Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Holborow, and welcome to computing.

I'm so pleased you've decided to join me for the lesson today.

In today's lesson, we're going to be looking at what project management is, and some different project management methodologies.

Welcome to today's lesson from the unit using IT in project management.

This lesson is called introduction to project management, and by the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to define the term project management and investigate different methods for project management.

Shall we make a start? We will be exploring lots of keywords in today's lesson.

Let's have a look at them now.

Waterfall.

Waterfall.

A linear, sequential approach.

Each phase must be completed before the next one begins.

Agile.

Agile.

Smaller parts of the project are completed in priority order before quickly moving on to the next, the opposite of the waterfall method.

Hybrid.

Hybrid.

Starts like the waterfall method by analysing the requirements of the project, then uses the flexibility of the agile method, focusing on sprints until the project is complete.

Critical path.

Critical path.

Identifying the component parts of a project and assigning priority to each part.

Look out for these keywords throughout today's lesson.

Today's lesson is broken down into two parts.

We'll start by defining project management, and then we'll move on to select project management methodologies.

Let's make a start by defining project management.

What is project management? Project management is the process of planning, organising and managing a project to meet specified goals.

Project management will decide the success or failure of a project.

To manage a project effectively, there are a number of key aspects that need to be considered.

Knowing what your goals are.

Knowing what the skills are in your team, so what is each person particularly good at or have expertise of doing? Knowing what timescale is involved for the completion of the project.

Allocating tasks and deadlines to appropriate members of the team.

Monitoring the completion of different tasks, so when are things completed? And when can you move on to the next task? Managing resources, such as time, money, and maybe specific people who you need to have access to.

Time to check your understanding.

I have a true or false statement here.

Project management will decide the success or failure of a project, is this statement true or false? Pause the video whilst you have a think.

Did you select true? Well done.

Why is it true? Well, effective project management can ensure the success of a project.

A project that is managed successfully is more likely to be successful than one that is not.

Another check for you.

I'd like you to name two things that contribute to successful project management.

Pause the video here whilst you have a think.

How did you get on? Did you manage to think of two things? Let's have a look at some answers together.

Laura says, "You need to know your goals and the timescale for the project." Aisha says, "You need to know all of the skills of your team and allocate tasks and deadlines to the right people." Andeep says, "You need to check that tasks have been completed and manage resources." They're all really good examples there.

Did you have one similar? Well done.

We are now moving on to our first task of today's lesson.

I'd like you to define the term project management.

Pause the video here whilst you complete the task.

How did you get on? Did you manage to define project management? Let's have a look at a sample answer together.

Project management involves working towards a predefined goal.

To do this effectively, you need to know the skills of your team and assign jobs to the right people.

It's important to keep track of the progress of each task and the resources that are used within the project.

This will all need to be completed within a given timescale.

The success of a project will depend on effective project management.

Remember, if you'd like to pause the video here and add any extra detail or corrections to your answer, you can do that now.

Okay, so we've defined the term project management.

Let's now move on to select project management methodologies.

Let's take a look at the waterfall method of project management.

A project will flow from start to finish in one direction only, so it needs a lot of planning in the early stages.

The process.

Firstly, analyse and identify user requirements.

Secondly, design and plan.

Thirdly, implement and execute.

Test and then evaluate.

If the requirements of a project are very clear with no likely changes, then waterfall is the method most people will follow.

This method of project planning began in software development projects.

Example projects are payment gateways, antivirus software, and online shopping platforms. Let's have a look at some of the advantages of the waterfall method.

As each stage must be perfected before moving on, the structure of the project is easy to follow.

This results in a better end product.

It is document heavy, which means new workers can easily brought in to complete it.

Let's have a look at some disadvantages of the waterfall method.

It lacks flexibility.

If requirements change, you need to start again from the beginning.

The project may not be completed on time if changes occur.

It relies heavily on the initial stages of the project being correct.

Let's now have a look at the agile methodology.

The agile method of project management is the opposite of the waterfall method.

