Scope Planning

Welcome to "Scope Planning." After watching this video, you will be able
to: Summarize end-to-end scope planning,
Explain requirements planning, Describe the contents of a scope statement, Describe the contents of a work breakdown
structure (or WBS), And explain the importance of a WBS dictionary. The scope planning process includes identifying,
outlining, and maintaining a project's scope. It is arguably the most critical project planning
you will perform. The Project Management Institute (or PMI)
states that a project manager needs to accomplish the project on time, within budget, and within
the required scope. In the real world, however, if you don't deliver
scope that adds value, being on time and within budget won't matter much. The PMI has a four-step scope planning approach. It is a solid conceptual model that works
in real working situations. The four steps are: Plan scope management, Collect requirements, Define scope, And create a Work Breakdown Structure (or
WBS). The first step is to plan scope management. The PMI recommends that the project manager
develop and share a scope management plan. This is not the final scope but is a simple
plan that provides process and direction to the team on how to define, develop, monitor,
control, and validate scope. This "how-to" plan describes how the project
manager analyzes, documents, and manages requirements. The next step in scope planning is requirements
planning, which the PMI refers to as the collect requirements process. The project manager reviews the project charter
and other applicable documentation. Here are some important points to remember
for the requirements planning process: The project manager provides requirement documentation
that defines the requirements in the project's scope. The goal of this phase is to summarize project
charter requirements. Strive for actionable and measurable requirements
and define them in terms of action and result. For example, "acquire a venue." If the business analyst did not previously
develop a project traceability matrix, the manager or analyst develops it at this point. The following scenario describes a simple
project that shows an example of scope planning documentation. A manufacturing firm is planning an all-hands
meeting, and you are the project manager. These are key excerpts from the project charter
for this scenario. The event time and date have been set, and
the venue is still to be determined. The firm is to provide transportation for
attendees, and catering will be provided. The number of attendees and speakers has been
determined, and the firm will provide technical support for the event. As the project manager, you would now determine
the scenario collection requirements for this project based on the information provided
by the project charter. This includes: Acquiring the venue, Planning transportation, Planning catering, Identifying speakers, And planning audiovisual and technical support. The next step in scope planning is defining
the scope by developing a scope statement. The PMI states that a scope statement is the
most detailed version of the scope. It clearly explains the project's aims. The scope statement has four components. Scope description or overview, Deliverables, Acceptance criteria, and Exclusions. Here is an example scope statement // describing
the project scenario to plan and implement an all-hands meeting in four ways. This document: Describes the project, Lists all requirements or deliverables, Identifies who can accept the final deliverables, and lists exclusions. Exclusions are a list of what the project
will not provide. The last step is to construct the work breakdown
structure. A WBS breaks down the scope statement into
a hierarchical list of tasks necessary to fulfill the project requirements. The hierarchy plan runs from most general,
starting with the whole project, through the project phases, to the specific tasks, known
as work packages. A best practice is to break down the work
packages using logical phasing. The project manager should use the Plan Do
Check Act (or PDCA) method. And, all WBS work packages should be actionable,
estimable, and measurable. This is an example of a WBS using the project
scenario. The WBS is a hierarchical breakout of the
project; a visual roadmap. It looks like an organizational chart with
the project in the top row, then breaking down into Project Phase columns
in the second row of boxes, followed by rows of boxes with the activities required, or
work packages, for each phase in the order they occur below that. The first project phase column in the second
row represents planning the project. The second column is the next phase, executing
the project, and so on. After the project manager constructs the WBS,
it is essential to complete the WBS dictionary. This document defines the tasks required to
accomplish a WBS work package. Some points to remember while completing the
WBS dictionary are: Each work package in the WBS is broken out
into specific tasks. The manager should assign a lead team member
to each work package. And the WBS dictionary becomes the primary
source for the team to check the progress status throughout the project. This example WBS dictionary, based on our
scenario, breaks out the specific tasks for the first activity (or work package), Manage
the Venue, listed under our 1st phase in the WBS. The Manage the Venue specific tasks are: Research available venues Select the appropriate venue, and Sign the contract In this video, you learned that: The scope planning process is the manager's
most critical project planning area. The PMI has a four-step scope planning approach
which includes: Plan scope management, Collect requirements, Define scope, And create a WBS. A scope statement is the most detailed version
of the project's scope. A WBS breaks down the scope statement into
a list of tasks. And a WBS dictionary defines the tasks required
to accomplish a WBS work package.

