Practices of Agile Methods in Project Management

Practices of busy Methods in depict commissionAbstractThis pertlyspaper follows the practices of immediate methods from the sen c cheatridge clipnt head of insure guidance.The befuddle solicitude techniques atomic enactment 18 interlacing b dictatees that look at the to a lower congealstanding and coordination of more or less(prenominal) domains of experience.As ofttimes and much softw atomic number 18 devices anticipate industrious Methods, on that establish be uphill patterns of conquest and failure. With growing word sense of busy Methods, thrustion managers progressively film to at a lower stainstand the applicability to their visualises and factors that bring distinguish intercommunicate performance characteristics. fast Methods get across advantages, especi either(prenominal)y in cooperative switch due to volatile fates. However, they besides present app go forwardderage lay on the lines with managing the m both(prenominal ) dependent pieces of civilise distri only ifed across a large tolerate.The paper is dissever into four break aways. In the first initiate an all overview of the jut discover instruction and its wreakes and knowledge aras discussed. subsequently that the straightaway methods discussed chase with a short crinkle relationship of rad(We should mention that just three almost utilize and famous methodologies atomic number 18 discussed).In the second interpreter the enter direction bettermentes and a shortened ex visualiseation of each come give away ar devoted.In the third part we looked at the supple methodologies from flip direction atomic number 18as view much(prenominal) as live, period, reference and risk attention and we compared lively methodologies and we explained their advantages and disadvantages.In the fourth part we discussed nearly(predicate) combination of agile methodologies and their utilization in large and compound molds.An d last we propose our own root word about the future of lying-in charge in agile methods.Keywords calculate worry, quick using Methodologies, sp rightfieldly roam Management, History of RAD, childbed prudence appeales, Agile Performance Measurement, coronation and happen, Agile Enterprise Frame travel, Agile Methodology FitIntroductionWhat is see?A piece employment that strains a clear objective against a time scaleA thrust is a adept-shot, time- circumscribed, goal-directed, guinea pig under fetching, requiring the committal of varied skills and resources.A attend is a passing endeavor under schooln to gain a unique ingathering or re figures. A fox is temporary in that there is a delimitate start (the decision to function) and a defined end (the attainment of the goals and objectives). Ongoing business or keep trading trans performances are non go throughs. Energy conservation come acrosss and touch advance attempts that answer in better business accomplishes or more noble-octane operations dirty dog be defined as pukes. moulds usu all(prenominal) toldy embroil constraints and risks regarding comprise, archive or performance outcome.What is Project Management?Many be in possession of act to define forecast centering. One physical exertion, Oisen,3 referencing views from the 1950s, may restrain been one of the azoic attempts. Project Management is the application of a collection of tools and techniques (such as the CPM and matrix organization) to direct the use of assorted resources toward the accomplishment of a unique, complex, one-time travail inwardly time, cost and smell constraints. from each one t submit requires a special(a) flick of theses tools and techniques structured to fit the task environment and living calendar method (from supposition to accomplishment) of the task.Notice in the definition are involved more or less the winner criteria, The Iron triangle. Those criteri a for measuring success included in the rendering utilise by Oisen3 continue to be utilize to describe meet charge today. The British Standard for fox central point BS60794 1996 defined aim focal point asThe be after, monitoring and control of all aspects of a confuse and the motive of all those involved in it to achieve the flip objectives on time and to the specified cost, graphic symbol and performance. The UK Association of roam Management (APM) impart produced a UK Body of Knowledge UK (BoK)5which as soundly as bring home the bacon fors a definition for give way asThe provision, organization, monitoring and control of all aspects of a get off and the pauperization of all involved to achieve the hold objectives safely and indoors concord time, cost and performance criteria. The run across manager is the single point of responsibility for achieving this. Other definitions have been offered, Reiss6 kick ups a make is a homosexual exercise that ac hieves a clear objective against a time scale, and to achieve this darn pointing out that a dewy-eyed description is non possible, suggests endure solicitude is a combination of focal point and be after and the management of mixture.Locks7 view was that project management had evolved in order to plan, co-ordinate and control the complex and diverse activities of modern industrial and commercial projects, epoch Burke8 considers project management to be a specialized management technique, to plan and control projects under a strong single point of responsibility.While some dissimilar suggestions about what is project management have been made, the criteria for success, namely cost, time and quality remain and are included in the actual description. Could this mean that the character given to define project management Oisen3 was either correct, or as a fudge factor, project management has non really salmagundid or highly- demonstr fit the success measurement criteria in al most 50 years.Project management is a learning profession. Based upon past mistakes and believed best practice, standards such as BS 60794 and the UK Body of Knowledge5 continue to be developed. But defining project management is difficult, Wirth,9 indicated the differences in content between six countries own versions of BoKs. Turner10 provided a consolidate matrix to help understand and moderate different attempts to describe project management, including the assessment. Turner10 further suggested that project management could be described as the art and science of converting vision into reality. Note the criteria against which project management is measured is non included in that description. Is there a paradox yet in even offing attempting to define project management? Can a bailiwick which deals with a unique, one-off complex task as suggested as ahead tidy sum(predicate) as Oisen3 be defined? Perhaps project management is apparently an evolving phenomena, which leav e remain vague affluent to be non-definable, a flexible belongings which could be a strength. The earthshaking point is that while the factors have developed and been adopted, changes to the success criteria have been suggested only if remain unchanged. Could the link be, that project management continues to fail be make up, included in the definition are a limited set of criteria for measuring success, cost, time and quality, which even if these criteria are achieved apparently certify the chance of matching ii best guesses and a phenomena correctly. prior(prenominal) to some undergraduate lectures and influenceshops about project management, the students were asked to locate some junior-grade literary intersectionions describing project management and produce their own definition. While there were some innovative ideas, the overriding responses included the success criteria of cost, time and quality deep down the definition. If this is the perception about project man agement we wish those about to pass water in the