Lab Activity 1 (Nov. 23, 2009)

CHARLIE: Lab Activity 1 ( Project Management)
Adrian Torres
Harold Naallatan
Socrates del Rosario
Richelieu Abarrientos

a) What is project management?

• Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, and managing resources to bring successful completion of specific project goals and objectives. It is often related to programming management.

b) Enumerate/Identify the traditional development phases of a project

• Project initiation stage - The initiation determines the nature and scope of the development. If the stage is not performed well, it is unlikely that the project will be successful in meeting the business's needs.
  

• Project planning or design stage - the system design comes after the initiation stage. Under this stage is the production and testing of a small prototype of the final project. A combination of testers and end users will be performing the tests after the prototype is built. The results of the design stage should include a product design that:

1) Satisfies the project sponsor, end user, and business requirements
2)Functions as it was intended
3)Can be produced within acceptable quality standards
4)Can be produced within time and budget constraints

• Project Execution or production stage - Project execution consists of the processes used to complete the work defined in the project management plan to accomplish the project's requirements. It involves coordinating people and resources, as well as integrating and performing the activities of the project in accordance with the project management plan. The deliverables are produced as outputs from the processes performed as defined in the project management plan.

• Project monitoring and controlling systems - Monitoring and Controlling consists of those processes performed to observe project execution so that potential problems can be identified in a timely manner and corrective action can be taken, when necessary, to control the execution of the project. The key benefit is that project performance is observed and measured regularly to identify variances from the project management plan.

  Monitoring and Controlling includes:

1. Measuring the ongoing project activities (where we are);
2. Monitoring the project variables (cost, effort, scope, etc.) against the project management plan and the project performance baseline (where we should be);
3. Identify corrective actions to address issues and risks properly (How can we get on track again);
4. Influencing the factors that could circumvent integrated change control so only approved changes are implemented

• Project completion/closing stage - Completion or closing stage includes the formal acceptance of the project. Administrative activities like archiving of the files and documenting the lessons learned are included in this phase.

This phase consists of:

1. Project Close-Finalize all activities across all of the process groups to formally close the project or a project phase
2. Contract closure - Complete and settle each contract (including the resolution of any open items) and close each contract applicable to the project or project phase

c) Which phases are commonly done or conducted using information systems (either standalone or web-based)
or design stage;

• Project planning or design stage
• Project execution or production stage
• Project monitoring and controlling systems

d) State three or more advantages of using information systems for each of the phases that use them

• Project planning or design-
  

1. One of the categories of information systems is Data Warehousing. In project planning, storing data will be much needed since the project development will be needing much information for the project to successfully come up to the business's needs.
   
2. Information systems will help the developers analyze the cost of the project or the expenses to be covered in developing it.
   
3. Gives the developers idea about how long the duration of the project development will be or how long the project will be completed.(timeframe)
   

• Project execution or production stage

1. Information system will help identify whether the project developed will comply the requirements or the need of the client.
2. It will help identify the scope of the project which the client requires.
3. It will help the developers identify the resources used or the cost of the project development.
   

• Project monitoring and controlling systems

1. information system will help much in monitoring the system. Testing the project will need much information from the testers and end users who will be testing the system. In accordance, information systems will help much in the said phase of development.
2. information system will help in verifying the quality of the said product/project.
3. it will help in identifying the errors/lapses of the project through the information gathered from the tests performed.
   

REFERENCES:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_systems#Types_of_information_systems

http://www.mh.alabama.gov/downloads/MRSIS
/Benefits_of_an_Information_Management_System.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_management#Project_control_systems