Chapter 19: Managing a stage boundary Flashcards
What is the purpose of the Managing a stage boundary process?
The purpose is to enable the project manager to provide the project board with sufficient information to be able to:
* review the success of the current management stage
* approve the next stage plan
* review the updated project plan
* confirm continued business justification and acceptability of the risks
When should the Managing a stage boundary process happen?
For planned management stages:
* close to the end of each management stage
For exception report response:
* at any time (exception reports are submitted by the project manager to the project boards when the tolerances for a stage are to be exceeded)
What are the objectives of the Managing a stage boundary process for planned management stages?
The objective of managing a stage boundary process is to:
- Assure the project board that all products in the stage plan for the current management stage have been completed and approved
- Prepare the stage plan for the next management stage
- Review and, if necessary, update the PID; in particular the business case, project plan, project
approaches, project management team structure and role descriptions - Provide the information needed for the project board to assess the continuing viability of the project
- Record any information or lessons that can help later management stages of this project and/or other projects
- Request authorisation to start the next management stage.
What are the objectives of the Managing a stage boundary process for exceptions?
For exceptions, the objectives of managing a stage boundary process are to:
- Review and, if necessary, update the PID; in particular the customer’s quality expectations, project approaches and controls, and role descriptions
- Provide the information needed for the project board to assess the continuing viability of the project
- Prepare an exception plan as directed by the project board
- Seek approval to replace the project plan or stage plan for the current management stage with the exception plan.
What are the activities within the Managing a stage boundary process?
- Plan the next management stage
- Update the project plan
- Update the business case
- Report management stage end
- Produce an exception plan
Who should the project manager consult with when planning the next management stage?
With the Project Board, project assurance, team managers and possibly other stakeholders.
What is the management product that is produced through the planning the next management stage activity?
A stage plan.
And within this: the product breakdown structure, product descriptions and product flow diagrams for the products that are relevant to the next management stage are either created or updated
Who is in charge to create the Stage Plan? Who approves it, who reviews it?
Creator: The Project Manager
Approvers: The Executive, the Senior Supplier and the Senior User
Reviewer: Project Assurance
One of the activities within the Managing a stage boundary process is to Update the Project Plan. What is the Project Plan updated with?
- actuals from the current management stage (progress to date)
- forecasts (duration and cost) for the next stage plan, or impact of the exception plan
TRUE or FALSE:
The business case is a document that is finalized in the Initiating a Project process and it is never touched until the end of the project when it is reviewed.
FALSE
Close to the end of a management stage, in the Managing a stage boundary process, the Project Manager updates the business case (with consultation from the Executive) with adaptations to external environment changes. So, the business case should be updated during a project.
Why should the business case be updated during a Managing a stage boundary process?
Because it is submitted to the Project Board for review (as the Project board reviews the PID in order to authorize the next stage) and they have to make sure that the project still has business justification.
What Project Management Team member is responsible for the business case?
The Executive.
One of the activities of the Managing a stage boundary process is to produce an end stage report. Should this report be created when the process is triggered due to an exception?
Yes, it might make sense to produce an end stage report for the activities done in the current management stage to date; as some products might have already been finalized.
Who requests exception plans? Who creates them?
The Project Board requests exception plans as a response to an exception report submitted by the Project Manager. The Project Manager creates the exception plan.
TRUE or FALSE:
The issue register needs to be updated when an exception plan has been created.
TRUE.
The issue register should record the Project Board request to create an exception plan.
