Locked lesson.

Upgrade

About this lesson

A sequential project management methodology is a traditional approach to project management.  It minimizes risk, but this conservative approach can be lengthy and expensive.

Exercise files

Download this lesson’s related exercise files.

Sequential Methodology.docx
59.4 KB Sequential Methodology - Solution.docx
61.1 KB

Quick reference

Sequential Methodology

A sequential project management methodology is a traditional approach to project management.  It minimizes risk, but the conservative approach can be lengthy and expensive.

When to Use Sequential Methodology

A sequential approach is appropriate for high risk projects.  By high risk, we mean ones where people die and property is destroyed if the project gets it wrong.  In these cases, a careful and thorough risk analysis should be done at each project stage.

Instructions

A sequential methodology normally divides the project work up by functions.  Each function will do their project activity and then pass the project on to the next function.  This sometimes is referred to as “throwing it over the wall.”  The project management approach determines the best sequence in which to do each function’s work.  It also develops standards and best practices to be followed by each function.   An illustration of this approach is shown below for a generic software development project.

This approach is characterized by each discipline taking responsibility for their part of the project and managing that well to reduce and eliminate technical risk.

The advantages of this approach are that it does minimize risk.  That is the whole focus of this approach.  In addition this is the easiest approach to project manage. There is only one group doing work at a time so communication and coordination is easy.  That group is clearly responsible for project progress and they are striving to achieve technical excellence.

But there are some weaknesses with this approach.  For starters it usually takes a long time and has a high project cost.  Since an organization does not start until the previous organization is finished, a delay in one group cascades all the way through the project.  Also, as one group is making decisions to reduce technical risk it is often at the expense of adding cost for another group.  The heavy reliance on documentation (remember, the team members don’t talk to each other, they just throw things over the wall) can often lead to misunderstanding as the terms and jargon of one department are misunderstood by others.  All of these problems come home to roost with the final stage which is integration and test.  This stage often uncovers problems and then it is difficult to get the other groups to re-engage and work on them.  Another by-product of this approach is that the systems are safe, but they are often expensive to maintain and operate.

Hints and Tips

  • Even though each group is working independently, the project manager should still strive to share communication, requirements and status to reduce the likelihood of misunderstanding.
  • The use of a requirements traceability matrix is very helpful when using this approach.  This technique will reduce the likelihood of a requirements being missed or misunderstood.
Login to download
  • 00:04 Hi, this is Ray Sheen.
  • 00:05 Let's talk about the sequential project management methodology.
  • 00:09 There's some principles of this approach.
  • 00:11 They're embedded in the agile scrum approach.
  • 00:13 The sequential approach is sometimes referred to as the over wall approach.
  • 00:18 It is a traditional approach where each discipline does their share of
  • 00:21 the project work and
  • 00:22 then they throw that project over the wall to the next functional discipline.
  • 00:27 There's very little actual communication between the functions.
  • 00:30 And once something goes over the wall, it never comes back.
  • 00:34 A functional discipline fully does all their work.
  • 00:37 There are no open items when it goes over the wall.
  • 00:41 Let's look at this approach from project start to finish.
  • 00:43 And for illustration, I will use a generic software development project.
  • 00:48 As you can see, someone from marketing or product management
  • 00:51 first gathers the requirements, then a product architect comes up with a concept.
  • 00:55 When that concept is deemed acceptable, the product officially kicks off.
  • 01:00 The concept is handed to the software engineers who create a product design.
  • 01:04 There's a design review and a design freeze.
  • 01:06 At that time, the coders start to write the code.
  • 01:09 Eventually, all the code is written and there's a code review and a code freeze.
  • 01:13 At that time, the testers take over testing and verification starts.
  • 01:18 The really critical bugs get fixed and then the product launches.
  • 01:22 Then the product moves to sustaining support and
  • 01:25 a whole different set of people are responsible for keeping it working.
  • 01:29 As you can see, each discipline does their work and passes the project along.
  • 01:33 Each function focuses on technical excellence for their work.
  • 01:36 Keep in mind, the goal is to reduce and
  • 01:38 eliminate risk and each function owns the problems in their area.
  • 01:43 Issues are to be fully resolved before the project is passed to someone else.
  • 01:48 Notice the project work only flows one way.
  • 01:50 So, the function must get everything done and done right.
  • 01:53 They will not have a second chance.
  • 01:56 This approach is both strength and weaknesses.
  • 01:58 It's popular today to belittle the approach as being old school.
  • 02:02 But there were sound business reasons why it came to be viewed
  • 02:05 as the best business for project management.
  • 02:07 Let's talk about the pros or strengths of this approach first.
  • 02:11 It minimizes technical risk.
  • 02:13 We don't think about it much today, but in the early 1900s when this approach was
  • 02:16 being codified there were frequent deadly industrial and consumer accidents.
  • 02:21 Nearly every large construction project had major fatalities during
  • 02:24 the construction.
  • 02:25 Steam boilers would frequently blow up.
  • 02:27 Appliances would often shock the users workmanship was erratic and
  • 02:32 there was a massive movement to improve quality and safety.
  • 02:35 This led to an emphasis on finding and reducing technical risk.
  • 02:40 Next, this is an easy approach to project manage.
  • 02:43 There's only one group active at a time, so communication is easy and
  • 02:46 that group is focused on reducing risk.
  • 02:49 This leads to clear lines of responsibility for project tracking and
  • 02:52 performance.
  • 02:53 In fact, only a minimum of project management skills are needed
  • 02:56 since there is so little project management complexity.
  • 03:00 So now, let's look at the cons.
  • 03:02 The first two are it they can take a long time and cost a lot of money.
  • 03:07 While waiting for each discipline to fully resolve their issues
  • 03:09 the other functions are off on other things.
  • 03:12 They won't start work until the proceeding function has completely finished.
  • 03:16 An implication is that often the predecessor function makes the decision
  • 03:20 that reduces their technical risk but
  • 03:22 adds significant cost to the successor function.
  • 03:26 Many times, the customer needs and expectations get blurred in this process.
  • 03:31 All requirements and solutions are documented.
  • 03:34 But as each function their work, the documentation is in their own terms and
  • 03:38 soon the voice of the customer is lost and confused.
  • 03:42 Unfortunately, all these misunderstandings come home with the last function
  • 03:46 which is normally integration and test.
  • 03:49 While everything worked fine within the confines of the functional department
  • 03:52 it doesn't all work when you get everything together.
  • 03:55 It's not uncommon for the integration and
  • 03:56 the test portion of development project to consume 40% of the total
  • 04:00 project cycle time although it's normally only planned for 10% of the time.
  • 04:06 Finally, the product or system that is created may be technically safe but
  • 04:10 it usually is not very efficient and that leads to high sustaining and
  • 04:14 support costs.
  • 04:15 A sequential methodology fits in some industries and
  • 04:20 applications, but not many in today's business climate.
  • 04:24 However, we do want to leverage a few of its advantages in the agile scrum
  • 04:29 methodology, such as simple project management tools, and
  • 04:32 clear responsibility.

Lesson notes are only available for subscribers.

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

Gift this course