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Projects are the way that most
new work gets delivered. All
projects have certain
characteristics in common. They
all have a beginning and an end.
In other words, they do not
continue on forever. Projects
result in the creation of one or
more deliverables. Projects also
have assigned resources - either
full time, part time or both.
There are other characteristics
as well. All organizations can
have projects. Projects can
include building a house or
office building, planning and
executing a marketing campaign,
upgrading desktop operating
systems, installing a new phone
system, developing an IT
business application, etc. |
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Projects can be managed using a
common set of project management
processes. In fact, a similar
set of project management
processes can be utilized
regardless of the type of
project. All projects should be
defined and planned and all
projects should manage scope,
risk, quality, status, etc.
Project management, however,
defines the overall management
and control processes for the
project. Project management does
not actually result in the
project execution. At some point,
you still need to define the
actual activities necessary to
build the house, execute the
marketing campaign, develop the
IT business application and
upgrade the desktop operating
systems. These activities are
referred to as the project
lifecycle and the project
lifecycle is the focus of
LifecycleStep.
The place to start when thinking
about lifecycle models is the
generic waterfall approach. This
model provides the basic outline
that can be used on any project.
Basically you start off
understanding the work that is
expected, designing a solution,
building and testing a solution
and then implementing the
solution. What could be easier?
Even if you have a small project
you still go through these basic
steps, although some of them may
be a mental exercise. If you
have a forty hour enhancement
project, it may seem that you
can jump right in with
construction. But are you really?
It is more likely that you are
receiving some type of service
request that describes the work
required (analysis and
requirements), which you take
and mentally map into the work
to be performed (design). You
then make the enhancement
changes required, test them (test)
and implement them (construct,
test, implement). The classic
waterfall approach is the
lifecycle model you would
probably end up with if you knew
nothing about methodology and
just had to build a project
workplan from scratch.
Just as there are common project
management processes to manage
most projects, there are also
common models that can provide
guidance on how to define the
project lifecycle. These common
models are valuable since they
save project teams the time
associated with having to create
the project workplan from
scratch each time.
LifecycleStep defines the
waterfall lifecycle model in the
most detail since the processes,
best practices and techniques
can be applied most generically
to any project. However,
depending on the characteristics
of the project, other lifecycle
models may be more appropriate.
For instance, if you are
installing a software package,
you can utilize a specific
lifecycle model for package
implementation that is light on
the design and construct phases.
Likewise, if you are conducting
a research and development
project, you can use a specific
R&D lifecycle that takes into
account that the work might be
thrown away when you are done.
Other important lifecycle models
can be used to accelerate
projects with certain
characteristics. IT online
development projects, for
instance, may be able to utilize
Rapid Application Development
(RAD) and Agile techniques.
Some methodologies on
application development contain
a lot of theory, or tons of
impractical detail that might
only be needed on huge
mega-projects building the space
shuttle. There are also many
websites available that offer
consulting and training services.
The LifecycleStep Project
Lifecycle Process, on the other
hand, contains everything you
need to understand and execute
the project lifecycle. Here you
will find processes, techniques,
best practices, templates,
training, etc. You will also
find a set of valuable sample
workplans that you can use as
the starting point for the
workplan you build for your
project. LifecycleStep can also
be used as the basis for a
consistent set of lifecycle
processes that can be used by
entire organization.
Before you begin, please read
the following pages that provide
some background and context on
the LifecycleStep process.
