Sridhar Peddisetty's Space

How to say it

2011-04-23T21:02:00.000-07:00

My fourth project from toastmasters competent communicator manual is 'How to say it'. I was thinking about what speech should I give for this project and that's when I realized that it is not about what I say but is about 'how I say'. So as part of today's speech, I have this story, which was told by my uncle when I was young. Title of today's speech, well, let me share it at the end. This way I can at least ensure that my fellow toastmasters & honored guests stay absorbed.
Story revolves around a fictitious character, places and events. Let us call the character John. John is a very hard working person who has a lovely wife and 2 kids. He is the sole breadwinner of his family and works very hard to keep his job. A job, which is not easy, especially because John has an eccentric boss who always does some weird things and has the knack of giving some very odd tasks to John. One time, the boss decides to learn Silvaneese, language spoken in a fictitious country, Silvan. So during that period, one day boss barges out of his cabin and hands over a piece of paper to John and tells him to go to Silvan and have the sentence written in Silvaneese, to be translated in English. Now this was pre internet era where we did not have the luxury of using a google or any other online translator. The Boss orders John to fly to Silvan that very evening and come back within a week. If John fails in his mission that he can look for another job. Now John needs to keep his job and reluctantly agrees to fly to Silvan.
John reaches Silvan and takes a cab to a very economical hotel since his boss had given just enough money. After finishing his check-in formalities, John decides to ask the receptionist to help translate the sentence. This way he can finish the task early and spend rest of the time going around tourist spots, as not very often he will get an opportunity like this to visit a foreign country. So he hands over the paper to the receptionist, requesting him to translate the sentence for him. Receptionist looks at the paper and then hands it back to John with an angry look and says very sternly, not to show this to anyone. John feels embarrassed and decides to stay in his room that evening. He gets up next day, showers and has breakfast in his room itself and then heads out. On his way out, he asks the hotel doorman if there is any good tourist place, which is at a walkable distance. Doorman guides him to a nearby park. In the park, John comes across an elderly person who is walking his dog. John thinks that the elderly person might have more empathy and would surely help him out. So John approaches the person and greets him. Old man greets back with a smile and this encourages John to open up. He asks the man if he could help him in translating a sentence in Silvaneese. Old man responds positively and John hands him the paper. Old man stares at the paper for a long time and then glares back at John angrily. He hands back the paper to John and orders his dog to go after John. John runs for his life and somehow climbs a tree to avoid the dog taking a pound of his flesh. Once the old man leaves with his dog, John musters the courage to climb down the tree and head back to the hotel. He does not come out of his room the whole day. John feels very depressed and is sure that he will most certainly lose the job. Thats when a housekeeper comes to clean up his room. Seeing her, John thinks about befriending her with the hope that she might help him. Next couple of days John is successful in making friendship with the lady but is still not comfortable in asking her help. So he decides to take the risk of extending his stay for couple of days more. Since he got short of money, instead of buying an air ticket, decides to go by ship unreserved. Day before he is supposed to leave, John musters the courage and confides in the lady that he needs a big favor from him. John shares all about his assignment and how important it is for him to keep his job. Lady feels very sorry for him and readily agrees to help him. John hands over the paper. Lady looks at it for some time and without saying a word, she lefts the room with tears in her eyes. John is heart broken and decides that its better he go back and search for another job. Next day he checks out and is waiting for the cab. That's when the housekeeper meets him at the door and passes the paper cautiously and tells John softly that she has translated the sentence and written it on the other side. She asks him not to read this in Silvan and wait to cross the border before reading. John thanks her profusely and gives a hug, saying that she did a big favor to him and takes the cab to catch the ship. Once in the ship, John is in an unreserved compartment full of people, so he does not get an opportunity to read the paper. Once the ship crosses Silvan border, John decides to head out to the deck and read the paper. He reaches the deck and makes sure that nobody is there before taking the paper out of his pocket to read it. John is full of anticipation and curiosity about what the sentence could possibly mean. He takes out the paper and is about to read it when a gush of wind blows the paper away. So the translated answer is in the air and into the dark and chilly sea water.
Fellow toastmasters & honored guests, Title of my speech is ' How to Say A Poor Joke'

Get to the point - Work & Personal Life Balance

2011-03-25T21:39:00.000-07:00

Get to the point was my third speech at PSU toastmasters club. This was after my first Ice-breaker and second Organizing your speech speeches. Theme of my speech was 'Work & Personal Life Balance'

I started by explaining that in today's mechanical world, it is becoming more and more difficult to have a robust balance between work and personal life. Having priorities in life is important but more important is to manage them. I learned this even before I started my career. I have always been a firm believer in learning from other people's experiences in life. We need not step on a banana skin to understand the pain of slipping and falling.

This incident happened with me while I was doing my masters in Hyderabad, India. During that time, my parents were getting their house constructed and I used to visit the site to oversee the progress every now and then. During one such visit, I happened to meet this gentleman, who was working as an accountant for the construction company responsible for building the house. While there, we struck a conversation and started talking about different topics. That is when I came to know that earlier he was working for a reputed multinational company, with a fat package and in a good position. I expressed my surprise and curiosity to know how he ended up here and taking up a role, less glamorous and evidently paying less. That's when he shared his story, which struck with me since then. He was working in Mumbai, west of India for this large multinational company

He used to work for long hours, seven days a week. His day used to start at 4 AM, catching local train at 5 in the morning, spending time till 10 in the night at work and coming home at 11 PM. This was his routine for day in and day out, seven days a week.He had a wife, who was a home maker and a 3 year old son. His hectic work schedules were hardly giving him any time to spend with his wife or son. When he used to start for work in the morning, his son used to be still in bed and when he returned in the evening at 11 PM, son would have gone to bed. This was continuing for some time. One Sunday, he decided to stay home to spend time with his wife and son. He was excited and got up early, waiting in anticipation for his son to get up. He sat in living room, reading Sunday newspaper while waiting. After sometime he saw his son get up and come to where he was sitting. His son looked at him, gave a puzzled look and went into the kitchen where his wife was preparing breakfast. The man got up and followed his son into the kitchen. What happened after that completely changed his outlook towards life. He entered the kitchen and overheard his son asking his wife, 'Mum, who is this uncle?'. Next day he quit his high profile job and moved to Hyderabad, taking less demanding one with more 9 AM - 5 PM schedule.

That day I learned a very valuable lesson, which struck with me till date. Its very important to set priorities in life. Keeping work - personal life balance is crucial, especially in this mechanical time.

Organizing your speech - Meaning lost in translation

2011-03-18T20:03:00.000-07:00

My second speech at toastmasters club was about Organizing your speech. It was a hot seat speech. Hot seat speech is the one in which a speaker gives a speech without a prior intimation when some scheduled speaker does not show up. I was asked whether I am willing to give a speech and i took up the challenge. In the competent communication manual, the second speech is about Organizing your speech. This was going to be my second speech after the ice breaker speech. I selected the topic 'Meaning lost in translation'.
I started my speech by explaining how in day-day life there are many instances when we tend to lose the true meaning in translation gaps. I elaborated this by sharing two incidents. First one I heard while I was learning Japanese language in Ramakrishna Math and the second one was one, which I experienced.

First incident was about this German scholar who came to give a session in one of the Indian universities. Since the scholar had very limited grasp over English, he was provided with a translator to translate his speech while he was delivering. During the speech, scholar thought of lightening things up and said that he would like to narrate a joke. And then went ahead and told the joke in German for couple of minutes. After finishing, the scholar looked at the translator for him to do his bit. Translator said something for few seconds and entire audience started laughing. Scholar was obviously impressed and asked the translator, how he was able to translate a couple of minutes long German joke into few seconds long in English language? Translator looked embarrassed and sheepishly admitted to the scholar that he actually did not get the joke. So he told the audience that since the scholar took so much effort in sharing a joke, please make sure that you all laugh

Second incident happened with me while I was working in Japan. I learned Japanese language till level III and was comfortable enough to have small conversations. But I understood my true limitations when I reached Japan and actually stated listening to native Japanese speak. One evening, I and 3 of my colleagues decided to have dinner at KFC. We went after work around 6:15 PM to KFC. Once there, lady at the counter said something in Japanese, even gesturing at the clock. I interpreted it as that the lady was indicating that if we come after 7, its like happy hours or something. I shared this with my colleagues and we all thought that if we can save few bucks, it makes sense to just wait. So we headed out and decided to kill the time by roaming around in the streets of Kawasaki near Musashi-Shinjō Station. One of my colleague was finding it little uncomfortable since he wanted to use a rest room but decided to wait till 7 and use the one in KFC. We roamed in the streets for 45 minutes during a chilly evening and once it was 7 PM, went back to KFC. Once we were in, lady in the counter greeted us and gave us a menu to choose from. I tried asking her about 'happy hours after seven' and she looked surprised. She said she was earlier indicating that if we are interested to wait, then after 7 PM there would be more menu items to choose from. Well, rest I leave it to your imagination when I shared it with my colleagues, especially the reaction from the guy, who wanted to use the rest room desperately.

I shared these two incidents to explain the topic of my speech 'Meaning lost in translation'. I concluded it by sharing how most of the Indians face a cultural gap when new in US of A. Most Indians have this tendency to nod their heads more diagonally side to side,

confusing Americans, who are never sure whether we are responding with a 'yes' or a 'no' to their question. That's when they specifically ask us to nod head straight sideways if its a 'no'

or vertically up and down if its a 'yes'

This was my hot seat and second speech at PSU toastmsters club 'Organizing your speech - Meaning lost in translation'

My 'Ice-breaker' speech at toastmasters club

2011-01-28T06:27:00.000-08:00

I finally took the plunge of joining a toastmasters club. After being encouraged by couple of friend cum colleagues, David Johnson and Jayesh Mittal, I joined Portland State University's PSU toastmaster club. Intent of joining the club was multi-fold. Meet people from different walks of life, hone my communication, presentation & soft skills and improve the ability to think and speak on your feet (Table Topics).
So this week I gave my ice breaker speech. Theme of my speech was 'Stories that influenced my life". There are three stories that have a profound influence on me. Let me take this opportunity to share them with you. First story was told to me by my best & greatest teacher, my mum.

Story#1 (Old man, son & donkey)

Once upon a time there was an old man, his son and their donkey. One day they all were traveling from one place to another. While embarking on their journey, they came across few passer-bys, who passed comments that how cruel the father is to make his young son walk in this hot son. Hearing the comments, the old man made his young son sit on the back of their donkey and continued with their journey. After some distance, they came across some other passer-bys, who passed comments that how cruel the son is to make his old man walk in this hot son. Hearing the comments, the young boy got down and made his old man sit on the back of their donkey. They continued with their journey and across some more passer-bys, who passed comments that how cruel the father is to make his young son walk in this hot son. Hearing the comments, old man asked his young son to join him on the back of the donkey and they moved on. After covering some distance, they came across another set of passer-bys, who passed comments that how cruel the father-son are to make their donkey work so hard carrying them both in this hot son. Hearing the comments, father & son got down and tied the donkey's legs to a pole and started carrying the donkey on their shoulders. After covering some distance, they came across a river. While crossing the river, father's feet slipped and donkey fell into the river and drowned. So the moral of the story is "You cannot satisfy everybody. So live your life the way you would like to."

Story#2 (Adi Shankaracharya)

The second story is about the evil called 'caste system' prevalent in our society. With the changing times, its hopefully getting eliminated with every new generation. So this story dates back to the time when society was more caste based, in which upper caste people never used to allow lower caste people into their homes or place of worship. They did not even used to tolerate the lower caste people crossing their paths or even their shadows to fall on them.
Adi Shankaracharya, famous philosopher who restored the Vedic Dharma and did the reinterpretations of Hindu scriptures, especially on Upanishads or Vedanta and who had a profound influence on the growth of Hinduism, was born in an upper caste family. One day he embarked on the journey to seek God. While traveling he came across a shepherd, belonging to a lower caste. Seeing him, Adi Shankaracharya said 'move aside, move aside'. Thats when the shepherd said, "My noble lord, whom are you asking to move aside? Are you asking my body to move aside or you are asking the God within me to move aside?".Thats when Adi Shankaracharya realized that there is a God within all of us and fell down on the feet of the shepherd. The shepherd was none other than Lord Shiva, God of destroyer who had taken the form of shepherd to help enlighten Adi Shankaracharya that there is God within all of us. One should treat all human beings equally and nothing can be more divine than this.

Story#3 (Swami Vivekananda)

Swami Vivekananda was an inspiring spiritual man, who wooed the world and especially Americans when he gave an inspiring speech beginning by addressing the audience as "Sisters and Brothers of America". One day he was walking in the streets of London. From the opposite direction there was this person coming, who was formally dressed in a suite and hat. Looking at Swami Vivekananda's attire with saffron robe and turban, the person started laughing. Swami Vivekananda asked him, "My dear friend what makes you laugh?". Hearing this, the man was taken aback and said, "You know how to speak english? But you do not look like a gentleman". Thats when Swami Vivekananda said "My dear friend, in your country a tailor makes a gentleman but in my country, character makes one"
I appreciate all the feedback I got after the speech from my speech evaluator and fellow toastmasters. Feedback was very helpful for me to know where I am doing well and where not so well. Before joining toastmasters club, I was asking myself whether I need to improve my skills especially since I get to hone them in the profile I have. I anyway get to talk in public, meetings, with different groups, across time zones and with people in person or virtually. But after attending toastmasters club, I realized this is one of the best decisions I have taken and its time well invested. I am getting an opportunity to talk in front of audience with whom I do not have any business or personal strings attached and who in all their wisdom and experience, are going to give me the best feedback to improve.

My Notes on PMBOK V4

2010-11-12T16:09:00.000-08:00

These are my notes based on PMI's PMBOK V4. These are not extensive notes as I prepared notes keeping Program Management Professional (PgMP) Exam in mind and not Project Management Professional (PMP) exam.
For those interested in PMP exam, I had earlier shared following posts
1. My Notes on PMP
2. My Notes on PMP Formulas
3. For PMP Some Useful Links for Sample Questions
4. PMP Lessons Learned (Journey to PMP Certification)
which were essentially based on PMBOK V3 but in my opinion, some points are still relevant for current PMP exam.

NOTES
PROJECT LIFE CYCLE & PHASES
1. Characteristics of a general project life cycle include

Cost and staffing levels are low at the start, peak as the work is carried out, and drop rapidly as the project draws to a close
Stakeholder influences, risks and uncertainty are the greatest at the start of the project. These factors decrease over the life of the project
Ability to influence the final characteristics of the project’s product, without significantly impacting the cost, is highest at the start of the project and decreases as the project progresses towards completion

2. The project life cycle goes through a series of phases to create the product

3. Phase end reviews are also called phase exits, phase gates, or kill points

4. A Project Phase is “Marked by the completion of one or more deliverables”. In other words, a project phase is generally concluded and formally closed with a review of the deliverables to determine completeness and acceptance

5. Formal phase completion does not necessarily include authorizing the subsequent phase. For instance, if the risk is deemed too great for the project to continue or if the objectives are no longer required, a phase can be closed with the decision to not initiate any other phases

6. There are three types of phase – phase relationships

A sequential relationship: where a phase can only start once the previous phase is complete
An overlapping relationship: where the phase starts prior to completion of the previous phase. This can sometimes be applied in schedule compression techniques like fast tracking
An iterative relationship: where only one phase is planned at any given time and the planning for the next is carried out as the work progresses on the current phase and deliverables. This approach is useful in highly uncertain, undefined or rapidly changing environments such as research.

7. The Process Groups are NOT project phases. As projects are separated into distinct phases or subprojects such as feasibility study, concept development, design, prototype, build, test, etc, all of the Process Groups would normally be repeated for each phase or subproject

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
8. In a Weak Matrix structure, functional management will have more authority than the project manager and the project manager role is more of a project coordinator or expediter than that of a true project manager.

Project Expediter: The project expediter acts primarily as a staff assistant and communications coordinator. The expediter cannot personally make or enforce decisions
Project Coordinator: Similar to the project expediter except the coordinator has some power to make decisions, some authority, and reports to a higher-level manager

9. Complex and large projects would be more effectively managed in “Strong” and ‘Projectized” Structure/Matrix

10. In a balanced matrix, Power is shared. This is a combination of both Functional and Projectized. Resources would have two managers – Project Manager and Functional Managers. After Project Completion, resources go back to Functional department.

GENERAL POINTS
11. The outputs of process groups are:

Initiating: Project charter
Planning: project management plan;
Executing: work results;
Monitoring & Controlling: corrective actions;
Closing: project product

12. Scope includes

The project and product requirements,
Criteria,
Assumptions,
Constraints, and
Other influences related to a project

and how each will be managed or addressed within the project

13. A project manager is identified and assigned as early in the project as is feasible, preferably while the project charter is being developed and always prior to the start of planning

14. It is recommended that the project manager participate in the development of project charter, as the charter provides the project manager with the authority to apply resources to project activities

15. Projects are authorized by someone external to the project such as sponsor, PMO or portfolio steering committee

16. Stakeholder identification is a continuous process and can be difficult

17. The project initiator or sponsor should be at a level that is appropriate to funding the project. They will either create the charter or authorize project manager to do.

18. The initiator’s signature on the charter authorizes the project

19. The Statement Of Work (SOW) is a narrative description of products or services to be delivered by the project

20. SOW references

Business Need: An organization’s business need may be based on a market demand, technological advance, legal requirement or government regulation
Product Scope Description: This documents the characteristics of the product that the project will be undertaken to create. The description should also document the relationship between the products or services being created and the business need that the project will address
Strategic Plan: Documents the organization’s strategic goals. Therefore, all projects should be aligned with the strategic plan

21. Business case or similar document provides the necessary information from a business standpoint to determine whether or not the project is worth the required investment.

22. Business case includes business need and cost-benefit analysis

23. A contract is an input to the charter if the project is being done for the external customer

24. Project baselines include but not limited to

Schedule baseline
Cost performance baseline and
Scope baseline

25. Common formats for performance reports include bar charts, Scurves, histograms, and tables

26. Performance Reporting is a Controlling process. It creates Performance Reports, which are comparisons of performance to the performance baselines. These are typically done in tabular or graphical format.

27. The “Earned Value Technique” is a method to measure project performance against the project baseline

28. Change Requests include

Corrective action: Documented direction for executing the project work to bring expected future performance of the project work in line with the project management plan
Preventive action: A documented direction to perform an activity that can reduce the probability of negative consequences associated with the project risks
Defect repair: The formally documented identification of a defect in a project component with a recommendation to either repair the defect or completely replace the component
Updates: Changes to formally controlled documentation, plan, etc. to reflect modified or additional ideas or content

29. Benchmarking compares previous similar activities to the current project activities to provide a standard to measure performance against.

30. Project scope management includes the processes required to ensure that the project includes all the work required, and only the work required, to complete the project successfully.

31. Managing the project scope is primarily concerned with defining and controlling what is and is not included in the project

32. Scope baseline of the project include

Approved detailed project scope statement,
Its associated WBS and
WBS dictionary

33. The scope baseline is then monitored, verified and controlled throughout the lifecycle of the project

34. The stakeholder register is used to identify stakeholders that can provide information on detailed project and product requirements

35. Several group activities can be organized to identify project and product
requirements. Some of the group creativity techniques that can be used are:

Brainstorming: A technique used to generate and collect multiple ideas related to project and product requirements
Nominal group technique: This technique enhances brainstorming with a voting process used to rank the most useful ideas for further brainstorming or prioritization
The Delphi technique: A selected group of experts answers questionnaires and provides feedback regarding the responses from each round of requirements gathering. The responses are only available with the facilitator to maintain anonymity
Idea/mind mapping: Ideas created through individual brainstorming are consolidated into a single map to reflect commonality and differences in understanding, and generate new ideas
Affinity diagram: The technique allows large numbers of ideas to be sorted into groups for review and analysis

36. There are multiple methods of reaching a group decision including

Unanimity: Everyone agrees on a single course of action
Majority: Support from more than 50% of the group
Plurality: The largest block in a group decides even if a majority is not achieved
Dictatorship: One individual makes the decision for the group

37. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a deliverable oriented hierarchical decomposition of the work to be executed by the project team, to accomplish the project objectives and create the required deliverables, with each descending level of the WBS representing an increasingly detailed definition of the project work.