The project can begin quickly, with regular adjustments being made when requirements change.

Smaller parts of the project are completed in priority order before quickly moving on to the next.

Each part is referred to as a sprint.

When is it used? The agile approach is best used when the end outcome is fixed, but how to get there is not.

As with the waterfall method, the end goal or outcome is based on user requirements, so we start by identifying those requirements.

The agile approach also started in software development.

Let's have a look at each stage.

So plan and design.

A roadmap is created of features that will make up the finished product.

One feature is released as a sprint for the project team to deliver before the next feature is released.

Build.

At the build stage, each team member is allocated a component of the sprint to complete.

This is visualised, so all the team members understand what the others are doing.

Short daily meetings are carried out to discuss where each team member is with their task and what they're going to do next.

Test.

The sprint feature will be shared with the client.

The client will provide feedback.

Notes will be made about any changes that might be needed.

The process will begin again, until the sprint fully meets the client's requirements.

The next sprint will be shared and the cycle will start again.

Let's have a look at some advantages of the agile method.

No fixed stages or focus on requirements means there is plenty scope for flexibility and creativity.

There is less risk of project failure, as there are many opportunities to gather feedback from the client.

There is greater freedom to be creative.

Some disadvantages.

The lack of a fixed plan makes resource management tricky, this includes team members.

Many more meetings need to take place, which takes up time.

The clients needs to have the time and willingness to be closely involved with the project.

Time to check your understanding.

What is the missing stage of the agile cycle? Is it A, refine and improve, B, plan and design, or C, feedback? Pause the video whilst you have a think.

Did you select B, plan and design? Well done.

Let's now take a look at the hybrid approach.

This method combines the best of both the waterfall and agile methods.

The hybrid approach will start like the waterfall method by analysing the requirements of the project, and then use the flexibility of the agile method, focusing on sprints until the project is complete.

When is this method used? This method is mainly used for medium sized projects with a fixed budget.

The start of the project is carried out with plenty of detail.

So we initiate the project by identifying the project requirements and gathering the project resources.

Gathering resources includes selecting a team with the necessary skills to complete the project successfully.

This may involve interviewing people and recruiting people to do particular tasks.

It's good for projects that need some flexibility in their structure.

Planning will be more detailed at this point, with a detailed timeline for the completion of activities.

The activities will be prioritised in a logical order for completion and then sectioned as sprints.

Sometimes the client wants to be involved but has limited time capacity.

It is likely that more than one sprint will be completed before the client gets involved.

However, by adopting a hybrid approach, the project can continue without the client's involvement after each sprint.

Testing may take place only on completion of the project, or it may take place at different stages of the sprint completion too.

If the client has notes on the project, the cycle will be repeated but missing out the first stage.

Again, the hybrid method started as a software development management system.

Let's have a look at some advantages of the hybrid method.

Structured planning means resources are easily managed.

There is more flexibility after the planning stage, allowing for creativity.

Subtle changes can be made without impact on the initial requirements.

Let's look at some disadvantages.

Any changes must still comply with the planned timetable.

It's difficult to track progress of deliverables.

More paperwork is needed in order to communicate, which can take up a lot of time.

Let's now look at the critical path method, CPM.

This method involves identifying the component parts of a project, assigning priority to each part.

For example, what parts need to be completed before others can begin? Structuring the order in which the project takes place.

Identifying parts that can be completed alongside others.

Allocating a timeframe to each part of the project.

Unlike the previous methods discussed, the critical path method originated in skyscraper development.

It is more likely to be used when a project has essential components that must be completed with other parts that can be completed alongside them.

Let's have a look at some advantages.

The requirement of mapping out the time at which an activity will take place results in effective resource deployment.

As critical and non-critical activities are identified, an effective schedule is created.

If activity C must be completed before activity F, priority will be given to activity C, with D and E running alongside it.

Let's have a look at a simple critical path example.

So here we're using the example of making an omelette.

The red arrows and darker top line of boxes indicate the critical path to make the omelette.

If these steps are not followed, there would be no omelette.

