Information Systems Project Manager Fourth Edition Knowledge Digest: Chapter 20 Advanced Project Management

Chapter 20 Advanced Project Management​

Program management, project portfolio management, and organizational project management provide effective guidance for multi-project management and organizational management in organizations. Quantitative project management provides guidance for the quantification and digitization of organization and project management. PMI, ITSS, CMMI and PRINCE2 provide best practices for various information system project management, and provide methods for continuous improvement and evaluation of the organization's project management capabilities. ​

20.1 Program Management

20.1.1 Program Management Standard

The Program Management Standards, 4th Edition, published by the Project Management Institute (PMI), provides guidance on the principles, practices, and activities of program management. The standard provides an accepted definition for programs and program management, providing key concepts for the success of program management performance domains, the program lifecycle, and key program management principles, practices, and activities. ​

20.1.2 Program Management Roles and Responsibilities

The relevant roles involved in program management mainly include: program sponsor, program steering committee, program manager, and other stakeholders who affect the program. ​

1 Program Initiator

Program sponsors and beneficiaries are those who are responsible for committing the organization's capital to the program and are committed to making the program successful. In many organizations, the program sponsor serves as the head of the program steering committee, which assigns and oversees the progress of the program managers. Typical responsibilities include: funding the program, ensuring program goals are aligned with the strategic vision; enabling benefits to be delivered; and removing barriers and barriers to program management and delivery. ​

2 Program Steering Committee

The program should be properly governed by the Program Steering Committee, which is responsible for defining and implementing appropriate governance practices. Provide governance support to the program, including oversight, control, integration, and decision-making functions; provide capable governance resources to oversee program uncertainty and complexity related to benefit delivery; ensure program objectives and planned benefits are aligned with the organization Strategic and operational objectives; hold planning meetings to identify, prioritize and fund programs; support or approve program proposals and changes; address and remediate escalated program issues and risks; provide oversight to enable Program benefits are planned, measured, and ultimately achieved; management decisions are made, implemented, executed, and communicated; key messages to stakeholders are defined and ensured are consistent and transparent; expected benefits and benefit delivery are reviewed; program approval Closure and termination. ​

3Program Manager

A program manager is the person empowered by the performing organization to form and lead the team to achieve the program's goals. The program manager is responsible for the management, implementation, and performance of the program. Typical responsibilities include: working within the program management performance domain; interacting with project managers and other program managers to provide support and direction in support of program initiatives; interacting with portfolio managers to ensure appropriate resources and priorities level; work with governance bodies, sponsors, and (where applicable) the program management office to ensure the program's ongoing alignment with organizational strategy and ongoing organizational support; interact with operational leaders and stakeholders to ensure the program can Obtain appropriate operational support and effectively sustain the benefits of the program; ensure that the importance of each program component is recognized and understood; ensure that the overall program structure and the applied program management process enable the program and The teams it assembles successfully complete work and deliver expected benefits; provide effective and appropriate management decisions to program teams. ​

4Other stakeholders

A person or organization that can influence, or be affected by, a program decision, activity, or outcome. They may come from within the project or from outside the project, such as customers, users, suppliers, etc. The impact on program outcomes can be positive or negative. ​

20.1.3 Program Management Performance Domain

The organization initiates the program to deliver benefits with agreed goals, and the implementation of the program takes into account the balancing of different needs, changes, stakeholder expectations, requirements, resource and time conflicts among the various components. The program management performance domain includes program strategic alignment, program benefits management, program stakeholder engagement, program governance, and program lifecycle management . During the operation of the whole program, these performance domains interact with each other and exist at the same time during the duration of the program. The nature and complexity of the program determine the activity of a specific domain at a specific time. ​

1 Program Strategic Alignment

Program Strategic Alignment is the performance domain that identifies program outputs and outcomes to align with the organization's goals and objectives. Beginning with the program build phase, program strategic alignment continues throughout the program life cycle. ​

(1) Starting from the establishment of the program, the delivery benefits of the program are verified through the feasibility study and program evaluation, and are used as the input of the program draft and program roadmap. After the feasibility study report and program evaluation results are approved, the program steering committee will approve the program by approving the program charter, designate and authorize the program manager. ​

(2) The program charter is used to measure the success of the program. Key elements include program scope, assumptions, constraints, high-level risks, high-level benefits, goals and objectives, time, success factors, definition of success, Metrics, measurement methods, key stakeholders, etc. ​

(3) When planning the program set, the program manager formulates the program roadmap, showing the expected direction of the program in chronological order, the dependencies between major milestones and decision points, and the delivery benefits of each stage or milestone, for Communicate overall plan and benefits to stakeholders and build and maintain support. ​

2 Program Benefits Management

Program benefits management is the performance domain for defining, creating, maximizing, and delivering the benefits delivered by a program. The main activities include benefit identification, benefit analysis and planning, benefit delivery, benefit transfer and benefit maintenance. Program benefit management During the entire program period, each performance domain must interact continuously and periodically. It is a top-down form at the beginning of the program and a bottom-up form at the later stage of the program. Throughout the program governance phase, program performance data reviews are conducted to ensure that the program produces the expected benefits and outcomes. ​

(1) Benefit identification. Identify and review the benefits expected to be realized by program stakeholders. Key activities include defining the program's goals and success factors, and identifying and quantifying business benefits. Based on the program initiation assessment, the organizational strategic plan, and other relevant program objectives, a register of benefits is developed and reviewed by stakeholders so that appropriate performance measures can be developed for each benefit. ​

(2) Benefit analysis and planning. Develop a program benefit management plan, define program components and their interdependencies, clarify priorities, develop and communicate consensus program performance benchmarks, and continuously update them. ​

(3) Benefit delivery. Ensure the program delivers the expected benefits as defined in the benefits management plan and report to the program steering committee, program sponsors, and other program stakeholders to assess the overall health of the program. ​

(4) Benefit handover. Ensure program benefits are handed over to operations and sustained post-handover. The benefits transfer activities include developing a transfer plan to operations and verifying that the integration, transfer, and closure of the program and its components meet the program objectives and delivery benefit realization criteria. ​

(5) Benefit maintenance. After the program is concluded, maintenance work is continued by the receiving organization to ensure that the improvements and outcomes delivered by the program continue to be produced. Before the closure of the program set, develop a benefit maintenance plan to identify the necessary risks, processes, measures, metrics and necessary tools. ​

3 Program Stakeholder Engagement

Program Stakeholder Engagement is the performance domain of identifying and analyzing stakeholder needs, managing expectations, and communicating to promote stakeholder buy-in and buy-in. Key activities include program stakeholder identification, program stakeholder analysis, program stakeholder engagement planning, program stakeholder engagement, and program stakeholder communication. Stakeholder engagement includes not only communication, but also goal setting, quality analysis review, or other program activities, with the goal of obtaining and maintaining buy-in from program stakeholders on program goals, benefits, and outcomes. ​

4 Program Governance

Program governance is the performance domain for implementing and enforcing program decisions, establishing practices in support of the program, and maintaining program oversight. Program governance focuses on the delivery of program benefits by establishing systems and methods for the sponsoring organization to define, authorize, monitor and support the program and its strategy. The program manager has the management responsibility to ensure that the program team understands and abides by it, so that the activities of the program are carried out within the governance principles and framework. ​

Program governance is influenced by organizational governance. Organizational governance provides control, direction, and coordination through people, policies, and processes to meet an organization's strategy and objectives. Program governance is achieved through the activities of review and decision-making for endorsement or approval of program proposals within mandated boundaries. The Program Steering Committee provides direction, support and approval for the Program through governance practices as mandated. Members of the program steering committee typically come from senior management of the organizational team. The Project Management Office (PMO) is responsible for promoting governance practices, standardizing the governance process related to the program, and promoting the sharing of resources, methods, tools and technologies, and providing supervision, support and decision-making capabilities for the program. ​

Effective program governance supports program success by:​

(1) Clarify the goals and structure of program governance, ensure that the goals of the program are consistent with the strategic vision, operational capabilities, and resource commitments of the sponsoring organization, and clarify the scope and degree of authorization that the program needs to achieve in order to achieve its goals, as well as in the life of the program. The method and frequency of monitoring and review at key decision points in the cycle. ​

(2) Approve, support and initiate program sets and secure funding from sponsoring organizations. ​

(3) Facilitate program stakeholder engagement by setting clear expectations for each interaction with key governance stakeholders. ​

(4) Provide a regulatory environment for the program and establish channels and processes for communicating and handling program risks and uncertainties, as well as emerging opportunities. ​

(5) Provide a framework consistent with portfolio and organizational governance policies and processes to ensure program compliance. Specific governance processes or procedures need to be created, aligned with organizational governance principles. ​

(6) Plan the quality assurance process, determine the quality standards and quality methods of the program, establish a quality plan, and clarify the quality assurance and quality control activities required by the program to achieve the expected benefits. Standard quality governance framework. ​

(7) Enables the organization to assess the feasibility of the organization's strategic plan and the level of support required to realize it. ​

(8) The scope of program management authorization changes, and provide governance for program change management and control. The program manager evaluates the risks associated with the change, as well as the feasibility of the operation, and proposes changes. The program team documents the proposed changes, the reasons for the changes, and the results of the changes. ​