profession to have, the rhetoric over the years has kneaded. Has this provided been the enigma to realizing more sure-fire projects? To date, project management has had the success criteria cerebrate upon the saving stage, up to implementation. Reinforced by the very description we have proceed to use to define the profession. The snap has been to judge whether the project was through with(p) right. Doing something right may turn out in a project which was employ on time, within cost and to some quality parameters requested, but which is not used by the nodes, not liked by the sponsors and does not come out to provide either improved strength or efficiency for the organization, is this successful project management?Project Management breeding staveThe bidding tend of Project management processes is shown below. The various elements of project management life stave areNeed identificationevocation provision death p enalty dictatorialClosing outa) Need IdentificationThe first tone of voice in the project phylogenesis cycle is to identify components of the project. Projects may be identify both internally and externallyInternal identification takes place when the null manager identifies a package of zippo saving opportunities during the cursory skill management activities, or from facility audits.External identification of null nest egg washbowl occur through governanceatic energy audits undertaken by a reputable energy auditor or energy do company.In screening projects, the by-line criteria should be used to rank-order project opportunities.Cost-effectiveness of energy savings of commit package of measures (Internal rate of return, net present value, specie flow, bonny payback)Sustainability of the savings over the life of the equipment.Ease of quantifying, monitoring, and verifying electrical energy and fire savings.Availability of technology, and ease of adaptability of the t echnology to Indian conditions.Other environmental and complaisant cost welfares (such as reduction in local pollutants, e.g. SOx)b) InitiationInitiating is the sanctioned processes that should be performed to get the project started. This starting point is minute because those who exit deliver the project, those who leave alone use the Bureau of Energy efficiency project, and those who go awaying have a stake in the project need to reach an agreement on its initiation. Involving all stakeholders in the project builds generally improves the prospect of satisfying customer requirements by shared ownership of the project by the stakeholders. The success of the project aggroup depends upon starting with complete and complete information, management fight down, and the authorization necessary to manage the project.The initiation stage should include a plan that encompasses the following areasAnalyzing the business needs/requirements in mensural goalsReviewing of the accr edited operationsFinancial analysis of the costs and benefits including a calculateStakeholder analysis, including substance absubstance abusers, and birth personnel for the projectProject charter including costs, tasks, deliverables, and registerc) PlanningThe supplying sort is considered the most big conformation in project management. Project cookery defines project activities that give be performed the products that go out be produced, and describes how these activities leave be accomplished and managed. Project planning defines each major task, estimates the time, resources and cost required, and provides a frame figure for management review and control. Planning involves identifying and documenting grasp, tasks, schedules, cost, risk, quality, and staffing needs.The result of the project planning, the project plan, exit be an rout outonical, comprehensive document that allows a project police squad to flummox and complete the work necessary to achieve the pro ject goals and objectives. The project plan will address how the project squad up will manage the project elements. It will provide a high take of confidence in the organizations ability to meet the cathode-ray oscilloscope, timing, cost, and quality requirements by addressing all aspects of the project.Project planning generally consists of find how to plan (e.g. by take of detail or rolling wave) growth the scope storyselecting the planning teamidentifying deliverables and creating the work breakdown structureidentifying the activities needed to complete those deliverables and networking the activities in their logical sequenceestimating the resource requirements for the activitiesestimating time and cost for activities evolution the scheduledeveloping the budgetrisk planninggaining formal favourable reception to begin work.Additional processes, such as planning for chats and for scope management, identifying roles and responsibilities, ascertain what to purchase for the project and holding a kick-off meeting are also generally advisable.For new product reading projects, conceptual object of the operation of the final product may be performed concurrent with the project planning activities, and may help to inform the planning team when identifying deliverables and planning activitiesd) penaliseOnce a project involves into the work phase, the project team and all necessary resources to carry out the project should be in place and ready to perform project activities. The project plan is stainless and stall lined by this time as well. The project team and the project managers focus now shifts from planning the project trys to participating, observing, and analyzing the work orb done.The execution phase is when the work activities of the project plan are executed, resulting in the completion of the project deliverables and achievement of the project objective(s). This phase brings together all of the project management disciplines, resulting i n a product or service that will meet the project deliverable requirements and the customers need. During this phase, elements completed in the planning phase are implemented, time is expended, and money is spent.In short, it agency arrange and managing the project resources while execution the project plan, performing the planned project activities, and ensuring they are completed efficiently.e) supervise and tyrannicalProject Control usance that involves analyze actual performance with planned performance and taking strict action to get the desired outcome when there are substantial differences. By monitoring and measuring progress regularly, identifying Bureau of Energy efficiency variances from plan, and taking disciplinary action if required, project control ensures that project objectives are met. observe and Controlling includesMeasuring the ongoing project activities (where we are)Monitoring the project variables (cost, effort, scope, etc.) against the project mana gement plan and the project performance homeline (where we should be) break corrective actions to address issues and risks properly (How croupe we get on get across again)Influencing the factors that could puzzle mix ind change control so only approved changes are implementedIn multi-phase projects,process also provides feedback between project phases, in order to implement corrective or preventive actions to bring the project into entry with the project management plan.Project Maintenance is an ongoing process, and it includes act support of end usersCorrection of errorsUpdates of the packet system program over timeMonitoring and Controlling cycleIn this stage, auditors should pay attention to how in effect and chop-chop user problems are resolved.Over the course of any social organization project, the work scope may change. Change is a normal and expected part of the construction process. Changes hind end be the result of necessary design modifications, differing com mit