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5.1 Initiation
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Initiation is the process of formally authorizing a new project or that an existing
project should continue into its next phase (see
Section 2.1 for a more detailed
discussion of project phases). This formal initiation links the project to the ongoing
work of the performing organization. In some organizations, a project is not formally
initiated until after completion of a needs assessment, feasibility study, a preliminary plan,
or some
other equivalent form of analysis that was itself separately initiated. Some types of
projects, especially internal service projects and new product development projects,
are initiated informally, and some limited amount of work is done to secure
the approvals needed for formal initiation. Projects are typically authorized as a result
of one or more of the following:
These stimuli may also be called problems, opportunities, or business requirements.
The central theme of all these terms is that management generally must
make a decision about how to respond.
A market demand (e.g., a car company
authorizes a project to build more fuelefficient cars in response to gasoline shortages). A business need (e.g., a training company authorizes a project to
create a new course in order to increase its revenues). A customer request (e.g., an electric utility authorizes a project to
build a new substation to serve a new industrial park). A technological advance (e.g., an electronics firm authorizes a new
project to develop a video game player after advances in computer memory). A legal requirement (e.g., a paint manufacturer authorizes a project to
establish guidelines for the handling of toxic materials). A social need (e.g., a nongovernmental
organization in a developing country authorizes a project to provide potable water systems, latrines, and sanitation education
to low-income communities suffefring from high rates of cholera).
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.1 Product description. The product description documents the characteristics of the
product or service that the project was undertaken to create. The product descrip-tion
will generally have less detail in early phases and more detail in later ones as
the product characteristics are progressively elaborated.
The product description should also document the relationship between the product
or service being created and the business need or other stimulus that gave rise to
the project (see list above). While the form and substance of the product description
will vary, it should always be detailed enough to support later project planning.
Many projects involve one organization (the seller) doing work under contract to
another (the buyer). In such circumstances, the initial product description is usually
provided by the buyer.
.2 Strategic plan. All projects should be supportive of the performing organization’s strategic goals—the strategic plan of the performing organization should be considered as a factor in project selection decisions.
.3 Project selection criteria. Project selection criteria are typically defined in terms of the merits of the product of the project and can cover the full range of possible management concerns (financial return, market share, public perceptions, etc.).
.4 Historical information. Historical information about both the results of previous project selection decisions and previous project performance should be considered to the extent that it is available. When initiation involves approval for the next phase of a project, information about the results of previous phases is often critical.
5.1.2 Tools and Techniques for Initiation
.1 Project selection methods. Project selection methods involve measuring value or attractiveness to the project owner. Project selection methods include considering the decision criterion (multiple criteria, if used, should be combined into a single value function) and a means to calculate value under uncertainty. These are known as the decision model and calculation model. Project selection also applies to choosing the alternative ways of doing the project. Optimization tools can be used to search for the optimal combination of decision variables. Project selection methods generally fall into one of two broad categories [2]:
Benefit measurement methods—comparative approaches, scoring models,
benefit contribution, or economic models.
Constrained optimization methods—mathematical models using linear, non-linear,
dynamic, integer, and multi-objective programming algorithms.
These methods are often referred to as decision models. Decision models include generalized techniques (Decision Trees, Forced Choice, and others) as well as specialized ones (Analytic Hierarchy Process, Logical Framework Analysis, and others). Applying complex project selection criteria in a sophisticated model is often treated as a separate project phase.
.2 Expert judgment. Expert judgment will often be required to assess the inputs to this process. Such expertise may be provided by any group or individual with specialized knowledge or training and is available from many sources including:
Other units within the performing organization.
Consultants.
Stakeholders, including customers.
Professional and technical associations.
Industry groups.
.1 Project charter. A project charter is a document that formally authorizes a project. It should include, either directly or by reference to other documents:
The business need that the project was undertaken to address.
The product description (described in
Section 5.1.1.1).
The project charter should be issued by a manager external to the project and at
a level appropriate to the needs of the project. It provides the project manager with
the authority to apply organizational resources to project activities.
When a project is performed under contract, the signed contract will generally
serve as the project charter for the seller.
.2 Project manager identified/assigned. In general, the project manager should be identified and assigned as early in the project as is feasible. The project manager should always be assigned prior to the start of project plan execution (described in Section 4.2) and preferably before much project planning has been done (the project planning processes are described in Section 3.3.2).
.3 Constraints. Constraints are factors that will limit the project management team’s
options. For example, a predefined budget is a constraint that is highly likely to limit
the team’s options regarding scope, staffing, and schedule.
When a project is performed under contract, contractual provisions will generally be constraints.
Another example is a requirement that the product of the project be socially, economically,
and environmentally sustainable, which will also have an effect on the project´s scope,
staffing, and schedule.
.4 Assumptions. See (Section 4.1.1.5).
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