Welcome to the Data Analytic Toolkit PowerPoint presentation – an

introduction to project management. In this presentation, we will take a

brief look at project management to understand the process and some
common tools and techniques. The objectives of this unit are to
understand the purpose of projects and project management, describe
the five phases of project management, apply a few common project
management tools, and identify some best practices to increase project
success.
Complying with the EHR Incentive Program and its meaningful use requirements is a massive undertaking.
Adopting and using electronic health records requires multiple projects that cross the areas of selecting,
implementing, and utilizing technology, as well as optimizing the use of technology. In order to complete the
tasks and sub-tasks associated with the various projects related to achieving meaningful use, organizations
need to guide their projects successfully by using project management tools, resources, and best practices.
This presentation will present an introduction to project management for meaningful use.
Here are two definitions of the term project. The first definition states
that a project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique
product, service, or result. The second definition describes a project as
a complex, non-routine, one-time effort limited by time, budget,
resources, and performance specifications designed to meet customer
needs. While the two definitions differ slightly they each point out some
important attributes of a project.

The first definition emphasizes the temporary nature of projects. This

means that once the project has been delivered, the project is complete
and the team disbanded. The project and project team are not
structured as part of an ongoing effort but rather created to achieve specific
results, and then the need for the project effort no longer exists.

The second definition notes the goals of the project in terms of time (or
schedule), budget and resources, and specifications (or scope). These
goals provide the focus and direction for the project team.

Please note that both definitions emphasize the unique nature of projects.
This means that each project will deliver a new product, process, or result
and each project will encounter new challenges. Due to the unique nature,
projects cannot follow a standardized set of rigid processes. As a result,
project teams must possess the ability to adapt to changing environments
and solve new problems as they efficiently work toward the project goals.
This slide best summarizes project management from the perspective
of a project manager. The project manager is the individual responsible
for the project execution. This individual ensures the project scope is
delivered within the allocated budget and within the planned schedule.
A project is considered successful if the project deliverables meet
expectations, the project spending stays within the limits of the project
budget, and the project is completed by the target date established in
the schedule.
The project manager is not the only individual involved in the project.
Individuals associated with a project are referred to as project
stakeholders. Project stakeholders are considered any individual or
group with a vested interest in the project outcomes. These groups
include the project manager; the team of multidisciplinary specialists
performing work on the project; the customers that will receive and use
the results of the project; the project sponsor or project owner who pays
for the project and makes decisions over the project scope, budget, and
schedule; and the project champion who provides executive-level
support to ensure the organizational resources are made available to
the project team and any organizational or political hurdles are
removed.
With a cursory understanding of projects and project management we
can now shift our focus to the project management process. The
Project Management Institute, a professional organization for project
managers, refers to a set of process groups that make up the project
management practice. These process groups can be considered
different phases of the project. However, it should be noted that these
phases are not necessarily sequential, but may be conducted
simultaneously with other phases.

This diagram depicts the five phases and illustrates how these phases
may be carried out over the life of a project. Over the next few sections
of this presentation we will investigate the activities that take place during
each of these project phases.
The first phase is the initiation phase. During the initiation phase, the
project is defined in terms of scope of work, the estimated schedule,
and the planned budget. The scope, budget, and schedule are the
three variables of project management. These three factors will change
over time and require the project manager and project team to adapt to
new or revised scope, budget cuts, or schedule accelerations. Also,
during the initiation phase, the various stakeholders are identified and
engaged in the project.

The resulting artifact of the initiation phase is a project charter. The

project charter document outlines the work to be completed, defines the
project budget and schedule, and identifies the key stakeholders, such as
the project owner and project champion. This document becomes a type of
contract for the project team by establishing the goals the team is expected
to reach.

It is important to keep in mind that the scope will most likely change during
the project, and that the schedule and budget are only estimates. The
project stakeholders must recognize these as rough estimates used in the
project charter and must be willing to accept further scope, budget, and
schedule refinements as a more detailed analysis of the project
requirements are conducted during the next phase.
The second project management phase is based on the project charter
established as a result of the initiation phase. The planning phase is
used to carry out a detailed analysis of the project as it was defined in
the project charter and develop a plan to deliver the project.

