Chapter 6: Basic Project Planning Techniques Flashcards
The project work can begin once … and …
It has been approved.
Contract is signed.
What are the first steps in the project work?
Define system requirements.
Prepare project plan.
What are 6 questions that must be answered during the planning processes?
(Hint: Goofy Pandas Waltz With Colourful Quilts.)
1) What is the desired end result? (Goal)
2) How will the result be achieved? (Plan)
3) Who will do it? (Who)
4) When and in what order? (When)
5) How much? (Cost)
6) How well? (Quality)
The question “What is the end result?” involves … These specify …
Defining
- objectives,
- scope and
- system requirements
These specify project deliverables, end-items, and time, cost and performance targets.
The question “How will the result be achieved?” involves … These include …
Defining
WORK ACTIVITIES, TASKS, OR JOBS to be done to achieve the OBJECTIVES and REQUIREMENTS.
These include everything necessary to create and deliver the end-item or deliverables (including planning, control, and admin activities).
The question “Who will do it?” involves …
Specifying the project organization & everyone’s responsibilities.
The question “When and in what order?” involves …
Detailed schedules with milestones.
The question “How much?” involves …
Creating a budget & resource plan to fund project.
The question “How well?” involves …
Specifying method for tracking & controlling project work.
What are the main sections and subsections of a project execution plan?
Scope, Charter, or Statement of Work
Management and Organization Section
- Project management and organization
- Manpower
- Training and development
Technical Section
- Requirements
- WBS
- Responsibility assignments
- Project schedules
- Budget
- Quality plan
- Uncertainty & risk plan
- HSE plan
- Communication plan
- HR plan
- Work review plan
- Testing plan
- Change control plan
- Documentation policy/plan
- Procurement policy/plan
- Implementation plan
What is the purpose of the Scope, Charter, or Statement of Work?
Provides an overview of the project for management, customers, and stakeholders, including objectives, requirements, risks, and a master schedule.
What does the Management and Organization Section cover?
Project organization
Management
Personnel requirements
What is covered under Project Management and Organization?
Key personnel and authority relationships.
What does Manpower refer to in this section?
Estimates of workforce requirements, skills, and recruitment strategies.
What does Training and Development include?
Executive development and personnel training necessary to support the project.
What is included in the Technical Section?
Major project activities, timing and cost.
What are User and System Requirements?
High-level descriptions of user needs and system specifications.
What is a Work Breakdown Structure?
Work packages and detailed descriptions of each, including resources, costs, schedules, and risks.
What are Responsibility Assignments?
List of key personnel and their responsibilities for work packages and other areas.
What is the Project Schedule?
Project and task schedules showing milestones and points of decision.
What is the Budget section about?
Control accounts and financial support, including timing of expenses.
What is the Quality Plan?
Measures for monitoring quality and accepting results for tasks, components, and assemblies.
What is the Risk Plan?
Risk strategies, contingencies, and mitigation plans for high-risk areas.
What does the HSE Plan address?
Health, safety, environmental, and sustainability matters affecting project stakeholders.
What is in the Communication Plan?
Expected meetings, reports, participants, and formats.
What is the Human Resource Plan?
Project organization, roles, responsibilities, staffing, and training.
What does the Work Review Plan define?
Periodic review procedures: what, by whom, when, and standards.
What is the Testing Plan?
List of items to be tested, test procedures, timing, and responsible persons.
What is the Change Control Plan?
Procedures for reviewing and handling requested or de facto changes.
What does the Documentation Policy / Plan include?
Documents to be produced, format, timing, and organization.
What is the Procurement Policy / Plan?
Policies and controls for goods, work, and services procurement.
What is the Implementation Plan?
Procedures to guide customer conversion and adoption of deliverables.
What is scope definition?
- Involves specifying the breadth of the project and the span of its:
o Outputs,
o End-results, or
o Deliverables - Defines inclusions
o Results or end-items to be produced or delivered by the project. - Defines exclusions
o Any result, items, or conditions not to be included in the project. - Focuses primarily on determining outputs and deliverables, not time and cost.
o Time and cost might be accounted for as “constraints” in scope definition. - Input information needed:
o Set of user needs and requirements
o Business case / other expression of needs
o Assumptions and constraints
o Ideally, principal subsystems and components of end-item - The outcome of scope definition is a scope statement.
What is a scope statement?
- Describes:
o Main results,
o End-items, or
o Deliverables of project - Might also include:
o Criteria for acceptance of deliverables
o Assumptions
o Constraints
o Functions to be fulfilled by deliverables
o Brief background about problem being addressed
o Project objectives
o User requirements / high-level specifications
o High-level project tasks / major areas of work - Sometimes lists outcomes or consequences to be avoided, like
o Negative publicity
o Interference with other systems
o Pollution
o Damage to natural environment - For programs, separate scope statements are developed for the overall program and for the individual projects that make up the program.
