Project Approach - Lifecycle
IT and specifically
Internet or On-line operation projects have more risk associated with environmental
failure. Many on-line operation projects fail because they do not follow
a methodology that identifies and manages this risk. The evolutionary approach
solicits and evolves business user requirements, and then construct a prototype
very quickly.
Making big announcements about a forthcoming
project usually sets expectations very high, and the organization has to
live up to these expectations. With Titanic, for example, the expectation
was that it was the safest ship ever. Expectations need to be set for the
project completion and shutdown.
The evolutionary approach is akin to a cycle repeatedly spinning around.
At the start of a project, a work breakdown structure defines the activities,
and groups them into cycles. Another view is a micro and macro approach,
i.e., start small but scale fast. In each evolution, the model increases
in functionality and availability. This approach allows the immediate testing
of the working model early on. A feedback loop improves each evolution,
by allowing lots of minor adjustments to be made quickly, which helps measure
the over-all progress and gauge the likelihood of success.
The time gap to project benefits is
important. The project should not just gently wind down and allow a post-project
state to resume. The project needs to transition to operations and a continuous
improvement program.
Approaches to projects
An essential part of the series is having an approach to projects. Modern
project management only evolved after 1945. Prior to that the science of project management
was evolving notably when Henry Gantt (1861 - 1919)
developed the Gantt Chart in 1917.
Today we have a rich legacy of approaches that can be summarized
below:
These
need to be carefully matched to the projects.
|
Approach
|
Description
|
Positive
|
Negative
|
| Waterfall |
All the major activities
are in a one-step approach that completes like a production line. |
A very traditional and well-understood
approach to projects. |
At least 12 months before benefits are realized. The project might also get off track. |
| Incremental |
Evolved as cost of large software -development projects escalated. The most costly stages, constructing & testing are delivered in increments. | Addresses the short-comings of the water-fall approach by delivering benefits in structured increments. | Not flexible to changes in architecture
and design. |
| Spiral |
Evolved through systems integration projects that were required in fast-changing environments, where the approach is iterative with different organizational groups. | Addresses the shortcomings of the incremental approach by focusing on rapidly changing requirements in stages 1, 2, and 3. | Not flexible to changes in construction
and testing. |
| Evolutionary |
Combines the incremental
and spiral approaches, where the solution is evolved in small evolutions.
This provides a tailored fit to business needs. |
Addresses the shortcoming of all the
previous approaches. |
More chaotic than traditional projects. Requires experience as each evolution completes. |
The evolutionary approach is the most effective for modern IT projects and has been used in both books for the following reasons:
- It catches major flaws a lot earlier, and so is more cost-effective than other approaches.
- It creates something quickly, so adjustments to scope can be readily made.
- It gets executive buy-in and organizational support by showing early success.