COURSE CODE: IT 224 – System Integration and

Architecture
Module 2

Intended Learning Outcomes

 Have an understanding of the technical and business process issues

COURSE MODULE

involved in systems integration

Topic 2 – What is a Project?

A system developer and architects cannot do anything without first

establishing various projects. These projects may be new or existing. So it is
inevitable to first understand what a project is, factors that influence the
project, who the owners are and many more will be discussed.

A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to accomplish a unique

product or service.

Attributes of projects:

•Unique purpose
•Temporary
•Require resources, often from various areas
•Should have a primary sponsor and/or customer
•Involve uncertainty

Where do information Systems Projects Originate (Sources of Projects)?

New or changed IS development projects come from problems,

opportunities, and directives and are always subject to one or more
constraints.

1.Problems – may either be current, suspected, or anticipated. Problems are

undesirable situations that prevent the business from fully achieving its
purpose, goals, and objectives (users discovering real problems with existing
IS).

2.An Opportunity – is a chance to improve the business even in the absence

of specific problems. This means that the business is hoping to create a
system that will help it with increasing its revenue, profit, or services, or
decreasing its costs.

3.A Directive – is a new requirement that is imposed by management,

government, or some external influence i.e. are mandates that come from
either an internal or external source of the business.
 Projects Cannot Be Run in Isolation
 Projects must operate in a broad organizational environment
 Project managers need to take a holistic or systems view of a project
and understand how it is situated within the larger organization

Stakeholders
Stakeholders are the people involved in or affected by project activities
Stakeholders include:
the project sponsor and project team
 support staff,
 customers,
 users,
COURSE MODULE

 suppliers
 opponents to the project

Importance of Stakeholders
Project managers must take time to identify, understand, and manage
relationships with all project stakeholders
Using the four frames of organizations can help meet stakeholder needs
and expectations
Senior executives are very important stakeholders

What Helps Projects Succeed?

According to the Standish Group’s report “CHAOS 2001: A Recipe for
Success,” the following items help IT projects succeed, in order of
importance:
 Executive support
 User involvement
 Experienced project manager
 Clear business objectives
 Minimized scope
 Standard software infrastructure
 Firm basic requirements
 Formal methodology
 Reliable estimates

Understanding Organizations
We can analyze a formal organization using the following 4 (four) frames;
 Many Organizations Focus on the Structural Frame

Most people understand what organizational charts are

Many new managers try to change organizational structure when other
changes are needed

3 basic organizational structures

 Functional
 project
 matrix
COURSE MODULE

Basic Organizational Structures

Organizational structure depends on the company and/or the project.

The structure helps define the roles and responsibilities of the members of
the department, work group, or organization.

It is generally a system of tasks and reporting policies in place to give

members of the group a direction when completing projects.

A good organizational structure will allow people and groups to work

effectively together while developing hard work ethics and attitudes.

The four general types of organizational structure are functional,

divisional, matrix and project-based.

Basic Organizational Structures

Functional Structure - People who do similar tasks, have similar skills and/or
jobs in an organization are grouped into a functional structure. The
advantages of this kind of structure include quick decision making
because the group members are able to communicate easily with each
other. People in functional structures can learn from each other easier
because they already possess similar skill sets and interests.

Divisional Structure - In a divisional structure, the company will coordinate

inter-group relationships to create a work team that can readily meet the
needs of a certain customer or group of customers. The division of labor in
this kind of structure will ensure greater output of varieties of similar
products. An example of a divisional structure is geographical, where
divisions are set up in regions to work with each other to produce similar
products that meet the needs of the individual regions.

Matrix Structure - Matrix structures are more complex in that they group
people in two different ways: by the function they perform and by the
product team they are working with. In a matrix structure the team
members are given more autonomy and expected to take more
responsibility for their work. This increases the productivity of the team,
fosters greater innovation and creativity, and allows managers to
cooperatively solve decision-making problems through group interaction.

