BTA Project Management

Business Technology Associates, Project Management

"All of us know the fundamentals of good software--the difference is that most projects don't do them nearly so well and then get into trouble" Bill Hetzel, 1993.

Gantt Chart

Project management is the process of defining, planning, directing, monitoring, and controlling the development of an acceptable system at a minimum cost within a specified time frame.¹

Scoping the Project

A written project definition should be the most visible component of every project. This should include the following:

A opportunity or problem statement addressed by the project.
The project goal.
The project objectives.
Project assumptions and constraints.

Planning

Success of a software development project doesn't just happen! Managing software development includes these activities:

Estimation
Task scheduling
Selecting and organizing the team
Selecting a methodology
Risk management

Monitoring and Oversight

Once a project has been started the focus changes to staying with the plan. Of course every element of a project conspires to derail the project plan. Most projects begin to fail long before management is aware of the problems. By improving project tracking, an organization can reduce a major risk in software development. By measuring a project's metrics the process can be repeated and improved.

¹ Jeffrey L. Whitten, Lonnie D. Bentley, Systems analysis and design methods (Irwin/McGraw-Hill, 1998), p. 595. BTA Home Page | Top | Contact Us