Chapter 6 Flashcards
what is project time management?
- includes the processes required to manage the timely completion of the project
what are the processes in Project Time Management Process?
- 1 define activities
- 2 sequence activities
- 3 estimate activity resources
- 4 estimate activity durations
- 5 develop schedule
- 6 control schedule
- on projects with smaller scope, these steps are so tightly linked they are viewed as a single process
What is schedule management plan?
- selects a scheduling methodology (rules and approaches for the scheduling process), a scheduling tool, and sets the format and establishes criteria for developing and controlling the schedule
what is a scheduling methodology?
- defines the rules and approaches for the scheduling process
ex. critical path method (CPM) and critical chain
what is the output of the scheduling process?
creates a finalized and approved schedule that is a baseline that will be used in the Control Schedule process
what is the Define Activities process?
- process of identifying the specific actions to be performed to produce the project deliverables
- project work packages are decomposed into smaller components called activities that represent the work necessary to complete the work package
- activities provide a basis for estimating, scheduling, executing, monitoring and controlling the project work
what are the inputs to the Define Activities process?
- scope baseline
- enterprise environmental factors
- organizational process assets
what are the tools and techniques to the Define Activities process?
- decomposition
- rolling wave planning
- templates
- expert judgment
what are the outputs of the Define Activities process?
- activity list
- activity attributes
- milestone list
what part of the scope baseline is used for defining activities?
- project deliverables, constraints and assumptions documented in the project scope baseline are considered explicitly while defining activities
what enterprise environmental factors influence the Define Activities process?
project management information system
what organizational assets influence the Define Activities process?
- existing formal & informal activity planning related policies, procedures and guidelines
- lessons learned regarding activities lists used by previous similar projects
how is decomposition used in the Define Activities process?
- project work packages are further decomposed into more manageable components called activities, which represent the effort needed to complete a work package
- activity list, WBS, and WBS dictionary can be developed sequentially or concurrently
- involving team members in decomposition can lead to better and more accurate results
what is rolling wave planning?
- a form of progressive elaboration planning where the work to be accomplished in the near term is planned in detail and further work is planned at a higher level in the WBS
- work can exist at varying levels of detail depending on where it is in the project life cycle
what are activity list templates?
- standard activity list or part of an activity list from a previous project that is usable as a template for a new project
- other information related to the activity attributes can also be useful
what expert judgment is useful in the Define Activities process?
- project team members and other experts who are experienced and skilled in developing detailed project scope statements, the WBS, and project schedules
what is an activity list?
- a comprehensive list of all schedule activities required on the project
- includes the activity identify and a scope of work description for each activity in enough detail that the project team members will understand what work is required to be completed
what are activity attributes?
- extend the description of the activity by adding more details, which can evolve over time
- during initial stages can include Activity ID, WBS ID and Activity Name
- when completed may include activity codes, activity description, predecessor activities, successor activities, logical relationships, leads and lags, resource requirements, imposed dates, constraints and assumptions
- can identify who’s responsible for the work, where teh work is performed, level of effort (LOE), discrete effort and apportioned effort (AE)
- used for schedule development and for selecting, ordering, and sorting the planned scheduled activities into reports
what is a milestone list?
list that identifies all the milestones and indicates whether they are mandatory or optional
what is the Sequence Activities process?
- process of identifying and documenting relationships among project activities
- activities are sequenced using logical relationships
- every activity and milestone except for the first and last will have at least one predecessor and successor
- lead/lag time is used to create a realistic and achievable project schedule
- can be done using PM software or manually
what are the inputs to the Sequence Activities process?
- activity list
- activity attributes
- milestone list
- project scope statement
- organizational process assets
what are the tools and techniques to Sequence Activities process?
- precedence diagramming method (PDM)
- dependency determination
- applying leads and lags
- schedule network templates
what are the outputs to Sequence Activities process?
- project schedule network diagrams
2, project document updates
what aspect of the project scope statement is used as an input to Sequence Activities process?
- project scope statement contains the product scope description which includes product characteristics that may affect activity sequences (ex. physical layout of a plant to be constructed)
- good to review product scope description to ensure accuracy
what organizational process assets are inputs to Sequence Activities process?