38. The WBS is a decomposition of all the deliverables the project will create

39. The work package level is the lowest level in the WBS. Time and cost estimation is easily determined at this level as are resource assignments. Quality control measurements can be determined at this level as well

40. Each element in the WBS is assigned a unique identifier. These are collectively known as the code of accounts. Typically, these codes are associated with a corporate chart of accounts and are used to track the costs of the individual work elements in the WBS

41. Level one of the WBS is the project itself

42. A ‘Planning Package” is a WBS component below the control account but above the work package. It is used for planning unknown work content that does not have detailed schedule activities

43. Control account Plan (CAP) is a management control point where the integration of scope, budget and schedule take place and where the measurement of performance takes place. These CAPS are placed at the selected management points in the WBS.

44. A Control Account is a management control point where scope, cost and schedule are integrated and compared to the earned value for performance measurement. They are placed at selected management points of the WBS above the Work Package Level

45. Each Control Account may include one or more work packages, but each of the work packages must be associated with only one control account

46. WBS Dictionary” is a document which describes the details for each component in the WBS. It includes a brief description of the of the “Scope” or “Statement of the work”, defined deliverables, a list of associated activities, and a list of milestones

47. Scope Verification differs from Quality Control in that scope verification is primarily concerned with acceptance of the deliverables, while quality control is primarily concerned with correctness of the deliverable and meeting the quality requirements specified for the deliverables

48. Scope Baseline includes Project Scope Statement, WBS, WBS Dictionary

49. Scope Verification

Verified work results

50. Perform Quality Control

Assured quality requirements were met

51. You can remember the difference between Scope Verification and Perform
Quality Control this way:

Scope Verification = accepting work results
Perform Quality Control = checking for correct work results (assuring that the quality requirements are met)

52. Control Quality is generally performed before Verify Scope but these two processes can be performed in parallel

53. Scope verification must take place at the end of each phase

54. Scope Verification is done during Project monitoring and controlling BUT Product verification is done during the Project Closing

55. Control scope is the process of monitoring the status of the project and product scope and managing changes to the scope baseline

56. Rolling Wave Planning is a form of progressive elaboration planning where the
work to be accomplished in the near term is planned in detail and future work
is planned at a higher level of the WBS

57. In an environment where there is a great degree of flexibility or instability, it's good to
use a rolling wave planning approach. This approach allows team members to plan as
much as possible. While executing that part of the plan, they continue to plan future
work as they learn more about it

58. A milestone is a significant point or event in the project

59. Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM) includes four dependencies or logical
relationships:

Finish to Start (FS):
Finish to Finish (FF):
Start to Start (SS):
Start to Finish (SF):

60. Finish to start is the most commonly used logical relationship in PDM and most project management software packages.

61. PDM uses one time estimate to determine duration, while ADM can use more than one time estimate.

62. In Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM) or Activity on Node (AON) network diagrams, nodes are activities and arrows are dependencies

63. Mandatory dependency, also known as hard logic. Mandatory dependencies are inherent in the nature of the work

64. Discretionary dependencies, also called preferred logic, preferential logic, and soft logic, are defined by the project team

65. A lead allows an acceleration of the successor activity

66. A lag directs a delay in the successor activity

67. Analogous estimating is not a qualitatively based technique. It is a top-down estimating technique that considers previous similar activities when calculating estimates

68. Analogous estimating is generally less expensive and time consuming but also less accurate

69. Parametric estimating multiplies a known element—such as the quantity of materials needed—by the time it takes to install or complete one unit of materials. The result is a total estimate for the activity

70. Three point Estimate originated from Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT), which uses a weighted average formula to predict the length of activities and the project. Specifically, PERT uses a 'pessimistic,' 'optimistic,' and 'most likely' estimate to predict when the project will be completed

71. Critical Path Method (CPM) manages the total float of schedule networks paths, whereas Critical Chain manages buffer activity durations and resources

72. The critical path is the longest path to completion in the network diagram.

73. Activities on the critical path have no float or slack.

74. Free float is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without affecting the next activity's scheduled start date.

75. Total float is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without affecting the project end date.

76. Resource leveling can cause the original critical path to change. It is used when shared or critical required resources are only available at certain times, are only available in limited quantities, or to keep resource usage at a constant level

77. Heuristic is simply a rule of thumb

78. Crashing involves adding resources to activities in order to decrease their duration, which typically increases cost

79. Fast tracking adds risk as tasks are allowed to overlap

80. Rough order of magnitude is “rough” and is used during the Initiating processes and in range of +50/-50

81. There are three generally accepted categories of estimating accuracy:

Rough order of magnitude This estimate is “rough” and is used during the Initiating processes and in top-down estimates. The range of variance for the estimate can be –25 percent to +75 percent.
Budget estimate This estimate is also somewhat broad and is used early in the planning processes and also in top-down estimates. The range of variance for the estimate can be –10 percent to +25 percent.
Definitive estimates This estimate type is one of the most accurate. It is used late in the planning processes and is associated with bottom-up estimating. The range of variance for the estimate can be –5 percent to +10 percent

82. Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) estimates are also knows as conceptual, ballpark or preliminary estimates

83. The opportunity cost is the amount of the project that was not chosen

84. Money already spent on a project is called sunk costs and should not be taken into consideration when determining if a project should continue. Instead, the cost of the work to complete is one of the elements that should be taken into consideration when considering to kill a project

85. Variance analysis involves comparing actual project results to planned or expected results.

86. Trend analysis involves examining project results over time to determine if performance is improving

87. Earned Value Management compares the baseline plan to actual schedule and cost performance.

88. BCR (Benefit Cost Ratio) compares the benefits to the costs of the project where the Benefits are the same as Revenues or often referred to as the “Payback period”

89. Management Horizon is also known as the Payback Period, which is the amount of time it takes for the program to break even on the investment. In business and economics, payback period refers to the period of time required for the return on an investment to repay the sum of the original investment. As it does not properly account for the time value of money, risk, financing, or any other important considerations such as the opportunity cost, the payback period is considered as method of analysis with serious limitations and qualifications for its use.

90. One concern is that as the payback period measure does not take into account benefits delivered after the payback period it does not measure profitability

91. Parametric (Top – Down) uses historical data and statistical relationships to determine costs

92. Each resource in the project must be accounted for and assigned to a cost category. Categories include the following:

Labor costs
Material costs
Travel costs
Supplies
Hardware costs
Software costs
Special categories (inflation, cost reserve, and so on)

93. Quality is defined as the degree to which the project fulfills requirement

94. Quality MUST BE PLANNED IN AND NOT INSPECTED IN

95. The Project Manager ultimately has the responsibility for the Product of the Project and

96. Senior Management is responsible for the Quality of entire Organization

97. Cost of quality involves three types of costs:

Prevention,
Appraisal, and
Failure costs
• Internal costs and
• External costs

98. Failure cost is also known as the cost of poor quality.
Internal failure costs – Failures found by the project
External failure costs – Failures found by the customer

99. Internal failure costs are costs associated with not meeting the customer’s expectations while you still had control over the product. This results in rework, scrapping, and downtime

100. External failure costs include Liabilities

Warranty work
Lost business

101. Quality Assurance (Executing) is focused on process: process analysis, quality audits, etc.

102. Quality Control (Monitoring and Controlling) is focused on sampling results to see if they meet quality standards.

103. Philip B. Crosby = Zero defects and prevention or rework results.

104. Juran = Fitness for use, conformance. Quality by design.

105. Fitness for use involves establishing what the customer needs and attempting to deliver it to them

106. Joseph M. Juran is noted for his fitness for use premise. Simply put, this means the stakeholders’ and customers’ expectations are met or exceeded.

107. W. Edwards Deming suggested that as much as 85 percent of the cost of quality is a management problem

108. Shewhart = Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle.

109. TQM = Quality must be managed in and must be a continuous process.

110. Total Quality Management (TQM) involves being proactive, utilizing accountability and leadership, and continuously improving as a company

111. Six Sigma = Six Sigma is a measurement-based strategy; no more than 3.4 defects per million.

112. Kaizen = Continuous improvement; improve quality of people first.

113. Kaizen involves proactively improving the organization and continuously trying to improve as an organization.

114. Continuous improvement = Watch continuously for ways to improve quality.

115. Benchmarking compares previous similar activities to the current project activities to provide a standard to measure performance against

116. Design of experiments (DOE) is a statistical method for identifying which factors may influence specific variables of a product or process under development or in production

117. The Design of experiments approach relies on statistical what-if scenarios to determine what variables within a project will result in the best outcome. Design of experiments approach is most often used on the product of the project, rather than the project itself. For example, a project team creating a new bicycle may experiment with the width of the tires, the weight of the frame, and the position of the handlebars in relation to the bike seat to determine the most comfortable ride at an acceptable cost to the consumer.

118. Five stages of a team development

Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
Adjourning

119. Techniques for resolving conflicts

Withdrawing/Avoiding - Retreating
Smoothing/Accommodating - Emphasizing on agreements than disagreements
Compromising – Satisfying all parties
Forcing – Pushing one’s viewpoint
Collaborating – Incorporating multiple view points and driving consensus
Confronting/Problem Solving – Head on with give-and-take policy and open dialogue

120. Forcing uses a direct order.

121. Smoothing focuses on the positive and distracts attention from the negative.

122. Compromise is consent based on mutual concession.

123. Problem solving attempts to work out the solution to the actual problem

124. There are five types of powers the project manager yields: ( E R F C R)

Expert: The authority of the project manager comes from experience with the technology the project focuses on.
Reward The project manager has the authority to reward the project team.
Formal The project manager has been assigned by senior management and is in charge of the project. Also known as positional power.
Coercive (Penalty) The project manager has the authority to discipline the project team members. This is also known as “penalty power.” When the team is afraid of the project manager, it’s coercive.
Referent The project team personally knows the project manager. Referent can also mean the project manager refers to the person who assigned him the position—for example, “The CEO assigned me to this position so we’ll do it this way.” This power can also mean the project team wants to work on the project or with the project manager due to the high priority and impact of the project

125. The best forms of powers include Expert and Reward. Penalty is the worst

126. Formal, Reward and Powers are derived from the PM’s position in the company

127. Expert is earned on your own

128. The key components of the communication model include:

Encode. To translate thoughts or ideas into a language that is understood by others.
Message. The output of encoding.
Medium. The method used to convey the message.
Noise. Anything that interferes with the transmission and understanding of the message (e.g., distance).
Decode. To translate the message back into meaningful thoughts or ideas

129. A risk is an uncertain event that could have a positive or negative effect on your project

130. Strategies for “Negative Risks or threats” (Avoid Transfer Mitigate)

131. Strategies for “Postive Risks or Opportunities” (Exploit Share Ehance)

132. Common Strategy for both threats and opportunities is “Acceptance”

133. There are 3 stages of “reaction to stress” (Alarm, Resistance & Exhaustion)

134. Risk Response Strategies
Threats
o Avoid – remove the cause of the risk so that it never materializes
o Mitigate – reduce the probability and or impact of the risk
o Transfer – transfer the risk to another party; usually done with insurance, performance bonds, warranties, guarantees or outsourcing the work.

Opportunities
o Exploit – make sure the opportunity occurs, you can add work or make a change to the project
o Enhance – increase the probability and or positive impact of the risk
o Share – share the opportunity with a third party to be able to take advantage of the opportunity

135. For both Threats & Opportunities
o Accept
Active acceptance – preparing a contingency reserve of cost or time
Passive acceptance – preparing for the dealing with the effects of the risk after the risk has occurred

136. Workarounds are unplanned responses. Workarounds deal with negative risk events as they occur. As the name implies, workarounds were not previously known to the project team. The risk event was unplanned, so no contingency plan existed to deal with the risk event, and thus it required a workaround Contingency Plans can be best described as “Planned responses to Risk Events”

137. Contingency Plan document outlines the actions to be taken if an identified risk event should occur

138. “Utility Theory” considers the pains or tolerance level a stakeholder has to risk

139. Residual Risk are those that “Remain” after Risk Responses have been taken

140. There are three key components to a Risk

Risk Event (The Event)
Probability of the Event
Impact or Effects of the Event (Amount at Stake)

141. Delhi technique is a “Consensus Technique”

142. Risk is the notion of dealing with “Uncertainty”

Knows at the extreme end of the Uncertainty Spectrum will definitely affect you, although you have no control over them
Knows-Unknowns are items that will affect you although you are not able to predict how or how much they will effect you
Unknown–Unknowns are items or situations whose existence we cannot imagine(Who knows?)

143. Fast tracking adds risk as tasks are allowed to overlap

144. Historical information is always an excellent source of information for risk identification

145. Brainstorming is likely the most common approach to risk identification

146. Force majeure is a powerful and unexpected event, such as a hurricane or other disaster

147. Fait accompli is a tactic used during contract negotiations where one party convinces the other that the particular issue is no longer relevant or cannot be changed

148. Some of the traits/qualities exhibited by effective leaders are Flexibility, Ambition, Intelligence, Decisiveness, Creativity, Persistence and Energy

149. Project manager must possess following interpersonal skills

Leadership
Team building
Motivation
Communication
Influencing
Decision making
Political and cultural awareness and
Negotiation

150. Ten most important skills and competencies for Project Managers

People skills
Leadership
Listening
Integrity, ethical behavior, consistent
Strong at building trust
Verbal communication
Strong at building teams
Conflict resolution, conflict management
Critical thinking, problem solving
Understands, balances priorities

PgMP Exam Objectives

2010-11-07T19:27:00.000-08:00

Following are Project Management Institute (PMI)'s Program Management Professional (PgMP) Exam Objectives

DEFINING THE PROGRAM

Perform a program assessment by defining the program objectives,requirements and establishing a high-level road map in order to ensure program alignment with the enterprise strategic plan or mission.
Support business analysis functions in identifying marketplace needs for potential program offering in order to ensure program viability through researching, market analysis, and high-level cost-benefit analysis.
Develop benefits realization plan by estimating the costs and benefits (ROI) of the program in order to establish the program feasibility and obtain funding.
Perform a preliminary stakeholder analysis through RFP, contract, experience, and input from other sources in order to assess their position relative to the program.
Establish alliances with other departments and organizations by recognizing dependencies in order to assess potential partnerships and commitment to the program.
Evaluate the organization's capability by consulting with the groups involved with delivery in order to validate the program priority and alignment to the strategic objectives.
Request authorization to proceed by presenting the program assessment for approval to the governance authorities in order to initiate the program.

INITIATING THE PROGRAM

Define the program mission statement by assembling the stakeholders' concerns and expectations in order to establish program direction and set a baseline for any further action.
Translate strategic objectives into high-level project scope statements by negotiating with stakeholders in order to create a program scope description.
Develop a high-level milestone plan using goals and objectives of the program, applicable historical information, and other available resources in order to align program with expectations of sponsors and stakeholders.
Develop an accountability matrix by identifying and aligning program roles and responsibilities in order to build the core team and to differentiate between the program and project resources.
Establish project management standards within the program (governance, tools, finance and reporting) using industry best practices and enterprise standards in order to drive efficiency and consistency among projects.
Define meaningful measurement criteria for success by analyzing stakeholder expectations and requirements across the constituent projects in order to accurately control program performance.
Obtain senior management approval for the program by presenting the program charter with its high-level costs and benefits for the organization in order to receive authorization to proceed to the next phases.
Conduct program kick-offs with stakeholders by holding a series of meetings in order to familiarize the organization with the program

PLANNING THE PROGRAM

Develop a detailed program scope statement by incorporating program vision, objectives, out-of-scope items, schedule, financial milestones and legal/regulatory/safety concerns in order to aid in overall planning.
Develop program scope definition using Work Breakdown Structure in order to determine the program deliverables and tasks.
Establish the program management plan and baseline by integrating the plans for the constituent projects and creating the plans for the supporting program functions including management of scope, schedule, finance, benefits, quality, resource, procurement, risk response, change and communications in order to effectively forecast, monitor, and identify variances during program execution.
Optimize the program plan by reviewing and leveling resource requirements (materials, equipment, facilities, finance, human capital, etc.) in order to gain efficiencies and synergies among projects.
Define project management information system (PMIS) by selecting tools and processes to share knowledge, intellectual property and documentation across constituent projects in order to maximize synergies and savings.
Develop the transition plan by defining exit criteria, policies and processes to ensure all administrative, commercial, and contractual obligations are met upon program completion

EXECUTING THE PROGRAM

Consolidate project/program data (documented issues, status reviews, risks, financial reports, resources, etc.), using predefined reporting tools and methods to monitor program performance.
Charter constituent projects by assessing project managers and allocating appropriate resources in order to meet program objectives.
Motivate the team using appropriate tools and techniques in order to increase commitment to the program objectives.
Establish program consistency by deploying uniform standards, resources, infrastructure, tools and processes in order to enable informed program decision making.
Capture program status and data by ensuring the population of the program management information system (PMIS) in order to maintain accurate and current program information for the use of stakeholders.
Execute the appropriate program plans (quality, risk, communication, staffing, etc.) by using the tools identified in the planning phase and by auditing the results of the use of these tools in order to ensure the program outcomes meet the stakeholder expectations and standards.
Approve closure of the constituent projects upon completion through appropriate processes and procedures in order to obtain acceptance

CONTROLLING THE PROGRAM

Analyze variance of costs, schedule, quality and risks by comparing actual values to planned values from the program plan, trends, and extrapolation in order to identify corrective actions necessary.
Identify potential corrective actions by forecasting program outcomes using simulations, what-if scenarios and causal analysis in order to incorporate correctives actions into the program management plan.
Manage change in accordance with the change management plan to control scope, quality, schedule, cost, and contracts.
Address program level issues by identifying and selecting a course of action by taking into account the program constraints and objectives in order to enable continued program progress.

CLOSING THE PROGRAM

Complete a performance analysis report by gathering final values and comparing to planned values for quality, cost, schedule, and resources data in order to determine program performance.
Manage program completion by executing the transition plan (initiate benefits realization measurement, release the resources and acknowledge individual performance, perform administrative closure, obtain acceptance, transfer ongoing activities to functional organization) in order to close out the program.
Conduct the stakeholder post-review meeting by presenting the program performance report in order to obtain feedback and capture lessons learned.
Report lessons learned via appropriate methodologies to support future program or organizational improvement

PMI Standards & Agile

2010-09-24T19:58:00.000-07:00

There are some arguments on how PMI’s Project Management standards are aligned with Agile methodology. In my opinion they can very much be aligned if one maps the processes, process groups, benefits management or lifecycle phases to how one is using Agile to deliver a service or a product (Project). It is very important to understand that Agile is a software development methodology and PMI standards are defined for Project or Program Management methodology. PMBOK Guide (4th edition) is written more in compatible with iterative planning & scalable WBS

Reference Links

• http://agile-pm.pbworks.com/

• http://www.rosspettit.com/

• http://www.slideshare.net/petebehrens/agile-program-management-best-practices

• http://www.leadingagile.com/search?q=refactor+your+PMP

• http://blogs.pmi.org/blog/voices_on_project_management/2009/12/agile-apprehensions.html

My Notes on PgMP exam

2010-09-24T19:57:00.003-07:00

In this post I am sharing some quick notes for Project Management Institute (PMI)’s Program Management Professional (PgMP) credential Exam. These notes are specifically based on Standard for Program Management V2.

