Chapter 6 Flashcards
This includes the processes required to manage the timely completion of the project
Project schedule management
The process of establishing the policies, procedures and documentation for planning, developing, managing, executing, and controlling the project schedule
Plan schedule management
The process of identifying and documenting the specific actions to be performed to produce the project deliverables
Define activities
The process of identifying and documenting relationships among the project activities
Sequence activities
The process of estimating the number of work periods needed to complete individual activities with the estimated resources
Estimate activity durations
The process of analyzing activity sequences, durations, resources requirements, and schedule constraints to create the project schedule model for project execution and monitoring and controlling
Develop schedule
The process of monitoring the status of the project to update the project schedule and manage changes to the schedule baseline
Control schedule
This provides a detailed plan that represents how and when the project will deliver the products, services, and results defined in the project scope and serves as a communication tool
Project scheduling
How does scheduling work?
Project team picks a scheduling method such as critical path or an agile approach then the project specific data is entered into a scheduling tool to create a schedule model for the project.
The result is a project schedule
Project schedules should remain…. throughout the project to adjust for knowledge gained, increased understanding of the risk, and value-added activities.
Flexible
This approach welcomes changes throughout the development life cycle. This is a form of rolling wave planning based on adaptive life cycles.
The requirements are documented in user stories that are then prioritized and refined just prior to construction, and product features are developed using time-boxed periods of work.
Iterative scheduling with a backlog
This approach is often used when multiple teams can concurrently develop large number of features that have interconnected dependencies.
Iterative schedule with a backlog.
This type of scheduling does not rely on a schedule that was developed previously for the development of the product or product increments, but rather pulls work from a backlog or intermediate queue of work to be done immediately as resources become available.
On demand scheduling
This scheduling approach is often used in a Kanban system.
On demand scheduling
For projects that evolve the project incrementally in operational or sustainment environments and where tasks can be made relatively similar in size and scope or can be bundled by size and scope, what type of scheduling is best?
On-demand scheduling
What are some tailoring considerations for schedule management?
Life cycle approach
Resource availability
Project dimensions
Technology support
What is plan schedule management?
The process of establishing policies, procedures, and documentation for planning, developing, managing, executing, and controlling the project schedule
What is the key benefit of the plan schedule management process?
It provides guidance and direction on how the project schedule will be managed throughout the project
What is a data analysis tool used for the plan schedule management process?
Alternative analysis
What are time-boxed periods?
Durations during which the team works steadily toward completion of a goal. Time-boxing helps to minimize scope creep as it forces the teams to process essential features first, then other features when time permits.
The process of identifying and documenting the specific actions to be performed to produce the project deliverables.
Define activities
What is the key benefit of the define activities process?
It decomposes work packages into schedule activities that provide a basis for estimating, scheduling, executing, monitoring, and controlling the project work.
This represents the effort needed to complete a work package.
Activities
How does the define activities process define outputs differently than the the create WBS process?
The define activities process defines final outputs as activities rather than deliverables as done in the create WBS process
How does creat
Ion of the Activity list, WBS and WBS dictionary relate.
There creation can happen sequentially or concurrently, with the WBS and WBS dictionary used as the basis for development of the final activity list
An iterative planning technique in which the work to be accomplished in the near term is planned in detail, while work further in the future is planned at a higher level.
Rolling wave planning
What is included with each activity list?
An activity identifier and a scope of work description for each activity in sufficient detail to ensure that project team members understand what work is required to be completed.
This extends the description of the activity by identifying multiple components associated with each activity.
Activity attributes
These are used for schedule development and for selecting, ordering, and sorting the planned schedule activities in various ways within reports
activity attributes
Activity attributes can be used to identify what?
Place where the work has to be performed, the project calendar the activity is assigned to, and the type of effort involved
A significant point or event in a project.
A milestone
What’s the duration for a milestone ?
They have 0 duration as they represent a significant point or event
What does a milestone list identify?
All project milestones and indicates whether the milestone is mandatory, such as those required by contract, or optional, such as those based on historical information
How does the define activities process relate to change requests?
As the deliverables are progressively elaborated into activities they may reveal work that was not initially part of the project baselines and this may result in a change request for schedule base line and or cost baseline
The process of identifying and documenting relationships among the project activities.
Sequence activities
What is the key benefit of the sequence activities process?
It defines the logical sequence of work to obtain the greatest efficiency given all project constraints
Every activity should have what when it comes to scheduling?