- project files from knowledge base for scheduling methodology
what is Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)
- method used in Critical Path Methodology (CPM) for constructing a project schedule network diagram that uses nodes (boxes) to represent activities and connects them with arrows that shows the logical relationships that exist between them
- also called Activity-on-Node (AON)
what are the 4 types of dependences/logical relationships in PDM?
- finish-to-start (FS) - successor activity’s start depends on the predecessor activity’s finish
- finish-to-finish (FF) - successor activity’s finish depends on the predecessor activity’s finish
- start-to-start (SS) - successor activity’s start depends on the predecessor activity’s start
- start-to-finish (SF) - successor activity’s finish depends on predecessor activity’s start
- finish-to-start is the most common
- start-to-finish is rarely used
what are the 3 types of dependencies used to define the sequence among the activities?
- mandatory dependencies
- discretionary dependencies
- external dependencies
what are mandatory dependencies?
- those that are contractually required/inherent in the nature of the work
- often involve physical limitation (ex. on an electronics project where a prototype must be built before it can be tested)
- also known as hard logic
what are discretionary dependencies?
- determined by the PM team during the sequence activities process
- also known as preferred logic, preferential local or soft logic
- established based on best practices in that area
- should be fully documented since they can create arbitrary total float values and can limit later scheduling options
- if fast tracking is employed, can review these dependencies for modification/removal
what are external dependencies?
- involve a relationship between project activities and non-project activities
- usually outside the project team’s control
what is a lead?
- accelerates a successor activity by allowing it to start earlier
- ex. finish-to-start with a 2 week lead means it can start 2 weeks before the scheduled completion of the predecessor
what is a lag?
- delay in the successor activity
- ex. start-to-start with a 15 day lag means can start 15 days after the predecessor activity
what are schedule network templates?
- standardized schedule network diagrams that can expedite the preparation of networks of project activities
- can include an entire project or only a part of it
what is a subnetwork/fragment network
- a portion of a project schedule network diagram
- useful when a project has several identical/nearly identical deliverables
what is a project schedule network diagram?
- schematic display of the project’s schedule activities and the dependencies among them
- can be produced manually or using PM software
- includes full project details
- can have a summary narrative to describe basic approach used to sequence the activities
what project document updates may occur after sequencing activities?
- updates to activity list, activity attributes and risk register
what is the Estimate Activity Resources process?
- process of estimating the type and quantities of material, people, equipment or supplies needed to perform each activity.
- closely coordinated with the Estimate Costs process
what are the inputs to Estimate Activity Resources process?
- activity list
- activity attributes
- resource calendars
- enterprise environmental factors
- organizational process assets
what are the tools and techniques for Estimate Activity Resources process?
- expert judgment
- alternatives analysis
- published estimating data
- bottom-up estimating
- project management software
what are the outputs for Estimate Activity Resources process?
- activity resource requirements
- resource breakdown structure
- project document updates
what are resource calendars and how are they used in the Estimate Activity Resources process?
- information on which resources are potentially available during the planned activity period is used for estimating resource allocation
- resource calendars specify when and how long identified project resources will be available during the project
- includes consideration for resource experience and/or skill level and the geographic location of resources
what does the composite resource calendar include?
- includes the availability, capabilities and skills of human resources
what enterprise environmental factors might influence the Estimate Activity Resources process?
- resource availability and skills
what organizational process assets might influence the Estimate Activity Resources process?
- policies and procedures regarding staffing
- policies and procedures related to rental and purchase of supplies and equipment
- historial information about types of resources used for similar work on previous projects
how is expert judgment used in Estimate Activity Resources process?
- assess the resource-related inputs
- anyone with specialized knowledge in resource planning and estimating can help
what is alternatives analysis?
- alternative methods of accomplishing schedule activities
ex. using different levels of resource capability or skills, different size/type of machines, different tools, etc.
what is published estimating data and how is it used in Estimate Activity Resources process?
- published production rates and unit costs of resources for an extensive array of labor trades, material and equipment for different countries and geographic locations
what is bottom up estimating?
- when an activity can’t be estimated with a reasonable degree of confidence, the work gets decomposed into more detail and estimated.
- these estimates are aggregated into a total quantity for each of the activity’s resources
- dependencies between activities are noted in the estimated requirements of the activity
what is project management software and how does it help with Estimate Activity Resources?
- software to help plan, organize and manage resource pools and develop resource estimates
what are activity resource requirements?
