Project Management & Oversight
Project Oversight
Templates & Examples
- Methodology Change Request Template
- Oversight Implementation and Closeout Estimation
- Oversight Issues Report Example
- Oversight Plan Document Example
- Oversight Project Information Template
- Oversight Project Rollup Report Example
- Oversight Strategy Template
- Process Improvement Report Template
- Project Improvement Plan Template
- Weekly Events Report Example
Project Management
To ensure our information technology investments serve the business goals of the state, the Office of Information Technology continues to support and promote the project management policies, guidelines and best practices adopted by the Information Technology Advisory Board. The project management training program will continue to evolve to better meet the needs of the state’s information technology community.
With new e-government initiatives being developed and the need for collaboration between agencies to share data across diverse platforms, it has become apparent that a standardized methodology of project management tracking and reporting is needed. As project managers from individual agencies work together toward a common set of goals and objectives, it only makes sense that they share a common language or methodology of project management. This shared language has been identified in the Missouri Project Management Methodology Manual, which is currently on version 2.0 and will continue to be updated as new and revised best practices are identified.
Missouri Project Management Best Practices Reference Manual
Missouri Project Management Best Practices Manual Change Management Process
Project Management Committee Charter
Project Management Policies with links to Guidelines and Best Practices
Configuration Management
Policy Statement:
Configuration Management (CM) must be performed on all projects in accordance with established organizational CM procedures. These processes must ensure that controlled and stable baselines are established for planning, managing, and building the system; the integrity of the system's configuration is controlled over time; and the status and content of the baselines are known.
Purpose:
To ensure that the project baselines are managed and changes to the baseline are controlled.
Overview:
CM involves identifying project baseline items, controlling these items and changes to them; and recording and reporting status and change activity for these items. Changes to the baseline items are controlled systematically using a defined change control process. The configuration of a system or any controlled intermediate or support product can be distinctly identified at any point in time.
Objectives:
- Explicitly assign responsibility for CM for each project.
- Ensure that each project has a CM plan.
- Ensure CM work is performed according to the project plan.
- Ensure that CM is implemented on products throughout the project's life cycle.
- Ensure that CM is implemented for externally delivered products and for appropriate products inside the organization.
- Ensure that all projects have a repository for storing configuration items and associated CM records.
- Ensure that quality assurance audits of the baselines and CM activities are performed on a regular basis.
Responsibilities:
the project manager has primary responsibility for implementing this policy.
Evidence of Compliance:
To demonstrate compliance with this policy, the following documentation must be available, at a minimum:
Organizational configuration management plan or project configuration management plan
Project Planning
Policy Statement:
Each project manager must develop, maintain, and follow a written plan that defines project goals, processes, and resource estimates (in terms of schedule, cost, and development). The project plan must be updated throughout the life of the project to accurately reflect the current plan.
Purpose:
To ensure proper planning is performed for successful project completion.
Overview:
Project planning includes developing estimates for the work to be performed, establishing the necessary commitments, and defining the plan to perform the work. The development plan addresses the commitments in terms of resources, constraints, and capabilities of the project. Finally, the plan provides the basis for guiding the management and the performance of the project and evaluating the work progress.
Objectives:
- Develop a plan for each project that appropriately and realistically covers the activities and commitments (based on documented requirements) and breaks down the development effort into manageable components.
- Ensure that all affected groups and individuals (e.g., developers, external users, internal customers, stakeholders, etc.) understand the planning estimates and assignments and commit to support them.
- Document all approved estimates and plans for tracking activities and commitments. Project estimates are refined throughout project phases. As issues are better understood, estimates for later project phases are updated based on project specific data rather that formula-based assumptions.
- Perform project planning in accordance with organizational procedures and in a manner consistent with the complexity and risk of the project.
Responsibilities
The project manager has primary responsibility for implementing this policy.
Evidence of Compliance:
Some {low risk} projects will prepare a project plan that includes, at a minimum, a project statement, a project schedule with milestones, and a project budget. Other {medium risk} projects will also provide project resource estimates, a deliverable list, a project risk assessment, and a configuration management process. Still other {high risk} projects will additionally be required to provide a detailed work breakdown structure, a quality plan, a project requirements list, and an issues list.
Project Tracking
Policy Statement:
Project managers must continuously track the progress of all projects against the project plan.
Purpose:
Project managers will ensure that the project is continuously tracked and that appropriate actions are taken.
Overview:
Project tacking involves monitoring and reviewing the project accomplishments and results against documented estimates contained in the development plan, and adjusting these estimates based on the actual accomplishments and results. A documented and up-to-date plan for the effort is used as the basis for tracking activities, communicating status, and revising plans. Changes in project scope and status have a cascading effect on testing, documentation, and rollout planning. Regular technical and management reviews are conducted to ensure that the management and staff are aware of the project status and plans, and that issues receive appropriate attention.
