Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 1

Project Planning and Best Practices

Mark Allen, Jason McLees, Crystal Richardson, Dedrick Waterford

Project Management program, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract

Successful organizations incorporate project planning and best practices into their business

models. Such organizations use project planning and best practices to ensure they are being the

most efficient, effective, and sustainable they can be. The Project Planning and Best Practices

study documents the project planning process; defines the key elements of the usual project plan

and risks associated with not addressing each element appropriately; and offers some industry best

practices to mitigate those risks. The high tempo of most contemporary, professional projects

engenders a demanding environment that allows little margin for failure to mitigate these risks.

The study’s methodology included major books, an on-line article, and a personal interview on

project management, project planning, and industry best practices as well as the authors’ own

professional experiences at NASA, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Coast Guard, and Computer Sciences

Corporation. It referenced internationally accepted resources and practices that are readily

available to aspiring project managers. Further, it examined risks of not addressing the planning

process and not implementing best practices within an organization. The study determined that

virtually every step in professional project management includes project planning, and that the key

elements of a project plan include project requirements; project management; project schedules;

facility requirements; logistic support; financial support; and manpower and organization. Failure

to effectively address each of these elements invites risk that can lead to project failure. After
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 2

studying this paper, the reader should have a clear understanding of how to properly plan a project

and use best practices.

Keywords: Project Planning, Best Practices, Project Management, Project Management Body of
Knowledge (PMBOK), Project Management Institute (PMI)

Introduction

The objective of this study is to document the project planning process and best practices.

The background includes the following elements. This topic was selected for its high potential to

assist the reader with project selection and key elements of project management to achieve greater

levels of organizational efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability. The most effective project

work is disciplined and aligned with corporate strategy. The study’s scope includes the key

elements of the usual project plan, risks associated with not addressing each appropriately, and

different styles of best practices. The research was limited by the time available leading up to the

due date. The methodology of the research included major books written on project management,

project planning, and industry best practices. The methodology also included the authors’ own

professional experience, an on-line article, and a personal interview. The paper is structured to

include an abstract; introduction; brief literature review; methodology; summary of new findings;

analysis and discussion of results; conclusions; and references.

Brief Literature Review

This study consulted major books written on project management such as Q & As for the

PMBOK® Guide (5th ed.); Project Management: A Managerial Approach (8th ed.); and A Guide

to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (5th ed.). It drew from a book that specifically

documents project planning, Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling,

and Controlling. It also captured project planning best practices documented in an on-line
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 3

Discussion Board post for a Drexel University Project Planning & Scheduling course; in a personal

interview with a Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) project manager; and in the article Why

Domino's Spent Millions to Fix Its Pizza.

Methodology
The methodology of the research included major books, an on-line article, and a personal

interview on project management, project planning, and industry best practices. The methodology

also included the authors’ own professional experiences within their respective work

environments, including NASA, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Coast Guard, and CSC (an information

technology company), where they performed project management skills as well as observed best

practices.

Summary of New Findings

Project Planning Process
Virtually every step in professional project management includes project planning and re-

planning. Project management process groups include the Initiating Process Group, Planning

Process Group, Executing Process Group, Monitoring and Control Process Group, and Closing

Process Group. These process groups represent typical phases in a project (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Typical Phases in a Project

Source: projectmangementhouse.com, 2013

 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 4

The Planning Process Group (Figure 2) “consists of those processes performed to establish

the total scope of the effort, define and refine the objectives, and develop the course of action

required to attain those objectives. The Planning processes develop the project management plan

and the project documents that will be used to carry out the project. The complex nature of project

management may require the use of repeated feedback loops for additional analysis. . . .The key

benefit of this Process Group is to delineate the strategy and tactics as well as the course of action

or path to successfully complete the project or phase. . . .The project management plan and project

documents developed as outputs from the Planning Process Group will explore all aspects of the

scope, time, cost, quality, communications, human resources, risks, procurements, and stakeholder

engagement” (PMI, 2013, p. 55).

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Figure 2. Planning Process Group

Source: BrightHubPM.com. 2012.

Most steps in project management include project re-planning. “During project planning,

the project scope is defined and described with greater specificity as more information about the

project is known. Existing risks, assumptions, and constraints are analyzed for completeness and

added or upgraded as necessary” (PMI, 2013, p. 121).

“The Planning Process Group consists of those processes performed to establish the total

scope of the effort, define and refine the objectives, and develop the course of action required to

attain those objectives. The planning processes develop the project management plan and

the project documents that will be used to carry out the project” (Anbari, 2013, Question 34).

Key Elements of the Project Plan

“Scheduling, a crucial aspect of project planning, is described, along with the most

common scheduling models such as the Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT). .

