Michael Stanleigh, CMC, CSP is the CEO of Business Improvement Architects. He works with executives and senior managers around the world to improve organizational performance by helping to define their strategic direction, increase leadership performance, create cultures that drive innovation and improve project and quality management. He has been instrumental in helping his clients increase productivity and profits with his innovative approaches and focus on quality.
For more information about this article, please contact Michael at mstanleigh@bia.ca
Introduction
The International Organization for
Standardization released a new standard in the autumn of 2003. Referred to as the, “ISO 10006:2003,
Guidelines for Quality Management in Projects”, it is creating the next
wave in our understanding of the management of projects and is of benefit to
consider when planning projects. This
article intends to compare the two guidelines as follows and provide an
interpretation for successful planning of projects. It will look at:
·
How does the content of the ISO
10006 guideline compare to the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Project
Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)?
·
What is the importance of both
guidelines to the on-going management of projects?
·
What are the implications of
these two guidelines on the management of all projects?
·
What are the strategies
required to implement the ISO 10006 and how is the ISO 10006 being applied in
organizations?
Overview
of the ISO 10006:2003 Standard
The IS0 10006 guideline outlines quality
management principles and practices as they relate to the management of
projects. It provides the guidance on
quality issues that impact projects. It
is applicable to projects of varying complexity, size and length. The guidelines can be applied to projects
managed by an individual or by a team or for a program (large project comprised
of smaller but interrelated projects) or for a portfolio of projects.
Since the ISO 10006 is a guidance document,
its intention is not for use in certification or registration purposes. Its overall purpose is to create and
maintain quality in projects through a systematic process that ensures:
§ Stated and implied needs of customers are understood and met.
§ Interested stakeholders needs are understood and evaluated.
§ The organization’s quality policy is incorporated into the
management of projects.
What is
the Project Management Institute (PMI)?
The
Project Management Institute, or PMI as it is known, is the world’s leading
not-for-profit professional association for project management dedicated to the
advancement of the profession of project management.
What is
the PMBOK?
PMBOK is
PMI’s Project Management Body of Knowledge.
It describes the sum of knowledge generally accepted within the
profession of project management.
“Generally accepted” means that the knowledge and practices described
are applicable to most projects, most of the time, and that there is widespread
consensus about their value and usefulness.
The overall purpose of the PMBOK is to provide a common lexicon within
the project management profession and practice for talking and writing about
Project Management.
Comparing
the ISO 10006 Standard and the PMBOK
There is
much discussion as to whether a project should follow the PMBOK or the ISO
10006 guidelines or both. Through this
comparison and interpretation of each of the major sections I will provide some
answers to this question.
What is a Project?
The ISO
10006 definition of a project, although correct, is rather wordy. The definition from PMBOK is more concise and
to the point. “Temporary,” according to
PMBOK, means that there must be a start and finish date to the project. As well, PMBOK includes the definition that
“All projects deliver a product, service or other measurable end result.” The ISO 10006 focuses on the process of
getting to it.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
What is
a Project? -3.5
Unique
process consisting of a set of co-ordinated and controlled activities with
start and finish dates, undertaken to achieve an objective conforming to
specific requirements, including constraints of time, cost and resources.
|
Section
1.2
A
temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product or service.
|
Characteristics of a Project
In
comparing the ISO 10006 Standard, Section 4.1 with PMBOK, Section 1.2, PMBOK
provides a more succinct definition. All
projects are planned, executed and controlled.
Otherwise, how can one know whether or not they’re on track? Furthermore, people perform projects. How else will anything get done? All projects are constrained by limited
resources. It is the nature of all
projects that they will always want more time and/or money and/or people. The ISO 10006 defines a project as including
non-repetitive phases. However, this is
not always the case on a project. At
times, phases may be repeated. But the
end result may be unique. Again, the
PMBOK definition here is better suited to defining the project. I am concerned that the ISO 10006 suggests
that a project should deliver minimum quality results. Rather, a project should deliver all
expected quality deliverables as defined in the scope of the project.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Characteristics
of a Project -4.1
§ Unique, non-repetitive phases
consisting of processes and activities.
§ Have some degree of risk and
uncertainty.
§ Expected to deliver specified
(minimum) quality results within pre-determined parameters.
§ Have planned start and finish
dates, within clearly specified cost and resource constraints.
§ May be a long duration and
subject to changing internal and external influences over time.
|
Section
1.2
§ Performed by people.
