Introduction

The following document provides information about setting up, planning for, and managing a multi-project scenario using POD .You will find a detailed case study and hands-on illustrations to plan a project step by step using the Multi-project feature.

Multi-project:

Multiprojecting is one of the best ways to manage large and complex projects. This feature provides various advantages over the traditional approach, few of which are listed below.

Functional Advantages:

The Multi-project feature can be used in breaking down large and complex projects into efficiently manageable smaller subprojects which are owned by respective Project Managers/Functional leads. The Multi-project feature enables Program Managers to setup a main project including multiple smaller subprojects and establish cross project links between subprojects at the task and summary level. These links specify the logical sequence of events among the subprojects. This feature allows Program Managers to have a panoramic view of the entire Program. Program execution and control is made lot simpler when compared to the traditional approach.

Each Subproject when opened separately contains the cross project predecessor task information to help individual PM’s / leads to communicate effectively. Cross linking between subprojects helps Program Managers to arrive at an optimal Project schedule for complex projects.

Observing effects of changes/updates made to the subprojects by respective project managers on the overall program schedule and monitoring overall program progress is made simple when using the Multi-project feature. For example, a software engineer might need more time to complete a certain task in the coding phase which is supervised by the software manager as a separate subproject. Accepting the change would effect the release date of the product. In the Multi-project scenario, the overall effect of this change can be immediately seen as the coding subproject is inserted into the multi project and linked in a structured hierarchy.

Using the Multi-project feature, subprojects or unrelated projects can also be consolidated together to give a panoramic view of all the projects on an enterprise level. Program Managers can view and print custom reports of all the projects combined together. The Multi-Project feature allows Managers to view key details of projects in relationship to each other.  It helps Program Managers to easily view status details at individual subproject and overall program levels.

This feature also helps Resource Managers to locate where there resources are working. With the advanced Histogram feature included in POD, Resource Managers can now view the Resource’s assignment details at task, project and program level. The Histogram feature provides options to view resource assignment information for the selected tasks, selected project and other projects along with a line of availability making Resource Managers task simpler.

Technical Advantages:

The Multi-project feature adds significant value by reducing the system load as complex projects need not be opened by participating Project Managers for monitoring and controlling purposes. They can work on there own individual subprojects without having to open the main project file. The changes made are automatically updated into the overall program file once they are saved. This significantly reduces system latency. Coupled with the availability of the application over the internet through the On-Demand ecosystem in any part of the world, managing global projects on the fly is a reality.

The Multi-project feature resolves another major bottle neck in collaborative environment. In traditional approach, the entire project is locked by the manager when he is working on some part of the project file he is responsible for making it unavailable to other Managers and higher-ups simultaneously. In the Multi-project scenario, as the phases are split into subprojects and are owned by individual managers, each manager works on his own sub-project thereby increasing the availability of the main Project file.

Other advantages:

In the Multi-project scenario, delegating of responsibility to individual work package owners / managers through sub-projects inspires commitment, ensures accountability and makes tracking of finer details of project easier.

Case Study:

Introduction:

Esparto Capital Equipments Inc (ECEI) is a large scale turnkey equipment manufacturing company having a global presence with offices in multiple countries operating in different time zones. Teams situated in different geographic locations play vital roles in the project lifecycle.

Why ECEI choose POD?

Project-ON-Demand solution was adopted by Esparto Capital Equipments Inc to globally manage there projects involving multiple time zones, cultures, languages etc. ECEI has adapted POD for the following reasons

o Complete Project Management Solution.

o Short implementation lead time.

o No upfront technical overheads and integration issues across different countries/offices.

o Advanced multi-project and Histogram features.

o Email Collaboration, Timesheet/Calendar functions. 

Project details: Construction of a Chemical reactor plant in the Middle-East, with different tasks planned and executed in different locations.

Project Lifecycle:

The “Chemical Reactor” project lifecycle involves the following critical phases:

o Process design to develop the equipment specs – Location: USA.

o Detailed engineering to develop the manufacturing drawings – Location: INDIA

o Equipment manufacturing – Location: Japan

o Installation and commissioning–  Location: Middle east

 The Program is centrally monitored from the program office situated in Texas.  

