97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know

Chapter 52. Align Vision and Expected Outcome

MBA, PMP. David Diaz Castillo

SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS are very challenging, because needs and expectations are not always well defined. The work of a software project manager is to make sure that the following items are in place:

• The main project purpose is well defined.

• Everybody understands why this project is being undertaken.

• The impact for the three Ps (people, processes, and platforms) is clear.

• The needs and expectations are included in the requirements documents. Determine what items are in scope or out of scope, then communicate this to the team.

The software project manager needs to align team members with the vision and the expected outcomes, and master these three additional points:

1. Business view. Why is this project the solution? (What problem or opportunity is this project going to solve, or how will this add value to the organization?)

2. SMART view. What should the software do? (Make it Specific, Measurable, Agreed upon, Realistic, and possible to do within the Time constraint.)

3. Subjective view. What does the end-user think the system will do? (Capture expectations and perceptions from the end-users during the initiating phase.)

Point #1. When coding begins, the programming team and the software project manager focus on the functionality and the technical part of the project, not the main reason that the organization is funding ...