(9) Select, support, and enable program components, including projects, subprogrammes, and other program activities. ​

(10) Make decisions on the handover of each phase of the program, the termination or closure of the program. ​

5Project set life cycle management

To ensure benefits are realized, program components are aligned with the organization's strategic goals and objectives. These components include projects, subprogrammes, and other program-related activities. Since a program inherently involves a degree of uncertainty, change, complexity, and interdependence among components, it is necessary to establish a set of common and consistent processes applicable to different phases. These separate phases, which may sometimes overlap, together make up the program lifecycle. The activities performed during the program lifecycle depend on the specific type of program and typically begin before funding is approved and a program manager is appointed. To successfully deliver benefits to the organization, a program is implemented in three main phases, including the program definition phase, program delivery phase, and program closure phase. ​

(1) Item set definition stage. Construct and approve programs to achieve desired outcomes, develop program roadmaps, develop project evaluations and program charters. After the above content is approved, the program management plan shall be formulated. ​

(2) Program delivery stage. The program activities performed to produce the expected outcomes of the components of the program management plan. Implementation of each program component will include the following program delivery subphases. Component authorization and planning; component supervision and integration; component handover and closeout. ​

(3) The closing stage of the project set. Transfer program benefits to the maintenance organization and formally close program activities in a controlled manner. The main work during the program closeout phase includes program handover and closeout or early termination, or transfer of work to another programme. ​

20.2 Portfolio Management

20.2.1 Portfolio Management Standard

The Project Portfolio Management Standard, 4th Edition, published by the Project Management Institute (PMI), identifies project portfolio management principles and performance management domains that are generally accepted by organizations as good practice. The standard includes a common, unified glossary of terms suitable for use in project portfolio management in order to promote, discuss, apply and continuously improve project portfolio management concepts. The standard matches the body of knowledge provided by the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide), the Program Management Standard. ​

20.2.2 Portfolio management roles and responsibilities

1Project Portfolio Management Manager

Portfolio managers are responsible for establishing and implementing project portfolio management. Portfolio managers typically play a number of important roles, including architects, enablers, and facilitators of portfolio management principles, processes, and practices, as well as serving as portfolio analysts. Its main responsibilities include: communicating to the portfolio governance body how the entire set of portfolio components are aligned or aligned with strategic objectives; obtaining portfolio impact and value creation based on strategic directives; providing appropriate recommendations or action plans; influencing and managing resources Assignment process; oversee or coordinate implementation with portfolio component managers; receive information on portfolio component performance and progress; report portfolio progress to senior management. The project portfolio manager should have the capabilities described in the PMI talent triangle model (technical project management skills, leadership, and strategic and commercial business management expertise), and be able to form and lead a team of experts. The required expertise includes:​​

(1) Strategic management and alignment of the project portfolio. Should understand and monitor changes in the organization's strategy and objectives, and be aware of how the portfolio of projects can be applied, should have business analysis skills and financial knowledge. ​

(2) Project portfolio management methods and techniques. Should have expertise in the application and analysis of project portfolio management methodologies and techniques. ​

(3) Stakeholder participation. Should be adept at working with portfolio stakeholders to maximize portfolio and organizational performance, facilitating communication among stakeholders to negotiate agreements, resolve conflicts, and make timely and agile portfolio decisions. ​

(4) Decision-making and management skills. Should have good leadership and management skills, be able to interact with senior management, management and other stakeholders, and be adept at recruiting and retaining people, goal setting, performance evaluation, rewarding and recognition, talent pipeline planning and employee development Managers with excellent communication skills. ​

(5) Risk management. The internal and external risks involved in the portfolio should be dynamically considered and managed, such as financial constraints, cost-benefits, windows of opportunity, constraints of the portfolio components, changing portfolio environmental conditions, and changes in stakeholders. ​

(6) Organizational change management. The impact of change on the organization should be managed and readiness for change measured at the portfolio level. ​

(7) System thinking. There should be an understanding of how the different components of the portfolio are interrelated and interdependent, with a top-down perspective. ​

2 Other roles

(1) Promoter . Provides resources and support to the project portfolio, is the champion of the entire project portfolio, and is responsible for the allocation of resources and the success of the project portfolio. Sponsors are typically involved in the portfolio governance body, working closely with the portfolio manager. ​

(2) Project Portfolio Governance Organization. Consists of one or more individuals with the necessary authority, knowledge and experience to direct and supervise portfolio management activities, evaluate portfolio performance, and make decisions on portfolio investment and prioritization to ensure that the portfolio management process is control. ​

(3) Portfolio, Program and Project Management Office (PMO). An organizational entity that provides capabilities and processes in support of portfolio management to centrally manage and coordinate the projects, programs or portfolios under its control. ​

(4) Project Portfolio Analyst. Responsible for identifying, analyzing and tracking whether the dependencies between project portfolio components are resolved and managed, and recommending improvement plans for gaps in the project portfolio management process and helping to implement them. Combine with other roles and tailor accordingly to meet organizational needs. ​

(5) Program Manager. Responsible for ensuring that the overall program structure and program management processes are aligned with the portfolio management plan. ​

(6) Project manager. Responsible for effectively initiating, planning, executing, monitoring, and closing assigned projects within the portfolio according to the appropriate objectives and specifications. The project manager provides project performance metrics directly or indirectly to the portfolio manager, PMO, or governing body. ​

(7) Change Control Board. Responsible for reviewing change requests and making approval, rejection, or other decisions. ​

20.2.3 Portfolio Management Performance Domain

The ultimate goal of linking portfolio management with organizational strategy and strategic business execution is to create a balanced, actionable plan that helps the organization achieve its goals. The portfolio management performance domain represents a set of good practices, including the portfolio lifecycle, portfolio strategy management, portfolio governance, portfolio capacity and capability management, portfolio stakeholder engagement, portfolio value management, and portfolio risk management. ​

1 Portfolio Lifecycle

The project portfolio life cycle consists of four phases: initiation, planning, execution and optimization. Information and decisions continue to flow through the phases as the portfolio progresses through the lifecycle journey. Portfolios may be refreshed as portfolio components are added, removed, or modified. Considering top-down alignment, at the end of each business change lifecycle, there is potential for re-planning when the portfolio is reviewed. ​

(1) Start-up phase. The main activities in this phase are to validate the business and operations strategy, identify the portfolio components, and define a long-term roadmap for the portfolio and its components, including financial objectives, performance standards, communication, governance, definition and roles of stakeholders, and an ongoing management plan . ​

(2) Planning stage. The planning phase develops and reviews the project portfolio management plan and reaches consensus with stakeholders on key elements. Its main activities include: Portfolio Component Scoping and Management; Budgets Required to Execute Components; Portfolio and Component Dependency Identification; Risk and Issue Identification and Response Planning; Resource Requirements; Portfolio Component Prioritization; Governance Identification of organizational, sponsor, and stakeholder responsibilities; portfolio criteria used to measure success; product or service requirements and specifications. ​

(3) Implementation stage. The execution phase is implemented through its various components and operations, including review and reporting on the execution of the project portfolio and the performance standards of each component; reviewing proposed changes based on ongoing organizational needs, changes in the organizational environment may Force component priorities to be rearranged or new components introduced. Its main activities include:​

• Delivery of all components within the portfolio;​
• Manage and resolve risks and issues across the portfolio and its components;​​
• Lead communication and reporting of project portfolio and components;​
• Reorder and change sub-portfolios as needed;​
• Monitor the potential for benefit realization based on component delivery;​
• Manage limited assets and resources given to the project portfolio. ​

(4) Optimization stage. The process of making a portfolio of projects as efficient as possible by maximizing available conditions, constraints, and resources. Organizations typically schedule regular optimizations, but this activity is also triggered when components are added or shut down. ​

2 Portfolio Strategic Management

Strategic management is aligned with portfolio management so that the organization's actions consistently meet the expectations of senior management and stakeholders. The project portfolio does not match the overall strategy, and the added value of the projects and projects carried by it will be very small. Portfolio strategy management should be viewed as a two-way process, providing continuous monitoring of strategic and investment decisions at the executive level and providing feedback on the impact and achievability of these strategic decisions and potential outcomes. ​

3 Portfolio Governance

Portfolio governance is a set of practices, functions, and processes within a framework based on a set of basic norms, rules, or values ​​that guide portfolio management activities to optimize investments and meet organizational strategic and operational goals. Governance is not the same as management, which is concerned with decision making, regulation, control and integration. Management is described as working within the boundaries set by the governance framework to achieve organizational goals. ​

The decision-making function consists of a set of processes and activities that provide an overall governance structure and delegate management authority to the portfolio and its components. Governance functions provide governance processes and activities to support decision-making and direction for the portfolio and its components; control functions provide processes and activities to monitor, measure, and report on the portfolio and its components; integration functions provide processes and activities to support projects Strategic alignment between the portfolio and its components. ​

4Project Portfolio Capacity and Capability Management

Project portfolio capacity and capability management is a comprehensive framework based on a series of guiding principles, including a series of tools and practices to identify, allocate and optimize resources in order to maximize resource utilization and minimize resource conflicts in project portfolio implementation . In project portfolio management, capacity and capability management means involving all resources, such as personnel, funds, technology, equipment, etc. ​

