Chapter 3
Getting a Project Off the Ground
Let's say your boss has assigned you as project manager to shepherd the company's exciting new mobile Web eyeglasses product through the design phase. You want to make your mark as a successful project manager with this prestigious, high-visibility project.
To ensure that the project fulfills your company's high hopes, you want to get the project on the right track from the beginning, which means doing the legwork and establishing the foundation to properly define the project and getting the necessary approval to continue.
This chapter covers the project initiation processes. Project initiating is also known as scoping or preplanning. After a discussion about where these new projects come from, you'll learn how to define the project and discover the driving forces for the project's existence and success. You'll understand how to identify the project stakeholders and prepare the project proposal. You'll also learn the importance of obtaining formal approval or sign-off to move ahead with project planning. By the time you distribute the project charter to publicize its existence and assemble the project notebook, you'll have a solid foundation from which to start the detailed project planning.
Pre-Planning for Different PM Methodologies
Whether you're using the traditional waterfall, critical chain, agile, or some other project management methodology, your project initiation outcomes are the same. You still need to carefully define what ...