I have shared colored Inputs, Outputs, Tools & Techniques (ITTOs) for all Knowledge Areas in Box.net under http://www.box.net/shared/f7bk0e5psf

NOTES:
1. Project: Project is defined as a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service or result

2. Project Management: Project management is the application of knowledge, tools, skills and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements

3. Program: A program is a group of related projects managed in a coordinated way to obtain benefits and control not available from managing them individually
(Or)
A program is comprised of multiple related projects that are initiated during the program’s life cycle and are managed in a coordinated fashion

4. Program Management: Program management is the centralized coordinated management of a program to achieve the program’s strategic objective and benefits It involves aligning multiple projects to achieve the program goals and allows for optimized or integrated cost, schedule and effort

5. Program manager coordinates efforts between projects but does not directly manage the individual projects

6. Essential program management responsibilities include

The identification, monitoring and control of the inter-dependencies between the projects;
Dealing with the escalated issues among the projects that compromise the program; and
Tracking the contribution of each project and the non-project work to the consolidated program benefits

7. Projects within a program are related through a common outcome or a collective capability that is delivered

8. If the relationship among projects is only that of a shared client, technology, seller or resources, the effort should be managed as a portfolio of projects rather than as a program

9. Portfolio: A Portfolio is a collection of components (i.e. projects, programs, portfolios and other work such as maintenance and related ongoing operations) that are grouped together to facilitate the effective management
of that work in order to meet the strategic business objectives
(Or)
A Portfolio is a set of Projects or Programs or both that is managed in a coordinated fashion to obtain control and benefits not obtained from managing them individually

10. The projects or programs of the portfolio may not necessarily be interdependent or directly related

11. During the early phases of initiating and planning, information flows from the program to the components, and then flows from the components to the program in the later phases of planning and in the executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing

12. Early in the lifecycle, the program guides and directs the project domain on desired goals and benefits. The program domain also influences the approach for managing the individual projects within it. Later in the lifecycle, the project domain reports to the program domain on project status, risks, changes, costs, issues and other information affecting the program

13. Like the interactions between program and project domains, portfolio management and program management domains interact in their process groups

14. If the Organization is actively managing its portfolio, the program’s initiating and planning process groups receive inputs from the portfolio domain. These inputs include strategic goals and benefits, funding allocations, requirements, timelines and constraints that the program team translates into the program scope, deliverables, budget and schedule

15. A portfolio is one of the truest measures of an Organization’s intent direction, and progress. It is where investment decisions are made, resources are allocated, and priorities are identified

16. The distinctions among portfolio, program and project management can be made clearer through their interaction

17. Portfolio management focuses on assuring that programs and projects are selected, prioritized and staffed with respect to their alignment with Organizational strategies

18. Program management focuses on achieving the benefits aligned with the portfolio and subsequently with Organizational objectives

19. Programs are comprised of projects that focus on achieving their individual requirements

20. The program management office (PMO) is a crucial portion of the program’s infrastructure. The PMO supports the program manager with the management of multiple, unrelated projects

21. PMO provides support to the program manager by

Defining the program management processes that will be followed,
Managing schedule and budget at the program level,
Defining the quality standards for the program and for the program’s components,
Providing document configuration management, and
Providing centralized support for managing changes and tracking risks and issues

22. Enterprise environmental factors can significantly impact on the program’s management and its ultimate success. They include but not limited to

Organizational structure, culture and processes
Government or industry standards (Regulations, quality standards)
Infrastructure (Existing facilities & capital equipment)
Existing human resources
Personnel administration (Staffing/retention policies, etc)
Company work authorization systems
Market place conditions
Stakeholder risk tolerances
Political climate
Organization’s established communication channels
Commercial databases
Project Management Information System

23. Organizational process assets, which include any or all processes related to the assets, can influence the program’s success

24. Process assets include the Organization’s knowledge bases such as best practices, lessons learned & historical information, such as completed schedules, risk data and earned value data

25. The program begins either when funding is approved or when the program manager is assigned

26. Program manager must have strong communication skills to deal with various stakeholders – team members, sponsors, managing directors, customers, vendors and senior management, and other program Stakeholders

27. Five main phases of a program life cycle are

Pre – program preparations
Program initiation
Program setup
Delivery of program benefits
Program closure

28. Program life cycle complies with the needs of corporate governance and also ensures that the expected benefits are realized in a predictable and coordinated manner.

29. Benefits management requires the establishment of processes and measures for tracking and assessing benefits throughout the program life cycle

30. The pre-program work focuses on the analysis of the available information about organizational and business strategies, internal & external influences, program drivers and the benefits that involved parties expected to realize

31. Range of activities in pre-program phase includes (UDDDA)

Understanding the strategic benefits of the program,
Developing a plan to initiate the program,
Defining the program objectives and their alignment with the organizational goals,
Developing a high level business case demonstrating an understanding of the needs, business benefits, feasibility and justification of the program,
Agreeing to “check points” throughout the program, to ensure its on track

32. The program initiation phase’s primary objective is to develop in greater detail how a program can be structured and managed to deliver the desired outcomes that were identified in the program mandate

33. Program Charter is the formal document that consolidates all the available information about the program. Its contents generally are

Justification
Vision
Strategic Fit
Outcomes
Scope
Benefit Strategy
Assumptions & constraints
Components
Risks & issues
Time scale
Resources needed
Stakeholder considerations
Program governance and
Initial high-level roadmap

34. Program Charter is the primary document analyzed by the strategic governing body to decide if the delivery of the program is approved. Once approved, program charter provides the basis of the progress to program setup, the development of the program’s full business case, detailed program plans, and component charters

35. Typically following factors are considered when selecting and approving programs

Desired outcomes
Benefits analysis, which identifies and plans for their realization
Strategic fit within the organization’s long term goals
Total available resources (Eg: funding, equipment or people)
Estimated time scale, costs, and effort required to set-up, manage and deliver the program and
Risks inherent in this program

36. The activities in program initiation phase include

Approval from the strategic governing board to proceed to the next program phase (program setup)
Program charter or program mandate that documents, for example
Vision, key objectives and success criteria
Expected outcomes and benefits
Program assumptions and constraints
High-level program plan and
Known risks and issues
Identifications of suitable business change managers with the ability to influence business change
Identification of potential members of the sponsoring group or program board
Identification of key decision makers/stakeholders in the program and their expectations and interests
Identification of candidate projects and other potential program components
Appointment of the executive sponsor and the program manager
Creation of the infrastructure to manage the program and
Identification and commitment of key resources needed for setting up the program

37. In the Program setup phase, the program has received the “approval in principle” from a selection committee

38. In the Program setup phase, a program manager has been identified, and the key input into this phase – a program brief or charter defining high-level scope, objectives, visions and constraints has been generated

39. Purpose of program setup phase is to progressively elaborate the program charter and develop the foundation for the program by establishing an infrastructure and building a detailed “roadmap” that provides direction on how the program will be managed and defines its key deliverables

40. Program management plan contains answers to the following questions

What is the end result and expectations?
When will it be ready and accomplish the program benefits?
What will be the program budget?
What are the risks and issues?
What dependencies, assumptions and constraints?
How will the program and program components be managed?
What are the other services required?
How will the program be managed/executed?

41. The activities in program setup phase include

Aligning the vision, mission and values for the program with the organization’s objectives
Developing an initial detailed cost and schedule plan for setting up the program and outline plans for the reminder of the program
Conducting feasibility studies, where applicable, to assess the proposed program for technical and economic feasibility, as well as ethical feasibility or acceptability
Establishing rules for make/buy decisions as well as those for selecting subcontractors to support the program
Developing a program architecture that maps out how the projects within the program will deliver the capabilities that results in the required benefits
Developing a business case for each of the project in the program which addresses the technical, investment and regulatory/legislative factors which may pertain to each project and
Communicating with stakeholders and getting the support

42. Key results from program setup revolve around the program-level planning processes

Scope definition and planning
Requirements definition, decomposition, validation and management
Benefits definition, decomposition, management, cost and realization
Activity definition and sequencing
Duration estimates
Schedule
Procurement of external resources
Contracting and procurement
Human resources and staffing
Cost estimates/budgeting
Risk management consolidation
Constituent component identification and definition
Program management office to support the program
Approval of the program management plan, based upon the individual business cases and supporting feasibility studies
Program governance mechanism with approval and reporting procedures
Program control framework for monitoring and controlling both the projects and the measurement of the benefits within the program
Facilities and other required infrastructure to support the program and
IT systems and communication technologies with the necessary support arrangements to sustain the program throughout its life cycle.

43. The purpose of delivery of program benefits phase is to initiate the component projects of the program and manage the development of the program benefits, which were identified during the initial phases

44. The delivery of program benefits phase ends when the planned benefits of the program are achieved, delivered and accepted or a decision is made to terminate the program

45. The activities in this phase include

Establishing a project governance structure to monitor and control the projects
Initiating projects in order to meet program objectives
Ensuring component deliverables meet the requirements
Analyzing progress to plan
Identifying environmental changes which may impact the program management or its anticipated benefits
Ensuring that shared resources, common activities and other dependencies across the components are coordinated
Identifying risks and ensuring appropriate actions have been take to manage positive and negative risks
Identifying issues and ensuring corrective actions are taken
Measuring benefits reutilization
Reviewing change requests and authorizing additional work as appropriate
Maintaining thresholds and initiating corrective action when results are not delivered per expectations and
Communicating with stakeholders and with the program governance board

46. Purpose of program closure phase is to execute a controlled closedown of the program

47. Activities of program closure phase lead to the shutdown of the program organization and infrastructure

48. For many programs, the product is delivered and/or accepted to the customer and the program is shut down

49. For other programs, the product transitions into an operational phase and is managed by normal operations

50. The activities in this phase include

Review status of benefits with the stakeholders
Disband the program organization
Disband the program team and ensure arrangements are in place for appropriate redeployment of all human resources
Dismantle the infrastructure and ensure arrangements are in place for appropriate redeployment of all physical resources (facilities, equipment, etc)
Provide customer support assuring that guidance and maintenance will be provided in the event that an issue arises or a defect is detected in the program after its delivered and accepted by customer. The
assurance is generally defined by contract
Document lessons learned in the organizational database so that they can be referred in the future for similar programs.
Provide feedback and recommendations on the changes identified during the program’s life but beyond the scope of the program that may benefit the organization to pursue
Store and index all program related documents to facilitate reuse in the future or possible future audits and
Manage any required transition to operations

51. Program governance oversees the progress of program and the delivery of the coordinated benefits from its components. Implementation of program governance is critical for the success of a program since it is difficult by an individual to manage complex programs

52. Program governance assists in managing risks, stakeholders, benefits, resources and quality across program life cycle

53. The phase-gate review approach is focused on strategic alignment, investment appraisal, monitoring & controlling of opportunities and threats, benefits assessment and monitoring program outcomes

54. Phase-gate reviews are recommended to assist program control & management as well as to facilitate program governance

55. Phase-gate reviews are carried out at key decision points in the program life cycle

56. Each phase-gate review functions as a “go” or “no-go” decision point on the program as a whole

57. A phase gate review is performed to check the program performance against the planned criteria for exit from the phase that has just been completed, and to determine the readiness for proceeding to the next phase

58. A strategic decision-making body in the form of portfolio review board or executive steering group may issue a program mandate, which defines the strategic objectives and benefits that the program is expected to deliver

59. A benefit is an outcome of actions and behaviors that provides utility to the Organization

60. Unlike projects, which usually delivers all the benefits at the end of the project, programs can deliver benefits either all at once at the end of the program or incrementally during the program itself

61. Benefits realization planning is part of program initiation phase and is one of its main outputs

62. The Benefits realization plan is a very crucial output item of the Initiate Program process, as it is used in establishing the feasibility of the program and obtaining funding

63. Benefits realization planning is part of Program management plan and helps to determine how benefits will subsequently be realized as well as providing a baseline for tracking progress and reporting any variance

64. A process is a set of interrelated actions and activities performed to achieve a pre-specified outcome

65. Program management processes addresses issues at a higher level and involve less detailed project level analysis

66. Similar to project management processes, program management processes require coordination with other functional groups in the Organization as well as stakeholder management in general – but in a broader context

67. Processes receive inputs from processes that logically precede them and send outputs to successor processes. In some cases, an output from the process becomes an input to the same process
Example: When a planning process iteratively updates a plan over time

68. The complexity of program management process model is increased when inputs and outputs flow between the project domain, the program domain and the portfolio domain

69. There are common inputs & outputs to most program management processes

Assumptions (Input & Output)
Constraints (Input)
Historical information (Input)
Organizational process assets (Input) [Process Asset Library (PAL)]
Lessons learned (Output)
Supporting details (Output)
Information requests (Output)
Program management plan updates (Output)
Program status reports and performance reports (Input & Output)

70. Outputs common to program management process are:

Lessons learned,
Supporting details and
Information requests

71. The five program management process groups are

Initiating Process group: defines and authorizes the program or a project within the program, and produces the program benefits statement for the program
Planning Process group: plans the best alternative course of action to deliver the benefits and scope that the program was undertaken to address
Executing Process group: integrates projects, people and other resources to carry out the program plan and deliver the program’s benefits
Monitoring & Controlling Process group: requires that the program and its component projects be monitored against the benefit delivery expectations and that the progress be regularly measured to identify variances from the program management plan. This process group also coordinates corrective actions to be taken when necessary to achieve program benefits
Closing Process group: formalizes acceptance of a product, service or benefit/result and brings the program or program component (e.g. project) to an orderly end

72. The activities in the program initiation process provide the baseline for the scope and benefits of the projects.

73. The program charter gives the program existence, is the foundation for the program, and contains the justification for the program

74. Program initiation generally calls for “order of magnitude” estimates of scope, effort and cost.
Such estimates are often called feasibility studies or concept development and can be done in the business case

75. Programs are typically chartered and authorized by an organizational executive committee, steering committee or a portfolio management body

76. The key output from the initiating process is the program charter

77. The charter often contains the vision statement that defines the desired organizational end state to follow successful completion of the program, and is used as the vehicle to authorize the program and officially commence planning

78. The key program-level deliverable of planning process is the program management plan, which defines the tactical means by which the program will be carried out

79. The Executing process group involves managing the cost, quality and scheduled plans, often as an integrated plan; and providing status information and change requests to the program Monitoring and Controlling process group through approved change requests, corrective actions and preventive actions

I have shared colored Inputs, Outputs, Tools & Techniques (ITTOs) for all Knowledge Areas in Box.net under http://www.box.net/shared/f7bk0e5psf

80. The Program Integration Management KA includes the processes and activities needed to identify, define, combine, unify and coordinate multiple components within the program as well as coordinate the various processes and program management activities within the Program Management Process Groups

81. The Program Integration Management processes are

Initiate Program
Develop Program Management Plan
Develop Program Infrastructure
Direct and Manage Program Execution
Manage Program Resources
Monitor and Control Program Performance
Manage Program Issues and
Close Program

82. The Initiate Program process ends with an either approved charter or the decision not to continue. Either decision is documented in the charter and stored for future reference

83. The authority to approve or reject changes in scope or cost within a defined range of tolerances is often delegated to the program manager, while changes identified within a particular component may require action by the program board or steering group

84. The business case and strategic directive are developed external to the Program and prior to the program’s approval

85. Programs are typically chartered and authorized at the organizational executive level, by a steering committee, a portfolio management body, or an external funding organization

86. Program Management Information Systems (PMIS) collect and manage schedules, costs, earned value data, risk information, changes in component status and issues, and other information needed to manage and control the program

87. Program Management Plan integrates and incorporates all program and component plans. It includes the component milestones, benefit deliverables, and component dependencies

88. The Program Management Plan outlines the key elements of program direction and management. It also identifies how decisions should be presented and recorded, and describes how performance reports will be
prepared and distributed

89. Program Transition Plan outlines the steps needed to move the program from a development state to an operational state pending approval that the program has satisfied all requirements and is ready to turn over to the client or into operations

90. Although the program manager is assigned in the Initiate Program process, the core program management and governance team including the PMO, steering committees, governance body members, key consultants and board of advisors are designated as part of establishing the Program Infrastructure.

91. Change Requests are assessed in Direct and Manage Program Execution process and forwarded to the Program Governance process, which serves to authorize the program to implement the change

92. Some Change Requests may come from stakeholders, identification of missing requirements or technical issues or from external sources

93. The analysis of Change Request should identify impacts to

Program Finances
Program Schedule
Program Requirements
Program Architecture Baseline
Interfaces among Components
Documentation and
Risk

94. For most programs, the Program Management Office (PMO) is a core part of the program infrastructure. The PMO supports the management and coordination of the program and component work.

95. Program manager keeps the decision log, which documents all major decisions made in managing the program including the background information supporting the decision. Decision logs are significant especially in
the long-term programs where it may be necessary to look up, sometimes years later, why a particular technical or management decision was made

96. Issues are resolved either through acceptance (where no action is taken) or through changes to the program’s plan. The log of resolved issues should be included in the impact reports and checklists and stored for future references by all stakeholders on an ongoing basis. These assets may also be used to support ongoing and post-program audit inquiries.

97. Program Issues Register log is also used in Program Risk Management as an input for the incidental and ongoing management of risk

98. Monitoring is performed throughout a program’s life cycle, which includes collecting, measuring and disseminating performance information, and assessing overall program trends

99. Requests for corrective or preventive action are taken to Program Governance for approval

100. Program Performance Analysis include

Gap Analysis
Risk Analysis
Issues Analysis and
Trend and Probability Analysis

101. Projects under the program needs to be closed before the program is closed

102. As each project or non-project activity closes, program closure should be done to capture information and records, archive them, communicate the closure event and status, and obtain sponsor or customer sign-off

103. Efficient and appropriate release of program resources is an essential activity of program closure. At the component level, Program Governance releases resources through the Approve Component Transition process

104. The program itself is formally closed out by either cancelling the program, delivering the program to the customer, or by transitioning the program into operations

105. Before the program is closed, all components should be successfully completed and all contracts formally closed

106. Product Scope – The features and functions that characterize a product, service or result

107. Project Scope – The work that needs to be accomplished to deliver a product, service or result with the specified features and functions

108. Program Scope – The work required to deliver a major product, service or benefit result with the specified features and functions at the program level

109. The Program Scope Management Plan helps the program manager establish the scope statement and requirements, create the PWBS, validate that the deliverables and work of the program were built correctly, and address scope- related changes to the program and its projects

110. As one plans for the scope of the program, following documents best describe as what must be analyzed

Program Charter and
Business Case

Which are inputs to Plan Program Scope

111. The Program Scope Statement describes the scope, limitations, expectations, and the business impact of the program as well as a description of each project and its resources. It is the responsibility of Program Manager

112. The Scope Statement should address the following topics
• Organizational needs and requirements
• Initial, high level product requirements,
• Vision of the solution and
• Assumptions and constraints

113. A Focus Group is a group of individuals assembled to address specific questions about their attitude towards a product, service or concept. These questions are asked in an interactive group setting where participants are free to talk with other group members. Focus groups may solve problems and/or find solutions to the case in hand

114. The Benefits Realization Plan identifies the business benefits and documents the plan for realizing the benefits

115. Additionally the Benefits Realization Plan identifies the organizational processes and systems needed for the transformation, the required changes to the processes and systems, and how and when the transition to the new arrangements will occur

116. The benefit realization plan is created to

Memorialize the proposed benefits of the program for team monitoring,
Distinguish the processes and systems needed to achieve the benefits,
Detail the manner in which the benefits will be achieved, and
Develop the schedule for transitioning the benefits

117. Developing the Program WBS (PWBS) is the process of subdividing the major program deliverables, project activities, and implementation phases of the program. It is the process of breaking down all the work activities into more manageable components

118. A PWBS is a deliverable-oriented hierarchical decomposition encompassing the total scope of the program, and it includes the deliverables to be produced by the constituent components

119. The inputs to Develop Program WBS are

The program architecture baseline,
Program requirements document, and
component requirements documents

120. Elements not in the PWBS are outside the scope of the program

121. The PWBS is a key to effective control and communication between the program manager and the managers of component projects

122. The PWBS components at the lowest level of the PWBS are known as Program Packages

123. The complete description of the PWBS components and any additional relevant information is documented in the PWBS Dictionary, which is integral part of the PWBS

124. The PWBS does not replace the WBS required of each project within the program. Instead, it is used to clarify the scope of the program, help identify logical groupings of work for components, identify the interface with operations or products, and clarify the program’s conclusion.

125. The PWBS (program work breakdown structure) is generally created by

The program manager,
The program management team,
The project managers, and
The team doing the work

126.Once the PWBS (program work breakdown structure) is created, you can begin to create

Schedule,
Budget,
Assignment of resources, and
Risk planning

127. In creating the PWBS (program work breakdown structure), you must apply the 100% rule: 100% of the work needs to be represented in the PWBS

128. The purpose of the Work Breakdown Structure Matrix is to organize and categorize work scope

129. The Program Architecture is the starting point for developing the PWBS as it contains the necessary elements

130. As the program management team begins to plan the program architecture, it will refer to “Program requirements document” as a reference because it depicts requirements that deliver benefits and addresses enterprise, environmental, legal, and technical consequences.

