Project Management Fundamentals

• Problems commonly arise in organizations concerning product development, capacity expansion, or computer purchases.
• These problems and their potential solutions lead to organizational changes.
• Projects facilitate these changes, with individuals accountable for their successful completion.

Project Uniqueness

• Projects vary in problems, priorities, resources, environment, and project manager's approach.
• Project organizational structure should align with operational constraints.
• Changes in priorities, resources, personnel, laws, etc., may require adjustments to the organizational structure during the project lifecycle.

Project Management Success

• Successful project management needs a stable balance between limited resources and project goals.
• Understanding project management tools and techniques benefits systems analysis.

Project Definition

• Projects involve unique activities with varying importance levels.
• Defined as a planned undertaking with a beginning and an end, aimed at achieving a specific objective.
• Projects address problems or define viable solutions.
• Seven key characteristics of a project:

Project Characteristics

• Objective: Each project has a specific goal.
• Schedule: Projects have defined timelines.
• Complexity: Projects consider the technology required.
• Size and Nature of Task: Projects involve a step-by-step action plan.
• Resources: Projects require labor, personnel, equipment, materials, and facilities.
• Organizational Structure: Projects integrate requirements into the existing organization.
• Information and Control Systems: Projects need systems to handle problems via authority lines.

Project Management Definition

• Project Management involves using tools and techniques to manage resources for a unique task within time, cost, and quality constraints.
• Tasks demand specific tools and techniques based on the environment and lifecycle stages.

Project Initiation Phase Techniques

• Establishing a project initiation team involves organizing members for project initiation activities.
• Building customer relationships fosters stronger understanding between organizations
• Establishing a Project Initiation Plan defines activities needed to organize the team and define project goals and scope.
• Establishing management procedures develops communication, job assignments, change procedures, and project funding processes.
• Establishing a Project Management Environment focuses on organizing tools for project management.

Project Planning Phase Techniques

• Describing project scope involves understanding the project's content and complexity.
• Relevant questions to consider:
• What problem or opportunity does the project address?
• What results are expected?
• What needs to be done?
• How will success be measured?
• How will we know when we are finished?
• Dividing the project into tasks, or work breakdown structure, streamlines task progression.
• Estimating resources and creating a resource plan supports efficient resource organization.
• Developing a preliminary schedule assigns time estimates to activities, defining project start and end dates.
• Developing a communication plan outlines communication between management, team, and customer.
• Determining project standards defines how deliverables are produced and tested.
• Identifying and assessing risk identifies and addresses potential risks.
• Creating a preliminary budget summarizes planned expenses and project revenues.
• Developing a statement of work lists the work and expected outcomes.
• Setting a baseline project plan estimates project tasks and resource needs.

Project Execution Phase Techniques

• Executing the baseline project plan involves initiating activities, assigning resources, training team members, and ensuring quality and schedule adherence.
• Monitoring project progress uses Gantt and PERT charts.
• Managing changes to the baseline project plan is critical.
• Maintaining the project workbook ensures complete records for project reports.
• Communicating the project status ensures that plans and revisions are shared for understanding.

Project Closing Phase Techniques

• Closing down the project requires notifying parties of completion, finalizing documentation, and preparing for the final review.
• Conducting post-project reviews assesses strengths and weaknesses.
• Closing the customer contract ensures all contractual terms are met.

Benefits of Project Management Techniques in Key Phases

• Enables project teams to:
• Link project goals to stakeholder needs.
• Focus on customer needs.
• Build high-performance teams.
• Work across boundaries.
• Develop work breakdown structures.
• Estimate costs and schedules.
• Meet time constraints.
• Calculate risks.
• Establish project control and monitoring systems.

Project Management Tools

• Can be software-based or manual.
• Should suit the manager's style.
• Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) and Gantt Charts are common tools.

PERT Charts vs CPM Charts

• PERT and Critical Path Method (CPM) charts are similar.
• Difference relates to how task times are calculated.
• Tasks are displayed in sequence to show order.
• Tasks can be shown in parallel.
• Project network portrays interrelationships and order.

PERT Planning Steps

• Identify Activities and Milestones: Activities are project tasks, milestones mark beginnings and ends of tasks.
• Determine Activity Sequence: Determine task order.
• Construct Network Diagram: Using sequence information, illustrates successive and parallel activities.
• Estimate Time Required for Each Activity: Weeks are common, PERT deals with uncertainty.

