Mapping the tools to PMI’s Processes

Note: This document was created using MindManger Pro 7 and Microsoft Project Professional 2003. But exporting from MindManager to Microsoft Project is possible in older versions of both tools.

Overview

This document will examine the processes within the Project Management Institutes (PMI) Scope and Time Management Knowledge Area and discuss how Mindjet’s MindManager and Microsoft Project can support these processes.

Background

According to the PMI’s Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) – 3^rd Edition 2004, the Scope Management Knowledge Area consists of the following processes:

• Scope Planning
• Scope Definition
• Create WBS*
• Scope Verification
• Scope Control

The Time Management Knowledge Area consists of the following processes (page 123):

• Activity Definition*
• Activity Sequencing**
• Activity Resource Estimating**
• Activity Duration Estimating**
• Schedule Development**
• Schedule Control**

*MindManager can help with these processes

**Microsoft Project can help with these processes

The Scenario

You have just been assigned as the project manager of a new project. Based upon information given to you, you have developed a detailed project scope statement (Scope Definition). Your mission is to build a 3 bedroom ranch home. You have been given the blueprints and advised that all materials should be of medium quality.

With the scope statement in place, your next step is to develop a WBS, or Work Breakdown Structure. This is the process of subdividing the major project deliverables into smaller, more manageable components. Note that this process should be executed by the project team. (PMBOK 3^rd Edition pg 112)

You have identified the key Subject Matter Experts who will be assisting you on this project and have scheduled a meeting to develop a WBS. You could build this WBS on paper, or a dry erase board, or even use post-it notes. But why not leverage improved technology?? Why not capture things electronically the first time? Well, with Mindjet’s MindManager, you can do that!!

When we open MindManager, we see a screen with one box that says Central Topic:

We can then over-write that text with the title of our project.

Our next step is to create the first level of the WBS. Based upon input from the team and experience in this profession, you elect to create the following six elements; Concrete, Framing, Plumbing, Electrical, Interior and Roofing. To add those to your WBS in MindManager, ensure 3 Bedroom Ranch is selected and then click on Subtopic under Insert.

Note how the new level is added to the diagram. We would prefer to see this level below the main topic. To make this change, click on Format, the Map Style

then choose Assign from Template organizer and finally, select "Layout – Org Chart", then OK.

Now change the name of this Main Topic to Concrete.

With Concrete highlighted, click on Insert Topic from the Home menu. Rename this to Framing

Continue this process until you have added all 6 components of your level 1 WBS.

We would now like to like to break down each of these components a little farther. We will start with Concrete. Given the scope of the project we add the following 3 items under concrete; Foundation, Patio, and Stairs.

To add these items under Concrete within MindManager, ensure that Concrete is selected then click on Insert Subtopic. Overwrite Subtopic with Foundation.

Continue this process for the remaining items.

We now decompose the remaining level 1 components to get something like this:

By definition, the lowest level of the WBS is called the Work Package. We will assume each of these components on level 2 of this WBS are the Work Packages. Work Packages contain activities or tasks.

Let’s now add the tasks for each of these work packages. Ensure Foundation is selected, add Subtopic and input the first task that must occur. Continue this process for all tasks.

Continue adding tasks for all Work Packages:

The next thing we would like to do is number our WBS components. To do this, click on "3 Bedroom Home", then click on: ,

then Numbering Options, click on the Dropdown by Depth and choose 5 Levels:

You will now see WBS codes next to each component:

Save your file. Notice that upon the first save, MindManager will attempt to name your file the same name as your Central Topic. Accept this name.

You have just successfully used MindManager to assist with Creating a WBS and Activity Definition. We can now export all this information out to MS Project.

To Export to Microsoft Project

Click on the MindManager icon, hover over Export and click on Export Task Info to Microsoft Project:

Select the location where you would like the file to be saved, and accept the default save options. Finally, click on Export.

Once the export is complete, a dialogue box will appear saying “Successfully imported document”. Now click on Open.