A simple work breakdown structure for the above program is depicted below:

The Program Manager receives the charter and prepares the high level plan. He finalizes the high level project structure, roles and responsibilities and major milestones which are depicted in the table below:

ID	Description	Duration	Responsibility
	Program Management Program Planning Program Review Program evaluation	9 Months	Program manager
sp1	Process design Requirements analysis Process design Hazop study Draft Specification Review and Approval	6 Weeks	Process manager
sp2	Detailed Design Engineering Develop part drawings Develop QA Plan Develop isometrics and material take off Review and Approval	6 Weeks	Engineering manager
sp3	Manufacturing Ordering of material Fabrication Testing transportation	9 Months	Production manager
sp4	Installation & Commissioning Piling and Foundation Equipment erection Commissioning Performance test Handover	3 Months	Site Manager

How ECEI used Project-On-Demand:

Using POD, individual managers create detailed project plans from there respective offices and upload them using Project-ON-Demand solution.

 For example, the Production Manager operating from Japan creates a detailed project plan for the Equipment manufacturing phase as seen below and saves it: 

These individual project plans are then integrated into the overall program plan by the Program Manager operating from Texas, USA. The overall program plan once integrated looks similar to the plan shown below:

The Program Manager integrates individual subprojects into a program plan by linking tasks and phases in a structured hierarchy to arrive at a complete program plan. When respective project managers open there projects, the cross project links are also shown in there plans. For example, opening the Manufacturing Subproject shows the following cross project task dependencies: 

Note: Cross project tasks dependencies are denoted by gray links.

When the main project file is saved, individual team members assigned to the tasks receive E-mail notifications. Team Members can update task progress can from www.projity.com. These updates are automatically added to the subproject/main project when they are opened.

As mentioned earlier, the Advanced Histogram feature allows the Managers to view enterprise level resource allocation information in the form of graphs. To know more about the Histogram feature click here. 

How-To: Project-ON-Demand

The following steps details the procedure to use the Multi-projects feature in POD.

Inserting a Project:

To insert a subproject into a main project, Click on Insert, Project. This will insert the project and open it as a special “subproject” task which almost works like a parent task. The children of this task are the tasks in the subproject.

When a project that is open in another window is inserted into the current project, the other window is closed and its project is used as the subproject. POD safeguards Project Managers from inserting the same project twice into another.

Opening a Sub-Project:

In POD, if a main project containing subprojects is opened, the subproject isn’t opened till it is expanded. The subproject task which is displayed will however show the updated dates even when not opened.

All unopened subprojects are marked read-only. An opened subproject has a green + sign to expand or contract it. All unopened project have a red + sign. POD also displays a special indicator icon to highlight inserted subprojects.

Saving the Multi-project:

When a main project containing subprojects is saved, all opened subprojects that are not read-only are also saved automatically. To save a Multi-project file, click File – Save. 

Projects View

In the Projects View, subprojects automatically appear under their parent project. Individual subproject details like Start, End, Cost, Work, Actual work are seen here along with the rolled up values for the entire Program.

Links:

The Multi-project feature enables links between tasks in a parent project and a subproject or between subprojects that live in the same master. These external links show up in gray when the individual subprojects are opened.

One cannot link to an external task as it is “read-only”.  If the real task for an external task is opened in a sibling subproject, the gray task is removed and the link is drawn to the real task.

Special Indicators:  Invalid Subproject

Under complicated circumstances with nested subprojects, one could conceivably have a subproject included twice in the main project. One can also rarely have projects include each other or themselves (via an intermediate project). In these circumstances, POD will disable this subproject and show a special indicator. Moving the mouse over the indicator shows “This subproject is not valid: It can only be inserted once in a consolidated project”.

Circular Task Relationship:

In certain complicated scenarios, one can have a circular link produced by opening a subproject. In such cases, POD warns the user and disables the link automatically. These links are denoted by grey dashed lines.