Project Planning and
Management
Systems Development Cycle
Presented by
Herbert Mapfaira
Lincoln International Business School
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Systems Thinking Applied To Projects
Systems Approach to Project Management
• “It is the way in which a project management
system operates as an entity in its
environment that ultimately determines the
success or failure of project management in
the organization.”
Cleland, D. I. (1977). Defining a project management system. Project
Management Quarterly, 8(4), 37–40.
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Project Management System
• Integration in to the wider system
System Boundary?
Organisation
Project Project Project
Environment
Team Manager Methodology
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How is a Project System Organised?
1) Organisation sub-system
2) Project Planning sub-system
3) Project Control sub-system
4) Project Management Information sub-system
5) Techniques and methodology
6) Cultural sub-system
• Any more?
Cleland, D. I. (1977). Defining a project management system. Project Management Quarterly, 8(4),
37–40.
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How is a Project System Organised?
PMI Project Management Framework
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System Models
• A model is a simplified representation of the world; it
abstracts the essential features of the system under
study.
• A physical model is a scaled-down abstraction of the
real system. It includes some aspects of the system
and excludes others (e.g. F1 wind tunnel)
• A conceptual model depicts the elements, structure
and flows in a system in terms of a schematic
diagram or mathematical formulation.
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Ways of Conceptualising a Project
X
Hierarchical structure A B C
a b c d e f g
e c
Network structure d b g
a f
Question: What do the boxes and lines represent in each
structure?
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Project Organisation Sub-system
Client / Sponsor/
Programme Manager
Project Manager
Lead Main Cost
H&S Procurement
Designer Contractor Consultant
Sub-contractor Sub-contractor Sub-contractor
• A functionalist perspective on organisation in project
management aligns with a hard system paradigm
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How is a Project Systemically Organised?
• The project organisation reflects the cross-functional,
goal-oriented, temporary nature of the project.
• The Project Manager integrates all resources in a co-
ordinated way to meet project objectives (“Boundary
Agent”)
• A project requires a variety of skills and resources,
and the team may come from different areas of the
organisation or outside of the organisation.
• What are the potential issues with a project team
drawn from inside and outside the organisation?
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How is a Project Systemically Organised?
• Don’t forget that it is highly likely that the
project is also producing a system
• How might that affect the way the project is
organised?
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System Development Life Cycle
System Life Cycle
• System life cycle is the pattern of change or
evolution that similar kinds of systems follow.
• The basic life cycle of human-designed systems is the
series of logical, structured steps called the systems
development cycle.
• The prescribed stages or phases for large-scale
system development projects are called systems
engineering.
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Life Cycle Stages: Natural Systems
Conception
Birth
Growth
Maturity
Decline
Death
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Life Cycle Stages: System Life Cycle
1. Development/Installation
conception, birth and growth (Project)
2. Operation
maturity and decline
Enhancement/Replacement
Termination
• For a human-made system termination is not inevitable.
• System is kept “alive” through enhancement / replacement.
• Every human-made system begins as a project and often ends
with the start of a new project. 15
Systems Development Cycle (SDC)
Phase A: Conception Phase B: Definition
phase phase
Initiation stage Project definition
Feasibility stage System definition
Proposal preparation User and system
requirements
Phase D: Operation Phase C: Execution
phase phase
System maintenance Design stage
and evaluation Production/build stage
Fabrication
Testing
Implementation stage
System System Training
Improvement termination Acceptance tests
Installation
Termination
(To Phase A:
repeat cycle)
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Project Life-Cycle
• How does the project life cycle below map to
the SDC?
– Initiating
– Planning
– Executing
– Monitoring and Controlling
– Closing
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Alternative Life Cycle Models
In order of (broadly) increasing goal and solution uncertainty and
change:
Approaches PMLC Model
Traditional Linear
Incremental
Agile Iterative
Adaptive
Spiral
Extreme Extreme
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Suggested Further Reading
• Pollack, J. (2007) The changing paradigms of project
management. International Journal of Project Management,
25, 266-274, doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2006.08.002
• Cleland, D. I. (1977). Defining a project management system.
Project Management Quarterly, 8(4), 37–40.
• Jim Sheffield, Shankar Sankaran, Tim Haslett, (2012) "Systems
thinking: taming complexity in project management", On the
Horizon, Vol. 20 Issue: 2, pp.126-136
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Next Week Preparation
• Next seminar:
– Project / system structure and functions
relationship map
• Next lecture: Project Conception and Planning
– Read Nicholas and Steyn chapters chapter 3 & 4
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