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

Chapter 6: Project Integration Management as part of Project Initiation

Aim: To understand the Processes those are part of Project Integration Management in the Project Initiation Phase. i.e., “Develop Project Charter”

After a decision is made to initiate a project, the collection of input information begins. This is where the project boundaries can be a little unclear, but it is generally accepted that activities starting with the collection of inputs for initiating are part of the project. Remember that the project has not yet been authorized, so all resources required for the initiating processes must be funded explicitly by the project initiator. In other words, someone has to pay for the time spent by the people required to produce the project charter.
It is entirely possible that the organization decides not to pursue a project after it sees the project charter. The project charter might show that the project will not be worth the resource expenditures. In such a case, the resources already expended to produce the project charter have actually saved the organization from wasting many more resources. Therein lies part of the value of the initiating processes.

Exam Watch:
A project charter doesn't always result in a successful project initiation. Let us say, you are working for a Car Manufacturer and are assigned with a project to create a low cost, highly fuel efficient luxury car. The company has set a budget for each car and has also set a profit margin expected from each unit sold. Armed with this information, you perform the due diligence and figure out the fact that, you cannot manufacture such a luxury car under the set budgets & profit margins. Once you provide with your senior management with this information, they could do either of the below actions:
1. Drop the project as, this new car will not be profitable under the set circumstances. This effectively means that your project is scrapped and wont continue.
2. Assign extra budget for each car and adjust the profit margin accordingly. This effectively means that the project will continue.

The specific project management process that results in the project charter is the Develop Project Charter process.

The Inputs, Tools & Techniques and Output for this process are as follows:

Develop Project Charter
Inputs	Tools & Techniques	Outputs
Project statement of work Business Case Contract Enterprise environmental factors Organizational process assets	Expert Judgment	Project Charter

As you study for the PMP exam, don’t just memorize each of the inputs, tools and techniques, and outputs for each process. Really think about why PMI put them where they are. In the case of the develop project charter process, ask yourself what you need before you start. Each piece of information you need to start the process of creating the project charter is represented in the input section. You need some sort of document that specifies the need for the project (contract or statement of work). You also need to understand the policies and procedures governing projects for your organization. Once you have all the necessary information to start, you can start the process of developing the project charter.

During the project charter development, you use your own expert judgment as well as the expert judgment of subject matter experts in various areas to create the output or deliverable. Expert judgment involves using all of the project selection techniques in your project manager bag of tricks.
In the case of the project charter, the only output is the project charter itself. The main point to listing each of the inputs, tools and techniques, and outputs for each process is to understand each component of each process.

Because the development of the project charter is the first project activity, much of the work to produce the input for this process occurs either before the project initiation or within the scope of another project. Most of the input for this process serves to define the project and the environment in which it exists.

After the input information has been collected, the project initiator compiles and issues the project charter. The initiator must be someone who holds the authority to fund the project. Although it is desirable to assign a project manager early in the process, the project manager is not absolutely necessary to issue the project charter. It is important that the stakeholders have a material role in the creation of the project charter. The project manager, if one has been assigned at this point, can be the one to actually do the work of compiling the stakeholders’ needs, but the actual input for the project charter and the authority to issue it comes from the project initiator. The main reason so much emphasis is put on the project charter is that it provides the first and best opportunity for the stakeholders to really think through a project before the work begins, and it gives everyone a chance to consider the project before committing to it.

You can learn more about the “Develop Project Charter” Process by Clicking Here

Project Selection Methods

PMI encourages organizations to employ formal methods to select projects. Formal methods make it possible to compare multiple projects and select the one(s) that will produce the most benefit for an organization without being persuaded by emotional ties to certain projects. Additionally, organizations can set specific standards potential projects must meet to be accepted. There are two main selection method categories you need to know for the PMP exam. It is not important that you have an in-depth knowledge of these methods, but you need to be able to identify each type of method and understand their basic differences.