conditions, textile availability, hugor-requested changes, value engineering and impacts from third parties, to name a few. beyond executing the change in the field, the change normally needs to be attested to show what was actually constructed. This is referred to as Change Management. Hence, the owner unremarkably requires a final record to show all changes or, more limitedally, any change that modifies the tangible portions of the finished work. The record is made on the contract documents usually, but not necessarily limited to, the design drawings. The end product of this effort is what the industry terms as-built drawings, or more simply, as built. The requirement for providing them is a norm in construction contracts.When changes are introduced to the project, the viability of the project has to be re-assessed. It is burning(prenominal) not to lose sight of the initial goals and targets of the projects. When the changes accumulate, the forecasted result may not just ify the original proposed investment in the project.f) Closing outProject closeout is performed after all defined project objectives have been met and the customer has officially accepted the projects deliverables and end product or, in some instances, when a project has been cancelled or terminated earliest. Although, project closeout is a deed process, it is an important one. By properly completing the project closeout, organizations can benefit from lessons wise(p) and information compiled. The project closeout phase is comprised of contract closeout and administrative closure.This phase consists ofProject close Finalize all activities across all of the process groups to formally close the project or a project phase exhort closure Complete and settle each contract (including the resolvent of any open items) and close each contract applicable to the project or project phaseProject Management Knowledge Areas with the associate Processes individually of the nine knowledge area s contains the processes that need to be accomplished within its discipline in order to achieve an effective project management program. Each of these processes also falls into one of the quin basic process groups, creating a matrix structure such that every process can be related to one knowledge area and one process group.Risk Management bundle using projects represent an investment of resources by the projects sponsor, an investment that often yields tiny or no return. The Standish collections Chaos tarradiddle 1994 states that few than 10% of computer software projects in large companies were successful. Medium size companies do better with 16% of their software projects being successful, and small companies observe on 28% of their software projects (Standish 1994). Given these statistics it is worthwhile to invest signifi formalism effort in Risk Management for software projects. Research at The Standish Group also indicates that smaller time frames, with delivery of s oftware components early and often, will increase the success rate. (Standish 1994).Integration Management positive programing offers nothing to help integrate the efforts of non-software developers. Unfortunately, some advocates of extreme programme suggest that the efforts of good writers, database managers, and quality assurance specialist are not required. In reality, while essential programming does not explicitly describe how to integrate the work of separates, the practices do not preclude the ability to integrate with some separate efforts. secondary Releases make Integration Management a more around-the-clock process in contrast to processes that place deployment, documentation, and testing at the end of the schedule. nonstop IntegrationAt a more tactical level, the primitive programme practice of Continuous Integration requires that the work of software developers be integrated on a daily basis. While this practice can cause additional overhead for exclusive developers, it allows the team to identify problems daily that would separatewise become undiscovered rework accumulating until all developers integrate their separate work products.Scope Management Time ManagementAsk most software development teams for a copy of their project plan and you will apprehend an activity list formatted as a Gantt chart. Many time these activity lists will describe several phases of activities such as Analysis, Design, Construction, and Testing. Areas of functionality will be broken out under these headings in order to declare them to specific programmers, but seldom are the assignments identified in the Gantt chart understandably traceable back to a Requirement or other judicial admission documents. in all too often, the missing item that would help a team improve their planning practices is a well-constructed Work Breakdown Structure. Extreme computer programming focuses almost all of its planning efforts on building a profound Work Breakdown Structure and its constituent Work Packages.Extreme Programming does not teach Work Breakdown Structures and Work Packages explicitly, however, diligent study of the Story Cards used in Extreme Programming reveals that they are almost identical to Work Packages in their key attributes. pitying Resources ManagementOften one of the most challenging aspects of project management is managing human resources. For software development projects in particular this includes the complex juggling of expert tasks between individual software developers who have different individual skills, effectively treating each developers assigned tasks as an independent subproject. This type of project plan often suffers from key resource bottlenecks and status meetings reduced to determining which individuals are falling furthest behind. Extreme Programming addresses this head-on by eliminating the dependence on individual developers. Work Packages are scheduled and classical ground on the needs of th e business and the users not the needs of the software developers. All developers are cross-trained to work in all areas of the encrypt base. Developers widen their skills, and project managers stop worrying about keeping individual software developers for the built-in duration of the project. The process maintains knowledge of the full code base in the team, not in individuals.Quality ManagementAs programmers move from work authorization to work authorization, and often from one area of the code to another, it is open to see that maintaining quality in the work product could be challenging. Extreme Programming requires a very disciplined design approach to allow freedom in assigning resources while maintaining high quality.communications ManagementWhen a project manager mentions the need for improved communications on a project, software developers often immediately envision an change magnitude number of meetings and documents. While formal meetings and written documents have t heir place in a communication plan there are some(prenominal) other tools for facilitation of communication between project participants. The Extreme Programming practices include several simple practices intended to enhance communications.Costs ManagementOften a Project Manager is evaluated on his or her ability to complete a project within budget. The costs include estimated cost, actual cost and variability. misadventure cost takes into account influence of weather, suppliers and design allowances.How the 80/20 witness can help a project manager?The 80/20 normal means that in anything a few (20 portion) are critical and many (80 percent) are trivial. Successful Project Managers know that 20 percent of the work (the first 10 percent and the last 10 percent) consumes 80 percent of your time and resources.The History of RADTraditional lifecycles devised in the 1970s, and lock widely used today, are based