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1 - INTRODUCTION

s Product managers;
s Customers;

s Acquirers;
s System integrators; and
s Other stakeholders who affect, or are affected by, a software project.

1.2 What is a Project?

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According to Section 1.2 of the PMBOK Guide, a project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique
product, service, or result. Attributes of projects, including software projects, are described in Section 1.2 of the
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PMBOK Guide. Software projects, like all projects, are undertaken to achieve a specific objective. In addition to
creating new products, software projects are often undertaken to modify an existing software product, to integrate
a set of existing software components, to extend the capabilities of software products, or to modify the software
infrastructure of an organization.

Software projects may also be undertaken to satisfy service requests, maintenance needs, or to provide
operations support. These activities may occur as level-of-effort (LOE) activities; they are considered projects when
they are specified as temporary endeavors to provide deliverables and outcomes. Software product life cycles, in
contrast to project life cycles, typically involve maintenance and support activities that include both projects and
level of effort activities. IT projects, such as design of an enterprise information system, IT service transition to
another vendor, or deploying a solution to end users are not software projects in the traditional sense, but many of
the concepts and practices described in this extension can prove useful in IT organizations. Similarly, projects in
the traditional engineering disciplines and knowledge-based projects will find this Software Extension to be useful.

1.2.1 The Relationships Among Portfolios, Programs, and Projects

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Section 1.2.1 of the PMBOK Guide describes the relationships that exist among portfolios, programs, and
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projects; see also Figure 1-1 of the PMBOK Guide. Specifics that apply to management of portfolios, programs,
and software projects are illustrated in Figure 1-1 and discussed in Section 1.4 of this Software Extension.

1.3 What is Project Management?

According to Section 1.3 of the PMBOK Guide, project management is the application of knowledge, skills,
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tools, and techniques for project activities to meet the project requirements. Project management is accomplished
through the appropriate application and integration of the 47 logically grouped project management processes
comprising five Process Groups. These five Process Groups are:

s Initiating,
s Planning,

4 ©2013 Project Management Institute. Software Extension to the PMBOK Guide Fifth Edition
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