§ Constrained by limited
resources.
§ Planned, executed, and
controlled.
|
What is a Quality Plan?
The
definitions that ISO 10006 AND PMBOK provide for identifying quality standards,
although stated differently, are similar.
All projects must identify the quality policy and standards that are
applicable and how the project management team will implement its quality
policy. These standards are then put
into the project plan with a process that can identify whether or not the team
is managing the project in accordance with the quality policy that has been
established.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
What is
a Quality Plan? -4.2.3
Document specifying which procedures and associated
resources shall be applied by whom and when, to a specific project, product,
process or contract.
|
Section
8.1
§ Identifies which quality
standards are relevant to the project and determines how to satisfy them.
Describes how the project
management team will implement its quality policy.
|
Quality Management
Principles through the Strategic Process
ISO 10006 provides nine (9) major steps to consider for
the strategic process that include: Customer Focus, Leadership, Involvement of
People, Process Approach, System approach to Management, Continual Improvement,
Factual approach to Decision Making and Mutually beneficial Supplier
Relationship.
PMBOK provides detail in the Project Quality Management
section including: Project Stakeholders, Key General Management Skills, Organizational
Structure, Administrative Closure and Project Procurement Management.
Management’s Responsibility
The ISO
10006 also includes that senior management have a role to play in overseeing
projects to ensure success. They do this
by providing support, approvals, etc. Their understanding of what they need to
do to ensure project success is important.
Unfortunately, the PMBOK does not touch on this important aspect of
project management.
The ISO
10006 emphasizes the need for projects to be strategically aligned while the
PMBOK does not touch on this important aspect of project management. Projects that aren’t somehow linked to a
departmental or organizational strategy risk failure. Shifting organizational priorities will place
them at the bottom of the list. Only
strategically aligned projects are kept as high priority. In deciding which projects should remain and
which should be eliminated, sound decision-making processes are important to
have in place.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Application
of quality management principles through the strategic process –5.2.1
Planning
for the establishment, implementation and maintenance of a quality management
system based on the application of the quality management principles is a
strategic, direction-setting process.
|
Project
Quality Management -8
Includes
processes required to ensure the project will satisfy the needs for which it
was undertaken. It includes all
activities of the overall management function that determine the quality
policy, objectives, and responsibilities and implements them by means such as
quality planning, quality assurance, quality control and quality improvement
within the quality system.
|
Management Commitment
The PMBOK
describes the definitions and suggested tools for the management of projects,
but does not go to the next level of identifying the importance of management
in ensuring a project’s success. In
comparison, the ISO 10006 is very strong in this area and provides more
guidance than PMBOK. Many projects suffer
because of the lack of support of management.
Management must act in the role of Project Sponsor and/or as functional
managers who commit resources to the project team. They have a clear responsibility that must be
defined.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Management
Commitment -5.1
Commitment and active involvement of top management of the originating
and project organizations are essential for developing and maintaining an
effective and efficient quality management system for the project.
|
No reference
to management commitment is included.
|
Customer/Stakeholder Focus
Customer
focus on projects is crucial for success according to the ISO 10006. The ISO 10006 Standard mentions that the
project process is interrelated to other processes within the organization and
recognizes that all work is a process.
This aspect of project management is not included in the PMBOK.
The PMBOK
is excellent in its inclusion of a section on project quality management that
details the need for projects to include quality standards and to put in place,
specific activities that will ensure that the standards are being met. PMBOK also describes the various
stakeholders, including the customers that must be identified who are impacted
by the project. It discusses Matrix
Management, including the need for management to provide the resources to a
project to ensure its success. And it
expands on the procurement process.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Customer Focus -5.2.2
Organizations
depend on their customers and therefore should understand current and future
customer needs, should meet customer requirements and strive to exceed
customer expectations.
|
Project
Stakeholders –2.2
Stakeholders
are individuals and organizations that are actively involved in the project or
whose interests may be positively or negatively affected as a result of
project execution or project completion.
Project Stakeholders must be identified, their needs must be
determined and they must be managed to ensure a successful project.
|
Leadership/General Management
PMBOK
guidelines in the area of quality management are clear and easy to follow. It tries to ensure that the project is
managed in a quality way, following established quality policy and standards
for the organization. Both the PMBOK and
ISO 10006 are clear on the importance of the customer, although the PMBOK does
a better job of describing the need to identify the customer, determine their
requirements and manage these requirements throughout the project.
