Activities of a Project Manager

So what is it exactly that a project manager is expected to do, according to the RUP?

In the RUP you will find that the activities are grouped by theme:

• Activities to launch a new project

• Activities to define and evolve all elements of the Software Development Plan

• Activities to start, run, and close a project, a phase, or an iteration

• Activities to monitor a project

Launching a New Project

Based on an initial Vision Document, a project manager develops an initial Business Case that contrasts the scope of the project (and its expected duration and cost) with the potential return. The Vision contains the gist of the requirements: what it is that you want to achieve. The Business Case articulates the rationale for doing this software project. The Vision and the Business Case should be revisited many times until a project can be initiated and approved. It is never too early to start identifying risks, that is, any event that may adversely affect the project or make it fail. These risks will be the first thing the project should focus on in the next iteration.

Developing the Software Development Plan

Depending on the scope and size of the project, a project manager will develop some or all of an SDP. The organization may have developed ready-made templates that are more specific than the ones you will find in the RUP, with large segments already prefilled.

There are two important parts of an SDP:

• Planning time and resources, in a project plan and a staffing plan (which we described more fully in Chapter 12).

• Specifying the process this project will use: artifacts to be developed and level of ceremony and formality resulting in a development case (as we described in Chapter 10). This includes specific guides, style guides, and conventions to be used in the project.

Other plans dealing with Configuration Management, documentation, testing, tools, and so on may have to be developed.

Starting and Closing Phases and Iteration

The project manager will plan in more detail the contents and objectives of phases and of iterations by specifying the success criteria that will be used to evaluate the work at the concluding milestones. These activities will require extensive interactions with all the team members and cannot be done in an ivory tower. Each phase and iteration will need to be properly staffed and activities allocated to team members .

As an iteration (or a phase with its major milestone) concludes, the project manager will assess the results of the iteration or phase, and compare them with the expected results specified in the SDP. Discrepancies will trigger revision of the plans or rescoping the project differently. The process itself may be improved.

For example, looking at the risks previously identified ("Integration of technology X with middleware Y"), you assess that you have indeed successfully integrated them in a prototype and tested , therefore eliminating this as a risk.

Monitoring the Project

As an ongoing activity, the project manager will use some indicators to monitor progress and compare it to the plans. This can take various levels of formality and use a combination of metrics (such as defects discovery and resolution rates) and reviews (informal and formal) to assess conformance to plans and quality of the product.

For example, if the defects discovery rate drops dramatically, this is a signal (a) that the testing effort is stalling, (b) that the new builds are not bringing any new substantial functionality, or (c) simply that the product is becoming stable.

There is at least one assessment per iteration, and somewhat more formality at the closing of a phase, as these major milestones may involve some strategic decision about the pursuit of the project. They place you at a point where you can consider cancellation or a significant rescoping of the project.