Integrated Product/Project Teams - GDIT · Integrated Product/Project Teams page 1 of 18 ... including contracting officers (CO/KOs), engineers, ... Mission Needs Statement (MNS),

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Integrated Product/Project TeamsIntegrated Product/Project Teams

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Long Description

Title screen for Module 2, Lesson 2: Program Management and Acquisition Concepts, Program Management Offices and Integrated Product Teams with three photos: a line of business people smiling, two people shaking hands, and open hands with a piece of paper with the word success and a key.


Introduction to Integrated Product/Project Teams

Successfully piloting a complex acquisition program through the Acquisition Life Cycle Framework (ALF) requires expertise and cooperation from a wide variety of business and technical professionals. Multi-disciplinary teams known as Integrated Product/Project Teams (IPTs) are used to facilitate cooperation among Government and contractor Program Managers (PMs), developers, functional specialists, users/operators, and other stakeholders.

In this lesson, Integrated Product/Project Teams, you will be introduced to the following concepts:

• The role of IPTs in Program Management

• The benefits of successful IPTs

• The typical evolution process of an IPT

To print this lesson, select print.


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Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:

• Identify three support structures for Integrated Product/Project Teams in a Program Management Office

• Recall the value of Integrated Product/Project Teams

• Identify the key principles of creating successful teams

• Define the four stages of Tuckman's Team Development Model


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What is an Integrated Product/Project Team?

T&D


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Transcript and Long Description

[Rachel motioning towards Polaroid photos of professionals smiling and waving.]

Narrator: An Integrated Product/Project Team or IPT is a group of representatives from different functional disciplines who work together temporarily for a finite period to support an acquisition program.

[Rachel looking directly at camera and gesturing while speaking towards three Polaroid photos of a team of professionals having a discussion at a conference table; a coast guard ship, and a jet fighter.]

Narrator: These cross-functional teams are responsible for some aspect of the planning, budgeting, procurement, andlife-cycle management of a program and the achievement of its cost, schedule and performance goals.

[Rachel with hand on hip and a Polaroid of four professionals in an office setting, having a conversation.]

Narrator: An IPT may include members from both Government and industry after contract award. IPTs make recommendations to the PM, who is ultimately responsible for program decisions.


The PM is the single focal point with the authority and the responsibility to execute the program. He or she leads the Program Management Office (PMO) (the IPT formed to manage the program) in planning and coordinating all the business and technical activities involved in program execution and managing the risks associated with those activities. In addition, PMs must also manage customer expectations.

A PM's success is judged by how well he or she achieves the program's cost, schedule, and performance goals. These three elements are sometimes called the pillars of project management.

With so many responsibilities, the PM can't manage the program alone. To achieve program goals and manage cost, schedule, and performance risks, the PM plans, staffs, organizes, and manages multiple business and technical functions, often across multiple IPTs.

For example, a single program might have a Risk Management IPT, a Test & Evaluation (T&E) IPT, and a Logistics Support IPT.

Program/Project Management


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IPT

Integrated Product/Project Team


The Program Management Office

A PMO uses IPTs to direct the execution of a complex system acquisition. The PM receives support from a wide variety of specialists, including contracting officers (CO/KOs), engineers, logisticians, and budget and finance professionals. How the PM receives support from the organization differs from one IPT to the next.

The most common PMO support structures are:

• Dedicated IPTs

• Matrixed IPTs

• Contractor Support

A PM may choose to employ a combination of these structures, and all may be used in the same program office simultaneously.


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PMO

Program Management Office

IPTs

Integrated Product/Project Teams

PM

Program Manager

Dedicated IPTs

Dedicated IPTs are made up of representatives from multiple functional disciplines working collaboratively, on a full-time basis to execute an acquisition program.

Matrixed IPTs

Matrixed IPTs are made up of Government Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) who bring unique skills from different parts of the organization into a single team assembled for the duration of the program, but are not dedicated full-timeto a single program.

Contractor Support

Contractor Support IPTs are made up of industry SMEs and other professionals under contract to provide direct support to a program on a full or part-time basis.


