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Management Notes

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Major Knowledge Areas Required in Project Management

Major Knowledge Areas Required in Project Management | Project Management

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Major Knowledge Areas Required in Project Management

An effective project management approach encompasses many knowledge areas necessary to plan, execute, and complete a project effectively. To navigate the complexities of projects and ensure their successful delivery, project managers need to have these knowledge areas in their toolkit.

Some of the major knowledge areas required in project management are as follows:

 

i. Project Integration Management:

In project integration management, all project processes and activities are coordinated and integrated. This includes preparing a project charter, preparing a project management plan, executing the plan, monitoring and controlling the project, and closing the project. It includes the following processes:

a. Establish a Project Charter: A project charter is a document that formally authorizes the existence of a project and grants authority to the project manager.

b. Develop Project Management Plan: In this step, the project manager creates, documents, and communicates the project management plan, which outlines how the project will be executed, monitored, and controlled. There are several aspects covered, including scope, schedule, cost, quality, resources, communication, risks, and procurement.

c. Managing Project Work: This involves coordinating and leading the project activities. The project manager plays an important role in making sure that the project’s scope, schedule, and quality are met.

d. Project Monitoring and Control: This process focuses on tracking performance, monitoring project progress, and managing baseline changes. A key component is collecting and analyzing project data, comparing actual performance with planned performance, and correcting errors.

e. Perform Integrated Change Control: The project manager performs integrated change control to ensure that proposed changes are properly evaluated, approved, and implemented in the project scope, schedule, and cost.

f. Close project or Phase: This process culminates all project activities, formalizes the project or phase’s closure, and hands over deliverables to the customer or organization. As part of this process, project documents are archived, lessons learned sessions are conducted, and project success is celebrated.

ii. Project Scope Management:

Project scope management involves defining, documenting, and managing the project scope. It ensures that only the required work is included in the project. The processes involved in scope management are as follows:

a. Plan Scope Management: An effective scope management plan outlines how the project scope will be defined, validated, and controlled throughout the project.

b. Collect Requirements: The process of collecting requirements involves researching stakeholders’ needs, wants, and expectations and documenting them using techniques such as interviewing, questionnaires, and workshops.

c. Define Scope: The project manager documents the project’s scope by defining and documenting the deliverables and the work that must be done to create them.

d. Create Work Breakdown Structure (WBS): An effective Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) organizes the project deliverables into smaller, manageable components called work packages. It helps with resource allocation and cost estimation.

e. Validate Scope: This process involves securing stakeholder acceptance of project deliverables. This ensures the work is as specified.

f. Managing Scope: Scope control involves monitoring the scope of the project and managing changes to it. Change control processes help prevent scope creep by approving or rejecting scope changes.

iii. Project Time Management:

Project management involves developing a project schedule, sequencing project activities, estimating activity durations, and creating a project timeline. The steps involved in project management are the following:

a. Plan Schedule Management: Creating, monitoring, and controlling the project schedule begins with the development of a schedule management plan. This includes determining the scheduling methodologies, tools, and techniques.

b. Define Activities: A project’s deliverables are identified and documented through this process. It results in a list of activities that contribute to the achievement of those deliverables.

c. Sequence Activities: The sequence activities involves establishing the logical relationships and dependencies among project activities, helping to determine the order in which tasks should be completed.

d. Estimate Activity Duration: In estimating activity durations, resources are considered, productivity is considered, and other factors are considered. This process involves estimating the amount of work to be completed and the period of time required.

e. Develop Schedule: A project schedule is developed by analyzing activity sequences, durations, and resource availability and using techniques such as the critical path method (CPM) and the program evaluation and review technique (PERT) to determine the optimal schedule for the project.

f. Control Schedule: Keeping the project on schedule requires monitoring progress against the baseline schedule, identifying variances, and taking corrective actions. Adding resources, adjusting activity durations, or rearranging activity sequences can all be part of the process.

iv. Project Cost Management:

Project cost management involves estimating, budgeting, and controlling project costs in order to make sure the project is completed within the approved budget. The processes in cost management are as follows:

a. Plan Cost Management: The project manager creates a cost management plan that outlines how project costs will be estimated, budgeted, and controlled. The plan also defines the accuracy and precision necessary for cost estimates.

b. Estimate project Costs: This process involves estimating the project costs based on factors such as the scope of the project, the resources needed, and other relevant factors.

c. Budget Calculation: The project budget is calculated by aggregating the estimates of different activities or work packages. It provides a basis for estimating project costs and determining their control.

d. Control Costs: In order to keep the project on budget, cost control involves monitoring project expenditures, tracking variances between planned and actual costs, and taking corrective actions. Measurement and forecasting of cost performance can be accomplished using techniques such as earned value management (EVM).

v. Project Quality Management:

As part of quality management, a project’s deliverables must meet specified quality requirements; it focuses on preventing defects and improving processes so that stakeholders are satisfied with the project. Quality management processes include:

a. Quality Management Plan: A project manager develops a quality management plan that specifies the quality objectives, standards, and procedures to be followed during the project.

b. Perform Quality Assurance: A quality assurance program involves evaluating a project’s processes and activities to assure that they comply with organizational policies, procedures, and industry standards. This includes auditing, reviewing, and analyzing the process to identify where improvements can be made.

