Question

You have been accepted as a Junior Project Manager at Super IT Pty. Ltd. Your first task assigned by the Senior Project Manager is to select and prioritise the best mobile application project in response to COVID-19 and the second task assigned is to write the Project Scope of the chosen project. These candidate projects include:

Gaming or entertainment application for COVID-19 isolated patients.

 Mobile applications in support of contact tracing for COVID-19.

 Mobile application information to provide the latest update of COVID-19.

 Mobile health application to contact doctors.

 Chatting application or social media platform for COVID-19 patient and family.

You have decided to use Project Selection and Prioritisation Matrix to select the best project, and then you will write the Project Scope of it.

question 2.1 Draw the Project Selection and Prioritisation Matrix and explain how you are finally able to select the chosen project. [10 marks]

question 2.2 Write the Project Scope statements for your chosen project.

Answer 1

Ans-

Benefits of Project Selection and Prioritization

Project selection and prioritization are all about having a game plan that accounts for both capacity and strategy. Let’s take a look at the benefits that companies stand to gain when these are balanced right.

Better ROI: The fundamental outcome of any project selection process is to increase the ROI. Several selection criteria and prioritization methods, discussed later in the article, can be used to weigh projects against each other, based on their returns.

Increased efficiencies: By investing effort upfront to evaluate the project pool, companies weed out inefficiencies that may creep up later due to not having enough capacity for execution.

Strategic alignment: A project that does not cater to organizational goals, even if executed flawlessly, is a waste of time. The right selection helps companies stay on track with their goals.

Consistency and transparency: A standard selection approach helps the PMO benchmark projects against well-defined criteria rather than use ad-hoc processes that lead to inconsistent approvals. The upside of this consistent approach is transparent downstream communication, as project managers get clarity on why a certain project was approved or rejected.

Shorter time-to-market: As companies become larger, they struggle to maintain an aggressive time-to-market, with a sea of projects competing for attention. Prioritization of projects gives companies the first-mover advantage, enabling them to reach customers before competition.

Successful project delivery: When organizations have good project selection and prioritization processes in place, it leads to the successful delivery of projects.

Project Selection Criteria for Portfolio Management

Ideally, deciding whether to go ahead with a project or not should be straightforward. But, in reality, it’s not. The difficulty often lies in leaving projects off the table, and it takes strong leaders with a clear vision to do that.

For example, if there are two projects—one that extends capacity or flexibility of a plant, and another that improves efficiency and expected lifespan of that facility—which one do you select?

The answer is not simple. It depends on which promises better ROI, the long-term goals for the organization, etc. If there is an aim to expand the plant,, the former is a sensible option. However, if the goal is to cut costs and increase longevity, the latter option may be preferred.

A few examples of project selection criteria are:

• What is the payback or break-even point?
• What is the impact to the organization’s growth (e.g., customer volumes)?
• Does the project contribute to innovation?
• How much risk is involved?
• Are there sufficient resources in terms of time, budget, infrastructure, and people with relevant expertise?
• What is the cost/benefit ratio?

Defining selection criteria is an important function of project portfolio management that’s done in collaboration with various stakeholders, such as customers, leadership team, and project managers. Feedback from projects executed in the past is also useful to pick the right criteria.

Project Prioritization Methods

Project prioritization is easier to manage with a small list of say, five projects. However, as this number grows significantly, the complexity can be difficult to handle, requiring more concrete methods.

Here are three useful methods for project prioritization:

1. Ranking Method

The ranking method is a simple approach that arranges the projects on a scale of, say, one to ten, based on their importance. Before assigning the rank, it’s important to ask the right questions.

Some ranking method example questions are:

• What is the project’s rate of return?
• What are the quantitative and qualitative benefits to the stakeholders?
• How do efficiencies improve if we go ahead with the project?
• Do we have the capacity and capability to execute the project? If not, how long would it take onboard new resources?

The advantage of this method is its quick approach that enables identification of top priorities. It works effectively when there are limited criteria to evaluate and it’s easy to assess the factors involved.

However, since it considers only one or two selection criteria, it could work out to be too simplistic for complex project evaluations. In such cases, the scoring model may be a better fit.

2. Scoring Model

The scoring model works when there are many selection criteria to consider and projects being compared are significantly different, making the process harder. Rather than selecting one or two criteria as in the ranking method, the scoring model considers one or two groups of factors, such as strategic alignment, benefits, ROI, risk, etc.