The Right Mix of Skills

Directive 102-01 calls for PMOs to have the appropriate mix of business and technical skills required to successfully manage the initiative. The right mix may vary from initiative to initiative and phase to phase during the life cycle.

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During the Analyze/Select phase, for example, more support may be needed from Cost Estimators. During the Obtain phase, more involvement may be needed from the user/sponsor during Operational Test & Evaluation (OT&E).


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Long Description

The Acquisition Life Cycle Framework (ALF) includes four phases in this order: Need, Analyze/Select, Obtain, and Produce/Deploy/Support.

1. During the Need phase you document the need.2. During the Analyze/Select phase you analyze alternatives, select the best approach and plan the acquisition. 3. During the Obtain phase you design, develop, integrate sub-systems, build models, and test prototypes.4. During the Produce/Deploy/Support phase you produce systems, field systems, operate systems, maintain

systems, and support systems.

In addition, the ALF includes Acquisition Decision Events (ADEs) before (or within) each phase: ADE-0 occurs before entering the Need phase. ADE-1 occurs before entering the Analyze/Select phase. ADE-2A occurs before the Obtain phase. ADE-2B occurs shortly after entering the Obtain phase. ADE-2C occurs near the end of the Obtain phase and includes Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP). ADE-3 occurs prior to entering the Produce/Deploy/Supportphase.


Program Management Office Staffing Composition

The following functional representatives are part of a typical PMO:

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These SMEs work together to identify and resolve issues, make sound and timely decisions, and create successful products.


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Long Description

Listing of DHS Functional Representatives

• User/Sponsor• Program Manager (PM)• Systems Engineer (SE)• Program Financial Manager (PFM)• Life Cycle Logistician• Test & Evaluation Manager• Cost Estimator• IT Manager/System Architect• Contracting Specialist/Contracting Officer\'s Representative (COR) • Support Contractor

User/Sponsor

As the User/Sponsor, I represent the end users in the design and development efforts, leading development of certainkey acquisition documents: Mission Needs Statement (MNS), Concept of Operations (CONOPS), and Operational Requirements Document (ORD).

Program Manager

As a Program Manager, I\'m concerned all of the functions of a PMO or a Program Executive Office (PEO). Professionals in my career field serve in a wide range of PMO and Component Acquisition Staff positions, includingprogram integrators and analysts, program managers, PEOs, and their deputies. They may also serve in a number of support and management positions throughout the workforce.

Systems Engineer

As a System Engineer, I demonstrate how systems engineering technical management processes apply to acquisition programs. I interact with program IPTs regarding the proper application of systems engineering processes. I also develop systems models and Work Breakdown Structures (WBS). I use top-down design and bottom-up product realization.

Program Financial Manager

As Program Financial Manager, I\'m responsible for all financial aspects of an acquisition program throughout the total acquisition life cycle. My career field encompasses all aspects of acquisition (business) and financial management, including cost estimating and analysis, financial planning, formulating financial programs and budgetsbudget analysis and execution, and earned value management.

Life Cycle Logistician

As a Life Cycle Logistician, I\'m concerned with the planning, development, implementation and management of a comprehensive, affordable and effective systems support strategy. Life Cycle Logistics encompasses the entire system’s life cycle including acquisition (design, develop, test, produce, and deploy), sustainment (operations and support), and disposal. I perform a principal joint and/or Component logistics role during the acquisition, operational, and disposal phases of the system life cycle.

Test & Evaluation Manager

As a Test & Evaluation Manager, I work with engineers, scientists, operations research analysts, system analysts, computer scientists, and other degree-holding technical personnel who plan, perform, and manage T&E tasks in support of all acquisitions. I am a SME who will plan, monitor, manage, and conduct T&E of prototypes, new, fielded, or modified IT, non-IT, and infrastructure systems.