c. Control Quality: A quality control program monitors project results to see if they meet the specified quality requirements. Deliverables are inspected, tested, and verified to make sure they meet the defined standards. Nonconformance are identified, documented, and resolved.

vi. Project Human Resource Management:

In human resource management, the project team is managed throughout its lifecycle. Human resource management involves acquiring, developing, and managing the project team, as well as resolving any conflicts that may arise. The following processes are involved in human resource management:

a. Plan Human Resource Management: Identify, acquire, develop, and manage project resources using a human resource management plan which includes roles, responsibilities, reporting relationships, and staffing management.

b. Assemble the Project Team: The first step in completing a project is to gather the necessary resources. This involves identifying the resources required, negotiating with functional managers, and selecting team members.

c. Team Development: The development of project teams focuses on enhancing the competence and performance of team members. It includes team building activities, performance appraisals, and providing feedback.

d. Assist with Team Management: This process involves monitoring and managing the team members’ performance, giving feedback, resolving conflicts, ensuring the project team works effectively, motivating them, and addressing any concerns.

vii. Project Communications Management:

Managing communications ensures that project stakeholders communicate effectively. In communications management, a communication plan is developed, project information is distributed, stakeholder expectations are managed, and communication channels are maintained. There are several processes involved in communication management:

a. Plan Communication Management: Project managers create a communications management plan that describes how communications for the project will be planned, executed, monitored, and controlled. Communicating with stakeholders includes determining the frequency and format of communication, as well as the communication channels.

b. Manage Communication: This process involves creating and distributing project information on a timely basis to stakeholders. Examples include meetings, status reports, and project presentations.

c. Control Communications: In communication control, project communications are monitored and controlled throughout the project lifecycle, ensuring that information is understood, received, and responded to properly. Managing communication-related issues, resolving conflicts, and adjusting communication strategies are also involved.

viii. Project Risk Management:

A project’s risk management involves identifying, analyzing, and managing potential threats and opportunities. The following processes contribute to risk management:

a. Risk Management Plan: An effective risk management plan outlines how project risks will be identified, assessed, managed, and controlled. An approach, roles, and responsibilities, risk categories, probability and impact assessment scales, and probability and impact assessment scales are included.

b. Risk Identification: Identifying potential risks that can affect the project objectives is accomplished through brainstorming, risk checklists, historical data analysis, and other methods. The identified risks are recorded in a risk register.

c. Qualitative Risk Analysis: This method involves assigning probability and impact ratings to each risk, and then ranking their significance based on their probability and impact.

d. Analyze Quantitative Risks: Quantitative risk analysis involves identifying the overall project objectives and analyzing the combined effect of identified risks.

e. Plan Risk Responses: Risk response planning involves developing strategies to increase opportunities and reduce threats against the project objectives, such as risk mitigation, risk prevention, risk transfer, risk acceptance, and contingency planning.

f. Taking risks: Implementing risk response strategies outlined in the previous step may involve taking preventive actions, creating fallback plans, or creating contingency reserves.

g. Risk Monitoring and Control: Identifying risks, monitoring residual risks, and implementing risk response plans are necessary to make sure that risks are identified promptly, and they are appropriately addressed.

ix. Project Procurement Management:

Purchasing goods and services from external vendors or suppliers is part of procurement management. It includes processes such as procurement planning, solicitation planning, solicitation, source selection, contract administration, and contract closure. The processes of procurement management are as follows:

a. Procurement Management Plan: The project manager creates a procurement management plan that specifies how project procurement activities will be planned, implemented, monitored, and controlled.

b. Conduct Procurement: The procurement process includes gathering responses from sellers, selecting vendors, and awarding contracts, and includes preparation of procurement documents, bid evaluations, and contract negotiations.

c. Control Procurement: Procurement control involves monitoring vendor performance, managing contract changes, and resolving any disputes that may arise when sellers fail to meet contractual obligations.

d. Close Procurements: The close procurement process encompasses closing all procurement processes, finalizing contracts, documenting lessons learned, and verifying that all deliverables have been received, evaluating seller performance, and archiving procurement records.

x. Project Stakeholder Management:

A stakeholder management process identifies, analyzes, and manages stakeholders throughout the project to address their needs, expectations, and concerns. A stakeholder management process includes:

a. Stakeholder Identification: Identifying all individuals, groups, or organizations affected or possibly affected by a project involves identifying their interests, expectations, and influence.

b. Engage and Communicate with Stakeholders: The project manager creates a stakeholder engagement plan that outlines how stakeholders will be involved, communicated with, and managed throughout the project. Communication channels, frequency, and format are included in the definition of stakeholder engagement.

c. Managing Stakeholder Engagement: This process involves fostering positive stakeholder relationships and addressing their concerns and expectations. It entails communicating with stakeholders, resolving conflicts, and involving stakeholders in project decisions.

d. Monitor Stakeholder Engagement: Stakeholder engagement is monitored throughout the project to ensure stakeholders remain satisfied and supportive. An effective stakeholder engagement strategy must be assessed, areas of improvement identified, and adjustments made as needed.

In order to effectively manage projects, project managers need to be able to integrate and balance these ten knowledge areas. In order to ensure project success, these knowledge areas must be integrated and balanced, as they are not sequential but interconnected.

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