1. Benefit Measurement Methods
Benefit measurement methods document the relative benefits of completing each project. This approach enables organizations to compare projects by comparing their impact. Each specific method uses different measurements and results in different types of output. You don’t need to understand how to assess the relative measurements for the exam. Just know that these methods produce relative output an organization can use to compare projects.
2. Mathematical Models
Mathematical models analyze project description data to result in a more standardized set of output values. Simply put, a mathematical model can rate a project on a scale from 1 to 100. The organization then decides how desirable a single project is based on its rating. Usually projects with higher numbers are chosen over the ones with lower numbers. For ex: If your company is to produce two cars that have comparable production costs, the car that has the higher profit margin would be chosen for production.

Project Management Methodology

The organization’s standard practices when conducting project activities, along with the project management standards, make up the project management methodology. Any standards, guidelines, procedures, or common practices work together to form the general way of managing projects within any organization. The particular methodology you use depends on the culture of your organization, and all these factors affect the content of the project charter.

Project Management Information System

The project management information system (PMIS) is the collection of computerized tools used to collect, store, analyze, and interpret project information. Although most project managers use software to schedule projects, the PMIS often consists of far more than just project management software. When managing a project, learn which tools are available and use them to support the project throughout its life cycle.

Expert Judgment

The primary tool and technique referenced in creating the project charter is tapping into the expert judgment of others. Expert judgment of the project manager is included here if the project manager has been assigned. Some technical or procedural details might require input from an expert in a specific area. Such experts can be stakeholders or customers of the project, or they can be totally unrelated to the project. PMI encourages using any available source for project information input. When considering input sources for the project charter, or any needed expert input, consider any of these alternatives:
• Internal organization assets with specific expertise
• External consultants
• Stakeholders, including customers
• Professional or trade associations
• Industry or user groups

Prev: Chapter 5

Next: Chapter 7

Chapter 5: Initiating Process Group

Aim: To understand the Initiating Process Group

The initiating process group is the first step in the project life cycle. In fact, much of the work performed in this process group is actually outside the scope of the actual project being executed. The main purpose of initiating is to authorize a project to begin or continue. Notice that the initiating process group serves two potential roles. It generally occurs at the beginning of a project, but can also occur several more times throughout the life of a project. Some larger projects define specific milestones that require revisiting the initiating processes to continue the project. Invoking the initiating processes at the start of each phase helps keep the project focused on the business need the project was undertaken to address.

The Purpose of Initiating a Project

Initiating usually occurs at the beginning of a project and can also be required at certain points throughout the project. For example, a large project with the goal of producing a prototype of a commercial road car will likely encounter several points along the project life cycle at which important decisions must be made. After the engine and transmission have been produced and joined together, they must be tested to evaluate performance against project goals. If the performance does not meet certain standards, the components must be reworked to meet standards before continuing. Alternatively, the whole project could be terminated if the product is deemed to be unable to effectively meet the project standards. This phase in the project is a crucial go/no-go decision point and constitutes activities in the initiating process group.

Exam Watch:
Although the most common time for these activities to occur is at the beginning of a project, don’t overlook the fact that they can be taken up during the project at any point in time. It is not uncommon for large projects to call for initiating processes several times throughout the project life cycle. Any time you need to assess the progress of a project, reevaluate its merit, and request approval to continue, initiating processes are executed.

In all cases, initiating processes require input from preceding activities. The entities charged with deciding whether to proceed require substantiating information on which to base a decision. When initiating occurs at the beginning of a project, at least some of the input must be created in tasks that are not part of the project. This work predates the project initiation date and can make the actual project start point may seem incorrect. The points in time at which a project begins and ends are referred to as the project boundaries. Because a substantial amount of the inputs to the initiating processes is created outside the scope of the project, the starting boundary can be unclear. A project always starts as a result of a business need, and the business need develops before the project commences. Likewise, any documentation of the need for the project is developed before the actual project starts.

Exam Watch: You need to know the inputs and outputs of each process defined in the PMBOK. That’s 42 separate input and output sets! The exam includes several questions that require you to know process inputs, outputs, and general information flow. Memorizing them may seem like the easier option, but if you understand and rationalize what inputs are required for each process and what outputs it might generate, it would be easier to remember.

Subsequent initiating iterations during the project life cycle will use inputs from preceding activities. It is important to understand that the activities in the initiating process group always result in a critical project decision. The end of the initiating process group is represented by a decision to continue the project, go back and redo some of the work, or terminate the project altogether.

