PMP Training in Bangalore

1. Gurdev S Randhawa, PMP is a founder of PMCC (India), an REP, who is engaged is training PMP aspirants Gurdev S Randhawa, PMP is a founder of PMCC (India), an REP, who is engaged is training PMP aspirants MANAGE YOUR PROJECT TO SUCCESS since 2003. He has managed large number of projects in both Public and Private sectors since 1970’s.. His contribution in PMBOK 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Editions has been acknowledged by PMI. contribution in PMBOK 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Editions has been acknowledged by PMI. Interview Excerpt: Effort Estimation for Software Product Development August 01, 2017 August 01, 2017 I enjoy the time I get to interview professionals, get to know how they are managing aspects of their project, and work though resolving the problem together to help them achieve success. I like the IKEA job interview quote below- Learn by asking questions and doing hands on- that is the key! Let’s discuss the mistakes we often make in estimating effort (staff days) to complete project or a portion of a project work. I (Gurdev) recently interviewed Tom (name changed), who is a software professional managing projects for a software company, who recently attended PMP Training at PMCC. My aim was to find out from him how does he estimate total effort for the project. Here are the extracts of the interview: I hope that this helps with your journey to successfully manage projects. Gurdev Gurdev: Good morning Tom. Thanks for sparing your valuable time to discuss problems in estimating effort. Can you share with me the www.pmcc-india.com converted by Web2PDFConvert.com

2. problems you often face when managing project? Tom Tom: Good morning sir. I have been managing software projects since last 15 years, and let me confess that I am unable to realistically estimate the total effort required to complete the project successfully. Every project we tend to overstay and work late in the evening, or scope is either reduced or deferred. Sometimes we overcommit because of poor estimating and as a result we fail to complete project work within the agreed schedule and budgeted effort. Gurdev Gurdev: Great Tom for being frank with me. First let me ask you whether you develop a high-level plan when the project is initially assigned to you. Tom Tom: Yes sir, because at that point of time the information available is limited. Gurdev Gurdev: Which information? Tom Tom. Initially the product requirements are often vague, customer expectations are not well understood and the stakeholder’s expectations vary as the project progresses. Gurdev Gurdev: So you will agree with me that the effort estimation at the initial stage is always vague and less accurate. Tom Tom: Yes sir, our estimates at that point of time may be at the best 50% confident Gurdev Gurdev: Great. Then what actions you take to make the vague estimates more realistic. Tom Tom: Sir, first I refer to the previous project documents and search for actual effort spent for completing a similar product or its component and consider it for my current project. Let me confess that even then we under estimate even though we add buffer. Gurdev Gurdev: You agree that all projects are unique. Okay, now let us first discuss how do you quantify the total work required to build a product. If the quantum of work is not well estimated, it may become difficult to estimate total effort. Let me ask you, what technical work is required to build the product, considering vague requirements that you received initially? Tom Tom. First we have series of meetings with the customer representatives to analyse their expectations, understand requirements and refine product requirements. Gurdev Gurdev: What type of meetings? Tom Tom: These meetings may in the form of face-to-face interviews, requirement workshops, focus groups, and brainstorming following by negotiation and approval of the requirements. Gurdev Gurdev: What is the final output of these meetings? Tom Tom: The final outcome is a formal acceptance of the requirements document. Since we are using agile approach, the final requirement documents are user stories. We also prioritise those user stories. Gurdev Gurdev: Great, once the requirements document is negotiated and approved, what technical work is done next? Tom Tom: Sir, once the requirements are approved, we perform work to create design, build and test the product. www.pmcc-india.com converted by Web2PDFConvert.com

