Overview:
The Challenge
IT shops often spend 50 - 80% of their time on application maintenance. This work usually consists of large numbers of change requests (defect repairs and enhancements) that take from hours to a few weeks to complete. Can standard Project Management practice be applied effectively to this work?
The Solution
This advanced project management workshop re-examines many of our assumptions about what projects are, how they are managed and what is "reasonable" in the application of Project Management technique. During this discussion we discover that much of what we know from our work as project managers does apply, but not in the usual way. This workshop includes a demonstration of software that can support the use of project management practice in the planning and execution of even the smallest of projects.
Audience:
This advanced PM workshop is of value to anyone involved in software maintenance, including team leads, Project Managers, Functional Managers with software maintenance responsibility, Project Management Office (PMO) staff and anyone who has project lead responsibility over small projects.
Course duration:
Half day
Learning Objectives :
- Although very small projects may appear relatively simple, they nonetheless have many of the characteristics of full sized projects
- PM concepts do apply regardless of project size, but small projects require a different approach and tool set
- The thinking is the same
- There is no room for bureaucratic overhead
- We can use a very simplified project plan that takes minutes to create
- Related very small projects can be managed as a program
- Planning done for the program can apply to all small projects within it
- Small projects are better managed when the goals of the program are clear
- A Helpdesk System or Change Request Tracking System can be used to support a more formal approach to the management of very small projects
- Each helpdesk ticket provides a project description
- Helpdesk tickets provide much of the "project plan" for very small projects
- When the maintenance effort is large enough, the helpdesk ticket can also serve as a mini-Project Charter
- A structured approach to very small projects leads to program success.
Learning Approach:
- A highly experienced instructor will use interactive lecture format, group discussions and other techniques to drive home the essential points of this material
- We will build on your prior experience in this topic, while providing you with a structure and vocabulary to use in your future software maintenance work.
- If you have modest project management knowledge, you will find that the clarity of the material and direct presentation style of the instructor will make the subject matter easy to understand.
- You will receive a Student Guide which will help you follow the material, take notes and retain what you learned so that you can apply it on your job.
Why should I take this workshop?:
- This advamced workshop will help you to understand how to take greater control over the work of software maintenance.
- Managing Very Small Projects re-examines our assumptions about what a project is and how we should manage it. You will find that you can take advantage of familiar tools and techniques in a new setting.
- Take this workshop and learn what you can do to ensure that your software maintenance work is well managed from start to end.
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