In addition to assigning a rating to each criterion, every group is given a weight. For example, benefits may have a factor of 1.5, whereas risk may have 0.75. The weighted average score is then computed to arrive at the final project score.

The challenge with the scoring model is that its attempt to accommodate a long catalog of criteria not only makes it more work for the PMO team, but it can also blur scoring. Along with that, the chance of biases and guesswork in the rating and weight criteria assignments makes it debatable whether the final score aptly reflects the project’s priority. One way to design the model is to test against existing projects and see how accurate the score is.

Usually, the PMO tends to take a middle ground by applying the scoring model on a shorter list of weighted criteria.

3. Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) Technique

AHP combines subjective elements with mathematical models to provide a more holistic technique than the ranking or scoring methods. Used commonly in many decision-making scenarios, it lends particularly well to complex project evaluations.

Similar to the scoring model, AHP works with a long list of selection criteria. However, it does a pairwise comparison, pitting every two criteria against each other, which reduces the possibility of errors and biases. After this apples-to-apples type of comparison, values are normalized, and the weighted score is computed. (For more details on this approach, review this detailed example from PMI).

Analytic hierarchy process’ strong reliance on quantitative techniques is its strength, as it translates an abstract problem into numbers and makes the reason behind a decision transparent. As the number of criteria increase, the math can get clunky. But, this isn’t something that the right PPM tool can’t solve.

AHP is definitely a more mature and recommended approach for complex decisions than the other two methods—it aims to understand the relative importance between two criteria rather than rank everything in absolute terms.

There is the possibility of guesswork in this technique, though. Factoring in multiple expert opinions and testing against existing projects for accuracy helps improve the model.

Continuous Monitoring in Project Prioritization and Selection

Project prioritization is usually perceived as an initial step, a decision point that leads to the actual execution of the project. However, many variables may impact the selection criteria as the project progresses. Project prioritization should instead be an ongoing process where project scores are reviewed and updated during project development and at designated stage gates. As project definition increases, the scoring becomes more accurate and definite.

Even after a project has begun, a new industry regulation may impact resources, processes, etc. All dynamic factors need to be continuously monitored by the PMO to re-prioritize as needed.

What is a project priority matrix?

The Project Priority Matrix is a structured approach to working on what matters most for the project’s’ stakeholders.

A prioritization matrix is a simple tool that provides a way to sort a diverse set of items into an order of importance. It also identifies their relative importance by providing a means for ranking projects (or project requests) based on criteria that are determined to be important.

Main three project elements

The ultimate success of any project is usually determined by meeting the expectations of the customer (whether external or internal) and/or upper management in terms of cost (budget), time (schedule), and performance (scope). The interrelationships between these three project elements are often different for the various project’s stakeholders and can even create tensions and conflicts.

Imagine, the impact that a decision of accomplishing the project at cost (on the budget) on the expense of realizing quality deliverables. Usually, higher performance can lead to higher associated cost. If a Project Manager wishes to reduce the project’s time because he aims at having shorter time-to-market but this would surely have an impact on cost.

Fig 1: Project Management Trade-offs.

How to prioritize the project matrix

One technique that can help manage different project expectations and the resulting trade-offs is the Project Priority Matrix in which for each one of the three project aspects (Cost – Time – Scope) the Project Manager needs to establish which one is accepted, which could be enhanced and which needs to be constrained.

When a criterion is constrained, then it is considered as the affixed parameter for the project. For example, the budget cannot exceed $10,000. When it is enhanced, the criterion can be optimized or improved, like for example when a Hospital sets as its project’s target to increase infection control by a further 10%. If the Hospital Management and the people working on this project reach a result where the Hospital can increase infection control by a further 12%, then that is the desired outcome. Finally, if a criterion is to be accepted, then the project stakeholders have agreed that it is OK not to meet the original Project parameters. When the project’s team decides that they can “miss” or “skip” the pre-fixed deadline, then they have accepted.

A Project Priority Matrix therefore helps prioritize complex or unclear issues when there are multiple criteria for determining importance it facilitates reaching agreement on priorities and key issues between many people working on the project and reaching common agreement on what is important?

The example of project priority matrix with iPhone X

It is interesting to examine closely how Apple could have handled the Project Priority Matrix of its flagship new Smartphone the iPhone X. Let’s take each project criterion one by one and try to establish the Project’s Priority Matrix.

a. Time

Apple is committed to launching its new iPhone versions each September to take advantage of the new academic season, but not only. Apple has many other products: Apple Watch, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, iPad, and many other innovations that it brings into the market each year. Apple’s biggest reveal.