3. Gurdev Gurdev: Let’s discuss in detail. What work is required to complete a design work? Tom Tom: Well, we will first develop a high-level design, build prototypes and further refine requirements. We may need to build 4-5 prototypes and then demonstrate product to the end users for their approvals. To reduce the delays, we actively engage customer representative when our team is designing, building and testing a product. Gurdev Gurdev: Well, when your team is developing product, you may be having series of meetings, discussions, reviews, correspondences and negotiations with the stakeholders simultaneously. Tom Tom. On yes, these meetings and conversations consume approximately 33% time every day. Gurdev Gurdev: Do you develop test plans; conduct tests, have peer reviews, do reworks, verify and validate the final product for getting formal acceptance? Tom Tom: Yes, and these are the part of the technical work, which also requires effort. Gurdev Gurdev: This is why I asked you this question. The effort required for designing and building prototypes as well a product or its component are the result of the discrete effort (DE) activities, whereas the efforts required for testing, reworks, peer reviews, inspection, work around, verification, and validation are known as apportioned effort (AE) activities. These AE activities does not produce a final product, but it supports in building a product. The meetings that are required to finalise requirements are known as level of efforts (LOE) activities. This LOE activities provide support to DE and AE effort activities. Well now let’s discuss, the project work. Can you define the project management work to complete the project successfully? Tom Tom. Do we need to calculate the effort required to perform project management work? Sir, can you further elaborate? Gurdev Gurdev: Well, lets’ discuss the project management work. Do you develop plan for your project? Tom Tom. Yes we develop plan progressively as the project progresses. First we develop high-level plan, then release plan, followed by iteration plan and daily plan. Gurdev Gurdev: What is the final output of a release plan? Tom. The final output of the release plan is an approved product backlog, number of iterations, release time boxed duration, cost of completing the product backlog items, business values of backlog items, quality standards to be followed, roles and responsibilities of both internal and external project stakeholders, identifying risks and develop risk response plans. We also need to develop guidelines to manage changes is the scope. Gurdev Gurdev: That is great. Well, what is the final output of an iteration plan? Tom Tom: The final output of an iteration plan is burn down chart that includes iteration backlog items and time-box duration. Gurdev Gurdev: What is the effort required to develop a burn down chart? Tom. The team need to estimate story points of each user story based on its complexities and effort required to complete and obtain the formal acceptance of each backlog item before it is delivered. Team in consultation with the product owner has to prioritise the backlog items and approve the product backlog. www.pmcc-india.com converted by Web2PDFConvert.com

4. Gurdev Gurdev: Well, when estimating, I am sure you must be estimating the discrete efforts, apportioned efforts and level of efforts needed to complete each backlog item from start to completion and getting sign-off. Tom Tom: Let me confess, we don’t break-up the total effort in DE, AE and LOE. This could be one of the reasons we tend to over commit to complete backlog items in predefined time box duration. Gurdev Gurdev: Well Tom, you shall agree with me that lot of effort is spent in developing release and iteration plans. During planning meetings you might be actively engaging stakeholders for negotiations, agreements and decisions to produce planning deliverables as described by you earlier. Now Tom, please tell me, what work is done during execution? Tom Tom: During execution, we need to lot of effort is spent in actively engaging stakeholders to resolving issue and conflicts, discussions, reviews, and responding to correspondence or queries to and from stakeholders, including informal interactions and implement contingency plans. Gurdev Gurdev: Don’t you think these activities are necessary to manage project? Tom Tom: These are the level of efforts activities that are essential to manage project team and engage stakeholders during execution. Gurdev Gurdev: Well, now lets discuss the work required to monitor and control project. What is the project management work required to monitor and control project? Tom Tom: The work required to monitor and control project, we need to update burndown charts, velocity charts, task boards. We monitor project performance through daily standup meetings, weekly review meetings, retrospective meetings, and liaisons with the customer. We use earned value analysis to measure project schedule and cost variances against the performance measurement baseline. Moreover work performance reports are created and communicated to the stakeholders. The project documents such as issue logs, change logs, assumption log; lessons learned register and risk register etc., are updated and stored for use in the future iterations. Gurdev Gurdev: You agree with me that efforts are required for monitoring and controlling project work. Now let’s discuss project work required for closing project or iteration. Tom Tom: Well sir, most of the time the resources are released for other projects, as a result the formal closure takes a back seat. I think lot of efforts are required to close the project or iteration. All the project documents, and updated plans need to be collected and archived. There will be lessons learned meetings, knowledge sharing meetings, final retrospective meetings, and end user meetings. There could be project audits and risk audits. Gurdev Gurdev: You just now explained that there are discrete efforts required to build product, apportioned efforts required for testing, inspection, peer reviews, verification, validation, and level of efforts required for the project management activities from initiation to closing of the project. Can you tell me from your experience, how much percentage of effort is used in each category throughout the project? Tom Tom: I think throughout the project lifecycle 40% discrete effort, 15% apportioned effort and 45% is level of effort is required. Now I realise that we often ignore level of effort estimation. Gurdev Gurdev: Great, so you realise that we need to estimate all types of efforts, and then find out alternative ways to reduce AE and LOE efforts www.pmcc-india.com converted by Web2PDFConvert.com

5. to accelerate project. Thank you Tom Tom Tom: Thank your sir. _________________________________________________ I will end on a funny note with Dilbert! x SHARE SHARE Comments Comments Enter your comment... Powered by Blogger Powered by Blogger www.pmcc-india.com converted by Web2PDFConvert.com