Project Initiation

The following are the important themes from the PMI Perspective that you need to remember about the Project Initiation Phase.

1. Project Initiation is the first logical step in Project Management process
2. Initiation formally authorizes a project to begin or to continue to the next phase.
3. Initiation formally links a project to the work to the strategic objectives of the organization.
4. Someone external to the project team and higher up in the organization must issue the project charter. (Usually the Sponsor)
5. The project charter gives the project manager authority to “get the job done.” Yes, you read it right. The Charter is the document that officially gives us the right to do our jobs to manage the Project.
6. The project charter establishes the targets for the project.
7. A signed contract can serve as an input or predecessor to a project charter. Sometimes for small projects, the contract itself can be considered the Charter.
8. The two types of project selection methods are benefit measurement methods and constrained optimization methods.
9. Management by Objectives (MBO) supports project initiation by linking projects to corporate objectives.
10. MBO supports project management through its use of goal-setting and periodic reviews.
11. Many project management activities during initiation are further elaborated during planning.
12. Identifying Stakeholders is one the most important activities in the life of a project. Many a project has been known to fail after months of hard work because the manager failed to identify a critical stakeholder and that stakeholder prevented the sign-off at the end of the Project

Other PMI Themes:

General PMI Themes
Project Framework
Project Planning
Project Execution
Project Monitoring & Controlling
Project Closure
Ethics & Professional Responsibility