Project Management
Microsoft Word - BZ460D Assignment 4 ASSIGNMENT 04 BZ460 Project Management Directions: Unless otherwise stated, answer in complete sentences, and be sure to use correct English spelling and grammar. Sources must be cited in APA format. Refer to the "Assignment Format" requirements below. Calculate the ES, EF, LS, and LF times and the slack for each activity in the figure below and identify the critical path for the project. Can the project be completed in 40 weeks? Assume that Activity A actually finished at 3 weeks, Activity B actually finished at 12 weeks, and Activity C actually finished at 13 weeks. Recalculate the expected project completion time. Which activities would you focus on in order to get the project back on schedule? Chapter 5.pdf © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Developing the Schedule 5 Teaching Strategies • There are two vignettes featured in this chapter. (See Premium Deck for Slides.) • The first vignette reinforces the need to plan for contingencies when developing the schedule to avoid delays that cause the project to go over time. • The second vignette reinforces that implementing agile project management techniques can help save time and allow for increased project productivity. • Sometimes, when planning the schedule, calculated times are for activity completion are not accurate. This can become a problem when no one takes the time to examine the actual time it takes to complete activities. • Have students plan the amount of time that it would take to travel between two cities that are near campus. After they calculate the time to travel, have them think about how they would factor in extenuating circumstances (like a flat tire, the need to refill the fuel tank, the need to stop for food, or a traffic-blocking accident). • Have students calculate the ES, EF, LS, and LF times in class to be sure they understand what it means to calculate forward and to calculate backward. • The ES, EF, LS, LF times on the network diagram for the consumer market study are included in the chapter materials. Have the students compare the textbook diagram with the schedule table in Microsoft Project. • Have the students report on the similarities and the differences. 1 © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Chapter Concepts • Estimating the resources required for each activity • Estimating the duration for each activity • Establishing the estimated start time and required completion time for the overall project • Calculating the earliest times at which each activity can start and finish, based on the project estimated start time • Calculating the latest times by which each activity must start and finish in order to complete the project by its required completion time • Determining the amount of positive or negative slack between the time each activity can start or finish and the time it must start or finish • Identifying the critical (longest) path of activities • Performing the steps in the project control process • Determining the effects of actual schedule performance on the project schedule • Incorporating changes into the schedule • Developing an updated project schedule • Determining approaches to controlling the project schedule • Implementing agile project management Chapter Concepts • This chapter discusses monitoring and controlling the progress of the project, re-planning, and updating the project schedule. • Once a project actually begins, it is necessary to monitor progress to ensure that everything goes according to schedule. This involves measuring actual progress and comparing it to the schedule. • If at any time during the project, it is determined that the project is behind schedule, corrective action must be taken to get back on schedule, which becomes increasingly difficult as a project falls further behind. Based on the material in this chapter, students will become familiar with: • Estimating the resources required for each activity • Estimating the duration for each activity • Establishing the estimated start time and required completion time for the overall project • Calculating the earliest times at which each activity can start and finish, based on the project estimated start time • Calculating the latest times by which each activity must start and finish in order to complete the project by its required completion time • Determining the amount of positive or negative slack between the time each activity can start or finish and the time it must start or finish • Identifying the critical (longest) path of activities • Performing the steps in the project control process • Determining the effects of actual schedule performance on the project schedule • Incorporating changes into the schedule 2 • Developing an updated project schedule • Determining approaches to controlling the project schedule • Implementing agile project management 2 © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Learning Outcomes • Estimate the resources required for activities • Estimate the duration for an activity • Determine the earliest start and finish times for activities • Determine the latest start and finish times for activities • Explain and determine total slack • Prepare a project schedule • Identify and explain the critical path • Discuss the project control process • Develop updated schedules based on actual progress and changes • Discuss and apply approaches to control the project schedule • Explain agile project management Learning Outcomes After studying this chapter, students should be able to: • Estimate the resources required for activities • Estimate the duration for an activity • Determine the earliest start and finish times for activities • Determine the latest start and finish times for activities • Explain and determine total slack • Prepare a project schedule • Identify and explain the critical path • Discuss the project control process • Develop updated schedules based on actual progress and changes • Discuss and apply approaches to control the project schedule • Explain agile project management 3 © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Project Integration Management Project Time Management Project Management Knowledge Areas from PMBOK® Guide Project Management Knowledge Areas from PMBOK® Guide Concepts in this chapter support the following Project Management Knowledge Areas of A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide): • Project Integration Management • Project Time Management 4 © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Estimate Activity Resources • Resources include • People, materials, equipment, facilities • Influence on the duration • Availability of the resources • Types of resources • Sufficient quantities of resources for the activity durations • Potential conflicts with other projects may cause • Involve person with expertise in resource estimate • Estimates influence costs Estimate Activity Resources • It is necessary to estimate the types and quantities of resources that will be required to perform each specific activity in a project. • Resources include people, materials, equipment, facilities, and so forth. • Having this information is essential in estimating how long it will take to perform each activity and the project as a whole. • A number of factors influence the duration of an activity: • Availability of the resources • Types of resources • Sufficient quantities of resources for the durations of the activities • Potential conflicts with other projects that may cause a delay • When estimating the types and quantities of resources required for each specific activity, it is valuable to involve a person who has expertise or experience with the activity. • Estimated activity resources will also be used later for estimating activity costs and determining the project budget. 5 © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Estimate Activity Durations • Duration must be the total elapsed time • Time for the work to be done plus any associated waiting time Estimate Activity Durations • Once the types and quantities of resources are estimated for each activity, estimates can be made for how long it will take to perform the activities. • The estimated duration for each activity must be the total elapsed time—the time for the work to be done plus any associated waiting time. • The figure above depicts the activity estimated duration for varnishing floors. • It is a good practice to have the person who will be responsible for performing a specific activity estimate the duration for that activity. • Builds buy-in from the person and generates commitments • Avoids bias that may be introduced by having one person estimate the durations for all of the activities • It is important to designate an experienced individual to estimate the durations for all the activities for which the organization or subcontractor is responsible in large projects. • Historical data can be used as a guide in estimating the durations of similar activities. • Estimated duration should be aggressive yet realistic. • Inflating estimated durations in anticipation of the project manager negotiating shorter durations is not a good practice. • Throughout the performance of the project, some activities will take longer than their estimated duration, others will take less time than estimated, and a very few may conform to the estimated duration exactly. • At the beginning of the project, it may not be possible to estimate the durations for all activities with a high level of confidence. • The project team can progressively elaborate the estimated durations as more information is becomes available to allow for more accurate estimated durations. 6 © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Estimate Activity Durations This figure depicts the network diagram for a consumer market study, with the estimated durations in days for each activity. • What are the realistic estimates for the activities shown? • What happens if an activity is delayed and will be its impact on the project? • What happens if an activity finishes early? 7 © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Establish Project Start and Finish Times • Define