Lesson 1

So, how do you get from nothing to something that will become a computer application? The first step is to understand what you are being asked to do.
The project initiation phase is where you frame the problem to be solved and define the process to solve it. This is achieved through two tools: a problem statement and a data dictionary. You will use your project's problem statement to determine the project’s context and its scope, and to identify constraints that may limit the development, selection, and implementation of a software solution. You will use a data dictionary to define the problem domain’s vocabulary. Your data dictionary will help you, the project team, and users to resolve any conflicts over the interpretation of key project terms.

In this module, you will learn:

1. How the three key elements of a problem statement—context, scope, and constraints—affect your analysis and modeling
2. How to capture the problem domain vocabulary in a data dictionary

The Project Initiation Phase is the first phase in the Project Management Life Cycle, because it involves starting up a new project. You can start a new project by defining its objectives, scope, purpose and deliverables to be produced. You will also hire your project team,review the project, in order to gain approval to begin the next phase.
There are six key steps that you need to take to properly initiate a new project. The Project Initiation Phase is the most crucial phase in the Project Life Cycle, because it is the phase in which you define your scope and assign work to subordinates. Only with a clearly defined scope and a suitably skilled team, can you ensure success.