Time Estimates

• Optimistic time: Shortest possible completion time.
• Most likely time: Completion time with the highest probability.
• Pessimistic time: Longest possible completion time.
• Expected Time Calculation:
  • Expected Time = (Optimistic + 4 x Most Likely + Pessimistic) / 6

Critical Path Determination

• Determine the critical path by adding activity times in each sequence.
• Determines the project's total time.
• Slack Time: Time a non-critical path activity can be delayed without delaying the project.
• Four Times to Determine:
• ES - Earliest Start time
• EF - Earliest Finish time
• LS - Latest Start time
• LF - Latest Finish time
• Using expected time, calculate the times of other activities.
• Project completion time variance is calculated by summing variances in the critical path.
• Normal distribution assumed if path activities are sufficiently large.
• Update PERT as the project progresses and incorporate actual times.

PERT Chart Benefits

• Improved planning and scheduling.
• Improved resource forecasting.
• Identification of repetitive patterns.
• Ability to reschedule activities. Provides:
  • Expected project completion time.
  • Probability of completion by a specific date.
  • Critical path activities.
  • Activities with slack time that can lend to critical path activities.
  • Activity start and end dates.

Gantt Charts

• Show task assignments over time (days, weeks, months).
• Graphically show start, elapsed, and completion times.
• Monitor progress by comparing actual vs. planned days.
• Identify timeline slippage points.
• Serve for budgeting and spending.

Steps to Create a Gantt Chart

• List actions with start dates, timelines, and parallel/sequential order.
• Head graph with completion days/weeks.
• Show all actions, starting with earliest date.
• Draw as a bar graph.
• Show length with time taken to complete.
• Schedule actions so sequential ones happen in order.
• Ensure reliance actions don’t happen prior to the actions
• Where you can, do parallel tasks that don't affect the actions
• The final analysis chart should combine and represent the analysis

Gantt Chart Benefits

• Easy-to-understand visual of scheduled time of a task/activity.
• Easy to develop "what if" analyses.
• Enables project control with communication.
• Is a tool for negotiations.
• Shows progress against schedule.
• Reports results appropriately.
• Compares projects for risk/resource allocation.
• Rewards manager with control.

Problem Solving Focus

• Focus on Solutions.
• Speed > Facts
• Focus on Individual Managers solving/dictating solution.
• Crews look to Foreman/Superintendent

Trial and Error Problem Solving

• Problem arises.
• Jump to a solution before identifying the problem cause.
• No time is spent assessing if it is fixed.
• This solution might cause another problem.
• Traditional problem solving and issues found in a job.

Common Issues in Construction

• Complete docs.
• Knowledgeable owner.
• Staffing/Performance.
• Safety.
• Laydown areas/work access.
• Information access/accuracy.
• Payment/contactor viability.
• Tight schedule.
• Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is insanity.

Team environment and trust

• Involve the crews to understand the problem.
• Consider opportunities for improvement

8 Types of Waste

• Overproduction
• Waiting
• Transportation
• Inventory
• Over-processing
• Motion
• Rework
• The 8th Loss is not making use of people
• Discuss:
• Problem clarity
• Team Approach
• Controllable factors
• Root Cause
• Opportunities to learn

Observation Walk

• Go where issues are occurring
• Stop and Look
• Ask why and what do they mean
• Look for:
  • Waste, efficiency, capacity, and first time quality.

Brainstorming

• Goals: to generate ideas, teamwork, trust, and creative thought.
• Methods: unstructured, structured, and allow input from everyone.

Brainstorming Exercise Hints

• Record.
• Quantity.
• No discussion/judgement or opposition.
• Team leader summarizes: everyone supports.
• Identify as many Causes as possible!

How does it all work?

• Follow the Hints.
• Get Everyone to Contribute.
• What do you do to get them to cooperate?
• Did you revert to structured approach?

Summary

• Deliberate Process
• Identify problems and Causes
• Workers can raise concerns
• Observation walks = Source
• All factors found in team settings
• Looking for facts and ideas helps find root causes

Solve with the 5 Whys

• Not about firefighting but taking the time
• Take past issues / prevent re-occurrence

What is PDCA?

• Plan what we do
• Where we are / Where do we need to be?
• How will we get there / Potential Solutions
• Do- Test Solutions
• Check- Have we arrived + Measures of success
• Act- Establish controls/On-going or Cycle 2