Every activity except the first and last should be connected to at least one predecessor and at least one successor activity with an appropriate logical relationship.
A technique used for constructing a schedule model in which activities are represented by nodes and are graphically linked by one or more logical relationships to show the sequence in which activities are to be performed.
Precedence diagramming method (PDM)
PDM includes how many types of dependencies (logical relationships)
4
A logical relationship in which a successor activity cannot start until a predecessor activity has finished.
Finish to Start (FS)
A logical relationship in which a successor activity cannot finish until a predecessor activity has finished.
Finish to finish (FF)
A logical relationship in which a successor activity cannot start until a predecessor activity has started.
Start-to-start (SS)
A logical relationship in which a successor activity cannot finish until a predecessor activity has started.
Start-to-finish (SF)
What’s the most common precedence relationship
Finish to start
How many relationships can two activities have at the same time?
Two however multiple relationships between the same activities are not recommended so a Dedham to be made to select the relationship with the highest impact
What are the 4 different attributes of dependencies?
Mandatory or discretionary, internal or external
How many dependency attributes can be applicable at the same time?
Two
Dependencies that are legally or contractually required or inherent in the nature of the work
Mandatory dependencies
What’s two other names for mandatory dependencies
Hard logic or hard dependencies
Mandatory dependencies often involve what?
Physical limitations
I.e. can’t erect structure until foundation is built
When does the project team determine which dependencies are mandatory
During the process of sequencing events
Are Mandatory dependencies and schedule constraints the same thing ?
No
What are other names for discretionary dependencies?
Preferred logic, preferential logic or soft logic
When does the project team determine which dependencies are discretionary?
The process of sequencing events
What are discretionary dependencies established on …
Knowledge of best practices within a particular application area or some unusual aspect of the project where a specific sequence is desired
Why should discretionary dependencies be fully documented?
They can create arbitrary total float values and can limit later scheduling options
When fast tracking techniques are employed what should happen to discretionary dependencies?
They should be reviewed and considered for modification or removal
These dependencies involve a relationship between project activities and non project activities.these are usually outside of the project teams control
External dependencies
These dependencies involve a precedence relationship between project activities and are generally inside the project teams control
Internal dependencies
The amount of time a successor activity can be advanced with respect to a predecessor activity
Lead
In scheduling software how is lead represented
As a negative value
The amount of time a successor activity will be delayed with respect to a predecessor activity
Lag
Do duration estimates Include leads or lags?
No
A graphical representation of the logical relationships (dependencies) among the project activities
A project schedule network diagram
Describe what a path convergence is.
When activities have multiple predecessor activities
Describe a path divergence
When activities have multiple successor activities
What’s occurs when there is an activity or activities with a divergence or convergence
More risk as the activity is affected by multiple activities or can affect multiple activities
The process of estimating the number of work periods needed to complete individual activities with estimated resources.
Estimate activity durations
What is the key benefit of the estimate activity durations process?
It provides the amount of time each activity will take to complete
Where do the inputs for the estimate of duration originate?
The person or group on the project team who is most familiar with the nature of the work of the specific activity
How our duration estimates elaborated?
Progressively
What does the estimate activity durations process require?
- An estimation of the amount of work effort required to complete the activity
- the amount of available resources estimated to complete the activity
What’s a name used to define activity duration
Work periods
What are some factors for consideration when estimating duration?
Law of diminishing returns
Number of resources
Advances in technology
Motivation of staff
What is it when one factor (e.g. resource) used to determine the effort required to produce a unit of work is increased while all other factors remain fixed, a point will eventually be reached at which additions of that one factor start to yield progressively smaller or diminishing increases in output.
Law of diminishing returns
Does increasing the number of resources to twice the original number of the resources always reduce the time by half ?
No, it may increase extra duration due to risk, and at some point adding too many resources to the activity may increase duration due to knowledge transfer, learning curve, additional coordination, and other factors involved.
What’s student syndrome?
Procrastination: when people start to apply themselves only at the last possible moment before the deadline
What’s Parkinson’s law?
Where work expands to fill the time available for its completion
What happens to all data and assumptions that support duration estimating ?
It’s documented for each activity duration estimate
What is analogous estimating?
A technique for estimating the duration or cost of an activity or a project using historical data from a similar activity or project
It is a gross value estimating approach,sometimes adjusted for known differences in project complexity
When is analogous estimating frequently used?
Where there is a limited amount of detailed information about the project
What is a benefit of using analogous estimating? What’s a down fall?
