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It always takes longer than you think - even if you think it will take longer than you think.Reflections on project managementPete Walker, Internet Development Managerpeter.walker@bristol.ac.uk

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What’s it all about?• The delights of project management

– Mainly from the developer’s perspective• Not another methodology

– Tips, tricks, techniques, clichés, trite little sayings, wise sayings, my mistakes, etc

• I won’t solve all your problems• I won’t answer all your questions

– but please ask questions at any time• I will save you time and money!

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Why am I here and what do I know?• 15 years IT experience• Programmer/DBA/Project Manager in Local

Government – Oracle, PL/SQL, Paradox and other PC apps

• Software Development Manager at Emis/Capita FHE– Student record systems for FE & HE– Oracle, VB, client-server

• Software Development Manager with Swift– Stock control, financial and manufacturing systems– Ingress database and 4GL

• May 2001 - joined ILRT

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What does ID group do?• Web sites and applications

– CMS for University of Bristol, C of E, LTSN-Best– Online survey software, car share software– UCISA, SCONUL, HESDA, Leadership Foundation– Departmental VLE’s– Course Online Booking System– eLearning apps

• 10 staff plus others from ILRT and IS• Open-source• Quasi-commercial• 50% UoB/50% external

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A lot to cover – the rest of this session• Definitions• Knowledge• Alarm bells• Requirements• Project scope• What the client must

do• How much and how

long?

• Planning• Communication• Handling change• We’re late!• Finished?• Measuring outcomes• Project team• Questions

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Definition time – “To manage”• Poster worthy?

– Be successful, achieve a goal, be in charge of, act on, deal successfully, control

• Sometimes necessary!– “achieve something by trickery or devious methods”

• Reality? (Struggle, frustration, just-about-do-it) e.g.– “We just managed to catch the train in time”– “He managed to convince them”– “We managed to hide the fact that the widget did

not actually work yet”

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To project manage (1)• You must play office politics• Knowledge leading to control• Lots of administration• Gain respect and authority (aka: at least

look as if you know what you are doing!)

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To project manage (2)• You are being watched!• You are not expected to be expert on everything• Expertise not through knowing but knowing

where to find out• 3 C’s

– Commitment– Communication– Coordination

• Despite the above - you need to know a lot of things!

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Knowledge• Professional knowledge e.g software,

methodologies• What projects have we got on and where are

they at?• Whose working on them, what are their skills?• What’s coming up next?• Costs (and ideally success criteria/ROI)• Milestones, deadlines• Customer comments – good and bad• Timesheets, Bug lists, Wash-up meetings

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Project initiation - Alarm bells!• Nobody’s project (or no one important) – you need a

project sponsor• No long term budget (initial spend only 30% of total)• Multiple customers/stakeholders• People think it is only a technical project• The job has to fit a budget not the other way round• Multiple dependencies• Potential feature creep – “oh and it could do this”• No idea where this project fits with institutional goals or

strategies• Have all this responsibility but not any authority

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Requirements - what do you want?• System requirements – the BIG problem?• Users WILL change their minds (for sure,

always, every time, without fail…)• They will never get everything• MoSCoW• “Must Have” V “Should have”?• Do you still want the system if you do NOT

get this feature?

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You won’t get this…• “Out of scope”- List what you won’t do• Don’t assume anything – check and agree• Client contact may change – write it all

down• You WILL miss something• Write it down for next time - keep

standard text• Get someone to sign (CYA)

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What the client has to do and when• Tell them what to do and when e.g.

– How many meetings?– Arrange for staff (particularly senior) to be available?– How long to review documents or designs?– Buy licences? – Sort-out domain names?– Prepare content (major)?– Convert data, etc?

• Penalties for being late! • Customer is always right? – not necessarily!

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Biggest Knowledge gap? How much and how long?• We’re all optimists - PMWT• Resist giving ball-park figures for cost or time• “I know this bloke wot wrote …”• “Gutless estimating” (Brooks)• Function-point analysis?• Metrics • Are you good at estimating – be honest!• Get estimates from project staff (buy-in)• Are your staff good at estimating – be honest!

