Project Management Fundamentals Self Study Guide

Project
Management
Fundamentals
Self Study Guide

Version 2.0

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 Project Management Fundamentals Self Study Guide

Table of Contents

1.0 Introduction and Objectives...........................................................................................3

2.0 Projects and Project Management..................................................................................5
Definition of a Project......................................................................................................5
Definition of Project Management...................................................................................6
Why is Project Management valuable?............................................................................8
Project Lifecycle..............................................................................................................8
3.0 Thomson Reuters Project Management Framework – RPD........................................10
RPD Lifecycle................................................................................................................10
4.0 Reasons for Project Success and Failure.....................................................................11

To access information on the Content Learning Community please follow this link

https://thelink.thomsonreuters.com/portal/server.pt?
open=512&objID=4930&PageID=284858&cached=true&mode=2&userID=209908

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 Project Management Fundamentals Self Study Guide

1.0 Introduction and Objectives

This self study guide forms one part of the Project Management Fundamentals
Course for Content Staff. The course in its entirety includes:

• This Project Management Fundamentals self study guide

• The ‘Project Management Fundamentals’ eLearning
• A case study document – to be used as preparation work for the classroom
portion of this course
• The interactive one day classroom session

The aim of the self study guide is for users to build their knowledge on the
fundamentals of project management (and for some users, to review and recap the
key concepts) prior to completing the eLearning.

The eLearning ‘Project Management Fundamentals’ looks at the general principles

regarding projects and project management. Users will need to be able to apply
these general concepts to the way in which Project Management works within
Thomson Reuters.

The case study document will give users an opportunity to become familiar with the
practical example that will be used during the classroom course. Participants will
need to complete a Project Charter as part of the preparation for the classroom
course.

The one day classroom course is designed to cover the more practical elements of
Project Management and will give participants a forum to share project
experiences.

It is recommended that you complete the learning in the order listed above.

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 Project Management Fundamentals Self Study Guide

This information contained within the self study guide will help you to get a common
understanding of the key components of projects and to understand the critical
role that the project manager plays.

At the end of this self study guide you should be able to:

• Define the term Project and identify the 4 phase project lifecycle process
• Define the term Project Management and identify why it is valuable
• Explain why projects succeed or fail
• Describe the characteristics of an effective Project Manager

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2.0 Projects and Project Management

Definition of a Project

“A project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product or

service”
- PMBOK Guide

This definition comes from the Project Management Institute (PMI) which is
Thomson Reuters chosen Project Management certifying body.

The global certification is called Project Management Professional (PMP). Project

Managers who meet the minimum requirements may APPLY for sponsorship to
complete the certification. It is generally available to Project Managers who have
been managing projects for 3 years.

More information on PMI and certificates can be found on the PMI website
available here: http://www.pmi.org

The PMBOK is the Project Management Body of Knowledge, which is the standard
of ‘how to manage a project’ as laid down by PMI. For those of you who are
interested, a copy may be available from your local Learning Team.

Other considerations can be added to this definition and in summary a project can
be described as:

• A planned undertaking
• To accomplish a specific goal or objective
• In a well defined time period

Outside of your work at Thomson Reuters, can you think of some examples of
Projects that you have been involved with? Write your ideas here:

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 Project Management Fundamentals Self Study Guide

Some of the projects you might have been involved with could include:

 Building a shed
 Moving house
 Creating a garden
 Saving up for something specific
 Changing career
 Running a Marathon

Definition of Project Management

“Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques on

project activities to meet project requirements.”
- PMBOK Guide

The Project Manager (PM) is therefore responsible for the overall management and
execution of the project. This is an especially challenging position because of the
several roles and multiple responsibilities requiring the incumbent to “wear many
hats”.

In addition the PM must have many and often competing competencies. E.g. the PM
must be able to see the “Big Picture” while at the same time being comfortable
immersed in detail.

The PM leads the team from a project perspective conveying the project goals
clearly to all at all times and motivating the team towards them.

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The PM plans the steps in the project which will achieve the goals

The PM does administration tasks such as status reporting, change control

documentation, project plan, final report etc.

Other skills necessary to successfully manage projects include the ability to:

Communicate Negotiate Make decisions

Influence Manage conflicts Solve problems
Deal with politics Think creatively

What about other project members?