- output of Estimate Activity Resources which identifies the types and quantities of resources required for each activity in a work package
- these requirements are aggregated to determine estimated resources for each work package
what is the resource breakdown structure?
- hierarchical structure of the identified resources by resource category (ex. labor, material, equipment, supplies) and resource type ((ex. skill level, grade level)
- useful for organizing and reporting project schedule data with resource use information
what project document updates are done after Estimate Activity Resources?
- updates to activity list, activity attributes and resource calendars
what is Estimate Activity Durations?
- process of approximating the number of work periods needed to complete individual activities with estimated resources
- uses information on activity scope of work, required resource types, estimated resource quantities and resource calendars
- duration estimate is progressively elaborated
what are the inputs to Estimate Activity Durations
- activity list
- activity attributes
- activity resource requirements
- resource calendars
- project scope statement
- enterprise environmental factors
- organizational process assets
what are the tools and techniques used in Estimate Activity Durations
- expert judgment
- analogous estimating
- parametric estimating
- three-point estimates
- reserve analysis
what are the outputs to Estimate Activity Durations?
- activity duration estimates
2. project document updates
how will activity resource requirements have an effect on estimate activity durations?
- resources assigned to the activity and the availability and ability of those resources will significantly influence the duration of most activities
how will resource calendar have an effect on Estimate Activity Durations?
- resource calendar includes type, availability and capabilities of human resources all of which could influence the duration of schedule activities (ex. skill level)
how does the project scope statement impact the Estimate Activity Durations process?
- constraints and assumptions made in the project scope statement must be considered
- ex. of assumptions: existing conditions, availability of information, length of reporting periods
- ex. of constraints: available skilled resources, contract terms & requirements
what enterprise environmental factors can influence Estimate Activity Durations?
- duration estimating databases and other reference data
- productivity metrics
- published commercial information
what organizational process assets can influence Estimate Activity Durations?
- historical duration information
- project calendars
- scheduling methodology
- lessons learned
how is expert judgment used in Estimate Activity Durations?
- expert judgment is guided by historical information to provide duration estimates, whether to combine methods of estimating and how to reconcile differences
what is analogous estimating?
- uses parameters like duration, budget, size, weight and complexity from a previous similar project as the basis for estimating the same parameter/measure for a future project
- relies on the actual duration of the previous projects as the basis for estimating the current project
- gross value estimating approach
when is analogous estimating used?
- usually to estimate project duration when there is limited detailed information about a projet (ex. early phases)
what are the pros and cons of analogous estimating?
pros: less costly and time consuming
cons: less accurate
- most reliable when the previous activities are similar in fact and the team members have the expertise
what is parametric estimating?
- uses a statistical relationship between historical data and other variables to calculate an estimate for activity paramaters like budget, cost and duration
- ex. quantity of work x labour hours/unit of work
- produces higher levels of accuracy depending on the sophistication and data built into the model
three-point estimates
- considers uncertainty and risk
- originated with the Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
- 3 estimates to give a range for an activity’s duration:
- – most likely (tm) - duration of the activity given resources likely to be assigned, their productivity, realistic expectations of availability for the activity, dependencies on other participants and interruptions
- – optimistic (to) - based on best case scenario
- – pessimistic (tp) - based on worse case scenario
explain PERT analysis
- calculates an expected activity duration using a weighted average of the realistic, optimistic and pessimistic estimates
te = (to + 4tm + tp) / 6 - provides more accuracy and clarifies the range of uncertainty
what is reserve analysis
- contingency reserve may be a percentage of the estimated activity duration, a fixed number of work periods or developed using quantitative analysis methods
- reserve may be used, reduced or eliminated as more info about project becomes available
what are activity duration estimates?
- quantitative assessments of the likely number of work periods that will be required to complete an activity
- these estimates do not include any lags
- can be a range of possible results
what project document updates need to be made after Estimate Activity Durations?
- updates to activity attributes and assumptions made in developing the activity duration estimate (like skill levels and availability)
what is the develop schedule process?
- process of analyzing activity sequences, durations, resource requirements and schedule constrains to create the project schedule
- often iterative
- approved project schedule serves as a baseline to track progress
- revising and maintaining a realistic schedule continues throughout the project
what are the inputs to Develop Schedule process?
