2.0 PLANNING PROCESS GROUP The purpose of the planning process group is to elaborate the information from the project charter to create a comprehensive set of plans that will enable the project team to deliver the project objectives. There are 24 processes in the planning process group.
• Develop Project Management Plan
• Plan Scope Management
• Collect Requirements
• Defi ne Scope
• Create WBS
• Plan Schedule Management
• Defi ne Activities
• Sequence Activities
• Estimate Activity Resources
• Estimate Activity Durations
• Develop Schedule
• Plan Cost Management
• Estimate Costs
• Determine Budget
• Plan Quality Management
• Plan Human Resource Management
• Plan Communications Management
• Plan Risk Management
• Identify Risks
• Perform Qualitative Analysis
• Perform Quantitative Analysis
• Plan Risk Responses
• Plan Procurement Management
• Plan Stakeholder Management

The intent of the planning process group is to at least:
• Elaborate and clarify the project scope
• Develop a realistic schedule
• Develop a realistic budget
• Identify project and product quality processes
• Plan the human resource aspects of the project
• Determine the communication needs
• Establish risk management practices
• Identify the procurement needs of the project
• Determine how to manage stakeholder engagement
• Combine all the planning information into a project management plan and a set of project documents that are cohesive and integrated

Planning is not a one-time event. It occurs throughout the project. Initial plans will become more detailed as additional information about the project becomes available. Additionally, as changes are approved for the project or product, many of the planning processes will need to be revisited and the documents revised and updated. Many of the forms in this section provide information needed for other forms. The form description indicates from where information is received and to where it goes.

The forms used to document planning information include:
• Project Management Plan
• Scope Management Plan
• Requirements Management Plan
• Requirements Documentation
• Requirements Traceability Matrix
• Project Scope Statement
• Assumption and Constraint Log
• Work Breakdown Structure
• Work Breakdown Structure Dictionary
• Schedule Management Plan
• Activity List
• Activity Attributes
• Milestone List
• Network Diagram
• Activity Resource Requirements
• Resource Breakdown Structure
• Activity Duration Estimates
• Duration Estimating Worksheet
• Project Schedule
• Cost Management Plan
• Activity Cost Estimates
• Cost Estimating Worksheet
• Bottom-Up Cost Estimating Worksheet
• Cost Baseline
• Quality Management Plan
• Quality Metrics
• Process Improvement Plan
• Responsibility Assignment Matrix
• Roles and Responsibilities
• Human Resource Management Plan
• Communications Management Plan
• Risk Management Plan
• Risk Register
• Probability and Impact Assessment
• Probability and Impact Matrix
• Risk Data Sheet
• Procurement Management Plan
• Source Selection Criteria
• Change Management Plan
• Stakeholder Management Plan

Some forms in this section are not explicitly described in the PMBOK® Guide, but they are useful in planning and managing a project. Use the forms here as a starting point for your project. You should tailor the forms to meet the needs of your project by editing, combining, or revising them.

2.1 PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN The project management plan describes how the team will execute, monitor, control, and close the project. While it has some unique information, it is primarily comprised of all the subsidiary management plans and the baselines. The project management plan combines all this information into a cohesive and integrated approach to managing the project. Typical information includes:
• Selected project life cycle
• Processes used to manage the project and information on how they have been tailored
• Tools and techniques that will be used in the project management processes
• Specifi c approaches to meet project objectives
• Variance thresholds
• Baseline management
• Timing and types of reviews

The project management plan contains plans for managing all the other knowledge areas as well as other specific aspects of the project. These take the form of subsidiary management plans and can include:
• Scope Management Plan
• Schedule Management Plan
• Requirements Management Plan
• Cost Management Plan
• Quality Management Plan
• Human Resources Management Plan
• Communications Management Plan
• Risk Management Plan
• Procurement Management Plan
• Stakeholder Management Plan
• Change Management Plan
• Configuration Management Plan
• Process Improvement Plan

The project management plan also contains baselines. Common baselines include:
• Scope baseline
• Schedule baseline
• Cost baseline

In addition, any other relevant, project-specifi c information that will be used to manage the project is recorded in the project management plan. The project management plan can receive information from all the subsidiary management plans and baselines. Because it is the foundational document for managing the project it also provides information to all subsidiary plans. In addition, the project management plan provides information to all other integration processes and the work performance information from all the control processes. You can use the element descriptions in Table 2.1 to assist you in developing a project management plan.

2.2 SCOPE MANAGEMENT PLAN The Scope Management Plan is part of the project management plan. It specifi es how the project scope will be defined, developed, monitored, controlled, and validated. Planning how to manage scope should include at least processes for:
• Developing a detailed scope statement
• Decomposing the project into discrete deliverables using a WBS
• Determining what constitutes a scope change versus a revision and how scope changes will be managed through the formal change control process
• Maintaining the WBS and the scope baseline
• How deliverables will be accepted

In addition, the Scope Management Plan may provide direction on the elements that should be contained in a WBS Dictionary and how the scope and requirements management plans interact. The Scope Management Plan can receive information from:
• Project Charter
• Project Management Plan It is related to:
• Requirements Management Plan It provides information to:
• Requirements Documentation
• Scope Statement
• WBS
• WBS Dictionary

The Scope Management Plan is an output from the process 5.1 Plan Scope Management in the PMBOK® Guide—Fifth Edition. You can use the element descriptions in Table 2.2 to assist you in developing a Scope Management Plan.

