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Triple Constraint or Project Triangle describes the balance between the scope, cost and schedule of the project, which affects the final result, i.e. quality. Quality is the fourth element of the Project Triangle, located in the center, and any change in the sides affects it.

“Triple Constraint or Project Management Triangle”

There is a huge difference between doing something well, fast or cheap. It is impossible to change one of the factors (funds, list of jobs, time or quality) without affecting at least one of the them. As an example:

• In order to approximate the finish date (time) of a project, one can spend more resources (funds) or remove some assignments (scope) from the project.

• In order to terminate a project within a budget (funds), one can either reduce some assignments (scope), which will affect the product’s capabilities (quality).

• In order to add new features (quality) to the product, one can extend the project’s timeline to allocate time for new assignments (time), thereby adding new tasks (scope) and involve new people to work faster (costs).

The idea of all methods and approaches is to focus attention on one or several factors controlling the effects on the rest.

Criteria for a project success are defined by the actual indicators to coincide with planned ones in terms of duly project termination, within the estimated budget and in accordance with the requirements for the final result. These requirements can and should be formulated and include measurable criteria, i.e. indicators of project success.

The goal of the project manager is to achieve the criteria for project success.

The main task of the project manager is to maintain the balance of the project triangle.

According to practice, only a quarter of all projects reach the criteria for success. That is why planning a project one should indicate the main success factors of the project (for example, the project budget and the continuity of the result), as well as possible tolerances – the allowed deviations of related factors (for example, the project implementation timeframe, but not more than ten percent, etc.).

To make project management more convenient, an organization can implement a classification of projects by different categories. Each organization defines the categories and characteristics of the project independently. Below is a general classification of a project by complexity:

• Simple project aims to generate new or improve existing business processes, information systems, software, documents, services, machines, and equipment. Only one business process will be changed or created in a company’s single division. Simple project usually has a low cost, a small scope of work, and a short time frame and involves a small number of employees.

• Complex project aims to generate new or improve existing business processes, information systems, software, documents, services, machines, and equipment. Several business processes will be changed or created. Complex project involves several company divisions and usually a high cost, a large list of assignments, a long time frame and a large number of employees.

Classification by priority allows defining the project implementation sequence: Low, Middle or High. The projects can be classified by purpose in regards of interaction with IT:

• Administrative projects deal with organizational changes, which usually do not affect the IT infrastructure, or involve IT resources.

• Internal projects are usually implemented within one department and make insignificant changes in IT infrastructure and do not involve many IT resources.

• IT projects are carried out within the organization and have a significant impact to IT infrastructure. They aim to replace the organization’s current IT infrastructure and involves significant IT resources.

The very first phase (stage) of the project, regardless of the project management method chosen, is the initial stage or project initialization. At this stage, the decision is made to start the project. This book suggests that the project initiators can be:

• Business units, or

• IT department.

An introductory information at this stage can be an organization strategy or a business plan.

A business plan is a document providing a detailed justification of the project and the ability to comprehensively assess the effectiveness of decisions made, planned activities, and answer the question whether the project is worth investing.

Defining project objectives is one of the most important aspects of the project management process. Each project should have at least one main objective and possibly several private, subsidiary goals. The objectives are:

• Sets the direction of the project implementation.

• Defines results in terms of end products or services.

• Serve as a source of information to resolve the project’s controversial issues.

The statement of the main objective should be action-oriented, short and simple, and as clear as possible. It is important to remember that the objective should be formulated using the terms not to confuse project participants, decisions makers or those who read project documents. At the initial stage, the formulation of objectives can be murky and express a general direction.

Determination of stakeholders allows identifying the direct customer, final decision makers, as well as general issues related to the project arrangement, such as organization, project team by areas (the managerial level), interaction procedure, decision-making, communication mechanisms, and so on.

The output of this phase is to identify stakeholders, set project objectives and general issues of the organization. Depending on the project management methodology, additional conclusions and results may be formed. A business plan, a project charter or the meeting minutes can be considered as the primary documents of the initial stage.

The next stage of project management can be planning. Planning is the most important and difficult stage of project management. This stage deals with detailed project development and answers to the main question: whether the organization is ready for the project and if the project will be successful. The level of complexity depends on the methodology and the complexity of the project. At this stage, one collects business requirements, specifies objectives, determines success criteria, details tasks, plans resources, time, and so on. Key documents at the output of the planning stage can be a project plan, terms of reference etc.

Coordination and approval of the project is a stage, or better to say, determination of the “milestone” or reference point of the project that answers to the main question: whether we start the project, or not? Once the leadership has approved the project, the stage of execution commences. This stage can be different for different project management methodologies.

Project implementation begins once the project is approved. Planning stages are completed and the project is being carried out. Implementation starts with making a project team, followed by the detailed development and distribution of assignments and estimate. The project is considered as implemented if the final product of the project meets the project requirements. Regardless the methodology implementation consists of the monitoring phase and project status control that are performed at the same time. Another important process is Management of Change. The main documents at this stage are project status reports, performance reports, and resource utilization report.

Once the project is implemented, the final stage of termination commences. The project is complete in terms of achieving the project objectives and obtaining the expected outcomes. In addition, the project owners or the leadership may decide to terminate the project ahead of schedule, or to change the project objectives leading to its termination.