1) Capacity management

Capacity management emphasizes the overall resource requirements of the project portfolio and its components. Capacity mainly involves 4 categories:​

• Human capital: The human resources available to support the portfolio. ​
• Financial Costs: The funds available to support the project portfolio. ​
• Assets: Available physical assets such as equipment, office environment, fixed assets, and inventories. ​
• Intellectual capital: Available patents, copyrights, etc. ​

Portfolio capacity management methodically describes the overall situation of the resource requirements and available resources of the project portfolio, analyzes and matches the supply of resources with the requirements of the project portfolio, which runs through the entire project portfolio execution process; measures and monitors the demand and supply of resources, Execute changes when the portfolio requires them to be implemented at optimal levels to achieve targeted benefits or value. Capacity management mainly involves:​

• Capacity Planning: Understanding the demand for resources by measuring the components of the portfolio against the available capacity of the organization's resources ensures that the organization can successfully meet the portfolio objectives. ​
• Supply and Demand Management: involves analyzing and allocating resources for portfolio components to balance supply and demand. ​
• Supply and Demand Optimization: Involves continuously measuring and monitoring resources as appropriate to make course corrections and adjustments as needed during the execution of the portfolio. ​

2) Capacity management

Capability is the level at which an organization integrates its people, processes, and systems to deliver a product or service. Capability management is a series of processes and activities for the organization to continuously improve capabilities, such as new capability building, capability assessment, capability maintenance and development. ​

3) Balance capacity and capacity

To efficiently execute and optimize a portfolio of projects, capacity and capabilities need to be balanced to achieve strategic goals and objectives to deliver value to the organization. Balance does not mean maximizing an organization's theoretical capacity, nor does it mean minimizing capability gaps without regard to other factors. Balancing capacity and capability involves integrating the organization's strategic plan, the organization's process assets, the process assets of the project portfolio, and enterprise environmental factors. Dynamic capabilities and capacities are critical to innovation. ​

5 Portfolio Stakeholder Engagement

Portfolio stakeholders are individuals, organizations, or groups that can influence or be influenced, or even perceive themselves to be, by the decisions, activities, or outcomes of the portfolio. Stakeholders at the portfolio level differ significantly from those at the portfolio component level, and the differences relate not only to the level of stakeholder, but also to the stakeholder interests involved. The stakeholders of the project portfolio mainly deal with the delivery strategy and the allocation of resources, while the stakeholders of the program mainly deal with the revenue management, and the stakeholders of the project deal with the delivery scope such as quality, time, and cost. These different interests imply that Portfolio Stakeholder and Portfolio Component Stakeholder are distinct roles. ​

An integral part of stakeholder engagement is the communication management of the project portfolio. Key iterative steps for stakeholder engagement and communication include: definition and identification of stakeholders, analysis of project portfolio stakeholders, planning for stakeholder engagement, identification of communication management methods, Manage portfolio communications. ​

(1) Definition and identification of stakeholders. Portfolio management in an organization typically means that there are many prospective or executing programs and projects in the organization, including actual and potential customers, suppliers, competitors, regulatory and other stakeholders. Under the guidance of the organizational strategy, the portfolio manager can identify the types of stakeholders and the priority parties to establish and maintain the relationship with them, and maintain the relationship to the programs and projects under the portfolio. ​

(2) Analysis of project portfolio stakeholders. Stakeholders of the project portfolio operate in different scopes or domains and have different interests, and are managed in groups to ensure that stakeholder interests are not unnecessarily influenced by others. Identifying stakeholders is an ongoing process and should be analyzed periodically. ​

(3) Plan stakeholder participation. Planning the stakeholder engagement plan is one of the key activities of the portfolio manager and should include the triggers for communication and stakeholder engagement activities as the portfolio is reviewed and adjusted as the strategic plan changes. ​

(4) Identify communication management methods. Factors that should be considered in identifying the most effective method of communication within the portfolio include: alignment with governance, communication infrastructure (including processes, policies, technologies, etc.), portfolio management plan, portfolio reporting, portfolio process assets , Communication governance and component interfaces (realization of communication requirements and analysis of communication requirements). ​

(5) Manage project portfolio communications. In communicating with project portfolio stakeholders, the governance and communication needs of stakeholders agreed by both parties should be continuously considered, and the communication matrix should be updated accordingly according to changes. These updates are contained in the Portfolio Management Plan or the Portfolio Communications Management Plan. ​

6 Portfolio Value Management

Value is a measure of the impact achieved by an entity/service, such as increased revenue, increased profit, reduced risk, etc. In the context of linking the role of the portfolio to the environment, the purpose of the organization, and the development of strategies that may lead to the creation or restructuring of a portfolio, the key activities required for effective portfolio value management include: negotiating desired value, maximizing value, realize value, measure value, and report value. ​

(1) Negotiate the desired value. Negotiate the value that should be created by the portfolio, first, the purpose of the organizational strategy against which the portfolio is directed, and second, within the portfolio, evaluate each candidate component against the negotiated portfolio value framework. ​

(2) Maximize value. Maximization of return on portfolio investment, delivering each component at the lowest, safe and economical cost, with no negative impact on desired performance and value, to meet the purpose of the portfolio. ​

(3) Realize value. Ensure that the value that needs to be realized for investments into the portfolio is achieved. ​

(4) Measurement value. The performance achieved by the products produced by the various components of the project portfolio, such as in support of the Balanced Scorecard. Portfolio managers should gather agreed upon parameters. ​

(5) Report value. The report is based on the achieved values ​​of these parameters. ​

7. Portfolio risk management

Portfolio risk management is the strategy and business model of ensuring the components of a portfolio achieve the greatest possible success by balancing positive opportunities and negative threats. Portfolio risk management aligns project portfolio components, organizational strategies, business models, and environmental factors with the value objectives of optimizing the project portfolio, thereby forming the result of cross-component collaborative project portfolio execution. Risk and change are accepted and managed in an environment of nonlinear interactions, with the aim of maximizing value for the organization. ​

At the portfolio level, all risk elements should be considered. Risks not addressed at the portfolio level can be addressed through the governance process at the strategic level. There are four key elements in portfolio risk management: risk management planning, risk identification, risk assessment, and risk response, as shown in Figure 20-5. In risk management, what is usually represented in the form of views and formats is the portfolio risk management plan, risk response plan, portfolio confidence level or credibility level, risk inventory, component risk management and response plan, and other Risk-related data of concern at the level. ​

20.3 Organizational Project Management

Organizational Project Management (Organizational Project Management, OPM) is to improve organizational capabilities by integrating project portfolio, program and project management, connecting them with organizational drivers and organizational processes, so as to achieve strategic goals. Organizational drivers refer to the structural, cultural, technological or human resource practices that can be used by the performing organization to achieve strategic objectives. ​

20.3.1 Organizational Project Management Standards

The Organizational Project Management Standard, published by the Project Management Institute (PMI), replaces and expands on the 2014 Practical Guide to Organizational Project Management, published by PMI. The new standard elevates the guiding "how" to a greater emphasis on the principle-based "why" of practicing project management in an organizational setting. However, the "Organizational Project Management Standards" does not replace the "Organizational Project Management Maturity Model" (OPM3 for short), and the two are used in conjunction. This standard provides guidance for organizations to implement project management practices at the organizational level and for the continuing development of their capabilities and maturity. OPM3 is a tool used to measure these capabilities, identify areas for improvement, and raise the level of organizational maturity related to project management practices. OPM enhances organizational capabilities in support of strategic objectives by linking the principles and practices of portfolio, program, and project management with organizational factors. ​

20.3.2 Business Value Business Evaluation

OPM is to establish a dynamic organization to effectively respond to change, aiming to actively create value for the organization. Organizations gain quantifiable net benefits from business activities and increase the potential for value creation to achieve strategic objectives by employing solid, established OPM processes and effectively utilizing portfolio, program and project management. ​

The realization of business value begins with comprehensive strategic planning and management. Organizational strategy is expressed through vision and mission, including market, positioning, competition and other environmental factors. Organizations can further promote alignment in the activities of portfolio, program, and project management by strengthening organizational drivers such as structure, culture, technology, and human resource practices. Realize the achievement of organizational business value by continuously integrating and optimizing project portfolio, performing business impact analysis and developing strong organizational drivers. ​

A business assessment is a necessary component in establishing an OPM framework. Organizational management or sponsors need to explain the business problem addressed by the implementation of OPM, the definition of OPM characteristics and key performance indicators. Identify benefits as financially quantifiable as possible, determine OPM implementation costs and return on investment, that is, the cost of implementing or improving selected OPM capabilities, transforming them into improved organizational outcomes, and the benefits of improved outcomes . ​

20.3.3 OPM framework elements

An organizational project management framework describes the elements needed to provide ongoing support. The key elements of the OPM framework include: OPM governance, OPM methodology, knowledge management and talent management, as shown in Figure 20-6. Under the OPM management framework, ensure that the above elements are consistent with the organizational strategy. OPM methodologies fall under the purview of OPM governance, and in many cases talent management and knowledge management may not be fully within the purview of OPM governance. ​

