Information technology project management

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PROJECT MANAGEMENT, Fifth Edition weaves theory and practice together, presenting a comprehensive, integrated view of the many concepts, skills, tools, and techniques involved in information technology project management. With the strong pedagogical features and straightforward approach that made previous editions popular, this revised edition continues to address the critical skills needed for success in the ever-expanding field of project management, which has grown in its impact on an increasing number of professions, most notably information technology. The fifth edition has been updated to include a detailed guide to using Microsoft Project 2007, as well as extensive tips and practice questions to prepare readers for the latest Project Management Professional (PMP) exam. Written to the PMBOK Guide 2004 set of standards, this resource will prove valuable to anyone entering the corporate world, as leaders in the industry place an increasingly high value on effective project managers and project teams.

• Chapter 1 Introduction to Project Management p. 1
• Opening Case p. 1
• Introduction p. 2
• What is a Project? p. 5
• Examples of Information Technology Projects p. 5
• Project Attributes p. 7
• The Triple Constraint p. 8
• What is Project Management? p. 10
• Project Stakeholders p. 11
• Project Management Knowledge Areas p. 12
• Project Management Tools and Techniques p. 13
• Project Success p. 15
• Program and Project Portfolio Management p. 18
• Programs p. 18
• Project Portfolio Management p. 19
• The Role of the Project Manager p. 23
• Project Manager Job Description p. 24
• Suggested Skills for Project Managers p. 24
• Importance of People and Leadership Skills p. 27
• Careers for Information Technology Project Managers p. 28
• The Project Management Profession p. 30
• History of Project Management p. 30
• The Project Management Institute p. 33
• Project Management Certification p. 33
• Ethics in Project Management p. 34
• Project Management Software p. 36
• Chapter 2 The Project Management and Information Technology Context p. 45
• Opening Case p. 45
• A Systems View of Project Management p. 47
• What Is a Systems Approach? p. 47
• The Three-Sphere Model for Systems Management p. 48
• Understanding Organizations p. 50
• The Four Frames of Organizations p. 50
• Organizational Structures p. 52
• Organizational Culture p. 55
• Stakeholder Management p. 56
• The Importance of Top Management Commitment p. 58
• The Need for Organizational Commitment to Information Technology p. 59
• The Need for Organizational Standards p. 60
• Project Phases and the Project Life Cycle p. 61
• Product Life Cycles p. 64
• The Importance of Project Phases and Management Reviews p. 66
• The Context of Information Technology Projects p. 68
• The Nature of Information Technology Projects p. 68
• Characteristics of Information Technology Project Team Members p. 69
• Diverse Technologies p. 70
• Chapter 3 The Project Management Process Groups: A Case Study p. 78
• Opening Case p. 78
• Project Management Process Groups p. 79
• Mapping the Process Groups to the Knowledge Areas p. 84
• Developing an Information Technology Project Management Methodology p. 86
• Case Study: JWD Consulting's Project Management Intranet Site Project p. 88
• Project Initiation p. 88
• Project Planning p. 95
• Project Executing p. 106
• Project Monitoring and Controlling p. 111
• Project Closing p. 114
• Chapter 4 Project Integration Management p. 126
• Opening Case p. 126
• What is Project Integration Management? p. 127
• Strategic Planning and Project Selection p. 131
• Identifying Potential Projects p. 131
• Aligning Information Technology with Business Strategy p. 132
• Methods for Selecting Projects p. 134
• Project Charters p. 145
• Preliminary Scope Statements p. 149
• Project Management Plans p. 150
• Project Management Plan Contents p. 150
• Using Guidelines to Create Project Management Plans p. 154
• Stakeholder Analysis and Top Management Support p. 155
• Project Execution p. 157
• Coordinating Planning and Execution p. 158
• Providing Strong Leadership and a Supportive Culture p. 158
• Capitalizing on Product, Business, and Application Area Knowledge p. 159
• Project Execution Tools and Techniques p. 160
• Monitoring and Controlling Project Work p. 161
• Integrated Change Control p. 163
• Change Control on Information Technology Projects p. 165
• Change Control System p. 165
• Closing Projects p. 168
• Using Software to Assist in Project Integration Management p. 168
• Chapter 5 Project Scope Management p. 179
• Opening Case p. 179
• What is Project Scope Management? p. 180