.and the Critical Path Method (CPM) of applying resources to speed up projects” (Meredith &

Mantel, 2012).

“The plan must be designed in such a way that the project outcome also meets the

objectives, both direct and ancillary, of the parent organization, as reflected by the project

portfolio or other strategic selection process used to approve the project. Because the plan is only

an estimate of what and when things must be done to achieve the scope or objectives of the

project, it is always carried out in an environment of uncertainty. Therefore, the plan must

include allowances for risk and features that allow it to be adaptive, i.e., to be responsive to

things that might disrupt it while it is being carried out” (Meredith & Mantel, 2012).
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 6

“The project plan is a standard from which performance can be measured by the customer

and the project and functional managers. The plan serves as a cookbook by answering these

questions for all personnel identified with the project:

• What will be accomplished?

• How will it be accomplished?

• Where will it be accomplished?

• When will it be accomplished?

• Why will it be accomplished?” (Kerzner, Harold, 2009).

Key elements of the common project plan are outlined as follows. “The answers to these

questions force both the contractor and the customer to take a hard look at:

• Project requirements

• Project management

• Project schedules

• Facility requirements

• Logistic support

• Financial support

• Manpower and organization” (Kerzner, Harold, 2009).

“The makeup of the project plan may vary from contractor to contractor.

Most project plans can be subdivided into four main sections: introduction, summary and

conclusions, management, and technical. The complexity of the information is usually up to the

discretion of the contractor, provided that customer requirements, as may be specified in the

statement of work, are satisfied” (Kerzner, Harold, 2009).

Risks Associated with Not Addressing Each Key Element Appropriately

“Failing to plan is planning to fail” (Kerzner, 2009).
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There are four basic reasons for project planning:

• To eliminate or reduce uncertainty

• To improve efficiency of the operation

• To obtain a better understanding of the objectives

• To provide a basis for monitoring and controlling work” (Kerzner, 2009).

If the project manager fails to effectively address each of the following key elements of a

project plan, then they assume risk.

• Project requirements – Defining project requirements is critical to effective project

planning and thus ensuing success. Not clearly defining and communicating
requirements, in advance and to all stakeholders, invites disaster.

• Project management – Professionally managing the project and leading the project
team greatly reduces project risk.

• Project schedules – Failing to plan is planning to fail. Without a schedule,

stakeholders cannot baseline their individual schedules and track their success.

• Facility requirements – Satisfactory facilities for project work prove central to

meeting the creature needs of project stakeholders and the technical needs of
ancillary equipment.

• Logistic support – “The devil is in the details.” Without necessary supplies, the
project could slow and fail to meet schedule requirements.

• Financial support – Human resources, equipment, and supplies require financial

support, without which they will soon stop work.

• Manpower and organization – These elements of the project plan must be addressed
definitively. To fail to do so invites chaos and project failure.

One of the authors of this study has observed, during professional experience for 25 years

at NASA and 37 years with the U.S. Coast Guard, both successful and failed projects. Successful

projects at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center have included the famous Hubble Space Telescope

Project. A failed project for the U.S. Coast Guard included the Deepwater Program’s 123-foot

Patrol Boat Project. Interesting to note are the facts that both of these projects failed at some point
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 8

yet recovered to become successful projects. At one point, the Hubble Space Telescope’s lens

required replacement, an expensive endeavor in outer space. The resolution succeeded. At another

point, the Deepwater Program’s 123-foot Patrol Boats developed hull cracks and had to be

removed from service. The Deepwater Program ultimately improved its contractor oversight and

succeeded in meeting its overall objectives.

Best Practices – Hoechst AG / Mobil Chemical

Investopedia defines best practices as “a set of guidelines, ethics or ideas that represent the

most efficient or prudent course of action. Best practices are often set forth by an authority, such

as a governing body or management, depending on the circumstances. While best practices

generally dictate the recommended course of action, some situations require that such practices be

followed” (Investopedia, 2007).

Katina Clayborn, in a Drexel University Project Planning & Scheduling course, provides

industry examples of numeric project selection models used as best practices. “While researching

these project selection models I discovered organizations that have used various methods. Below

I provide two organizations that use unique scoring models to choose projects. One example is

Hoechst AG pharmaceuticals. Hoechst AG uses a scoring portfolio model consisting of five major

categories (probability of technical success, probability of commercial success, reward to the

company, business strategy fit, and strategic advantage) with 19 questions. When management

responds to the questions, they give each a score based on a 1 to 10 scale. Similarly, Mobil

Chemical also uses a scoring method, but the criterion and scale is very different. At Mobil

Chemical, proposals are submitted, then senior management uses six project categories: cost

reductions and process improvements; product improvements, product modifications, and

customer satisfaction; new products; new platform projects and fundamental/breakthrough

research projects; plant support; and technical support for customers to determine how to budget
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 9

funding across the six project categories. Additionally, one of the key decision variables involves

a comparison of ‘what is’ with ‘what should be’ (Pinto, 2010; Clayborn, 2015).

