Integrate & Align Project Plans 

Let us consider an IT project;

1. The engineering team develops the schedule for engineering 

2. The test team develops the schedule for testing 

3. The documentation team develops the schedule for documentation

4. The resource management team develops the schedule for resource management 

While all these entities are primarily focused only on their own functions, the Project Manager has to ensure that all these plans are integrated and aligned from the start till the end of the project.

In the case of Construction projects, this becomes more complex. 

Construction projects comprises of Owner, Consultants, Contractors, Sub-contractors, Suppliers, Risk Management teams, PMOs etc as direct stakeholders. If their schedules are not aligned continuously the project will get into disarray. To add to this complexity, there exists multiple tools like the scheduling tools, ERP tools, PMIS etc and these must be compatible to integrate. 

This calls for robust integration and alignment of project plans with the help of Integration Management Plan. 

Contents of the Project Integration Plan (Project Management Plan)

1. Baselines (Core Reference Points)

These are the approved versions used for performance measurement:

1.1 Scope Baseline

• Project scope statement

• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

• WBS dictionary

1.2 Schedule Baseline

• Approved project schedule

• Milestones and timelines

1.3 Cost Baseline

• Approved budget

• Cost distribution over time
  
  

2. Subsidiary Management Plans

These plans define how each knowledge area will be managed:

2.1 Scope Management Plan

• How scope will be defined, validated, and controlled

2.2 Schedule Management Plan

• Scheduling methods, tools, and control thresholds

2.3 Cost Management Plan

• Cost estimation, budgeting, and control approach

2.4 Quality Management Plan

• Quality standards, metrics, and assurance processes

2.5 Resource Management Plan

• Team structure, roles, responsibilities (RACI), staffing

2.6 Communications Management Plan

• Communication methods, frequency, stakeholders

2.7 Risk Management Plan

• Risk identification, analysis, response strategies

2.8 Procurement Management Plan

• Contracting strategy, vendor management

2.9 Stakeholder Engagement Plan

• Strategies to engage stakeholders effectively

3. Additional Management Components

3.1 Change Management Plan

• How changes will be requested, evaluated, and approved

• Change Control Board (CCB) details

3.2 Configuration Management Plan

• How project documents and deliverables are version-controlled

3.3 Requirements Management Plan

• How requirements are collected, tracked, and managed

3.4 Process Improvement Plan

• Continuous improvement approach
  
  

4. Project Lifecycle & Development Approach

• Predictive / Agile / Hybrid approach

• Phase definitions and stage gates
  
  

5. Management Reviews & Governance

• Key review points

• Decision-making framework

• Escalation paths
  
  

6. Performance Measurement & Reporting

• KPIs and metrics (e.g., CPI, SPI)

• Reporting formats and frequency
  
  

7. Risk, Issue & Assumption Registers (Referenced)

• High-level references (detailed logs may be separate documents)

8. Tailoring Decisions

• What processes are tailored and why

9. Project Execution Strategy

• How deliverables will be produced

• Make/buy decisions

• Delivery approach
  
  

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