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67 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Exam Essential
Be able to define a project. |
A project brings about a unique product, service or result and has definite beginning and ending dates.
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Why do projects exist?
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To bring about or fulfill the goals of the organization
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When are projects considered a success?
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When the goals they set out to accomplish are fulfilled and the stakeholders are satisfied with the results.
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What are the characteristics of a project?
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1. Unique – involves doing something new that results in a unique product or service
2. Temporary – Project have definite start and end dates 3. Resources and quality – assigning resources to complete the work and assuring the results meet quality standards 4. Stakeholder satisfaction – A project ends when goals are met to the satisfaction of the stakeholders. |
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Exam Essential
Be able to identify the difference between a project and ongoing operations. |
Project:
Temporary endeavor to create a unique product or service Ongoing Operations: Ongoing and repetitive |
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Exam Essential
Name the three types of organizational structures |
1. Functional
2. Project Based 3. Matrix a. Strong Matrix b. Balance Matrix c. Weak Matrix |
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Why is it important to understand the different organizational structures?
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It impacts how projects are managed and staffed.
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Exam Essential
Be able to define the role of a project manager |
A project manager’s primary purpose is to integrate all the components of the project and bring it to a successful completion.
1. A project manager leads the project team 2. Oversees all the work required to complete the project goals 3. To the satisfaction of the stakeholders. Is charged with overseeing every aspect of a given project from start to finish |
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Exam Essential
Be able to identify the most common project selection methods |
The most common project selection methods are benefit measurement methods:
• cost-benefit analysis • scoring models • payback period • expert judgment • economic models including: o discounted cash flows o NPV o IRR |
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Exam Essential
Understand what skills are needed to manage a project beyond technical knowledge of the product. |
Key general management skills include:
• leadership • communication • problem solving • negotiation • organization • time management |
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Key Terms
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) |
The project management standards developed by the Project Management Institute (PMI)
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Key Terms
Benefit measurement methods |
1. A type of decision model
2. that compares the benefits obtained from a variety of new project request 3. by evaluating them using the same criteria 4. and comparing the results |
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Key Terms
Co-located |
When team members work together at the same physical location
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Key Terms
Constrained optimization methods |
1. Decision models
2. That use complex principles of statistics and other mathematical concepts 3. To assess a proposed project |
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Key Terms
Cost-benefit analysis |
A commonly used benefit measurement method that calculates the cost of producing the product, service or result of the project and compares this to the financial gain the project is expected to generate.
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When is the cost-benefit model a good choice when selecting projects?
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When the decision is based on how quickly the project investment will be recouped.
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What is a weakness of the cost-benefit model?
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It does not account for other important factors, such as strategic value.
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Key Terms
Decision model |
1. A formal method of project selection
2. Helps managers make the best use of limited budgets and human resources. 3. Includes: • benefit measurement methods • constrained optimization models |
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Key Terms
Discounted cash flow (DCF) |
Compares the value of future cash flows of the project to today’s dollars - example:
Year 1 - $450,000 Year 2 - $2,500,000 Year 3 - $3,200,000 Total DCF - $6,150,000 Typically the project with the highest discounted cash flow are chosen. |
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Key Terms
Economic model |
1. A type of benefit measurement method.
2. It is a series of financial calculations (also known as cash flow techniques) 3. that provide data on the overall financials of the project 4. and is generally used as a project selection technique. |
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Key Terms
Expert judgment |
A technique that relies on the knowledge of those with expertise on requested subject matter. It is used in:
• project selection, • determining estimates and • determining other related project information Typically used in conjunction with another decision model |
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What are some of the dangers of relying only expert judgment for project selection?
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• It is not likely that the project selection committee members will all be authorities on each of the proposed projects
• Without access to comparative data, a project approval decision may be made based solely on who has the better slide presentation or who is the best salesperson • Political influence can also be part of the expert judgment |
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What role does leadership play in project management?
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Leaders:
• Set strategic goals • Establish direction • Inspire and motivate others • Align and encourage diverse groups of people |
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Accoring to PMI how much time should project managers spend in face to face communication?
