project planning Flashcards
why are graphical project planning techniques helpful?
due to task complexity, comms of task responsibility usually facilitated by graphical planning techniques. also helpful for external communication.
what planning techniques are useful when planning for activities and costs?
Work Breakdown structure (WBS) divides work into manageable pieces
work packages/statements of work specify work done per activity and who carries it out
product breakdown structure (PBS) identifies product purchases required for each activity
cost breakdown structure (CBS) or budget costs each element
what project planning techniques are useful when planning quality?
project quality plan - PQP - specifies stds required within project
what project planning techniques are useful when planning time?
network analysis/Gantt charts represent logical order of activities
PERT/scenario planning/buffering considers risk and uncertainty within time estimates
milestones/gates set controls over timing of activities within project
what project planning techniques are useful when planning resources?
resources histogram determines the resource requirements of the project
what does a WBS do?
- breaks complex tasks into manageable pieces.
- provides different levels of detail.
- sets out the logical sequence of project events.
- provides a logical framework for making decisions.
- provides an input into subsequent project processes, such as estimating time and resources.
- provides a framework for continuous assessment of the project progression.
- provides a communication tool.
- provides a map of the project.
what does creating a WBS entail?
each package should be responsibility of one person. ideally relatively smaller, so progress easy to monitor.
integrating WBS with org means identifying org units responsible for packages, and joining them together to cost control accounts.
once all items required identified and costed, this forms budget
what is the hierarchical breakdown for a WBS?
project
deliverable
sub-deliverable
lowest subdeliverable
cost account grouping (for monitoring progress/responsibility)
work package (identifiable work activities)
product breakdown structures (all items to be purchased)
cost breakdown structure
what is a gantt chart?
simple representation of project from view of time taken/resources required for each activity. often to monitor actual progress vs plan. length of bar = duration of activity. two vars - one planned vs actual
can produce for each person to show total workload. arrows can be added to show interrelationship between activities, and slack time shown too.
useful communication tool. useful for developing network plan, mging project and identifying resource reqs.
what is network analysis? what does it do?
general term for techniques used for planning by breaking down into component activities and showing them adn their interrelationships in form of a network. main aim of NA/critical path analysis (CPA) = analyse activities that occur in parallel to identify start/finish times per activity and whole project. emphasises sequence of events and activities to coordinate them
NA breaks down programme of implementation into constituent parts by activity, making it easy to build onto value chain analysis. helps establish priorities by identifying activities that others depend on. represents plan of action where implications of changes can be examined
what are the stages of a network plan?
analyse project - break down to activities, planner ascertains which parts need to be completed for others to begin
draw network
estimate time and cost
locate critical path - chain of operations that determine how long overall project will take is determined
schedule project - develop most efficient and cost effective schedule if necessary with alternate ways being analysed.
monitor and control progress - continual BvA of resources committed. corrective action if authorised
revise plan
how do you create a network diagram?
straight lines connecting circles = task that takes time or resources (activities). arrows show activity direction. circles = events, represent point in time. each event is beginning of activity/completion of an event. e.g. event 3 may be the end of activity B and the start of D and C. dotted lines connecting events = dummy activities. these do not take time/resources but make diagram cleaner adn ensure no rules are breached.
what are the rules of a network diagram?
rules:
- complete network has only start event as point of entry and finish event as point of exit
- every activity has one preceding event (tail) and one following (head).
- event doesn’t happen until activities in it are complete. e.g. choosing a tv show (event) doesn’t happen until tv switched on (activity) and alternatives are reviewed (activity).
- several activities can have same tail and head, but two activities cannot have same head and tail. instead, dummy activity used.
- ‘danglers’ aren’t allowed. all activities must contribute to progression of network. an activity can be included if it contributes to overall project and only links at the end
what are the advantages of network diagrams?
- identifies duration and critical path
- provides analytical device for projects that start/end
- emphasises progress control
- gives early indication of crises in project
- stresses careful appraisal of activities/stages of projects for mgr
conventions of network diagrams
- networks procees left to rigth
- networks not drawn to scale
- arrows should have head to right of tail, unless impossible to draw this way.
- activity line shows time taken to complete activity. each line has a reference letter
- events should be numbered, activity always moves from lower numbered event to higher
- avoid lines that cross. start event may be a line instead of a circle especially if several activities begin at start point
what are LETs and EETs in a network diagram?
- EET = earliest time any subsequent activity can start. determined by time taken by preceding activities. also known as EST. entered during ‘forward pass’ through network
- LET = can be same as EET. latest time all previous activities must have been completed to prevent whole project from being delayed. also known as LFT. entered during backward pass.
what is the critical path in a network diagram?
chain of activities whose times determine overall duration of project. activities on critical path = crit activities and any increase in duration = increase in project duration.
The critical path is found by calculating earliest times first by means of the forward pass and then the latest times by means of the backward pass. Events whose earliest time equals their latest time are by definition on the critical path. The critical path should be traceable from the start event through to the end event.
what is the slack and float in a network diagram?
some activities have spare time, where delays don’t affect overall project. this is float, and in typical project only around 20% activities are critical so 80% have float time.
float = difference between LET and EET.
what are milestones in project planning?
milestones not specifically shown on network diagram except end of activities, but often shown on Gantt chart as small triangle/other symbol.
milestones = clearly identifiable as measure of how far project has progressed and how far it has to run. important in assessing status of project and quality of work.
creating milestones means partitioning project into identifiable/manageable phases that are well defined key events and unambiguous targets of what needs to be done/by when, should be established in project planning phase.
monitoring achievement of milestones enables project mgr to keep control over progress and allows any delays to be immediately identified.
what makes a good milestone in project planning?