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We just don’t know!• Most importantly - CYA• Tell the customer (more than once)• Try to better define requirements• Get paid for an analysis and specification

phase?• DSDM?

– Fix dates and budget but be flexible on functionality– Prototype– Time box– Cooperate – client as team member

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Planning (1)• Define scope before planning• Emperor’s clothes?• Public plan and real plan?• Gantt chart, Excel, Word?• Plan and then throw it away?• Effort V Elapsed – 3 day week?• Specific points in the year – guide not

determine e.g.– Start of the academic year– “It will be over by Christmas”

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Planning (2) - What to include• Analysis• Specification

(iterations?)• User interface design

(iterations?)• Development phases• Testing (and fixes!)• Content preparation• Documentation

• Holidays?• Server set-up?• Document review?• User acceptance?• Project

management?• Admin?• Meetings?• Milestones

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Planning (3)• Project Risk log – What’s the worse

that could happen?• What risks do you make public?

(CYA)• Will the customer overrun – do you

risk it?• Communication plan

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Communication (1)• Communication plan

– Audience. Who should receive the communication? – Reason. Why you are communicating with them. Why

are they a key stakeholder. – Event. The communication, be it a weekly report, or a

presentation, or seminar– Responsible. Who is responsible for preparing and

scheduling the piece of communication. – Medium. The way in which it will be delivered. – Timing. How often it will be presented. – Content. What it will contain. This should address the

reason the audience will be interested in the project.

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Communication (2)“Communication is not saying

something; it is being heard [and understood]”

• People hear what they want to hear; it suit their needs

• Write things down (CYA)

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We’d just like to change…• Change is inevitable, accept it (but not

too readily!• It never pays to be helpful!• Communicate & CYA

– Who is asking for it?– Get exact details– Impacts and risk– Write it all down– Get authorisation

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Doesn’t time fly!!• How does a project go late – one day at a time• Why?

– Hidden requirements– Changing requirements (poorly managed)– Under-estimation– Technology– Illness, staff leaving

• When development is 90% complete the project is only two-thirds done.

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POF?• Out of control, getting worse, redeemable but

only if you act now.• Communicate - tell the customer – talk to

them (even if there is nothing much to say)• Don’t throw resources at it!• Cut functionality rather than extend deadlines• If you do extend deadlines then make it

realistic (only do it once)

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Technology• Often the least important factor but…• Never use new technology on a

time/business critical project• NEVER use new technology on a

time/business critical project• Buy V Build – it depends….• Don’t lock-in content

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When its “finished”• Only finished when no one is using it

anymore• Wash-up – how was it for you? Good bits

as well as bad• Maintenance

– 20% of initial budget?– Initial cost only 30% of lifetime cost

• Don’t rely on one person – spread the knowledge

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Measuring the outcomes ROI• Number of users• Increased sales• Intangibles – image, lack of legal

action, etc• Site usage stats – misleading• People forget the past – point to

achievements

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The project team (1)• You need a mix – From gurus/high-flyer

through to plodders• Assign responsibilities

– try to avoid single expert– Assign the Cardboard cut-out developer?– Office Whiteboard of who’s doing what

• Keep people involved and informed• Belbin team roles

http://www.belbin.com/

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Project team (2) - Belbin team roles• Plant• Coordinator• Monitor/Evaluator• Implementer• Complete Finisher

• Resource Investigator

• Shaper• Team Worker• Specialist

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Pitfalls• Governance at the expense of

leadership?• Becoming defensive• “It’ll never work” - focus on the

negatives • Lose enthusiasm• Not prepared to take risks

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Do I practice what I preach?• No• I still under-estimate• I often regret not writing things down• I don’t say “no” enough• I still sometimes let keen developers

use new technology• …and always regret it!

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PM buzzword bingo• SSADM• DSDM• XP• RAD• UML• UCD• ROI

The useful ones?• CYA• POF• MoSCoW• PMWT• 3 C’s

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QUESTIONS?

Peter.walker@bristol.ac.ukhttp://www.ilrt.bristol.ac.uk