# Presentation: 454415

## Federal IT Project ManagerInitiative

## Federal IT Project Manager InitiativeDefining the Issue

- The Federal Government is increasingly dependent upon information systems for national and economic security.
- The growth and complexity of IT systems development/management has outstripped the availability of experienced/trained IT PMs
- Federal IT Budget:
- FY04:  771 IT projects with total cost of $20.9B were identified as “at risk” by OMB
- Budget passback requires that no later than 30 Sep 04, all major projects must be managed by PMs qualified in accordance with  CIO Council guidance.
- CIO Workforce and Human Capital for IT Committee tasked to raise the capability and maturity of IT Project Managers within the Federal Government
- Agency Management Guidance needed for projects reported to OMB on Exhibit 300s

**Notes:**
In a March 2003 appearance before the House Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Efficiency and Financial Management, Mark Forman stated that 771 IT projects included in the final 2004 budget—with a total cost of $20.9B—were at risk and would not be allowed to move forward until agencies presented OMB with a successful business case.

## Federal IT Project Manager InitiativeAction Plan

| Current
 | Development of Federal-wide IT Project 
   Manager Agency Management Guidance for  
   Projects Reported to OMB |
| --- | --- |
| April 2004
 | Draft Project Management Working Group 
   (PMWG) issue paper on Raising the Capability
   and Maturity of Project Management in the 
   Federal Government reviewed |
| September 2003 | Clinger-Cohen IT Workforce Skills Assessment 
   Survey conducted—Improvement shown in 
   number of qualified PMs |
| August 2003 | OPM Interpretive Guidance for Project Manager 
   Positions issued and Position Title of IT Project 
   Manager, GS- 2210, established |
| June 2003 | Project Management Training Directory released |
| April 2003 | IT PM Skills Gap Survey conducted |

**Federal IT Project Manager Initiative***Action Plan*

## Federal IT Project Manager                                                Agency Management Guidance Levels & Organizational Responsibilities for Projects Reported to OMB

**Federal IT Project Manager                                                Agency Management Guidance ***Levels & Organizational Responsibilities*** ***for Projects Reported to OMB*

**IT Project Manager**
- Requirements based on IT system complexity

**Employee **assigned to IT project meets applicable training requirements or has received an agency waiver.

**Agency  **
- is responsible for validating project manager level and training

**Level of Complexity for Projects Reported to OMB**
**LEVEL 3 **
- Lead large, inter-governmental or Government-wide complex, high risk IT project (E-Gov or President’s Mgmt Agenda initiative, mission critical function, or high interest project ).
**LEVEL 2 **
- Manage a cross-cutting project or agency-wide system integration project across the Department.
**LEVEL 1  **
- Manage a project within a division, bureau or agency.

**Federal CIO Council**
**Workforce and Human Capital for IT Committee**
-   -Establishes guidelines for
-     specific training & education
-     requirements
-     -Identifies sources to
-      acquire training and education

** ****Project Management Team Member**
-  Staff or team member on an IT project; works on confined areas of IT
-   projects (e.g., contracting, budget, IA, etc).

**Agency/Organization  **
- Ensures team members are trained/skilled in area of responsibility.

## Federal IT Project Manager Validation Key Components

- OPM GS-2210
- IT PM
- Interpretive
- Guidance

- Individual Employee Experience

- Agency
- Specific
- Skills

-      PM
- Validation

**Federal IT Project Manager Validation ***Key Components*

- Authoritative, competency-based guidance
- OPM Interpretive Guidance
- Agency-specific skill requirements
- Agencies will tailor individual IT-PM professional development  based on employee experience and agency project requirements

## OPM 2210 Series Interpretive Guidance for IT Project Managers

**                **
**                  ****General **
**        **_**KSAs/Competencies**_
-    Customer service
-    Decision making
-    Flexibility
-    Interpersonal skills
-    Leadership
-    Legal, govt, & jurisprudence
-    Oral communication
-    Organizational awareness
-    Problem solving
-    Reasoning
-    Team building
-    Writing

**       ****Project Management**
**         **_**KSAs/Competencies**_
-     Project Management
-    Business Process Reengineering
-    Capital Planning & Investment
-      Assessment
-    Contracting/Procurement
-    Cost-Benefit Analysis
-     Financial Management
-     Planning and Evaluating
-     Quality Assurance
-     Requirements Analysis
-     Risk Management