1. OPM methodology

The OPM methodology is a system of practices, techniques, procedures and rules used by project managers in a particular organization. Organizations can construct OPM methodology through public domain and business domain materials, organizational assets, successful project experience, etc. The OPM methodology includes: process definition and description, role definition and description, document templates, project compliance requirements, risk and cost management knowledge, recommended tools, performance reports, sustainability guidelines, regulatory standards, centralized reviews and inspections, etc. All OPM methodologies need tailoring, and tailoring can be carried out during the initial establishment process, maintenance process and enhancement process of the OPM methodology. ​

2 Knowledge Management

Within the OPM framework, knowledge management typically focuses on achieving organizational goals of performance improvement, innovation, sharing of lessons learned, documenting best practices, process integration, and continuous organizational improvement. Knowledge management should cover the complete knowledge management life cycle, including knowledge from its inception to its successful application in the organization and the benefit of practical initiatives. In the knowledge management of OPM focus on: documents needed to increase OPM knowledge, resources needed to acquire knowledge, personal enhancement of knowledge necessary to ensure OPM success. ​

3 Talent Management

Talent management under the OPM framework, this functional department tracks the professional development of the project management group, the promotion review process should keep pace with the requirements of defined job roles and job levels, and the professionalization of project portfolio, program and project managers Development remains consistent. ​

4. OPM Governance

OPM Governance enables an organization to continuously manage projects and maximize the value of project outcomes through the review and actions of decision-making bodies responsible for signing off or approving relevant OPM elements within their purview. Consistent with organizational governance, OPM governance practices promote compliance with OPM policies across the organization. OPM governance is a function that is consistent with the executive governance body. It is a management framework for making project portfolio, program and project decisions. It is a logical, robust and repeatable decision-making framework for governing organizational assets. Other core support processes implemented by an organization can be integrated with governance by reviewing and monitoring key metrics for specific processes. Existing processes and methodologies can be enhanced and improved by using the governance process to review and accept recommendations and initiatives. Governance entities based on organizational maturity typically include:​

• Executive Governance Entity: Composed of senior management or board members, establishes an open line of communication with the OPM Governance Body to communicate any strategic changes or re-prioritization of portfolios, programs and projects, and where OPM approaches are not effective intervene. ​
• OPM Governance Entity: Ensures that OPM's infrastructure remains aligned and enforceable with organizational strategy. Intervene when an OPM approach or an ineffective OPM architecture puts the realization of strategic initiatives at risk or creates inefficiencies in the organization. In smaller organizations, this entity may be the same entity as the executive governance entity. ​
• Portfolio and Program Governance Entity: This model is similar to that of the OPM Governance Entity. Portfolio and program managers report on benefit realization and any issues and conflicts that require attention. ​
• Project Management Governance Entity: Communicates all changes at the strategic level, identifying budget, schedule, risks, constraints, or other factors that may need to be reconsidered for affected projects. This role can be performed by an OPM or by a portfolio or program owner. ​

20.3.4 OPM Maturity Model

OPM maturity refers to the level of an organization's ability to deliver desired strategic outcomes in a predictable, controllable and reliable manner. "Organizational Project Management Maturity Model" defines the requirements for each level of OPM maturity and assessment tools, and is a method and tool for organizations to measure, compare, and improve project management capabilities. OPM3 includes steps and ladders for organizational project management process and improvement, the basic elements of which include:​

• Best practices for supporting portfolio, program, and project management. ​
• Capability integration forms the path and association of best practice. ​
• A definite relationship between results and organizational capabilities can be seen. ​
• One or more performance indicators that measure each outcome. ​

OPM3 is an excellence capability model for assessing an organization's project management processes and supporting infrastructure. When an organization develops institutionalized, scalable, and scalable processes, it forms the basis of a project management plan. A project management plan can leverage organizational policies and processes to reduce plan development time and cost, and leverage organizational lessons learned. Since the OPM process is standardized and measurable, it can be analyzed using OPM process performance indicators. ​

The following provides a general description of OPM maturity level characteristics, applicable to portfolios, programs and projects. ​

(1) Level 1. Initial or interim OPM. Project performance cannot be reliably predicted. Project management is highly volatile and highly dependent on the experience and competence of the people performing the work. Projects are completed, often late, over budget, and of varying quality. Existing OPM processes are ad-hoc or out-of-order. ​

(2) Level 2. OPM is adopted at the project level. Plan, execute, monitor and control projects at the project or functional level according to industry best practices. But OPM processes and practices are not uniformly applied or managed from an organizational perspective, and there may be project differences. ​

(3) Level 3. Organization-defined OPM. Project management is proactive and organizational project performance is predictable. Project teams follow the organization's established OPM processes, which are tailored to the complexity of the project and the capabilities of the practitioners. The OPM process is organizationally standardized, measurable, controllable, and can be analyzed by the organization to monitor OPM process performance. ​

(4) Level 4. OPM for Quantitative Management. Project management decisions and process management in organizations are data-driven. OPM process performance is managed in such a way that quantifiable improvement goals can be achieved. OPM process performance is systematically analyzed to enhance opportunities for improvement that add value to the organization. ​

(5) Level 5. Continuously optimized OPM. The organization is stable and focused on continuous improvement. Alignment of OPM with organizational strategy, and an OPM process that focuses on defined and measurable value contributions, promotes organizational agility and innovation. In an optimized organization, effective continuous improvement is established, along with a set of measures and metrics. The success rate for programs and projects is good, and the portfolio is optimized to ensure business value. ​

20.4 Quantitative project management

Quantitative Management (Quantitative Management) refers to the analysis and research of the operating status and performance of things based on data, using statistical or other quantitative methods, and the management and monitoring of key decision-making points and operating procedures in order to monitor the existence and development of things. Make accurate numerical description and scientific control of the scale, degree, etc., and implement a management model of standardized operations. ​

20.4.1 Quantitative management theory and application

1. Quantitative management theory

One of the foundations of quantitative management is scientific management theory. Scientific management theory was born at the end of the 19th century and was created by American engineer and management scientist Frederick Taylor (CF.Taylor, 1856-1915). Taylor believes that the reason for the low efficiency of organizational work is that managers lack reasonable work quota settings, workers lack scientific guidance, and must use scientific knowledge to replace personal insights and experience cognition, so through a large number of experimental studies, he summed up the five principles of scientific management in principle. ​

(1) Working hours are rationed. Propose and learn management methods for workers in order to effectively use working time and improve work efficiency; study the rationality of workers' actions during work, remove redundant actions, and improve necessary actions; stipulate the time for completing the operation of each work unit, and formulate Reasonable working hours quota. ​

(2) Rationalization of division of labor. Scientific selection, training and promotion of workers: select suitable workers and arrange them in suitable jobs; train workers to use the standard operating methods defined by the organization, so that they can gradually grow in their work. ​

(3) Program standardization. Formulate scientific process regulations to standardize tools, machines, and materials in the work process; standardize the operating environment and fix it in the form of documents, so as to realize the standardization of work procedures. ​

(4) Pay differential. Associate the completion status of workers' work tasks with their wage income, implement an incentive piece-rate wage system, and pay workers who complete and overfulfill quota tasks at a higher wage rate by piece, and workers who cannot complete quota tasks , pay at a lower wage rate. In order to motivate workers' work efficiency and enthusiasm. ​

(5) Functionalization of management. Management and labor work are separated, and managers and laborers work closely together, but with different responsibilities, to ensure that work is carried out according to standard design procedures. ​

Quantitative management theory absorbs the management concepts of scientific management in many aspects, including:​

• Quotaization of tasks: Quantitative management theory emphasizes that managers should first determine standard work tasks or quantifiable work objectives, and then gradually refine and decompose them, and monitor work progress in a quantitative manner, so as to realize the control of work progress and personnel capabilities. Quantitative management and evaluation;​
• Standardization of procedures: An important premise of voodoo management is to formulate a standard workflow for a specific management object and work link, so as to improve the consistency of work execution, reduce the variability of the process, and ensure that the data tends to be consistent;​
• Salary difference: According to the quantified results, "pay according to work" is implemented, and the quality and quantity of the completed work are closely related to the remuneration of the staff, so as to achieve the purpose of incentives. ​

Peter F. Drucker (1909-2005) once said: Without measurement, there is no management. Quantitative management has been widely adopted in various industries, aiming to improve the refinement of management and management efficiency. ​

2 Statistical Process Control

Statistical Process Control (SPC) refers to the application of statistical techniques to analyze, monitor and evaluate each stage of the work process, establish and maintain the work process at an acceptable and stable level, so as to ensure that products and services meet specifications A management technique required. ​

Statistical process control is a preventive approach that emphasizes full participation. And statistical process control emphasizes the whole process, the emphasis is on the process. Most management models believe that process does not only refer to processes, but includes processes, tools, methods and people. Statistical process control technology focuses on solving two problems in the organization: one is whether the operation state of the work process is stable, usually using the control chart as a statistical tool for analysis and judgment; the other is whether the process capability meets the specification requirements, which can be analyzed using the process capability analysis method to judge. ​