Welcome to “Schedule Planning.” After watching this video, you will be able
to: Explain schedule planning and the steps involved, Discuss types of dependencies, And illustrate a project network diagram. Schedule planning is the process of organizing
and arranging tasks, events, and activities in a structured manner to allocate time and
resources effectively. It involves setting priorities, determining
available time slots, and using tools and techniques to plan and monitor progress toward
meeting goals and deadlines. Schedule planning aims to improve efficiency
and productivity by ensuring tasks are completed promptly and in an organized manner. The Project Management Institute (or PMI)
has developed a five-step schedule planning approach. Create a schedule management plan, Define activities, Sequence activities, Estimate activity durations, and Develop a schedule. The first step is to create a schedule management
plan. A project manager creates a schedule plan
to specify the beginning and end dates of a project, the key checkpoints along the route,
and a deadline to finish each job individually. The second step is to define activities. The manager lists the tasks, activities, and
events to include in the schedule. Each activity must be defined to the point where time and
cost durations can be reasonably estimated. Avoid ambiguity. Next, the project manager carefully considers
each activity to determine which ones are dependent on others to be completed. All project dependencies must be defined so
that the manager can appropriately schedule the work and prevent delays. After establishing dependencies among the
activities, the manager can sequence them to create an effective flow. Project managers use the three-point method
to determine how long each work package will take. This method can be applied to both time
and cost durations. There are a few terms associated with this
method. The first is “predecessor,” which defines an activity that happened first. Another
term is “successor,” which is the activity that happened second. In this illustration, Activity A is the predecessor
to Activities B and C. Activities B and C are the successors to Activity A. Activities B and C depend upon the completion
of Activity A. Activities B and C do not depend on each other. The team can accomplish these
activities simultaneously. The PMI shares four distinct dependency determinations. Mandatory dependencies are legally required
or inherent; the team cannot ignore them. These dependencies can impact the overall
timeline and schedule of a project. Examples of mandatory dependencies include: Part sourcing before assembling, And hardware installation before software
installation. An external dependency involves factors that
are external to the project. These factors are usually legal or regulatory by nature. Examples of external dependencies include: Approvals from external organizations or government
agencies, Availability of resources or equipment sourced
from outside suppliers, And compliance with regulations or laws. Internal dependency refers to a situation
where a task in a project depends on other tasks in the project for completion. This
creates a relationship between tasks and a sequence for their completion. Typically, the project manager and team have
complete control over these dependencies. An example of an internal dependency is the
internal testing of product components before the product is assembled. The final type of determination is a discretionary
dependency. Sometimes, there may be more than one way to accomplish a task, and the project
management team must decide which method to follow. The decision is based on their experience,
best practices, and lessons learned. An example of a discretionary dependency can
be best explained with a scenario. Activity A is booking an airline ticket, and
activity B is buying travel insurance. The project team can either book an airline ticket
before buying travel insurance or do it the other way around. Returning to the five-step schedule planning
approach, in the fourth step, the project manager and the team members must estimate
how long each activity or work package will take to complete. The best way to estimate the duration is to
use data from similar past activities. Finally, the project manager and the team
members develop the final schedule. The manager informs the sponsor and important
stakeholders about this schedule for review and approval. Once the sponsor and stakeholders
approve the schedule, it becomes the project's schedule baseline. A network diagram is a useful tool that shows
how all work packages need to be accomplished and in what order. A work breakdown structure
(or WBS) is required to build a network diagram. The diagram shows the flow of activities,
dependencies, and the critical path, which helps in project planning, monitoring, and
control. The following scenario shows how a network
diagram is built. The nodes in the diagram represent tasks,
while the arrows represent the dependencies between them. This project has five activities. Activities A and B have no dependencies and
can be accomplished simultaneously. Activity C depends upon completing Activities
A and B. Activities D and E can also be accomplished
simultaneously. They are both dependent upon the completion of Activity C before work can
begin. The final step in building a network diagram
is to add the durations to each activity, as shown in the illustration. Durations are
determined by days. Activity A will take 5 days, Activity B will
take 3 days, and so on. Now that the network diagram is complete,
the next task is to determine how many paths are possible to complete the project. This
example has four paths. The critical path is the path with the longest
duration. In this example, the longest path is ACE. <speak A C E> The critical path identifies the duration
of the project. The duration of each activity is summed up to calculate the critical path. In this example, Activity A’s duration is
5, Activity C’s is 8, and Activity E’s is
7. So 5 plus 8 plus 7 equals 20. The critical path is 20 days. The final step in schedule planning is ensuring
that sponsors and important stakeholders are informed about the network diagram and length. The project manager obtains approval from
the stakeholder and the sponsor, and the schedule baseline is finalized. In this video, you learned that: Schedule planning is the process of organizing
and arranging tasks, events, and activities in a structured manner. The PMI’s 5-step planning approach includes: Planning schedule management, Defining activities, Sequencing activities, Estimating activity duration, And developing a schedule. The four types of dependency determinations
are: Mandatory, External, Internal, And discretionary. A network diagram is a useful tool for visualizing
and analyzing a project schedule. And the critical path is the path of the longest
duration of a project.

Budget Planning
This article will teach you end-to-end budget planning.

Budget planning
Budget planning is the process of allocating and managing your income and expenses over a given period of time. It involves assessing your current financial situation, setting financial goals, and planning to achieve those goals.

PMI has defined a three-step budget planning approach.

Plan cost management,

Estimate costs

Determine budget

Plan cost management
The plan outlines how the team estimates, budgets, manages, oversees, and controls expenditures. This is also a "How to" plan process. PMI recommends developing and sharing this plan.

Estimate costs
An estimate cost involves estimating the costs of the resources required to complete the project. There are three types of costs: direct, indirect, and reserves.

Direct costs are expenses incurred directly in the process of producing a good or providing a service. These are paid out of the project budget. The project manager must calculate and request these funds from the sponsor. For example, labor costs, raw materials

Indirect costs are the overhead expenses that aren't directly connected to a product or service's manufacture or delivery. These expenses are difficult to link to a particular item, service, or undertaking. Indirect costs could be the cost of venues, utilities, full-time employee salaries, and often required training funded by the company.

Reserves are the percentage of the project budget set aside for unplanned or unanticipated expenditures throughout the project. There are two types of reserves: contingency and management reserves. Contingency Reserves are allocated to support known or identified risks, whereas management reserves are allocated to support unknown risks.

Determine costs
Determining cost is the process that involves aggregating and calculating the estimated costs of the project activities to establish a cost baseline. This baseline represents the authorized budget for the project and is used to monitor and control project costs. A solid budget documents direct costs, indirect costs, and reserves.

Conclusion
Budget planning is an essential financial tool that provides individuals and organizations with financial discipline, control, and flexibility to achieve their financial goals. The budget must reflect the individual or organization's financial situation accurately by considering all types of costs while planning.