The ISO
10006 includes a discussion on the need for continual improvement on a project
and this is also included in the PMBOK as a part of the closeout evaluation of
the project. Neither discusses or
recommends how this knowledge should be captured and how it can be transferred
to others.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Leadership -5.2.3
Leaders
establish unity of purpose and direction of the organization. They should create and maintain the
internal environment in which people can become fully involved in achieving
the organization’s objectives.
|
Key
General Management Skills -2.4
General
management skills provide the foundation for building project management
skills. They are often essential for a
project manager. On any given project,
skill in any number of general management areas may be required including
Leading, Communicating, Negotiating, Problem Solving and Influencing the
Organization.
|
Involvement of People
The ISO
10006 describes the need for a mutually beneficial supplier relationship but
the PMBOK is not as clear in this area.
The PMBOK mentions the need for good contractual agreements but this
isn’t quite the same. A good contract
doesn’t always equate to a mutually beneficial supplier relationship. Current approaches to the management of
projects emphasize a need for the internal organization’s project plan to be
merged with the supplier’s. This ensures
that critical inter-dependencies are identified and managed.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Involvement of people
-5.2.4
People
at all levels are the essence of an organization and their full involvement
enables their abilities to be used for the organization’s benefit.
|
The PMBOK
doesn’t address anything this specifically.
|
Process & System Approach to Management
ISO 10006
recommends a process and system approach for project planning while PMBOK
provides more specific direction with respect to organizational structure and
focuses on quality improvements.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Process approach
-5.2.5
A desired
result is achieved more efficiently when activities and related resources are
managed as a process.
|
Organizational
Structure –2.3.3
The
structure of the organization often constrains the availability of the
resources. In a matrixed
organizational structure, the project manager shares responsibility with the
functional managers for assigning priorities and for directing the work of
individuals assigned to the project.
|
System
approach to management -5.2.6
Identifying,
understanding and managing interrelated processes as a system contributes to
the organization’s effectiveness and efficiency in achieving its objectives.
|
Key
General Management Skills -2.4
As
explained above, general management is a broad subject dealing with every
aspect of managing an on-going enterprise.
|
Continual improvement
-5.2.7
Continual
improvement of the organization’s overall performance should be a permanent
objective of the organization.
|
Administrative
Closure –10.4
Includes
processes for closing projects, retaining lessons learned and archiving
documentation.
|
Factual
approach to decision making -5.2.8
Effective
decisions are based on the analysis of data and information.
|
Key
General Management Skills -2.4
Includes
need for project managers to have good problem solving skills.
|
Mutually
beneficial supplier relationship -5.2.9
An
organization and its suppliers are interdependent and a mutually beneficial
relationship enhances the ability of both to create value.
|
Project
Procurement Management –12
Includes
the processes required to acquire services from outside the organization.
|
Management Reviews/Communication
The ISO
10006 describes the process of regular reporting to management about the
project and the project’s ability to meet its quality management plan. In comparison, the PMBOK contains information
about the need to establish a quality management plan, but does not include any
specific information regarding the process of communicating this to management. However, PMBOK discusses the need to communicate
to all stakeholders, including management, about the project’s progress. One could surmise that this would include the
ability of the project to meet its quality standards. Overall, the ISO 10006 is clearer on the need
of management to be involved in the quality of the project.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Management Reviews
–5.3.1
The
project organization’s management should review the project’s quality
management system, at planned intervals, to ensure its continuing
suitability, adequacy, effectiveness and efficiency.
|
Communications
Planning –10.1
Determining the information and
communication needs of the stakeholders; who needs what information, when
will they need it and how it will be given to them.
|
Progress Evaluations
–5.3.2
These
should cover all the project’s processes and provide an opportunity to assess
the achievement of the project objectives.