- Once the scope statement has been approved, it becomes a controlled document that can only be modified through a formal change process.
What is the purpose of a project scope?
To provide broad description of masterplan / project to stakeholders.
The scope is directed at the core project team, the project organization, and the primary stakeholders.
What is a charter?
The scope document for internal projects.
It includes everything in the scope statement plus:
- risk limits
- customer needs
- spending limits
- key players on project team
A charter is issued by … and it gives the PM authority to …
Senior management (to legitimize project).
To initiate work & apply resources to project.
Describe what a statement of work is.
It is a detailed description of the project, covering deliverables, schedule, and management procedures.
Key components of a SOW are:
- project specifications & requirements.
- schedule for deliverables
- communication & risk management procedures
- budget & key personnel roles
It is effectively a high-level version of the project execution plan.
The term SOW and its usage are commonly associated with … and the SOW appears in documents associated with … Examples of such documents are …
Contracted projects.
the contracting or procurement process.
Request for Proposal (RFP), proposal, contract, project execution plan, and possibly the project charter.
Once objectives and deliverables have been set in the scope statement, the next step is to …, that is, to specify …
To ensure that … a procedure called the work breakdown structure is used.
Translate them into specific, well-defined work activities.
To specify the tasks and jobs that the project team must do.
To ensure that every necessary activity is identified and clearly defined and that no activities are missed.
What is a WBS and why is it used?
It’s a hierarchical breakdown of a project into smaller, manageable components.
It helps in planning, budgeting, scheduling, and resource allocation. /
It improves clarity in project execution. /
It ensures all tasks and deliverables are accounted for. / It enhances traceability and accountability in project work.
What are the levels of a WBS?
Project - total scope of work
Subprojects - major project components
Work Package - smallest deliverable unit for scheduling and budgeting (tasks at bottom levels).
Activity - individual tasks within a work package (identified later in planning process).
How is contracted work different from internal projects in terms of how responsibility for each subproject / activity is assigned?
For contracted work, the responsibility for each subproject / activity is assigned to a subcontractor through a contract agreement between the subcontractor and the project manager.
For internal projects, responsibility for each subproject is assigned to an in-house department through an agreement between the department manager and the project manager.
What are the three types of WBS Structures?
1) Product-Oriented WBS: organised by deliverables.
2) Function-Oriented WBS: Organised by tasks.
3) Hybrid WBS: Combination of both.
All functions / tasks that apply to … should be identified as separate work packages.
Deliverables or integrating multiple deliverables
How can the completeness of a WBS be tested?
Compare the list of project objectives and high-level requirements with work packages in the WBS.
Every objective and requirement should be traceable to at least one work package, and vice versa.
How is it decided whether project work should be done internally or procured from outsiders?
Make-or-buy analysis of the project end-item and of its subsystems, components, services, or deliverables identified in the WBS.
What is a Work Package and why does it matter?
The smallest, well-defined unit of work in a WBS.
Must be
- clear
- manageable
- measurable
It matters because:
- it improves project control, scheduling, and budgeting.
- it avoids unnecessary complexity by defining only as far as needed.
What are the key elements of a well-defined work package?
(Hint: Some Really Talented Cats Run On Ice, Quietly Racing Onward)
Scope: task or activity description.
Resources: labour, equipment, materials required.
Time estimate: expected duration of task
Costs: estimated budget and expenses
Responsibility: assigned individuals / teams
Outcomes: expected deliverables and results
Inputs: predecessor tasks needed to start
Quality assurance: entry, process, and exit conditions
Risk factors: uncertainties related to cost, time, and resources.
Other: safety, compliance, and environmental factors
True or False: Ideally, work packages represent jobs of about the same degree of effort an of relatively small cost and short duration compared to the total project.
True
True or False: Each work package represents a contract / agreement with a subcontractor, supplier, or internal functional unit.
True.
Although several functional or subcontracting units might share responsibility for a work package, ideally, a work package has only one party with primary responsibility for it.
True or False: A work package that produces a tangible deliverable or physical product should ideally include start and finish dates.
False.
Such a work package must include specific start and finish dates.
Describe what in integrated execution plan is.
All the elements of the plan are interconnected.
Once created, it enables managers to track the project and assess the impacts of actions or problems in some elements of the plan on the other elements.
One noticeable feature is that the same list of work packages or tasks reappears throughout different elements of the plan.
In several ways, the process of creating the WBS and the resultant work packages form the basis for integrated project planning.
How does creating the WBS forms the basis for integrated project planning? (6)
(Hint: Pretty Flamingos Bake Orange Muffins Carefully)
1) People responsible for project are identified during WBS process and are involved in defining the work - involvement ensures completeness of work definition & gains their commitment to that work.
2) WP in each phase are logically related to packages in other phases - ensures predecessor relationships are met & no steps overlooked.
