All-In-One Chapter 6 - Managing Project Time Flashcards
Activity list
the primary output of breaking down the WBS work packages
Alternative analysis
the identification of more than one solution. Consider roles, materials, tools, and approaches to the project work
Analogous estimating
a somewhat unreliable estimating approach that relies on historical information to predict what current activity durations should be. Analogous estimating is more reliable, however, than team member recollections. Analogous estimating is also known as top-down estimating and is a form of expert judgment
Bottom-up estimating
the most accurate time-and-cost estimating approach a project manager can use. This estimating approach starts at “the bottom” of the project and considers every activity, its predecessor and successor activities, and the exact amount of resources needed to complete each activity
Control account
a WBS entry that considers the time, cost and scope measurements for that deliverable within the WBS. The estimated performance is compared against the actual performance to measure overall performance for the deliverables within that control account. The specifics of a control account are documented in a control account plan
Control threshold
a predetermined range of acceptable variances, such as +/- 10 percent off schedule. Should the variance exceed the threshold, then project control processes and corrected actions will be enacted
Crashing
a schedule compression approach that adds more resources to activities on the critical path to complete the project earlier. When crashing a project, costs are added because the associated labor and sometimes resources cause costs to increase
Critical chain method
a network analysis approach where the deadlines associated with individual tasks are removed and the only date that matters is the promised due date of the project deliverable. CCM works to modify the project schedule based on the availability of project resources rather than on the pure sequence of events, as in the critical path method
Critical path
the path in the project network diagram that cannot be delayed, otherwise the project completion date will be late. There can be more than one critical path. Activities on the critical path have no float
Discretionary dependencies
these dependencies are the preferred order of activities. Project managers should us these relationships at their discretion and should document the logic behind the decision. Discretionary dependencies allow activities to happen in a preferred order because of best practices, conditions unique to the project work, or external events. Also known as preferential or soft logic
Early finish
the earliest a project activity can finish. Used in the forward pass procedure to discover the critical path and the project float
Early start
the earliest a project activity can begin. Used in the forward pass procedure to discover the critical path and the project float
External dependencies
as the name implies, these are dependencies outside of the project’s control.
Fast tracking
a schedule compression method that changes the relationship of activities. With fast tracking, activities what would normally be done in sequence are allowed to be done in parallel or with some overlap. Fast tracking can be accomplished by changing the relation of activities from FS to SS or even FF or by adding lead time to downstream activities.
Finish-to-finish
a activity relationship type that requires the current activity to be finished before its successor can finish
Finish-to-start
an activity relationship type that requires the current activity to be finished before its successor can start
Fragnet
a representation of a project network diagram that is often used for outsourced portions of a project, repetitive work within a project, or a subproject. Also called a subnet
Free float
this is the total time a single activity can be delayed without affecting the early start of its immediately following successor activities
Hard logic
logic that describes activities that must happen in a particular order. Also known as a mandatory dependency
Internal dependencies
internal relationships to the project or the organization.
Lag time
positive time that moves two or more activities further apart
Late finish
the latest a project activity can finish. Used in the backward pass procedure to discover the critical path and the project float
Late start
the latest a project activity can begin. Used in the backward pass procedure to discover the critical path and the project float
Lead time
negative time that allows two or more activities to overlap where ordinarily these activities would be sequential
Management reserve
a percentage of the project duration to combat Parkinson’s Law. when project activities become late, their lateness is subtracted from the management reserve
Mandatory dependencies
these dependencies are the natural order of activities, also called hard logic
Monte Carlo analysis
a project simulation approach named after the world-famous gambling district in Monaco. This predicts how scenarios may work out, given any number of variables. The process doesn’t churn out a specific answer, but a range of possible answers
Parametric estimate
a quantitatively based duration estimate that uses mathematical formulas to predict how long an activity will take based on the quantities of work to be completed
Parkinson’s Law
a theory that states: “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion” it is considered with time estimating, because bloated or padded activity estimates will fill the amount of time allotted to the activity
Planning package
a WBS entry located below a control account and above the work packages. A planning package signifies that there is more planning that needs to be completed for this specific deliverable
Precedence diagramming method
a network diagram that shows activities in nodes and the relationship between each activity. Predecessors come before the current activity, and successors come after the current activity
Project calendars
calendars that identify when the project work will occur
Project float
this is the total time the project can be delayed without passing the customer-expected completion date
Project network diagram
a diagram that visualizes the flow of the project activities and their relationships to other project activities
Refinement
an update to the work breakdown structure
Resource breakdown structure
this is a hierarchical breakdown of the project resources by category and resource type.
Resource calendars
calendars that identify when project resources are available for the project work
Resource-leveling heuristic
a method to flatten the schedule when resources are overallocated. Resource leveling can be applied using different methods to accomplish different goals. One of the most common methods is to ensure that workers are not overextended on activities
Rolling wave planning
the imminent work is planned in detail, while the work in the future is planned at a high level. This is a form of progressive elaboration
Schedule management plan
a subsidiary plan in the project management plan. It defines how the project schedule will be created, estimated, controlled, and managed
Soft Logic
the activities don’t necessarily have to happen in a specific order.
Start-to-finish
an activity relationship that requires an activity to start so that its successor can finish. This is the most unusual of all the activity relationship types
Start-to-start
an activity relationship type that requires the current activity to start before its successor can start
Subnet
a representation of a project network diagram that is often used for outsourced portions of projects, repetitive work within a project, or a subproject. Also called a fragnet
Template
a previous project that can be adapted for the current project and forms that are pre-populated with organizational-specific information
Three-point estimate
an estimating technique for each activity that requires optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic estimates to be created. Based on these three estimates, an average can be created to predict how long the activity should take
Total float
this is the total time an activity can be delayed without delaying project completion
Work package
the smallest item in the work breakdown structure