Tailoring Tips

Consider the following tips to help tailor the scope management plan to meet your needs:

• For smaller projects you can combine the scope management plan with the requirements managementplan.

• For larger projects consider a test and evaluation plan that defines how deliverables will be validatedand accepted by the customer.

• If your project involves business analysis you may want to incorporate information on how businessanalysis activities and project management activities will interact.

• If you are using an agile or adaptive development approach you may want to incorporate informationon the release and iteration plans.

Alignment

The scope management plan should be aligned and consistent with the following documents:

• Development approach

• Life cycle description

• Change management plan

• Requirements management plan

• Release and iteration plan

Description

You can use the descriptions in Table 2.3 to assist you in developing a scope management plan.

Table 2.3 Elements of the Scope Management Plan

Document Element                        Description

WBS                                            Describe the WBS and whether it will be arranged using phases, geography,

                                                   majordeliverables, or some other way. The guidelines for establishing control

                                                   accountsand work packages can also be documented in this section.

WBS Dictionary                             Identify the information that will be documented in the WBS Dictionary and

                                                   the level of detail required.

    Scope baseline maintenance          Identify the types of scope changes that will need to go through the formal

                                                       changecontrol process and how the scope baseline will be maintained.

   Deliverable acceptance                   For each deliverable, identify how the deliverable will be validated for

                                                       customer acceptance, including any tests or documentation needed for

                                                       sign-off.

   Scope and requirements                 Describe how project and product requirements will be addressed in the scope

   integration                                     statement and WBS. Identify the integration points and how requirements and

                                                       scope validation will occur.

   Project management and                Describe how business analysis and project management will integrate 

   business analysis integration           as scope is being defined, developed, tested, validated, and turned

                                                        over to operations.

2.5 Requirements Management Plan

The requirements management plan is part of the project management plan. It specifies how requirementsactivities will be conducted throughout the project.

Managing requirements activities includes  at least:

• Planning activities such as:

   ○○ Collecting/eliciting

   ○○ Analyzing

   ○○ Categorizing

   ○○ Prioritizing○○ Documenting

   ○○ Determining metrics

   ○○ Defining the traceability structure

• Managing activities such as:

   ○○ Tracking

   ○○ Reporting

   ○○ Tracing○○ Validating

   ○○ Performing configuration management

The requirements management plan can receive information from:

• Project charter

• Development approach

• Quality management planIt is related to:

• Scope management planIt provides information to:

• Requirements documentation

• Requirements traceability matrix

• Quality management plan

• Risk register

The requirements management plan is an output from the process

5.1 Plan Scope Management in thePMBOK® Guide – Sixth Edition. It is developed once and does not usually change.

Tailoring Tips

Consider the following tips to help tailor the management plan to meet your needs:

• For smaller projects you can combine the requirements management plan with the scope managementplan.

• If your project involves business analysis, you may want to incorporate information on how businessanalysis requirements activities and project management requirements activities will interact.

• You can document the test and evaluation strategy in this plan. For larger projects you may want tohave a separate testing plan.

• If you are using an agile or adaptive development approach you may want to incorporate informationon how the backlog will be used to manage and track requirements.

Alignment

The requirements management plan should be aligned and consistent with the following documents:

• Development approach

• Change management plan

• Scope management plan

• Release and iteration plan

• Requirements backlogDescription

You can use the descriptions in Table 2.4 to assist you in developing a requirements management plan.T

Table 2.4 Elements of the Requirements Management Plan

Document Element                      Description

Requirements collection               Describe how requirements will be collected or elicited. Consider techniques

                                                 such as brainstorming, interviewing, observation, etc.

Requirements analysis                 Describe how requirements will be analyzed for prioritization, categorization,

                                                 and impact to the product or project approach.

Requirements categories              Identify categories for requirements such as business, stakeholder, quality, etc.

Requirements documentation        Define how requirements will be documented. The format of a

                                                  requirements document may range from a simple spreadsheet to more

                                                   elaborate forms containingdetailed descriptions and attachments.

Requirements prioritization            Identify the prioritization approach for requirements. Certain requirements will

                                                  be non-negotiable, such as those that are regulatory or those that are needed

                                                  to comply with the organization’s policies or infrastructure. Other requirements

                                                  may be nice to have, but not necessary for functionality

Requirements metrics                   Document the metrics that requirements will be measured against.

                                                  For example,if the requirement is that the product must be able to support 150 lb,

                                                  the metric may be that it is designed to support 120 percent (180 lb) and that any

                                                  design or engineering decisions that cause the product to go below the 120

                                                   percent need approval by the customer.

Requirements traceability               Identify the information that will be used to link requirements from their origin

                                                   tothe deliverables that satisfy them.

Requirements tracking                   Describe how often and what techniques will be used to track progress

                                                   on requirements.

Requirements reporting                 Describe how reporting on requirements will be conducted and the frequency

                                                   of such reporting.

Requirements validation                Identify the various methods that will be used to validate requirements such

                                                   asi nspection, audits, demonstration, testing, etc.

Requirements configuration           Describe the configuration management system that will be used to control

management                                requirements, documentation, the change management process, and

                                                   the authorization levels needed to approve changes.