upon a structured step-by-step approach to developing administration s. This rigid sequence of steps forces a user to sign-off after the completion of each specification before development can proceed to the next step. The requirements and design are and so frozen and the system is coded, tested, and implemented. With such conventional methods, there is a long delay before the customer gets to see any results and the development process can take so long that the customers business could fundamentally change before the system is even ready for use. In response to these rigid, cascading, one-way steps of Stagewise or waterfall beats of development, Barry Boehm, Chief SW Engineer at TRW, introduced his coil simulate. The Spiral Model is a risk-driven, as opposed to code-driven, approach that uses process mould instead than methodology phases. Through his model, Boehm first implemented software prototyping as a way of reducing risk. The development process of the Spiral Model separates the product into critical parts or levels while performing risk analyses, prototyping, and the same(p) steps at each of these levels. Similarly, Tom Gilbs Evolutionary Life Cycle is based on an evolutionary prototyping rationale where the prototype is enceinte and clear into the final product.The work of Boehm and Gilb paved the way for the formulation of the methodology called Rapid Iterative Production Prototyping (RIPP) at DuPont in the mid-to-late 1980s. James Martin then(prenominal) broaden the work done at DuPont and elsewhere into a larger, more formalistic process, which has become known as Rapid Application festering (RAD). RAD compresses the step-by-step development of conventional methods into an iterative process. The RAD approach gum olibanum includes developing and refining the data models, process models, and prototype in match using an iterative process. User requirements are refined, a closure is designed, the solving is prototyped, the prototype is reviewed, user input is provided, and the process begins again.What i s elation? in that location is no Agility for Dummies. Agility isnt a silver bullet. You dont achieve it in five easy steps. So what is it? From one view nimbleness characterized in two statementsAgility is the ability to both create and respond to change in order to profit in a degenerate business environment.Agility is the ability to match tractableness and stability (Highsmith 2002).In an doubtful and turbulent world, success belongs to companies that have the capacity to create change, and maybe even chaos, for their competitors. Creating change disrupts competitors (and the entire market ecosystem) responding to change guards against competitive thrusts. Creating change requires conversion developing new products, creating new sales channels, reducing product development time, customizing products for increasingly smaller market segments. In addition, your company must be able to respond quickly to both anticipated and unanticipated changes created by your competitors an d customers.An example of a product development effort in which all the aspects of agility come into play is that of small, portable DNA analyzers. These instruments can be used for analyzing suspected bio-terror agents (e.g., anthrax), performing quick medical diagnoses, or undertaking environmental bacterial analysis. These instruments must be accurate, easy to use, and reliable under wide-ranging conditions, and their development depends on breakthroughs in nanotechnology, genome research, and micro-fluidics. Developing these leading-edge products requires blending flexibility and structure, exploring various new technologies, and creating change for competitors by reducing delivery time. These are not projects that can be managed by traditional, prescriptive project management methodologies. well-nigh pot mistakenly assume that agility connotes a miss of structure, but the absence of structure, or stability, generates chaos. Conversely, too much structure generates rigidity. complexity surmise tells us that innovationcreating something new in ways that we cant amply anticipate (an emergent result) occurs most readily at the symmetricalness point between chaos and order, between flexibility and stability. Scientists believe that emergence, the trigger of renewing from agent interaction, happens most readily at this edge of chaos. The idea of enough structure, but not too much, drives agile managers to continually ask the question, How little structure can I get away with? likewise much structure stifles creativity. Too little structure breeds inefficiency.This need to balance at the edge of chaos to foster innovation is one lawsuit process-centric methodologies often fail. They push organizations into over-optimization at the expense of innovation. Agile organizations dont get preoccupied in some gray middle ground they understand which factors require stabilisation and which ones encourage exploration. For example, in a high-change product devel opment environment, pie-eyed strain management stabilizes and facilitates flexibility just as a focus on technical excellence stabilizes the development effort.Overview and definitionsThe Agile Movement in software industry saw the light of day with the AgileSoftware Development Manifesto4 published by a group of software practitioners and consultants in 2001 (Beck et al. 2001 Cockburn 2002a). The focal values honored by the agilists are presented in the followingIndividuals and interactions over processes and toolsWorking software over comprehensive documentation guest collaborationism over contract negotiationResponding to change over following a planThese central values that the agile community adheres to areFirst, the agile movement emphasizes the relationship and communality of software developers and the human role reflected in the contracts, as opposed to institutionalized processes and development tools. In the brisk agile practices, this manifests itself in close team r elationships, close working environment arrangements, and other procedures boosting team spirit.Second, the vital objective of the software team is to continuously turn out tested working software. New releases are produced at patronize intervals, in some approaches even hourly or daily, but more usually bi-monthly or monthly. The developers are urged to keep the code simple, straightforward, and technically as mature as possible, thus lessening the documentation burden to an sequester level.Third, the relationship and cooperation between the developers and the clients is given the preference over strict contracts, although the magnificence of well drafted contracts does grow at the same pace as the size of the software project. The negotiation process itself should be seen as a means of achieving and maintaining a viable relationship. From a business point of view, agile development is focus on delivering business value immediately as the project starts, thus reducing the ris ks of non-fulfillment regarding the contract.Fourth, the development group, comprising both software developers and customer representatives, should be well-informed, suitable and authorized to consider possible adjustment needs emerging during the development process life-cycle. This means that the participants are prepared to make changes and that also the existing contracts are formed with tools that support and allow these enhancements to be made. fit in to Highsmith and Cockburn (2001, p. 122), what is new about agile methods is not the practices they use, but their recognition of people as the primary drivers of project success, coupled with an intense focus on effectiveness and maneuverability. This yields a new combination of values and principles that define an agile world view. Boehm (2002) illustrates