5. Draw and explain the project life cycle.

An understanding of project life cycles is necessary for all those involved with the
management of projects. That need is not confined of project managers but extends in many
directions throughout the organisation, not least at the top, where strategic decisions on capital
investment, staffing and facilities are made.

S-Curve J-Curve

The S-Curve is a form of mathematical theory, which aims to represent the utilization of
resources over the proposed time of the project. Simply stated, the curvature illustrates the side
by side comparisons of the actual time and expenditure components vs. the proposed time and
costs allocations of specific resources. An understanding of S-Curve theory and its analyse will
help learners and team members grasp the importance of monitoring the progress and growth of
an ongoing project-at a specific stage or percentage of completion. The S-Curve model simply
makes use of the projected number of man-hours and costs to complete the project vs. the actual
number of hours and costs incurred within the same time frame. The proposed time, man-hour
and cost data are referred to as the “baseline” data. These are important due to the fact that
understanding where you are in regard to this system determines how you should proceed in
regard to innovation strategy. It can assist you in understanding your current risk and how to
avoid certain pit-falls common to products or services in certain phases of maturity.
9. Explain planning process of project master plan.

Project master plan consists of 9 elements. The 9 elements are overview, objectives,
general approach, contractual aspects, schedule, resource requirements, personnel, evaluation
methods potential problems.

 Overview
 Brief description of project
 Deliverables
 Milestones
 Expected profitability and competitive impact
 Intended for senior management

 Objectives
 Detailed description of project deliverables
 Project mission statement

 General approaches
 Technical and managerial approaches
 Relationship to other projects
 Deviations from standard practices

 Contractual aspects
 Agreements with clients and third parties
 Reporting requirements
 Technical specifications
 Project review dates

 Schedules
 Outline of all schedules and milestones
 Resource requirements
 Estimated project expenses
 Overhead and fixed charges

 Personnel
 Special skill requirements
 Necessary training
 Legal requirements

 Evaluation methods
 Evaluation procedures and standards
 Procedures for monitoring, collecting and storing data on project performance

 Potential problems
 List of likely problems