Schedule and Resources

Question 1

Steps for constructing a project schedule

Answer 1

_ allocate resources
_ identify and sequence tasks
_ determine task start and end dates and milestones
_ construct the schedule
_ determine the critical path
_ set the baseline and obtain approval
_ set quality gates
_ establish governance process

Question 2

Defining tasks

Answer 2

_ further breakdown WBS work packages
_ don’t break tasks so far down that you’re managing individual member’s to-do lists
_ rule of thumb: define tasks so that they take 40-80 hours to complete; but critical tasks might be listed as well, even if they are shorter in duration
_ give each task an ID for tracking purposes, alongside its associated WBS code and a description of the work

Question 3

Sequencing tasks

Answer 3

_ process of identifying dependencies among project tasks and putting them into proper order
_ includes identifying dependency types

Question 4

Types of dependencies

Answer 4

_ mandatory - prerequisite; created by the type of work the project requires
_ discretionary - usually process or procedure driven, often a best practice technique (e.g. sign-offs and approvals)
_ external - outside of the project manager’s control
_ internal - relationship between tasks “within an individual project”

Question 5

Logical relationships between tasks

Answer 5

_ finish-to-start (FS) - predecessor activity must complete before the successor activity can start
_ start-to-finish (SF) - predecessor activity must start before the successor activity can finish (uncommon)
_ finish-to-finish (FF) - predecessor activity must finish before the successor activity finishes
_ start-to-start (SS) - predecessor activity must start before the successor activity can start

Question 6

Network diagram

Answer 6

_ a partial ordering of tasks organized by their logical relationships
_ “precedence diagramming method” (PDM) - boxes represent activities, each usually showing duration, with arrows pointing to dependent boxes; aka “activity on node”

Question 7

Resource calendar

Answer 7

_ provides the time frames in which resources are available (e.g. reflecting their vacation schedules)
_ may also include their skills, quantity, and availability
_ tracks availability of equipment

Question 8

duration

Answer 8

_ number of days required to complete task
_ not person-hours, because a person working only part-time on the task will extend the duration of the task beyond what can be done in an 8-hour day
_ distinguish workday and calendar day durations, the latter of which needs to account for weekends and holidays
_ have everyone agree on whether the durations they provide are workdays or calendar days; suggests using workdays

Question 9

Techniques for estimating task durations

Answer 9

_ analogous estimating (aka top-down estimating)
_ expert judgement
_ parametric estimating
_ PERT

Question 10

Analogous estimating

Answer 10

_ aka “top-down estimating” or “order-of-magnitude estimate”
_ uses cost/durations from similar tasks on previous projects
_ usually used in early stages of planning, before there is much detail
_ usually the least accurate estimate
_ results are better if the person doing the estimate is familiar with both projects
_ relies on expert judgement

Question 11

Expert judgement estimating

Answer 11

_ the people most familiar with the work or a similar task come up with an estimate
_ ideally, done by the team member who will do the work

Question 12

Parametric estimating

Answer 12

_ multiples quantity of work by productivity rate

_ e.g. if a typical crew can bury 5 miles of cable/day, it should take 10 days to bury 50 miles of cable

Question 13

PERT estimation

Answer 13

_ Program Evaluation and Review Technique
_ similar to “three-point estimates,” which use an average estimate to determine a project duration
_ uses an “expected value” (aka “weighted average”), calculated as: (optimistic + pessimistic + 4*(most likely))/6
_ always round to the hundredths place

Question 14

PERT chart

Answer 14

_ a partial ordering, a kind of network diagram
_ nodes represent milestones, usually as rectangles
_ arrows from nodes to their dependents indicate sequence
_ numbers on the arrows indicate durations

Question 15

milestone

Answer 15

_ major accomplishment or major deliverable or set of deliverables
_ denoted in the project schedule as an event with zero duration, dependent on all the accomplishments that it represents
_ shown in a milestone chart - for each milestone, shows scheduled start, actual start, scheduled completion, and actual completion
_ milestones are triggers for communicating with stakeholders, as is failing to meet a milestone

