Air Force Mentor-Protg Program
The Project
ERP Project management
overview
Ronald E. Giachetti, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Industrial and Systems Engineering
ERP Methodology and Project Management
Air Force Mentor-Protg Program
What is the project being managed?
An ERP Implementation project
Opportunity:
Integrate disparate systems
Provide real time information
Adopt proven systems
Enforce standards
Reengineer business processes
Restructure organization
In the beginning was The Project , and then arose the Assumptions.!
And The Project was without form and the Assumptions were void.
And darkness was upon the face of the Implementers . And they spake unto their manager, saying,
It is a crock of manure, and it stinketh.
And the Manager went to the 2nd level manager, and he spake unto him saying,!
It is a crock of excrement and none may abide the odor thereof.
And the 2nd Level Manager went to the 3rd Level Manager and he spake unto him saying,!
It is a vessel of fertilizer, and it is so strong that none may abide before it.
And the 3rd Level Manager went to the Headquarters Director, and he spake unto him saying,!
It is a vessel of fertilizer, and none may abide its strength.
And the Director went to the Divisional Vice-President, and he spake unto him saying,!
It contains that which aids plant growth, and it is very strong.
Duane P. Truex, Ph.D.
And the Vice-President went to the Division President , and he spake unto him saying,!
Associate Professor
The powerful new project will promote the growth of the company.
Robinson College of Business Department of
Computer Information Systems
And then the Executive Board looked upon The Project and saw!
!that it was GOOD...!
Air Force Mentor-Protg Program
Project & Project Management
Project
A series of related jobs usually directed toward
some UNIQUE major output and requiring a
Working solution: significant period of time to perform.
Use of enterprise
systems for managing a temporary endeavor undertaken to
information flows accomplish a unique product or
service (PMBOK Guide 2000, p. 4)
Project Management
The act of planning, directing, and controlling
resources (people, equipment, material) to meet
the technical, cost, and time constraints of the
project.
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Triad of Project Management The Triple Constraint

Every project is constrained in different ways by
Scope-What is to be done? Scope its
Scope goals: What is the project trying to
Schedule-How long will it take?
"

accomplish?
Budget-How much will it cost? " Time goals: How long should it take to complete?
Cost goals: What should it cost?
Schedule
"
Budget
It is the project managers duty to balance these
Changing any one of the three three often competing goals
items will force changes in at least
one of the others

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The Triple Constraint of Project Management History of Project Management

In your
Some people argue that building the
experience Egyptian pyramids was a project, as
which takes was building the Great Wall of China
precedence?
Most people consider the Manhattan
Project to be the first project to use
modern project management
" This three-year, $2 billion (in 1946 dollars)
project had a separate project manager
and a technical manager
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Sample Gantt Chart Sample Network Diagram

The WBS is on the left, and each tasks start and finish date
are shown on the right using a calendar timescale. Early Gantt
Charts, first used in 1917, were drawn by hand.
Each box is a project task from the WBS. Arrows show dependencies
between tasks. The bolded tasks are on the critical path. If any tasks on the
critical path take longer than planned, the whole project will slip
unless something is done. Network diagrams were first used in 1958 on the Navy Polaris project, before
project management software was available.

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Project Time Management Elements 1. Activity Definition

Project time management Project schedules grow out of the basic
processes required to ensure document that initiate a project
Project charter includes start and end dates and
timely completion of a project "

budget information
include: " Scope statement and WBS help define what will
be done
1. Activity definition
Activity definition involves developing a
2. Activity sequencing more detailed WBS and supporting
3. Activity duration estimating explanations to understand all the work to
4. Schedule development be done so you can develop realistic
duration estimates
5. Schedule control
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2. Activity Sequencing Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM)

Involves reviewing activities and
determining dependencies Also called activity-on-arrow (AOA)
" Mandatory dependencies: inherent in the nature project network diagrams
of the work; hard logic
" Discretionary dependencies: defined by the
Activities are represented by arrows
project team; soft logic Nodes or circles are the starting and
External dependencies: involve relationships
"

between project and non-project activities

ending points of activities
You must first determine dependencies in Can only show finish-to-start
order to use critical path analysis (CPM) dependencies

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Sample Activity-on-Arrow (AOA) Network Diagram Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)

Activities are represented by boxes

Arrows show relationships between
activities
More popular than ADM method and
often used by project management
software
Better at showing different types of
dependencies
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Task Dependency Types
Air Force Mentor-Protg Program
3. Activity Duration Estimating
After defining activities and determining
their sequence, the next step in time
management is duration estimating
Duration includes the actual amount of time
worked on an activity plus elapsed time
Effort is the number of workdays or work
hours required to complete a task. Effort
does not equal duration
People doing the work should help create
estimates, and an expert should review
them
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Sample PDM Network Diagram
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4. Schedule Development
Schedule development uses results of the
other time management processes to
determine the start and end date of the
project and its activities
Ultimate goal is to create a realistic project
schedule that provides a basis for
monitoring project progress for the time
dimension of the project
Important tools and techniques include
Gantt charts, PERT analysis, critical path
analysis, and critical chain scheduling
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Gantt Chart for Software Launch Project
Gantt Charts
Gantt charts provide a standard format for
displaying project schedule information by
listing project activities and their
corresponding start and finish dates in a
calendar format
Symbols include:
" A black diamond: milestones or significant
events on a project with zero duration
" Thick black bars: summary tasks
" Lighter horizontal bars: tasks
" Arrows: dependencies between tasks