This will provide significant information on the project’s
performance.
|
Resource Management
Resource-Related Processes
The ISO 10006 outlines the process for
identifying and acquiring resources for the project. It includes a description of how to review
the resource requirements. The PMBOK is
similar but emphasizes the contract itself, rather than the process of
acquiring and managing the resources.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Resource-related
processes -6.1
These
are the processes to plan and control resources, which help to identify any
potential problems. Resources are
defined as equipment, facilities, finance, information, materials, personnel,
services, etc.
|
Project Procurement Management –12
Includes the processes required to
acquire goods and services from outside the organization and the managing of
the relationship with the seller.
|
Personnel-Related
Processes
Both the
ISO 10006 and PMBOK describe the need for a clear project organizational
structure and include points that focus on the need to acquire, train and
manage the project’s staff resources. As
well, both guidelines discuss the need to be clear on the competencies of
personnel and address the requirement for developing the team. Overall, each guideline identifies that the
project manager must enhance the ability of stakeholders to contribute as well
as the ability of the team to function.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Personnel-related
processes -6.2
The
quality and success of a project will depend on the participating
personnel. The personnel related
processes include:
§ The establishment of the project
organizational structure.
§ The allocation of personnel.
§
Team development.
|
Organizational
Structure –2.3.3
This
includes functional and projectized structures.
Staff Acquisition –9.2
Getting the human resources needed,
assigned to and working on the project.
Team Development –9.3
Enhancing the ability of the team to
function, ensuring the project’s success.
|
Product Realization
Comparing ISO 10006 with PMBOK, I would say
that the ISO 10006 is more process oriented in its description of the processes
required for a project to be successfully managed so that it meets all of the
needs of the original objectives and the stakeholder requirements. ISO 10006 identifies seven project management
process groupings necessary to produce the project’s product. These relate to the project process they include
in Element 4.1.4, which are: planning, organizing, monitoring, controlling,
reporting and taking corrective actions on a continual basis. However, the ISO 10006 project management
process groupings do not appear to follow in a logical sequence. While each process needs to be done at
various times during the course of managing the project from beginning to end,
it is not clear as to the sequence in which the steps are to be taken.
The ISO 10006 guideline’s description
within each project management process group is excellent. However, where each one of these project
management process groupings should be included, that is; in what process within
the project itself, is identified within some of the groupings, but not all of
them. For example, ISO 10006 states that
Risk Identification should be performed at the initiation of the project,
although Initiation isn’t mentioned in the project process. In the Communication grouping, it states that
there should be a communication plan, but no mention is made as to where within
the project process this communication plan should be included.
In my view, each project management process
grouping should have a task list or a work breakdown structure (WBS)
incorporated into one master project plan.
This is not articulated very clearly in either the ISO 10006 or the
PMBOK.
The PMBOK has broken down the process of
managing a project into five (5) processes: Initiating, Planning, Controlling,
Executing and Closing. But to locate
what has to be done within each process is difficult. The five processes are not organized in the
PMBOK in a process-oriented manner.
While the actual description of each element within each process is
clear as to the tools, templates and techniques to use and the definitions to
follow, no clear process on how to do these are mentioned. That is, PMBOK does not clarify, what is the
process of assessing risk, managing change, and so on.
In both the ISO 10006 and the PMBOK it is
difficult to know what should be done for a project that is small versus one
that is large. Do you do everything for
both? How does one make this decision?
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
Seven
project management process groupings necessary to produce the project’s
product:
1) Interdependency-related
processes – 7.2
2)
Scope-related processes – 7.3
3)
Time-related processes – 7.4
4)
Cost-related processes – 7.5
5)
Communication-related processes –
7.6
6)
Risk-related processes –7.7
Purchasing-related
processes -7.8
|
Project
management processes (3.2) can be organized into five groups of one or more
processes:
1)
Initiating processes -3.3.1
2)
Planning processes –3.3.2
3)
Executing processes –3.3.3
4)
Controlling processes -3.3.4
5) Closing processes -3.3.5
|
Measurement Analysis & Improvement
Both the
ISO 10006 and the PMBOK clearly identify the need for projects to have a
process of closure, evaluation and lessons learned documentation. Furthermore, they each state that a system
should be established to retrieve these lessons learned so that knowledge from
one project to another can be obtained and transferred. But how the knowledge is actually
transferred, is missing from both.
ISO 10006 states…
|
PMBOK states…
|
8.1
- Improvement-related processes Provides guidance on how the organization and project should learn
from projects.
8.2
- Measurement and Analysis
States
that the organization needs to ensure that measurement; collection and validation of
data, are effective and efficient in order to improve the organization's
performance and enhance the satisfaction of customers and other interested
parties.
8.3
- Continual Improvement
States
that the organization should define the information it needs to learn from
projects and establish a system
for identifying,
collecting, storing, updating and retrieving information from projects. The organization should design the
project’s information management system to implement the requirements
specified for learning from the project by the organization.
|
10.4 -
Administrative Closure Includes processes for closing
projects; collecting project records; analyzing project success,
effectiveness and lessons learned; and archiving this information for future
use.
|
Importance of the ISO 10006 Standard to
the On-going Management of Projects
The ISO 10006 provides project process guidance.