Project Organization Structure - In a project-organizational structure, the

teams are put together based on the number of members needed to
 produce the product or complete the project. The number of significantly
different kinds of tasks are taken into account when structuring a project
in this manner, assuring that the right members are chosen to participate
COURSE MODULE in the project.
 WHAT ARE THE PROJECT LIFE CYCLE PHASES?
There are 4 project life cycle phases: initiation, planning, execution, and
closure.

And if you monitor each, you can systematize them and understand where
there’s room for improvement. Especially if you review them separately,
instead of just treating all the phases as one big project.
COURSE MODULE

First Phase: INITIATION

In the project initiation phase, you’re setting the foundations for later success.
No other aspect of communication means as much as the communication
you’ll experience at the very beginning. Again, your goal here is to
systematize how you process the initial information and make sure you’re
always getting the information you need.

The first step is defining the project through:

1. Identifying a need or a problem that the project will solve

2. Identifying opportunities you can use to solve the problem
3. Understanding whether the project is feasible and will solve the problem
4. Defining the scope of the project and the deliverables
5. Identifying the stakeholders and defining the necessary resources
 After fulfilling these requirements, you’ll be able to create a project charter
containing all the information on purposes, objectives, resources and other
aspects.
The analysis you conduct in this phase of the project life cycle will help you
understand how your project will be progressing in the future, as well as
organize and assemble all the necessary people and resources.

Second Phase: PROJECT PLANNING

COURSE MODULE

In this part of the project management life cycle, you:

• Set a budget and estimate a timeframe
• Establish milestones
• Perform a risk analysis
• Define tasks and responsibilities
• Create a workflow.
(See attached outline in Planning Phase)

You should look at this phase both strategically and practically.

Try to understand how each task leads to the ultimate goal of solving the
problem, and keep in mind that the tasks should be practical and easy to
accomplish.
The most important part of project planning as a stage is definitely a risk
analysis (see attached sample: risk analysis_enrollment system project)
which can help you identify any potential roadblocks.

Third Phase: EXECUTION

Steps for the project execution phase may include the following:

• Creating tasks and organizing workflows:

Assign granular aspects of the projects to the appropriate team members,
making sure team members are not overworked.
• Briefing team members on tasks:
Explain tasks to team members, providing necessary guidance on how they
should be completed, and organizing process-related training if necessary
• Communicating with team members, clients, and upper management:
Provide updates to project stakeholders at all levels
• Monitoring quality of work:
Ensure that team members are meeting their time and quality goals for tasks
• Managing budget:
Monitor spending and keeping the project on track in terms of assets and
resources

If you have a properly documented process already in place, executing the

project will be much easier.
 Fourth Phase: CLOSURE

Once your team has completed work on a project, you enter the closure
phase. In the closure phase, you provide final deliverables, release project
resources, and determine the success of the project.

Just because the major project work is over, that doesn’t mean the project
manager’s job is done— there are still important things to do, including
evaluating what did and did not work with the project.
COURSE MODULE

Steps for the project closure phase may include the following:

Analyzing project performance:

Determine whether the project's goals were met (tasks completed, on time
and on budget) and the initial problem solved using a prepared checklist.

Analyzing team performance:

Evaluate how team members performed, including whether they met their
goals along with timeliness and quality of work

Documenting project closure:

Make sure that all aspects of the project are completed with no loose ends
remaining and providing reports to key stakeholders

Conducting post-implementation reviews:

Conduct a final analysis of the project, taking into account lessons learned
for similar projects in the future

Accounting for used and unused budget:

Allocate remaining resources for future projects

By remaining on task even though the project’s work is completed, you will
be prepared to take everything you’ve learned and implement it for your
next project.
 Reference

COURSE MODULE • https://www.projectcentral.com/blog/project-management-life-cycle/

Prepared by:

MARITES D. HABAGAT
Instructor
TRISHA ANGEL MAE M. CAMARISTA
Instructor