During the planning phase of the project the project scope is further
investigated to provide a more detailed view of the anticipated
deliverables and the corresponding costs and timelines. Keep in mind
that with analytics projects, or other projects where the information is a
key success driver, the information needs must be considered when
determining the requirements for the project. These projects should not
be considered technology implementations but rather the development of
information assets. Therefore, the information needs and business rules
must be considered first and then the technology requirements considered
as a means to produce the desired information.

Once the scope is clearly defined and requirements identified, a more

accurate budget and schedule can be established. The next few slides
illustrate some of the more common tools and techniques used to prepare
the project budget and schedule.
A work breakdown structure is commonly used to dissect a project into
smaller components. This dissection makes it easier to understand all
of the activities that must take place in order to deliver the project. The
work breakdown structure looks similar to an organizational chart
where the project is broken down into deliverables or phases, activities
needed to prepare the deliverable, and the individuals tasks that must
be executed to complete the activity.

The bottom level tasks of the work breakdown structure are commonly
referred to as work packages. These work packages are smaller units
of work that can be assigned to team members. These work packages
are defined to help distribute workload across the team and also support
improved estimations and reporting. The estimated time and expenses can
be calculated for each of these work packages and then summed up to the
activity, deliverable, and project level. By estimating resources and time at
the work package level, the project team is able to provide more realistic
estimates than simply guessing expenses and duration at the project or
deliverable level.

The work breakdown structure also helps to communicate the project

execution by breaking down the project into smaller and more manageable
pieces. This structure is used as input into the next planning tool; the Gantt
chart.
The Gantt chart is a popular project management tool used to provide
an overview of the project and to schedule project tasks. In this
example you can see the tasks outlined on the left side of the screen.
These tasks can be setup in the same manner as the work breakdown
structure where the individual work units (or tasks) rollup to activities,
deliverables, and the overall project. The next set of columns are used
to define the duration, start date, and end date for each task. The
Gantt chart also supports linked tasks to indicate the dependency of a
task’s start date or end date on the start or end date of another task.

The diagram on the right side of the chart provides a visual

representation of the scheduled tasks across a timeline. Once the tasks are
defined, duration estimates provided, and task dependencies identified, the
project schedule can be established.

Using the Gantt chart, the project manager can outline all of the tasks that
must be completed, identify the duration and schedule for each task, and
determine the overall timelines for the project. This chart is frequently used
to track the performance of the project during the execution phase.
Once the tasks are identified from the work breakdown structure, a
resource budget can be created. The resource budget is used to
calculate the cost of the project members. It can be used if external
contractors are needed to participate in the project, or if internal
resource calculates are required. In this budget calculation each task is
associated with one or more project team members. The estimated
low, high, and anticipated number of hours to complete the task are
provided and a weighted mean is used to calculate the anticipated
costs of the task. This process is used to determine the human
resource costs associated with each work package (or task) in the
project.
Keep in mind, if you are using internal resources to complete the project,
this resource budget may not be needed.
Regardless of the type of human resources needed for the project,
there will be expenses for the project. These expenses may be
associated with the initial delivery of the project or the ongoing costs to
maintain the project deliverables. These expenses should be identified
and categorized in order to determine and justify the project’s financial
budget.
Once the project scope, budget, and schedule plans are underway, the
project can move to the execution phase. In this phase, the project
plans are carried out. This phase requires careful coordination and
communication by the project manager to ensure the plan is executed
properly.

The execution phase is carried out to execute the plans made during
the planning phase. In the execution phase, the project manager
guides the project team and coordinates all activities so that the plan is
carried out according to schedule. The team must ensure the project
deliverables meet the expectations of the customer so that the
deliverables will be adopted by the organization.