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5. Control: Milestones Sample Tracking Gantt Chart

Milestones are significant events on a
project that normally have zero duration
You can follow the SMART criteria in
developing milestones that are:
" Specific
" Measurable
" Assignable
" Realistic
" Time-framed
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Critical Path Method (CPM) Determining the Critical Path for Project X

CPM is a project network analysis

technique used to predict total
project duration
A critical path for a project is the series
of activities that determines the
earliest time by which the project can
be completed
The critical path is the longest path
through the network diagram and has
the least amount of slack or float

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ERP Project Management Why ERP Implementations can go astray

ERP Projects are large and Important projects Intelligence Design Choice Review
Critical in terms of their potential and actual impact
Problem Business Best Fit Measurements
The track record is far from excellent Finding Map Analysis of success
Benefit realization is still a problem esp. in short term Package Competition
Business Benefits
Preparedness is quite a problem evaluation
Clear
Case realisation
Problems that occur during the implementation Complexity decision
of packages making
phase are not solved properly Alternative On-going
to ERP Sales ZERO Development
Very low levels of end-user satisfaction are reported Offerings choice Of ERP (ERPII)
ERP projects are different from traditional IS projects Prerequisites Marketing Resistance
" need for a different approach hype to change
" but ERP projects often treated as normal IS project Vendor-independent,
methodology-independent
analysis
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As a result Conclusions
Poor preparation for project
Lack of managerial awareness of risks /
opportunities ERP Projects are special
Lack of understanding of how to select
software
ERP Project Management is tricky and
typically more complex with greater
Lack of vision of the business impact
organizational implications
Poor understanding of why do ERP
Poor understanding of how to scope project
Poor perception of system a priori

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1 Project Integration
PMBOK
2 Project Scope 3 Project Time
Management Management Management

1.1 Project Plan Development 2.1 Initiation 3.1 Activity Definition

1.2 Project Plan Execution 2.2 Scope Planning 3.2 Activity Sequencing

Q: Do project management skills map to ERP

1.3 Integrated Change Control 2.3 Scope Definition 3.3 Activity Duration Estimating

2.4 Scope Verification 3.4 Schedule Development

implementation? 2.5 Scope Change Control 3.5 Schedule Control

4 Project Cost 5 Project Quality 6 Project Human

Management Management Resource Management

4.1 Resource Planning 5.1 Quality Planning 6.1 Organisational Planning

You tell me 4.2 Cost Estimating

4.3 Cost Budgeting

4.4 Cost Control

5.2 Quality Assurance

5.3 Quality Control

6.2 Staff Acquisition

6.3 Team Development

7 Project Communications 8 Project Risk 9 Project Procurement

Management Management Management

7.1 Communications Planning 8.1 Risk Identification 9.1 Procurement Planning

7.2 Information Distribution 8.2 Quantitative Risk Analysis 9.2 Solicitation Planning

7.3 Performance Reporting 8.3 Risk Response Planning 9.3 Solicitation

7.4 Administrative 8.4 Risk Monitoring and Control 9.4 Source Selection

9.5 Contract Administration

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Project Integration Management
General preparedness
Awareness of what ERP projects entail
volume of effort required, effect on
staff assigned to ERP team, budget,
training
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Project Time Management
ERP projects are amongst the longest
Multi-wave global roll out up to 5 years
Hence, the trend of reducing the ERP
Project Duration (ASAP method and
other implementation methods).
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Project Scope Management
Critical for ERP
number of modules, number of areas, extent
of customization, number of interfaces with
legacy system, size of user population
Surveys indicate most firms would change
scope in hindsight
Change in scope mid way through project is
responsible for most cost /time slippages
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Project Cost Management
ERP projects are costly or highly costly
Much of the costs are hidden to a
certain extent e.g.: training
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Project Quality Management
ERP projects require a serious
transformation process that must be
validated e.g. invoicing, payroll
Many aspects require hard-to-get
expertise
Application / organizational
knowledge dilemma (e.g., use of
consultants)
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Project Communication Management
Other side of coin: selling the project
internally and externally
Can change be negotiated?
How much will it cost?
Not always a case of stupid
resistance to best practice
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Project HR Management
Project team (full time) + business as
usual dilemma who can you afford
to use?
Support for project at local level
Backfilling of positions
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Project Risk Management
ERP projects can jeopardize earlier
work
They also disturb everyday work over
long periods
They can lead to unworkable situations
(Hershey, workarounds)
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Project Procurement Management Additional Areas Specific to ERP projects

Which one is the one?

How are vendors really selected? Project Rationale (global versus local)
Project Review
Global Project Management