131. Large, complex projects are organized and understood by breaking them into progressively smaller pieces until they are a collection of defined “work package” that may be further broken down into tasks

132. The Task Responsibility Matrix is a tool to help document and communicate the roles and level of involvement each team member and/or different functional groups will exercise in the ownership of specific tasks

133. The task responsibility matrix is an array of roles and involvement levels for each team member

134. System Configuration tools provide consistent documentation of product versions for use throughout the program. These tools help to provide change control for design documents, scope, requirements, processes and the myriad of items that will be modified during the life of the program

135. The change control process on a program is often hierarchical. The program has a change control board (CCB) that analyzes changes at the program level. If the program CCB identifies an impact to a component, the change is sent to the component-level CCB for a more detailed impact analysis. The results of that analysis are returned to the program CCB and any impacts to other components or to component interfaces are identified

136. The initial Program Schedule is often created before the detailed schedules of the individual components are available

137. The schedule at program level should include only those component milestones that represent an output to the program or share an interdependency with other components

138. A Program Schedule is typically created using the program work breakdown structure (PWBS) as the starting point. It includes all the program packages’ in the PWBS that produce the deliverables

139. A program tool used in developing the program schedule is schedule management software

140. Benefits Analysis is the process of looking at any incremental benefits the program provides and making adjustments to the schedule to enhance the delivery of those benefits

141. Cash Flow Analysis examines the funding schedule for the program’s revenue and expenses

142. Program Master Schedule is the top level program document, which defines the individual component schedule and dependencies between program components (individual projects and other work) to achieve the program goal

143. Earned Value Management is an approach that integrates scope, schedule, and resources to provide an accurate and objective measurement of program and component status

144. Cost Variance = Earned Value – Actual Value

145. Schedule Variance = Earned Value – Planned Value

146. A schedule performance index (SPI) of 0.76 means you are only progressing at 76 percent of the rate originally planned

147. A cost performance index (CPI) of 0.89 means the project is only getting 89 cents out of every dollar invested

148. A manufacturing project has a schedule performance index (SPI) of 0.89 and a cost performance index (CPI) of 0.91. Generally, what is the best explanation for why this occurred
Answer: A critical path activity took longer and needed more labor hours to complete

149. A CPI of greater than one indicates you are taking less money than planed to do the project

150. You are working on a project to build a bridge. You have reached the planned half way mark. The total planned cost at this stage is five hundred dollars. The actual physical work that has been completed at this stage is worth $400. You have already spent one thousand dollars on the project. What is the CPI?
CPI = EV/AC = 0.4
EV=400, AC = 1000, PV=500

151. The Program Charter is the key input to the Program Communications Process. It helps determine the communications requirements by providing information about the Program’s requirements, business needs, purpose, as well as other high-level information.

152. Stakeholder Register is a critical input to Program Communications Planning as it provides a description of the stakeholders and helps guide decisions about the best ways to communicate with the various stakeholders to ensure optimal exchange of information

153. The power/interest grid graphically illustrates which stakeholders need to be kept satisfied, managed closely, monitored, or kept informed based on the level of their power and their interest in the outcome of the project

154. The Program Master Schedule outlines the individual component schedules and dependencies between program components including individual projects and other work. The Program Master Schedule determines the timing of individual component milestones

155. Communications Log includes comprehensive log of stakeholder meetings and communications, which is maintained by Program Manager or Program Communications Leader. The log should identify the who, what, when, how and why for each form of communication

156. Common formats for performance reports include
• Bar Charts
• S-Curves
• Histograms and
• Tables

157. Program Risk is an event, or series of events or conditions that, if they occur, may affect the success criteria of the program

158. Program Risks categories include
• Environment – level Risks
• Program – level Risks
• Project Risks
• Operational – level Risks
• Portfolio – related Risks
• Benefits – related Risks

159. Program Architecture Baseline is a plan that describes where the Program will be at a given point in time, how it will get there, and how to determine if it was successful

160. The program architecture baseline is comprised of the components that provide the specified benefits of the program and delineates their attributes, skills, timing and external interactions

161. Breakdown structures used in program and project management could include

Organizational breakdown structure,
Risk breakdown structure,
Resource breakdown structure, and
Bill of materials

162. The organizational breakdown structure is used to show reporting relationships

163. The risk breakdown structure is used to decompose risk on a program or project

164. The resource breakdown structure is used to show what work the resources are doing and

165. The bill of materials shows assemblies, sub-assemblies, etc. of what is being created

166. Risk reviews verify that the risks are still valid and that no new risks have appeared on the project

167. Risk Breakdown Structure is a hierarchically organized depiction of causes of program risks arranged by risk category and subcategory

168. Tools & Techniques for Identify Program Risks Process includes
• Documentation Reviews
• Information Gathering Techniques
a. Brainstorming
b. Delphi Technique
c. Interviewing (Internal & External)
d. Root Cause Identification
e. Business Case Analysis
• Checklist Analysis
• Assumption Analysis
• Diagramming Techniques
a. Cause – and –effect diagrams
b. Program dependency analysis
c. Influence diagrams
d. Affinity diagrams
• SWOT Analysis
• Lessons Learned Review
• Scenario Analysis

169. The Four Factors which the Program Management Team and Risk Managers must continually be aware of, and manage are
• Availability of information
• Availability of resources
• Time and cost and
• Control

170. Make-or-Buy Analysis is a technique that is performed at the beginning of the Plan Program Procurement process

171. Bidder Conferences (also known as contractor conferences, vendor conferences, pre-bid conferences) are meetings with prospective sellers prior to preparation of a bid or proposal. The objective is to ensure that all
prospective sellers have a clear and common understanding of the procurement.

172. A Contract is a mutually binding agreement that obligates the seller to provide the specified products, services or results and obligates the buyer to provide monetary or other valuable consideration

173. A procurement audit confirms whether the seller delivered on its contractual obligations and that the statement of work and its components were achieved

174. Program Business Case is developed before the program is approved. It is obtained from the client, the funding organization or from the program sponsor

175. The Program Manager uses the Stakeholder Register to ensure that no stakeholders are overlooked

176. Stakeholder Inventory contains a current log of impacts identified during stakeholder analyzes, issues raised by stakeholders during engagements and tracking of impact mitigation and issue resolution status

177. The stakeholder inventory includes

A recap of the effect of the program has on each stakeholder/stakeholder group,
An analysis of probable responses by stakeholders,
Stakeholder issues, and
Proposed methods of lessening the negative impact of those issues;

some component stakeholder issues are addressed at the program level

178. Program Governance is a practice of developing, communicating, implementing, and monitoring policies, procedures, organization structure, and acts associated with the program.

179. Program governance provides the following:

A framework for efficient and effective decision making
A consistent delivery management focused on achieving program goals
An appropriate mechanism to address risks and stakeholder requirements

180. Program governance should fit into corporate governance, and into the big picture of the organization. The big picture is formed by the three key concepts: mission, vision, and strategy, as described in the following:

Mission: The mission of an organization is a summary of its goals and objectives. It is what an organization does: the purpose for the organization to exist. The mission is expressed in the mission statement, such as the following: “Our mission is to level the playing field in education by providing affordable and quality education to low- income families.”

Vision: This refers to a description, in graphic terms, of where the goal setters want to see the organization in the future. Unlike a mission statement, which is true in the present, the vision statement points to
the truth in the future. Here is an example of a vision statement: “Our goal is to become the number-one education provider in the world.”

Strategy: This refers to a long-term plan of action designed to achieve the organization’s goals and objectives; that is, its mission and vision

181. The term governance refers to procedures, processes, and systems used by an organization (or society) to operate. The word governance has a Latin origin that means to steer

182. Program Governance activities are conducted through all phases of the Program Life Cycle and relies on a governance framework that can be used across the program

183. Just like Quality cannot be inspected into a product, governance must be pro-active and not performed afterwards

184. Program Governance structure is fulfilled through the common roles
• Executive Sponsor
• Program Board (Steering Committee)
• Program Manager
• Project Managers
• Program Management Office (PMO)
• Project Teams and Team Members

185. The following sub plans of the overall program management plan are essential inputs to the Program Governance process
• Program Charter
• Program Business Case and
• Sponsor and Stakeholder Requirements

186. Cost of Quality refers to the total cost of all efforts to achieve product or service quality and includes all work to ensure conformance to requirements, as well as all work resulting from nonconformance to requirements

187. There are three types of costs that are incurred
• Prevention Costs
• Appraisal Costs and
• Failure Costs
a. Internal Costs
b. External Costs

188. Governance is defined as the process of developing, communicating, implementing, monitoring and assuring the policies, procedures, organizational structures and practices associated with a given program

189. Governance is oversight and control. Status report, financial report & resource deviation report are examples of reports submitted to the governance board to support its role of oversight and control

190. Governance plan includes

Addressing objectives,
Framework,
Function and accountability,
Planning and meetings,
Component initiation,
Escalation, and
The conduct required to effectively execute the program, and also addresses Monitoring and controlling

191. The component transition decision, benefits realization report updates, lessons learned, and program management plan updates are the results of the Approve Component Transition process

192. Project Quality is defined as the degree to which a project satisfies its objectives and requirements

193. Managing by Leadership is overall more effective and productive than Managing by Authority

194. A benefit is a positive contribution or improvement to the running of an Organization, such as increased revenues, reduced costs and improved employee morale. Can be classified broadly as
• Tangible: Quantifiable benefit, which may be directly related to the financial objectives, such as a 10% increase in revenue
• Intangible: Not easy to quantify, such as improved employee morale or increased customer satisfaction. However intangible benefits can contribute to tangible ones

195. Because programs are run to realize benefits, benefits management starts before the program is initiated, runs through the program and lasts until after the program is closed

196. Balanced Scorecard: According to the Balanced Scorecard technique, developed by Robert Kaplan & David Norton, strategic goals are partitioned into four dimensions:
• Customer (How do our customers see us)
• Financial (What financial gains we obtain through our investment)
• Internal Operations (What is our Core Competency) and
• Learning & Innovation (How do we continue to improve and create value)

197. As the program progresses, the list of stakeholders and their interest may vary. Therefore, program stakeholder analysis should be an ongoing iterative activity (not just a one-time task) whose results can be used throughout the life cycle of the program

198. Key performance indicators (KPIs) are the metrics used to measure performance at different levels, such as strategic plan, program, and project levels. Some KPIs can be used only at one level, and others can be used at more than one level. The KPIs at the strategic-plan level are typically used to quantify business objectives in order to measure the strategic performance of an organization. KPIs at the strategic-plan level are used to accomplish the following:
• Assess the current state of the organization’s business and recommend appropriate actions
• Monitor the business activity in real time.
• Measure activities that are otherwise difficult to measure, such as customer satisfaction and benefits from employees’ skill development

199. KPIs need to be SMART—specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely:

200. A program may include elements of the work related to the program, e.g. ongoing operations, which are outside the scope of all individual projects included in the program.

201. Ongoing and repetitive streams of operations in an organization are neither projects nor programs, according to the standard definitions of a project and a program

202. Earning before interest and taxes (EBIT) is the metric, which refers to an organization’s earning, and is also called operating income

203. The rationale used for launching a program rather than a set of projects can include the following:
• In a program, you can make optimal use of resources (e.g., share them) across multiple constituent projects in the program.
• When the interrelated projects are being managed as a program, you can make optimal resolution and use of dependencies among them.
• A program allows you to coordinate the participation in constituent projects from across different departments in the organization to improve efficiency and performance.
• Programs are more strategic than projects, and therefore they help keep the projects properly aligned to realize the strategic benefits for which the program (and the projects) is being performed

204. The high-level business plan for the program must reflect that the strategic initiative acting as a stimulus for the program is clearly understood. It should align the program objectives with the strategic objectives for which the program is being proposed. It should clearly state the following components:

• Mission: The mission states what the program will achieve and
why that achievement is important.

• Vision: The vision shows how the end state resulting from the
program looks and how the organization will benefit from it. In
other words, it states where the program will take the
organization.

• Values: This refers to what’s important to the program; that is,
how the program will evaluate necessary tradeoffs to strike a
balance between different options

205. A milestone is a significant point (or event) in the life of a program, marking the start or completion of an activity or a set of activities, and therefore has zero duration

206. A gap analysis is performed to ensure that the program deliverables and objectives are aligned with the organization’s strategic objectives. To be specific, the gap analysis begins with asking if there is any potential gap between:
• Program deliverables and program requirements
• Program benefits and program requirements
• Program deliverables and the appropriate parts of the strategic plan
• Program benefits and the appropriate parts of the strategic plan

207. Benefit-cost ratio (BCR): This is the value obtained by dividing the benefit by the cost.

208. The greater the value, the more attractive the project is.
For example, if the projected cost of producing a product is $20,000 and you expect to sell it for $60,000, then the BCR is equal to $60,000 ÷ $20,000 = 3

209. For the benefit to exceed the cost, the BCR must be greater than 1

210. Cash flow (CF): While cash refers to money, cash flow refers to both the money coming in and the money going out of an organization. Positive cash flow means more money coming in than going out

211. Cash inflow is a benefit (income) and cash outflow is a cost (expenses)

212. Discounted cash flow (DCF): The discounted cash flow refers to the amount that someone is willing to pay today in anticipation of receiving the cash flow in the future. DCF is calculated by taking the amount that you anticipate to receive in the future and discounting (converting) it back to today on the time scale. This conversion factors in the interest rate and opportunity cost between now (when you are spending cash) and the time when you will receive the cash back

213. Internal return rate (IRR): This is an investment analysis method used to decide if a long term investment should be made. The investment of capital in a project is a good investment proposition if its IRR is greater than the rate of interest that could be earned by alternative investments, such as investing in other projects, buying bonds, or depositing the money in a bank account. This is just another way of interpreting the benefit from the project. It looks at the cost of the project as the capital investment and translates the profit into the
interest rate over the life of that investment

214. The bigger the IRR value, the more beneficial the project or program is

215. Present value (PV) and net present value (NPV): To understand these two concepts, understand that one dollar today can buy you more than what one dollar next year can buy (think of inflation and return). The issue arises because it takes time to complete a project, and even when a project is completed its benefits are reaped over a period rather than immediately. In other words, the project is costing you today but will benefit you tomorrow. So to make an accurate calculation of the profit, the cost and benefits must be converted to the same point in time.
The PV is the present value of a future payment; that is, a future amount converted into the present time by taking into account the time value, such as predicted inflation and interest.

216. The NPV of a project is the present value of the future cash inflows (benefits) minus the present value of the current and future cash outflows (cost).

217. For a project to be worth while economically, the NPV must be positive

218. Opportunity cost: This refers to selecting one project instead of another due to the scarcity of resources. In other words, by spending a dollar on this project we are passing on the opportunity to spend that dollar on another project.

219. The smaller the opportunity cost, the better it is

220. Return on investment (ROI): The ROI is the percentage profit (or loss) from the investment in a project.
For example, if you spend $400,000 on a project and the benefit for
the first year is $500,000, then ROI = ($500,000 – $400,000) ÷ $200,000 = 50 percent

221. To exceed the cost, the BCR must be greater than 1

222. The constrained optimization methods employ complex mathematical models that use formulae and algorithms to predict the success of a project. These models use the following kinds of algorithms:

Linear
Nonlinear
Dynamic
Integer
Multiple objective programming

223. Assumptions can appear in both the input and the output of various processes

224. Organizational process assets are also called a process asset library (PAL)

225. The Organizational Process Assets (also called the Process Assets Library) will provide

Process definitions,
Process documentation,
Templates,
Closing criteria,
Issue management,
Knowledge bases,
Historical information and
Lessons learned

226. Organizational process assets can be inputs to many processes since they deal with variables external to the project. Variable examples are

Information systems,
Company policies, and
Company procedures.

The assets can include

Process definitions,
Documentation associated with the processes,
Templates,
Criteria to complete (close) projects,
Organization communication needs,
Issue management,
Financial infrastructure,
Change control processes,
Risk management,
Knowledge bases (including lessons learned),
Other information repositories, and
Work authorization.

227. An important task of resource planning is to ensure the optimal use of resources across the multiple projects within a program, which is accomplished by using optimization techniques.

228. One such optimization technique is called load balancing

229. Decomposition is a technique for subdividing the program deliverables into smaller, manageable tasks called program packages. A program package is a bottom component of a branch of the PWBS hierarchy

230. A work package corresponding to an individual project in the program is further decomposed into more levels of hierarchy, with the lowest level containing what are called work packages for the project.

231. The hierarchical structure that contains work packages at the lowest level of each of its branches is called a work breakdown structure (WBS)

232. The program scope statement describes the scope of the program in detail, whereas the PWBS presents the deliverable-oriented decomposition of the program scope

233. Transition planning ensures that the benefits the program provides to the organization are sustained after the program completion

234. The transition does not have to wait until the completion of the program. The transition events can happen when necessary during the program life cycle, such as when a project or a non-project work activity within the program is completed

235. Lateral thinking: Thinking outside the box, beyond the realm of your experience, to search for new solutions and methods rather than only better uses for the current solutions and methods.

236. Resource leveling is a project management process used to examine unbalanced use of resources (usually people or equipments) over time, and for resolving over-allocations or conflicts.

237. There will be elements in the PWBS for which your organization lacks the resources. You will need to get those elements produced by resources (a vendor) external to your organization. This practice is called procurement

238. Both internal and external dependencies can be grouped further into mandatory dependencies and discretionary dependencies, discussed in the following:
• Mandatory dependencies: These are the dependencies that are inherent to the program components. For example, a course must be developed before it can be tested.
• Discretionary dependencies: These are the dependencies that are at the discretion of the program management team. For example, it was possible to perform components A and B simultaneously or to perform A after B was finished, but the team decided, for whatever reason, to perform B after A is finished. Some of the guidelines for establishing discretionary dependencies can come from the knowledge of best practices within the given application area, and from the previous experience of performing a similar program

239. Mandatory dependencies are called hard logic, whereas discretionary dependencies are called soft logic

240. The external dependency is a dependency that is outside the control of the internal organization.

241. The mandatory dependency is required, but internal to the organization.

242. You create the PWBS and WBS and decompose the program packages with the help of the program team and project managers. When decomposing a work package into activities, involve the individuals who either are familiar with the work packages or will be responsible for them

243. Analogous estimating: Analogous estimating techniques estimate the duration of an activity based on the duration of a similar activity in a previous program or in another project.

244. Parametric estimating: This is a quantitative technique used to calculate the activity duration when the productivity rate of the resource performing the activity is available. You use a formula such as the following to calculate the duration:

245. Activity duration = units of work in the activity ÷ productivity rate of the resources

246. Reserve analysis is used to incorporate a time cushion into your schedule; this cushion is called a contingency reserve , a time reserve , or a time buffer

247. The milestones in a program may correspond to key deliverables within the constituent projects of the program

248. Cost aggregation is the technique used to calculate the cost of a whole by summing up the costs of the parts that comprise the whole.

249. Bottom-up estimation uses cost aggregation. You can aggregate the costs of all the program components to calculate the total cost of the program

250. Control thresholds: This refers to the tolerance of the organization to the variations in the cost with respect to the planned cost and budget. If the cost exceeds this threshold, it is called out of control

251. Precision level: This refers to how precise the cost estimates are. For example, it may specify the precision level to which the estimation number will be rounded off—e.g., $100 or $1,000

252. At the precision level of $100, an estimate of $3,675 is reported as $3,700, whereas in the precision level $1,000, it will be reported as $4,000.

253. Units of measurements: This refers to the units of measurements for the resources—for example, work in hours and cost in U.S. dollars.

254. Resource leveling and resource optimization are not identical. Even if a plan has used resource leveling—that is, no resource is over-allocated—it does not necessarily mean that the resources are being used optimally.

255. Bids and quotations are typically used to ask for prices, whereas proposals are used to ask for solutions

256. Invitations for bid, requests for quotation, and requests for proposal travel from buyer to seller, whereas bids, quotations, and proposals travel from seller to buyer

257. Fixed-price (lump-sum) contracts: A fixed-price contract, also called a lump- sum contract or a firm fixed-price contract, is an agreement that specifies the fixed total price for the product, service, or result to be procured.

258. An example of a fixed-price contract is a purchase order for the specified item to be delivered by a specified date for a specified price. This category of contracts is generally used for products and services that are well-defined and have good historical information. A fixed price for a poorly defined product or a service with very little historical record is a source of high risk for both the seller and the buyer

259. Both fixed-price contracts and cost-reimbursable contracts can include incentives; for example, a bonus from the buyer to the seller if the seller meets certain target schedule dates or exceeds some other predetermined expectations

260. Crashing: A schedule-compression technique used to decrease the project duration with minimum additional cost. A number of alternatives are analyzed, including the assignment of additional resources.