One of the key activities for the project manager in the execution phase is
communication. During the project execution phase the project manager
must communicate with all project stakeholders. The stakeholders must
stay engaged so that they are able to provide the needed support, respond
to important project decisions, and are more likely to accept and adopt the
project deliverables.

In order to ensure the project manager meets the communication needs of

all stakeholders, a communications plan is commonly prepared.
A project communications plan is established to ensure the project
manager and project team provides the type of communication needed
for each project stakeholder. During the planning phase or early in the
execution phase the project manager identifies each of the key
stakeholders or stakeholder groups associated with the project. The
project manager associates these individuals with their corresponding
interest in the project.

Using this matrix, the project manager can determine the type of
information each stakeholder or stakeholder group would be interested
in and then develop and schedule project reports that meet the
communication needs of these key stakeholders. The communications plan
should include both structured and scheduled reports, as well as the semi-
structured project reporting meetings.

Using this communications plan the project manager can be sure to provide
the information each stakeholder needs to keep these individuals and
groups engaged in the project. An engaged stakeholder is more likely to
provide support to the project and be available when important decisions are
needed. The engaged stakeholders are more likely to be aware of the
project deliverables and will be ready to accept and adopt the deliverables at
the end of the project.
While the project execution phase is underway, the project manager
must also monitor and control the project. During this phase the project
manager watches over the project to ensure all hurdles are removed,
decisions are made, and the path for delivery is cleared.

During this monitoring and controlling phase, the project manager

evaluates the project’s progress and identifies any issues that must be
addressed, and any potential risks that may prevent the project from
reaching its goals. As the issues and risks are identified, the project
team works together to put plans in place to either respond to the issue
or mitigate or remove the risk.
The process of risk analysis and issue tracking and resolution is conducted
throughout the project as part of the project monitoring and controlling. This
process enables the project team to be more proactive in dealing with
uncertainty during the project rather than reacting to issues as they are
encountered. Using this more proactive approach to risks and issues, the
project team can better manage the schedule and budget and is able to
raise awareness of issues and risks in a more timely manner.

Proactive risk and issue monitoring also enables the project team to develop
contingency plans to address any potential events before they occur.
Most projects will encounter change. The scope defined at the
beginning of the project is often incomplete or the business
environment changes to a point where new or redefined deliverables
are needed. The project team must expect that changes to the project
scope will occur. As these changes are introduced, a formalized
process should be in place so that the project team can address any
changes, and revise the project budget and schedule to accommodate
the new scope.

The project change management process is put into place to handle

changes to the scope as they occur. Using this process, the project
owner is presented with potential changes along with estimates the change
will have on the overall project budget and schedule. If the project owner
determines that the change is worth the resource and time investment, the
change will be approved and the project plan is adjusted to accommodate
the new scope. This adjustment is made to the work breakdown structure,
Gantt chart, and budget.

If, however, the project owner decides the proposed change is not worth the
investment or delay, then the change is rejected and the project team will
continue to execute the existing plan without the requested change.

This change management procedure allows the project owner to remain in

control of the scope while ensuring the project team is able to realistically
meet the scope, budget, and schedule expectations. Keep in mind, these
approved change requests serve as addendums to the initial project charter
and become the updated project goals.
The final phase of the project management process is the closing
phase. In this phase the project is closed down. This phase is
consistent with the definition of projects, in that projects are temporary
and must end as the project goals are met.

During the closing phase the project is concluded as the project owner
approves the project deliverables. During this phase the project
manager leads the team in a session where project successes and
challenges are identified and documented. Any improvements to the
project processes are determined and the processes are updated. The
project manager may also conduct an evaluation of the team members
during this phase as well.

At the end of the closing phase, all project artifacts are closed and archived
for future reference. At this point, the project is considered complete and the
project team members may be assigned to other work or other projects.
Even though there is a process for projects to follow, projects are not
always successful. Project teams often are not able to deliver the
project scope within the estimated budget and schedule. This should
not be too surprising considering that projects are unique, complex, and
require work of cross disciplinary specialists from across the
organization.

