Project Management - Initiation Phase

Project Management Initiation Stage 1:

This is the most important stage and less time consuming stage. Here you will be considering the objectives of project using acronym SMART Keyword

S          Specific

M        Measurable       

A         Aligned

R         Realistic

T          Time Bounded

This initial stage needs to be having the bird eye of the whole project including the final outcomes. If the project objective is not understood well and we move on the next stage without proper understanding the in the other stages of project we need to come back to this stage again which is a waste of time, resources and money used.

Once the objects are understood well and problem solving is clear we can move to next stage of project management phase PLANNING.

Let Us see about the Acronym SMART. Let us consider it to be a Software implementation project. You can imagine it to be construction or project which is applicable to you.

S -Specific

-          Is it a Project

-          What is its background

-          What should be the outcome

-          How many deliverables are there?

-          When is the start and end?

-          Who all are going to be involved in the project (resources, stakeholders)?

M -Measurable

-          How the project end is going to be determined?

-          What are the things to be considered by the stakeholders and the organization on closure?

-          What will be the cost?

A -Aligned

-          How many are there in the resource part?

-          How to break the timeframe under risk factors?

-          The communication between stakeholders, organization and setting team

-          Does the organization and stakeholders aware of outcomes of the project?

R- Reality

-          For whom we do

-          Where we do

-          What we do

-          How do we do

-          Know your requirements well?

-          Dependent on resource for which part of deliverables?

-          Risk factors+outcomes+communication+stakeholders all in inline?

T- Time bound

-          Start date and End Date

-          Under risk factor will a delay is acceptable?

-          How to solve the risk factor for the expanded time frame?

Here in the initial stage we will be analyzing about the options available to be involved in project. It may be resource, machinery, money or anything related in the further development stages of project.

Over all this phase is the shortest phase and highly effective phase of project where we need to acquire a clear understanding of what is a project, why I am doing it, what I need to and finally what should it result in.

You can also make a chart to make it clear for all the questions above mentioned to draft a initiation phase of your project.

1. What is the Project?

2. What Is the background?

3. Who all are involved?

4. What needs to be achieved?

5. what all are the risk factors?

6. what is the time span?

7. Objective of project is clear between stakeholders and project manager?

8. Plan is made toward achieving the same goal?