Cost Estimator

As a Cost Estimator, I lead teams in analyzing schedule requirements, gathering relevant data, developing and evaluating existing cost estimating relationships and mathematical models, performance risk analysis on program assumptions, analysis of modeling results, accumulating cost estimates by WBS elements, and developing written, graphical, and tabular forms of summary data on the methods used during the development of cost estimates for briefings to management. I also reconcile Independent Government Cost Estimates (IGCEs) with those compiled by program offices.

IT Manager/System Architect

As a Systems Architect, I am instrumental in providing an integrated framework for evolving or maintaining existingInformation Technology (IT), acquiring new IT systems, and achieving an agency\'s strategic and Information Resources Management (IRM) goals. My functional discipline, IT/Systems Architect, includes computer scientists, information technology management specialists, computer engineers, telecommunications managers, etc. who directly support the acquisition of IT.

Contracting Officer\'s Representative (COR)

As a COR, I serve as a business communications liaison between the United States Government and a private contractor. I ensure that the two organizations\' goals are mutually beneficial. I am responsible for recommending, authorizing, or denying actions and expenditures for both standard delivery orders, and those that fall outside of the normal business practices of its supporting contractors and sub-contractors.

Support Contractor

As the Support Contractor after contract award, I lead system development under Government oversight; I also support the ADEs and Systems Engineering Life Cycle (SELC) reviews, etc.

PMO


SMEs

Subject Matter Experts


Why Use IPTs?

Because they work! Both the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) acknowledge that IPTs have a positive impact on the acquisition process and are the best known way to promote communication across all functions. IPTs can make significant development decisions quickly without consultation with outside organizations and are effective in facilitating optimal communication among all stakeholders.

The benefits of successful IPTs include:

• Multiple perspectives based on varied life experiences

• Creativity and innovation

• Reduced life cycle cost, overall delivery time, and risk

• Improved response to customer needs, more balanced solutions, and higher-quality products/services

• Synergy

Synergy is the interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual efforts. In plain English, synergy means that the output of a team is greater than the sum of the contributions of its individual members.


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IPTs



Knowledge Check

Based on their descriptions, which of the following support structures would a PMO with limited financial resources prefer to adopt?

Dedicated IPTs: representatives from multiple functional disciplines working collaboratively on a full-time basis to execute an acquisition programMatrixed IPTs: Government subject matter experts (SMEs) who bring unique skills from different parts of the organization into a single team assembled for the duration of the program, but are not dedicated full-time to a single programContractor Support: industry SMEs and other professionals under contract to provide direct support to a program on a full or part-time basis

Submit


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PMO


Since matrixed IPTs are not dedicated full-time to a single program, they often cost the PMO less than a full-time team or contracted support. So a resource-challenged PMO would likely prefer matrixed IPT support, taking advantage of expertise from other parts of its organization.


Recap: Integrated Product/Project Teams

Review the key concepts introduced in this topic:

• The Program Manager (PM) is the single focal point with the authority and the responsibility to execute the program and make program decisions, but the PM can't manage complex acquisition programs alone

• A Program Management Office (PMO) must have the appropriate mix of business and technical skills during each phase of the life cycle

• A PMO is a group of functional specialists that use IPTs to support the execution of a complex system acquisition

• An Integrated Product/Project Team (IPT) is a cross-functional team that forms temporarily to support an acquisition program

• IPTs are effective. The DoD and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) acknowledge that IPTs have a significant positive impact on the acquisition process

• Synergy, one of the key benefits of IPTs, occurs when the output of the team is greater than the sum of the contributions of its individual members

The next topic is IPT Evolution.


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IPTs evolve on two levels. On the first level, there are typical steps an IPT goes through to form, plan, execute, resolve problems, and accomplish its mission. The second level is the social or interpersonal evolution of the team as members work to establish their roles and the standards that will govern how they work together within the team community.

In this topic, you will be introduced to the following:

• The typical process an IPT goes through from formation through the accomplishment of its mission

• The social evolution of a team or small group

• The principles that govern the behavior of successful teams, team leaders, and team members

Introduction to IPT Evolution


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IPTs



Interactive IPT Process Map

The flow chart below traces the evolution of an IPT.