• Scope Planning and the Scope Management Plan p. 182
• Scope Definition and the Project Scope Statement p. 186
• Creating The Work Breakdown Structure p. 188
• Approaches to Developing Work Breakdown Structures p. 194
• The WBS Dictionary and Scope Baseline p. 199
• Advice for Creating a WBS and WBS Dictionary p. 200
• Scope Verification p. 201
• Scope Control p. 203
• Suggestions for Improving User Input p. 205
• Suggestions for Reducing Incomplete and Changing Requirements p. 206
• Using Software to Assist in Project Scope Management p. 208
• Chapter 6 Project Time Management p. 216
• Opening Case p. 216
• The Importance of Project Schedules p. 217
• Activity Definition p. 220
• Activity Sequencing p. 222
• Dependencies p. 223
• Network Diagrams p. 223
• Activity Resource Estimating p. 227
• Activity Duration Estimating p. 229
• Schedule Development p. 230
• Gantt Charts p. 231
• Critical Path Method p. 236
• Critical Chain Scheduling p. 243
• Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) p. 246
• Schedule Control p. 247
• Reality Checks on Scheduling and the Need for Discipline p. 248
• Using Software to Assist in Project Time Management p. 250
• Words of Caution on Using Project Management Software p. 251
• Chapter 7 Project Cost Management p. 263
• Opening Case p. 263
• The Importance of Project Cost Management p. 264
• What Is Cost? p. 266
• What Is Project Cost Management? p. 266
• Basic Principles of Cost Management p. 267
• Cost Estimating p. 271
• Types of Cost Estimates p. 272
• Cost Estimation Tools and Techniques p. 274
• Typical Problems with Information Technology Cost Estimates p. 276
• Sample Cost Estimate p. 277
• Cost Budgeting p. 282
• Cost Control p. 283
• Earned Value Management p. 285
• Project Portfolio Management p. 291
• Using Project Management Software to Assist in Project Cost Management p. 293
• Chapter 8 Project Quality Management p. 303
• Opening Case p. 303
• The Importance of Project Quality Management p. 304
• What is Project Quality Management? p. 307
• Quality Planning p. 309
• Quality Assurance p. 312
• Quality Control p. 313
• Tools and Techniques for Quality Control p. 314
• Statistical Sampling p. 320
• Six Sigma p. 321
• Testing p. 328
• Modern Quality Management p. 330
• Deming and His Fourteen Points for Management p. 330
• Juran and the Importance of Top Management Commitment to Quality p. 331
• Crosby and Striving for Zero Defects p. 332
• Ishikawa's Guide to Quality Control p. 333
• Taguchi and Robust Design Methods p. 333
• Feigenbaum and Workers Responsibility for Quality p. 334
• Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award p. 334
• ISO Standards p. 334
• Improving Information Technology Project Quality p. 335
• Leadership p. 336
• The Cost of Quality p. 336
• Organizational Influences, Workplace Factors, and Quality p. 338
• Expectations and Cultural Differences in Quality p. 339
• Maturity Models p. 340
• Using Software to Assist in Project Quality Management p. 344
• Chapter 9 Project Human Resource Management p. 354
• Opening Case p. 354
• The Importance of Human Resource Management p. 355
• The Global IT Workforce p. 356
• Implications for the Future of IT Human Resource Management p. 358
• What is Project Human Resource Management? p. 361
• Keys to Managing People p. 363
• Motivation Theories p. 363
• Thamhain and Wilemon's Influence and Power p. 367
• Covey and Improving Effectiveness p. 370
• Human Resource Planning p. 373
• Project Organizational Charts p. 373
• Responsibility Assignment Matrices p. 375
• Staffing Management Plans and Resource Histograms p. 377
• Acquiring the Project Team p. 379
• Resource Assignment p. 379
• Resource Loading p. 381
• Resource Leveling p. 383
• Developing the Project Team p. 385
• Training p. 386
• Team-Building Activities p. 387
• Reward and Recognition Systems p. 392
• Managing the Project Team p. 392
• Tools and Techniques for Managing Project Teams p. 393
• General Advice on Managing Teams p. 394
• Using Software to Assist in Human Resource Management p. 395
• Chapter 10 Project Communications Management p. 404
• Opening Case p. 404
• The Importance of Project Communications Management p. 405
• Communications Planning p. 408
• Information Distribution p. 410
• Using Technology to Enhance Information Distribution p. 411
• Formal and Informal Methods for Distributing Information p. 412
• Distributing Important Information in an Effective and Timely Manner p. 413
• Selecting the Appropriate Communications Medium p. 414
• Understanding Group and Individual Communication Needs p. 416
• Setting the Stage for Communicating Bad News p. 417
• Determining the Number of Communications Channels p. 417
