Project Management: Monitoring, Controlling, Scope Management, Change Management, and Ethics

Question 11 (ICTPMG401): Monitoring and controlling the project tasks is the key factor in the success of
a project. Describe the phenomenon in your own words with particular reference to scope, time, cost and
quality monitoring and controlling in a project.
Answer: Monitoring and control processes are usually viewed together but they are two different
processes. Monitoring is a process that provides information on a project and ensures that it is used to
understand project effects and impacts. Monitoring involves a continuous assessment of the project as
per an agreed schedule. For a project to be successful, it is essential that all its deliverables are
completed within the give time and approved budget. With monitoring of project activities, a project
manage can understand if the project is going as per the scope, time, and schedule constraints such that
earl signs of deviations can be identified and worked upon to ensure that the project gets bac on track so
that the final deliverables are not delayed nor does the project face the problems of cost overrun or scope
creep. Controlling measures can be taken at these points to ensure that project progresses as per the
schedule and any sources of deviation is taken care of (Abeysekera & McLean, 2000).
Question 12 (Unit ICTPMG401): Define scope management. Use the terms “all” and “only” in the
definition and spell out the practical meanings of these two terms in scope management.
Answer: Scope management involves identification of deliverables defined in the scope and execution of
only those activities that are within the scope and not all. A project can have certain activities defined in
the scope that are referred to in the word “only” while “all” refers to all the related activities including those
not in the scope of current project. For instance, a project scope may include activities of website
development and configuration that would be “only” activities in scope but “all” activities could also include
provision of training on website to the client or marketing on the website which may not be included in the
scope and thus, despite the relation , it should not be done by the project team. Thus, project scope
management ensures that the project team remains focused on the project scope and is not diverted
towards performing duties that are not in the scope. To ensure this happens, project scope management
plan often also covers exclusions of the project (PM4DEV, 2008).
Question 13: Change management is a formal process. What and when a change may be required in a
project. Briefly outline the steps required to incorporate a change in the project.
Answer: Changes may be required on the project for a number of reasons such as addition in scope
because of stakeholder demands, changes in schedule because of work pressures or resource
constraints, and change in project budget requirement because of increases in expenses. First ste to
change management is identification of the need for change after which the change request is raised by
th person identifying need to the project manager who evaluated the change and if it does not have any
severe impact on project, takes a decision but if not, he goes to the sponsor or other stakeholders to
discuss if the change should be approved. Once approved, the task of incorporating change is assigned
to a team member and change is executed (GOI, 2010).
Question 14: Unit (ICTPMG401): Briefly summarize the PMI Code of Ethics for Project Managers.
Answer: Codes of ethics refers to completion of certain objectives by a project manager and these include
providing professional conduct guidelines to the team, reminding the teams of the legal and moral
requirements of the project, advertising standards of conduct, promoting public confidence, and elf-
regulation with an objective of reducing heading off regulations. The selection of the codes from these
depend on organization and project requirements (AusAID, 2003).
Question 15: A project requires formal closure even if all the technical work is already complete. Please
explain why it is essential to formally close a project but it is considered complete?
Answer: A formal closure of the project is needed to get a final acceptance from the client in written as
well as for recording how the project was completed including the lessons learned. The formal sign off

helps project team get the payments form the client while the records of the project help in future
prospects when the team has to execute a similar project such that the closure document serves as a
guide. Also, it can become a reference point if any conflicts or queries arise about the project in future
(PMI, 2008).
Question 16: (unit ICTPMG401): Which phase of the project requires the most resources and why?
Please provide at least two reasons.
Answer: Execution phase of a project needs most human resources as in this phase, actual activities
have to be carried out as per the project plan and all developmental aspects as well as changes have to
be incorporated. Execution phase gives the final deliverables of the project and is the longest phase
involving most workforce for performing activities, for monitoring them, and for controlling (PM4Dev,
2007).
Question 17: (Unit ICTPMG401): Which phase of the project is most time consuming and why? Justify
your answer, particularly if you think that more than one phases may require equal time.
Answer: Planning phase of the project is most time consuming, as it requires the project manager to have
a complete understanding of all the requirements of the project as well as ensure how they would be met.
It would need a large amount of research and extensive brainstorming with the teams or stakeholders to
arrive at a final plan. Moreover, the planning stage does not complete as the project starts as it can be
revised as and when the needed arises (UC Davis, 2013).
Question 18: (Unit ICTPMG401): Project execution is the phase of a project when actual project work is
being carried out. At this stage, it is necessary that the project deliverables match to the project
objectives. How a project manager ensures this match between objectives and deliverables? In case of
a discrepancy, what steps must be taken by the project manager? Give at least three such steps.
Answer: The project deliverables and objectives are recorded using planning and monitoring . while plan
documents the objectives and expected deliverables, monitoring allows project manager to check if they
are actually met such that if there are any deliverables not submitted or objectives not met, an immediate
step would be taken to resolve underlying issue to proceed further. In the case of deviation, project
manager uses control mechanisms (Freelock, 2010).
Question 19: (ICTPMG401): A project has run into trouble immediately after the execution phase begins.
In your opinion where the root cause lies for this situation and what should be done by the project
manager to rectify this situation.
Answer: Projects can run into a trouble due to various reasons but these reasons could be foreseen with
the use of risk management. If the risk management is not done then the potential risks on the project are
not identified and the project can get into trouble while team would struggle to find solutions. However, if
the risks on the projects are previously assed, most problems can either be avoided or mitigated to cause
least impact on project outcomes such that the problems on project are resolved comfortably and on time
(Institution of Civil Engineers and the Actuarial Profession, 2005).
Question 20: (ICTICT418): Provide a summary of the Code of Ethics for your work or study organisation
(you can choose any other organisation, if you wish so).
Answer: Considering a website development organization building website for another organization as a
project, following codes of ethics would be used -
 Project team must be honest and fair with the client in terms of deliveries, timeline commitments
and commercials