- activity list
- activity attributes
- project schedule network diagrams
- activity resource requirements
- resource calendars
- activity duration estimates
- project scope statement
- enterprise environmental factors
- organizational process assets
what are the tools and techniques used for the Develop Schedule process?
- schedule network analysis
- critical path method
- critical chain method
- resource leveling
- what-if scenario analysis
- applying leads and lags
- schedule compression
- scheduling tool
what are the outputs to Develop Schedule process?
- project schedule
- schedule baseline
- schedule data
- project document updates
what enterprise environmental factors can influence the Develop Schedule process?
- the scheduling tool used to develop the schedule
what organizational process assets can influence the Develop Schedule process?
- scheduling methodology
- project calendar
what is schedule network analysis?
- technique that generates the project schedule using various analytical techniques like the critical path method, critical chain method, what-if analysis and resource leveling to calculate the early and late start and finish dates for the uncompleted portions of project activities
- some network paths may have points of path convergence or divergence that can be identified and used in schedule compression analysis
critical path method?
- calculates the theoretical early and late start and finish dates for all activities without regard for resource limitations by performing a forward and backward pass analysis through the schedule network
- the results are not necessarily the project schedule but indicates the time periods within which the activity could be scheduled given activity durations, logical relationships, leads, lags and other constraints
what is total float?
- schedule flexibility. measured by the positive difference between early and late dates
- critical paths have 0 or negative total floats
critical activities
- schedule activities on a critical path
what is free float?
- amount of time that an activity can be delayed without delaying the early start date of any immediate successor activity within the network path
- determined after determining the total float
what is the critical chain method?
- schedule network analysis technique that modifies the project schedule to account for limited resources
- often the resulting schedule has an altered critical path
- adds duration buffers that are non-work schedule activities to manage uncertainty
critical chain
- resource-constrained critical path
project buffer
- buffer placed at the end of the critical chain and protects the target finish date from slippage along the critical chain
feeding buffer
- buffers placed at each point that a chain of dependent tasks not on the critical chain feeds into the critical chain
- protect the critical chain from slippage along the feeding chain
- size of each buffer should account for the uncertainty in the duration of the chain of dependent tass leading up to that buffer
how are planned activities scheduled in the critical chain method?
- once the buffer schedule activities are determined, the planned activities are scheduled to their latest possible planned start and end dates
- focuses on managing remaining buffer durations against the remaining durations of task chains
what is resource leveling?
- schedule network analysis technique applied to a schedule that’s already been analyzed by the critical path method
- used when shared/critical required resources are only available at certain times or in certain quantities or to keep resource usage at a constant level
- necessary when resources have been over-allocated
- often causes the original critical path to change
what is what-if scenario analysis?
- analysis performed using the schedule to compute different scenarios
- outcome used to assess feasibility of the project schedule under adverse conditions and to prepare contingency and response plans to overcome/mitigate impact of unexpected situations
- ex. Monte Carlo Analysis (a distribution of possible activity durations is defined for each activity and used to calculate a distribution of possible outcomes
what is schedule compression?
shortens project schedule without changing the project scope to meet schedule constraints, imposed dates or other objectives
- crashing
- fast tracking
crashing
- schedule compression technique by adding more resources to expedite activities on the critical path
- want greatest amount of compression for least incremental cost
- only works for activities where more resources will shorten duration
- may increase risk and/or cost
fast tracking
- schedule compression technique where phases/activities normally done in sequence are performed in parallel
- can increase rework and increased risk
- only works if activities can be overlapped to shorten duration
what’s included in the Project Schedule?
- at a minimum, planned start date and planned finish date for each activity (this is done no later than completion of the project management plan)
- can be presented in a table or graphically using one or more of the following
- – milestone charts
- – bar charts
- – project schedule network diagrams
what is a master schedule or milestone schedule
- summary form of the project schedule
what is a milestone chart?
- similar to bar charts but only identify the scheduled start/completion of major deliverables and key external interfaces
what is a bar chart
- shows activity start and end dates and expected durations
- hammock activity (the broader, more comprehensive summary activity) is displayed in bar chart reports for control and management communication
what is a project schedule network diagram
- shows the project network logical and the project’s critical path schedule activities
- can be presented in activity-on-node diagram format or in a time-scaled schedule network diagram (a logic bar chart
what is a schedule baseline?
- specific version of the project schedule developed from the schedule network analysis
- accepted and approved by the project management team with baseline start dates and finish dates
- component of the project management plan
what is schedule data?
