Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
Symbol of the Government of Canada

ARCHIVED - Project Management Process

Warning This page has been archived.

Archived Content

Information identified as archived on the Web is for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It has not been altered or updated after the date of archiving. Web pages that are archived on the Web are not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards. As per the Communications Policy of the Government of Canada, you can request alternate formats on the "Contact Us" page.



An Enhanced Framework for the Management of Information Technology Projects

PPTO-PS-001 Project Management Process

January 2000
Chief Information Officer Branch
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat



1. Introduction

1.1    Purpose

This document describes how the project management processes work together to form a management system directed toward meeting Information Management/Information Technology (IM/IT) delivery commitments.

1.2   Scope

This document is applicable to any IM/IT project.

The scope covers the processes necessary to support IM/IT delivery commitments at the portfolio level. These processes include organisation-wide processes at the portfolio level, and project-based processes at the project level.

Project Level Processes Portfolio Level Processes
Requirements Management Process Commitment Control Process
Project Planning Process Project Management Review Process
Estimation Process Software Quality Assurance Process
Project Tracking Process Project Management Processes Overview

1.3   Roles

Everyone in the organisation has a role to perform in these processes.

Role Description/Responsibilities
Project Leader (PL) This is the person appointed by the sponsoring department to be accountable for all external and internal aspects of a capital project. http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/
pubs_pol/dcgpubs/TBM_122/abkglos-eng.asp
Project Manager (PM) This is a person formally appointed to manage a project with specific accountability for achieving defined project objectives within allocated resources. A project manager has access to, and a formally defined relationship with, the project leader to which the specific project has been assigned.
http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pubs_pol/dcgpubs/TBM_122/abkglos-eng.asp
Project Team Member (PTM) Software engineer or writer assigned to a project

Responsible for completing project tasks, providing input to plans, and providing status

Project Management Office (PMO) This is a distinct and temporary organisational unit led by the project manager tasked to administer a project. It consists of assigned full or part-time members of the sponsoring department and, when appropriate, representatives of participating departments working together in accordance with any interdepartmental agreements or memorandums of understanding. 
http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pubs_pol/dcgpubs/TBM_122/abkglos-eng.asp
Quality Assurance (QA ) Responsible for support of quality assurance activities.
Configuration Management (CM) Responsible for support of configuration management activities.

1.4 Definitions and Acronyms

Refer to Enhanced Management Framework Lexicon.

Refer to Enhanced Management Framework Acronyms.

Refer to Enhanced Management Framework Web Links

1.5 References

1.5.1 Traceability

This process was designed to satisfy the SEI Software Capability Maturity Model goals for Level 2.

1.5.2 Policies

Treasury Board Secretariat Policies:

  • Capital Plans - Glossary
  • Management of Major Crown Projects
  • Procurement Review Policy
  • Project Management
  • Project Approval

The policies above are located at the following URL:

http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pubs_pol/dcgpubs/TBM_122/siglist-eng.asp

1.5.3 Standards

Annex A - Flowcharting Symbols

1.5.4 Processes

PPTO-PS-002 Project Planning Process

PPTO-PS-003 Project Tracking and Oversight Process

PEER-PS-001 Peer Review Process

1.5.5 Procedures

PPTO-PD-001 Estimate Software Product Size Basic Procedure

PPTO-PD-002 Estimate Project Resources/Schedule Basic Procedure

1.5.6 Guidelines

EMF Business Case Guideline

1.5.7 Templates

PPTO-TM-001 Process/Procedure Template

PPTO-TM-002 Project Plan Template

PPTO-TM-003 Project Estimates Template

EMF Project Charter Template

1.5.8 Checklists

PPTO-CK-001 Project Management Checklist

1.7 Conceptual Flow

Project Management Process - Conceptual Flow Graphic

The objective of this management system is to establish basic project management processes to track size, effort, quality, cost, schedule, computer resources, and functionality, and to establish the necessary process discipline to repeat delivery within budget, on time, with required functionality and quality, on projects with similar applications. The conceptual flow of these processes is depicted in the following Management System Processes Pyramid:

To meet commitments, it is necessary to:

  • Understand REQUIREMENTS
  • ESTIMATE the work
  • PLAN the work, so the original commitment is achievable
  • Control the COMMITMENT approvals
  • TRACK status against the plans
  • REVIEW status toward commitments, and initiate changes if necessary
  • ASSURE product quality and process compliance and initiate corrective action if necessary
  • Control CONFIGURATION of deliverables and records

From a top-down view, initial commitments are supported by project plans, which in turn are supported by requirements and estimation activities. After initial commitments are made, commitment status monitoring is supported by reviews, which in turn are supported by tracking and assurance activities.