261. Critical path: The longest path (sequence of activities) in a project schedule network diagram. Because it is the longest path, it determines the duration of the project.

262. Fast-tracking: A schedule-compression technique used to decrease the project duration by performing project phases or some schedule activities within a phase simultaneously when they would normally be performed in sequence.

263. Float time: The positive difference between the late start date and the early start date of a schedule activity.

264. Free float (FF): The maximum amount of time by which a given activity can be delayed without delaying the early start of any of the immediately following scheduling activities

265. Total float (TF): The maximum time by which a given activity can be delayed from its early start date without delaying the finish date of the project

266. Program quality: is a measure of the degree to which the completed program objectives and deliverables meet the program requirements

267. Risk is an uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a positive or negative effect on meeting the objectives of a program or its constituent projects

268. A document that contains the list of all risks with information about each risk, such as priority and a response plan, is called the risk register

269. The goal of risk response planning is not to eliminate all the risks; it is to maximize the opportunities offered by the positive risks and minimize the threats posed by the negative risks

270. Residual risk: A risk that remains after the risk response has been performed

271. A quality audit is a structured and independent review to determine whether the execution of a program or one of its components complies with the policies, processes, and procedures of the program and the performing
organization

272. Generally speaking, differences of opinion should not be considered as sources of conflict. If managed properly, differences can be very healthy and can lead to better solutions and therefore increase productivity.

273. A schedule variance does not necessarily mean that a schedule change is required. For example, a delay on a schedule activity that is not on the critical path might not trigger any schedule change.

274. Pareto's Law, in its original form, was presented as an economic theory by Vilfredo Pareto, a 19th-century Italian economist, and it states that 80 percent of income is earned by 20 percent of the population. Since then it has been applied to other fields, such as project and program management

275. Because closing the constituent projects is included in the program closure, the program closure activities are performed throughout the program, not just at the program completion

276. If a contract has been terminated before its full implementation, it still needs to be closed by using the Contract Closure process.

277. A program is closed by using the Close Program process. Before you can complete closing a program, you must close all the program components and the program contracts

278. Lessons learned are created during the program closure. Lessons learned are considered and input and an output of program closure, because this documentation is cumulative through the program

279. The sequence for program closure is:

Perform close program and approve component transition activities,
Deliver required reports associated with closing the project,
Deliver required reports associated with closing the program,
Close out any contracts applicable to the project,
Perform final lessons learned for the project,
Archive project files (including contracts),
Release project resources and assets.

When these activities are complete for all projects (components), the following
activities need to be done:

Final closing of the program,
applicable administrative activities,
Create final lessons learned for the program,
Complete program file archives (including contracts), and
Release resources and assets back to the company

280. Program files are documents that record what occurred, what decisions that were made, and what changes were approved, including financial records, and legal documents

281. Stakeholder analysis chart identifies the stakeholders, their position regarding the program, what influence they have over the program decisions, and their priorities for the program.

282. Stakeholder analysis is the identification of stakeholder needs, wants and expectations. It involves the documentation, prioritization and the quantification of the needs to help define the project scope.

283. The resource breakdown structure is a chart that identifies needed resources based on the decomposition of the program or project scope

284. RACI chart is a roles and responsibilities chart typically used for team members assignments. This chart uses the legend of responsible, accountable, consult, and inform for each assignment

285. The RACI matrix (pronounced /reisi/..Race ending with an ee) is a formal way of establishing the role for each stakeholder/participant whenever multiple parties are involved In a nutshell:
R(esponsible) – Who is responsible for actually doing it?
A(ccountable) – Who has authority to approve or disapprove it?
C(onsulted) – Who has needed input about the task?
I(Informed, kept) – Who needs to be kept informed about the task?

286. Preventive action: anticipate problems and then creates a solution before the project may begin

287. Corrective action: is a response to fix a problem that has occurred in the program or project

288. Quality assurance: does establish the quality expectations of the program, provide a method to achieve the expected quality, and aims to plan quality into the program.

289. Quality assurance is a management-driven process that plans how quality will be achieved

290. Team development: is a team activity that brings team closer together as a unit.

291. The certificate of program closure is the document that officially closes the program

292. The certificate of program closure includes details of the program’s deliverables, successes and failures of the of the program’s project, and is issued after completion of a program

293. During program initiation following are identified

Program scope
Program benefits
Link to organizational strategy

294. Program risks are NOT identified during program initiation. Program risk is identified as part of the organization’s portfolio management

295. Quality Assurance is the application of planned, systematic quality activities to ensure that the project will employ all processes needed to meet requirements. It is a prevention-driven activity to reduce errors in the project and to help the project meet its requirements. It is a prevention-driven process that aims to do the work correctly the first time

296. Quality control is an inspection-driven process that examines the work to ensure that it has been done properly

297. Interface Management Plan should define all the people, groups, and other entities that the program needs to interact with in order to move the program forward (SPM V1)

298. Risk avoidance is the elimination of a risk or threat, usually by eliminating the cause.

299. transference is the allocating of responsibility for and impact of the risk event to another party.

300. Risk mitigation is the minimizing of a risk event by minimizing the likelihood of its occurrence.

301. Risk acceptance is the acceptance of the impact or consequences of a risk event

302. The Ishikawa diagram (fishbone diagrams or cause-and-effect) is useful for isolating the area or areas that could be causing the problem with the manufacturing process.

303. The Pareto diagram is useful for determining the type and quantity of defects that exist in the process.

304. The flowchart is a diagram that displays the connectivity between pieces of a system.

305. The control or run chart is useful for determining the measured output over the manufacturing process for acceptable and failed products

306. The program office provides administrative support to program managers and program management teams.

307. The program governance board is responsible for achieving program goals. This also includes supporting program risks and issues.

308. The program director is the executive owner of the program.

309. Governmental regulatory agencies have external regulatory authority that can create new policies which may impact the company and the program

310. Configuration management is a process that is used to control product features and details through change control

311. Interviews are a focused questioned approach with either open or close ended answers.

312. Brainstorming is an approach that allows a free flowing of ideas to document potential solutions to a problem or situation.

313. Questionnaires and surveys are often used to determine people’s reactions to products or approaches.

314. Conflict management is performed to harmonize the varying goals of the stakeholders

315. The Program management plan is a key input of Manage Program Issues

316. Change requests are included in the key outputs of Manage Program Issues

317. A work authorization system helps to ensure that work is done as planned. The right work, in the right order, by the right people. It can be used to minimize gold plating. It is associated with the Direct and Manage Program Execution process

318. In managing program resources, following inputs are needed

Program management plan,
Component status reports,
Resource availability, and
Program resource plan

319. During the direct and manage program execution process following must be considered

Program management plan,
Program roadmap,
Change requests,
Audit reports, and
Program performance reports

320. During the initiating program process following must be considered

Business case,
Strategic directive,
Existing components, and
Existing organization structures and policies

321. During the develop program management plan process following must be considered

Program charter,
Program roadmap, and
Existing organizational work

322. During the Control Program Performance process following must be considered

Program management plan and
Program performance reports

323. The purpose of the transition plan is to address the transfer of component and program work or benefits into organizational operations

324. Manage Program Resources is impacted at the project level by

Manage Project Team,
Verify Scope, and
Report Performance

325. The Project Management Information System (PMIS) is used for communication and information distribution on the program or project. Typically, it is a mixture of technology and non-technology tools used by various people in the project or program

326. Earned value reporting shows the status of the scope, time, and cost of the project.

327. Fixed formula progress reporting uses a partial credit approach (e.g. 50/50) and is ideal when the duration of an activity is equal to or less than two reporting periods.

328. The weighted milestone approach is ideal when the duration of an activity is more than two reporting periods.

329. Forecast reporting focuses on future activities of the project

330. The inputs to the Report Program Performance process are

Program performance reports,
Program forecasts,
Communications messages, and
Benefits realization plan

331. The para-lingual communication process includes voice characteristic analysis Variance reports show the difference between what was planned and what actually occurred.

332. Forecast reports provide information on what is expected to occur.

333. Progress reports provide information on what has been accomplished recently.

334. Status reports provide information on the present overall state of the project.

335. Informal written includes non-legal documents, documentation that precedes any contracts, general documentation, and notes.

336. Formal written is used when distance or extreme complexity is involved, for legal communication, and for program and project documents.

337. Formal verbal communication is used in official situations, presentations, and other communication that is primarily one-directional.

338. Informal verbal includes any verbal communication that isn’t formal, such as people talking together and it does include meetings

339. The performing organization is the group (company, department, division) that is doing the work of the program and its related projects

340. Pre-program preparations involve starting program efforts.

341. Program initiation involves creating planning documents for the program.

342. Establishing the governance for the components (projects) of the program is an output of delivery of program benefits.

343. Program closure involves shutting down the projects and contracts of the program, and ultimately the program, when the work is complete

344. The activities and deliverables of benefits analysis are create and prioritize projects and establish benefits metrics;

345. The activities and deliverables of benefits identification are determine benefits, evaluate benefits, and rank benefits;

346. The activities and deliverables of benefits planning are create benefits monitoring and the benefits realization plan and align benefits into the program management plan;

347. The activities and deliverables of benefits realization are monitor projects, maintain benefits register, and create benefits reporting

348. Program and projects can both create deliverables, with the main focus of the program being to create incremental benefits via the project deliverables. Projects themselves do not create incremental benefits, those come via the program. Both programs and projects should be run within a governance structure

349. The sponsor funds a component within the portfolio.

350. The Executive Review Board authorizes the scope with which portfolio management directs portfolio operations.

351. The portfolio manager is responsible for managing a portfolio.

352. The portfolio management board typically establishes the framework, rules, and process for the decision aspects of the portfolio

353. Verification of the benefits of the program comes as a result of scope verification of the project deliverables.

354. A high level plan to address the mission, vision, and values of the program should be created when deciding to do a program.

355. Administer program procurements involves the management of contracts at the program level which can result in adjustments to resource accounting, approved payment requests, contract changes, program records, change requests, communications messages.

356. Plan program procurements involves the analysis of procurement or outsourcing needs and the development of a strategy to address them.

357. Conduct Program Procurements involves the completion of the solicitation needs for the program and its projects.

358. Close program procurements involves closing contracts that relate to the procured work of the program and its projects.

359. A request for information (RFI) is a request for the service provider to provide information about its qualifications.

360. A request for proposal (RFP) is a request for the seller to provide information about the approach it will take to complete the work, the price of the work, and other significant details about the requested work.

361. A request for quote (RFQ) is a request for the seller to provide the price for a commodity

362. The contract management plan helps the program manager and team define the rules for archiving contract documentation, establishing payments for the work of the contract, addressing changes to the contract, validating completion of the contract work, and closing the contract when the work is complete

363. The fixed-price-incentive-fee provides for a fixed price plus an incentive fee if performance goals are met.

364. The cost-plus contract provides for costs plus a negotiated fee.

365. The fixed-price contract provides for a set price. The fixed-price is the most popular because it allows a company to budget for a fixed price

366. A fixed-price-economic-price-adjust contract generally sets a fixed price, but, because of contract length, will adjust year-by-year as a neutral economic indicator moves upward or downward.

367. Close Program Procurements, Close Program, and Approve Component Transition are all closing processes

368. The key inputs to the Plan Program Procurements process are:

Market environmental factors,
Program budget allocation,
Component scope statements, and
Program charter

369. Conduct Program Procurements is the process that follows Plan Program Procurements.

370. Administer Program Procurements occurs after Conduct Program Procurements.

371. The projects created within a program, are often at different stages of completion and therefore planning is more likely to be progressively elaborated.

372. Quality Audits are completed by independent reviewers to determine whether project activities comply with organizational and project policies, processes and procedures.

373. Projects are planned in detail to deliver a product/service or result, programs monitor projects and ongoing work and portfolios identify the current state of program/project investments.

374. The program scope statement contains high level deliverables for the program and the program charter links the program to the ongoing work of the organization

375. The key areas included in the program charter are:-

Links the program to the ongoing work of the organization
Vision statement that defines the desired end state on successful completion of the program
Used as the vehicle for authorizing the program

376. Whereas the program scope statement has:-

Objectives of the program
High level deliverables of the program
Organizational needs and requirements
Initial high level product requirements
Vision of the solutions
Assumptions and constraints

377. Confrontational style involves open and direct communication to resolve the problem, Confrontation requires trust between the parties, and sufficient time to work through the issues to a resolution

378. A strategic plan should ensure achieving the mission

379. Earned value techniques to measure the project performance and establishing forecasts based on the measurements

380. Program are executed to deliver program benefits

381. Program Management Plan includes following subsidiary plans

Program roadmap
Program schedule
Program governance plan
Governance metrics and critical success factor
Benefits realization plan
Program stakeholder management plan
Program communications management plan
Program financial plan
Contracts management plan
Scope management plan
Procurement management plan
Quality management plan
Program risk response plan
Program risk management plan and
Schedule management plan

382. To be successful, benefits management must begin when the program is initiated

383. Although benefits management evolves as the program continues through its phases, it should begin when the program is initiated, in the Pre-Program Preparations and Program Initiation phases of the program life cycle

384. The Direct and Manage Program Execution process is involved in

Implementing approved change requests,
Maintaining decision logs, and
Performing impact analysis.

These tasks are done by the program manager, based on his or her scope of authority

385. The program budget baseline is an input to the Monitor and Control Program Financials process. When a change request with significant cost implications is approved, a program budget baseline update should be prepared as an output of the Monitor and Control Program Financials process

386. Too often, after the business case has been approved, the focus turns to the time, cost, and quality of delivery. Establishing a continuous program management approach where the business case is always tied to program performance will ensure that governance is being followed and the program is meeting the organization’s strategic plan goals

387. Program success can be measured using a variety of metrics; ultimately, it is measured against the needs and benefits of the stakeholders

388. Changes affect the various program-level processes. As part of the Monitor and Control Program Scope process, updates to the document repository may be required based on the nature of the change

389. A component transition request is an input to the Approve Component Transition process, and it is required
if a project is terminated before its scheduled completion. A termination decision may be the result of a program
benefits review or a change in the external environment. The transition request is also required for normal project completion

390. After an issue is identified, it should be recorded in the issue register. The next step is to subject it to analysis by a reviewing authority or board. Issue reviews should be conducted regularly

391. The balanced scorecard is a benefits measurement technique that includes a set of performance measures. These measures cover a range of areas that reflect and show a balanced view of organizational performance.

392. Internal rate of return (IRR) and net present value (NPV) are financial analysis techniques

393. Value engineering is a technique used to reduce costs in product development

394. Balanced Scorecards are generally used in business to provide a balanced view of how a business or business unit is performing, rather than just focusing on financials, as financial results are considered “lag” measures. By “lag” we mean that financials only tell the story of something which has happened in the past

395. A balanced scorecard is a measuring tool that clarifies an organization’s vision through measurable goals and outcomes. This enables the vision to drive the projects that take place within the organization, aligns them to the organization’s overarching business strategy, and correlates their outcomes.

396. Value realization and the balanced scoreboard are examples of metrics

397. Value realization means obtaining value from the investment

398. The Develop Program Infrastructure process investigates, assesses, and plans the support structure to enable the program to achieve its goals. It considers the unique challenges and needs of the program and how program components interact. The program’s management and technical infrastructure support the program and its projects as expected benefits are delivered. This infrastructure includes program-specific governance processes and procedures

399. The executive sponsor is the person who has executive ownership of program policies and is responsible for providing program resources and ensuring program success. Program sponsors represent the organization’s executive management, which is responsible for defining the direction of the organization and making the investment decisions necessary to meet strategic goals

400. The program mandate, which is prepared during the Pre-Program Preparations phase, confirms the commitment of organizational resources. It also triggers the Program Initiation phase. Thus commitment of organizational resources for the initial phases of the program is provided before the Initiate Program process begins

401. Component projects of the program are initiated during the Delivery of Program Benefits phase

402. When a contractor refuses to perform according to the terms and conditions of a contract, he or she is in default and is subject to legal action.

403. The organization’s contract closure procedure, a tool and technique in the Close Program Procurements process, outlines the requirements for contract termination, including verification criteria to protect the organization from breach of contract

404. The program life cycle is nonsequential. Throughout the life cycle, components are mobilized as appropriate so that a stream of deliverables focuses on facilitating new operations and benefits

405. As you work as a program manager to identify, track, and close issues, it is important to do so in tandem with Risk management. t is important to carry out the Manage Program Issues process in tandem with program risk management so that unresolved issues do not affect overall program progress, especially because risk assessment is an integral part of issues management and the risk register is an input to the process

406. Your program is beginning to miss key milestones because of delays by your customer, with whom you have a contract. Your goal is to ensure that corrections are made as quickly as possible, so you decide to conduct a contract performance review earlier than planned. During this review, you and the customer realized that there was a deficiency in the contract. Your next step is to prepare a change request

407. A contract performance review is a tool and technique in the Administer Program Procurements process. Change requests or recommended corrective action requests should be raised when the performance problems are the result of a deficiency in a contract

408. Because most scope changes have associated costs, every proposed change requires analysis to determine whether it should be implemented. After the analysis, the program manager makes a decision. The next step is to communicate the decision to the stakeholders involved

409. The Develop Program Schedule process is both a top-down and a bottom-up approach. The program schedule is created with the PWBS as the starting point. Individual project managers then build the details for their specific projects, and these details are then incorporated into the management control points for the program packages of the PWBS. Project schedule information is an input to this process

410. A 360-degree feedback analysis is an excellent mechanism to look broadly at a person’s management, leadership, and interpersonal skills. It can provide an excellent foundation for future development as well as providing key insights by the people that work with her on a daily basis

411. The executive sponsor is the group or person who is responsible for providing project resources and ultimately for ensuring program success.

412. The Approve Component Initiation process includes the processes and decision-making structure for initiating and changing the overall program as well as its components

413. The component charter, program management plan, and component initiation criteria are Inputs to the Approve Component Initiation process

414. The Manage Program Resources process is ongoing throughout the program. As projects are authorized, resources may need to be redeployed. This redeployment is handled by the program manager at the program level. It may require other program process activity if the project managers are unable or unwilling to release the required resources

415. The program scope statement defines

The scope of the program as well as the
Limitations,
Expectations, and
Business impact of the program.

It also describes each project and its resources as well as organizational needs and requirements, initial high-level product requirements, and the program’s vision, assumptions, and constraints. This statement helps the program team to perform more detailed program planning

416. The desired outcome of the Program Setup phase is approval to authorize execution of the program management plan

417. During the Program Setup phase, the foundation of the program—a detailed program management plan—is developed. The program manager continually communicates with stakeholders during this phase, and the desired outcome is approval to execute the plan

418. Many organizations set up a program team to participate in initiation or program start-up and then replace team members with permanent staff during the Manage Program Resources process, which tracks and adapts the use of program resources throughout the life cycle

419. Comparative advantage analysis is a tool and technique of the Initiate Program process. A well-developed business case will include a certain level of analysis and comparison against real or imagined alternative efforts. Such comparisons generate substantive debate with respect to the best solution

420. The Distribute Information process involves providing timely and accurate information to program stakeholders in useful formats and using appropriate media. A key input to this process is a stakeholder register, which lists the primary stakeholders of the program, their roles and responsibilities, and their expectations. Use of a stakeholder register helps to ensure that their information needs are identified and can be met

421. During the Program Initiation phase, the program road map is prepared. Among other things, it describes the links between the planned and prioritized work, and it shows how program components are organized. It also provides a chronological representation of the program’s intended direction.

422. Organizational process assets (a process asset library) are key inputs to many program management processes. They may include the organization’s knowledge bases, may exist in paper or electronic format, and may include process-related plans, policies, procedures, and guidelines institutionalized by the organization.

423. The program charter links the program to the organization’s ongoing work. It contains the vision statement that defines the desired organizational end state for successful completion of the program and describes how the program will benefit the organization

424. The purpose of the program transition plan is to ensure that program benefits will be sustained after they are transferred to the organization. As part of the transition, all pertinent documents, training and materials, supporting systems, facilities, and personnel are delivered. These requirements are part of the program’s transition plan

425. The benefits realization plan must be monitored regularly to determine the actual events and changes in plans at both the component and overall program level.