**   **
-         **IT Project Management**
**           **_**KSAs/Competencies**_
-    Configuration Management
-    Data Management
-    Information Management
-    Information Resources
-    Strategy and Planning
-    Info Systems/Network Security
-    IT Architecture
-    IT Performance Assessment
-    Infrastructure Design
-    Systems Integration
-    Systems Life Cycle
-    Technology Awareness

- OPM Interpretive Guidance contains 3 sets of competencies
- General competencies expected of any employee
- General PM competencies for **PMs** ***in any GS series***
- Specific competency areas for ***IT *****Project Managers**

**Notes:**
Establish baseline competency levels for PMs Federal-wide by certification level
Define minimum training and certification requirements
Implement standards Federal-wide
Standards will be universally understood
Training requirements can be identified
Personnel performance goals can be developed
Agencies will be able to establish recruitment needs and monitor retention trends
PMs will be able to transfer between agencies with recognized credentials 
External reporting requirements can be met

## Agency-Specific Skills and Requirements

- Federal agencies may have specific skills, knowledge and mission requirements which must be met through either training or on-the-job experience
-  Agencies are responsible for developing agency-specific training
- Agency credentialing may include other criteria
- Professional society certification
- Continuing education

*Continuous learning is highly recommended*

## Slide 8

| Federal IT Project Manager Agency Management Guidance Matrix |  |  |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Level | Description/Complexity | Competencies | Suggested
Guidelines | Education, Training and Development Sources/Guidance |
| 1 | Projects with low-to-moderate complexity and risk.

Example:
Bureau-level project such as a stand-alone information system that has low- to-moderate complexity and risk.  | As a minimum:
An understanding of PM and IT-PM competencies listed in the OPM 2210 Series IT Project Manager Guidance (pages 6,7).

Fundamental PM knowledge, skills and abilities that include an understanding of principles, practices and terminology.  
Primary IT PM skills.
Skills required for respective bureau or business area. | As a minimum:
1 year technical or PM experience | 1.   IT employees and supervisors can utilize the IT Workforce Development Roadmap at http://itroadmap.golearn.gov to identify specific competency training requirements and resources.

2.   A list of PM training sources can be found in the Project Management Training Directory sponsored by the Federal CIOC at http://www.cio.gov.

 Federal PM training sources include:
USDA Grad School PM/IT PM courses
OPM-sponsored PM training seminars
GSA STAR Program
DoD’s Information Resources Mgmt College (IRMC)
DoD’s Defense Acquisition University

3. Training programs aligned to the ANSI-recognized PMBOK 2000 knowledge areas and management processes provide a PM foundation.  Additional IT–PM competency requirements, e.g., architecture, capital planning and investment, etc., are outlined in the OPM Interpretive Guidance for Project Management Positions.  Training for these IT areas can be found in the IT Workforce Development Roadmap.

4.  Clinger-Cohen Core Competency-based training sources include:
GSA’s CIO University Program 
DoD’s IRMC certificate programs

5. Agencies are expected to identify specific organization and business area training required. This guidance reflects the minimal standard.  Due to mission needs or legislative requirements, agencies may need additional credentials for PM validation.

6.  Agency credentialing may include other criteria, e.g.  continuing education or professional society certifications.  

7.   Agencies are responsible for validating applicable training for IT Project Managers or issuance of an Agency waiver. 

 |
| 2
 | Projects with high complexity and/or risk which are critical to the mission of the organization.

Examples:
Projects that are part of a portfolio of projects/systems that impact each other and/or impact mission activities.
Department-wide projects that impact cross-organizational missions, such as an agency-wide system integration that includes large scale Enterprise Resource Planning (e.g., the DoD Business Mgmt Modernization Program). | Built on Level 1:

High proficiency in both PM and IT PM  competency skills listed in the OPM 2210 Series IT Project Manager Guidance (pages 6,7).
   --Advanced PM knowledge skills and abilities.
   --Advanced IT PM skills.

Developed systems perspective delineated in Clinger-Cohen Core Competencies, including life cycle mgmt, capital planning and investment, mission alignment, strategic planning, political ramifications, enterprise architecture, statutory and regulatory requirements, systems of systems integration, etc. 

Agency-specific skills and knowledge, e.g. DoD’s Global Information Grid or NASA’s Exploration System.
 | As a minimum:
2-4 years combined PM and technical experience, 
depending on project complexity |  |
| 3 | Projects that have high complexity, and/or risk, and have government-wide impact.