From a bottom-up view, requirements are gathered and estimates of the work effort are made. The results feed into plans, and the plans receive commitment approval. Then, the plans are tracked, and the products and processes are assured. The results feed into reviews, and reviews report status or issues on progress toward commitments.

Throughout, configuration management is applied to prevent loss of important project information such as deliverables and records.



2. Process

2.1    Entry Criteria

The following entry criteria describes the input's state, an event, or an expired amount of time, which is required before this process can begin.

Details of Entry Criteria
  • Approved Business Case
  • Approved Project Charter

2.2   Process Map

The overall process flow given below shows the interaction and flow among the processes. More details about the processes can be found in 2.4 Activities. (click on thumbnail below for full view)

Project Management Process - Process Map

2.3   Inputs

The following inputs are used in this process Where they don't exist, identify any associated risks.

Input Detail of Inputs and Remarks Ref.
Business Case The identification and justification of an IM/IT project that relates the IM/IT project to program priorities and the measurable improvements in program performance.

- Identifies the opportunity
- Describes the added value
- Describes the IM/IT solution
- Identifies the indicators to measure improvements in program performance
EMF Business Case Guideline
Project Charter An agreement between technical and business groups defining:
- Partners & external stakeholders
- Project management framework
- Roles, responsibilities, accountabilities and activities
- Management commitments
- Empowerment framework
EMF Project Charter Template
Enterprise Database - Actuals from previous IM/IT projects for comparison and verification of the planning process  
IM/IT Methodology Deliverables - Architectures, processes, templates, etc.  

2.4   Activities

The following activities are performed in this process. Document all assumptions, risks, constraints etc. in the Project Plan.

No Activities Action by Detail of Activities and Remarks Ref.
1 - Definition
- Analysis
PM - Define and analyse requirements to create a requirements specification that is input to project planning.  
2 - Initial Project Planning PM - Initiate project planning.
- Divide the requirements if the requirements specification is to be addressed by more than one project and initiate multi-project development plans and individual project plans.
- Initiate risk management, if not started already, to identify and manage obstacles that could prevent the organisation from meeting the acceptance criteria.
PPTO-PS-002
3 - Create Estimates
- Review Estimates
PM - Create estimates using the business case, project charter, and requirements specification.
- Review the estimates with the affected groups and individuals.
PPTO-PD-001/002
4 - Obtain Commitment and Approval
- Establish Baseline
PM - Obtain the commitment and approval of all affected groups and individuals
- Review and discuss the plans.
- Sign the approval form when agreements and commitment is reached. This is the commitment point.
- Establish/revise the baseline in the project and enterprise databases.
PPTO-PS-002
5 - Compare Actuals to Plans
- Evaluate Status and Performance
- Monitor Risks
PM - Compare actuals against the plan and identify deviations.
- Evaluate deviations to determine if corrective action is required.
- Monitor status of existing risks and corrective actions.
- Identify new risks that could prevent the organisation from meeting the acceptance criteria.
PPTO-PS-003
6 - Requirements Status Tracking PM - Track the requirements to ensure existing requirements are addressed and traceable throughout the development life cycle. PPTO-PS-003
7 - Quality Assurance Plan
- Conduct Audits
PM - Develop the Quality Plan with input from the Quality Plans from the individual projects.
- After approval, perform the Quality Assurance activities.
 
8 - Status Meetings
- Project Review
- Commitment Reviews
PM - Review project status and performance at 2 levels.
- Conduct status meetings at the project level.
- Conduct project reviews at the portfolio level.
- Conduct commitment reviews.
- If replanning is required, perform steps 9-12, else continue project tracking, risk management, and project management review.
- If the project is complete , go to the delivery point and step 13.
PEER-PS-001