Be sure to choose >Tools, >Options, >View, Show Project Summary Task.

You will find all components input into the WBS within MindManager have now been moved into Microsoft Project. You will notice that the various levels of the WBS appear as Summary Tasks and the tasks entered into MindManager appear as tasks within Microsoft Project.

You can now use Microsoft Project to assist with:

• Activity Sequencing - establish the sequencing of these tasks by inputting Predecessors
• Activity Resource Estimating - assign resources and their availability
• Activity Duration Estimating - input the amount of Work and Duration required for each task given the resource(s) availability

So you are working with Microsoft Project 2003 and someone sends you a Microsoft Project (.mpp) file that was saved using Microsoft Project 2007. When you attempt to open the file you receive the following message:

“The file was created by a newer version of Microsoft Project and a converter is needed to open it. Do you want to download the converter from the Microsoft Office Website?”

Or:

“Project cannot open this file because the format is not recognized.  The file was probably created using a newer version of Project.”

If you choose Yes from the first message, you will be directed to a website entitled Project 2007 Converter Information. Or here!

On this page, you will see the following information:

“You reached this page because the Microsoft Project Plan (MPP) file that you are trying to open was created in Microsoft Office Project 2007.

Converters for opening Office Project 2007 files will be provided as part of Microsoft Office 2003 Service Pack 3 (SP3), which will be available during the last quarter of 2007. After upgrading to Office 2003 SP3, you will be able to open a Project 2007 file in Microsoft Office Project 2003 as a read-only file.”

You actually do not need to download the entire Office Service Pack 3. The converter to open Microsoft Project 2007 files using Microsoft Project 2003 is really contained within Microsoft Project Service Pack 3 (sp3). You can download Microsoft Project SP3 here.

Once you download sp3, install and restart, you can now open the MS Project 2007 file using MS Project 2003.

Note that the file will be Read Only. You can save this file in 2003. However, keep in mind that you may loose information that was saved within MS Project 2007. Project will actually recognize that you are about to save what was originally a file from 2007 in 2003 and present you with the following message:

Microsoft Office Project 2003 has detected that the original file was created in Microsoft Office Project 2007 and might contain some information only available in Project 2007.

If you use Project 2003 to save this file in the Project 2000 - 2003 MPP format or an older file format, you can lose data in areas where Project 2007 contains enhanced functionality.

The following types of data or formatting can be lost:

Budget information    Information contained in the new budget fields will be lost.

Deliverables and Dependencies   Information contained in the new, cross-project deliverables and dependencies fields will be lost. Information contained in task links will not be lost.

Cost resources   Information contained in the new cost resource fields might be changed, converting cost resources into material resources. Information contained in other cost fields will not be lost.

Background cell formatting   Sheet cells that have background formatting applied to them will lose their background formatting. Information in these fields will not be lost.

Assignment owner information   Information contained in the new assignment owner fields will be lost.

Calendar exceptions   New exceptions that were added to project and resource calendar functionality (such as monthly exceptions, yearly exceptions, and those with arbitrary dates) will be lost.

New fields and custom fields  Information within new fields, or any formulas relying on new fields, will be lost. New options that are set on custom fields created in Project 2007 will be lost, such as the new roll-down setting for calculation of assignment rows. Task assignment custom field values will also be lost.

Enterprise custom fields  Any enterprise custom fields created within Project 2007 will be lost.

1.  You manually create a Project Summary Task

Wrong:

2.  You "hard code" dates

Wrong:

3.  You don't input the teams estimated Duration on all tasks

Wrong:

4.  Your tasks don't start with a verb

5.  You assign Predecessors to Summary Tasks

Wrong:

6. You assign Resources to Summary Tasks

Wrong:

7.  You never inspect the critical path tasks

8.  You never search for (or eliminate) Resource Over-Allocations

9.  You never Baseline your schedule

10. You never update your schedule to align with reality

For help with Microsoft Project, try this link