Best Practices – Computer Sciences Corporation

One of the authors of this Project Planning and Best Practices study, Jason McLees,

interviewed CSC project manager Robert Hunter, who shared the importance at CSC of diligent

project planning and best practices for efficient, effective, and sustainable projects. “The planning

phase is one of the most critical phases in the project management process. It sets the tone for the

rest of the project. Here you will be able to get your initial questions answered, everything in its

initial order and most things prepared before the project starts” (McLees, 2015). Hunter described

some best practices, “Understanding the scope is critical to planning your project. Look at the

contract [and] statement of work (SOW). Once you understand these, then you can start really

planning the project. . . .For any project, especially planning, you have to have a Project Manager

(PM) who understands the business and is a leader. This will ensure your project is properly

planned. . . . I also utilize Microsoft project management software to plan things for our projects;

it’s CSC’s go-to tool as it is for a lot of companies” (McLees, 2015). Finally, Hunter offered

perhaps his most unique best practice. “One method I always go by is the Plan-Do-Check-Act by

Shewart. This helps me keep things in the proper prospective. . . .I always plan my tasks so that

they are not more than 40 hours. If there is a task that needs to be done, I will break it down so that

it is never larger than one week. It is hard to see things any farther out” (McLees, 2015).

Best Practices – Domino’s Pizza

Corporations need to understand how using best practices within their organizations can

elevate their level of success before they are willing to invest in such a strategy. Executives want

to know where best practices will be implemented, what the best practices guidelines will be, and

who is responsible for following the best practices. Best practices will need to be enforced,
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 10

followed, and reviewed at the top of the organization all the way to the bottom of the organization

in order to be most successful. Best practices can assist with project selection by including a

disciplined approach, based on past successes, that is aligned with corporate strategy. Best

practices can also assist with key elements of project management such as those outlined in the

project plan. Together, successful project selection and key elements of project management

promise to result in improved levels of efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability. There have

been many companies over the past several years that have demonstrated best practices; General

Electric, Honda, GM, Apple, Bank of America, and Domino’s Pizza to name a few.

A deeper look at one of the companies mentioned above reveals how it implemented new

standards for best practices around quality and marketing. “Domino’s Pizza was founded in 1960

by two brothers who borrowed $900 to pay for their first store. Currently, there are more than nine

thousand stores around the world” (Campos, 2013). In 2010, the future of Domino’s did not look

very bright. With competitors increasing and customer satisfaction at record low, revenue was

taking a huge loss (Campos, 2013). “That's when management decided to adopt a surprising

market strategy: admit that its product was awful. The company spent millions in quality

improvement by creating a new pizza from the crust up, expanding its menu offering, and

advertising the process. The results have been amazing. Between 2010 and 2013, America's

customer satisfaction index score for Domino's Pizza increased from 69% to 81%. More

importantly, the company's revenue has also improved significantly. How exactly did Domino's

Pizza manage to turn around its business, and what are the company's plans to keep delivering

growth revenue in the future? Domino's amazing turnaround was a result of extensive efforts to

improve the company's processes and menu offerings by introducing new recipes, using mobile

technology to attract new customers, and improving supply chain management. As a result, the
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company not only improved its top line performance but also became the fourth largest retailer in

the U.S. Domino's main competitive advantage has always been the ability to deliver

pizza quickly. In order to implement fast service, however, the company had to rely heavily on

frozen, and pre-made ingredients. This allowed employees to assemble pizza in record times, but

it also had a negative effect on quality. Because of poor quality control, most customers started to

recognize Pizza Hut as the best-tasting pizza and relied on Domino's only for quick delivery.

The first task for J. Patrick Doyle, who became the CEO of Domino's in 2010, was to change the

company's core pizza recipe. Domino's tested dozens of cheeses and sauces before determining

the final ingredients of its new pizza. It carried out blind taste tests with 1,800 random pizza

consumers, coming out on top and beating both Pizza Hut and Papa John's by a wide margin. To

market its new pizza, the company implemented an honest marketing campaign that apologized

for its old pizzas. To attract new customers, the company developed mobile apps with great user

experience, allowing customers to design their own pizzas. To protect its core competence,

management began revamping the company's online tracking system to minimize delivery time.

The results were astonishing: at the end of the first quarter of 2010, the company posted a 14.3%

increase in revenue. Furthermore, since these changes were implemented the company's stock has

risen a whopping 400% (Campos, 2013).

