Assess consolidated project plans for dependencies, gaps, and continued business value

Understanding and effectively managing dependencies, identifying gaps, and maintaining continued business value are central components in assessing consolidated project plans. To thrive in today’s complex business environment, project managers need to be adept at juggling multiple tasks and projects simultaneously — a crucial skill measured by the Project Management Professional (PMP) examination.

Understanding Dependencies in a Consolidated Project Plan

Dependencies are the relationships between activities that dictate the order in which tasks need to be carried out. There are four types of activity dependencies in project management:

• Finish to Start (FS): The most common type, where the dependent task cannot begin until the task it is dependent on is complete.
• Start to Start (SS): Both tasks or activities can start simultaneously.
• Finish to Finish (FF): The dependent activity cannot finish unless the task it is dependent upon finishes.
• Start to Finish (SF): The least common type, where the dependent task cannot finish until the task it is dependent on begins.

A consolidated project plan combines all individual project plans into a single, unified document, making dependency assessment a critical step of the process.

Recognizing Gaps in a Consolidated Project Plan

Gaps refer to the discrepancies between the current state of the project and its desired outcome. Gaps in project management can be classified into three main categories:

• Performance Gaps: Differences between planned performance and actual performance.
• Profitability Gaps: Differences between projected and actual profitability.
• Schedule Gaps: Deviations between the intended and actual project timelines.

Identifying and addressing gaps in a consolidated project plan allows for the development of action plans to address them, ensuring successful project completion.

Ensuring Continued Business Value

Continued business value in project management refers to the ongoing worth or benefits a project provides to an organization, beyond its intended completion. Everything a project does should align with the strategic goals of the organization and produce a measurable return on investment. This requires an understanding of commercial realism, stakeholder management, and value management. Ultimately, the success of a project is defined by the value it brings to the business.

Importance of Assessing Consolidated Project Plan

The process of assessing consolidated project plans for dependencies, gaps, and continued business value supports strategic decision-making and helps to maximize the benefits from managing multiple projects concurrently. This ensures better synchronization, improved resource allocation, and risk management.

For instance, if we consider a software development project where coding cannot begin until the design phase is completed (FS dependency), understanding these dependencies helps in better planning. Recognizing gaps such as schedule overruns helps in corrective actions like resource reallocation. Also, measuring the project’s value in sync with business objectives ensures that it aligns with the strategic goals.

Assessing consolidated project plans is not a one-time task but an ongoing process throughout the project lifecycle. Therefore, it is vital to include assessment tasks into your project management schedule. Regular check-ins and updates will make it easier to adjust the schedule as necessary and facilitate smooth project execution.

Through effective project management as articulated in the PMP Exam, organizations can ensure they are implementing projects that not only align with their strategic vision but also deliver continued business value.

Honing these skills and understanding in depth can help project managers pass the PMP exam, but more importantly, it helps them deliver projects successfully, adding value to their organizations.