Statistical process control theory believes that the ability of the process has fluctuations: one kind of fluctuation is a normal fluctuation, and any organization or individual's ability to execute the process will have a certain degree of fluctuation, which is normal; the other kind of fluctuation is abnormal Fluctuations. There may be special causes that cause abnormal fluctuations in capabilities. This is an abnormal situation that needs to be identified and managed. Statistical process control methods can learn about certain implicit characteristics. Using a reasonable sampling method can select the appropriate research sample for research, and infer the overall process status through the analysis results of the sample. ​

The control charts used by statistical process control are based on the principle of the normal distribution. If the data of the process obeys a normal distribution, then about 69% of the data points will fall within the range of mean ± 1 standard deviation (Sigma); about 95% of the data points will fall within the mean ± 2 Within the range of the standard deviation (2Sigma); about 99.73% of the data points will fall within the range of the mean ± 3 standard deviations (3Sigma). Generally, the probability of less than 5% is called a small probability event. In the production process, once a small probability event occurs, it means that there is an abnormal situation in the process. ​

The principle of statistical process control puts forward a very effective theoretical basis for quantitative management, and guides the transformation and practice of quantitative management in production, manufacturing, and R&D in various industries. Quantitative management behavior based on statistical analysis of data can be divided into three levels:​

(1) Describe and analyze the characteristics of the organization or project (current situation, structure, relationship between factors, etc.). ​

(2) Analyze the operation law and development trend of the organization or project (dynamic data). ​

(3) Predict the future state of the organization or project (establish a predictive model). ​

3 Quantitative management applications

The application of quantitative management in the process of project management is becoming more and more perfect. On the basis of statistical process control principles, the typical theories formed by the industry through development and improvement include Six Sigma management system and CMMI model. ​

1) Six Sigma

Six Sigma is a technology to improve organizational quality process management, emphasizing "zero defect" preventive control and process control, driving a substantial improvement in organizational quality, while reducing production and delivery costs. If an organization wants to meet the Six Sigma standard, then according to the normal distribution characteristics, its error rate cannot exceed 0.00034%. ​

The implementation mode of Six Sigma is to distinguish the processes that need to be improved, find the most potential improvement opportunities, and give priority to improving the processes that need to be improved, so as to improve the efficiency of improvement. If the improvement priority is not determined, the organization will take action in various ways, which may disperse limited improvement resources and energy, and affect the implementation effect of Six Sigma management. Six Sigma believes that business process improvement follows a 5-step cycle improvement method, namely the DMAIC model:​​

(1) Definition (Define). Identify products or processes that need improvement and determine the resources needed for the improvement project. ​

(2) Measure. Defects are defined, product or process performance is collected as a baseline, and goals for improvement are established. ​

(3) Analysis (Analyze). Analyze all aspects of data collected during the planting phase to determine a set of variables that affect process and product quality in order of importance. ​

(4) Improve (Improve). Optimize business processes and verify that the solution meets or exceeds project quality improvement goals. ​

(5) Control. Establish effective control means to ensure that once the process improvement is completed, it can continue to be maintained and will not return to the state before the improvement. ​

2)CMMI​

CMMI stands for Capability Maturity Model Integration. The model divides the management maturity of the organization into five levels. The higher the maturity level, the higher the requirements for quantitative management. When the CMMI model reaches level 4 (intensive management level) and level 5 (optimization level), the organization is required to be able to optimize the analysis and quantitative prediction of the process management, so as to improve the ability of management and the degree of refinement. CMMI believes that when the management of the organization reaches a high level of maturity, it is necessary to be able to use statistics to manage the organization and project capabilities. The main characteristics of a high-maturity organization include:​​

• Establish a quantitative objective management mechanism: From the organization's strategic planning to business objectives, and then to the objectives of quality and process performance, all can be expressed and managed in a batch form, and the organizational or project objectives should be decomposed into each In the process and sub-process, the quantitative monitoring of each execution process is realized. ​
• Establish a quantitative monitoring mechanism for process capability : the organization can establish quantitative capability indicators for process capability, so as to better understand the current status of various capabilities of the organization, identify the stability of capabilities, find out the special causes of process variation and take corrective measures in a timely manner. ​
• Establish the quantitative prediction ability of the goal : the organization can pre-cut the quantitative goal, so as to carry out quantitative prediction and analysis on the achievability of the goal, adjust the process input or method in time, and improve the achievability of the goal. ​
• Establish a continuous optimization mechanism based on quantification: The organization can predict the impact of dramatic changes on the process and return on investment, can quantitatively predict and evaluate the support of process improvement to the achievement of the organization's business goals, and can establish a continuous process improvement and benefit improvement mechanism. ​

20.4.2 Organization-level quantitative management

The prerequisite for the organization to carry out quantitative management work is that the organization has defined the organization-level standard process of product or project management, and each product or project team can follow the organization's unified management process, procedures and output requirements to carry out work, and the degree of perception collected by the organization The data has statistical significance and can be used for quantitative management construction. ​

The CMMI model and Six Sigma both provide methodological and practical guidance for quantitative management at the organizational level. The content of establishing an organization-level quantitative management system mainly includes: defining the organization's maximum process performance goals, identifying key processes, establishing a measurement system and data collection, establishing a process performance baseline, and establishing a process performance model. ​

1. Define organizational quantitative process performance goals

The organization adopts quantitative management to strengthen the refined management of the project, first of all, it needs to establish the most optimized performance goals in project management. Quantitative performance objectives in organizational project management are called Quality and Process Performance Objectives (QPPO) in the CMMI model, and the objectives usually include quality aspects and process performance aspects. According to the statistics of industry benchmark data, the quantitative goals of project management capabilities that organizations focus on usually include productivity, delivery defects, delivery schedule deviations, and customer satisfaction. The setting of quantitative goals for project management capabilities must support the achievement of organizational strategic planning and business goals, and ensure that the goals are quantifiable and verifiable. In the process of goal definition, SMART (S=Specific, M=Measurable, A=Attainable, R=Relevant, T=Time-bound) principles can be applied to test whether the goal is appropriate. ​

In the process of defining objectives, the organization should also prioritize quantitative objectives based on the impact of quality and process performance objectives on strategic planning and business objectives, so as to solve the prioritization problem when the organization has multiple management capability objectives that need to be met. ​

After the organization's quality and process performance goals are defined, it is necessary to review and confirm the organization's management and relevant departments, business departments, product lines, project managers, and other stakeholders to confirm the rationality of the supporting relationship between business goals and quality and process performance goals. Achievability of goals and breakdown goals. After the organization has jointly confirmed it, it can be formally released as the quantitative goal of the organization's management capability. ​

The organization needs to check the deviation and adaptability between the quality and process performance goals and the reality, and revise the goals, mainly including:​​

• When business objectives change;​
• When the organization's standard process architecture and processes change;​
• When the actual quality and process performance seriously deviate from the established goals;​
• When major adjustments are made to the organizational structure. ​

In the process of setting organizational quality and process performance goals, it is necessary to analyze the achievement of the goals based on historical capability baseline data to ensure that the goals are reasonable and achievable. Information system projects are quite different from traditional manufacturing processes. When judging management capabilities, organizations can use Process Capability Index (CPK) to judge the achievability of goals. ​

When the CPK is greater than or equal to 1.33, it means that the current process capability of the organization can meet the target capability requirements, the process capability is good, and the state is stable; when the CPK is 1.00~1.33, it means that the current process capability of the organization can meet the target capability requirements,​

However, the state of organizational process capability is average, and a slight variation in process factors may lead to the failure to achieve the goal; when the CPK is 0.67~1.00, it means that the current process capability of the organization is unstable in meeting the target capability requirements, and there is a certain risk in achieving the goal. It is necessary to carry out improvement activities to improve the ability to achieve the goal; when the CPK is lower than 0.67, it usually means that the current process capability of the organization cannot meet the target capability requirements, and there is a large risk in achieving the goal, and it is necessary to consider redefining the relevant management process or adjusting resources on a large scale Invest to achieve the goal. ​

In the process of defining organizational quality and process performance goals, it is also necessary to effectively decompose the goals so that the goals can be effectively managed in stages or monitored and adjusted in the process, so as to achieve the purpose of quantitative management and refined management. The management characteristics of information system construction determine that the main project management models of organizations in this field can be divided into two categories: strong matrix and functional management models. For the strong matrix management model , the organization-level goals should be decomposed into each project according to the characteristics of business lines and programs; Functional departments such as testing, integration and operation and maintenance, in order to facilitate the management and monitoring of targets. Decomposition objectives need to be reviewed together with organizational-level objectives by all stakeholders within the organization to obtain commitments from stakeholders to ensure that the decomposition objectives can be achieved. ​

2 Identify key processes

After the organizational governance and process performance goals are determined, usually all aspects of project engineering and management may have an impact on the project performance goals. The organization's resources are usually limited. To ensure management efficiency, it is necessary to select the key processes or factors to achieve the goals according to the defined quality and process performance goals, define their measurement attributes and carry out quantitative management. The selection of key processes must first define key process selection criteria. ​

For the processes and sub-processes selected by the organization that have a key impact on the goal, we can focus on establishing a data measurement and analysis system for them, so as to understand the process capability and stability of these key processes. When some situations arise, the organization needs to check the correspondence between the objectives and the process, and revise the selection of scale or sub-process. These situations mainly include: changes in business objectives, organizational quality and process performance objectives; changes in basic quality and process performance; changes in the organization's process structure and process content. ​