Examples:
Government-wide initiative
   --E-GOV
   --President’s Management Agenda
High interest projects with Congress, GAO, OMB, or the general public.
Cross-cutting initiative
  --Homeland Security  |  | As a minimum:
2-4 years combined PM and technical experience,  with
prior experience in managing a Level 2 IT Project. |  |

**Notes:**

OPM Interpretive Guide for Project Managers
Basic PM skills:
BPR, Capital Planning & Investment Assessment, Contracting/Procurement, Cost-Benefit Analysis, Financial Mgmt, Planning and Evaluating, Project Mgmt, Quality Assurance, Requirements Analysis, and Risk Mgmt

Basic IT PM skills:
Configuration Mgmt, Data Mgmt, Information Mgmt, Information Resources,  Strategy  and Planning, Info Systems/Network Security, IT Architecture, IT Performance Assessment, Infrastructure Design, Systems Integration, Systems Life Cycle ,Technology Awareness

Project Management Institute’s Framework:
35 contact hours of PM education on project scope, quality, time, cost, HR mgmt, communications, risk, procurement and integration management.

## Federal IT Project ManagerAgency Level 1

**Federal IT Project Manager****Agency Level 1**

**Suggested**
**Experience**

**Training**

-   +

**Agency Project Scope**

-   +

- Federal IT Investment and
-  Project Management (OPM;
-  online at www.golearn.gov)
- Leadership Skills for Non-
- Supervisors (USDA)
- Fundamentals of Information
- Security for Federal
- Information Systems (USDA)
- Agency Specific Training
- Fundamentals of IT Mgmt
- and Capital Planning (USDA)

- Manages a confined bureau-based
- System such as
-   --a Bureau Knowledge
-      Portal
-   --an internal Agency
-      Budget System
- Moderately low cost project (compared with Level 2 and 3 more complex initiatives).
- Project has low-to-moderate risk.

- Staff member with at least one year of general IT background;   or
- Previous experience as a
- project team member with demonstrated planning and analysis capabilities.
- Routinely supervised.

- Example

## Federal IT Project ManagerAgency Level 2

**Federal IT Project Manager****Agency Level 2**

**Training**

-   +

**Agency Project Scope**

-   +

- Aligning Project Management
-  with Corporate Strategy (ESI International)
- Managing Complex Projects (ESI)
- Facilitative Leadership
-  Seminar (Federal Executive Inst)
- Making a Business Case for a
- Capital Investment (USDA)
- Information Resources Mgmt College (IRMC) CIO Certificate or CIO University
- Agency Specific Training

- Staff member with at least 2-4 years combined PM and technical experience, depending on project complexity.
- Proven performer shown to be adaptable to change.  Results-driven.  Capable of assembling and managing a team.  Highly effective with minimal supervision.

- Example

- Large, complex project
-  that may envelope a
-  portfolio of systems or
- applications.
- Project is critical to the organization’s mission.
- Includes Department-wide projects that impact cross-organizational missions, such as an agency-wide system integration.
- High risk project.

**Suggested**
**Experience**

## Federal IT Project ManagerAgency Level 3

**Federal IT Project Manager****Agency Level 3**

**Training**

-   +

**Agency Project Scope**

-   +

- Large inter-governmental or Government-wide project.
- Highly complex project
- that may envelope a  portfolio of systems or applications.
- Project has high risk and high visibility.  May have high Congressional interest or may serve an extensive public customer base.

- Staff member, 2-4 years of IT and IT-PM experience, with previous experience as PM for a Level 2 high risk, complex project.
- Worked in a dynamic environment; required to process large amounts of information quickly; adapts readily to change; works well under pressure; politically savvy; highly experienced in cross-agency collaboration.

- Example

- Executive Communication Skills: Leading the Process of Change (OPM)
- Creating Breakthroughs:                                              Innovating in Govt (PMA series/OPM)
- Budget and Performance Integration (PMA series/OPM)
- Homeland Security: Critical Infrastructure Protection (OPM)
- IRMC Advanced Management Program or CIO University graduate
- PMI certification *(if agency required)*

**Suggested**
**Experience**

## Federal IT Project Manager InitiativeNext Steps

- Federal CIOC Adopt.

- Post guidance Federal-wide for 2-week review.

- June 28th – initiate process to validate PMs.

- Designate level of each agency IT-PM.

- Identify training gaps (if any) for each IT-PM.

- Identify sources/obtain training for specific competency areas.

- Document training, credentials and waivers for agency IT-PMs.

*IT Workforce*
*Development Roadmap*
- and *PM Training*
*Directory*

- Report Agency _progress_ to OMB through 4th Quarter PMA.