Chapter 2: Phase 2 - Project Design

When President John F. Kennedy declared in a speech that America would have a man on the moon by the end of the decade , a clear goal was set for the American scientific community.

2.1 Project Design Overview

The objective of Phase 2 is to define and design a project that satisfies the requirements identified in the Project Concept and to establish a core team of people responsible for representing their organizations in the development of this project. Management will assign a person to represent each functional area on the project team. The role of each functional area is listed below.

IT

IT is the functional area responsible for programming, managing, and integrating a project s hardware and software. IT is also responsible for defining, designing, and developing a project, as well as for its initial testing and for fixing any errors before the project is released. IT is the key member on the project team and needs to be available to provide technical information both written and verbal to all members of the team.

Business Development

The Business Development person is responsible for directing and driving the project, for analyzing the industry and the competition, and for understanding the user. Business Development works with all areas of the company to make sure the project is focused on the user and is presented in the best possible light.

Project Manager

The Project Manager s responsibility is to make sure each member of the team understands his or her interdependencies. The Project Manager facilitates communications among departments. This area manages processes and confirms that the deliverables within each stage of the project life cycle have been met. When deliverables slip, it is the responsibility of the Project Manager to escalate this information and to facilitate resolution. In smaller companies the Project Manager s duties usually incorporate those of Business Development and Communications.

Quality Assurance

Quality Assurance (QA) is responsible for defining, designing, developing, and implementing a test plan. QA tests the project to confirm that it meets the design specifications outlined in the Design Document and the PRD. QA uses the instructions developed by Documentation to ensure that they correctly explain how to install and use the project and identify how errors are to be handled. QA is responsible for managing the user test procedures defined in the Beta Plan and for confirming that bugs have been fixed.

Help Desk

Help Desk is responsible for defining, designing, and developing a detailed plan, the Support Plan, that articulates how the company will support a project after it is released. The Support Plan defines how Help Desk personnel will be trained, how users will access help, how bugs will be tracked and fixed after release, what training will be available to end users, and how updates and fixes will be sent to users.

Documentation

Documentation is responsible for defining, designing, and developing all the manuals and help files required to install, support, and answer any questions a user would have regarding a project. Documentation defines what publications will be produced in the Doc Plan, which may include online help, E-Learning courses, or manuals. Documentation works closely with IT to develop these documents and works closely with QA to assure the documents are appropriate for end users.

Users

Although they are not on the team, users are so important to the success of the project that we mention them as a team member. Users are the people who will use what the team is developing. Users may be employees , partners , or the general public.

2.1 in a Nutshell

• In Phase 2 a project team, an integrated schedule, and a Development Cost Baseline are created, and the PRD is frozen.

• By the end of Phase 2 the team can present the actual release date, the final Feature/Functionality List, and the estimated costs to develop the project.

• In Project Concept a Phase 1 lead and an IT lead were assigned to vet out the idea and provide preliminary costs and schedules. Once the project is approved, team members will be assigned. The Phase 1 lead may become the team s Project Manager or Business Development s manager, while the IT lead may become the IT manager. The following areas need to have a representative assigned to the team:

  • IT

  • Business Development

  • Project Manager

  • Quality Assurance

  • Help Desk

  • Documentation