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Contents Of The PMP – Feedback – Problems With Exam

Paul Naybour Paul Naybour

Published: 15th February 2016

The project
management plan (PMP) consists of both strategies (policies and frameworks) and
tactical (processes and plans) elements. List and describe
four processes / plans which are included within the PMP (40 Marks)?

  1. Configuration Management process  – Configuration Management Plan
  2. Change Control process – Change Control Plan
  3. Quality Management process – Quality Management Plan
  4. Communications process – Stakeholder Management Plan

The configuration management plan
describes how configuration management is undertaken and is part of the
PMP.  The process consists of
Identification (giving each product unique identifier), Control – how each item
is checked out/in for change, status accounting (being able to account for the
different versions of a product), Audit (Being able to check that the items
held in the configuration management system align to the real worked version of
the product). This stages are wrapped in a plan which explains who is
responsible and the process undertaken. Without configuration management, it is
difficult to ensure a quality working product.

The change control plan describes
how change control is undertaken and is part of the PMP. Change requests are
captured and given a unique number. Then an intial assessment takes place to
see whether there is benefit in progressing the change to a full assessment
(the change may have been rejected previously). A full assessment then takes place
which leads to a decision by the sponsor to either accept, reject or defer. For
those changes which are accepted their work is scoped, added into the PMP and
implemented. Without change control, project scope is difficult to control.
The quality management plan which
is part of the PMP explains how the project will undertake quality assurance
(consisting of lessons learned, Assurance, supplier accreditation and Training)
and quality control (what methods will be employed to control the quality such
as inspection, measurement, sampling, pareto analysis). Improvements in
effectiveness and efficiency of quality control and quality assurance are made
through the process of continual improvement. Without a quality management plan
costs increase, the quality of what is being produces declines which can cause
reputational damage to the organisation.
The stakeholder management plan
identifies the stakeholders and their relative importance in terms of power and
influence. It determines how (e.g. email, meetings), when (Frequency depending
on power influence) and what (why are we communicating) as well as a feedback
mechanism to assess the success of the communication. Communications are a cost
to the project, and miscommunication can damage the project and its ability to
progress.
Explain what is meant
by “baselined project management plan” and how it is used (10 Marks)?
A baselined project management
plan is developed during the definition stage by the project manager. It
defines the how and when tasks take place. It provides a point from which to
measure any changes to the project in terms of time, cost and quality and
provides a comparision during gate reviews to access the continued viability of
the project. Without a baseline there is no way in which the sponsor can
measure the success of the project and the difference between planned and
actuals.