Surroundings of Projects

CNM Cyber suites

Nature of Projects (hereinafter, the Lectio) is the lesson part of Project Work Essentials lesson that introduces its participants to project management concepts. This lesson belongs to the CNMCT Entrance section of the CNM Cyber Placement.

Content

The predecessor lectio is Developments at the Wiki.

Script

Projects vary because their work products, budgets, schedules, enterprise factors, project assets, and environments vary.

A work product is any output from any endeavor. Usually, a work product is a deliverable, but not every work product becomes a deliverable. A deliverable is any work product that one party has agreed to deliver to another.

Work products are too diverse to have a single classification, but, when it comes to their development, the main question is whether the developers know how to develop it.

Scripted-work products are those work products that development process is structured and known in details. They would include constructions, non-designer clothing, and foods prepared according to recipes.

Unscripted-work products are those work products that development process is unstructured or unknown. They would include first ever radio, first ever airplane, and first ever computer. If developers have no instructions for developing something, development of this something is unscripted.

Creative works such as content development and design always include both scripted and unscripted aspects. Exclusive web-design can take years and millions dollars to develop. It can also take few hours to clone or modify some existing design. Since schedules for creative works cannot be really calculated, project budgets and/or schedules are simply setup.

Project budgets are estimates how much money is needed to be spent to complete the project. Project schedules are lists of planned work products to be done and resources to be received showing the times or dates when they are intended to be done and received. Obviously, scarce budgets and compressed schedules stress any project work.

Project assets are those organizational resources that a worker or a team can use while working on a project. Contents of CNM Wiki are some of those resources. When you work on your task as a part of the CNM Cyber Team, you can use any of those contents; you may also choose not to use any.

Enterprise factors are those conditions that direct and constrain project work; these conditions are imposed by the organizational cultures, organizational workforce, or project environment. When you work on a project, these conditions are not under your immediate control.

For example, the CNM Cyber Team uses CNM Wiki for its work on requirements. You may like it or not, but, if you work on requirements as a part of the Team, you have to use the Wiki.

Similarly, you cannot change personalities of your teammates and their approaches to work.

Project environments are those natural and human-made surroundings in which those who work on a project perform and which influence their performance. Project environment refers to the combined internal and external factors and forces, both standing alone and interacting with one another, that affect or can potentially affect the performance.

Those project environments that direct and constrain project work can be divided in controlled and uncontrolled

Project environments are also too diverse to have a single classification, but, when it comes to their influence on project work, the main question is whether the developers know how to develop it.

Key terms

Work product, project budget, project schedule, enterprise factors, project assets

Closing

The successor lectio is What Project Work Is.