Project Execution Process Group – Part 2

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About this lesson

The project management executing processes are managing the majority of the work of the project. There are ten project management executing processes. Part 2.

Quick reference

Project Execution Process Group – Part 2

The project management executing processes are managing the majority of the work of the project.  There are ten project management executing processes.

When to use

Executing processes are used to manage the actual work of creating and completing the project goal.  As soon as at least a partial plan is in place, executing processes often start.  These processes will continue through all phases of the project until the product deliverables are complete and the project goes into the project closeout phase. 

Instructions 

Executing Process Group

“Those processes performed to complete the work defined in the project management plan to satisfy the project requirements.” PMBOK® Guide

Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition, Project Management Institute, Inc., 2017 Part 2, Figure 2-1, Page 562 and Glossary definition, Page 706.  

Project Execution is where the action occurs.  There is less project management work than with the planning processes, but there is more project work to complete the actual goal of the project.  Because project work is normally done by people, who often don’t report to the project manager, there is a great deal of people management activity in this process group.  Managing the efforts and interaction of the project team, suppliers, stakeholder engagement, and communication is the majority of the work in this process group.

There are ten processes in the Executing group of project management processes.  Four of those processes are addressed in this Lesson and the other six are addressed in other lessons.  The four in this module are: Acquire Resources, Develop Project Team, Manage Project Team and Conduct Procurements.

Acquire Resources (9.3)

“The process of obtaining team members, facilities, equipment, materials, supplies, and other resources necessary to complete project work.” PMBOK® Guide

Executing Process Group                      Resources Mgmt Knowledge Area

This process often bridges the gap between planning and executing.  The project manager will negotiate for desired resources, when these are not available, often the project is replanned based upon when they will be available or based upon the capacity and skill set of the resources that are acquired.  Physical resources may need to be purchased or they may be made available to the project team, although managed by other parts of the organization.  The project team often does not report directly to the project manager, so clarifying team members roles and availability are very important.  When the preferred resources are not available, the project manager must often use a decision-making process that considers such factors as skill set, availability, experience, location, and cost.

Inputs:

  • Project Management Plan
  • Project Documents
  • Enterprise Environmental Factors
  • Organizational Process Assets

Tools and Techniques:

  • Pre-assignment
  • Virtual Teams
  • Decision-making
  • Interpersonal and Team Skills

Outputs:

  • Project Team Assignments
  • Physical Resource Assignments
  • Resource Calendars
  • Change Requests
  • Project Management Plan Updates
  • Project Document Updates
  • Organizational Process Assets Updates
  • Enterprise Environmental Factors Updates

Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition, Project Management Institute, Inc., 2017, Figure 9-9, Page 329 and Glossary definition, Page 698.

Develop Team (9.4)

“The process of improving competencies, team member interaction, and the overall team environment to enhance project performance.” PMBOK® Guide

Executing Process Group                              Resources Mgmt Knowledge Area

Almost all projects are accomplished by teams of individuals.  When there is a team, there is the opportunity for team cohesion and enhanced performance or team dysfunction and impaired performance.  This process acknowledges the importance of building a well-functioning team.  Project teams are often brought together for a temporary activity and placed under high stress.  Team development is a necessary aspect of project management under those conditions.  This process, although listed under the Executing process group, is an activity that must be continually managed from the first to the last day of the project.

Inputs:

  • Project Management Plan
  • Project Documents
  • Organizational Process Assets
  • Enterprise Environmental Factors

Tools and Techniques:

  • Inter-personal and team skills
  • Training
  • Virtual teams
  • Co-location
  • Meetings
  • Recognition and Rewards
  • Individual and Team Assessments
  • Communication technology

Outputs: 

  • Team Performance Assessments
  • Change Requests
  • Project Management Plan Updates
  • Project Document Updates
  • Organizational Process Assets Updates
  • Enterprise Environmental Factors Updates

Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition, Project Management Institute, Inc., 2017, Figure 9-11, Page 337 and Glossary definition, Page 705.