Select a group of elements in the diagram below for more information.

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Long Description

IPTs evolve through a relatively predictable set of stages. First, an opportunity is identified. Next, the identifying activity assesses the opportunity and determines whether or not there is a need for an IPT. If the answer is yes, the team is formed.

The fledgling team drafts a charter and prepares a plan of action and milestones for accomplishing its mission. If the planning work is approved, the team is launched and moves on to executing the plan of action. If problems arise, they are either resolved or escalated up the chain of command or according to an established governance process.

Finally, the team delivers its product, may be awarded or recognized for their hard work, gets final approval on the accomplishment of its mission, and disbands.

Opportunity Identified and Launch

A team forms in response to an identified opportunity. A well-planned team develops a charter outlining the purpose and roles of the team members, prepares a plan of action that defines key milestones (called a POA&M), and then launches to execute the plan.

Execution

Problems will inevitably arise during execution, and the team must have a process established to resolve them or they will escalate. The team may also need to re-evaluate their charter or POA&M based on changes in roles or mission.

Delivery and Mission Accomplished

Ultimately, the team must deliver their product or project. If they\'re successful, they\'ll reap the rewards and recognition for accomplishing their mission.

IPT



The Challenges of IPT Management

Now that you've reviewed the objective steps in the evolution of an IPT, let's take a look at the social evolution of a team or small group.

After all, IPTs are comprised of diverse functional SMEs who are bound to have different perspectives and backgrounds. In 1965, Bruce W. Tuckman, a research psychologist at the Naval Medical Research Institute in Bethesda, MD, observed that groups tend to go through a series of stages or phases. Tuckman was studying small group behavior to help the Navy prepare for its growing fleet of small crew vessels.

After analyzing a collection of 50 articles on small group development and conducting social research, Tuckman confirmed that difficulty during team formation is normal. He discovered that small groups tend to pass through a series of predictable stages.

Select each stage below form more information.


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Forming

During Forming, team members focus on getting to know each other, defining each member\'s role, and identifying what expectations the team members have for the team and for each other. The team identifies tasks and how to accomplish them. Typically, team members are polite and do not want to "rock the boat."

Storming

Once in the Storming stage, group members need to learn to deal with interpersonal conflict. In this stage, ideas may be challenged, closely evaluated, and sometimes "shot down." Members may form alliances, resulting in polarization, and questions may arise about both the tasks and processes of the team. Some team members may try towork issues individually instead of as a team or openly resist working with other team members. Storming is a natural part of the process. It is not always comfortable, but it is very beneficial in the long run to work through this stage.

Norming

Once the team gets past Storming, it evolves toward learning to work effectively together, or what Tuckman calls "Norming." The team establishes guidelines for such things as resolving conflict, making decisions, communicating, running meetings, and completing assignments. They adopt new roles and establish new standards. Emotions are expressed constructively and a degree of interdependence and trust is developed.

Performing

Ultimately, the effective team is running well and able to capitalize on their differences, (i.e., Performing). The team uses their diverse talent, experience, knowledge, and backgrounds to create more and better ideas and alternatives to solve problems and issues. The team begins to take advantage of strengths and work around weaknesses. Roles become flexible and functional, and group energy is channeled to the task by collaborating through open communication and sharing information. Structural issues have been resolved and procedures support efficient and effective task performance.

IPT


SMEs

Subject Matter Experts


To succeed, the PM must get the IPT to perform. To progress to the Performing stage, the IPT needs constant leadership attention, two-way communication, assessment and feedback, reinforcement, and reward. Progress requires diligent follow-through from leadership and persistence and patience during the early stages.

Not every team goes through each stage in a linear way. Our own experiences are likely to show deviations. After all, human interactions are often characterized by variability and flux. In reality, team development is influenced by many dynamics, so the distinction between the stages may not be that clear-cut. All of the stages are usually present to some extent, but one stage may be more dominant at a particular time. Stages may be skipped altogether, or stages may be repeated as issues occur while the team moves back and forth between building interpersonal relationships (Norming) and accomplishing tasks (Performing).