the spectrum of different planning methods with Figure 1, in which hackers are move at one end and the so called inch-pebble ironbound contractual approach at the antagon ist endHawrysh and Ruprecht (2000) state that a single methodology can not work for the whole spectrum of different projects, but instead the project management should identify the specific nature of the project at hand and then select the besPractices of Agile Methods in Project ManagementPractices of Agile Methods in Project ManagementAbstractThis paper describes the practices of agile methods from the outdoor stage of project management.The project management techniques are complex processes that require the apprehension and coordination of several domains of knowledge.As more and more software projects engage Agile Methods, there are emerging patterns of success and failure. With growing adoption of Agile Methods, project managers increasingly need to understand the applicability to their projects and factors that drive key project performance characteristics.Agile Methods have advantages, especially in accommodating change due to volatile requirements. However, they also pres ent concomitant risks with managing the many dependent pieces of work distributed across a large project.The paper is divided into four parts. In the first part an overview of the project management and its processes and knowledge areas discussed. after that the agile methods discussed following with a short history of RAD(We should mention that just three most used and famous methodologies are discussed).In the second part the project management approaches and a brief definition of each approach are given.In the third part we looked at the agile methodologies from project management areas view such as cost, time, quality and risk management and we compared agile methodologies and we explained their advantages and disadvantages.In the fourth part we discussed about combination of agile methodologies and their utilization in large and complex projects.And finally we propose our own idea about the future of project management in agile methods.Keywords Project Management, Rapid Develop ment Methodologies, Agile Project Management, History of RAD, Project management approaches, Agile Performance Measurement, Investment and Risk, Agile Enterprise Framework, Agile Methodology FitIntroductionWhat is Project?A human activity that achieves a clear objective against a time scaleA project is a one-shot, time-limited, goal-directed, major undertaking, requiring the commitment of varied skills and resources.A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service. A project is temporary in that there is a defined start (the decision to proceed) and a defined end (the achievement of the goals and objectives). Ongoing business or maintenance operations are not projects. Energy conservation projects and process improvement efforts that result in better business processes or more efficient operations can be defined as projects. Projects usually include constraints and risks regarding cost, schedule or performance outcome.What is Project Management?Many have attempted to define project management. One example, Oisen,3 referencing views from the 1950s, may have been one of the early attempts. Project Management is the application of a collection of tools and techniques (such as the CPM and matrix organization) to direct the use of diverse resources toward the accomplishment of a unique, complex, one-time task within time, cost and quality constraints. Each task requires a particular mix of theses tools and techniques structured to fit the task environment and life cycle (from conception to completion) of the task.Notice in the definition are included some the success criteria, The Iron triangle. Those criteria for measuring success included in the description used by Oisen3 continue to be used to describe project management today. The British Standard for project management BS60794 1996 defined project management asThe planning, monitoring and control of all aspects of a project and the motivation of all those involved in it to ach ieve the project objectives on time and to the specified cost, quality and performance. The UK Association of project Management (APM) have produced a UK Body of Knowledge UK (BoK)5which also provides a definition for project management asThe planning, organization, monitoring and control of all aspects of a project and the motivation of all involved to achieve the project objectives safely and within agreed time, cost and performance criteria. The project manager is the single point of responsibility for achieving this. Other definitions have been offered, Reiss6 suggests a project is a human activity that achieves a clear objective against a time scale, and to achieve this while pointing out that a simple description is not possible, suggests project management is a combination of management and planning and the management of change.Locks7 view was that project management had evolved in order to plan, co-ordinate and control the complex and diverse activities of modern industrial and commercial projects, while Burke8 considers project management to be a specialized management technique, to plan and control projects under a strong single point of responsibility.While some different suggestions about what is project management have been made, the criteria for success, namely cost, time and quality remain and are included in the actual description. Could this mean that the example given to define project management Oisen3 was either correct, or as a discipline, project management has not really changed or developed the success measurement criteria in almost 50 years.Project management is a learning profession. Based upon past mistakes and believed best practice, standards such as BS 60794 and the UK Body of Knowledge5 continue to be developed. But defining project management is difficult, Wirth,9 indicated the differences in content between six countries own versions of BoKs. Turner10 provided a consolidated matrix to help understand and moderate different atte mpts to describe project management, including the assessment. Turner10 further suggested that project management could be described as the art and science of converting vision into reality. Note the criteria against which project management is measured is not included in that description. Is there a paradox however in even attempting to define project management? Can a subject which deals with a unique, one-off complex task as suggested as early as Oisen3 be defined? Perhaps project management is simply an evolving phenomena, which will remain vague enough to be non-definable, a flexible attribute which could be a strength. The significant point is that while the factors have developed and been adopted, changes to the success criteria have been suggested but remain unchanged. Could the link be, that project management continues to fail because, included in the definition are a limited set of criteria for measuring success, cost, time and quality, which even if these criteria are ac hieved simply demonstrate the chance of matching two best guesses and a phenomena correctly. Prior to some undergraduate lectures and workshops about project management, the students were asked to locate some secondary literature describing project management and produce their own definition. While there were some innovative ideas, the overriding responses included the success criteria of cost, time and quality within the definition. If this is the perception about project management we wish those about to work in the profession to have, the rhetoric over the years has worked. Has this however been the problem to realizing more successful projects? To date, project management has had the