Question 16

Gantt chart

Answer 16

_ most common way to display project schedules
_ can show milestones, deliverables, project tasks, task durations, start/end dates, resources assigned to tasks
_ durations of tasks shown as horizontal bars (lists tasks vertically, time horizontally)

Question 17

Critical path method (CPM)

Answer 17

_ widely used
_ determines “float time” for each activity by show the ranges of possible start dates and possible end dates
_ “float” is the amount of time you can delay starting an activity without pushing out the end date
_ when there is only one possible start date and only one possible end date (“zero float”), the task is considered to be a “critical path task”
_ if a critical path task does not finish on schedule the project end date is affected

Question 18

critical path

Answer 18

_ the longest path of tasks in the project, by total duration

Question 19

Duration compression

Answer 19

_ used for shortening the duration of the project, should you find that the total duration puts you out past the target deadline
_ there are two techniques: crashing and fast tracking

Question 20

crashing

Answer 20

_ shortens length of critical path and thus duration of the project
_ adds more time worked to the critical path, by (a) adding more resources (people), or (b) by having people work longer hours, or (c) moving delivery deadlines forward for team members or vendors
_ reduction in time isn’t linear with resources added due to ramp-up time or interference
_ may impact budget

Question 21

Fast tracking

Answer 21

_ shortens length of critical path and thus duration of the project
_ performing tasks in parallel that were previously sequential
_ may be logistically more challenging
_ may increase risks
_ work with team to establish challenges and risks and communicate them to the sponsor and key stakeholders

Question 22

Schedule baseline

Answer 22

_ final approved version of the project schedule
_ “baseline” for tracking and reporting project progress
_ has baseline start and finish dates
_ has resource assignments
_ get sign-off on the project schedule from stakeholders and the functional managers who are supplying resources
_ used to monitor progress throughout project

Question 23

Quality gates

Answer 23

_ similar to milestones but are evaluations of work to assess accuracy and quality
_ the quality checks are usually processes, checklists or templates that can be used on multiple projects

Question 24

Governance gates

Answer 24

_ approval points on the project
_ places where go/no-go decisions can be made about preceding with the project
_ client sign-off, management approval, and legislative approval
_ legislative approvals typically occur before the project starts, but in large, long projects might occur during project

Question 25

Dedicated resource

Answer 25

_ a resource dedicated to a project
_ there’s no need to coordinate this resource with others
_ typical of projectized organizations

Question 26

Shared resource

Answer 26

_ works for both the functional manager and the project manager
_ usually prioritize functional work, which is the normal operation of the business
_ project managers need to negotiate with functional manager to make sure shared resource have enough time to work on the project
_ project manager should also negotiate for having some say in the team member’s performance report, which helps the team members to take the project seriously

Question 27

Benched resource

Answer 27

_ someone who has finished one project but not yet been allocated to another project, is waiting for the next project
_ often occurs in a projectized organization

Question 28

Interproject dependency

Answer 28

_ when deliverables of one project are needed for another project
_ remove dependencies when possible
_ get status reports on these other projects

Question 29

Project organization chart

Answer 29

_ hierarchical breakdown of project team, with project manager at the top

Question 30

Resource breakdown structure (RBS)

Answer 30

_ decomposes project work according to the classes of resource needed

Question 31

Responsibility assignment matrix (RAM)

Answer 31

_ table matching WBS elements (by code) to the classes of resource (or skill set) needed, indicating the number of people needed in each class of resource (or skill set)

Question 32

RACI chart

Answer 32

_ shows the responsibility each type of resource has on a project
_ the columns are resource names (such as name of team members)
_ the rows are work elements such as milestones or work packages
_ each cell indicates a combination of the letters RACI:
_ _ R = responsible for performing the work
_ _ A = accountable for the work, approving/signing off on work
_ _ C = consulted for input on work or decisions
_ _ I = informed on decisions or results

