Project Schedule & Framework

• Developing and controlling a project schedule involves drafting a schedule, identifying the critical path, optimizing the schedule, establishing a baseline, and controlling the schedule.

Project Management Framework

• Project Integration Management covers developing the project charter, management plan, directing project execution, monitoring project work, and closing the project.
• Project Scope Management includes collecting requirements, defining project scope, creating a WBS, verifying scope, and controlling scope.
• Project Time Management involves defining project activities, sequencing activities, estimating activity resources and durations, developing the schedule, and controlling the schedule.
• Project Cost Management includes estimating costs and determining the budget, as well as controlling costs.
• Project Quality Management covers planning quality, performing quality assurance, and controlling quality.
• Project Human Resource Management includes developing the human resource plan, acquiring the project team, developing the team, and managing the team.
• Project Communications Management involves identifying stakeholders, planning communications, distributing information, managing stakeholder expectations, and reporting performance.
• Project Risk Management includes planning risk management, identifying risks, performing qualitative and quantitative risk analysis, planning risk responses, and monitoring and controlling risks.
• Project Procurement Management covers planning procurements, conducting procurements, administering procurements, and closing procurements.

Project Schedules

• Project schedules serve as plans that define when activities starts and ends in a sequence.
• Schedules coordinate activities into a single, comprehensive master plan leading to successful scheduling performance.

The Develop Schedule Process

• Defining start and end dates for project activities is an important part
• Inputs to the process include:
  • Activity list and attributes
  • Project schedule network diagrams
  • Activity resource requirements and resource calendars
  • Activity duration estimates
  • Project scope statement and Enterprise environmental factors
  • Organizational process assets such as defined schedules.
• Common tools and techniques are:
  • Schedule network analysis
  • Critical path method
  • Critical chain method
  • Resource leveling
  • "What-if" scenario analysis
  • Applying leads and lags
  • Schedule compression
  • Scheduling tool is also used
• Outputs include a completed Project schedule, schedule baseline, updated data, and updates to existing project documents to reflect scheduling outcomes.

Standard Schedule Diagramming Notations

• ES stands for early start, The earliest time an activity can start
• EF stands for early finish, the earliest time an activity can finish
• LF stands for late finish, The latest time an activity can finish
• LS stands for late start, The latest time an activity can start
• DU is duration and the number of work periods required for activity completion

The Critical Path

• A critical path represents the path with the longest total duration.
• This path has no scheduling flexibility meaning activities along this path must be completed as planned to meet deadlines.
• Schedule management can be performed by ensuring activities are completed on time

Float

• Float shows the total time an activity can be delayed from its early start (ES) without delaying the project finish date or consecutive activities
• Two kinds of floats are:
  • Total float
  • Free float

Schedule Network Analysis

• Schedule network analysis calculates the theoretical early and late start and finish dates for all project activities.
• Four main methods include:
  • Critical Path Method (CPM)
  • Critical chain method
  • What-if scenario
  • Resource leveling

Critical Path Method (CPM)

• Critical Path Method (CPM) is a popular schedule network analysis method, commonly used in the business world.
• CPM uses sequential finish-to-start network logic to effectively manage time
• Calculates one early and late start and finish date for each activity.
• CPM uses a single duration estimate

The Critical Chain Method

• The Critical Chain Method adjusts project schedules based on resource considerations.
• This is done by considering:
  • Resource limitations
  • Adjustments to schedule
  • Planning for reserves
  • Mitigation of cost and schedule risks
• It does so by analyzing the critical path alongside available resources.

What-If Scenario Analysis

• Used to consider different situations that might occur and influence the schedule.
• Computes different schedules based on potential delays.
• Simulated outcomes can be used in risk response plans.
• Helps select the optimum plan.

Resource Leveling

• Used to analyze the schedule model to readjust work assignments.
• It helps address scheduling activities after the critical path has been identified
• Found in many types of project management software.

