PMBOK, Project Management/Project Management

The Project Management Institute (PMI) is an organization that attempts to establish a standard order and criteria for project management.

For this purpose, PMI maintains the Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK) which establishes a whole set of tools and good practices that every project manager should know and apply.

In contrast to other methodologies (eg agile methodologies like Scrum), PMBOK is oriented towards predictive project management. PMBOK presents several phases of a project in a linear way (once a phase is overcome, it does not return to it), where the need/solution, scope and planning (for example, cost and duration of each of the tasks to be executed) is established in the initial phases (that is why it is called predictive management).

Therefore, we could consider PMBOK as belonging to the more classic branch of project management (as well as the complementary PRINCE2 standard, popular in the UK). However, this fact does not mean that part of the tools it offers cannot be used in combination with other more agile and flexible methodologies.

Before going into the subject, it is necessary to establish the definition and characteristics of a project according to the PMBOK:

• A project tries to solve a problem (cover a need).
• it's temporary
• It is unique in time and not repeatable under the same circumstances.
• carries uncertainty
• It consumes resources: Time, money, materials and labor.

Projects have their own lifecycle, which is divided into the following phases:

• Start: The need is identified and the question is asked if it is possible to carry out the project.

• Planning:
  • A solution is developed in greater detail.
  • Definition of tasks, calendar.
  • Cost estimation in time and money.
  • Again, the question is whether the project is viable.

• Execution: Monitoring and planning adjustments.
• Closing: it is verified whether the project satisfies the need to be contemplated

All these phases imply the following general processes:

• Identify the problem or opportunity

• Identify and define the ideal solution

• Identify the tasks and resources required.

• Prepare the schedule and obtain resources

• Estimate the cost of the project and prepare a budget

• Analyze risks and establish relationships with stakeholders (anyone who has a direct or indirect interest in the project): Periodic risk management

• Maintain control and communication at the appropriate level during execution: Periodic meetings to detect and report deviations

• Manage a successful close
  • Punch list: list of tasks to complete the project.
  • Team members tend to spread out when the project is nearing closure.

However, a project can be seen from other perspectives, such as from the point of view of interpersonal relationships:

• Motivate the team: Create the right climate
  • Spend time explaining how each role contributes to the project
  • Invest time in meetings to highlight the positive contributions of members.
  • Trust delegated work
  • Assign goals to individuals and allow them to choose the path.
  • Recognize efforts that go beyond what is asked.
  • lead by example

• manage diversity
  • Identify possible personal goals to minimize them or convert them into group goals.
  • Seek group cohesion (harmonize customs, cultures, etc.).

In turn, in addition to the internal processes of project management and interpersonal relationships, projects are developed and executed within an organization. Currently we can find companies whose main business is the execution of projects, for example in the Consulting and Auditing sector. This is the most positive scenario as the entire organization is focused on project management.

However, most companies have a hierarchical structure composed of departments with different functions and employees who perform specific tasks, whose mobility tends to be quite sporadic. In this type of scenario, the execution of a project (which, as established, is temporary) with internal collaborators presents a more difficult scenario to manage (this is one of the reasons why projects are often contracted to external consultants and auditors) .

This second situation can give employees a “Silo Mentality”, that is, people whose objectives are linked to their functional area and not to the project to which they were allocated; they may not care about the success of the project, giving preference to fulfilling their stable obligations from their departmental unit. This problem can block teamwork cooperation (horizontal thinking).

In short, the degree of maturity of the organization and the established internal procedures can contribute to the success or failure of the project:

• If the organization usually works on projects, there are already defined guidelines.

• Formal communication channels: If they are too rigid, they can disrupt work

• Informal communication channels (friends, acquaintances, etc.): If they are too frequent, they can produce misinformation

Finally, the PMBOK establishes that to consider that a project was successful, the following expectations must be met:

• Level I. Achieving project objectives

• Level II. Project efficiency.
  • Client work interruption level.
  • Efficient use of resources
  • Growth in the number of team members
  • management conflict

• Level III. Utility for the end user/customer.
  • Has the initial issue been resolved?
  • Did benefits increase or were there real savings?
  • Is the user currently using the product?
• Level IV. Organizational improvement: learning from experience

project manager

A project manager or project manager has the following responsibilities:

• The project: Cost, schedule, functionality and quality objectives.
  • The organization
  • Return on investment.

• Flow of information: provide proactively, if any supervisor is surprised by some information, it means that we have not informed correctly.

• The team: Provide feedback and recognition.

• About yourself: Personal growth.

On the other hand, the project manager constantly faces challenges, among which we can find the following:

• Responsibility vs. Absence of Authority
  • High level of responsibility.
  • I work with people over whom I have no direct authority.