It’s less costly and less time consuming than other techniques but it also is less accurate
When is analogous estimating most reliable?
When the previous activities are similar in fact and not just appearance
How can analogous estimating be applied?
To a total project or just project segments. It can be used with different estimating methods
What is parametric estimating?
An estimating technique to n which an algorithm is used to calculate cost or duration based on historical data and project parameters
What’s parametric estimating?
It uses a statistical relationship between historical data and other variables to calculate an estimate for activity parameters such as cost, budget and duration.
How can parametric schedule estimates be applied?
To a total project, project segments or in conjunction with other estimating methods.
How can durations be quantitatively determined?
By multiplying the quantity of work to be performed by the number of labor hours per unit of work
What is the benefit of three-point estimating ?
It helps define an approximate range for an activity’s duration.
What are the three ranges for three-point estimating?
Most likely (tM)
Optimistic (tO)
Pessimistic (tP)
Describe the Most likely (tM) estimate
This estimate is based on the duration of the activity, given the resources likely to be assigned, their productivity, realistic expectations of availability for the activity, dependencies on other participants, and interruptions.
Describe the Optimistic (tO) estimate?
The activity duration based on analysis of the best-case scenario for the activity.
Describe the Pessimistic (tP) estimate?
The duration based on analysis of the worst-case scenario for the activity.
What is the triangular distribution formula?
tE=(tO + tM + tP) / 3
What is tE?
The expected valuation that is calculated when using three-point estimating.
When is triangular distribution used?
When there is insufficient historical data or when tuning judgmental data.
A method of estimating project duration or cost by aggregating the estimates of the lower-level components of the WBS.
Bottom-up estimating
What happens when an activity’s duration cannot be estimated with a reasonable degree of confidence?
The work within the activity is decomposed into more detail
What data analysis techniques are used for the estimate activity duration process?
Alternative analysis
Reserve analysis
Decision making
Meetings
What is reserve analysis used to determine?
The amount of contingency and management reserve needed for the project.
Duration estimates may include…. also known as… to account for schedule uncertainty.
Contingencies reserves
Also known as schedule reserves
What are contingency reserves?
The estimated duration within the schedule baseline, which is allocated for identified risks that are accepted
How does contingency effect schedule documentation?
It should be clearly identified in it.
What value might the contingency reserve be?
A percentage of the estimated activity duration or a fixed number of work periods.
What happens to the contingency reserves as more precise information about the project becomes available?
The contingency reserve may be used, reduced, or eliminated.
What are contingency reserves associated with?
The known-unknowns
What are management reserves?
A specified amount of the project budget withheld for management control purposes that is reserved for unforeseen work that is within scope of the project.
These reserves are intended to address the unknown-unknowns that can affect a project.
Management reserves
This is not included in the schedule baseline, but is part of the overall project duration requirements.
Management reserves
Would the use of management reserves ever require a change to the schedule baseline?
Yes, it depends on contract terms
What is the fist of five (fist to five) method ?
A decision making technique where the project manger asks the team to show their level of support for a decision by holding up a closed fist (indicating no support) up to five fingers (indicating full support).
This happens until the team achieves consensus (everyone holds up three or more fingers) or agrees to move on to the next decision.
When doing the fist of five method what happens if a team member holds up fewer than three fingers?
The team member is given the opportunity to discuss any objections with the team.
Why are sprint or iteration planning meetings held when taking an agile approach to a project?
To discuss prioritized product backlog items (user stories) and decide which of these items the team will commit to work on in the upcoming iteration. These meetings are held on the first day of the iteration
What’s another name for user stories?
Prioritized product backlog items
Who attends sprint (iteration planning meetings)?
The product owner, the scrum team, and the project manager
What are duration estimates?
Quantitative assessments of the likely number of time periods that are required to complete an activity, phase or project. (These do not include any lags)
Supporting documentation of the estimate activity process should what?
Provide a clear and complete understanding of how the duration estimate was derived.
The process of analyzing activity sequences, durations, resource requirements, and schedule constraints to create a schedule model for project execution and monitoring and controlling.
Develop schedule
What’s the key benefit of the develop schedule process?
It generates a schedule model with planned dates for completing project activities.
When is the develop schedule process performed?
Throughout the project
Developing an acceptable project schedule is an… process?
Iterative
Schedule development can require the review and revision of duration estimates, resource estimates, and schedule reserves to establish an approved project schedule that…
Can serve as a baseline
Do vendors ever have an put on the project schedule?
Yes they may
What is schedule network analysis?
