to set and manage expectations of project sponsors, customers and other stakeholders
- Project managers also need to set a clear understanding of expectations from project team members
- Developing a high level project deliverable timeline as well as detailed schedule (Gantt Chart, Agile/Kanban)
- Set a project budget and estimate the cost of project
- Identifying right resources to carry out project activities
- Establishing and enabling a common platform for identification and addressing project issues and project risks
- Set a process to submit, evaluate and approve project change requests
- Controlling project during its execution and concluding it for completion
As you see look at above list, you realize, a lot of work goes into project even before kicking it off. That’s where the project planner, project manager have to do solid homework or call it drawing room work.
For planning and managing projects, there are various documents project manager has to consider, refer, prepare, share and update such as
- Project charter that establishes
- Project goals,
- Objectives,
- Background and
- Approach
- Project scope document or project requirement document
- List of project deliverables
- Project Constraints/assumptions
- Exclusion list of requirements/deliverables
- Project Schedule
- WBS
- Task Schedule
- Milestones
- Project cost plan
- Budget
- Estimated cost
- Actual cost tracking mechanism
- Billing/revenue
- Margins/profits,
- Resource management plan
- Other supporting plans
- Risk management plan
- Quality management plan
- Change management plan
- Document control plan
- Communication plan
- Other approvals, sign off approval process
The key to a successful project is in the planning. Creating a project plan is the first thing you should do when undertaking any project.
Often project planning is ignored in favour of getting on with the work. However, many people fail to realise the value of a project plan for saving time, money and many problems.
The articles linked above, in this post provide a simple approach to basics of project planning. Someone who is interested in project management professional will find this guide quite useful, for experienced project manager, it will be a good refresher or back to basics reading of basics of project planning
Additional readings about project management, leadership
- Avoid These 10 Most Common Mistakes That Leads to Project Failure
- Transition of A Good To Great Project Manager
- Looking for a robust task management software: Best of Both Worlds: Gantt Chart + Kanban Board?
- Project Management Tool for Software/ IT Projects
- ZilicusPM Project Management Software for IT Teams
- 7 Reasons Why SMBs Prefer All In One Project Management Tool
- Get Organized: Pick Right Project Management Software
ZilicusPM is a complete project management software for your team. Get started now!
Your life can be become easier with the right project management system. ZilicusPM is the right PMO software tool for you and your team. Get started now.
Additional readings about project management, leadership
- Case Study: What Happens When Project Team Has Dual Reporting
- Avoid These 10 Most Common Mistakes That Leads to Project Failure
- Back2Basics: Ultimate Project Management Guide: Project Planning
- 8 Reasons to Decide Whether Your Organization Needs Project Management Office
- Compare the best project management software
- All in one project management software
- Guide to selecting best project management software
- Go for Best Project Management Tool also read project portfolio management, PPM Software guide
Do you know ZilicusPM project management tool offers comprehensive project planning, project tracking, project collaboration capabilities such as
- Gantt Chart Software
- Time Tracking
- Budgeting and Cost Management
- Resource Planning and Management
- Issue Tracking
- Risk Management
- Change Management
- Meeting Management
- Stakeholder Management
- Project Portfolio Management
- Project Reporting
- Document Management to help you manage and deliver projects better?
About Zilicus
Zilicus offers the best project portfolio management tool ZilicusPM, with robust project management tools capabilities and easy ways to track project management KPI,
Know more about project portfolio management, Gantt chart, best project management tool, project management office, project management tips, project planning guide, project risk management, project scope management, effective project management, project manager guides and know more about Project Portfolio Management Software, Project Management Software Guide.
6 Comments
[…] Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning March 18, 2016 […]
[…] Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning March 18, 2016 […]
[…] Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning March 18, 2016 […]
[…] Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning March 18, 2016 […]
[…] Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning […]
[…] Project Management Guide – Basics of Project Planning March 18, 2016 […]