- includes at least the schedule milestones, schedule activities, activity attributes, and documentation of all identified assumptions and constraints
- can include other details like
- – resource requirements by time period (as a resource histogram)
- – alternative schedules (ex. best-case, worse-case, not resource-leveled, resource-leveled)
- – scheduling of contingency reserves
what project document updates are done after the Develop Schedule process?
- updates to activity resource requirements as resource leveling can have a significant effect on preliminary estimates of the types and quantities of resources required
- updates to the activity attributes to include any revised resource requirements
- updates to the calendar
- updates to the risk register to reflect opportunities/threats perceived through scheduling assumptions
what is the Control Schedule process?
- monitoring the status of the project to update project progress and manage changes to the schedule baseline
- – determine the current status of the project schedule
- – influence factors that create schedule changes
- – determine if the project schedule has changed
- – managing actual changes as they occur
- a component of the Perform Integrated Change Control process
what are the inputs to the Control Schedule procress?
- project management plan
- project schedule
- work performance information
- organizational process assets
what are the tools and techniques to the Control Schedule process?
- performance reviews
- variance analysis
- project management software
- resource leveling
- what if scenario analysis
- adjusting leads and lags
- schedule compression
- scheduling tool
what are the outputs of the Control Schedule process?
- work performance measurements
- organizational process assets updates
- change requests
- project management plan updates
- project document updates
how does the project management plan influence the Control Schedule process?
- project management plan contains the schedule management plan and schedule baseline
- schedule management plan describes how the schedule will be managed and controlled
- scheduled baseline is used to compare with actual results to determine if change, corrective action or preventive action is needed
how does the project schedule influence the Control Schedule process?
- most recent version of the project schedule indicates updates, completed activities and started activities
what is work performance information?
- information about project progress like what activities have started, their progress and which have finished
what organizational process assets influence the Control Schedule process?
- existing formal and informal schedule control-related policies, procedures and guidelines
- schedule control tools
- monitoring and reporting methods to be used
what are performance reviews?
- measure, compare and analyze schedule performance such as actual start and finish dates, percent complete and remaining duration for work in progress
- earned value management (EVM) and critical chain scheduling method are examples
- important part of schedule control is deciding if the schedule variation requires corrective action
explain how earned value management (EVM) is used to control schedule
- schedule variance (SV) and schedule performance index (SPI) are used to assess the magnitude of schedule variations
explain how the critical chain scheduling method is used to control schedule
compare the amount of buffer remaining to the amount of buffer needed to protect the delivery date to determine schedule status and if corrective action is required
what is variance analysis?
- schedule performance measurements (SV, SPI) are used to assess the magnitude of variation to the original schedule baseline
- total float variance is also important in evaluating project time performance
- looking for cause and degree of variance relative to the schedule baseline to decide if corrective or preventive action is required
how is project management software used for Schedule Control?
- project management software allows the ability to track planned dates vs actual dates and forecast effects of changes to the project schedule
how is what-if scenario analysis used in the Control SChedule process?
- used to review various scenarios to bring the schedule into alignment with the plan
how is adjusting leads and lags used in the Control Schedule process?
- used to find ways to bring project activities that are behind into alignment with the plan
how is the Scheduling Tool used in the Control Schedule process?
- schedule data is updated and compiled into the schedule to reflect the actual progress of the project and remaining work to be completed
- scheduling tool and supporting schedule data are used in conjunction with manual methods or other project management software to perform schedule network analysis to generate an updated project schedule
what are work performance measurements?
- calculated SV and SPI values for WBS components, in particular the work packages and control accounts, which are documented and communicated to stakeholders
what organizational process assets updates are made after the Control Schedule process?
- causes of variances
- corrective action chosen and the reasons
- lessons learned
what change requests might be made after the Control Schedule process?
- change requests to the schedule baseline and/or other components of the project management plan
- change requests are processed through the Perform Integrated Change Control process
- preventive actions may be recommended to reduce the probability of negative schedule variances
what project management plan updates might be made after the Control Schedule process?
updates to the:
- schedule baseline (to incorporate approved change requests related to project scope changes, activity resources or activity duration estimates)
- schedule management plan (updates to reflect a change in the way the schedule is managed)
- cost baseline (updated to reflect changes caused by compression or crashing techniques)
