Importance of Project Life Cycle

Explain the importance of the project life cycle to project management. Identify and define the  phases within the project life cycle

A project is a niche in creation. How well it is created depends on the kind of strategy involved in the making of a project. Researchers all over the world have defined a specific design strategy which one has to follow to deliver exquisite successful implementation of the required project at hand. his specific design strategy is named as the project life c ycle and consists of phases which may vary in num!er from " to # depending on the type of project and the industry industry involved for  the same. he importance of the project life cycle model lies in the fact that a well defined strategy is always required for tackling any particular pro!lem. $o is the case with the project as such. %o dou!t there is always a complexity and uncertainty involved that cannot !e a!solutely controlled despite the good lifecycle model. However& following a step !y step procedure is far !etter than trying to randomly !uild up a project or maintain one as such. he value proposition for  implementing a standard life cycle process is essential for the following' •

Ensuring that all of the essential work is included in the initial schedule and also the

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initial estimates. Ensuring that planning is done !efore execution cuts down misdirected work and all the

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 pain of starting from scratch in case one such situation actually arises (sing a standard life cycle model helps define define the majority majority of the work required for the

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 project and also helps calculate ca lculate the time and risk involved for the same. his !rings out the effectiveness of the project implementation. A set of defined standards effective tea management where all the tea mem!ers can effectively adhere to the principles !ased in the work and accordingly carry out the necessary tasks thus !ringing !ringing sync into the project and thus resulting in an ease of flow during the project management process.

he life life cycle cycle model model of the project project managemen managementt can !e attri! attri!ute uted d !asica !asically lly five five differ different ent  processes mainly' )* Project initiation ' he very !asic and the crucial phase where foundations of the project are usually made and it generally involves a lot of !rainstorming. It includes drafting of   !usiness cases mainly listing of alternatives& analysis of !usiness profits& risks& costs incurred and the like& preferred solutions to the given pro!lems and feasi!ility study of  the same thus triggering the !eginning of the project planning phase.

+* Project planning:  his is the phase where comprehensive individual plans with respect to cost& scope& time requirements& quality enhancements& communications involved& risk  factors and resource utili,ation is done. his phase witness the drafting of the plans listed !elow' • • • • • • • • •

-roject -lan Resource plan inancial plan /uality plan Risk plan Acceptance plan 0ommunication plan -rocurement plan 0ontract the suppliers "* Project Execution: his is the fundamental phase of the project management life cycle. his phase works parallel to the project monitoring and control phase. eams are allocated the resources and are informed of their responsi!ilities accordingly. his is the most time consuming phase and needs close monitoring over the tasks !eing carried out  !y the corresponding team. 1isted !elow are the activities involved during this phase'

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Execute 0ost management Execute 0hange management Execute time management Execute quality management Execute risk management Execute issue management Execute procurement management Execute acceptance management Execute communications management his phase oversees the successful implementation of the project requirements and correspondingly is checked for the integrity and efficacy of the work done. 2* Project Monitoring and control ' his phase speciali,es in assessing the quality and quantity of the work done with respect the mentioned guidelines in the initial stage of the  project. his phase& as stated a!ove& works in parallel execution where every execution is closely monitored over !y experts3 panel and which accordingly implements corrective action. According to the project management 4ody of 5nowledge 6-7485*&

 “The Monitoring and Control Process Group consists of those processes performed to observe the project execution so that potential problems can be identified in a timely manner and corrective action taken, hen necessary, to control the execution of the  project! “ 

he monitoring and control processes included in this phase are mainly as follows' • • • • • • • • •

7onitoring and controlling project work  Integrated 0hange control $cope verification $cope control $chedule control 0ost control -erforming quality control 7anaging the project team -erformance reporting #* -roject 0losing' his is the final phase of the lifecycle model and !asically is targeted towards wrapping up of all the tasks and functions done throughout the earlier phases. It ensures successful completion of the project management specifications and oversees the functionalities of the following listed !elow accordingly. 0onduct lessons learned • 0lose contracts • 9ispose and de:allocate resources wherever necessary • -erform the final project closure • Review project completion. •