During the project process, the technical process can be roughly divided into two categories: developmental activities and verification activities. Requirements development, software design, coding implementation, product integration and other activities are all developmental activities. Such activities occupy a relatively large workload in the entire project and have a great impact on productivity or project duration; technical review, code walkthrough And testing activities are verification activities, which focus on the removal of defects and have a relatively greater impact on delivery quality. This can be used as a basic guiding idea when selecting key processes. ​

3 Establish a measurement system and collect

After the organization has identified and quantified the processes that have a critical impact on the objectives, it shall define the appropriateness of the selected process or sub-process based on the determined organizational quality and process performance objectives, the organization's measurement and analysis technical guidance, and the selected process or sub-process. The measure of the property. In order to ensure the sufficiency and usability of data samples, and ensure the establishment of subsequent data analysis and predictable models, in addition to the "result data" of each process capability in the process of establishing measurement attributes, it is necessary to focus on identifying the "process data" that may have a potential impact on the process capability results. ". To identify process data, mind mapping can be used to identify factor indicators that may affect process capability results from multiple aspects such as people, machines, materials, methods, environment, and testing. ​

To ensure the availability of metric attributes, the criteria to be considered when selecting metrics mainly include:​

• Metric items that are suitable for the organization's quality and process performance goals should be selected to ensure that the metrics can verify the achievement of the goals or reduce deviations;​
• Measurement attributes must fully cover the entire life cycle of the product;​
• The measure is actionable;​
• Clearly define the frequency of metrics data collection;​
• Metric properties are controllable;​
• This measurement item can represent the user's point of view on the effective process (that is, to ensure that the selected attributes and statistical data are consistent with the user's point of view). ​

After the measurement is selected, an operational definition should be made, including meaning description, measurement formula, measurement data, data source, collection frequency, person in charge, etc., to form a process measurement description file, which will be used to guide the data optimization and analysis of each project team in the future Work. ​

After the measurement system is established, it needs to be jointly reviewed by relevant roles within the organization to ensure the correctness and effectiveness of the data measurement items, and at the same time, it needs to confirm that the collection of measurement items can be completed within the expected workload. Organizations need to regularly evaluate the usability and validity of metrics. When the organization's business goals, standard processes, and working methods change, the organization's measurement system must be maintained in a timely manner to ensure the normal operation of the measurement system and continuous and effective support for the data required by the organization's management. ​

According to the established measurement system, publicize and implement within the organization, promote each role of the organization and the project team to understand the measurement analysis description defined by the organization, and follow it to carry out the collection of process measurement data. Organization-level support, management teams, and project teams need to identify organizational-level measurement data requirements, customer or service object requirements, and management information requirements of other relevant stakeholders during the work execution process, tailor them according to organizational-level measurement instructions, and define projects level measurement and analysis plan. ​

The techniques used in quantitative management usually include process performance baseline, process performance model, control chart, variation analysis, regression analysis, confidence interval or prediction interval, sensitivity analysis, Monte Carlo simulation and hypothesis testing, etc. ​

After the measurement data is collected, the project manager must review the quality of the measurement data according to the quality review rules of the measurement data. Data quality review methods include benchmarking, traceability analysis, data autoregression, etc., so as to ensure the quality of measurement data, and the data can accurately support management decisions or serve as effective references for follow-up projects. ​

4Establish a process performance baseline

The purpose of establishing a process performance baseline (Process Performance Baseline, PPB) is to describe the ability of each process of the organization's current project through historical data, determine the stable range of process capability, provide data support for management decision-making, and provide support for subsequent project estimation and planning. Provide reference data benchmarks for management and management work. The steps to establish a process performance baseline mainly include: obtaining required data, analyzing data characteristics, establishing a process performance baseline, publishing and maintaining a process performance baseline. ​

1) Get the required data

The organization collects project process capability data based on the established measurement system, and establishes an organizational measurement database. The organization needs to select a reasonable range according to development needs and project cycle conditions, obtain the required data from the organizational measurement database, and establish a historical capability baseline. According to the practice of statistical process control on the selection of data samples, usually there should be no less than 32 initial sample data for establishing the process capability baseline. ​

2) Analyze data characteristics

After obtaining the sample data, the data characteristics of the process capability must be verified to determine whether it needs to be grouped. If it is judged from the data characteristics that there is a stratification of capabilities, the data must be grouped and capability baselines established separately to avoid bias and misleading subsequent data results. ​

To judge whether the data needs to be grouped, you can use the confluence test to verify whether the process capability data conforms to the normal distribution. For the data that does not conform to the normal distribution, it may need to be grouped; the process data that passes the normal test is still There is the possibility of grouping, and it is necessary to organize a further analysis of the process capability to confirm whether it is necessary to group. For data that needs to be grouped, it is usually necessary to try to analyze the hierarchical status of the data in multiple ways, and establish a process performance baseline by grouping. ​

3) Establish a process performance baseline

Organizations can use control charts (Control Chart) to establish process performance sin lines, with historical capability averages as the center line (Center Line, CL) of capability, and 3 standard deviations above the center line as the upper control limit of process capability (Upper Control Limit, UCL), and 3 standard deviations below the center line as the lower control limit of the ability to pass H (Lower Control Limit, LCL). For the process capability conforming to the normal distribution, it can be known from the above: the probability of the process capability in the CL±sigma interval is about 68%; the probability of the process capability in the CL±2sigma interval is 95%; the probability of the process capability in the CL±3sigma interval is 9973% as a benchmark for process capability. ​

After the process capability baseline is established, the organization must determine whether there is an abnormal point in the current capability of the selected process. If there is an abnormal point, it needs to be analyzed, and an appropriate method should be selected to deal with the abnormal point to obtain the true capability range of the process. Based on the control chart, the judgment criterion can be established in the form of standard deviation to identify the occurrence of small probability events and identify the occurrence of small probability events as abnormal points, so as to analyze and process abnormal data. ​

For abnormal data, it is necessary to conduct an in-depth analysis of its causes. If the abnormal data belongs to a special cause, it is necessary to identify the content of the special cause, delete or calibrate the data before using it; if the abnormal data is due to a normal cause (that is, the "noise" in the process) , this data needs to be incorporated to form the final process performance baseline. The process performance baseline represents the capability range of the organization within certain conditions. In the process of establishing the process performance baseline, the organization needs to indicate the precondition range of the process performance. ​

4) Publish and maintain process performance baselines

After the process performance baseline is established or adjusted, it is necessary to coordinate the organizational management, improvement team, and process leaders to review the process performance baseline to ensure that the capability baseline established by the organization can obtain the consensus of all relevant stakeholders. When the organization's business goals, process performance goals or standard processes change, the organization needs to maintain the process performance baseline in a timely manner so as to provide continuous and effective guidance for subsequent projects. ​

5 Build a Process Performance Model

Based on the process performance model (Process Performance Model, PPM), the purpose is to establish a process performance model through regression based on the organization's quantifiable goals, using the organization's established measurement system and the process performance baseline established by collecting data, to identify the organization's or The explanatory relationship between the quantitative objectives of the project process capability and the process factors realizes the quantitative prediction and interpretation of the organization's objectives, and supports the decomposition and tracking of the quantitative objectives of the organization and the project. The steps of establishing a process performance model mainly include: identifying modeling factors, establishing a process performance model, testing the process performance model, appraising and publishing the process performance model. ​

1) Identify modeling factors

Compared with other models, the most notable feature of the process performance model is that it contains controllable factors (Controlled Factor). The steps to identify modeling factors are to first identify the quality and process performance goals of the organization as the output of the model (Outcome), and then identify the process capability factors related to the model output, which must include controllable factors. Methods to identify process factors include fishbone diagram, Delphi method (Delph1) or brainstorming, etc. Based on the historical data of the organization and the established process performance baseline, use the Person correlation coefficient to determine the correlation between each factor data and the result data. Each factor is recorded as X, the output is recorded as y, and the correlation coefficient between X and y is r(x, y) The calculation formula is as follows. ​

According to the results of the correlation analysis, the factors with relatively large correlation are usually selected to participate in the establishment of the process performance model. At the same time, considering the needs of multiple regression analysis and modeling, there should be no high correlation between various factors, otherwise it will cause multi-collinear problems, leading to logical confusion or even failure of the established regression model. ​

2) Establish process performance model

Based on the collected process component performance data, the organization establishes a process performance model through regression, regardless of the modeling factors (independent variables) identified by correlation analysis that are related to the quality and process performance objectives (dependent variables). Since there are multiple quality and process performance objectives of the organization in project management, there are usually several or several groups of process performance models established by the organization. ​

Organizations may consider adopting a multi-level model approach. The first level is to establish a process performance model for the final quality and process performance goals to ensure that the final quality and process performance goals can be pre-painted and effectively decomposed; the second level is to develop and design requirements Establish process performance models in processes such as , coding, testing and review, and realize the decomposition of weighing performance goals to process controllable factors. The multi-level model is used to realize the layer-by-layer decomposition, gradual refinement and monitoring of the quantitative objectives of the organizational and project R&D management process, so as to ensure the effective decomposition and implementation prediction of the quantitative management objectives of the organization. ​

