The Huntsville Project - What We Have Learned

Huntsville Project Evaluation

The Huntsville Project-What have we learned

The Huntsville project has been significantly helpful as an exercise in learning the basics and principles of Project Management. We have learned what role the project manager plays in his/her quest to successfully complete a project from start to finish. We have also learned best practices when in control of a project or taking over a project that is already in progress.

Detail elements of a project are also important and we have learned to create a project charter, scope statement, work breakdown structure and responsibility matrix. The project charter the project charter is that starting point. The charter lays the foundation of the project. It includes a statement of the business's needs. We learned that the scope statement is the defining statement of the project. It is the document that defines the project and is the basis for making decisions about the project. The scope statement is a dynamic document in that in the beginning it contains the information available, and as the project progresses, it is changed and added to. It is the primary document used for understanding the project and its nature. The WBS was discussed and we learned that it provides the necessary framework for detailed cost estimating and control along with providing guidance for schedule development and control. Additionally, the WBS is a dynamic tool and can be revised and updated as needed by the project manager.

From the development of the project plan, we used Microsoft project to create the schedule, enter resources and cost. Once this information is entered, it is helpful for the software to assist you in understanding where the problems in the project lie. MS Project is intelligent enough to assist with functions such as correcting over-allocated resources. When set up properly, it can also highlight the critical path and determine where we have flexibility in the schedule. Knowing how each task could be impacted when its predecessors are late give the project manager an advantage of advanced knowledge of the schedule impact. With this knowledge, the project manager can manage the three constraints of a project and be flexible when projects problems arise. It is important for a project manager to be prepared and anticipate possible issues. Brainstorming is a technique used to understand and issues and risk that can occur. The philosophy is that the more prepared the better. We also evaluated the critical path for evaluated those items and analyze the project schedule and resource allocation. Microsoft Project is a great tool to keep project management task, budget and scheduling, updated and organized. It can be used to support the techniques of project management.

The project close-out is the last part of the project. (Gido)Being the very last part of the project