Page 55 - DMGT521_PROJECT_MANAGEMENT

Project Management

Notes Introduction

A project should earn sufficient return on the investment. The very idea of promoting a project
by an entrepreneur is to earn attractive returns on investment on the project. Projects sponsored/
undertaken by Government may take into account social cost benefits of the proposed project
and in such cases, financial return alone needs not be the criterion. But for such Government
projects, all other projects have the prime motive of getting maximum return on investment. If
there are many alternative projects, all of which, prima facie, appear to be more or less equal in
profit earning capacity, the investor should make a comparative study of the return on the
different alternative proposals before choosing one.
4.1 Project Initiation and Resource Allocation

The purpose of Project Initiation is to begin to define the overall parameters of a project and
establish the appropriate project management and quality environment required to complete
the project.
Development of the Project Charter is a pivotal starting point for the project, establishing the
project definition that will serve as the foundation for all future efforts. The completion of this
process is marked by the Project Kick-off Meeting, in which the Project Manager presents the
Project Charter.
Successful projects begin with a detailed project definition that is understood and accepted by
Stakeholders. Putting everything down in writing helps ensure a commitment among Project
Team members and between the team and the Stakeholders. As part of Project Initiation, an
initial Project Plan is developed, which comprises the Project Charter, Cost/Scope/Schedule/
Quality (CSSQ) documents, and preliminary risk identification list. These documents, once
approved, ensure a consistent understanding of the project, help to set expectations, and identify
resources necessary to move the project to the next level of detailed planning. Potential problems
are identified so that they can be addressed early in the project.
Also during Project Initiation, a high-level Project Schedule is developed as the roadmap to
more detailed Project Planning and Project Execution and Control. This high-level schedule will
be refined over time, and will serve as the primary source of information regarding project
status and progress. An accurate, realistic, and complete schedule, rigorously maintained, is
essential to the success of a project.

Notes Sponsorship of the project must be confirmed or gained during Project Initiation.
Having a Project Sponsor, and securing approval early in the project management lifecycle,
helps to ensure a commitment to the project.

4.2 Resource Allocation

Resource allocation is the distribution of resources – usually financial - among competing
groups of people or programs. When we talk about allocation of funds for healthcare, we need
to consider three distinct levels of decision-making:
Level 1: Allocating resources to healthcare versus other social needs.
Level 2: Allocating resources within the healthcare sector.
Level 3: Allocating resources among individual patients.

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