So we have make an omelette, beat two eggs, heat the pan, add butter or oil when hot, pour in the beaten eggs, cook for five minutes and then eat the omelette.

The blue arrows that run along the bottom are still tasks that can be completed, but they're not critical to the project being completed, or in this case, the omelette, so adding seasoning, adding vegetables, adding cheese.

Let's have a look at some disadvantages.

It's essential to have expertise of project management to successfully implement the critical path method.

The time taken to perform activities can be longer than expected.

The time taken to perform activities can be longer than expected, fundamentally derailing the project.

It lacks flexibility in the same way as the waterfall method.

Time to check your understanding.

I have a question for you.

Which of these did not originate from software development? Is it A, waterfall, B, agile, C, hybrid, or D, critical path method? Pause the video whilst you have a think.

Did you select D? Well done.

Remember, critical path method originated from skyscraper development.

I'd now like you to match the definition to the project management method.

So the definitions are waterfall, agile, hybrid, and critical path.

The definitions are smaller parts of the project are completed in priority order, before quickly moving on to the next, the opposite of the waterfall method.

Identifying the component parts of a project and assigning priority to each part.

A linear sequential approach.

Each phase must be completed before the next begins.

Combines the best of both the waterfall and agile methods.

Pause the video whilst you match the definition to the correct descriptions.

How did you get on? Did you manage to match the terms? Let's have a look.

So waterfall is a linear sequential approach, each phase must be completed before the next begins.

Agile, smaller parts of the project are completed in priority order before quickly moving on to the next, the opposite of the waterfall method.

Hybrid, combines the best of both the waterfall and agile methods.

And then finally, critical path, identifying the component parts of a project and assigning priority order to each part.

Okay, we're moving on to our next task of today's lesson, task B.

I'd like you to read the scenarios.

I'd then like you to select the method that you would think would work best in each scenario.

So you can choose from waterfall, agile, hybrid, or critical path.

Let's take a look at our first scenario.

We've got Laura here.

Laura says, "I'm hoping to manage a building project.

First, I'll need to identify the customer's needs.

After that, I'll work with the team to get the designs together to plan what to do.

Then we'll start to build.

We'll need to get the inspectors to do some tests to make sure everything is up to standard once we're done.

Then I guess we'll just need to maintain things as needed.

I've not managed any projects before.

I'll need to keep a close eye on each stage and make sure it is complete before moving on.

Which method should I use to manage my project?" Pause the video here whilst you think about which method Laura should use.

What did you suggest Laura used? Let's have a look at Aisha's sample answer.

"Laura's building project sounds like it runs sequentially.

One thing needs to be completed before the next stage starts.

If this is the case, then I would suggest she uses the waterfall method." Did you suggest the waterfall method too? Let's have a look at the next scenario.

We've got Sam now.

Sam says, "I'm looking for a flexible project management method to help me manage the creation of a website for a client.

As we're new to working together, they've asked if they can work very closely with me to make sure they meet their goals.

I have a large team with many skills who'll work on the project together.

There is little room for failure, as their new project is due to launch in the near future.

Which method should I use to manage my project?" Pause the video whilst you make a suggestion for Sam.

Ah, here we've got Aisha.

"I'd suggest Sam uses the agile method of project management to ensure their website project is a success.

This will give them flexibility and the freedom to be creative.

They can allocate aspects of the sprints to different members of their team." Did you suggest the agile method or something different? Okay, we've come to the end of today's lesson, introduction to project management, and you've done a fantastic job, so well done.

Let's summarise what we've learnt in this lesson.

Project management will decide the success or failure of a project.

The waterfall method is a linear sequential approach.

Each phase must be completed before the next one begins.

The agile method of project management is the opposite of the waterfall method.

Smaller parts of the project are completed in priority order before quickly moving on to the next.

The hybrid approach combines the best of both the waterfall and agile methods.

The critical path method involves identifying the component parts of a project and assigning a priority to each part.

I hope you've enjoyed today's lesson, and I hope you'll join me again soon.

Bye.