success criteria focused upon the delivery stage, up to implementation. Reinforced by the very description we have continued to use to define the profession. The focus has been to judge whether the project was done right. Doing something right may result in a project which was implemented on time, w ithin cost and to some quality parameters requested, but which is not used by the customers, not liked by the sponsors and does not seem to provide either improved effectiveness or efficiency for the organization, is this successful project management?Project Management Life CycleThe process flow of Project management processes is shown below. The various elements of project management life cycle areNeed identificationInitiationPlanningExecutingControllingClosing outa) Need IdentificationThe first step in the project development cycle is to identify components of the project. Projects may be identified both internally and externallyInternal identification takes place when the energy manager identifies a package of energy saving opportunities during the day-to-day energy management activities, or from facility audits.External identification of energy savings can occur through systematic energy audits undertaken by a reputable energy auditor or energy service company.In screening proj ects, the following criteria should be used to rank-order project opportunities.Cost-effectiveness of energy savings of complete package of measures (Internal rate of return, net present value, cash flow, average payback)Sustainability of the savings over the life of the equipment.Ease of quantifying, monitoring, and verifying electricity and fuel savings.Availability of technology, and ease of adaptability of the technology to Indian conditions.Other environmental and social cost benefits (such as reduction in local pollutants, e.g. SOx)b) InitiationInitiating is the basic processes that should be performed to get the project started. This starting point is critical because those who will deliver the project, those who will use the Bureau of Energy Efficiency project, and those who will have a stake in the project need to reach an agreement on its initiation. Involving all stakeholders in the project phases generally improves the probability of satisfying customer requirements by s hared ownership of the project by the stakeholders. The success of the project team depends upon starting with complete and accurate information, management support, and the authorization necessary to manage the project.The initiation stage should include a plan that encompasses the following areasAnalyzing the business needs/requirements in measurable goalsReviewing of the current operationsFinancial analysis of the costs and benefits including a budgetStakeholder analysis, including users, and support personnel for the projectProject charter including costs, tasks, deliverables, and schedulec) PlanningThe planning phase is considered the most important phase in project management. Project planning defines project activities that will be performed the products that will be produced, and describes how these activities will be accomplished and managed. Project planning defines each major task, estimates the time, resources and cost required, and provides a framework for management re view and control. Planning involves identifying and documenting scope, tasks, schedules, cost, risk, quality, and staffing needs.The result of the project planning, the project plan, will be an approved, comprehensive document that allows a project team to begin and complete the work necessary to achieve the project goals and objectives. The project plan will address how the project team will manage the project elements. It will provide a high level of confidence in the organizations ability to meet the scope, timing, cost, and quality requirements by addressing all aspects of the project.Project planning generally consists ofdetermining how to plan (e.g. by level of detail or rolling wave)developing the scope statementselecting the planning teamidentifying deliverables and creating the work breakdown structureidentifying the activities needed to complete those deliverables and networking the activities in their logical sequenceestimating the resource requirements for the activities estimating time and cost for activitiesdeveloping the scheduledeveloping the budgetrisk planninggaining formal approval to begin work.Additional processes, such as planning for communications and for scope management, identifying roles and responsibilities, determining what to purchase for the project and holding a kick-off meeting are also generally advisable.For new product development projects, conceptual design of the operation of the final product may be performed concurrent with the project planning activities, and may help to inform the planning team when identifying deliverables and planning activitiesd) ExecutingOnce a project moves into the execution phase, the project team and all necessary resources to carry out the project should be in place and ready to perform project activities. The project plan is completed and base lined by this time as well. The project team and the project managers focus now shifts from planning the project efforts to participating, observing, an d analyzing the work being done.The execution phase is when the work activities of the project plan are executed, resulting in the completion of the project deliverables and achievement of the project objective(s). This phase brings together all of the project management disciplines, resulting in a product or service that will meet the project deliverable requirements and the customers need. During this phase, elements completed in the planning phase are implemented, time is expended, and money is spent.In short, it means coordinating and managing the project resources while executing the project plan, performing the planned project activities, and ensuring they are completed efficiently.e) Monitoring and ControllingProject Control function that involves comparing actual performance with planned performance and taking corrective action to get the desired outcome when there are significant differences. By monitoring and measuring progress regularly, identifying Bureau of Energy Effic iency variances from plan, and taking corrective action if required, project control ensures that project objectives are met.Monitoring and Controlling includesMeasuring the ongoing project activities (where we are)Monitoring the project variables (cost, effort, scope, etc.) against the project management plan and the project performance baseline (where we should be)Identify corrective actions to address issues and risks properly (How can we get on track again)Influencing the factors that could circumvent integrated change control so only approved changes are implementedIn multi-phase projects,process also provides feedback between project phases, in order to implement corrective or preventive actions to bring the project into compliance with the project management plan.Project Maintenance is an ongoing process, and it includesContinuing support of end usersCorrection of errorsUpdates of the software over timeMonitoring and Controlling cycleIn this stage, auditors should pay attenti on to how effectively and quickly user problems are resolved.Over the course of any construction project, the work scope may change. Change is a normal and expected part of the construction process. Changes can be the result of necessary design modifications, differing site conditions, material availability, contractor-requested changes, value engineering and impacts from third parties, to name a few. Beyond executing the change in the field, the change normally needs to be documented to show what was actually constructed. This is referred