In the course of planning, decisions are made of a qualitative and quantitative nature, allowing to achieve the goals of the organization in the future. Moreover, in the course of such work, it is possible to determine precisely the optimal paths. Project planning is the development of an accurate scheme by which the organization will be developed. This allows you to think through all the details, choose ways to solve problems and achieve your goals. How such work is carried out will be discussed later.
Planning appointment
Project planning is an important process in business management. It is extremely important, therefore, almost every company today performs this work. It requires spending some time and resources, but it justifies itself.
The further implementation depends on the quality of planning in the project management process. During this procedure, initiation is carried out, during which the charter, the register of participants are approved, the strategic direction for further development is selected.
First, a sequence of basic actions is developed. After their approval, details are worked out.
Having outlined the concept of the future project and the main stages of its promotion, the management will be able to adjust all its stages, choose the best ways to achieve the goals.
Project planning is an important process in management. It allows you to subsequently monitor, timely adjusting the movement on the development path. Actual indicators are compared with planned, which discloses information on the degree of completion of the tasks. During the monitoring process, updated information from external and internal sources is constantly taken into account. The terms established in the plan, conditions and indicators may change, since they must correspond to the real situation.
Planning directly affects all project management processes. Therefore, it is performed by each organization. It is impossible to manage anything if there is no clearly defined sequence of actions. These stages are tasks, the implementation of which leads to the achievement of the goal. If something starts to go wrong as planned, the manager identifies the causes of such phenomena, decisions are made on the correct actions in the circumstances.
The planning process is the initial stage of the project life cycle. Without this, it is impossible to achieve the desired result.
Planning tasks
Planning project goals involves the development of a system of tasks that, like steps, lead to their achievement. The presented work allows one to determine, even before the start of work, whether the selected type of activity can make a profit. Each investor seeks to invest in the most profitable, profitable project. It is possible to outline the main parameters and results of future activities, to choose adequate, real ways to achieve them in the course of planning.
For the work to be productive, the organization will have to solve a range of problems. If during the calculations it turns out that the result of such an activity is negative (the company will receive a loss), not high enough, it is necessary to identify the causes of this phenomenon. Having made certain adjustments, it is possible to increase the effectiveness of the project. Corrections can be made at each stage of the implementation of the tasks. They may be as follows:
- Detailing, clarifying the purpose (or goals) of the design, determining the desired result of the event.
- Determination of the scope and composition of future work.
- Estimation of the timing of each stage.
- Calculation of the budget cost of the project.
- A schedule is created, and the budget of each phase is calculated.
- The need for resources is determined. The calculation is done for each phase of the project and the organization's activities in this direction as a whole.
- A logistics plan is being drawn up.
- A risk assessment is carried out, a methodology for the correct response in the event of dangerous situations is created.
- The details of the event are explained in detail to the investor.
- Details are agreed with all participants in the process.
- Between performers and managers the responsibility for carrying out work and fulfilling assigned tasks is distributed.
- Planned interactions, management planning procedures are being specified.
Project management and project planning are closely interlinked. Only the consistent implementation of the tasks in the agreed time and in full can guarantee the achievement of the goal, profit in the process of the company.
Main processes
In the process of organizing project planning, a number of mandatory and additional actions are performed. Regardless of the organization’s activities, they are used to create a common strategic concept. Mandatory processes include the following:
- Description and further documentation of all planned tasks, the content of the project.
- Definition of the main stages of the project, their subsequent detailing.
- Drawing up a budget estimate. The total cost of all the resources needed to complete the project is calculated.
- Drawing up a step-by-step action plan, the implementation of which will lead to the achievement of goals.
- The sequence of work is described.
- Dependencies of a technical nature are determined, as well as restrictions on the work performed.
- Calculation of the time required to complete each stage of the work, determination of labor costs and other resources that will be required at each stage of the production cycle.
- Determining the type, set of resources, as well as their volume.
- Indication of the actual deadlines for the work, if resources are limited.
- Creating a budget and linking estimated costs for each type of work.
- Create a complete plan.
- Collection of the results of other research work during the design process, layout of planned values in one document.
During the planning and development of the project, these actions are required.
Supporting Procedures
During the planning of the project, some processes may not be needed. Only when the need arises for them, the manager includes them in the general list. Such auxiliary processes include the following:
- Planning quality standards, establishing their maximum permissible range. Also stipulated are ways to achieve the required level of characteristics of the finished product.
- Organization planning, which involves the distribution of functional competencies, responsibilities and subordination among all project participants.
- Recruitment of personnel with the appropriate level of qualification, work experience, whose activities will allow to implement the project as soon as possible. In some cases, teamwork is required.
- Establishment of communications to provide project members with the necessary information.
- Identification of varieties of project risks, their assessment and documentation. This allows us to identify and eliminate uncertainties at the planning stage, to assess the degree of their possible impact on the project. At this stage, both a favorable and an unfavorable scenario are developed for the development of the situation during the implementation of the chosen strategy.
- Planning for logistic procedures. It is precisely stipulated what raw materials, other necessary materials and resources will be purchased from external organizations, in what quantity, and also with what frequency deliveries will be made.