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90%
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Where can expert judgment come from?
(i.e. who can be the experts) |
Expert judgment can come from:
• stakeholders • other departments • consultants • team members • vendors • industry groups |
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Key Terms
Feasibility study |
A formal endeavor that is undertaken to determine whether there is a compelling reason to perform the proposed project.
1. Whether the project is a viable project 2. The probability of project success 3. The viability of the product of the project |
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When are feasibility studies usually used?
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1. When the proposed project is highly complex
2. Has a high potential for risk 3. Is a new type or project the organization has never undertaken before |
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Key Terms
Functional organization |
A form of organizational structure.
Functional organizations are traditional organizations with hierarchical reporting structures. Provides project managers with the least amount of authority. |
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Why can functional organizations frustrate project managers?
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Work is often completed in a siloed fashion; deliverables are worked on independently in different departments.
Project managers are held accountable for results of the project, but they have no means of holding team members from other departments accountable for completing project deliverables. |
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What are functional managers responsible for?
Why does this cause problems for project managers? |
1. Assigning work to the employees who report to them.
2. Rating the performance of the employees 3. Determining their raises and bonuses The employees loyalty lies with the functional manager. |
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What are the benefits of a functional organization?
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• Growth potential and career path for employees
• The opportunity for those with unique skills to flourish • A clear chain of command (each staff member has one supervisor) |
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Key Terms
Internal rate of return (IRR) |
The discount rate when the present value of the cash inflows equals the original investment.
Project with higher IRR values are generally considered better than projects with lower IRR values. |
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Key Terms
Matrix Organization |
Typically organized along departmental lines but resources assigned to a project are accountable to the project manager for all work associated with the project. The middle ground between functional and project-based organizations
Functional Managers Assign employees to projects and carry out administrative duties Project Managers Assign tasks associated with the project to team members and execute the project |
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What are some common characteristics of matrix organizations?
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• Low to moderate authority for the project manager
• A mix of full-time and part-time project resources • Better interdepartmental communication |
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Explain the types and characteristics of a Matrix Organization
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Strong Matrix
Work Emphasis: project work over functional duties Majority of Power: Project Manager Weak Matrix Work Emphasis: Functional duties over project work Majority of Power: Functional Manager Balanced Matrix Work Emphasis: Equal emphasis between projects and functional duties Majority of Power: Shared |
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Key Terms
Net present value (NPV) |
Calculates the revenue or cash flows the organization expects to receive over the life of the project in today’s dollars.
Each period’s resulting sum in present-day dollars is added together, and that sum is then subtracted from the initial investment to come up with an overall value for the project. |
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What is the rule for using NPV?
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The rule of Net Present Value (NPV) is:
If NPV is greater than zero, you should accept the project; if it’s less than zero, you should reject the project. |
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Key Terms
Operations |
Operations typically involve ongoing functions that support the production of goods or services. They don’t have a beginning or an end.
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Key Terms
Payback period |
The length of time it takes a company to recover the initial cost of producing the product or service of the project.
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What is the weakness of using payback period in project selection?
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It is the lease precise of all the cash flow techniques.
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Key Terms
Program |
A grouping of related projects that are managed together to capitalize on benefits that couldn’t be achieved if the projects were manager separately.
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Key Terms
Project-based organization |
An organizational structure focuses on projects.
1. Projects managers generally have ultimate authority over the project 2. Sometimes supporting departments such as human resources and accounting report to the project manager 3. Project managers are responsible for making project decisions and acquiring and assigning resources. |
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What are some advantages of project-based organizations?
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• Team members are collocated
• The project manager has a high level of authority • Full-time resources are assigned to the project • Loyalty is established with the project manager • Dedicated project support staff |
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What is the biggest drawback of project-based organizations?
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There may not always be a new project waiting for the project resources when a project comes to a close.
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Key Terms
Project management |
Applying skills, knowledge and project management tools and techniques to successfully meet the project goals.