In most projects, you should include any customers and other stakeholders in many of the activities in the initiating process group. Including as many stakeholders as possible in the early project activities fosters a sense of pride and shared ownership of the project. Any stakeholder who feels a sense of ownership is apt to be more diligent about ensuring the project succeeds. Stakeholder participation increases the success of setting the project scope, gathering project requirements, and defining the overall criteria for project success.

The Project Manager Assignment

PMI requires that the project manager be assigned prior to any project planning taking place. Practically speaking the project manager doesn’t have to be assigned until the end of the initiating process group. However, it makes sense to assign the project manager earlier. A project manager who helped create the project charter is more comfortable with a project and has an easier time planning the project.

It is the responsibility of the project initiator, or project sponsor, to officially assign the project manager. After the project managers are assigned, the project charter identifies the project managers and provides them with the authority to carry out project management tasks.

The Project Charter and Its Purpose

The initiating process group consists of two processes. The first process is the development of the project charter, and the second process is identifying stakeholders. The project charter is the initial document that describes the project at a high level and formally authorizes the project. PMI requires that a project charter be created and accepted before a project is considered official for starting. As a PMP, you are required to insist on a project charter before proceeding in the role of project manager.

Exam Watch:
The PMBOK requires a project charter for every project. The lack of a project charter is a project stopper. Remember that you cannot start a project (As per PMI) without a project charter. Even though, there may have been or will be situations where you may be forced to do so, for the exam it is a No-Brainer and no project can start without the approved project charter.

Authorization from the project sponsor, the project management organization (PMO), or portfolio steering committee is necessary for the project manager to allocate resources and actually perform the work of the project. Even before bestowing authorization, the stakeholders must assign the project manager to the project. The project charter provides the framework for carrying out these actions. It is also the first deliverable of the project and sets the basement for the whole project to build on.

There is no standard format for a project charter, but each project charter should address these basic areas:
• Purpose or justification
• Project objectives
• High-level requirements
• Project description
• Risks
• Summary milestone schedule
• Summary budget
• Approval requirements
• Project manager
• Authorizing party

Note: Each area of the project charter provides information on the business need and how the project will meet the need. It is important to have a general understanding of the project charter contents for the exam. Although you aren’t asked specific questions about the project charter’s contents, you are asked questions about the project charter as a whole and its purpose.

Exam Watch:
The PMP exam asks a few questions about the roles of the project initiator, or sponsor, and the project manager. The project initiator starts the official project process. All of the project manager’s authority comes from the project initiator and the initial stakeholders. For this reason, the project charter must be issued by someone with the authority to fund the project and assign resources to it. The project initiator’s role is to describe and authorize the project, assign the project manager, and fund the project. The project manager’s role is to plan and execute the project.

Prev: Chapter 4

Next: Chapter 6

Important Terms and Definitions - Project Initiation

The following are some important Terms that we have learnt as part of the Project Initiation Phase.

• Assumption - A factor that you consider to be true without any proof or verification. Assumptions can appear in both the input and the output of various processes.
• Constraint - A restriction that can affect the performance of the project.
• Initiating process group - A process group that contains two processes: develop project charter and develop preliminary project scope statement.
• Project charter - A document that states the initial requirements to satisfy the stakeholders’ needs and expectations and also formally authorizes the project.
• Project Management Information System (PMIS) - An information system that consists of tools used to store, integrate, and retrieve the outputs of the project management processes. This can be used to support all stages of the project from initiating to closing.
• Project scope - The work that must be performed to deliver a product, service, or results with the specified features. The project scope draws the boundaries around the project: what is included and what is not.
• Stakeholder management strategy - The approach developed to deal with the stakeholders in the best interests of the project.
• Stakeholder register - A document that identifies the project stakeholders and the relevant information about them.
• Statement of work (SOW) - A document that describes the products or services to be delivered by the project. It is an input to developing the project charter and the preliminary project scope statement.

Previous: Summary - Project Initiation

Next: Project Planning

Summary - Project Initiation

Let us now summarize whatever we have learnt over the course of the previous few chapters reg. the Project Initiation Phase.

