Get started with Project Management

  • Release version: Xanadu
  • Updated August 1, 2024
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of Get started with Project Management

    Project Management in ServiceNow provides a comprehensive set of tools designed to help project managers create, view, and manage projects efficiently. It supports both traditional Waterfall and Agile methodologies, enabling a flexible, hybrid approach. The Project Management application integrates with other platform features such as change management, resource management, and reporting, ensuring alignment with broader organizational activities.

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    Key Features

    • Project Workbench: A centralized interface that allows project managers to oversee all aspects of a project on a single page. It supports Waterfall, Agile, and Test phases within projects, facilitating hybrid project management.
    • Project Templates: Define and save the basic structure of projects, including tasks, subtasks, attachments, and other relevant information. Templates simplify the creation and reuse of project frameworks.
    • Visual Tools: Includes easy-to-read Gantt charts and Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) lists to visualize complex projects and dependencies clearly.
    • Phase Formatter: Displays the current phase of a project prominently at the top of the project record, helping teams track progress effectively.
    • Integration: Seamlessly works with other applications on the ServiceNow platform, enhancing collaboration and project oversight.

    Key Concepts and Terminology

    • Portfolio: A collection of projects managed together to meet strategic objectives.
    • Project: A planned, collaborative effort to achieve specific goals.
    • Agile Project: A project employing Agile methodology with iterative delivery and flexibility.
    • Phases: Segments of a project timeline that can be Waterfall (tasks), Agile (stories and group assignments), or Test (test cases and plans).
    • Story: A product requirement or business case expressed in plain language used in Agile development.
    • Task: A unit of work within a project.
    • Test Case: A collection of tests saved in test suites and plans.
    • Checklist: Items to be completed within a project task.
    • Teamspace: A standalone application built on Project Portfolio Management applications for enhanced collaboration.

    Scheduling

    Project Management includes default schedules to standardize working hours:

    • Project Management Schedule: Monday to Friday, 8 A.M. to 12 P.M. and 1 P.M. to 5 P.M., totaling 8 hours per day, excluding weekends.
    • Default MS Project Schedule: Same as above, used for imported Microsoft Project files.

    Integration with Project Portfolio Management (PPM)

    Project Management can function as a standalone application or as part of the Project Portfolio Management suite. When integrated, it offers a streamlined, team-oriented approach to IT development by combining multiple applications and lifecycle components for comprehensive project oversight.

    Project Management includes tools to help you create, view, and manage projects.

    Watch this six-minute video to learn more about the purpose of Project Management, the project workspace, the project template, baseline, additional project considerations, and viewing the project in the workspace.

    Project Management consists of following features:

    • Project workbench gives project managers the ability to manage the different aspects of a project from a single page. This workbench supports both Project Management and Application Lifecycle Management applications, allowing for a hybrid approach to project management. Project managers can create projects that combine both Waterfall and Agile methodologies by using Waterfall, Agile, and Test phases.
    • Project templates define the basic structure of a project, including project tasks and subtasks, attachments, and other project information. The project template feature gives project managers a simple way to create, save, and reuse this project structure.
    Project Management also includes features that enable you to achieve your project goals in alignment with the other activities your organization is managing, such as:
    • Integration with other features and applications on the platform, such as change management, resource management, and reports.
    • Easy-to-read Gantt charts and Work Breakdown Structure lists that help you visualize large projects with complex relationships and dependencies.
    • Phase formatter at the top of each project record to highlight the current phase of the project.

      In this example, the project is in Delivering phase. The phase is selected in the Phase field on the project record.

      Figure 1. Project phase formatter
      screenshot for project phase formatter

    Key terms

    Table 1. Project Management Key Terms
    Term Description
    Portfolio A collection of projects managed as a group to achieve strategic and operational objectives.
    Project Any planned, collaborative effort that is designed to achieve an objective.
    Agile project Any planned, collaborative effort that is designed to achieve an objective and uses Agile.
    Project console A unified graphical interface to the Project Management application, including new WBS hierarchical lists and a new Gantt chart.
    Phase One stage or one segment of a project. Three types of phases can be added to the timeline in the project workbench:
    • Waterfall phase: contains project tasks. A project can have multiple waterfall phases.
    • Agile phase: contains stories and can also include a group assignment. A project can have multiple agile phases.
    • Test phase: contains test cases and can also be associated to a test plan. A project can have multiple test phases.
    Story A brief statement of a product requirement or a customer business case that is used in the scrum method of agile software development. Typically, stories are expressed in plain language to help the reader understand what the software does.
    Task A unit of work within a project. Projects typically contain several tasks.
    Test case A collection of related tests. A test case is saved as part of a test suite and can be added to a test plan.
    Checklist A list of items that must be performed on a project task.
    Teamspace A standalone application built on the Project Portfolio Management applications.

    Schedules

    Schedules Description
    Project Management Schedule The default schedule for all new projects, which is Monday to Friday 8 A.M. to 12 P.M. and 1 P.M. to 5 P.M. (for a total of 8 hours), not including weekends.
    Default MS Project The default schedule for projects that you import from Microsoft Project. The schedule is Monday to Friday 8 A.M. to 12 P.M. and 1 P.M. to 5 P.M. (for a total of 8 hours), not including weekends.

    Integration with Project Portfolio Management

    You can use Project Management as a separate application or it can be activated as part of the PPM.

    This application provides a simplified, team-oriented approach to IT development by combining several individual applications and integrating the different components of the project development life cycle.