Manage Team (9.5)

“The process of tracking team member performance, providing feedback, resolving issues, and managing team changes to optimize project performance.” PMBOK® Guide

Executing Process Group                             Resource Mgmt Knowledge Area

Even though a project team member may not report to the project manager, the project manager can and should provide feedback to individuals in order for them to improve their personal and team performance.  As the project changes, as team member roles and responsibilities evolve, and as problems arise, the project manager must resolve the personnel as well as the technical issues.  Since projects are often developing something that is new or unique, there will be decisions that must be made and often there will be conflict that must be managed.  Conflict leading to better understanding and that is not personally destructive will often improve the decision-making.  In addition, as team members develop and the project progresses, team members assignments may need to change to enhance project performance.

Inputs:

  • Project Management Plan
  • Work Performance Reports
  • Team Performance Assessments
  • Project Documents
  • Organizational Process Assets
  • Enterprise Environmental Factors

Tools and Techniques:

  • Interpersonal and Team Skills
  • Project Management Information System

Outputs: 

  • Change Requests
  • Project Management Plan Updates
  • Project Documents Updates
  • Enterprise Environmental Factors Updates

Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition, Project Management Institute, Inc., 2017, Figure 9-13, Page 346 and Glossary definition, Page 710.

Conduct Procurements (12.2)

“The process of obtaining seller responses, selecting a seller, and awarding a contract.” PMBOK® Guide

Executing Process Group                                     Procurement Mgmt Knowledge Area

Depending upon the project and the organization’s project management methodology, you may have many suppliers and procurement could be a large part of a project manager’s job, or it may be non-existent.  Even if there are many suppliers/vendors used on a project, the procurement activity may be a project function, it may be managed from a central procurement organization, or it may be a hybrid.  The more unique or special the procurement, the more important it is for the project team to be involved in the source selection process.  The key to this process is the selection of suppliers who can perform the necessary project activities.  

Inputs:

  • Project Management Plan
  • Procurement Documents
  • Seller Proposals
  • Project Documents
  • Organizational Process Assets
  • Enterprise Enviornmental Factors

Tools and Techniques:

  • Bidder Conference
  • Expert Judgment
  • Advertising
  • Data Analysis
  • Interpersonal and Team Skills

Outputs: 

  • Selected Sellers
  • Agreements
  • Change Requests
  • Project Management Plan Updates
  • Project Documents Updates
  • Organizational Process Assets Updates

Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition, Project Management Institute, Inc., 2017, Figure 12-4, Page 482 and Glossary definition, Page 701. PMBOK is a registered mark of the Project Management Institute, Inc.
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  • 00:05 Hi, I'm Ray Sheen.
  • 00:06 This is part 2 of three lessons that are focused on the project management
  • 00:10 processes in the project execution process group.
  • 00:13 In these processes, I want to focus on resource management.
  • 00:19 The first process is acquire resources.
  • 00:22 The Project Management Body of Knowledge, the PMBOK Guide, defines this process as.
  • 00:26 The process of obtaining team members, facilities, equipment, material,
  • 00:31 supplies, and other resources necessary to complete project work.
  • 00:35 The inputs for this process are the project management plan,
  • 00:38 project documents, and
  • 00:40 the enterprise environmental factors in organizational process assets.
  • 00:44 The outputs are three project documents, resource calendars,
  • 00:48 project team assignments, and physical resource assignments.
  • 00:52 In addition, there could be change requests,
  • 00:55 that go to the integrated change control process.
  • 00:57 And everything else is updated.
  • 01:00 Updates to the project management plan.
  • 01:01 Updates to project documents.
  • 01:03 Updates to the organizational process assets.
  • 01:05 And even updates to the enterprise environmental factors.
  • 01:09 Tools and techniques are pre-assignment, which means people or
  • 01:12 things that are designated to work on a project the time of initiation and
  • 01:16 before the development of a project plan, also decision-making,
  • 01:20 virtual teams, and interpersonal and team skills.
  • 01:24 Now let's dig deeper into the team, and work on developing it,
  • 01:27 The Project Management Body of Knowledge, the PMBOK Guide, defines this process as
  • 01:32 the process of improving competencies, team member interactions, and
  • 01:36 overall team environment to enhance project performance.
  • 01:40 Projects are commonly done in a team environment.
  • 01:43 This process will be one that helps us to create a positive team environment.
  • 01:47 The inputs to this process are the project management plan, project documents, and
  • 01:52 enterprise environmental factors of organizational process assets.
  • 01:55 That's a common theme that you're gonna see repeated again and again.
  • 01:59 And the output to this process are team performance assessments,
  • 02:03 which we used in the manage project team process.
  • 02:07 Then there are change requests used in the integrated change control process and
  • 02:11 the updates to project management plan, project documents,
  • 02:15 enterprise environmental factors and organizational process assets.
  • 02:18 These outputs are also starting to look like a theme.
  • 02:21 The tools and techniques are all in the soft skills or communication categories.
  • 02:25 The first is interpersonal and team skills along with individual and
  • 02:29 team assessments, then rewards and recognition.
  • 02:32 Of course we have meetings, and co-location, and
  • 02:34 virtual teams, let's also add training and communication technology.
  • 02:39 The next process is managed the project team,
  • 02:42 The Project Management Body of Knowledge, the PMBOK Guide, defines this as,
  • 02:46 the process of tracking team member performance, providing feedback,
  • 02:49 resolving issues, and managing team changes to optimize project performance.
  • 02:55 The difference between this process to the last one,
  • 02:57 is that this process is resolving issues within the team,
  • 03:00 while the previous one was focused on the individuals and their development.
  • 03:04 The inputs are the work performance reports from managing and
  • 03:07 controlling project work process, and
  • 03:09 the team performance assessments from developed project team process.
  • 03:13 And then we have the normal inputs of project measure plan, project documents,
  • 03:16 enterprise environmental factors and organizational process assets.
  • 03:20 The primary output for this process is a project team that's working well.
  • 03:24 However, in terms of project management artifacts, there's change requests for
  • 03:28 the integrated change control process and updates to the project management plan,
  • 03:32 project documents, and enterprise environmental factors.
  • 03:36 The tools and techniques are interpersonal and
  • 03:38 team skills along with project management information system.
  • 03:42 The last process in this lesson is related to resource management, although it's from
  • 03:46 the project procurement management knowledge area, it's conduct procurements.
  • 03:51 The Project Management Body of Knowledge, the PMBOK Guide, defines this as, the process
  • 03:55 of obtaining seller responses, selecting a seller and awarding a contract.
  • 04:00 The inputs of this process are most of the outputs from the player procurement
  • 04:04 management process which we labelled as procurement documents.
  • 04:08 Of course, we're gonna have to have proposals for sellers.
  • 04:11 After that is the standard input, so a project management plan, project
  • 04:14 documents, and enterprise environmental factors and organizational process assets.
  • 04:19 The outputs of this are first and foremost selected suppliers.
  • 04:23 They are then managed in the control procurements process.
  • 04:27 In addition, there are the agreements
  • 04:28 that a number of processes have been using, and of course,
  • 04:31 there are change request that addressed by the integrated change control process.
  • 04:36 Finally, we have numerous updates including project management plan,
  • 04:40 project documents, and updates to the organizational process assets.
  • 04:44 Some of the tools and techniques that are used to attract potential suppliers
  • 04:48 are advertising and bidder conferences.
  • 04:51 And then there are the normal tools and techniques of expert judgment,
  • 04:54 data analysis and interpersonal and team skills.
  • 04:59 Well these were the executing project management processes,
  • 05:02 the focus is on both internal and external resources.

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PMI, PMP, CAPM and PMBOK are registered marks of the Project Management Institute, Inc.

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