3) Verify process performance model

Based on the collected process performance data, the organization establishes the process performance model in a regression manner by forcing the modeling factors (independent variables) related to quality halo and process performance goals (dependent variables) identified through phase nature analysis. ​

After modeling through multiple regression, it is necessary to judge the reliability of the model through the key parameters of the modeling results. According to the hypothesis testing method, when the value P of each factor involved in the modeling is less than 0.05, the factor is considered to be significantly related to the model result and can be retained; if the P is greater than 0.05, further analysis of the availability of the factor is required. In addition, according to the requirements of regression square sum R 2 (that is, R-sq value) as the determination coefficient, the closer R-sq is to 1, the higher the reliability of the model is considered. According to the characteristics of software research and development projects in the field of gold and vice, when the R-sq value is less than 0.7, the reliability of the model is considered to be weak, and the factor needs to be reselected; when the reliability is greater than 0.7, the model is considered to be basically reliable. ​

After the model is established, it is necessary to verify the correctness of the model logically. Since there are many factors in the process of establishing a multiple regression model, it is necessary to strictly review the correctness of the logic of each factor, verify the logical relationship between the factors of the model and the output of the model one by one, and avoid logical confusion caused by multiple collinearity in the multiple regression model. After the logical verification is passed, it is necessary to establish a scatter plot for the residual value to judge the normality of the residual; establish a histogram for the residual to judge the trend of the residual; establish a trend graph to judge whether the residual is accurate over time Changes etc. Validate model correctness or reliability trends through residuals. ​

4) Review and release process performance model

After the process performance model is established or adjusted, it is necessary to coordinate the organizational management, the improvement team, and the process leaders to review the process performance model to ensure that the predictable model established by the organization can obtain the consensus of all stakeholders. ​

20.4.3 Project -level quantitative management

1 Definition of

When organizing the start of each project, the project team should set the project quality and quality requirements based on the organization-level quality basket and process performance target requirements, delivery requirements of customers or service objects, and management requirements of other relevant stakeholders, combined with the project team's own project process capability data. Process performance goals. The goal needs to give priority to ensuring the requirements of customers or service objects, while taking into account the needs of the organization and other stakeholders, and ensure the rationality of goal setting, so as to avoid unreasonable goals affecting the effective planning of the project. ​

After the project quality and process performance goals are set, project managers can use the process performance baseline and process performance model to predict the probability of achieving the project quality basket and process performance goals by means of Monte Carlo simulation. For the situation where the probability of achieving the goal does not meet expectations, the project should identify the risk of achieving the goal with the current process performance of the organization. At this time, it is necessary to demonstrate the rationality of the goal, identify the risk and formulate countermeasures, so as to increase the probability of goal achievement. ​

2. Process optimization combination

There are different sub-processes or execution methods in each process of project construction, and through the collection of measurement data, it is identified that there are groups of performance data in different process execution methods, which proves that different process combination schemes can bring different quality and process performance results. ​

There are usually multiple goals when setting the quality and process performance goals of the project. The selection of the implementation plan combination of each process of the project needs to weigh the achievement of multiple goals at the same time, so as to meet the needs, expectations and expectations of all relevant stakeholders for the project. limit. Since there are many baseline groupings of various processes in the organization, Monte Carlo simulation can be used to traverse each process combination to determine the optimal process combination scheme that meets the project quality and process performance objectives. ​

3. Process performance monitoring

The purpose of goal decomposition is to quantitatively decompose the quality and process performance goals of the project into each process or stage, and then decompose it into factors that have a key impact on the process or stage. Process performance monitoring is the reverse process of target decomposition: first, monitor whether the key influencing factors meet the decomposition requirements, second, monitor the stability and compliance of process performance, and finally monitor the achievement of the overall project quality and process performance goals. ​

The ability of the project team to actively monitor processes that have been selected by the project to have a critical impact on objectives, using statistical or other quantitative techniques. Quantitative monitoring of process performance includes at least two aspects: monitoring whether process performance is stable, and abnormal situations can be identified and resolved through small probability event judgment according to the stability judgment criteria of the control chart; monitoring whether process performance meets specification requirements. The target decomposed into the performance of the process can be used as the upper limit (Upper Specification Limit, USL) and lower limit (Lower Specification Limit, LSL) of the specification range. By comparing the upper and lower limits of the current process capability (UCL and LCL) with the upper and lower limits of the specification (USL and LSL), it is judged whether the process meets the specification requirements in terms of performance. ​

When the process performance is unstable or cannot meet the specification requirements, the project team needs to identify the influencing factors, carry out root cause analysis, find out the root cause affecting the process capability and solve it, so as to ensure the achievement of the project process performance goals and prevent similar The problem reoccurs during the follow-up. ​

4Project Performance Prediction

After the stability and compliance of each process performance of the project are satisfied, it is necessary to predict the attainment of the final quality and process performance goals of the project at each stage or milestone, so as to know whether the current progress of the project can achieve the final project quality and process performance objectives. When each phase or milestone of the project is completed, the performance data of this phase of the project will no longer be the distribution value in the process performance baseline, but become the actual value of the process performance. At this time, the project uses the Monte Carlo simulation method to use the actual value of the completed stage and the baseline value of the unfinished stage to re-predict the probability of achieving the process performance target, and an updated target achievement probability can be obtained. According to the confidence interval set by the organization, determine whether the probability of achieving the process performance goal is within the controllable range. If the predicted results show insufficient confidence, it is necessary to adjust the decomposition goals of subsequent milestones or stages to ensure the final quality of the project and the achievement of process performance goals . ​

At the end of the project, the project team needs to calculate the achievement of the final quality and process performance goals of the project based on actual data, quantitatively summarize and analyze the achievement of project goals, and contribute lessons learned and process performance data to the organization as a guide for follow-up work And the basis for updating PPB and PPM. ​

20.5 Project Management Practice Model

With the continuous development and accumulation of project management theory and practice on a global scale, many organizations have developed and published a collection of best practices in project management, among which the CMMI model and PRfNCE2 model are widely used to guide organizations in various fields project management activities. By using the best practices of CMMI model and PRINCE2 model, the management experience of project managers can be quickly theoreticalized and systematized, and the comprehensiveness and integrity of management can be improved. ​

20.5.1 CMMI model

The CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration, Capability Maturity Model Integration) model is mainly used to guide the improvement of the organization's project management process and to evaluate the maturity of project management capabilities. The current version is CMMI2.0. The CMMI model is widely used in R&D management in various fields, effectively promoting the improvement of delivery efficiency and delivery quality. ​

1. CMMI model practice

CMMI logically classifies all collected and demonstrated best practices into four major capability domain categories: Action (Doing): a capability domain for producing and providing excellent solutions. Managing: A competency domain for planning and managing solution implementation. Enabling: A capability domain used to support solution implementation and delivery. Improving: A capability domain used to maintain and improve efficiency. ​

The 4 capability domain categories contain 9 capability domains in total. The CMMI model groups a total of 196 practices into 20 practice domains, and assigns the 20 practice domains to 9 capability domains, as shown in Table 20-3. ​

Each practice area contains similar industry best practices, used to guide the organization to establish its own standard process and implementation of development management work in the project. ​

2. CMMI level and representation method

CMMI divides five maturity levels in total, divided into 1~5 levels. Each level of improvement is based on the previous level, and then adds new functions or proficiencies. As the level of maturity increases, the management ability and efficiency of the organization also increase. Levels 1 to 5 are as follows:​

(1) Level 1 initial level: the activities of each practice domain should be able to be basically implemented in the organization, and the organization can perform requirements development, coding implementation, system testing, project planning and monitoring in terms of software development and management. Its special level mainly includes: the preliminary method to meet the intention of the practice domain can be basically realized; there is no complete set of practices to meet all the intentions of the practice domain: start to focus on the ability issue. ​

(2) Level 2 management level: All the requirements of level 1 have been met. In addition, the organization can abide by the project team's established work plan and process in project implementation, and has strict requirements, tasks, outputs, measurement data, Relevant implementers can realize corresponding management and monitor and control the whole process. Organizations that have reached maturity level 2 have a series of management methods for projects, which avoids the randomness of the organization's completion of each project goal and ensures the success rate of project implementation within the organization. Each project can use its own method to achieve the goal of the practice domain, and its characteristics mainly include:​​

• A simple but complete set of practices that fulfills the full purpose of the practice domain:​​
• No need to use organizational assets or standards;​
• Managed all aspects of the project;​
• The intent of the practice can be met in various ways based on the project. ​

(3) Level 3 definition level: All the intentions and values ​​of level 2 practices have been achieved, and the organization can define the standard process applicable to itself according to its own situation, and institutionalize this management system and process. At the same time, the organization is required to be able to establish process assets, and the reusable process assets based on historical projects can be effectively reused, thereby improving the success rate of the project. Its level characteristics mainly include:​

• Carry out various tasks using organizational standard processes;​
• Ability to tailor Weaving’s standard process according to project characteristics to address specific project and work characteristics;​
• Projects can use and contribute process assets to the organization. ​