• Performance Reporting p. 419
• Managing Stakeholders p. 420
• Suggestions for Improving Project Communications p. 423
• Using Communication Skills to Manage Conflict p. 423
• Developing Better Communication Skills p. 425
• Running Effective Meetings p. 426
• Using E-Mail, Instant Messaging, and Collaborative Tools Effectively p. 428
• Using Templates for Project Communications p. 431
• Using Software to Assist in Project Communications p. 436
• Chapter 11 Project Risk Management p. 446
• Opening Case p. 446
• The Importance of Project Risk Management p. 447
• Risk Management Planning p. 453
• Common Sources of Risk on Information Technology Projects p. 455
• Risk Identification p. 459
• Suggestions for Identifying Risks p. 459
• The Risk Register p. 461
• Qualitative Risk Analysis p. 464
• Using Probability/Impact Matrixes to Calculate Risk Factors p. 464
• Top Ten Risk Item Tracking p. 466
• Quantitative Risk Analysis p. 468
• Decision Trees and Expected Monetary Value p. 468
• Simulation p. 470
• Sensitivity Analysis p. 473
• Risk Response Planning p. 474
• Risk Monitoring and Control p. 478
• Using Software to Assist in Project Risk Management p. 478
• Chapter 12 Project Procurement Management p. 489
• Opening Case p. 489
• The Importance of Project Procurement Management p. 490
• Planning Purchases and Acquisitions p. 495
• Tools and Techniques for Planning Purchases and Acquisitions p. 497
• Procurement Management Plan p. 502
• Contract Statement of Work p. 503
• Planning Contracting p. 504
• Requesting Seller Responses p. 507
• Selecting Sellers p. 508
• Administering the Contract p. 510
• Closing the Contract p. 512
• Using Software to Assist in Project Procurement Management p. 513
• Appendix A Guide to Using Microsoft Project 2007 p. A.1
• Introduction p. A.2
• New Features of Project 2007 p. A.3
• Backward Compatibility p. A.4
• Before You Begin p. A.4
• Overview of Project 2007 p. A.5
• Starting Project 2007 and Using the Getting Started and Project Guide Features p. A.5
• Main Screen Elements p. A.9
• Project 2007 Views p. A.15
• Project 2007 Filters p. A.20
• Project Scope Management p. A.21
• Creating a New Project File p. A.22
• Developing a Work Breakdown Structure p. A.24
• Saving Project Files With or Without a Baseline p. A.28
• Project Time Management p. A.29
• Entering Task Durations p. A.29
• Establishing Task Dependencies p. A.35
• Changing Task Dependency Types and Adding Lead or Lag Time p. A.39
• Gannt Charts p. A.42
• Network Diagrams p. A.45
• Critical Path Analysis p. A.47
• Project Cost Management p. A.49
• Fixed and Variable Cost Estimates p. A.50
• Assigning Resources to Tasks p. A.53
• Baseline Plan, Actual Costs, and Actual Times p. A.60
• Earned Value Management p. A.66
• Project Human Resource Management p. A.68
• Resource Calendars p. A.68
• Resource Histograms p. A.71
• Resource Leveling p. A.75
• Project Communications Management p. A.78
• Common Reports and Views p. A.78
• Using Templates and Inserting Hyperlinks and Comments p. A.79
• Using the Copy Picture Feature p. A.84
• Discussion Questions p. A.85
• Exercises p. A.86
• Exercise A-1 Web Site Development p. A.86
• Exercise A-2 Software Training Program p. A.88
• Exercise A-3 Project Tracking Database p. A.90
• Exercise A-4 Real Project Application p. A.92
• Appendix B Advice for the Project Management Professional (PMP) Exam and Related Certifications p. B.1
• Introduction to Project Management Certification Programs p. B.1
• What is PMP Certification? p. B.1
• What Are the Requirements for Earning and Maintaining PMP Certification? p. B.3
• What Is the Structure and Content of the PMP Exam? p. B.6
• How Should You Prepare for the PMP Exam? p. B.7
• Ten Tips for Taking the PMP Exam p. B.9
• Sample PMP Exam Questions p. B.11
• What is Project+ Certification? p. B.15
• What Are the Requirements for Earning and Maintaining Project+ Certification? p. B.16
• Additional Information on the Project+ Exam p. B.17
• Sample Project+ Exam Questions p. B.18
• What Other Exams or Certifications Related to Project Management are Available? p. B.20
• Final Advice on Certification and Project Management in General p. B.21
• Appendix C Additional Running Cases p. C.1
• Introduction p. C.1
• Additional Case 1: Video Game Delivery Project p. C.1
• Part 1 Project Integration Management p. C.1
• Part 2 Project Scope Management p. C.3
• Part 3 Project Time Management p. C.4
• Part 4 Project Cost Management p. C.4
• Part 5 Project Quality Management p. C.6
• Part 6 Project Human Resource Management p. C.7
• Part 7 Project Communications Management p. C.8
• Part 8 Project Risk Management p. C.8
• Part 9 Project Procurement Management p. C.9
• Glossary p. 1
• Index p. 1