3) WP become basis for budgets (sum of individual WP budgets plus overhead and indirect expenses) & schedules (composite of schedules for WPs).
4) Project organization formed around WPs, with resources and management responsibility assigned to each WP.
5) Project is managed by managing people assigned to different WPs.
6) Project is controlled by controlling WPs. During project execution, work completed and costs accrued are compared to schedules and budgets for WPs, suggesting which WPs are in need of corrective action.
What type of approach is integrated project planning?
Systems approach
During integration of WBS and project organization, each work package is assigned to a responsible department / contractor. The box at the intersection of each department and work package is called a …
Control account / cost account
Each … represents assigned responsibility for a particular work package / portion of one to a department.
Control account.
A control account includes …
Requirements
Schedule
Budget
Resource needs
Deliverables
Manager / supervisor responsible for it.
What is a responsibility matrix?
A responsibility matrix shows individuals holding responsibility for WPs. It ensures clear accountability and prevents task avoidance.
Letters within the matrix symbolize the kind of responsibility:
- Primary: ultimate accountability
- Secondary: provide assistance
- Notification: informed about WP’s status
- Approval: authority to approve / reject WP deliverables
Describe the RACI model.
Responsible: does the work
Accountable: ultimate authority
Consulted: provides input
Informed: needs updates
True or False: For each task, one and only one person is assigned primary responsibility.
True
What are three benefits of using a responsibility matrix?
- Assigns clear roles & expectations.
- Avoids miscommunication and “passing the buck”
- Helps team align and finalise responsibilities before project kick-off.
What is scheduling?
It defines the timing of tasks, milestones, and deliverables in a project.
It ensures proper sequencing and resource allocation.
How are events and work packages / activities different?
WP consumes resources and time It is a process of doing something.
An event signifies one thing: a moment in time. In projects, they signify the start or finish of something, and they are usually associated with a specific calendar date.
What is the difference between an interface and a milestone?
An interface event denotes the completion of one task and simultaneous start of one or more subsequent tasks.
A milestone represents a major project occurrence. Milestones signify progress and are therefore important measures of progress.
What are the two common kinds of schedules?
1) Project schedule
- shows all major project activities but not much detail about each.
- first defined during project initiation and refined thereafter.
- developed in top-down fashion.
- later, refined in bottom-up fashion, taking into account the more detailed task schedules as developed by functional managers.
- when project performed in phases, schedule for each phase must be sufficiently detailed to enable management to authorize work on that phase to begin.
2) Task / Activity schedule
- show specific tasks / activities necessary to complete WP.
- created for those working on activities .
- enables lower-level managers & supervisors to focus on specific activities.
- prepared by functional managers / subcontractors.
- incorporate interface and milestone events.
What are 3 scheduling tools and methods?
1) Gannt charts
- visual timeline
2) Critical Path Method
- identifies longest sequence of dependent tasks
3) Interface & Milestone Events
- tracks task dependencies and transitions
What are 3 advantages of Gannt Charts?
- clear task visibility (start/end dates and overlaps)
- progress tracking
- resource allocation (manage workload distribution)
What are 2 disadvantages of Gannt charts?
- limited dependency tracking (does not show how delays impact the whole project).
- complexity for large projects (can become cluttered)
The Line of Balance / Linear Scheduling method is a specialized project scheduling technique used for … activities in projects such as …
Repetitive, continuous, or location-based activities
Construction, infrastructure development, and manufacturing.
True or False: Line of Balance method focuses on maintaining a steady production rate across various project activities.
True.
It also ensures efficient resource utilization.
How does the Line of Balance method ensure continuity of work crews?
The method ensures that teams move from one location to the next without delays, minimizing idle time and maximizing productivity.
Describe the graphical representation of the Line of Balance method.
It uses diagrams instead of network-based charts.
The X-axis represents time.
The Y-axis represents location.
Each activity is plotted as a line, showing its start and finish times across locations.
The slope represents the productivity rate.
The steeper the slope of a task line, the faster the work is progressing.
If two task lines intersect, it indicates a potential clash or delay in workflow.
What are 4 advantages of the Line of Balance method?
1) Optimized resource flow
- resources allocated efficiently without unnecessary downtime
2) Improved coordination
- helps synchronize different teams working on various project sections
3) Clear visualization
- graphical nature makes it easier to identify delays, bottlenecks, and workflow inefficiencies.
4) Predictability
- by maintaining a steady workflow, this method reduces variability and allows for more accurate forecasting of project completion.
What are 3 challenges of using the Line of Balance method?
1) not suitable for non-repetitive projects
2) requires accurate productivity estimation (inconsistent work rates can disrupt schedule)
3) limited software support
When should Line of Balance scheduling be used?
- construction
- manufacturing & assembly lines
- infrastructure projects
- mass housing projects