Schedule Formats

• The Bar chart format offers,
  • start and end dates,
  • duration,
  • order.
• It shows precedence relationships and completion percentage
• A Bar Chart is useful for presenting the project status to management
• The Milestone Chart is suitable for presenting a summary of the project and includes
  • The project's milestones
  • Icons/Symbold
  • Overall schedule
• Network Diagram format.
  • Assigns activities to start and finish dates
  • It also Communicates project status in terms of activity precedence relationships.

Drafting a Project Schedule

• Steps to drafting a project schedule:
  • Perform a mathematical analysis to determine durations of time for resource limits, and other constraints.
  • Evaluate possible constraints for schedule development.
  • Assess resource availability.
  • Consult project calendars and assign dates to activities.
  • Calculate potential project durations under different constraints.
  • Consider external resource date constraints, if applicable.
  • Select project management software that suits needs and budget.
  • Review schedule drafts with the project team and customer.
  • Choose the publishing format.
  • Disseminate the preliminary schedule for approval.
  • Baseline the schedule after its approved.

Completed Project Schedule

• Project Start Date: May 11, 2009
• Work Package: TRN0001

Critical Activities

• Indicate activities on the critical path.
• Exhibit the same early start and late start dates, and early finish with late finish dates.

Identify the Criticall Path

• Steps include:
  • Conduct forward pass to determine the Earliest State time and Earliest Finish for each activity
  • Conduct backward pass to determine the Latest State time and Latest Finish for each activity
  • Calculate float
  • Identify the critical path by the longest total and zero float

Schedule Compression

• Schedule compression shortens the schedule without affecting the scope.
• The two primary methods for schedule compression are fast-tracking and crashing.

Fast-Tracking

• Fast-tracking compresses the project's total duration by performing otherwise sequential activities concurrently.
• Project duration shortens.

Crashing

• Crashing optimizes cost versus schedule tradeoffs.
• It allocates maximum resources to activities on the critical path.

Schedule Baseline

• The schedule baseline defines the project plan approved by management.
• It measures and reports schedule performance.

Control Schedule Process

• The control schedule process monitors performance and controls changes in the schedule.
• Important actions include getting stakeholder feedback and creating a schedule baseline.
• Key inputs include project management plan, project schedule, work performance information, and organizational/process assets.
• Used tools performance reviews, variance analysis, project management software resource levelling, "what if analysis", schedule compression, and scheduling tools.
• Outputs include work progress reports, along with any updates to project management plans, and documents.

Earned Value Management (EVM)

• EVM measures project progress as well as costs.
• It compares actual schedule and cost performance against the planned performance.
• It is important to understand the financial cost of the project you're performing.

EVM Measures

• Calculates three independent variables to assess and monitor performance progress
  • Planned Value (PV)
  • Earned Value (EV)
  • Actual Cost (AC)
• These variables provide measures of work accomplished.
• Forecasts the project cost at completion

Planned Value (PV)

• Represents the budgeted cost is designated for project work during a given time

Earned Value (EV)

• Composite measurement of the performance based on schedule and the total cost.
• It is calculated using the percentage of work completed times the budgeted cost.

Actual Cost (AC)

• Total costs to date that have been incurred while accomplishing work performed.

EVM Measures

• Schedule Variance (SV) measures deviations from the planned schedule, calculated by the formula SV = EV - PV.
• Schedule Performance Index (SPI) gauges the efficiency of work completed versus planned, with SPI = EV / PV.
• Cost Variance (CV) identifies budget deviations, determined by CV = EV - AC.
• Cost Performance Index (CPI) assesses the efficiency of costs, calculated by CPI = EV / AC.

Schedule Performance Measurement

• Used to determine how a project is performing based on time versus it's planned performance
• Indicates the variance of actual work performed and work scheduled
• Performance measurement techniques:
  • Schedule Variance (SV)
  • Schedule Performance Index (SPI)
  • Variance-and-Trend Analysis
• Determines detrimental risk and plans corrective actions