426. One of the major purposes of the Manage Program Issues process is to identify, track, and close issues so that stakeholder expectations are aligned with program activities and results. This alignment can be accomplished by several methods, including Performing program scope analysis

427. It is important that the program manager ensure that stakeholder activities are aligned with the program’s activities and deliverables. Issues may be sent to program risk management, program governance, or program scope management. When issues are sent to program scope management, then it is important to determine the effect that such issues have on the program’s scope

428. The benefits realization plan includes the responsibility for delivery of the intermediate and final program benefits. Benefits management is a continuous process that assesses the value of the program’s benefits as well
as the interdependencies that exist between benefits in the program’s projects. It also assigns responsibility and accountability for benefits realization

429. The vision is part of the charter prepared during the Program Initiation phase.
The high-level plan shows

the stimuli that triggered the program,
the program objectives, and
how the objectives align with the organization

430. A statistical process control (SPC) chart shows how a process is being executed over time. A process is deemed “out of control” when certain measurements exceed tolerance levels thus affecting quality. The Plan
Program Quality process includes preparation of the program quality management plan, which sets, among other things, quality standards for components.

431. Benefits identification corresponds to the Pre-Program Preparations phase. This is the phase in which benefits are identified and qualified.

432. The program architecture baseline is an output of the Develop Program Architecture process and describes the various program components that need to be in place to produce the desired benefits. Given this change in
scope, this baseline requires updates

433. You will need a number of different types of supplies and services to support your program and its component projects. Many different techniques can be used to evaluate proposals that are submitted. All use Expert judgment

434. Proposal evaluation systems are a tool and technique in the Conduct Program Procurements process. Although a number of different approaches can be used, all use expert judgment and evaluation criteria.

435. A program dashboard highlights and briefly describes or illustrates through the use of colors—red (bad), yellow (warning), green (good)—the status of various aspects of the program. It is simple and easy to interpret, making it a useful communication tool at the executive level. Methods to represent status reports are dashboards, memos, and presentations to stakeholders

436. high-level plan to initiate the program is developed in the Pre-Program Preparations phase. It shows how the program will map to and deliver strategic objectives, and how those objectives align with organizational goals

437. Regular quality reviews and project management health checks are best practices to assess performance against expected and desired outcomes. Health checks are also used to gauge whether the program benefits will be realized in the long term. They are less formal than phase-gate reviews, but they are useful to focus on such areas as quality planning to ensure that the overall program is successful

438. Acquisitions and mergers are unplanned events. When they occur, they should trigger a review of existing program plans to see whether updates are required to ensure ongoing usefulness.

439. Phase four in the program life cycle is the Delivery of Program Benefits phase. This is when the work of the program through its projects and other activities begins. At this time, the program management team is responsible for managing the projects in a coordinated and consistent way, and a governance structure is established to monitor and control the projects

440. As a program is closed, benefits management focuses on a number of key initiatives, including ensuring that the benefits delivered are in line with the business case

441. Stakeholders play a critical role in the success of a program or project. As program manager for development of a next-generation motorcycle to be available in 2020, you know it is a best practice to prepare a stakeholder analysis and management plan. This should be done as the program is being initiated

442. Stakeholders are persons who have an interest in or influence over the program. They may be internal or external to the organization, and their expectations must be managed from the beginning to the end of the program. Stakeholder considerations are stated in the program charter, which is developed during Program Initiation and should include an initial strategy to manage them

443. A risk trigger is a sign that a particular risk may occur

444. Because the WBS defines all work in a project and program, this is the best tool to use for integration. The program work breakdown structure (PWBS) typically corresponds to the first one or two levels of the WBS of each component project. As the PWBS is developed, the management planning process is a key tool and technique to use

445. The communications log is an output of the Plan Communications process. It identifies the who, what, when, how, and why for each form of communication. After the communications framework has been developed
and agreed to, the next step is to identify and put into place the components (that is, the processes and technical elements) that will enable the communications to be executed

446. During the Closing processes, it is important to demonstrate that the benefits have been delivered and the scope of work has been fulfilled. If the program is terminated early, then the current state should be documented

447. Corrective action is an output of the Monitoring and Controlling Program Financials process

448. Program operational cost analysis is a tool and technique in the Monitor and Control Program Financials process. It is necessary because costs associated with program management and the infrastructure must be monitored and controlled

449. A key aspect of stakeholder management is to implement successful organizational change. This includes identifying the people who have an interest in or will be affected by the change and ensuring that they are aware of, supportive of, and part of the change process. Generally accepted methods of organizational change should be part of program plans

450. A benefits realization analysis, which typically follows a benefits review, is a tool and technique of the Manage Program Benefits process. It focuses on strategic alignment, value delivery, resource management, risk management, and performance measurement. This scenario would concentrate on the risk management area to focus on risk awareness by senior enterprise officers

451. A successful program manager must have a special blend of knowledge, skills, and competencies. The most important is communication skills to deal with all program stakeholders.

452. During the Report Program Performance process, performance information is collected, measured, and consolidated, and measurements and trends are assessed to generate improvements. Information about how resources are being used to deliver program benefits is consolidated, and the consolidated information is then made available to program stakeholders through the Distribute Information process

453. The primary output of program initiation is the program charter. Among other things, it includes the recommended governance structure to manage, control, and support the program as well as the governance structure for the program’s components.

454. Phase-gate reviews serve numerous purposes and should be held throughout the program. They focus on the phase that was just completed and result in go/no-go decisions. However, these sessions are not a substitute for periodic program performance reviews

455. As an output of the Monitor and Control Program Financials process, the program budget is closed as the program comes to a close, the final financial reports are distributed in accordance with the stakeholder management plan, and any unused funds are returned to the funding organization

456. Upon completion of the program work breakdown structure (PWBS), realistic schedules can be built, cost estimates can be developed, and the program’s work can be organized

457. One of the truest measures of an organization’s intent, direction, and progress is found in its Portfolio

458. The portfolio is where investment decisions are made, resources are allocated, and priorities are identified. Thus, it is one of the truest measures of the organization’s intent. Program components must be aligned with the organization’s strategy to clearly show why they are being undertaken

459. One objective of the Initiate Program process is to Define the program’s scope and benefit strategy

460. The Initiate Program process helps to define the program’s scope and benefits expectations and ensures that the authorization and initiation of the program are linked to the organization’s ongoing work and strategic priorities

461. Although the type of program may influence the life cycle, the primary life-cycle phases and their deliverables are similar.

462. After you analyze the PWBS, scope statement, and product description, you apply make-or-buy decision techniques to determine which of the PWBS elements will be produced using internal resources and which will be obtained from outside suppliers.

463. The program manager leads interdisciplinary teams as well as functional teams. Programs require resources, and the program manager must be able to obtain needed resources from functional organizations. Strong leadership skills are critical to the successful management of multiple program teams
throughout the life cycle.

464. Status reviews of component financial expenditures are a tool and technique in the Monitor and Control Program Financials process. These reviews should be held regularly to ensure compliance with contracts and with the cost and schedule baselines.

465. Most programs, especially large programs of long duration, use a combination of external and internal resources to ensure that benefits are realized. These resources are Defined in the Develop Program Work Breakdown Structure process

466. The program work breakdown structure (PWBS) formalizes the program scope in terms of deliverables and the work that must be done. It also defines the required resources to perform the work, using a task responsibility matrix as a tool and technique

467. In the program governance framework, benefits enablement is the responsibility of the Program manager

468. The program board is responsible for overall program governance. The program management office (PMO) supports the program manager, who has overall responsibility for benefits enablement

469. You have had several issues on your program. For each one, you have analyzed it and assigned it to an owner. Often the issue resolution has resulted in a need to make a decision, communicate that decision to those
affected, and perform additional work beyond that identified in the program work breakdown structure (PWBS). For each issue, your next step is to Issue a change request

470. Change requests are an output of the Manage Program Issues process. The change request, once approved, may then involve another process for further action. At the end of the program, each change request should be analyzed to provide feedback and recommendations for future programs or projects in the
organization

471. One purpose of review by the program’s governance board is to Initiate another project into the program. Reviews by the program’s governance board are an opportunity for senior management to assess program
performance before the program moves to the next phase or before another project is initiated in the program. This process can occur during any program phase except closing. The criteria for approval are defined in the governance plan

472. Impact analysis is a tool and technique in the Monitor and Control Program Changes process, which explores the effect of the proposed changes on the program. It assesses the accuracy of any assumptions and identifies the potential risks and benefits that possible changes may have on the component projects

473. A process for benefits monitoring is established in the benefits realization phase. At this time, the program manager and the team establish the structure in which work will occur as well as the technical infrastructure to
facilitate the work. This includes establishing a framework to monitor and control the projects and to measure program benefits.

474. Program stakeholder management is concerned with how the program will affect stakeholders in areas such as the organization’s culture, local population, current major issues, and resistance or barriers to change.

475. You are managing a program with a long duration for the water management district in your county. You and your program management team need to analyze any environmental or legislative changes during execution that may affect your program. This is a key activity to perform during the Delivery of Program Benefits phase. Environmental changes are critical, because they can affect the program management plan or any anticipated benefits. As a result, they are an area of emphasis in the Delivery of Program Benefits phase;
these changes must be identified and analyzed

476. A SWOT (strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats) analysis provides information that is helpful when matching an organization’s resources and capabilities to the competitive environment in which it operates. It is used in feasibility studies as a tool and technique in the Initiate Program process

477. As an output of the Monitor and Control Program Financials process, updates to the program budget baseline are needed when there are significant cost impacts. These updates are communicated to program stakeholders as appropriate

478. The Closing Process Group formalizes acceptance of the products, services, or results that define the program’s successful completion. It is intended to leave in place a legacy of operational benefits sustainment, thus deriving optimal value from the program’s objectives.

479. Each program is expected to deliver certain benefits that may be tangible or intangible. Benefits realization planning is part of the Initiate Program process. The benefits realization plan, which is an output of the Define
Program Goals and Objectives process, defines each benefit and explains how it is to be realized, maps the benefits to the program’s outcomes, provides a way to measure benefits, describes roles and responsibilities, includes a communications plan, and notes transition to ongoing operations and benefits sustainment. It is a key input to the Plan and Establish Program Governance and Plan Program Quality processes

480. The payback period can be determined by dividing the initial fixed investment in the program by the estimated annual net cash inflows

481. You are a program manager for a software services company. You are expected to develop an initial cost and schedule plan for your new program. This is done in the program life cycle as part of the Program Setup phase

482. You are managing a program that includes 15 component projects. The benefits expected from each project should be defined in the Project business case before the project is initiated. Projects are typically initiated and executed in the Delivery of Program Benefits phase. Projects should not be initiated without having a business case that describes the benefits the project will provide

483. There are a number of key components in the benefits realization plan, which is prepared in the Define Program Goals and Objectives process and maintained throughout the program. Two key components are to ensure that the program is managed in a way that satisfies the use of the program’s outputs and to link the outputs to an outcome of the program. Each benefit should be specific, measurable, actual, realistic, and time-based (SMART)

484. A definition and description of program funding flows are contained in the Program financial framework. The program financial framework is a plan to coordinate available funding, including the specific constraints under which it is available and how the money is paid out. It defines and describes program funding flows in a way that ensures that program funds are spent as efficiently as possible

485. The list of deliverables and the success criteria for the program and its products, services, and results must be included in the procurement documentation that is provided to potential suppliers. This list is derived from
an analysis of the Program scope statement. The program scope statement is the basis for future program decisions, and it defines and articulates the scope of the program. It also contains a list of the program’s deliverables and success criteria; these factors require consideration, because they may need to be included in procurement documentation

486. The Plan Program Quality and Plan Program Procurement processes are closely related, because both can benefit from standardizing product specifications and tests and by establishing economies of scale. The quality
improvement plan focuses on ways to increase customer value by analyzing processes to identify waste and non-value added activities. It includes targets for improved performance as well as process metrics

487. In selecting programs, your committee should focus on such factors as

Benefits,
Business strategies,
Internal and external influences, and
Program drivers

488. To regularly report on the status of the program’s benefits, the program manager must be able to measure the benefits that have accrued to date and communicate this information to the program sponsor and the program governance board. The metrics and procedures that will be used are stated in the Benefits realization plan

489. The benefits realization plan is drafted early and maintained throughout all phases of the program. During the Manage Program Benefits process, a benefits realization report is prepared. Among other things, this report tracks the benefits realized against the benefits delivered to the organization

490. You are managing a program and have just learned that there was a failure to adhere to a major scope element in the work breakdown structure (WBS) of one of the key projects. This problem means that Changes to the program architecture may be needed. The Manage Program Architecture process ensures that well-structured relationships among the program elements adhere to the governing rules as defined in the architecture

491. Stakeholder management is critical to program management. Effective, ongoing communication with stakeholders is essential. To complement the communications management plan for the program, you should prepare a Communications strategy

492. Qualified seller lists are used when RFPs, RFQs, or requests for information (RFIs) are issued. They can save time in the overall program procurement management process, because they list only known sellers who can provide needed products and services.

493. A number of activities are typically performed before the program is initiated. These activities result in the development of concepts for products and services, scope frameworks, initial requirements, timelines, deliverables, and guidelines regarding acceptable costs. These activities are required to determine the business case for the program and to seek approval from the governance board or comparable body

494. Because a program is responsible for delivering benefits to the organization, the program manager, members of the program team, project managers and team members, and other program stakeholders all have key roles and responsibilities in benefits management. These roles are set forth in the Benefits realization plan

495. A key component of the benefits realization plan, which is prepared in the early phase of the program, is a description of roles and responsibilities for benefits management.

496. In contrast to the project life cycle, which focuses on producing deliverables, the program life cycle manages outcomes and benefits. The program manager, therefore, manages and accrues the program’s corresponding benefits.

497. The Direct and Manage Program Execution process focuses on managing the execution of the program management plan. The primary goal is to deliver the program benefits based on the component projects. Additionally, the program manager ensures that each project aligns with the program’s business case and strategic directives

498. You are a member of your program’s core team and are preparing the program’s cost estimate. You just met with each of the project managers on this program and received individual estimates for their projects based on their work breakdown structure (WBS) work packages. Your next step is to Prepare program and component cost estimates

499. Program and component cost estimates are the outputs of the Estimate Program Costs process. The program cost estimate is typically prepared in stages and becomes more detailed as additional information becomes available

500. The program resource plan is prepared in the Develop Program Infrastructure process. Capacity planning is used to assess needed resources such as staff, information, expertise, funds, facilities, and production capabilities. Limitations in these resources must be addressed if the program is to be successful.

501. Program governance processes and procedures should be structured and implemented such that critical issues will receive appropriate visibility for their potential effects across other portfolios in the organization.

502. Your organization has implemented portfolio management. In terms of the expected benefits of a program, the first step is to Formalize benefits at the portfolio level. The purpose of benefits management is to define and formalize the program’s expected benefits. If a portfolio management system is established, then the benefits are typically formalized at the portfolio level and then delegated to the program for execution

503. Program performance reports are an input to the Provide Program Governance process. Examples of these reports are

Status reports,
Financial reports, and
Resource deviation reports

504. The Scope Management Plan is an output of the Plan Program Scope process. It provides guidance about how the program scope will be defined, documented, verified, managed, and controlled by the program team. It
controls how requests for changes to the scope statement will be processed.

505. The Pre-Program Preparations phase focuses on preparation and navigation through the selection process. One key activity of this phase is to identify the key decision makers or stakeholders and specify their expectations and interests.

506. A benefits review is a tool and technique in the Manage Program Benefits process. These reviews verify that the delivery of program benefits has not been compromised by decisions made during program execution and reassure stakeholders that all is going well with program components.

507. During the life of a program, certain projects end and others start. Procurement planning is ongoing throughout the life cycle, and make-or-buy analysis is iterative; subsequent procurement activities may indicate a need for a different approach, and new projects may need a different approach as the program ensues. A make-or-buy analysis is performed on each potential project in a program.

508. The outputs of the Distribute Information process include program performance reports as well as updates to

Lessons learned,
The program communication plan, and
The communications log.

509. Communication skills are part of overall general management skills and are required by many program managers. They are a tool and technique in the Distribute Information process.

510. Some projects may produce benefits that can be realized immediately, whereas others may deliver capabilities that must be integrated with those of other projects to realize benefits. The program life cycle may be extended as some projects transition and others begin.

511. The program budget allocations are an input to the Plan Program Procurements process. The program budget takes into account all individual component budgets. Where possible, costs can and should be shared across components. It is the responsibility of the program manager to determine the best use of funds when allocating the budget.

512. One of your first tasks as a program manager is to prepare a benefits realization plan. You will base it on the expected benefits as defined in the Program business case. The benefits realization plan is a part of Program
Initiation. Expected benefits are defined in the business case for the program, and the benefits realization plan is based on this information.

513. In addition to linking the program to the ongoing operations of the organization, the program charter defines the program manager’s level of authority and responsibility. Thus, it is an input to the Plan Program
Procurements process.

514. The sponsor and the program manager are appointed as a result of the Program Initiation phase of the program life cycle.

515. Checklists are a tool and technique in the Plan Program Quality process. These checklists can be very helpful in ensuring that items are not missed as well as in reducing the time it takes to develop quality management plans.

516. Your program team identifies several issues that force you to modify program requirements. Some changes are minor, but one issue requires a program scope change. Your next step is to Prepare a change request

517. To ensure that stakeholder expectations are in line with program activities and deliverables as issues are identified, analyzed, and resolved, it may be necessary to change the program scope. The first step is to prepare a change request, which is an output of the Manage Program Issues process

518. It is common to receive numerous requests for program information from both internal and external stakeholders. Many of these requests are an output of program management processes; they should flow to the Distribute Information process, which creates appropriate responses as outputs.

519. Resources—funding, equipment, and people—are limited in all organizations. In selecting a program, it is necessary to consider the total available resources that will be required to successfully implement it

520. The Closing Process Group formalizes acceptance of the program’s Benefits. The purpose of the Closing Process Group is to formalize acceptance of the program’s product, service, or results to bring the program (or program component) to completion. One purpose is to demonstrate and confirm that all program benefits have been delivered.

521. You are Company A’s program manager for the development of an online banking system for your community bank, for which your company will receive $20 million. Because the bank would like to implement this system quickly, it has also contracted with Company B. You must implement your system completely in six months to ensure that you beat Company B’s schedule. At this point, you have an expense estimate of $2.5 million. You will lose $10 million if you cannot deliver the product in six months, but if you can complete it sooner, you will earn an additional $25 million, for a total of $45 million. Your risk management officer performs a risk analysis and tells you that there is a 70 percent chance that the project will be completed ahead of
schedule. Your company has completed similar projects in the past; judging by these experiences, there is a 30 percent chance that your final expenses will increase by $10 million. What is the expected value of your program if it is completed ahead of schedule
You will earn the difference between $20 million plus 70 percent of the additional $25 million and $2.5 million in expenses plus 30 percent of the additional $10 million in expenses, or—
[$20m + (0.7 x $25m)] – [$2.5m + (0.3 x $10m)] =
($20m + $17.5m) – ($2.5m + $3m) =
$37.5m – $5.5m = $32m
Remember that expected value is calculated as probability multiplied by the monetary value of the risk

522. Supplier performance reviews are a tool and technique in the Close Program Procurements process. They may be the last opportunity for recourse to address performance deficiencies with suppliers.

523. The program manager negotiates and finalizes program-wide policies and agreements. Qualified seller lists are a tool and technique in the Conduct Program Procurements process. If available, these lists can facilitate the
procurement process, as procurement documents can be sent to these prospective sellers to gauge interest and to see whether they want to present a proposal or quotation.

524. To report on the status of the program’s benefits to the sponsor and the governance board, the program manager must be able to measure the benefits that have accrued. The benefits are tracked in a Benefits realization report. The benefits realization report is an output of the Manage Program Benefits process. It compares the benefits realization plan against the actual benefits realized

525. Influence is the ability to affect the beliefs, actions, and attitudes of other people and is a tool and technique in the Manage Program Stakeholder Expectations process.

526. Contingency reserves are an input to the Estimate Program Costs process. They are monies (or time) that are set aside to pay for unexpected requirements changes or program environmental factors and to pay for
mitigating the impact of certain risk events.