PPTO-PS-003

9 - Replanning PM - Update project plans using requirement changes and revised estimates.
- Prepare a revised plan for approval and commitment negotiation.
PPTO-PS-002
10 - Requirements Change Control PM - Perform requirements change control if revisions involve a change in the requirements. PPTO-PS-001
11 - Additional Estimates PM - Create additional estimates as required for project planning.
- Revise estimates as a result of requirement changes or deviations in the plan.
- Refine estimates for next phase of project
PPTO-PS-002/003
12 - New Commitment Negotiation
- Revise Baseline
PM - Obtain the commitment and approval of all affected groups and individuals for the updated plans and estimates.
- Go to step 4
PPTO-PS-002/003
13 - Post-mortem PM - Conduct a post-mortem to capture information and lessons learned from the project. PPTO-PS-002
14 - Update Enterprise Database PM - Collect project data, compare against the estimates and store historical data for future use in project planning, audits, process improvement, benchmarking, etc. PPTO-PS-002

2.5   Outputs

The following outputs are produced or modified by the activities in this process.

Output Detail of Outputs and Remarks Ref.
Project Charter - Possible modifications EMF Project Charter Template
Project Plan - Project estimates are included in the Project Plan PPTO-TM-002
Project Deliverables - Deliverables the customer will receive  
IM/IT Methodology Deliverables - Deliverables the IM/IT organisation requires to produce the solution  
Project Postmortem - Conduct a postmortem to capture lessons learned  
Enterprise Database - Compare original estimates to actuals
- Update historical data for use in future projects
 

2.6   Verification and Validation

Output Validation To determine if the outputs are within specification,
- Use the (PEER-PS-001) Peer Review Process and any techniques described in your IM/IT methodology.
- Use validation techniques referred to in your IM\IT methodology such as testing, demonstration, analysis and inspection.
 

2.7   Exit Criteria

Details of Exit Criteria
- Client approves, revises or terminates the project, product or services.

2.8   Metrics

Refer to Enhanced Management Framework, Exposure Draft Executive Toolkit, November 22, 1999 for the Project Health Check Dashboard.

2.9  Records Control Table

Not applicable at this time. Populate table if seeking ISO certification. For more information, refer to (PPTO-TM-001) Process/Procedure Template.

Description
(no. and name)
Storage Location Filing / Index Minimum Storage Period
       
       

2.10   Controlled Documents Table

Not applicable at this time. Populate if seeking ISO certification. For more information, refer to (PPTO-TM-001) Process/Procedure Template.

Number Name Revision Date
(or version)
Owner
       
       


Annex A - Lexicon

Refer to the Enhanced Management Framework Lexicon or insert a reference to your organisation's Lexicon.

Annex B - Acronyms

Refer to the Enhanced Management Framework Acronyms or insert a reference to your organisation's Acronyms.

Annex C - Flowcharting Symbols

Flowcharting Symbol  
Parallelograms represent inputs and outputs to or from a process/procedure.  
   
Flowcharting Symbol Flowcharting Symbol
Rectangles represent individual process/procedure activities. Diamonds represent important decision points in the process/procedure.
   
Flowcharting Symbol

Flowcharting Symbol
Flowcharting Symbol
Lines with arrowheads connect symbols to show the progression or direction of the activities. Circles represent connectors when a process/procedure flowchart continues on the next page.

Annex D - Bibliography

Arthur, Lowell Jay, Rapid Evolutionary Development: Requirements, Prototyping and Software Creation, John Wiley and Sons, 1992.

Boehm, Barry, Software Engineering Economics, Prentice Hall, New Jersey, 1991.

Caputo, Kim, CMM Implementation Guide: Choreographing Software Process Improvement. Addison Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts, 1998.

Garmus, David, Herron, David, Measuring the Software Process: A Practical Guide to Functional Measurements, Yourdon Press, 1996.

Humphrey, Watts, Managing the Software Process, Addison Wesley, Reading Massachusetts, 1990.

Jones, Capers, Applied Software Measurement: Assuring Productivity and Quality, McGraw-Hill, Inc., New York, 1996.

Raytheon Electronic Systems Experience in Software Process Improvement, CMU/SEI-95-TR-017.

Schultz, Herman P., Software Management Metrics, ESD-TR-88-001, May 1988.

Refer to Enhanced Management Framework Web Links.

Annex E - Document Change Control

Revision Number Date of Issue Author(s) Brief Description of Change
0.1 1999-07-30 EMF/PPTO Draft 0.1
1.0 1999-11-09 EMF/PPTO First Draft
1.0 2000-01-13 EMF/PPTO Second Draft