• Organizations start projects for different reasons, such as to meet a business or legal requirement, to take on a business opportunity, or to develop a solution for a problem.
• However, the underlying motivation is always to meet some business objectives in the strategic plan of the organization.
• Three categories of methods are available to select from the proposed projects.
• The first method is the benefit measurement method, which evaluates the benefits from the project.
• Constrained optimization methods focus on the probability of completing the project successfully, and
• Expert judgment relies on expert advice.
• As a project manager, you need to identify each stakeholder: an individual or an organization that is going to gain or lose from the successful completion of your project.
• The initiating project stage is constituted by two processes: Develop Project Charter and Identify Stakeholders.
• The two documents generated by the initiating stage are the project charter, which names and authorizes the project manager, and the stakeholder register, which identifies the project stakeholders and relevant information about them.
• Based on this information, you develop the stakeholder management strategy.
• The project charter also includes project justification based on the business needs and a high-level description of the product or service that the project will offer to meet those business needs.
• Issuing an approved project charter moves the project from the initiation stage into the planning stage, which is composed of a number of processes collectively called the planning process group.
• These processes will be covered in the subsequent chapters.

Previous: Stakeholder Management Strategy

Next: Important Terms & Definitions

Chapter 19: Understanding Project Selections

In the Previous chapter, we saw how projects originate. But, we havent seen who decides whether to proceed with the project or what are the criterion used to decide whether to proceed with a project or drop it. This is exactly what we are going to learn in this chapter.

So, lets get started

Selecting Projects for Execution:

As explained in the previous chapter, the business strategy of the organization is the biggest motivator to select chapters. That being said, a project can be selected by using one or more project selection methods that fall into three categories:

1. Benefit measurement methods
2. Constrained optimization methods and
3. Expert Judgment.

Let us take a look at them one by one.

Benefit Measurement Methods

These methods use comparative approaches to compare the benefits obtained from the candidate projects so that the project with the maximum benefit will be selected. These methods fall into three categories:

1. Scoring models
2. Benefit contributions and
3. Economic models.

Scoring Models

A scoring model evaluates projects by using a set of criteria with a weight or score assigned to each criterion. You can assign different weights to different criteria to represent the varied degree of importance given to various criteria. All projects are evaluated against this set of criteria, and the project with the maximum score is selected.

The set of criteria can include both objective and subjective criteria, such as financial data, organizational expertise, market value, innovation, and fit with the corporate culture. The advantage of a scoring model is that you have the freedom to assign different weights to different criteria in order to select projects consistent with the goals, mission, and vision of your organization. This freedom is also a disadvantage because your selection is only as good as the criteria with larger weights.

Another important point to note is that, a good scoring model is a mandatory requirement for success of such models and developing a good scoring model is a very difficult task and requires unbiased inputs from people in different levels of your organization.

Benefit Contributions

These methods are based on comparing the benefit contributions from different projects. These contributions can be estimated by performing a cost-benefit analysis, which typically calculates the projected cost, revenue, and savings of a project. This method favors the projects that create profit in the shortest time and ignores the long-term benefits of projects that might not be tangible at the current time, such as innovation and strategic values.

Economic Models

An economic model is used to estimate the economic efficiency of a project, and it involves a set of calculations to provide overall financial data about the project. As always money is king and any project that can provide monetary benefits to the company would invariably be selected. The common terms involved in economic models are explained in the following list.

• Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) - This is the value obtained by dividing the benefit by the cost. The greater the value, the more attractive the project is. For example, if the projected cost of producing a product is Rs.10,000, and you expect to sell it for Rs.40,000, then the BCR is equal to Rs.40,000/Rs.10,000, which is equal to 4. For the benefit to exceed cost, the BCR must be greater than 1.
• Cash flow - Whereas cash refers to money, cash flow refers to both the money coming in and the money going out of an organization. Positive cash flow means more money is coming in than going out.
• Internal Return Rate (IRR) - This is just another way of interpreting the benefit from the project. It looks at the cost of the project as the capital investment and translates the profit into the interest rate over the life of that investment. Calculations for IRR are not part of this certification. It is enough if you understand that the greater the value for IRR, the more beneficial the project is.
• Present Value (PV) and Net Present Value (NPV) - To understand these two concepts, understand that one rupee today can buy you more than what one rupee can buy next year. (Inflation) The issue arises because it takes time to complete a project, and even when a project is completed, its benefits are reaped over a period of time and not immediately. For Ex: It is like planting a coconut tree. It costs you money to buy it, but after a few years, it will give you a continuous supply of coconuts which you can sell and make a profit.
So, to make an accurate calculation for the profit, the cost and benefits must be converted to the same point in time. The NPV of a project is the present value of the future cash inflows minus the present value of the current and future cash outflows. For a project to be worth-while economically, the NPV must be positive.