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Key Terms
PMI |
Project Management Institute
The world’s leading professional project management association. Sets the global de facto standard in project management. |
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Key Terms
Project Management Knowledge Areas |
The nine project management groupings, or Knowledge Areas, that bring together common or related processes.
Integration Scope Time Cost Quality Human Resources Communications Risk Procurement |
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Key Terms
Project selection methods/techniques |
Used to determine which proposed projects are approved to move forward.
Uses decision models such as • Cost benefit analysis • Expert judgment To allocate limited resources to the most critical projects. |
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Project selection methods will vary depending on?
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1. Mission of the organization
2. The people serving on the selection committee 3. The criteria used 4. The project itself |
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Project selection methods could include examining factors such as:
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1. Market share
2. Financial benefits 3. Return on investment 4. Customer satisfaction 5. Public perceptions |
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Key Terms
Scoring Model |
Benefit measurement methods used for project selection
It contains a predefined list of criteria against which each project is ranked. Each criterion has a scoring range and a weighting factor. A scoring model can also be used as a tool to select from among competing vendors |
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What sort of data could be included in a scoring model?
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• Financial data
• Market value • Organizational expertise • Innovation • Fit with corporate culture |
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What are the strengths and weaknesses of the scoring model benefit measurement method?
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Benefit
You can place a heavier weight on a criterion that is more important Weakness The ranking it produces is only as valuable as the criteria and weighting system the ranking is based on |
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Key Terms
Today’s Dollars |
Used in financial planning to indicate that the cost of a goal, product or service is expressed in terms of what it costs today, and not what it might cost in the future.
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Key Terms
Project Integration |
Integrations
An act or instance of combining into an integral whole. Project Integration (i.e. pulling it all together to make the project work) The processes and activities needed to: • identify, • define, • unify, and • coordinate Process and project management activities |
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Key Term
PMO’s |
Project management office
Responsible for: • Maintaining standards, processes, and procedures related to the management of projects. • Identifying the various projects across the organization and including them within a program |
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What are the two steps of project validation?
-OR- How does validating the project occur? |
1. Preparing the business case
2. Identifying and analyzing the project stakeholders |
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Key Term
Project Validation |
The business reason for the project.
Includes: 1. Identifying the need or demand for the project 2. Validating the business case 3. Identifying and analyzing key stakeholders |
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What are the seven needs/demands that bring about projects?
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1. Market Demand – demands of the marketplace can drive the need for a project
2. Strategic opportunity/business need – business needs often drive projects that involve information technology solutions 3. Customer Request – customer requests can generate an endless supply of potential projects 4. Technological advances – technology drives the business and business drives technology 5. Legal requirement – local state and federal regulations change during every legislative session and may drive the need for a new project 6. Ecological impact – green efforts to protect the environment 7. Social need – social needs or demands can bring about projects in a variety of ways |
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Key Terms
Project Justification |
Describes the benefits to the organization for undertaking the project.
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Key Terms
Business Case |
1. A formally written document or report
2. that documents component of the project assessment, including a description of the analysis method and the results 3. and helps executive management and key stakeholders determine the benefits and rewards of the project. |
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Who are stakeholders?
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Anyone who has a vested interest in the project.
Can include individuals as well as organizations, and both the project sponsor and project manager are considered stakeholders. |
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Who is the project sponsor?
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1. The executive in the organization who authorizes the project to begin
2. Is someone who has the ability to assign fund and resources to the project |
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What are the critical components of a Communication Strategy?
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• What you want to communicate
• How often you’ll communicate • The audience receiving the communication • The medium used for communicating • Monitoring the outcome of the communication |
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What will simplify the process of successfully resolving problems with minimal impacts?
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Early recognition of the waning signs of trouble.
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Define: Negotiation
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Negotiation is the process of obtaining mutually acceptable agreements with individuals or groups.
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What are the components of pre-project setup?
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• Identify the project
• Validate the project • Prepare a project charter • Obtain approval (signature) for the project charter |