5/6: Leadership & Admin & Management Flashcards
CPM
Critical Path Method:
Project management technique that helps with decision making, determines the “critical path” through the project tasks.
Complex projects with many interrelated activities, shows which activities are critical to the project and which are NOT.
Used in construction projects
Cost optimization is given ultimate importance.
3 foundations of good project management
1- scope
2- schedule
3- budget
PERT
Program Evaluation Review Technique.
US Navy developed this method in 1950s.
Often used in conjuncture with CPM.
GRAPHICALLY illustrates the interrelationships of project tasks.
Good choice when precise time estimates are not available for project tasks.
Method for analyzing tasks involved in completing a given project - identify MINIMUM TIME needed to complete final project.
GAM (project management technique)
Goal Achievement Matrix
Way of setting out goals and marking them against objectives, looking at steps needed to achieve goals.
Includes competing projects in rows and the evaluation criteria in columns.
Eval criteria are based on the various stakeholder groups that might be impacted by the costs or that may receive benefits.
TIME TO USE THE MATRIX = plan evaluation
GANTT Chart (project management technique)
Project Management Tool
Developed in 1917 by Charles Gantt.
Focuses on the SEQUENCE of tasks.
Think through tasks involved, who’s involved in each task, how long things will take. Ensure the schedule is workable and the right people assigned to each task. Length of each task bar corresponds to the duration of each task.
Working with Planning Consultants - APA PAS
- Be straightforward (do not play with consultants)
- Understand consultants costs, etc.
- Comply with local & state procurement requirements
- Use electronic processes for posting & accepting proposals
- ID best way to use consultants hired to supplement or replace staff
Review list
Sole-source procurement (selection procedures)
Agency chooses a single consultant for either particular task or continuing relationship.
In some states law only allows this for small projects
Appropriate to use this process when: consultant has significant background, necessary to retain local consultant and only one qualified, community requires unique specialty, or not enough time to go through formal process.
Critics claim biases.
This is the shortest process.
Types of selection procedures for hiring consultants (5)
1- sole-source procurement
2- selection from a list of prequalified candidates
3- selection based on responses to a Request for Qualifications (RFQ)
4- selection based on proposals submitted in response to a Request for Proposal (RFP)
5- selection based on a two-step process consisting of an RFQ followed by an RFP
Select from list of prequalified candidates (selection procedures)
Abbreviated competitive process, inviting small number of prequal candidates to submit proposals.
Appropriate for small projects.
Process: ID consultants, contact with identified consultants, submission of quals and statements of approach, selection, work program / cost submittal, negotiations, alternatives.
RFQ (selection procedures)
Request for Qualifications.
Typical selection process similar to selection from list of prequal candidates, major difference is GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENT is added to the process.
More rigorous set of selection procedures needed, because agency will not be familiar with firms submitting statement of quals.
RFP (selection procedures)
Request for Proposal.
Slowest process for selecting a consultant - most burdensome for both local agency and interested consulting firms.
Requires proposed scope of work program & budget.
Combined RFP & RFQ Process (selection procedures)
Two-part selection process.
RFQ process first to shortlist consultants.
This shortlist of consultants then goes through the RFP process.
This is the longest process
Cost-benefit analysis
Estimates the total monetary value, costs and benefits, of a project. Used for public projects like highways and other public facilities.
Jules Dupuit - 1848. Became common with the US Army Corps of Engineers- undertake waterway system projects when the total benefits exceed the costs of the project.
Requires everything be converted to a monetary value.
Social & environmental benefits- such as the preservation of open space, have a monetary value.
Must set particular time & location
Proposed project is compared to the current situation without the project.
If ratio of benefits is GREATER THAN 1 - then the monetary benefits of the project outweigh its monetary costs.
Cost-effectiveness analysis
Method for selecting among competing projects when resources are limited.
Developed by the military.
Example- community has $50,000 to spend on park improvements then several different projects can be prepared such as adding playground equipment or purchasing a new lawnmower.
CE Ratio = (Cost of new strategy - cost of current practice) / (effect of new strategy - effect of current practice)
Net present value
Calcs the net monetary value of a project, discounted to today’s present value.
Example: If net present value of proposed hockey arena is greater than zero - we can conclude that the monetary benefit of the hockey arena outweighs its monetary cost.
To calc you need to know: the years of the project, the quantified monetary benefits, the monetary costs, the interest rate.
Alternatively, can just calculate the internal rate of return.
Linear Programming (project management technique)
Interactive multi-goal programming technique.
Attempts to find the optimum design solution for a project. This system takes a set of decision variables, within constraints, and generates an optimum design solution.
Horizontal or Flat (Organizational Form)
Few or no levels of management between management and staff level employees.
Employees less supervised and have more involvement in decision making process.
PROS: provides employees greater level of responsibility, can increase efficiency, reduce costs, speed up communication. Streamlined. ENHANCED COMMUNICATIONS.
CONS: Employees can lack clear sense of directive or job duties. Clear lines of authority unlikely. Structure doe snot align well with bureaucratic protocols / expectations. Generalists > specialists. Power struggles over authority. Harder for larger organizations.
Hierarchal (vertical) - (Organizational Form)
Pyramid.
Every employee is subordinate to someone else within the organization, except the very top level.
PROS: Employees have clear sense of leadership and level of responsibility. Sense of ability to be promoted. Departmental loyalty.
CONS: Departments focus on their own interests, bad communication between departments. More bureaucracy which can slow things down.
Matrix
Matrix Organizations encourage interdisciplinary approaches to problem-solving.
CONS: difficult to manage, ineffective for large organizations, dual authority (which can cause confusion).
Could form both horizontal and vertical chains of command with fewer formal rules. Can cause confusion.
Strategic Plan
Short term (5 years or fewer)
Guides an organization and it’s future.
Sets goals, objectives, and policies for reaching the set of objectives.