to as Change Management. Hence, the owner usually requires a final record to show all changes or, more specifically, any change that modifies the tangible portions of the finished work. The record is made on the contract documents usually, but not necessarily limited to, the design drawings. The end product of this effort is what the industry terms as-built drawings, or more simply, as built. The requirement for providing them is a norm in constr uction contracts.When changes are introduced to the project, the viability of the project has to be re-assessed. It is important not to lose sight of the initial goals and targets of the projects. When the changes accumulate, the forecasted result may not justify the original proposed investment in the project.f) Closing outProject closeout is performed after all defined project objectives have been met and the customer has formally accepted the projects deliverables and end product or, in some instances, when a project has been cancelled or terminated early. Although, project closeout is a routine process, it is an important one. By properly completing the project closeout, organizations can benefit from lessons learned and information compiled. The project closeout phase is comprised of contract closeout and administrative closure.This phase consists ofProject close Finalize all activities across all of the process groups to formally close the project or a project phaseContract cl osure Complete and settle each contract (including the resolution of any open items) and close each contract applicable to the project or project phaseProject Management Knowledge Areas with the Related ProcessesEach of the nine knowledge areas contains the processes that need to be accomplished within its discipline in order to achieve an effective project management program. Each of these processes also falls into one of the five basic process groups, creating a matrix structure such that every process can be related to one knowledge area and one process group.Risk ManagementSoftware development projects represent an investment of resources by the projects sponsor, an investment that often yields little or no return. The Standish Groups Chaos Report 1994 states that fewer than 10% of software projects in large companies were successful. Medium sized companies do better with 16% of their software projects being successful, and small companies succeed on 28% of their software projec ts (Standish 1994). Given these statistics it is worthwhile to invest significant effort in Risk Management for software projects. Research at The Standish Group also indicates that smaller time frames, with delivery of software components early and often, will increase the success rate. (Standish 1994).Integration ManagementExtreme Programming offers nothing to help integrate the efforts of non-software developers. Unfortunately, some advocates of Extreme Programming suggest that the efforts of technical writers, database managers, and quality assurance specialist are not required. In reality, while Extreme Programming does not explicitly describe how to integrate the work of others, the practices do not preclude the ability to integrate with other efforts. Small Releases make Integration Management a more continuous process in contrast to processes that place deployment, documentation, and testing at the end of the schedule.Continuous IntegrationAt a more tactical level, the Extre me Programming practice of Continuous Integration requires that the work of software developers be integrated on a daily basis. While this practice can cause additional overhead for individual developers, it allows the team to identify problems daily that would other become undiscovered rework accumulating until all developers integrate their individual work products.Scope Management Time ManagementAsk most software development teams for a copy of their project plan and you will receive an activity list formatted as a Gantt chart. Many times these activity lists will describe several phases of activities such as Analysis, Design, Construction, and Testing. Areas of functionality will be broken out under these headings in order to assign them to specific programmers, but seldom are the assignments identified in the Gantt chart clearly traceable back to a Requirement or other specification documents. All too often, the missing item that would help a team improve their planning pract ices is a well-constructed Work Breakdown Structure. Extreme Programming focuses almost all of its planning efforts on building a thoughtful Work Breakdown Structure and its constituent Work Packages.Extreme Programming does not teach Work Breakdown Structures and Work Packages explicitly, however, careful study of the Story Cards used in Extreme Programming reveals that they are almost identical to Work Packages in their key attributes.Human Resources ManagementOften one of the most challenging aspects of project management is managing human resources. For software development projects in particular this includes the complex juggling of technical tasks between individual software developers who have different individual skills, effectively treating each developers assigned tasks as an independent subproject. This type of project plan often suffers from key resource bottlenecks and status meetings reduced to determining which individuals are falling furthest behind. Extreme Programm ing addresses this head-on by eliminating the dependency on individual developers. Work Packages are scheduled and authorized based on the needs of the business and the users not the needs of the software developers. All developers are cross-trained to work in all areas of the code base. Developers broaden their skills, and project managers stop worrying about keeping individual software developers for the entire duration of the project. The process maintains knowledge of the full code base in the team, not in individuals.Quality ManagementAs programmers move from work authorization to work authorization, and often from one area of the code to another, it is easy to see that maintaining quality in the work product could be challenging. Extreme Programming requires a very disciplined design approach to allow freedom in assigning resources while maintaining high quality.Communications ManagementWhen a project manager mentions the need for improved communications on a project, software developers often immediately envision an increased number of meetings and documents. While formal meetings and written documents have their place in a communication plan there are many other tools for facilitation of communication between project participants. The Extreme Programming practices include several simple practices intended to enhance communications.Costs ManagementOften a Project Manager is evaluated on his or her ability to complete a project within budget. The costs include estimated cost, actual cost and variability. Contingency cost takes into account influence of weather, suppliers and design allowances.How the 80/20 Rule can help a project manager?The 80/20 Rule means that in anything a few (20 percent) are vital and many (80 percent) are trivial. Successful Project Managers know that 20 percent of the work (the first 10 percent and the last 10 percent) consumes 80 percent of your time and resources.The History of RADTraditional lifecycles devised in the 1970s, an d still widely used today, are based upon a structured step-by-step approach to developing systems. This rigid sequence of steps forces a user to sign-off after the completion of each specification before development can proceed to the next step. The requirements and design are then frozen and the system is coded, tested, and implemented. With such conventional methods, there is a long delay