The Implications of Tuckman's Model


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PM

Project Manager

IPT



Principles of Successful IPTs

Regardless of what stage of Tuckman's model your team is in, there are still expectations for the team, its leadership, and its members.

Select each tab for additional information.


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Team Leadership Team Membership

The following are some of the principles upon which successful IPTs are founded:

• Always align with the organization's mission, vision, and objectives

• Start with a clear charter approved by the appointing body (If you don't have a written charter, your IPT is just a group of people meeting together who may or may not agree on their purpose or what resources are available.)

• Get the commitment and support of leadership

• The team leader is accountable for IPT decisions

Team Principles

IPTs


Team Principles

The following are some of the principles upon which successful IPTs are founded:

• Always align with the organization's mission, vision, and objectives• Start with a clear charter approved by the appointing body (If you don't have a written charter, your IPT is just

a group of people meeting together who may or may not agree on their purpose or what resources are available.)

• Get the commitment and support of leadership• The team leader is accountable for IPT decisions

Team Leadership

The following are principles of team leadership:

• Build a team of qualified, dedicated, empowered, proactive members who understand their roles and the process

• Always facilitate open discussion; don't keep secrets or hidden agendas• Resolve or expunge every issue raised• Reach a consensus on all team decisions

A consensus is the general agreement by all team members that they can live with and be committed to a particular course of action. When participating on an IPT, it is important that all members' opinions are heard. Team members agree to support the majority's preferred solution, even if it is not their own. Reaching a consensus requires membersto consider new alternatives and to be flexible, open, honest, and responsible.

Team Membership

Here are some expectations for effective team members:

• Take responsibility for the team's performance, not just your functional area• Make sure you understand and commit to achieving the team's goals• Help foster trust among team members by providing honest, open feedback and constructively airing

differences• Allow the team to match your individual strengths to appropriate tasks and share your talents freely• On a frequent basis, work with other team members to assess how well the team is doing and generate

suggestions for improving the team's performance

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Knowledge Check

For each description below, select the appropriate stage of Tuckman's model of group behavior from the drop-down list provided. When you are finished, select Submit.

The team is runnnig effectively Performing

Team members get to know each other and identify roles and expectations Forming

Group members need to learn to deal with interpersonal conflict Storming

The team learns to work effectively together Norming

Show my answer


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• Performing is when the team is running effectively.• Forming is when team members get to know each other and identify roles and expectations.• Storming is when group members need to learn to deal with interpersonal conflict.• Norming is when the team learns to work effectively together.


Lesson Summary

Review the key concepts introduced in this lesson.


An Integrated Product/Project Team (IPT) is a cross-functional team that forms temporarily to support an acquisition program. A Program Management Office (PMO) is a group of functional specialists led by the PM that uses one or more IPTs to support the execution of a complex system acquisition.

A PMO must have the appropriate mix of business and technical skills for its particular program during each phase of the life cycle. IPTs are effective in providing that mix. Synergy, one of the key benefits of IPTs, occurs when the output of the team is greater than the sum of the contributions of its individual members. Thanks to synergy and the varied backgrounds of the team members, group decision making can foster better decisions.

IPT Evolution

At a high level, an IPT evolves technically through a predictable process and socially following the model identified by psychologist Bruce Tuckman, who discovered that small groups tend to pass through a series of predictable stages: Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing.

Regardless of what stage an IPT is in, there are some basic expectations for the team, its leadership, and its members, such as committing to achieving the team's goals, taking responsibility for the team's performance over individual functional areas, facilitating open discussion, and reaching consensus on all team decisions.

You have reached the end of Integrated Product/Project Teams. To continue, select the next lesson from the Table of Contents.

To print this lesson, select print.


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Documents

Integrated Product/Project Teams - GDIT · Integrated Product/Project Teams page 1 of 18 ... including contracting officers (CO/KOs), engineers, ... Mission Needs Statement (MNS),