527. The benefits realization phase tracks to the Delivery of Program Benefits phase, when the major work of the program is under way. This phase ends when the planned benefits are achieved or when the program is terminated for some reason. The benefits register is maintained during this phase

528. As an output of the Identify Program Stakeholders process, the stakeholder inventory provides a complete and comprehensive overview of how the program’s stakeholders will be affected by the program. It also provides an assessment of likely stakeholder responses, identified stakeholder issues, and planned approaches to mitigate negative stakeholder reaction.

529. An output of the Identify Program Stakeholders process is a stakeholder management strategy. It captures mitigation approaches flowing from the identify Program Stakeholders process, which outlines the steps to take to manage the program’s impact on stakeholders.

530. The performance analysis report is prepared in the closing phase. It gathers final values and compares them with planned values for quality, cost, schedule, and resource data to determine program performance. The project manager uses data on stakeholder expectations and requirements to determine whether these requirements were met.

531. Constraints are factors that limit the program team’s options; typically, they affect schedule, cost, resources, or program deliverables. They are an input common to many program management processes and may restrict action.

532. The work breakdown structure (WBS) matrix is an output of the Develop Program WBS process. It is a graphical depiction of a deliverable or product- oriented grouping of work elements that is used to organize and subdivide the total work scope of the program.

533. Issues analysis is a tool and technique in the Manage Program Issues process. Such an analysis assesses the impact and severity of the issue, its root cause, and possible remedies.

534. Resource availability is an input to the Manage Program Resources process. It indicates availability of the personnel, assets, materials, or capital resources that are required to accomplish program goals and deliverables

535. Because risks and issues are components of the program management plan, a key result of the program life cycle during the Program Setup phase is Risk management consolidation. Program-level planning processes are key results of the Program Setup phase of the life cycle. One key process is risk management consolidation—that is, considering the risks of the various components of the program to address a key question in the program management plan: What are the risks and issues

536. In the Manage Component Interfaces process, the program architecture baseline is an input because it is the set of program components that outlines their characteristics, capabilities, deliverables, timing, and interfaces and how the components contribute to program benefits.

537. Focus groups are a tool and technique in the Identify Program Stakeholders process and are used to solicit feedback from stakeholder groups regarding their attitudes toward the program and appropriate approaches for impact mitigation. Open-ended questions help participants to interact with one another, thus resulting in a deeper understanding of program needs

538. Lessons learned updates are an output of the Distribute Information process and may include specific outputs of lessons learned activities, such as updates to the lessons learned repository; knowledge management databases; corporate policies, procedures, and processes; and risk management plan.

539. A key input to the Direct and Manage Program Execution process is the Program road map

540. In the face of this lack of common understanding of the requirements, you need to prepare a Program scope statement. The program scope statement is the basis for future program decisions and establishes the expectations of the endeavor. It articulates the scope of the program—generally, what is included and what is excluded. This is especially important if a stakeholder might erroneously assume that a particular product, service, or result is a program component

541. Updates to the program risk register are an output of the Monitor and Control Program Risks process. The risk monitoring program tracks the progress of each program risk and includes meeting minutes, actions implemented, and information on results. The project managers provide information about their projects to the program manager and other interested stakeholders.

542. Budget allocation reconciliation is a tool and technique in the Close Program Procurements process. Variations are typical in categorization, allocation, and summarization between program and program component plans, contracts, and organizational charts of account. These variations make it difficult to directly relate expenditures between different program and organization components

543. Your company mandates that each program have a governance board. As program manager, you meet with your board at the key decision points in your program’s life cycle. These phase-gate reviews are an opportunity to assess your program with respect to Delivery of program benefits.

544. Governance spans all program life cycle phases. A phase-gate reviews provides an objective assessment against the exit criteria of each phase to see whether the program should proceed to the next phase. They also allow you to assess the program on strategic alignments, investment appraisals, monitoring and control of opportunities and threats, benefits assessment, and monitoring of program outcomes

545. Planning is an iterative process. When a significant event affects the program and renders current plans inadequate or ineffective, the next step for a program manager is to revisit and update the plans to ensure their ongoing usefulness. This task is evident in both the Manage Program Architecture and the Manage Governance Infrastructure processes, the outputs of which are updated to the program management plan

546. Projects can be authorized during all phases of the life cycle except Program Closure. Programs consist of projects and ongoing activities. Projects can be authorized at any time throughout the program’s life cycle except in the Program Closure phase, when the phase-gate review has determined that all work in the program has been completed and benefits have accrued

547. During the Program Initiation phase, in the benefits life cycle, the components are derived and prioritized as the foundation of the program continues to develop, and a detailed road map is prepared. The benefits analysis and planning phase is where prioritization is done.

548. A contract management plan is prepared for significant purchases and acquisitions on programs to cover contract administration activities. It is prepared as an output of the Plan Program Procurements process, which
provides the guidelines for the Conduct Program Procurements process

549. The program’s funding method is determined during Establish Program Financial Framework processes. The purpose of the Establish Program Financial Framework process is to identify the overall financial environment
for the program and to pinpoint available funds according to identified milestones

550. Tolerances are a tool and technique in the Develop Program Management Plan process. They are ranges set for various aspects of the program such as time, cost, and scope. Without defined tolerances, the potential exists for conflicts over boundaries of authority

551. The contract closure procedure is a tool and technique in the Close Program Procurements process. It outlines the requirements for formally closing and/or terminating contractual agreements, including verification criteria to prevent the organization from contract breach. It ensures that all conditions are met and addresses any follow-on activities such as warranties and remedies

552. The Delivery of Program Benefits phase (phase four) is iterative and can be of unlimited duration. Each activity in this phase is repeated as often as needed, and the benefits accrue in a cumulative fashion. It ends only when the planned benefits have been achieved, delivered, and accepted or when the program is terminated

553. The program financial management plan is an output of the Develop Program Financial Plan process, which documents the program’s financial information, such as

Funding schedules and milestones,
The baseline budget,
contract payments and schedules,
Financial reporting processes and methods, and
Any financial metrics that are used

554. The program work breakdown structure (PWBS) does not replace the work breakdown structure (WBS) on each of the program’s projects. From a program perspective, the PWBS should be decomposed to the level of control that the program manager requires, which typically corresponds to the first one or two levels of the WBS of the component projects.

555. Monitor and Control Program Changes ensures that the appropriate level of governance is applied to decision making in regard to proposed changes to the program plan. During the Monitor and Control Program Changes process, decisions to accept, reject, or modify change requests are made by the people who have the designated authority to do so. As change decisions are made, the program team ensures that the changes are made to the program plan and communicated to the components for implementation or action.

556. Stakeholders play a critical role in program success. During program execution, the program manager must resolve issues and maintain the benefits register. As issues are resolved, the benefits register may require
updates. It is maintained during the benefits realization phase of the benefits management life cycle during the Delivery of Program Benefits phase of the program life cycle

557. Each organization has certain KPIs. Each program also has its own KPIs that should be aligned with the organization’s KPIs and objectives. These metrics can show how well the program is progressing according to the organization’s strategies.

558. Intangible benefits are difficult to quantify, although many contribute in a meaningful way to tangible benefits. Their contribution to business objectives must be assessed and the objectives must be stated in the most specific and measurable way possible

559. The Manage Component Interfaces process is ongoing throughout the program. Transparent management of interfaces is critical for scope adherence. It may trigger a need to redeploy resources as projects are
authorized. This is managed at the program level. Outputs from other processes and program-level documentation and records dealing with affected projects must be updated to reflect their new status

560. The program management plan is an input to the Close Program process. It is important to review it along with every subsidiary program plan to ensure that requirements have been met, final updates have been made, and any outstanding or active projects are brought to an orderly close

561. The Estimate to Complete is a forecasting technique; it is an estimate to complete the remaining work for an activity, program package, or control account. Such forecasting techniques are used in the Monitor and Control Program Financials process

562. To enable your program team to refine its communications strategy and tactics, you should consult the Program work breakdown structure (PWBS). As an input to the Distribute Information process, the PWBS is useful in communicating the program’s size and complexity as well as other characteristics.

563. Program governance is not a phase in the program management life cycle; rather, it spans all the life-cycle phases as it monitors the program’s progress and the delivery of benefits from the projects that are part of the program.

564. During the Program Initiation phase, the program components are defined. This phase may also include a high-level plan for all components

565. The benefits realization plan is prepared during the Program Initiation phase. It includes intended interdependencies of benefits being delivered by the various projects in the program.

566. Benefits are mapped into the program plan during the benefits analysis and planning phase, as the program management and technical infrastructure are established. Because the program plan is developed during the Program Setup phase, it is appropriate to map the benefits into the plan when the infrastructure is established.

567. The change request log is used to record, describe, or denote change requests. Any approved changes are accurately recorded in the log and are input to the Monitor and Control Program Changes and Distribute Information processes

568. The high-level program plan contains a clear statement of the program’s justification—that is, why it is important and what it needs to achieve.

569. The mission, vision, and strategic fit for the program must be aligned with the organization’s objectives. This is done as part of the Program Initiation phase. A statement of the program’s mission, vision, and strategic fit is included as part of the program charter, which is developed in the Program Initiation phase. The charter provides the authority to move forward to Program Setup.

570. During phase five of the program life cycle (the Program Closure phase), all program work has been completed and program benefits are accruing. A key activity in this phase is for the program manager to review the status of the benefits with stakeholders.

571. Benefits tend to be either tangible or intangible. Tangible benefits may be either financial or nonfinancial, but they can be quantified.

572. Program performance reports are inputs to the Provide Governance Oversight process. Such reports support program oversight and control so that the governance board can monitor program results and ensure that good practices are being followed.

573. program director is the individual with executive ownership of the program or programs.

574. The program sponsor is the group or person who champions the program initiative, is responsible for providing project resources, and ensures the ultimate delivery of program benefits.

575. The executive sponsor is the group or individual who is responsible for providing project resources and ultimately for ensuring program success. The executive sponsor is appointed in the Program Initiation phase

576. A program has three major communications channels:

Clients,
Sponsors, and
Component managers

577. Parkinson’s law states that work expands to fill the amount of time allocated for it. If a project manager has padded the schedule stating that work will take 25 weeks to complete then work will actually take 25 weeks to complete

578. Configuration management system is the component of the change management system, which is responsible for evaluating, testing and documenting changes related to the project scope

579. When a change request is made that will affect the project scope, the Configuration management system evaluates the change requests and documents the features and functions of the change on the project scope

580. Step funding is incremental funding based on the program performance. It is called step funding because on the S-curve the funding looks like stair steps from milestone to milestone

581. Phase gate estimating is the estimation of the cost of each phase just before the phase is set to begin

582. As a program manager, the only role you will play during a project manager’s project closure, is to ensure that the projects within the program have been closed at the project level

583. When there are clarifications in the bidder’s conference, the statement of work (SOW) should be updated. When appropriate you should also update the request for proposal documentation

584. One benefit of creating a program is that it provides centralized risk management

585. For internal projects, project initiator or project sponsor provides the SOW based on business needs, product or service requirements

586. For external projects, SOW can be received from the customer as part of a bid document

587. Project manager is trying to get formal acceptance and sign-off document for the project. But the customer is not willing to do and is complaining about the inferior product. Project manager would have avoided this situation if taken following actions

Documenting the requirements
Performing quality inspections time to time
Requesting sign-off at important milestones

588. The process of delivering the program benefits as they were promised to operations is the direct and manage program execution

589. Program Manager is creating a document that defines the benefits the program will create for the Organization once the program has been completed. This document is program benefits statement

590. Program benefits statement defines all the benefits the program will create for the Organization. The benefits statement is mapped to the strategy of the organization and benefits management within the program

591. A claim is a documented disagreement between the vendor and the buyer where one party (and sometimes both) disagrees with the conditions, performance or payments. The contract should always have the escalation process defined should litigation between the parties arise

592. A benefit is an outcome of actions and behaviors that provides utility to stakeholders

593. A portfolio is a term to describe the operations, projects, and programs that are related by discipline, application area, or expected outcomes

594. The project management lifecycle is universal to all projects and the project lifecycle is unique to unique to each project

595. Quality assurance is a prevention-driven process to plan the work properly and completely in an effort to do the work correctly the first time

596. Each project in your program will require its own charter. The project charter defines the project manager and their level of authority over the project resources

597. The Critical Chain Method for scheduling activities considers the availability of project resources to determine if the resources are actually available before creating the sequence of project activities

598. A resource histogram is a bar chart that shows the utilization of selected resources within a defined time frame, such as weeks, months, or quarters

599. You consider following factors while deciding to use internal or external staff

Length of time particular skill set is required
Availability of internal resources
Cost of external resources and
Timing of the need

600. Strategic objectives and expected benefits are the key Program selection criteria

601. One key result from the program initiation phase is to identify those persons who should be members of the program board. This occurs after the program charter has been approved

PMBOK4 Notes are shared under My Notes on PMBOK V4

I will continue sharing SPM V1 notes in my next post

My Lessons Learned for PgMP MRA

2010-09-24T19:57:00.001-07:00

This post is for sharing my lessons learned for PgMP® 's Multi-Rater Assessment (MRA) process. This is the final phase after Panel Review and the Exam.

MRA phase starts the day prometric center sends the pass result to PMI. Phase starts with PMI customer care (customercare@pmi.org) sending a mail with Subject: You have passed the PgMP examination and moved to the third evaluation and mail body

Dear Sridhar Peddisetty,

Congratulations! You have successfully passed the Program Management Professional (PgMP)SM credential examination.

Your Multi-rater Assessment (MRA) has begun. During this phase you will receive an invitation to complete a self-assessment survey rating your performance as a program manager.

The 12 reference contacts that you provided on the application will receive an invitation asking them to review your competence as a program manager. They will have three weeks to respond to the survey.

All candidates passing the Multi-rater Assessment will be granted the credential immediately, and notified by e-mail. Certificates will be printed and mailed to the candidates preferred mailing address within six to eight weeks of scoring the MRA.

Please contact us at PgMPSupport@pmi.org if you have questions or concerns.

Thank you,

PMI Customer Care

and followed by another mail with Subject: PMI MRA Invitation from "PgMPSupport@pmi.org" . This mail includes Web URL with login and password for candidate to enter his/her own MRA. Similar mail would go to all your
assessors

Even though it seems to be an easy phase compared to first two phases, one cannot take this phase for granted. There are precedences where people have failed in this process too. There are few points to be noted

#1. One needs to provide at least 1 Supervisor, 4 Peers & 7 Direct Reports references (Totaling 12 assessors).

#2. The name of supervisors who were given in your Project Management experience are by default included under supervisor as your assessors. This is important to remember since there are folks who had given names of supervisors in their project management experience, who were very old references and either not in touch or email ids not valid. So when PMI sends MRA mail to these contacts, they would not respond and this would constitute negative feedback.

#3. MRA questionnaire consists of 71 multiple questions comprising of 6 options

1. Outstanding Strength

2. Strength

3. Competent

4. Needs work

5. Not competent

6. No basis to rate

I understand that ratings below 'Competent' constitute negative. understand that in some cultures 'competent' is considered good enough but for PMI its NOT good enough.

There are also 3 questions, which are subjective and optional. So total 74 questions that needs to be answered, which takes approximately 20 - 30 minutes

#4 If assessor does not response to a question, that also constitutes negative.

So its very important to set expectations with your assessors. Its expected that most (if not all), would not be familiar with PMI terminologies included in questions like

Produces a program scope definition by integrating stakeholder requirements

Archives lessons learned by entering them into the program management information system

#5 There is a possibility that some contacts might get the mail in SPAM folder, so its important to set expectations like asking contacts to keep a tab on their respective spam folder or add the two email addresses pgmpsupport@pmi.org and customercare@pmi.org to their safe email list

I sent out following mail to all my assessors

Subject: Program Management Professional (PgMP®) Certification

Dear XYZ,

I am very happy to share with you that today I cleared the PgMP^® exam. With this I have cleared all the main stages for Program Management Professional (PgMP^®) certification by Project Management Institute (PMI) including Panel Review and Exam. Certification process for this credential has been an exhaustive process. So far, the process has included:

1. Documentation of 6,000+ hours of Program Management experience

2. Documentation of 6,000+ hours of Project Management experience

3. Submission of my application online

4. Application reopened requesting to resubmit with some minor recommended changes

5. Re-Submission of the application

6. Acceptance of my background information & eligibility criteria

7. Application randomly selected for audit. Audit process then required getting all information in application signed by COO , sealed in an envelope with a signature on the seal (To avoid tampering)

8. Acceptance of audit forms

9. Application returned requesting more strategic answers on Program Management

10. Re-Submission of my application with more strategic and empirical data

11. Acceptance of application and qualifications (through a PMI panel review comprising of 3 PgMPs) and finally

12. Today I passed the 4 hour exam (covering all program phases, processes, and knowledge areas)

The only step remaining is a Multi-Rater Assessment (MRA). So as a final stage, I would need you to rate me by answering 74 objective questions in different areas of program management. The six rating choices would be:

1. Outstanding Strength

2. Strength

3. Competent

4. Needs work

5. Not competent

6. No basis to rate

Please note that most of the questions are based on PMI standards of program management and there is a likely chance that you might not be able to understand few questions. In such cases, please reach out to me and I will be able to help clarifying the question(s).

NOTE: Please note that you will be getting a mail Project Management Institute (PMI) with a subject like “PMI MRA Rater Invitation” and email address from pgmpsupport@pmi.org or customercare@pmi.org. There is a very likely chance because of nature of subject and email, you might end up getting this email in your spam folder so please keep a tab on your spam folder too or add the two email addresses pgmpsupport@pmi.org and customercare@pmi.org to your safe email list.

There are less than 500 people who have achieved this credential till date all over the world. Value of Certification and its recognition is not only for the individual but also for the Organization. I really appreciate your time and help for making me join the elite group

You should be receiving an email from PMI shortly (in a day or two). Please let me know once you have finished the MRA. Once again appreciate all the help.

-Thanks

Sridhar

I had given 31 names including 5 supervisors, 7 peers and 19 direct reports. I kept following up with these folks till all submitted their MRA. I understand from other's experiences couple of points

1. There is a likely chance that IP addresses and other things are tracked so as to avoid any kind of fraud (like one person filling out on behalf of others)

2. For some, MRA phase finished prior to 3 weeks if all contacts finished their MRA. In my case, all 31 contacts finished in 2nd week. I then sent a mail to PMI (PgMPSupport@pmi.org) requesting closing of MRA phase but I was asked to wait for 3 weeks to finish.

In my case, I passed the exam on Sep 17th (Friday) and MRA phase started from Sep 20th (Monday), since thats the day my pass score was sent to PMI from Prometric center. So from Sep 20th, my MRA phase was till Oct 11th (Monday). And FINALLY on Oct 12th 2010 @ 7:45 AM PDT, i got the much awaited mail

From: PMI Customer Care

Subject: You have obtained the PgMP credential

Dear Sridhar Peddisetty,

Congratulations on obtaining the Program Management Professional (PgMP)® credential.

The certificate will be delivered to your preferred mailing address in our records within six to eight weeks. You may confirm or correct your address online at https://certification.pmi.org/.

Please visit our website at https://certification.pmi.org/ to download a document which you may use to verify that you have passed the three evaluations and to view the policies and procedures needed to maintain your credential.

Please contact us at PgMPSupport@pmi.org if you have questions or concerns.

Thank you,

PMI Customer Care

My Lessons Learned for PgMP Exam

2010-09-24T19:55:00.000-07:00

Following is my lessons learned documented for PgMP exam and its preparation

Referred Material
--------------------

1. Standard for Program Management V2 (I studied multiple times and documented some quick notes out of it, which I referred every now and then )

2. Standard for Program Management V1 (First couple chapters and touched upon how Quality is defined in it)

3. PMBOK V4 (especially concentrated on time, cost and risk)

4. ESI - Practice Test and Study Guide
ESI Practice guide and sample questions with 120 (20 in each domain) and two 170 practice tests are very good for you to revise everything that is there in SPM V2. So if you are getting 90% above in all those questions, you are very good at SPM concepts and thats a huge win. You will not get direct questions but you will be better equipped to eliminate the noises and arrive at the right answer

5. UCertify - Bought the license for the exam
UCertify questions are more PMP specific and are more on PMBOK V4. I did not get any question even remotely close to their questions. In my opinion spending $95 bucks is not worth. You anyways get 35 sample questions if you download UCertify and if you buy license you get all together 225 (Including 35 sample)

6. I had prepared some note and formulas earlier while preparing for PMP and just referred them

(Ref http://sridharpeddisetty.blogspot.com/2008/05/my-notes-on-pmp-formulas.html & http://sridharpeddisetty.blogspot.com/2008/05/my-notes-on-pmp.html)

7. I would suggest that you make sure to be scoring at least 85% plus in practice tests before attempting the real exam

8. From PMI.org, I referred

Implementing Program Management: Templates and Forms Aligned with the Standard for Program Management , Second Edition (2008) by Ginger Levin and Allen R. Green

Tips
-----

1. As others shared in their LLs for PgMP exam, I experienced the same that nothing prepares you for the exam then what your program management experience has already taught you.