In this section we will look at some of the factors contributing to

unsuccessful projects and identify some best practices that can be
applied to reduce the likelihood of an unsuccessful project.
Over the past two decades the Standish Group has studied the failure
rates of information systems projects. Although success rates have
improved dramatically over the years, they remain disappointingly low.
As project management processes have improved and become more
widely adopted, the success rates have improved, but project teams
must still look for ways to increase the likelihood of a successful
project.

In this section we will look at a few common sources of an unsuccessful

project and identify practices that will address some of these sources.
Projects can fail for a number of different reasons. Here is a small
collection of some of the more common causes for project failure.

No project champion. Projects can fail when a project champion is not

recruited or the project looses its champion. The project champion
provides the executive-level support needed for the project to obtain
critical resources and also helps the project team overcome
organizational hurdles. Without the project champion, resources may
be difficult to obtain and organizational challenges may prohibit the
team from reaching the project goals.
Process shortcuts. Processes have been established as best practices
and organizations commonly setup operations around these processes.
When the project management or organizational processes are not followed,
some steps may be missed or the outcome may not be as expected.

Expectations management. If the project owner and customers are not

engaged in the project, their expectations of the project deliverables may
differ significantly from what is being delivered by the project team. This gap
in understanding can cause significant issues and result in rework and
missed budget and schedule.

Variable lock-in. Keep in mind the scope, budget, and schedule

determined during the project charter are simply estimates. Organizations
that lock-in on these variables and expect the project team to meet these
expectations will experience more failed projects.

Estimating techniques. Accurate estimation of project work packages

requires both expertise of the level of work required, and experience in
projects, to understand the project risks that could further lengthen the task
duration. Estimations based task durations for optimal conditions result in
overambitious project time lines and lead to projects failing to meet the
schedule goals.

Over optimism. Project managers need to be optimistic, but this optimism

can also lead to blindness to risk. Risk, or project uncertainties, can sink
any project. Project teams that fail to identify and respond to risks
throughout the project will experience failed projects.

Adapting to change. As mentioned earlier in the presentation, most

projects will experience change. This may come in the form of changes to
the scope, changes to the budget or schedule, or changes to the business
environment. The project team must be aware of these changes and be
willing to adjust the project plans to accommodate change as it is
introduced. Failure to do so results in project deliverables that no longer
meet the needs of the organization.
In order to address some of these common sources of project failures
there are some best practices a project manager and the project team
can follow. These practices include:
• Actively recruit and engage a project champion to ensure they are
able to support the project
• Plan to follow all project and organizational processes; these
processes should be embedded within the project plan
• Frequently communicate with all stakeholders so they understand the
state, direction and scope of the project
• Follow a change order process so that changes to the project
variables (scope, budget, schedule) are made as project changes are
encountered
• When providing work package duration estimates, be sure to consider
reasonable risks and don’t assume perfect conditions; in other words plan
for some difficulties to achieve a “most likely” time estimate
• During project execution the project team must look for potential project
risks, develop contingency plans to address these risks, and execute the
contingency plans if the risks are encountered.
• The project team must continually scan the organization for changes that
could impact the project. This includes not only changes requested for the
project deliverables but also changes to the business environment that
may affect the value of the project deliverables

The most important thing a project manager can do is to learn from past
mistakes. Find out why issues happen and figure out what can be done in
the future to prevent these issues. Since each project is unique there will
never be a project free from issues. Project managers and the project
teams must have the ability to quickly identify and respond to issues. These
best practices simply represent some of the more common issues that may
arise.
It is clear that demonstrating Meaningful Use of Electronic Health
Records is complex, expensive, and extremely difficult. To effectively
demonstrate meaningful use and receive incentive payments, the EHR
implementation and meaningful use program must be managed by
individuals who have an understanding of the essentials of project
management. It is critical that the appropriate tools and resources are
used to assist eligible professionals and eligible hospitals in
successfully carrying out the various projects associated with
meaningful use objectives and measures.