As an example, assume you invest Rs.300,000 today to build a house, which will be completed and sold after three years for Rs.500,000. Also assume that real estate that is worth Rs.400,000 today will be worth Rs.500,000 after three years. So the present value of the cash inflow on your house is Rs.400,000, and hence the NPV is the present value of the cash inflow minus the present value of the cash outflow, which equals Rs.400,000?-300,000, which equals Rs.100,000.
• Opportunity cost - This refers to selecting a project over another due to the scarcity of resources. In other words, by spending this rupee on this project, you are passing on the opportunity to spend this rupee on another project. How big an opportunity are you missing? The smaller the opportunity cost, the better it is.
• Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) - The discounted cash flow refers to the amount that someone is willing to pay today in anticipation of receiving the cash flow in the future. DCF is calculated by taking the amount that you anticipate to receive in the future and discounting it back to today on the time scale. This conversion factors in the interest rate and opportunity cost between now (when you are actually spending cash) and the time when you will receive the cash back.
• Return on Investment (ROI) - The ROI is the percentage profit from the project. For example, if you spend Rs.400,000 on the project, and the benefit for the first year is Rs.500,000, then ROI equals (Rs.500,000-Rs.400,000)/Rs.400,000, which equals 25%.
As the name suggests, all the benefit measurement methods are based on calculating some kind of benefit from the given project. However, the benefit will never be realized if the project fails.

Constrained Optimization Methods

Constrained optimization methods are concerned with predicting the success of the project. These methods are based on complex mathematical models that use formulae and algorithms to predict the success of a project. These models use the following kinds of algorithms:

• Linear
• Nonlinear
• Dynamic
• Integer
• Multiple objective programming

These are used only for the most complex projects and therefore are not typically used for most projects.

Expert Judgment

Expert judgment is one of the techniques used in project management to accomplish various tasks, including project selection. It refers to making a decision by relying on expert advice from one or more of the following sources:

• Senior management
• An appropriate unit within the organization
• The project stakeholders, including customers and sponsors
• Consultants
• Professional and technical associations
• Industry groups
• Subject matter experts from within or outside of the performing organization
• Project management office (PMO)

The use of expert judgment is not limited to the project selection. It can be and is used in many processes, such as developing a project charter. Expert judgment can be obtained by using a suitable method, such as individual consultation, interview, survey, and panel group discussion.

Trivia:
Expert Judgment can be very subjective at times and may include political influence. An experienced/talented person can influence the outcome of any event to his benefit and such people might influence the selection or rejection of a project even though they know it may not be in the best interest of the company.

An organization might use multiple selection methods to make a decision.

Previous: Origin of Projects

Next: Developing a Project Charter

Chapter 18: Origins of Projects

Projects often originate from sources external to the project, such as a sponsor or a project management office; internally or externally, by an enterprise or a government agency. A project may originate as a result of one or more of the following categories of reasons:

Business/legal requirements:

This category includes projects based on a business need or a legal requirement. These kind of projects are very common in Banks and financial Institutions. For ex: The Central Banks in every country comes up with new rules and regulations to keep the banking industry and the economy stable. So, if the government comes up with a new rule that every bank has to comply with, the banks may initiate projects that would ensure that they are compliant with the new regulations set by the government.

Market Opportunities:

Projects might be started to take advantage of new Opportunities:
• Those based on the market demand. For example, a car manufacturer begins a project to make electric cars based on high oil prices that the customer cannot afford.
• Those based on a customer request. For example, one of the customers of your company requests a product that could be a source of revenue for the company.
• Strategic opportunity/business need. A project that helps implement the business strategy of the organization. However, all other opportunities taken by the organization must also be aligned with the business strategy.
• Those based on a technological advance. For example, several electronics companies authorized projects to manufacture MP3 players following the invention and popularity of MP3 technology.