The overarching technique used to generate the project schedule model. It employs several other techniques such as the critical path method, resource optimization and modeling techniques.
An iterative process that is employed until a viable schedule model is developed.
Schedule network analysis
This assesses the need to aggregate schedule reserves to reduce the probability of a schedule slip when multiple paths converge at a single point in time. It involves reviewing the network for risk and long leads on the critical paths.
Schedule network analysis
What is the critical path?
The sequence of activities that represents the longest path through a project, which determines the shortest possible project duration.
What is the critical path method used to calculate?
The critical path and the amount of total and free float or schedule flexibility on the logical network paths within the schedule model.
What does the critical path method calculate?
The early start, early finish, late start and late finish dates for all activities without regard for any resource limitations by performing a forward and backward pass analysis through the schedule network
How much total float does a critical path usually have?
Zero
However it may be positive, zero, or negative.
What is total float (schedule flexibility)?
The amount of time that a schedule activity can be delayed or extended from its early start date without delaying the project finish date or violating a schedule constraint.
This is caused when the backward pass is calculated from a schedule constraint that is later than the early finish date that has been calculated during forward pass calculation.
Positive total float
What does float mean when describing a schedule?
Schedule flexibility
This is caused when a constraint on the late dates is violated by duration and logic.
Negative total float
A technique that helps to find possible accelerated ways of bringing a delayed schedule back on track.
Negative float analysis
What is free float?
The amount of time that a schedule activity can be delayed without delaying the early start date of any successor or violating a schedule constraint
Describe resource optimization.
It is used to adjust the start and finish dates of activities to adjust planned resource use to be equal or less than resource availability .
What are some resource optimization techniques?
Resource leveling
Resource smoothing
A technique in which start and finish dates are adjusted based on resource constraints with the goal of balancing the demand for resources with the available supply.
Available float is used
Resource leveling
Which one can effect ,the critical path , resource leveling or resource smoothing?
Resource leveling
A technique that adjusts the activities of a schedule model such that the require,Mets for resources on the project do not exceed certain predefined resource limits.
Activities may only be delayed within their free and total float.
Resource smoothing
Describe what if scenario analysis.
The process of evaluating scenarios in order to predict their effect, positive or negative, on project objectives.
What is the most common simulation technique? Describe it.
Monte Carlo analysis
Risks and other sources of uncertainty are used to calculate possible schedule outcomes for the total project
This involves calculating multiple work package durations with different sets of activity assumptions, constraints, risks, issues, or scenarios using probability distributions and other representations of uncertainty.
Simulation
These techniques are used to shorten or accelerate the schedule duration without reducing the project scope in order to meet schedule constraints, imposed dates, or other schedule objectives.
Schedule compression techniques
What is crashing?
A technique used to shorten the schedule duration for the least incremental cost by adding resources.
What are some examples of crashing?
Approving overtime
Bringing in additional resources
Paying to expedite delivery to activities on the critical path
What are the only activities that can be crashed?
Activities on the critical path where additional resources will shorten the activities duration.
A schedule technique in which activities or phases normally done in sequence are performed in parallel for at least a portion of their duration.
Fast tracking
Where and when can fast tracking be of benefit?
When activities can be overlapped to shorten the project duration on the critical path.
This provides a high-level summary timeline of the release schedule (typically 3 to 6 months) based on the product roadmap and the product vision for the product’s evolution.
Agile release planning
The approved version of a schedule model that can be changed only through formal change control procedures and is used as a basis for comparison to actual results.
Schedule baseline
What mighT a Perone today schedule be referred to if it is presented in summary form?
Master schedule or milestone schedule
The collection of information for describing and controlling the schedule.
Schedule data
What might schedule data include?
at minimum: Schedule milestones Schedule activities Activity attributes Documentation of all identified assumptions and constraints
Additional data: Resource histogram Alternative schedules Cash flow projections Order and delivery schedules
Describe a project calendar.
It identifies working days and shifts that are available for scheduled activities.
The process of monitoring the status of the project to update the project schedule and managing changes to the schedule baseline
Control schedule
What does updating the schedule model require?
Knowing the actual performance to date
In this schedule performance measurements such as schedule variance (sv) and schedule performance index (spi) are used to assess the magnitude of variation to the original schedule baseline
Earned value analysis
This chart tracks the work that remains to be completed in the iteration backlog. It is used to analyze the variance with respect to an ideal burn down based on the work committed from iteration planning,
Iteration burndown chart