Domino’s turnaround story is a success. Its quality and strategic planning delivered exactly

what it wanted; it started selling more pizzas, captured more market share, experienced stock price

increases, and implemented new ideas to increase business. Domino’s thoroughly tested the

quality of the product before the new roll out. It presented the customer with a new way to order

the product, which worked well in quality testing. Domino’s has provided numerous examples of

how quality planning can yield positive results for a company.

 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 12

The Domino’s story above is one example of how implementing a plan around high quality

best practices can lead to success within an organization. Companies also use best practices within

their procurement planning sectors for purchasing equipment. Best practices are used in quality

departments, legal departments, executive briefings, and many other areas within corporations. If

there is a repeatable process in place, then often best practices are in place. If not, the organization

must start designing best practices to improve that process to ensure high efficiency and

effectiveness.

Analysis and Discussion of Results

This study has identified the key elements of a project plan as project requirements;

project management; project schedules; facility requirements; logistic support; financial support;

and manpower and organization. Failure to effectively address each of these elements invites risk

that can lead to project failure, such as was the case on the Hubble Space Telescope Project and

the Deepwater Program’s 123-foot Patrol Boat Project. The research was limited by the time

available leading up to the due date. The results imply that effective planning engenders project

success and failure to do so invites risk of project failure. These lessons can be applied across

most any project to assist in meeting project objectives and achieving project success, as

demonstrated by the best practices at Hoechst AG / Mobil Chemical, CSC, and Domino’s Pizza.

Conclusions
This study documents the project planning process and best practices. Its scope includes

the key elements of the usual project plan, risks associated with not addressing each appropriately,

and different styles of best practices. The research was limited by the time available. The

methodology of the research included major books, an on-line article, and a personal interview on

project management, project planning, and industry best practices as well as the authors’ own

professional experiences at NASA, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Coast Guard, and Computer Sciences
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 13

Corporation. The study determined that virtually every step in professional project management

includes project planning and re-planning, and that the key elements of a project plan include

project requirements; project management; project schedules; facility requirements; logistic

support; financial support; and manpower and organization. Failure to effectively address each of

these elements invites risk that can lead to project failure. “Failing to plan is planning to fail,”

noted so aptly by Kerzner (2009).

Acknowledgement

We are grateful for the encouragement and mentorship of Dr. Victor Sohmen, Project Management

Program, Drexel University, and for his useful comments, review, and editorial guidance in this

paper.

References

Anbari, F. T. (Ed.). (2013). Q & As for the PMBOK® Guide (5th ed.). Newtown Square, PA:

Project Management Institute.

BrightHubPM.com. (2012). Overview of the Project Planning Process Group. Retrieved from

http://www.brighthubpm.com/project-planning/1673-moving-into-the-project-planning-

stage

Campos, Adrian. (2013, November 20). Why Domino's Spent Millions to Fix Its Pizza. The

Motley Fool. Retrieved from http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/11/20/why-

dominos-spent-millions-to-fix-its-pizza.aspx

Clayborn, Katina. (2015, January 15). Dialogue 2: Which is better, non-numeric models or

numeric models? Unit 2 Discussion Board post (regarding non-numeric and numeric
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 14

project selection models) for Drexel University Project Planning & Scheduling course

PROJ 502-901. Retrieved from

https://learn.dcollege.net/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&fo

rum_id=_323804_1&nav=discussion_board&conf_id=_189951_1&course_id=_118106_

1&message_id=_4586270_1#msg__4586270_1Id

Investopedia. (2007, July 22). Best Practices Definition. Investopedia. Retrieved from

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/best_practices.asp

Haugan, G. (2002). Project Planning and Scheduling. Vienna: Management Concepts.

Kerzner, Harold. (2009). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling,

and Controlling, Tenth Edition. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN:9780470278703.

McLees, Jason. (2015). Interview of Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) project manager

Robert Hunter.

Meredith, Jack & Samuel Mantel. (2012). Project Management: A Managerial Approach (8th

ed.). Wiley & Sons. ISBN: 9780470533024.

Project Management Institute (PMI®). (2013). A Guide to the Project Management Body of

Knowledge (5th ed.). Project Management Institute. ISBN: 9781935589679.

Projectmangementhouse.com. (2013.) Typical Phases in a Project. Retrieved from

www.projectmangementhouse.com
 Journal of IT and Economic Development 6(1), 1-15, April 2015 15

Statement of Academic Honesty

We have completed this assignment in full compliance with Drexel University Academic

Honesty Policy.

We are comfortable that project team members contributed to this assignment in an

equivalent manner.

Students:

Mark Allen

Jason McLees

Crystal Richardson

Dedrick Waterford
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