A
project, like all work, is a process.
The process of managing a project is a repeatable process although the
content of each project is unique. Many
projects suffer because they have no clear process on how they will be managed
from beginning to end.
The ISO 10006 provides guidance on a process to close and
evaluate a project in order to retain the knowledge gained for future project
managers and project teams.
Lessons Learned
and Knowledge Retention help to create project templates that are re-usable
tools. The ISO 10006 provides guidance
on a process to close and evaluate a project in order to retain the knowledge
gained for future project managers and project teams. This ensures project templates become
re-usable tools.
The ISO 10006 provides the guidelines to ensure that all
projects are managed by following sound quality management principles.
That is,
ISO 10006 recognize that projects are managed as a process…not as a set of
unrelated tasks to be done. All projects
can be audited by following these guidelines.
Projects that follow this guideline have a higher likelihood of success
because they will have quality standards established and followed. These quality standards will be clearly
documented.
Implications of the ISO 10006 Standard and PMBOK on the Management of
all Projects
The PMBOK
and ISO 10006 Standard present a set of knowledge and guidelines relating to
the management of projects. However, projects
could never be successfully managed by following these guidelines alone.
Neither
standard identifies the process of managing a project from beginning to end in
a logical sequence. (That is, what is
the first thing to do, second thing to do, etc.). They both identify the global processes, but
not the steps necessary within each one and do not include what is the process
of successfully managing a project from beginning to end. Nor do they identify how to use the
guidelines for a small versus a large project.
The stages within the management of a project is clearly identified both in the PMBOK – the 5 processes of Initiating, Planning, Controlling, Executing and Closing and in the ISO 10006 – planning, organizing, monitoring, controlling, reporting and on-going corrective actions.
It is the ISO 10006 that explains how to do other processes within each stage. For example, ISO 10006 explains how to do a risk assessment or manage a change request, etc. However, it is not always clear about where each of these processes fit into the overall process of managing the project. That is, at which stage they are to be done.
The best guide to the management of all projects is to apply a combination of the ISO 10006 standards and the PMBOK guidelines. When auditing a project, the ISO 10006 provides clearer guidelines to follow to ensure adherence to quality standards. However, auditing a project using the PMBOK is a challenge. A project may use many of the elements of the PMBOK but may still not be clear on their process of ensuring quality and therefore success.
Strategies For
Successful Projects
The management of all projects requires knowledge contained in both the PMBOK and ISO 10006. There is duplication between them but also differences. In combination, they support an important body of knowledge. The best overall strategy to implement the ISO 10006 is:
§
Review
and understand the PMBOK.
§
Review
and understand the ISO 10006.
§
Develop
a clear process or methodology for the management of projects from beginning to
end. Recognize that this is a framework
only. Projects vary in size and scope
and this process must be adaptable to these various needs.
§
Develop
a process for key elements within the project.
That is, a risk management process, change management process,
communication process, stakeholder management process, etc.
§
Develop
quality standards. These quality
standards identify what will be done from the beginning to the end of the
project to ensure that all of the original deliverables are met, the
stakeholder requirements are met, and the project resources are well-managed,
thereby ensuring the end result of the project meets all expectations.
§
Incorporate
all of these processes into one master project plan so that it is always
evident whether or not everything that needs to be done, according to the
established quality standards, is done.
§
Audit
your projects to ensure they are being managed as a quality project. Use the ISO 10006 guidelines for this.
§
Ensure
that all projects have a clear closeout and evaluation process and that the
lessons learned are captured.
§
Transfer
the knowledge from the lessons learned to new projects.
How is
the ISO 10006 Standard being applied in organizations?
Business Improvement Architects uses the
ISO 10006 Guidelines to audit projects in order to ensure compliance to these
guidelines. For example, we will review
all project documentation to ensure that the processes of:
§ Managing each project is clear and well documented.
§ Creating and maintaining the team is documented.
§ Managing change on the project is apparent and documented.
§ Managing risk is continuous, is documented and followed.
§ Reviewing task completion is documented and followed.
§ Reviewing the budget is documented and followed.
§ Closing and evaluating the project is documented and followed.
No comments:
Post a Comment