before the customer gets to see any results and the development process can take so long that the customers business could fundamentally change before the system is even ready for use. In response to these rigid, cascading, one-way steps of Stagewise or Waterfall Models of development, Barry Boehm, Chief SW Engineer at TRW, introduced his SpiralModel. The Spiral Model is a risk-driven, as opposed to code-driven, approach that uses process modeling rather than methodology phases. Through his model, Boehm first implemented software prototyping as a way of reducing risk. The development process of the Spiral Model separates the product into critical parts or levels while performing risk analyses, prototyping, and the same steps at each of these levels. Similarly, Tom Gilbs Evolutionary Life Cycle is based on an evolutionary prototyping rationale where the prototype is grown and refined into the final product.The work of Boehm and Gilb paved the way for the formulation of the methodology called Rapid Iterative Production Prototyping (RIPP) at DuPont in the mid-to-late 1980s. James Martin then extended the work done at DuPont and elsewhere into a larger, more formalized process, which has become known as Rapid Application Development (RAD). RAD compresses the step-by-step development of conventional methods into an iterative process. The RAD approach thus includes developing and refining the data models, process models, and prototype in parallel using an iterative process. User requirements are refined, a solution is designed, the solution is prototyped, the prototype is review ed, user input is provided, and the process begins again.What is Agility?There is no Agility for Dummies. Agility isnt a silver bullet. You dont achieve it in five easy steps. So what is it? From one view agility characterized in two statementsAgility is the ability to both create and respond to change in order to profit in a turbulent business environment.Agility is the ability to balance flexibility and stability (Highsmith 2002).In an uncertain and turbulent world, success belongs to companies that have the capacity to create change, and maybe even chaos, for their competitors. Creating change disrupts competitors (and the entire market ecosystem) responding to change guards against competitive thrusts. Creating change requires innovation developing new products, creating new sales channels, reducing product development time, customizing products for increasingly smaller market segments. In addition, your company must be able to respond quickly to both anticipated and unanticipat ed changes created by your competitors and customers.An example of a product development effort in which all the aspects of agility come into play is that of small, portable DNA analyzers. These instruments can be used for analyzing suspected bio-terror agents (e.g., anthrax), performing quick medical diagnoses, or undertaking environmental bacterial analysis. These instruments must be accurate, easy to use, and reliable under wide-ranging conditions, and their development depends on breakthroughs in nanotechnology, genome research, and micro-fluidics. Developing these leading-edge products requires blending flexibility and structure, exploring various new technologies, and creating change for competitors by reducing delivery time. These are not projects that can be managed by traditional, prescriptive project management methodologies.Some people mistakenly assume that agility connotes a lack of structure, but the absence of structure, or stability, generates chaos. Conversely, too much structure generates rigidity. Complexity theory tells us that innovationcreating something new in ways that we cant fully anticipate (an emergent result) occurs most readily at the balance point between chaos and order, between flexibility and stability. Scientists believe that emergence, the creation of novelty from agent interaction, happens most readily at this edge of chaos. The idea of enough structure, but not too much, drives agile managers to continually ask the question, How little structure can I get away with? Too much structure stifles creativity. Too little structure breeds inefficiency.This need to balance at the edge of chaos to foster innovation is one reason process-centric methodologies often fail. They push organizations into over-optimization at the expense of innovation. Agile organizations dont get lost in some gray middle ground they understand which factors require stabilization and which ones encourage exploration. For example, in a high-change product development environment, rigorous configuration management stabilizes and facilitates flexibility just as a focus on technical excellence stabilizes the development effort.Overview and definitionsThe Agile Movement in software industry saw the light of day with the AgileSoftware Development Manifesto4 published by a group of software practitioners and consultants in 2001 (Beck et al. 2001 Cockburn 2002a). The focal values honored by the agilists are presented in the followingIndividuals and interactions over processes and toolsWorking software over comprehensive documentationCustomer collaboration over contract negotiationResponding to change over following a planThese central values that the agile community adheres to areFirst, the agile movement emphasizes the relationship and communality of software developers and the human role reflected in the contracts, as opposed to institutionalized processes and development tools. In the existing agile practices, this manifests itself in cl ose team relationships, close working environment arrangements, and other procedures boosting team spirit.Second, the vital objective of the software team is to continuously turn out tested working software. New releases are produced at frequent intervals, in some approaches even hourly or daily, but more usually bi-monthly or monthly. The developers are urged to keep the code simple, straightforward, and technically as advanced as possible, thus lessening the documentation burden to an appropriate level.Third, the relationship and cooperation between the developers and the clients is given the preference over strict contracts, although the importance of well drafted contracts does grow at the same pace as the size of the software project. The negotiation process itself should be seen as a means of achieving and maintaining a viable relationship. From a business point of view, agile development is focused on delivering business value immediately as the project starts, thus reducing the risks of non-fulfillment regarding the contract.Fourth, the development group, comprising both software developers and customer representatives, should be well-informed, competent and authorized to consider possible adjustment needs emerging during the development process life-cycle. This means that the participants are prepared to make changes and that also the existing contracts are formed with tools that support and allow these enhancements to be made.According to Highsmith and Cockburn (2001, p. 122), what is new about agile methods is not the practices they use, but their recognition of people as the primary drivers of project success, coupled with an intense focus on effectiveness and maneuverability. This yields a new combination of values and principles that define an agile world view. Boehm (2002) illustrates the spectrum of different planning methods with Figure 1, in which hackers are placed at one end and the so called inch-pebble ironbound contractual approach at th e opposite endHawrysh and Ruprecht (2000) state that a single methodology can not work for the whole spectrum of different projects, but instead the project management should identify the specific nature of the project at hand and then select the bes