• unrealistic goals
  • It is one of the most common problems.
  • It reinforces the idea of correctly analyzing and planning the scope of the project.

• functional orientation
  • People will tend to focus on their functional knowledge area.
  • Its functional area is more important than the project given its temporality.

• Fundamental conflict over uncertainty
  • Make quick decisions with little information.
  • Interval estimates (for example, costs)
  • Try to make estimation difficulties understood by superiors and team members.

To successfully tackle the responsibilities and challenges that project management presents, a project manager must constantly hone the following skills:

• Project management: tools for planning and monitoring.
• interpersonal relationships
  • Leadership, negotiation and delegation skills.
  • Oral and written communication skills
  • Conflict resolution.
  • Skills to develop the role of mentor (coaching)

• technological knowledge
  • Knowledge of industry and technology areas
  • Product and/or process knowledge
  • design skills

• personal skills
  • honesty, integrity
  • think globally
  • High tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity
  • persuasive and assertive
  • open and accessible
  • Decisive
  • Commercial. Ability to sell ideas or the virtues of the project.
  • Teacher. Transmit knowledge to team members.

Project definition

The definition of the project consists of the following phases:

• Phase I. Understand the problem or opportunity.
• Phase II. Identify the most optimal solution
• Phase III. Develop the solution and draw up a plan
• Phase IV. Project launch

Phase I. Understand the problem or opportunity.

It is essential to identify the real need that the project intends to meet. The work will be evaluated based on whether or not this need has been satisfactorily met.

First, it is necessary to differentiate between a need and a solution.

A necessity:

• Describes the objective to the client

• Specify goals and objectives

• Leave the question of how to do this open.

• The answer to why this is being done must point to a business justification.

Instead, a solution:

• Describes the means for the team
• Specify strategies and ideas for achieving goals and objectives.
• Specify how to do it.
• The answer to why this is being done must point to the customer's need.
• Asking to identify the real need can make third parties feel uncomfortable for not trusting your criteria.

Based on these definitions, this phase should result in the generation of the project requirements document, which does not offer a solution, but only describes a need. This document must contain the following sections:

• Description of the problem or opportunity
• Impact or effect of the problem
• Identify who or what is affected by the issue
• Impact of ignoring the issue
• desired situation
• Benefits associated with reaching the desired situation
• Alignment with the organization's strategy
• Compatibility conflict with other areas of the organization
• uncertainties
• main assumptions
• Solution Limitations
• environmental considerations
• Historical support information

Once all of this information has been collected, it is necessary to re-evaluate whether the problem is worth solving and determine if there is a potential solution.

Phase II. Identify the most optimal solution

To identify solutions that cover the identified need, the following procedure can be followed:

• Group brainstorming with future engagement team members or stakeholders.
• Check to what degree they satisfy the project requirements document statements.
• Select between 2 and 5 candidate solutions.

For the selected candidate solutions, a detailed analysis must be made to identify which one best suits the need to be covered and implies an affordable cost.

Financial analysis (Costs x Benefits):

To validate the financial viability of the project, it is necessary to identify the cash inflows that it can generate, for example, benefits obtained with the implementation of the project (increased sales, cost reduction, etc…) and the expenses that the start-up stands for Project Progress and Management.

Thus, by estimating the magnitude of the different cash flows and calculating the 4 basic indicators, we can identify which project provides us with the highest financial profitability.

At least the following indicators should be studied:

• Net Present Value (NPV). Determine how much money the project will generate by taking into account the time value of money.
• Internal Rate of Return (IRR) . Determine the return on investment.
• Period return . Determines when the investment will be recouped (NPV = 0).
• money hole . Determine the maximum investment required.

Non-Financial Analysis (Weighted Factor Scoring Model - Decision Matrix)

The analysis using the weighted factorial scoring model (“Decision Matrix”) begins with the elaboration of a list of attributes to be valued. For each of them, a weighting is established and scores are assigned that denote the degree of compliance of each of the candidate solutions:

Advantage:

• Allows the use of various data, including financial data.
• Allows management involvement and sensitivity analysis.

Disadvantages:

• Highly subjective process.
• It shows the attractiveness of the project, but does not represent a commercial justification.

In addition to financial or matrix analysis, the final decision on which solution to choose can be based on the use of other tools:

• market studies
• Pilot tests. Test in limited area.
• Prototyping. Construction of a small part of the project to validate the correct predictions.
• Computer simulation.

In short, the analyzes carried out will not only help to choose a solution, but will also allow us to determine whether the solutions are viable and whether it is worth continuing with the project.