Other activities may be required during the planning of project processes. It depends on the goals that the organization pursues in carrying out its work.
Planning stages
There are 4 main stages of project planning. They were offered by the consulting company Booz Allen & Hamilton.
The standard planning model is as follows:
Stage 1. Formation of goals
There are two types of goals. They can be formal or real. In the first case, criteria are put forward to determine the usefulness of the project. Formal goals emerge from the motivation of managers. Real goals are the ways in which formal goals can be achieved.
Stage 2. Problem Analysis
During this stage of planning, the real situation of the organization is determined. Next, a forecast is made about its further condition. After that, the determination of existing problems is carried out, for which purpose systems are contrasted with the results of predictive analysis. This allows you to ultimately structure the problems.
Stage 3. Search for alternatives
These are solutions that are mutually exclusive.
Stage 4. Assessment of alternatives
The acceptability of each of the existing scenarios is determined. Efficiency, risk level of each decision is evaluated, after which an appropriate decision is made. The optimal alternative should not only be practicable, but also legal, allowing as close as possible to the goal. At the same time, existing restrictions in time, resources, etc., are taken into account.
When creating a planning project for a territorial, production or other type, it is mandatory to use it in the future to compare real results with planned ones. This allows you to manage progress towards a common goal, to make appropriate adjustments in a timely manner.
Scheduling
It should be noted that the scheduling of the project is based on a slightly different scheme. It distinguishes 5 main stages:
- Definition of works and writing them in a list. In some cases, managers make mistakes without immediately specifying all processes. To exclude this phenomenon, it is recommended to use the method of sequential decomposition in the determination of upcoming work.
- For each highlighted position, the order and duration are determined. It depends on the technological features of the work ahead. For this, a decomposition technique is also used, which is supplemented by expert estimates. This allows you to accurately determine the planned duration of each operation. To do this, you can apply the brainstorming technique, which allows you to consider the features of the technology from different points of view.
- The type of resources and their availability are determined. It can be finances, materials, labor, information and so on. The schedule of work performed corresponds with the schedule of logistics, financing, etc. All stages must be interconnected, make up a continuous process. This avoids disruptions in the production process. At the same time, scarce resources require a separate consideration. They to a greater extent determine the duration and sequence of the entire spectrum of upcoming work.
- External restrictions are set. These include seasonality of production, manufacturability of equipment supplies, and other external factors.
- A system for responding to emerging risks during project management is being created. Project planning begins with their analysis. For the most probable and dangerous threats, appropriate response measures are developed.
Planning principles
When planning a business project, the manager must adhere to certain principles. The main ones are:
- Purposefulness. The implementation of the project pursues a clear, final goal, without spraying on non-essential tasks.
- Consistency. Management of a future project should be holistic, integrated. In this case, the features of its development and compilation are taken into account. In some cases, the project can be divided into subsystems. They will also be interconnected. Moreover, changes in one system entail changes in another structure. The breakdown of the project into several parts allows you to track the internal relationships and interactions of elements, choose the most effective structure. Evaluation of the project in this case can be given in terms of qualitative and quantitative processes.
- Complexity Phenomena are considered in terms of their connection and dependence. To do this, apply different methods, management approaches.
- Security. In the course of planning the work of the project, it is envisaged that all the activities will be completed with the necessary resources.
- Priority The main attention in the development of the project is paid to the main, most important tasks. Their definition depends on the general concept of development in the future.
- Economic security. The degree of losses and losses incurred by the organization in case of failure to implement the intended event is calculated. Risks cannot be avoided at all, but you need to evaluate them and make justified decisions in this direction.
Project Structuring
During the planning of the project, structuring is required. The hierarchical sequence of work involves breaking the entire project into separate parts. This allows you to detail the complexes at different levels. This approach simplifies process control.
Structuring allows you to do the following:
- Define the range of activities to achieve the goals of the intermediate type.
- To control the degree of project progress, evaluate the possibility of achieving all its goals.
- Reporting is created according to the optimal structure.
- Control points are established by which the progress of the project is evaluated.
- Responsibility is correctly distributed between performers.
- All team members receive objective, understandable information about the goals and objectives of the project.
Structuring Errors
Some managers make mistakes during structuring, which negatively affects the achievement of goals. The main ones are the following actions:
- The structuring step is generally skipped. The manager proceeds immediately to find a solution to the problems of the current period.
- Only organizational units are used; final products or resources used are not taken into account.
- Structuring does not cover the entire project.
- Elements of the structure are repeated.
- The integration of structures in accordance with the peculiarities of the preparation of project documentation and financial statements is not carried out.
- The structure is overly detailed or insufficient.
- Individual elements of the project cannot be processed on a computer.
- Intangible end products (services, services, etc.) are not taken into account.
Grounds for structuring
Project planning is a responsible job. Structuring must be done correctly. It is carried out on the following grounds:
- The life cycle periods of the created project.
- Features of the structure of units.
- The components of the result that will be obtained after the completion of the project.
- Process, functional elements of the company.
- Geographical location of objects.