06 Dec Project Mgmt for PMP Week 1 DQR

Project Mgmt for PMP Week 1 DQR

Respond to at least two peers who selected different components, and discuss the relationship between the components you selected and theirs.

Paul Griffin

Hello All,

I reside in northwestern New Jersey with my wife, and 17-year-old son who is currently assessing his own collegiate path. I am well into my career at nearly 30 years, with a multitude of experiences under my belt across nearly every construction and industrial/infrastructure maintenance trade. During that time I have been fortunate enough to be exposed to a myriad of business situations, projects, and endeavors. Currently I hold a position with a large, worldwide organization overseeing the daily functions of a 135,000 sq. ft. site, including a team of mechanics/technicians, and the related infrastructure from a facilities perspective. In 2020 I obtained the PMI (Project Management Institute) CAPM (Certified Associate in Project Management) certification and continue to gain experience through the management of small-scale projects, being less than $500,000 in total cost, for the organization supporting the project engineering team in an effort to obtain my PMP (Project Management Professional) certification. Two weeks ago I graduated from SNHU with a BS Business Administration w/concentration in Project Management and have applied for a recently open position as a full-time project manager on the organization’s project engineering team.

For the purpose of this discussion I have chosen the concept of the project life cycle, which by definition is “the series of phases that a project passes through from its start to its completion” (Project Management Institute 2021). As I stated previously, I have managed several small-scale projects in the past four years, and in each instance, I have utilized the Waterfall method of leading and directing each respective project. Each of the efforts were construction projects, some from the ground up, but the majority being the demolition of a space and remodeling it to an internal customers need. With each project a need was presented by the customer and either the project engineering team, or me, set to task collecting a full set of requirements, designing and planning, executing the project, monitoring, and controlling the project, and finally closing the project. Within the project lifecycle there are phases, which are as individually and equally as important as the lifecycle as a whole. A challenge we are currently facing as an organization and a project engineering team, is the lack of ensuring that each of these phases are fully completed. As an example during a recent project a fellow project manager neglected to collect the customers requirement for large wall mounted computer monitors in a space. This oversight resulted in the monitors not being included in the design and therefore not being ordered or installed. Luckily during the monitoring and controlling phase this oversight was realized and corrected, without any substantial negative effects to the project, and with full delivery of the project intended outcomes by the customer deadline.

In my opinion the project lifecycle, while a general guide, is a key factor to delivering on a projects’ intended outcome. The phases provide a guideline, that if followed, substantially increase the potential for providing a customer with expected deliverables. Within the overall framework of project management the project lifecycle provides a roadmap to follow and is ultimately the core of successful

projects. In other methodologies, such as Agile, strict adherence is less important than when using the Waterfall method, but just as useful. In these types of methodologies, that thrive on the ability for constant adjustment, the project lifecycle still serves as guideline but is less critical to the success of a project should it be deviated from. The project lifecycle also serves as a way to benchmark where a project is within any given phase or its progression overall. Being able to state exactly where in the lifecycle a project is an important part of keeping all stakeholders informed. From my experience, keeping stakeholders informed is likely the most important aspect of any project, as their initial and continued buy-in on a project, from initiation to completion is a critical part of the success of a project.

References

Project Management Institute. (2021). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Seventh Edition and The Standard for Project Management (ENGLISH): Vol. Seventh edition, pg.33. Project Management Institute.

Response –

Brianna Roadhouse

Hello,

My name is Brianna Roadhouse. I am a mom, student, and work full time as a pharmacy technician at a local hospital here in Las Vegas. I have my bachelors in Elementary Ed and decided midway to change careers, so here I am! I am also an Army veteran which is how I ended up a pharmacy technician in the first place.

For this discussion I selected the concept of the project life cycle. The project life cycle within the project management framework is essentially the process that is followed in order for a project to be completed from start to finish. There are 5 steps to the life cycle and it seems that no matter what methodology is being used, the life cycle process is still the same across the board (Aston, 2022) . This seems to be how this element is used across the project management framework.)

While I don’t have direct experience with project management, I can see how the project life cycle concept fits into my current workday. At my current job we speak with patients in order to get a complete medication history for them when they are admitted to our hospital. While we speak to many different people during the day, the workflow that we use is the same no matter what. We have set guidelines that lead our questioning with the patient and certain points we need to cover to get the full history. I would equate each medication history to a small “project,” and the guidelines within our workflow to the 5 different steps of the project life cycle.

References

Aston, B. (2022, October 12). What is the Project Life Cycle: The 5 phases & why it’s important. The Digital Project Manager. Retrieved November 7, 2022, from