Project Management Process by IPMA – Project Start and Kickoff

What is the objective of the project start?

Project start is about defining plans, phases and the approach how to achieve the project goal.

Objective of the project start process:

• Scope is defined.
• Phases of the project are defined.
• Overall project plans (budged, resources, work breakdown structure (WBS), milestones, Gantt, organization etc.) are done. In case of large scale project high level plans are prepared roughly and will be fleshed out at follow up sessions. Project handbook framed.
• Project organization is implemented.
• Common understanding of the objectives
• Teambuilding has started.

Step within the framework by IPMA:

How does project start/setup work?

 

Project-Setup

Preparation:	Getting understanding of the scope, meeting project sponsor/customer, preparation of the workshop.
Planning workshop:	Planning meeting to prepare a rough plan to achieve scope, time and cost (tripe constraints) of the project.
Follow Up:	Follow up meeting / discussion based on the results of the planning workshop
Project sponsor approval:	Getting approval for the project plans (when, how, who, what)
Preparation:	Preparation of rough project plans, paperwork for project sponsor meeting
Preparation for customer meeting:	Giving an high level overview of the project and closing of Project - Setup.

What is important about the planning workshop (Kickoff Meeting)?

• Making the expectations and goals of the workshop clear
• Communicating non goals
• Workshop schedule and agenda

 Example Kickoff-Meeting:

Project: Family house

• Date: January 10, 2014
• Participants: Barney (PM..Project Manager), Ted(Engineer), Bob (Construction)

Objective:

• Clarify roughly the scope (characteristics of soil, construction system, construction, construction work, specification of family house)
• Define the phases of the project (eg. define construction system, engineering, construction work, handover)

Non-objective:

•  Implementing outdoor installation and facilities

Agenda:

Time	Subject	Who
8am	Welcome	PM
8:30am	Brief overview and introduction	PM and participants
8:45am-10am	Scope discussion	All
10am-12am	Phasing the projects and defining roughly project-plans	All
12pm	Lunch	All
1pm-2pm	Debriefing	PM

PM..Project Manager
Documents:

Plans (cost, architecture, quote)

 

Input:

• Projectcharter

 

Output of Project-Setup:

• Project handbook (p-plans)
• Minimum recommendation: Scope, Work Breakdown Structure, Milestoneplan, Gantt chart, Roles, Organizational chart, resource plan, cost plan

 

 

Project Management Process by IPMA – The Process

The process

The project management process by IPMA provides the framework and methods to achieve the project goal within the triple constraint (time, scope and cost/quality). The process itself is lighter than the PMI approach and is focusing on people skills. Project management competences are outlined in the IPMA Competence Baseline (ICB). It is divided into: Technique, Behavior and Context. I want to lead you through the process by building a family house as example.

Project Management Process

Project Start (aka Project Setup)

It is about defining the projects plans (P-Plans) and phases of the project based on the inputs of the Project-Charter (P-Charter).

Project-Charter	Family house
Description:	Family house with flat roof and a few doors and windows build within 3 months after contracting.
P-Start Date:	January 20, 2014
P-Start Event:	Signature on the contract
P-End Date:	April 20, 2014
P-End Event:	Acceptance by Fred the customer
P-Objectives:	Whole construction from basement to roof
P-Non-Objectives:	To build a skyscraper
P-Category:	Small project
Main Tasks:	Basement, first story, roof, installations
Resource:	Bob the builder
Costs:	1 million USD (estimate)
Project Sponsor:	Fred the customer
Project Manager:	Barney
Project Team:	Barney, Ted the architect, Bob the builder
Date and Signature:	Barney

These are the tasks which are critical for the setup of the initial phase:

• Outline the project regarding scope, time and social context and boundaries
• Defining the phases of the project
• Defining the project organization
• Defining the project start process (kick-off meeting)

Inputs:

• Project charter

Methods:

Brainstorming, kickoff meeting, expert teams, estimating techniques, workshop, etc.

Outputs:

• Project handbook with the project plans

Minimum recommendation (small projects):

• Work Breakdown structure,
• Roles
• Organizational chart
• Milestone plan
• Schedule (Gantt chart)
• Resource plan
• Cost plan

 Links & Books:

John Hermarij, Better Practices of Project Management based on IPMA-C and IPMA-D- 2nd. Edition, Netherlands, Van Haren, 2001

ICB and pm baseline 3.0, Austria, IPMA, 2013