What are their roles and responsibilities?

Stakeholders – anyone who has an interest in the outcome of the project

– provide feedback and input on their needs and goals.

Sponsors – the owners of the project in terms of budget and ‘wanting it done’.
They have initiated the project; provide the goals and guidance regarding change
control and scope

Team members – progress the project and work as a team

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Why is Project Management valuable?

The following has been taken from the book ‘Just Enough Project Management’ by
Curtis Cook p 6-10:

1. It establishes a single point of contact and accountability for the overall

success of the project.
2. It focuses on meeting the customer needs and expectations.
3. It improves performance in time, cost and technical areas.
4. It obtains consistent results through the definition and application of a
process.
5. It focuses on managing project scope and controlling change.
6. It helps to avoid disasters by managing risk.
7. It strengthens project teams and improves morale and motivation.
8. It improves bottom-line performance and grows the business.

Project Lifecycle

This section contains key concepts that will be discussed in detail throughout the
course. All projects within Thomson Reuters have a lifecycle of 4 basic phases:

• Initiate
• Plan
• Implement
• Close

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The Initiate Phase:

Sets the foundation of the project and establishes the basis by which it will be
measured. It can also be referred to as the Concept Phase.

The Plan Phase:

This transforms the idea from the Initiate Phase into a detailed plan to accomplish
the objectives. It may include risk management planning, cost management and
quality management. A well planned project has a higher chance of success.

The Implement Phase:

Has two parts: Execute – complete the work detailed in the plan
Control – monitor and control progress

The Close Phase:

Evaluate the outcome of the project, review lessons learnt and celebrate!

These four phases are not linear and there is often movement between the planning
and implement phase as the project is planned, parts implemented and where
relevant re-planned.

Initiate

Implement Plan

Close

Note: The PMI defines 5 project management process groups:

• Initiating
• Planning
• Executing
• Monitoring and Controlling
• Closing

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3.0 Thomson Reuters Project Management

Framework – RPD
Thomson Reuters has its own project process. It is called the Thomson Reuters
Proposition Delivery (RPD)

You can find all the information about it on this website:

http://newiweb.ime.reuters.com/RPD/index.htm

RPD Lifecycle

This process provides templates and other tools such as checklists for use during
the major projects we undertake such as company acquisitions, new product
development / launch and the creation of large new systems e.g. NDA.

RPD has 2 useful eLearnings you can access from the site:
- RPD
- RPD checklist

This website has some good overall information on RPD but the documents can be
too cumbersome for smaller data projects. It may be a good idea to liaise with the
Head of Projects for your vertical to identify the documents they use or use only
the parts of the RPD documents that are applicable to a small project.

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4.0 Reasons for Project Success and Failure

Using your experience can you think of some reasons why projects sometimes fail?
Try and think of the three top reasons!
Write your ideas here:

Conversely, can you think of some reasons why projects succeed?

Try and think of the three top reasons!
Write your ideas here:

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According to the Standish Group http://www.standishgroup.com (who are a leading

provider of project management research), here are the top ten reasons why
projects fail listed in order of importance:

1. Lack of user input

2. Incomplete requirements or specifications
3. Changing requirements or specifications
4. Lack of executive support
5. Technology incompetence
6. Lack of resources
7. Unrealistic expectations
8. Unclear Objectives
9. Unrealistic timeframes
10. New technology

Here are the top ten reasons why projects succeed listed in order of importance:

1. User/Customer involvement
2. Executive management support
3. Clear statement of requirements
4. Proper planning
5. Realistic expectations
6. Smaller project milestones
7. Competent team
8. Ownership
9. Clear vision and objectives
10. Hardworking, focussed team

Is the project you are currently working on actively doing all the things listed
above? If not, what are some specific things you can do to incorporate these
activities into your project?

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So now you should be able to:

• Define the term Project and identify the 4 phase project lifecycle process
• Define the term Project Management and identify why it is valuable
• Explain why projects succeed or fail
• Describe the characteristics of an effective Project Manager

Well done! You’ve successfully finished this self study guide!

Next Step:
Complete the ‘Project Management Fundamentals’ eLearning.
This eLearning investigates the Basic Concepts of Project Management and The
Role of the Project Manager in more detail.

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