(4) Level 4 Quantitative Management Level: The intent and value of all Level 3 practices can be achieved. In addition, the management of the organization has been quantified and predictable. Realize the stability monitoring and composite monitoring of process performance through statistics or other optimization techniques, realize the refinement of management, and reduce the fluctuation of project process capability and quality. Organizations can build predictive models through historical data to achieve predictability for organizational and project quality and process performance goals. Its level characteristics mainly include:​

• Use statistical and other quantitative techniques to monitor, refine or predict key process areas to achieve organizational or project quality and process performance objectives;​
• Understand the changes in the efficiency and performance of organizations or projects in the form of statistics and quantitative management, and manage the efficiency and performance of organizations and projects according to the status of quality and process performance objectives. ​

(5) Level 5 Optimal: The intent and value of all Level 4 practices can be achieved. In addition, the organization can make full use of its management data and quantitative methods to prevent the content that may not meet the planning that may occur during the implementation of the project. Organizations can proactively improve standard processes and use new technologies and methods to achieve continuous process optimization. Its level characteristics mainly include:​

• Use statistical and other quantitative techniques to optimize efficiency performance and improve achievement of organizational objectives, including business, measurement, and efficiency performance as well as quality and process performance objectives;​
• Able to continuously support the achievement of the organization's business goals through continuous optimization based on quantification. ​

Each evolved level builds upon the previous level, adding a new ability or proficiency that increases ability. Levels 4 and 5 of CMMI are called high maturity levels, which focus on management efficiency and continuous improvement in a quantitative manner. ​

3. Process improvement

(1) Define improvement goals. Organizational process improvement work serves the achievement of organizational business goals or strategic planning. Using the CMMI model to carry out improvement work must first clarify the improvement goals, so that the efficiency improvement is consistent with the organization's strategic planning or business goals. ​

(2) Establish an improvement team. The process improvement team plays a vital role in the improvement of the organization. Usually, the process improvement team is composed of key roles of various departments or positions in the organization. It is responsible for establishing and decomposing improvement goals according to the organization's business goals, and coordinating and improving related resources. Plan and execute improvement work, establish and promote organizational standard processes and process assets, etc., and be responsible for the results of improvement work. ​

(3) Carry out gap analysis. To carry out improvement work, the organization must understand the status quo of the organization's current management process. Refer to the expected maturity level of the CMMI model and the requirements of the organization's business goals for the management process to carry out diagnosis work, identify the gaps in the current process of the organization, and clarify key improvement points and priorities. ​

(4) Import training and process definition. Based on the results of the gap analysis, formulate the import training plan, carry out the training of the CMMI model, and ensure that the improvement team understands the best practices in the industry. The improvement team defines or perfects the organization's standard process based on the organization's management status, combined with the practice of the CMMI model, to ensure that the established or optimized standard process can meet the needs of the organization's strategic planning or business goals. ​

(5) Process deployment. The improvement team will carry out the promotion and deployment of the standard process within the organization, and fully implement the organization's standard process for the management process within the organization. During the deployment process, the organization also needs to establish a quality assurance mechanism to monitor and review the implementation of the standard process. ​

(6) CMMI evaluation. CMMIV2.0 has 3 evaluation methods, which are Benchmark Appraisal, Sustainment Appraisal and Evaluation Appraisal. Benchmark assessment and maintenance assessment are assessment types that can generate ratings. Evaluation assessment is a tailored implementation of benchmark assessment and does not generate ratings. After the organization's standard process and improvement are fully deployed, an appropriate evaluation method can be selected to carry out evaluation, verify the improvement work progress, and determine the organization's maturity level. ​

20.5.2 PRINCE2 model

1. Overview

PRINCE2 (Project IN Controlled Environment, project management in a controlled environment) is one of the project management methods widely used in the world today, and it is a structured project management method based on experience. Key features of PRINCE2 include:​

• Guidelines for project management, building on established and proven best practices and governance;​
• It can be tailored to meet the specific needs of the organization;​
• Can be applied to any type of project, and can be combined with experts and industry models for fusion application;​
• Is widely known and understood and provides a common vocabulary for all project participants;​
• Ensure that participants focus on the feasibility of the project in relation to their project evaluation goals, rather than simply defining the "completion" of the project as completion;​​
• Facilitate learning project experiences. ​

The PRINCE2 structure includes principles, themes, processes and project environments. ​

• PRINCE2 principles: guiding principles and best practices. It can judge whether a project is really managed by PRINCE2. Only when all 7 principles are applied can it be called a "PRINCE project". ​
• PRINCE2 Topic: Describes several important aspects of project management that require ongoing attention in project management. These seven themes explain the specific approaches and necessity of PRINCE2 requirements for different project management disciplines. ​
• PRINCE2 process: describes the progress of the project, from the preliminary activities of project preparation, to each stage in the project life cycle, and finally to the final project closure. Each process has a checklist of proposed activities, products, and associated responsibilities associated with it. ​
• Project environment: Organizations usually want to use a consistent method to manage projects, and tailor PRINCE2 to create their own project management methods. This approach will then be ingrained in the way the organization works. ​

2. PRINCE2 principles

PRINCE2 has been designed with project size, organization, geography and culture in mind so that it can be used for any type of project. It is designed to contribute to the success of the project, not to bring a bureaucratic burden to the project. Topics, processes, and product descriptions describe what we should do, not how. PRINCE2 is created based on principles rather than rigid rules. Its principles have the following characteristics:​​

• Versatility, as it can be applied to every project;​
• Self-verification, because it has been verified in practice for many years;​
• Autonomy, as these principles empower practitioners with methodologies that increase practitioners' confidence and ability to manage projects more effectively. ​

The principles of PRINCE2 provide a good practice framework for those involved in the project, and the principles of PRINCE2 are derived from lessons learned from successful and failed projects, as shown in Table 20-4. ​

PRINCE2 topics describe aspects of project management that must be followed as the project progresses through its lifecycle. For example, project justification needs to be updated and revalidated throughout the life of the project as changes will occur and risks will need to be managed. However, the strength of PRINCE2 lies in the way the seven themes are organically combined, and this advantage is achieved by means of each theme-specific PRINCE2 treatment, which is carefully designed so that it can be effectively linked together, as shown in Table 20-5 . ​

Clipping affects how the theme is applied. The impact on themes depends on whether the project team has a high degree of autonomy in implementing each of its themes, or whether it needs to strictly follow the rules. The 7 themes of PRINCE2 must all be applied in the project, but should be tailored according to the risk, scale, attributes and complexity or simplification of the relevant project, and always ensure that any minimum refinement requirements in the theme can be met. ​

4. PRINCE2 process

PRINCE2 is a process-based approach to project management. A process is a structured set of activities designed to accomplish a specific goal, which takes one or more defined inputs and transforms these inputs into defined outputs. PRINCE2 has seven processes that provide the set of activities required to successfully direct, manage and deliver projects. ​

20.6 Exercises

1. Multiple choice questions

(1) Regarding the understanding of program management, the incorrect one is ____. ​

A program manager is someone who commits the organization's resources to the program and is committed to making the program successful​

Portfolio management is better used when B-component projects or programs do not contribute to the achievement of common or complementary goals​

C program management performance domain includes program strategic alignment, program benefit management, program stakeholder engagement, program governance, and program life cycle management​

The main activities of D program benefit management include benefit identification, benefit analysis and planning, benefit delivery, benefit transfer, and benefit maintenance​

Reference answer: A​

(2) The organizational project management (OPM) framework includes ____. ​

A. OPM methodology, knowledge management, talent management​

B. OPM methodology, process management, resource management​

C. OPM governance, OPM methodology, process management, resource management​

D. OPM governance, OPM methodology, knowledge management, talent management​

Reference answer: D​

(3) Regarding the description of the statistical process control method, the incorrect one is ____. ​

A Statistical process control is a preventive approach, emphasizing full participation​

B Statistical process control technology can determine whether the state of the working process is stable, and can also determine whether the process capability meets the specification requirements​

C statistical process control method believes that any organization or individual's ability to perform a process will have certain fluctuations, which is normal​

D The statistical process control method believes that the ability of the project team or personnel should be constant and should not fluctuate​

Reference answer: D​

(4) Regarding the description of Six Sigma, the incorrect one is ____. ​

A five-step cycle improvement method is the DMAIC model, including: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control​

BSix Sigma is a management method based on statistical analysis of data, emphasizing the ability to use data to objectively reflect the management process​

The representative feature of C Six Sigma is that the organization has a unified management process and management indicators​

The five-step implementation process of D Six Sigma is not a single one, but an interrelated unity when various management processes are implemented to improve​​​

Reference answer: C​

(5) Regarding the description of establishing a process performance model in quantitative management, the correct one is ____. ​

AThe factors for establishing the process performance model can only choose the existing factors in the current process performance baseline​

B For factors whose correlation coefficient reaches a strong correlation (lrl>0.8), they can be included in the modeling factor​

C For the verification of the process performance model, focus on the P value and R-sq value, and usually do not need to pay attention to the residual value​

D Statistics-based quantitative techniques mainly include: process performance baseline, process performance model, regression analysis, Monte Carlo simulation, etc.​

Reference answer: D​

2. Thinking questions

Please point out the differences between project, program, and portfolio management, and their relationship to OPM. Please list scenarios where the use of project portfolio management is appropriate and describe how it supports strategic objectives. ​