Question 33

Roles and responsibilities document

Answer 33

_ lists each group or team member on the project and their associated responsibilities
_ makes clear what each person is accountable for
_ also indicates the standards or methodologies that must be adhered to, documentation that must be completed, time-reporting responsibilities, “to name a few”
_ may evolve over the course of the project

Question 34

Five stages of team development

Answer 34

_ forming
_ storming
_ norming
_ performing
_ adjourning
* adding a new member causes the cycle to start over, where ever it is when the member is added

Question 35

forming

Answer 35

_ 1st stage of team development
_ members learn why they’re working together
_ members tend to be formal and reserved

Question 36

storming

Answer 36

_ 2nd stage of team development

_ members become confrontational as they vy for position and control

Question 37

norming

Answer 37

_ 3rd stage of team development
_ members know each other now, are comfortable with their positions
_ begin dealing with project problems instead of with people
_ decisions are now jointly made
_ mutual respect and familiarity

Question 38

performing

Answer 38

_ 4th stage of team development
_ team is productive and effective
_ trust is high among members
_ not all teams make it this far (they may instead “churn between storming and norming”)

Question 39

adjourning

Answer 39

_ 5th stage of team development

_ break up of team, returning members to their functional managers

Question 40

Techniques for detecting and resolving conflicts

Answer 40

_ smoothing
_ forcing
_ compromising
_ confronting
_ avoiding
_ negotiating

Question 41

smoothing

Answer 41

_ aka “accommodating”
_ emphasize areas of agreement in order to bury areas of disagreement
_ make issue appear less important than it really is
_ temporary way to resolve a conflict; not a good strategy
_ “lose-lose”; neither side winds

Question 42

forcing

Answer 42

_ one person forces a solution on other parties
_ not best technique for team-building
_ “win-lose”; one side wins, one loses

Question 43

compromising

Answer 43

_ each party gives up something to reach a solution
_ each decided what they will and won’t give in on
_ neither party really buys into the solution, but if the parties commit to the resolution, it can work
_ not necessarily a permanent resolution

Question 44

confronting

Answer 44

_ aka “problem-solving”
_ assumes there is one right solution and facts will bear this out
_ requires going on a fact-finding mission
_ revealing the facts to all parties makes the right decision clear, so everyone agrees
_ “best way to resolve a conflict”
_ “win-win”

Question 45

avoiding

Answer 45

_ aka “withdrawing”
_ one party refuses to discuss conflict
_ “probably the worst technique” for conflict resolution
_ “lose-lose”

Question 46

negotiating

Answer 46

_ both parties communicate, asking questions
_ might use a third party who has no vested interest in the outcome for facilitation
_ can be win-win, win-lose, or lose-lose, depending on how the negotiations are conducted and on the outcome

Question 47

Project kickoff meeting

Answer 47

_ formally introduces team members and stakeholders, including introducing the team to the project manager
_ establish a good first impression “tone”
_ best to be both serious and fun
_ get members aligned on goals
_ get members comfortable with each other

Question 48

Timing of project kickoff meeting

Answer 48

_ held after the project charter is signed
_ if not all team members have been assigned yet, either hold off on the kickoff meeting or hold a second kick-off meeting later when all team members are present
_ the timing is less important than actually having a meeting (this was on a quiz)

Question 49

Components of a project kickoff meeting

Answer 49

Components that one may “choose” to include:
_ welcome/introduction
_ individual introductions
_ project sponsor and key stakeholders introduce themselves and their goals
_ project overview, including helping members understand how they fit into the project
_ stakeholder expectations - explain reason for the deadline and budget constraints, if any; make sure team is aware of related quality concerns, political issues, or market announcements
_ roles and responsibilities - start with your own roles and responsibilities, how you’ll be managing the project; may want to review roles and responsibilities of the team members, depending on size; share expectations
_ Q&A - engages team more in project, clarifies information