Problems/Issues:

Projects are also authorized to offer solutions to certain problems in a company or a country or to address social needs in a society. For example, a bank might feel that its website is crashing too often (say once in 15 days or so) and is causing a lot of inconvenience to its customers. So, they might initiate a new project that would look into the shortcomings of the existing system and rectify it.

Ecological impact:

Some industries cause harm to the environment and the ecology where their factories are built. For ex: A Leather Factory might start a new factory to clean up the toxics released from the factory so that, the damage on the River could be minimized.

Social needs

Governmental or nongovernmental organizations initiate projects to satisfy some social needs, such as a project to provide fresh drinking water in an underprivileged community or a project to set up latrines and a sewer system in a village. These kinds of projects based on social needs are often run by nonprofit organizations or by the Government itself. Even if not for profit, the projects in such organizations are also linked to the business needs of the organization because in order to perform the projects, the organization must survive, and in order to survive, the organization must work according to its strategic business plan.

The sources of project requests can vary widely in different organizations. Depending upon your organization, the origins of projects might be inside the organization, outside the organization, or both. Regardless of these sources, an organization performs a project to meet some business objectives in the organization’s strategic plan. So the strategic plan of an organization is still the grand origin of all projects in most cases.

Previous: Introduction to Project Initiation

Next: Understanding Project Selections

Chapter 17: Introduction to Project Initiation

As you learned in the previous section on Introduction to Project Management, you manage projects through processes. You also learned that a process has an input, uses some tools and techniques, and produces output. You manage the initiation of a project through a process group called the initiating process group, which consists of two processes: Develop Project Charter and Identify Stakeholders. Before you can initiate a project, it must originate from somewhere.

In this section (a bunch of chapters) we will be looking at one big question:

How is a Project Initiated?

So, lets get started!!!

Initiating a Project:

Initiating a project means defining the project, getting approval from people to start it, and identifying and analyzing the project stakeholders. During this stage the initial scope of the project is defined. Accordingly, initial resources are determined and allocated, a project manager with an appropriate authority level is assigned, and project stakeholders are identified.

Defining the project includes the following tasks:

1. Developing project objectives and describing how they are related to the organization’s business objectives and strategy. (Remember the Project/Program/Portfolio Relationship chapter?)
2. Specifying the project deliverables, such as products, services, or results, that will meet the objectives of starting this project.
3. Based on the objectives and deliverables, defining the initial scope of the project by explaining what will be done and drawing boundaries around what will be done and what will not be done.
4. Based on the initial scope, estimating the project duration and the resources needed. Only an Initial estimate would be made so that resources can be procured accordingly. An even accurate estimate would be made during the planning phase
5. Defining the success criteria. The project definition is incomplete without defining its success.
6. Assigning the initial project resources.
7. Assigning a project manager if one is not already assigned.
8. Authorizing the project. While different organizations may have a different process to approve the processes, the standard way to do it is to approve the document that holds the definition of the project, such as the project charter.

Note: The processes in the initiating process group, just like any other process group, can also be used to initiate a phase of a project that has multiple phases.

Based on the project definition, you will identify the project stakeholders.

Look at the image below and you will understand the process of how inputs are provided to create the project charter.

Every organization has a business strategy and based on the business needs, someone in the top management writes down a statement of work and makes a business case. This business case and the statement of work are the starting points to develop the initial project scope and thereby determine what needs to be done in order to meet the business strategy. All these things go into the Project Charter which in turn is an input to the process of identifying the Stakeholders. Remember the chapter on Project Stakeholders?

Trivia:
It’s a good policy to involve customers and other important stakeholders in the initiation stage of the project. It gives them the feeling of shared ownership that will greatly contribute to the success of the project by positively influencing factors such as deliverable acceptance and stakeholder satisfaction.

In the next chapter, we will ponder more about the origin of projects and how they are initiated!!!

Previous: Important Terms - Introduction to Project Management

Next: Origin of Projects