However remains the iPhone around which a mega event is organized and announced well before it takes place. Many customers are waiting for the new iPhone, Apple creates a buzz around the product and many speculations on what new features it will bring are already on the various blogs and rumors start spreading fast. So it is imperative that the company sticks to its announced deadline, especially that customers will start placing their orders shortly after, manufacturers will start receiving their respective part orders, and the complex chain will be on the move. Therefore, time is a constraint.

b. Cost

We have seen how the new iPhone X is being sold at unprecedented price levels. Obviously, the cost of the smartphone set could exceed what has been predefined at the project’s launch. This is especially true given the marketing policy of Apple to sell its new iPhone at a premium thus targeting customers with higher purchasing power. Apple places itself at the top of innovation technology leaders and underlines this position with new smartphone features that customers are willing to pay for. Therefore, if cost is exceeded is will be accepted.

c. Performance (scope)

The iPhone has long had a reputation of bringing new technologies into the market, cameras, applications, Siri, iOs functionalities and parallel tasking. Therefore, it is needed to keep its leasing marketing position to be ready to enhance the existing features. The established market’s levels of smartphone incorporated features are constantly on the rise, and customer expectations are continuously getting higher, therefore performance has to be enhanced. Look at how this translates in the following Project Priority Matrix.

Ultimately, the goal is to strike a balance between constant disruption in schedules and adapting to stay aligned to the business objectives by having PPM tools and processes in place to manage the project portfolio.

8 Key Steps to Developing a Project Scope Statement

Alexis has nearly two decades of experience managing major programs and projects within the manufacturing and power generation industries, with current work focusing on sustainability initiatives. Based on his experience, he recommends project managers follow the eight steps below steps to develop an effective project scope statement.

1. Understand why the project was initiated.

Projects are not carried out in a vacuum, Alexis says; they are initiated to meet specific goals for an organization. For example, an organization may be looking to reduce operating costs by five percent by the end of next year, improve efficiency by 10 percent, or increase headcount by 20 percent. “As much as possible, the goals of the organization should be expressed in the project scope statement,” Alexis notes.

2. Define the key objectives of the project.

Once project managers understand what the organization is trying to achieve, they need to define the objectives of the specific project. The objectives should note why the project is being done, what will be done, when it will be done, and how much it will cost. In other words, the objectives describe why executives selected and funded a project and justify why the project exists, Alexis says. Objectives should be written with the SMART goal-setting best practices in mind—meaning they should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

3. Outline the project statement of work.

The statement of work provides a detailed breakdown of the work that a project team will perform. For a project focused on creating an internal review of new markets to enter, for example, items in the scope of work might include identifying and prioritizing targets, analyzing the benefits and drawbacks of each potential target, assessing the steps the company must take to enter each market, and providing guidance and recommendations for key decision-makers.

4. Identify major deliverables.

Project managers should work alongside key stakeholders to list the items that will be delivered at the end of the project, Alexis says. In the project scope statement, these items can be described at a high level—a new market assessment report, for example, or a new software feature—but they should still be tangible and measurable targets. A separate document, the work detail structure, will outline the specific activities associated with a particular deliverable. One way to remember the difference, according to Alexis: Deliverables are usually expressed as nouns and adjectives, while work details are expressed as verbs.  

5. Select key milestones.

A key milestone indicates when stakeholders can expect a particular deliverable to be completed. More complex projects may also include milestones for specific steps involved in creating or completing a deliverable. Milestones must include a specific date, Alexis says—not just that a report will be finished, but that it will be finished by October 15, 2020, for example.

6. Identify major constraints.

The project scope statement should note any limitations that the project team will face as it works to complete a project. These constraints could include personnel, resources, schedule, or other requirements.

7. List scope exclusions.

This list consists of deliverables that a project sponsor may assume are included in the scope of the project but are not, in fact, included. For example, a project sponsor may assume that a project to develop a management system also includes certification of that system. The project scope statement should clearly indicate if the project team will get the system certified or if the sponsor is responsible for obtaining certification after the project has been completed. This clarity helps project managers avoid “scope creep,” which occurs when deliverables that were not part of the original scope statement are added to a project mid-stream.

8. Obtain sign-off.

Requiring key stakeholders to sign the project scope statement offers confirmation that they are aware of and understand the contents of the scope, Alexis says. This helps avoid miscommunication that can lead to rework during or after the project—ultimately saving project managers and organizations frustration, time, and money.