Objectives:
- Ensure that actual results and performance of the project are regularly tracked against documented and approved plans.
- Ensure that risk assessment is performed during key points in the project.
- Ensure that corrective actions are taken when the actual results and performance of the project deviate from the plans.
- Ensure that changes to commitments (e.g., assignments, budget, schedule) are understood and agreed to by all affected groups and individuals.
Responsibilities
The project manager has primary responsibility for implementing this policy.
Evidence of Compliance:
To demonstrate compliance with this policy, the following documentation must be available, at a minimum:
- Actual vs. Budgeted Cost Reports
- Planned vs. Actual Schedule
- Updated Risk Management Plans
- Deliverable Status List
- Corrective Action Plan (may be included in RMP)
- Requirements Traceablility Matrix (High risk projects
Requirements Management
Policy Statement:
All projects must include a well-defined problem statement with well-defined business and technical requirements that assure the IT solution satisfies the business need. Requirements must be thoroughly documented and understood by the project team. Changes to requirements must be managed throughout the life of the project.
Purpose:
To ensure that project requirements form the basis for all planning and development efforts and that changes to requirements are managed throughout the life of the project.
Overview:
Requirements establish and maintain an understanding and agreement of the capabilities of the project. Requirement statements, which will evolve over the life of the project, form the basis for estimating, planning, performing, and tracking the project’s activities and are critical to obtaining acceptance of the product at the end of the project. Control of the requirements is directly related to control of the project.
Objectives:
- Ensure that system requirements provide a clearly stated, verifiable, and testable foundation for development and management of the project, based on business and technical requirements.
- Ensure that the scope of a development effort is defined by the system requirements and that these requirements form the basis for all plans, products, and activities.
- Ensure that project team members thoroughly understand requirements prior to developing a product or procuring commercial products for the project.
- Record initial project requirements and review and assess impact of all changes to the initial requirements throughout the life of the project.
- Track and document all changes to requirements and update all necessary technical and management project documentation affected by the change.
- Define, collect, and store metrics (measurements) associated with the requirements phase.
Responsibilities
The project manager has primary responsibility for implementing this policy.
Evidence of Compliance:
To demonstrate compliance with this policy, the following must be available, at a minimum:
- Project Statement and objective (all projects)
- Project Requirements Document (all projects)
- Requirements Control Methodology (medium to high risk projects)
Requirements Management Guidelines and Best Practices
Risk Management
The Information Technology Advisory Board approved the new Guidelines and Best Practices for the Missouri IT Risk Management Program. The program manual presents the guidance and approach for implementation of the program including the processes, templates and associated narratives necessary to support program implementation.
Missouri IT Risk Management Manual
Policy Statement
Risks associated with each Information Technology project must be identified, analyzed, and prioritized. Identified risks must be controlled through the processes of project planning and monitoring. Risk identification and management must be integrated components of project management and risks must be continuously assessed and analyzed during the life of the project.
Purpose
To ensure that risks associated with a project are well understood so they can be managed, planned for, and mitigated during the execution of the project.
Overview
Assessing a project’s risk will help project managers make more informed decisions and ensure more successful outcomes. Risk assessment is not problem management, but is a process that reduces the likelihood of problems occurring. The risk management process must be integrated with the other elements of project management to ensure consistency in the process. Project risks involve exposure to events such as:
- failure of the project to obtain anticipated benefits;
- costs that exceed planned levels;
- extended project schedules;
- poor performance of a system.
Objectives
- Risk identification will be led by the project manager, with the assistance of team members with various perspectives, including user, management, and technical perspectives. Risks are listed, analyzed for probability of occurrence and potential impact on the project. Then the risks are prioritized. Risk identification occurs at the beginning of a project and continues throughout the project. Management must ensure that the project team openly and routinely discusses and analyzes risks throughout the life of a project.
- Risk management planning produces plans for addressing each major risk item and coordinates individual risk plans to the overall project plan. Risk planning ensures that project schedules and cost estimates are adjusted to ensure that adequate time is allocated to properly develop and execute risk mitigation measures when required.
- Risk management monitoring and control involves tracking the progress toward resolving high risk items and taking corrective action when necessary. The appropriate risk items are highlighted as part of the project reviews and status reports.
Responsibilities
The project manager has primary responsibility for implementing the policy.
Evidence of Compliance
To demonstrate compliance with this policy, the following must be available, at a minimum:
- Risk Management Plan
- Form 5
