Week 1: Project Plan Draft
A project plan is a document created at the beginning of the project lifecycle that gives stakeholders and everyone else involved in a project a clear idea of what a project will entail in terms of effort, time, cost, and anticipated results.
One of the things that must be identified before the project plan can be created is the methodology, or approach, the project manager plans to use to manage the project. Choosing a methodology is important because a methodology provides the framework—that is, an overall process and suggested documents and deliverables—that will guide project development from beginning to end. Some project methodologies are more appropriate for some types of projects than for others.
For this assignment, you will:
- Choose a project methodology for two different projects based on project requirements, and explain why you chose each methodology for each project.
- Brainstorm your own project and create a draft simplified project plan for that project. You must indicate in your simplified project plan whether you intend to apply the Agile or waterfall methodology. You may create your simplified project plan using Microsoft® Excel® or, if you choose, another software application such as Microsoft® Project®.
To complete this assignment:
Read Agile Project Management and the PMBOK® Guide.
Answer the Methodology Selection and Rationale questions.
Brainstorm a project you would like to explore in this course. You may choose a project from your work experience, from a description of a project in your textbook or in an online reading, or a project that is brand new but that you think would improve a business process at work, at home, or at school.
Read the two linked examples of project plans implemented as Microsoft® Excel® spreadsheets, Example Plan A and Example Plan B. You will be using these as guides in creating your own draft project plan. Notice especially the differences between these two examples in terms of length (overall and task length), structure of the work breakdown (iterative vs. non-iterative), and methodology.
Research additional project plan examples online.
Create a simplified project plan for your own brainstormed project that resembles the two linked examples.
Save your simplified project plan as a Microsoft® Excel® spreadsheet document.
Submit both your completed Methodology Selection and Rationale questions and your project plan draft (Microsoft® Excel® document).