2. PgMP exam is different from PMP. For PMP we have so many sample questions that we have more probability of getting similar question but thats not the case with PgMP. But having said, practice as many questions as possible to prepare for the real one.

3. Even though some folks mentioned not to memorize ITTOs but I found that it helped. I did not really memorize the ITTOs but kind of made a memory map of processes and their ITTOs by relating with one of my programs.

4. I got at least 4 -5 questions from SPM V1 but again it was not difficult for me to figure them out (Since we do not know which answers were correct, I can only have my best guess for it)

5. There were at least 6 - 8 questions that were screen full. Read such questions well because I got at least 2 questions based on the same scenario

6. I got some empirical questions. Couple were very straight forward but few were tricky. I do not think I could figure out the tricky ones since I had never encountered them any where either when preparing for PMP or PgMP

7. It helps to understand relationship between Program Lifecycle and Benefits Management. Remember not to expect straight forward questions but its not difficult to answer if you understand the concept well

I also would like to add that I did study and referred other books too prior to starting with SPM. Books included

1. Dr. James T Brown's 'The Handbook for Program Management'
**(My Favorite and highly recommended one for those interested in Program Management)

2. Harold Kerzner's Project Management A Systems approach to planning, scheduling and controlling

3. Dr. Paul Sanghera's Program Management Professional Exam Study Guide

4. Joseph Phillips' Program Management Professional Exam Guide

I found Dr. James T Brown's book very helpful in not only brushing my knowledge but also getting insights on program management otherwise not taught by experience

Besides the above books I also found referring PMI standards useful including

1. The Standard Portfolio Management (Second Edition) - More relevant

2. Project Risk Management - Not necessary but good to refer

3. Earned Value Management - Not necessary but good to refer

4. Practice Standard Scheduling - Not necessary but good to refer

5. Project Configuration Management - Not necessary but good to refer

I wish all the very best to all the aspiring PgMPs

My Lessons Learned for PgMP Panel Review

2010-09-24T19:54:00.001-07:00

PgMP application includes answering to 8 questions, which helps judge one's Program Management experience. These answers are intended to understand the extent of candidate's Program Management experience.

Following are the eight questions which are asked

Question#1

Describe the characteristics of a program that you managed and that consisted of multiple related projects. In your answer, please describe:

Your program and its multiple related projects
How your program related to the company's strategic business and/or organization's objectives
How the projects added value to your overall program

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

Cite specific examples where you coordinated management of multiple related projects directed toward strategic business and other organizational objectives.

Describe how you, as a program manager, managed multiple related projects (don't just list the names of these projects).

How did the projects relate to the company’s strategic business and/or organization’s objectives?
How did these projects add value to the overall program objectives and other organizational objectives?
What were the intended benefits?
How did these projects relate to each other?
What program management techniques did you use in order to accomplish this?

Question#2

Describe how you managed your program that spanned functions, organizations, geographic regions, and cultures. In your answer, please address:

How you managed cross functional teams from different organizations, regions and cultures
What difficulties you encountered and how you overcame such difficulties

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

Using your program management experience, describe activities that spanned functions, organizations, geographic regions, and cultures.

Describe the program management activities that were required and that spanned functions, organizations, geographic areas, and cultures.

How did you manage cross functional teams from different organizations, regions, and cultures?
What difficulties did you encounter and how did you overcome such difficulties?
How did you achieve these activities?
Which processes did you use?

Question#3

Describe how you built and maintained credibility and rapport with all internal and external stakeholders within the program that you managed. In your answer,

please address:

How you applied program management processes
What management and/or leadership techniques you used
How you gained trust and confidence from your sponsor, peers, and subordinates?

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

Demonstrate how you built credibility, established rapport and maintained communication with stakeholders at multiple levels, including those external to the organization.

Which program management processes did you use to establish and maintain credibility, rapport, and communications that spanned functions, organizations, geographic areas, and cultures?

How did you use persuasiveness and/or influence toward the outcome (for change control, issues management, quality management, program and project scopes etc.)?
How did you gain trust and confidence from your sponsor, peers, and subordinates?
How did you use these processes to achieve these activities?

Question#4

Describe how you selected and assigned project managers to component projects.

In your answer, please address how you evaluated and assigned project managers

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

Describe which program management processes you used to evaluate and assign project managers to do project management level jobs.

How did you make the final decision?
How did you use these processes to achieve this?

Question#5

Describe how your program stayed in alignment with strategic business and/or organizational objectives. In your answer, please address:

Which monitoring techniques you used to validate and maintain alignment
How you applied corrective actions to maintain alignment

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

Describe how you maintained continuous alignment of program scope with strategic business objectives.

Describe which program management processes, tools, and techniques you used to maintain alignment between program scope and business objectives (Quality Management techniques).

How did you prevent deviations from happening?
How did you use these processes to achieve this?

Question#6

Describe how you controlled your program's scope. In your answer, please

address:

How you defined your program's scope
How you controlled and managed change in your program's scope
How you managed the influence of component projects' scope change on your program

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

How did you control project scope in your program management role?

Describe the program scope management processes you used to control program scope and to ensure effective component project scope within the context of the program.

How did you manage the Change Requests from individual projects?
How did you prevent deviations from happening?
How did you use these decision making processes to approve or reject project scope change?

Question#7

Describe how you integrated projects to the overall benefit of your program. In

your answer, please address:

How you planned and implemented constituent projects for the benefit of your program
How you managed and optimized the sharing of resources (such as financial, physical, equipment, human) across constituent projects

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

How did you integrate projects to the overall benefit of the program?

Describe which program management processes you used to determine whether a new project was to be included and/or an existing project was to be changed/terminated due to program-level changes.

How did you explain that a new project added value to the program?
How did you integrate project deliverables to satisfy program product delivery?
How did you use these processes to achieve this?

Question#8

Choose four of the following areas to demonstrate how you applied your advanced skills to your program. In your answer, please provide program specific examples.
Finance
Cross-cultural awareness
Leadership
Communication
Influence
Negotiation
Conflict resolution

Hints from PMI on how to answer this question

How did you apply your program management styles and/or skills in at least 4 of the 7 areas (limit to 50 words/each area):

Finance, Cross-cultural awareness, Leadership, Communication, Influence, Negotiation, Conflict resolution

Choose 4 areas (limit to 50 words/each area) in which you can elaborate on key considerations for each of the 4 areas.

How did you resolve these considerations?
What problem solving skills did you use?

My Lessons Learned from PgMP Panel Review

-------------------------------------------------------------

#1. July 7th 2010, I started filling the PgMP application

#2. July 15th 2010, I submitted my application

#3. July 16th 2010, I received a mail from "PgMPSupport@pmi.org" with subject "PgMP Certification Application" stating

You must select a minimum of twelve (12) unique raters to complete your survey. Your reference contacts should consist of at least: one (1) supervisor, four (4) peers, four (4) direct reports, and three (3) professional references of your choice. The application you submitted currently indicates 31 individuals to participate in evaluating your ability to perform tasks that are relevant to program management. It is important to choose contacts who know your work and who will respond. Please verify that you are interested in including all 31 individuals in the MRA process

and

Experience Summary Statements: Please review your responses to the eight summary statements. I have attached a document that may assist you in formulating your responses. While the panel will make the final decision on your responses, I recommend that you take this opportunity to ensure that your responses concur with the explanations on the attached document. These responses should show clearly your experience as a program manager

The PgMP Role Delineation states that candidates for the PgMP credential:
Under minimal supervision, program managers are responsible and accountable for the coordinated management of multiple related projects directed toward strategic business and organizational objectives. These programs contain complex activities that may span functions, organizations, geographic regions and cultures. Program managers build credibility, establish rapport and maintain communication with stakeholders at multiple levels, including those external to the organization.

Program managers define and initiate projects, and assign project managers to manage cost, schedule, and performance of component projects, while working to ensure the ultimate success and acceptance of the program. Program managers maintain continuous alignment of program scope with strategic business objectives, and make recommendations to modify the program to enhance effectiveness toward the business result or strategic intent. Program managers are responsible for determining and coordinating the sharing of resources among their constituent projects to the overall benefit of the program.

Program managers possess the knowledge and skills needed to be effective in both the project and business or government environments, and to make decisions that accomplish strategic objectives. In addition, the program manager should have advanced skills in finance, cross-cultural awareness, leadership, communication, influence, negotiation, and conflict resolution.

Additionally, if you have not done so, please read the following:

The PgMP credential handbook - PMI requires that all credential applicants read the entire handbook. It is important to read and understand this handbook. http://www.pmi.org/PDF/pdc_pgmphandbook.pdf

PgMP Credential Information- Answers frequently asked questions regarding the credential. Also describes the target audience for this credential.http://www.pmi.org/CareerDevelopment/Pages/AboutCredentialsPgMP.aspx

#4. I made few minor changes to the application and resubmitted on the same day, July 16th 2010

#5. July 21st 2010, I received mail asking me to pay the fees. I paid the fees online the same day and immediately got the message that my application is randomly selected for Audit review.

I was asked to download "Program Management Experience Audit Report" form and have it signed by my Supervisor. I was also asked to send copy of my masters degree.

#6. The next day I got my Supervisor to sign the form in which my Program Management experience including Program details were documented. My boss then also signed on the flap of the envelope to prevent it from tampering. I also made sure to use company envelope to send the forms. I then couriered the sealed envelope along with my masters degree copy. I choose ground option to FedEx since I was not in a hurry.

#7. August 3rd 2010, I got email congratulating me that my application has cleared the PMI's Audit Process and I will be notified about the next steps

#8. Same day I received another mail stating that

Your responses to the Program Management Experience Summaries on the PgMP application are currently being assessed by a panel of subject matter experts. Your professional work experience will be reviewed to verify that you have been responsible for the coordinated management of multiple, related projects and, in many cases, on-going operations directed toward a common organizational goal, under limited supervision.

This process can take several days to complete.

#9. August 16th 2010, I received a mail stating

Your PgMP® certification application recently completed the panel review process and unfortunately, you have received a below-passing mark.

According to the panel, your experience summary statements did not align with PMI’s Program Manager role definition.

And I was given two options

Option 1: Amend the Experience Summary Statements OR Option 2: Accept the panel review decision as Final.

In Option1 I get to amend my experience and this time, base my answers more in align with Program Management Experience

In Option2, my application would be closed and I will be refunded $700

For Option1 there was a note stating

Note: Please note that if you choose to amend your summary statements, I must re-open your application so that you are able to make your edits. You will have three weeks to respond. **

I selected Option1 and requested to reopen my application.

#10. My application was reopened. I then approached Jeff Hodgkinson, Senior Program Manager @ Intel Corp and few others for guidance (Shared the names below). I got great response from all the people I reached out to and I appreciate all the help. Most of the folks I reached out to are part of "PgMP Credentialed Networking Group". I have shared what I learned from others below

#11. August 22nd 2010, I resubmitted my application with revised answers to the 8 questions.

#12. August 23rd 2010, I received the eMail confirming that I have successfully completed the Application Review process and another mail followed soon, telling me that I am now eligible to schedule the exam.

My Tips & Tips from Others Experience

-----------------------------------------------------------------

#1. Difference between Program Mgmt and Project Mgmt is being strategic Vs. being tactical. Include words like strategy, objectives, benefits, organizational goals, how they were aligned with your program. Do not use words which reflect that 'how' you managed team because that would be more Project Mgmt. Use words where it mentions more on 'Why/What' of program

Bear in mind following

How to represent strategic work of Program Manager rather than tactical work of Project Manager

Programs deliver outcomes but projects deliver outputs
Program management is concerned with doing the right projects
Think strategically and articulate what you did or did not – Describe scenario(s) in which you thought strategically and articulate what (why) you did / what (why) you did not
Program managers maintain continuous alignment of program scope with strategic business objectives, and make recommendations to modify the program to enhance effectiveness toward the business result or strategic intent

#2. Most important tip is use empirical data like $ (Money and try putting in USD), # (Number like # of years, # of Project managers, # of team members, # of projects), % (percentage of increase in efficiency, growth, revenue increase, scalable)

#3. Use more empirical data and less verbiage

#4. You can use acronyms that are universal like SMEs (Subject Matter Experts), PMI, PMP, etc

#5. When you are mentioning how you selected project managers, you could possibly mention one selection criteria as PMP and someone who understands PMI standards

#6. Stay on purpose while answering (Tip I got from James L Haner)

#7. Keep your answers between 950 - 998 characters

Besides the above I got few tips including one from Brian Grafsgaard, who shared a tip in one of the discussions in LinkedIn and I am including it here.

As a Panel Review Committee (PRC) member I have reviewed nearly 200 applications. The advice above is spot on. Focus on what YOU did (use "I", not "we") and review the Program Mgmt Std at a high level before you respond, especially the three themes of program management, which are highlighted in Edition 1 but not so much Edition 2. Think strategic, like a program manager, not tactical, like a project manager. Program Managers do not manage the individual constituent projects; your responses should not reflect how you managed the "projects" (a common mistake).

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge following people (In no particular order), who shared their experience & knowledge to help me get through. I appreciate all their help

Sample questions & useful resources for PgMP Exam

2010-09-24T19:33:00.000-07:00

Following are the some of the useful resources, which includes getting sample questions for PgMP

• PMI.org (Sample Questions)

• Program Management Processes Flow Chart

• ESI International

• http://www.pgmpexamtools.com

• Fact Solutions (Sample Questions)

• IKompass (Sample Questions)

• UCertify (Sample Questions)

• Crosswind

• PgMP Sample Questions

• PMHub Forums

LinkedIn Groups

PgMP Credentialed Networking Group

Sub Groups

PgMP Practice Questions & Answers

PgMP Program Management Links & Websites

Aspiring to be a PgMP

In my opinion, LinkedIn group PgMP Credentialed Networking Group and PMHub Forum have been very helpful for aspiring PgMPs. There are excellent group of people, who are ever willing to share information, their experience and wisdom.

My Journey towards achieving PgMP Credential

2010-09-24T19:32:00.001-07:00

In this post I am sharing my journey towards achieving Project Management Institute (PMI)'s PgMP® Credential. Certification process for this credential had been an exhaustive process. Following is the complete process from inception to completion of getting PgMP® certified

1. Documentation of 6,000+ hours of Program Management experience

2. Documentation of 6,000+ hours of Project Management experience

3. Submission of my application online

4. Application reopened requesting to resubmit with some minor recommended changes

5. Re-Submission of the application

6. Acceptance of my background information & eligibility criteria

7. Application randomly selected for audit. Audit process then required getting all information in application signed by my supervisor (COO), sealed in an envelope with a signature on the seal (To avoid tampering)

8. Acceptance of audit forms

9. Application returned requesting more strategic answers on Program Management

10. Re-Submission of my application with more strategic and empirical data

11. Acceptance of application and qualifications (through a PMI panel review comprising of 3 PgMPs)

12. I scheduled and passed the 4 hour exam (covering all program phases, processes, and knowledge areas) and

13. Final phase was Multi-Rating Assessment (MRA) in which 12 people including 1 Supervisor, 4 Peers and 7 Direct Reports have to give a feedback 360 on your performance as Program Manager. Each of them is sent a web based questionnaire, which comprises of 71 multiple and 3 subjective (optional) questions. Multiple choice questions would have options including

1. Outstanding Strength

2. Strength

3. Competent

4. Needs work

5. Not competent

6. No basis to rate

This phase is open for 3 weeks. I had given 31 names including 5 Supervisors, 7 Peers and 19 Direct Reports.

One cannot take this phase lightly since there are folks who have failed in this phase too. People can fail when either the assessors do not fill MRA or they give a rating below 'Competent'. Note that the Supervisor names given in your Project Management Experience are automatically included in the Supervisor list. There are instances when the Supervisors being very old colleagues, could not be reached or out of touch. So in order to clear MRA, its important to keep following up with them.

And FINALLY on Oct 12th 2010 @ 7:45 AM PDT, i got the mail

From: PMI Customer Care

Subject: You have obtained the PgMP credential

Dear Sridhar Peddisetty,

Congratulations on obtaining the Program Management Professional (PgMP)® credential.

The certificate will be delivered to your preferred mailing address in our records within six to eight weeks. You may confirm or correct your address online at https://certification.pmi.org/.

Please contact us at PgMPSupport@pmi.org if you have questions or concerns.

Thank you,

PMI Customer Care

Why I choose to achieve PgMP Credential?

2010-09-24T19:20:00.000-07:00

I was inspired to go for PgMP after finishing PMI’s Project Management Professional (PMP) credential in summer of 2008 but had to wait for couple of years before having the prerequisite 4 years of Program Management experience. In 2009, attended Advanced Project Management Certificate from Stanford (SCPM) to cover advanced topics in Project Management including

• Converting Strategy into Action

• Leadership for Strategic Execution

• Mastering the Project Portfolio

• Project Risk Management

• Leading Effective Teams

• Financial Mastery for Projects

Having personally experienced lot of value attaining these professional credentials, which helped me get better in project, program, resource, team, account and client relationship management. I could align the knowledge gained through these credentials to my day-day tasks including stakeholder management, benefit management and program governance. Eventually it helped get recognition at Organizational level, among peers and got promoted to a strategic profile, in which I am helping set up Agile based Global PMO.

What is PgMP Credential?

2010-09-24T19:09:00.000-07:00

This post is for sharing information on Project Management Institute (PMI)’s very own Program Management Professional (PgMP) credential.

PgMP credential is for those who have been working as Program Managers or at higher levels including Program Directors, Portfolio Managers or Operations Managers. It is for those who have experienced overseeing the deliverables of multiple interrelated outputs aligned with a strategic outcome. PgMP credential adds value to the experience of managing multiple projects with interrelated dependencies and whose collective outcome is aligned with the Organizational strategy. For those interested to understand the difference between Program Management and Project Management, the difference is similar to that of being strategic Vs being tactical. Project Management is about delivering of the outputs and Program Management is about delivering of the outcomes. Former is more tactical (How) and later is more strategic (What & Why). Though Program Management can be both tactical as well as strategic at times but Project Management is mostly all tactical.

Earning PgMP credential helps one get international recognition as the professional with the knowledge, skills, tools & technique to apply program management aligning multiple projects to achieve the program goals. Recognition to manage centralized coordinated management of a program to achieve the program’s strategic objective and benefits.

PMI recognizes Program Manager to play more strategic role in an Organization. It is agreed upon that Programs have a higher level of complexity than projects, involve more and higher- level stakeholders, utilize more resources, have more conflict, and require more coordination. Credential helps you understand Program Governance, Benefits Management and Stakeholder Management at a Program level and how they are established and the respective processes measured, managed & maintained.

So PgMP credential, in my opinion, is right for all those who play more strategic role in their respective Organizations. Right for all those who manage a coordinated effort to deliver a strategic outcome and achieve an objective.

My journey towards attaining the PgMP Credential

2010-09-24T18:49:00.000-07:00

This post is to share my journey towards attaining the Project Management Institute (PMI)'s Program Management Professional (PgMP) Credential. I will be sharing my experience in series of posts and will be listing them as follows

What is PgMP Credential?
Why I choose to achieve PgMP Credential?
My Journey towards achieving PgMP Credential
Sample questions & useful resources for PgMP Exam
My Lessons Learned for PgMP Panel Review
My Lessons Learned for PgMP Exam
My Lessons Learned for PgMP MRA
My Notes on PgMP exam
PgMP Exam Objectives
My Notes on PgMP (SPM V1)
My Notes on PMI's PMBOK V4