no doubt whether it has passed, stages in development of project have been identified that are recognised as steps toward final deliverable, should relate to completion of stages in project with clear outputs signalling accomplishments of milestones (e.g. end of an activity, producing a report, delivery of completed work package, attending a meeting)
what are control gates in project planning?
key points in project lifecycle which give project sponsor/steering committee opportunity to review project progress and make decision whether to proceed further or terminate.
gate can only be passed if process meets pre-defined performance standard, which could take form of technical reviews/completion of documents
gates should be identified in project plan. gate review required to pass each one. if at review criteria aren’t met, project shouldn’t continue. changes may need to be made to overall project plan
what is PERT?
network analysis is often complicated by uncertainty of events so single lifetime of event has degree of error. PERT uses 3 time estimates for each activity:
- optimistic - o - duration with ideal conditions
- probable - m - duartion if conditions normal/expected
- pessimistic - p - if number of things went wrong
expected duration then calculated - using m values - and network drawn. degree of risk in each activity can be estimated using standard deviations. allows calculation of necessary contingency to be added to reduce risk of overrun
how can PERT cope with risk and uncertainty?
less complex ways than PERT exist. wherever risk is identified as taking form of alternative outcomes, series of contingency/scenario plans may be constructed for each. Not only would this allow mgr to look at network incorporating each alternative, but allows mgr to switch to alternative for each contingency.
can also add artificial slack to risky activities - known as buffering. can lead to build up of slack in programme and may lead to complacency.
what is a resource histogram?
stacked bar charts showing number/mix of staff over duration of project. used to plan/control HR requirements. info can also be added to Gantt chart
what is a project quality plan?
major document details standards to be adhered to to ensure successful development process. provides clear indication of procedures and policies to be followed to maintain quality within work carried out.
what does a project quality plan generally include?
- Risk assessment– possible internal and external risks likely to affect the project and the alternative actions required to reduce the risks.
- Project overview– main activities to be carried out.
- Project requirements– description of the work to be carried out, timescales and deliverables cross referenced to requirements spec.
- Project organisation– stating management roles and responsibilities, this will help to determine the allocation of resources to each of the project activities.
- Monitoring and reporting procedures– cross referenced to the project standards, this section identifies how the project will be monitored and what to do if slippage occurs. It also states the frequency and content of reports as well as key control processes, such as end of stage meetings, for example, when the steering meetings will take place and procedures for evaluating the final installed system.
- Key development stages and processes– the activities that will need to be completed during the life cycle.
- Key standards to be used in the project (quality assurance)– this will help to ensure quality outputs, standards that need to be evaluated and will include hardware, software and development standards such as notation of modelling techniques.
- Testing strategy– this will identify the stages of development where testing is to be carried out, by whom and of what.
- Procurement policy– the procedures and standards for procurement will be stated and any variation from the normal procedure noted, with reasons.
- Configuration management– how this will be dealt with should be set out so that each version of the deliverables is identified.
what are project management methodologies?
set of guidelines which define methods/processes to be followed to help deliver successfully. can be seen as systematic/disciplined approach to project mgment.
dev of std processes helpful, together with std templates for documents, helps issues to be anticipated/worked around
no one size fits all methodology - both below are also customisable
what is PRINCE2?
Project IN Controlled Environments v2
process-based approach for project mgment providing easily tailored and scalable method for mgment of all types of projects. large number of control elements
main objective = deliver a successful project: delivery of agreed outcomes, on time, within budget, conforming to required quality stds
what are the principles in PRINCE2?
formally starting/initiating project
establishing org structure around the project
using structured planning method
applying project control techniques
managing stages of project
executing project tasks and activities
assessing/mging risks that could impact project
formally closing project
what are the features of PRINCE2?
- enforces clear structure of authority/responsibility on project team. ensures each party has clear objectives, and are supported in achieving them
- ensures production of number of mgment products associated with mgment and control of the project. e.g., initiation document, budget, plan and progress reports.
- different types of plans ensuring all ppts in project (int and ext to org), have clear understanding of tasks to be completed, relationships between them and roles in tasks’ completion.
- several quality controls like documented procedures. ensure work completed on time and at appropriate level of quality
what are the key processes of PRINCE2?
corporate/programme mgment - overseeing, high level decisions
directing a project - coordinate various aspects, especially where multiple project teams involved
project mandate - pre-proj doc, ideas and basic info available at point
planning a project - senior mgment/project sponsors, define need for project, resources allocated, whether it should continue
starting up a project - pre-proj process involving designing/appointing proj mgment team, creating initial stage plan and ensuring info required by project team available
initiating - similar to feasibility study, establish whether or not justification to proceed. project board take ownership at this stage
controlling a stage - project mgr, day to day
mging product delivery - effective allocation of work packages, ensuring work carried out to required quality std
mging stage boundaries - ensure planned deliverables completed as required. board provided with info to approve completion of current stage and authorise start of next. lessons learned can be applied in later stages.
closing - formal and controlled close approved by board. establish extent to which objectives met, extent of formal acceptance obtained of deliverables and identify lessons learned. end project report completed, project team disbanded.
what are PMBOK’s 9 knowledge areas?
- cost mgmentresource planning. cost estimating, budgeting and control
- quality mgmentplanning, assurance, control
- resource mgmentorganisational planning, staff acquisition and team development
- risk mgmentidentify, quantify, response development, response control
- comms mgmentplan, info distribution, performance reporting, admin closure
- procurement mgmentplanning, source selection, contract admin, contract close-out
- integration mgmentplan development, execution, overall change control
- scope mgmentscope definition, planning, verification and change control
- time mgmentactivity definition, sequencing, duration estimating, development and control
