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Questions and Answers
What is the difference between duration and effort in project management?
What is the difference between duration and effort in project management?
What are the components involved in a three-point estimate?
What are the components involved in a three-point estimate?
Which of the following tools is NOT commonly used in schedule development?
Which of the following tools is NOT commonly used in schedule development?
What is the purpose of a Gantt chart in project management?
What is the purpose of a Gantt chart in project management?
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Who should ideally participate in creating estimates for project activities?
Who should ideally participate in creating estimates for project activities?
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What is primarily responsible for conflicts during the second half of a project?
What is primarily responsible for conflicts during the second half of a project?
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Which process involves identifying the specific activities needed to meet project deliverables?
Which process involves identifying the specific activities needed to meet project deliverables?
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What does the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) help to define and organize?
What does the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) help to define and organize?
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Which of the following is NOT part of the project time management processes?
Which of the following is NOT part of the project time management processes?
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What is involved in developing a project schedule?
What is involved in developing a project schedule?
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Which process focuses on determining necessary resources for project activities?
Which process focuses on determining necessary resources for project activities?
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Why is time considered to have the least amount of flexibility in project management?
Why is time considered to have the least amount of flexibility in project management?
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What is the main purpose of sequencing activities in project time management?
What is the main purpose of sequencing activities in project time management?
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What is a key component of a schedule management plan that dictates how project activities are measured for accuracy?
What is a key component of a schedule management plan that dictates how project activities are measured for accuracy?
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Which of the following is true about mandatory dependencies?
Which of the following is true about mandatory dependencies?
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How does an activity list primarily help in project scheduling?
How does an activity list primarily help in project scheduling?
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What does the term 'sequencing activities' refer to in project management?
What does the term 'sequencing activities' refer to in project management?
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Which type of dependency is based on good practices rather than necessity?
Which type of dependency is based on good practices rather than necessity?
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What is defined by the control thresholds established in a schedule management plan?
What is defined by the control thresholds established in a schedule management plan?
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Which of the following attributes provide additional information about project activities?
Which of the following attributes provide additional information about project activities?
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What is an example of an external dependency?
What is an example of an external dependency?
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What do nodes or circles represent in an Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM)?
What do nodes or circles represent in an Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM)?
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Which type of relationships can the Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM) display?
Which type of relationships can the Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM) display?
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What is a 'burst' in the context of network diagrams?
What is a 'burst' in the context of network diagrams?
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What do arrows represent in a Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)?
What do arrows represent in a Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)?
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When estimating activity resources, which question is crucial to ask regarding resource availability?
When estimating activity resources, which question is crucial to ask regarding resource availability?
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Which method is more popular for displaying project activity dependencies?
Which method is more popular for displaying project activity dependencies?
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What does the term 'merge' refer to in network diagrams?
What does the term 'merge' refer to in network diagrams?
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Which of the following does NOT represent a consideration for estimating activity resources?
Which of the following does NOT represent a consideration for estimating activity resources?
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Study Notes
Lecture 4, Chapter 6: Project Time Management - Part 1
- Project managers often cite delivering projects on time as one of their biggest challenges.
- Time has the least amount of flexibility; it passes regardless of project events.
- Schedule issues are the primary cause of conflicts in projects, particularly during the latter stages.
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
- A WBS is a fundamental project management technique.
- It defines and organizes the total scope of a project.
- It uses a hierarchical tree structure.
Building House WBS Example
- Shows a breakdown of tasks for building a house, from project management to landscaping.
- It lists specific tasks, materials, and activities (e.g., laying foundation, constructing walls, designing interiors, etc.).
Project Time Management Processes
- Various processes are used to manage time effectively in a project.
- Processes include planning, controlling, developing the schedule, defining activities, sequencing activities, estimating activity durations, and estimating activity resources.
Project Time Management - Processes Breakdown
- Planning schedule: Includes determining policies, procedures, and documentation for planning, executing, and controlling project schedules.
- Defining activities: Identifying specific activities needed to deliver project deliverables from stakeholders and the project team.
- Sequencing activities: Identifying and documenting relationships between project activities.
- Estimating activity resources: Estimating the quantity of resources (people, equipment, and materials).
- Estimating activity durations: Assessing work periods needed to complete activities.
- Developing the schedule: Analyzing activity sequences, resource estimates, and duration estimates to develop the project schedule.
- Controlling the schedule: Managing and controlling changes to the project schedule.
Schedule Management Plan
- Project schedule mode: Contains project activities with estimated durations, dependencies, and planning information to create project schedules.
- Level of accuracy and units of measure: Defining the accuracy requirements and time units (hours, days, etc.) for estimates.
- Control thresholds: Establishing variance thresholds (e.g., ±10%) for monitoring schedule performance.
- Rules of performance measurement: Specifying how team members track work completion percentages.
- Reporting formats: Defining the format and frequency of schedule reports.
- Process descriptions: Describing how all schedule management processes will be carried out.
Defining Activities
- An activity or task is an element of work within a project's work breakdown structure (WBS).
- Defining activities involves detailed WBS explanations to establish realistic cost and duration estimations.
- These activities need resources, expected duration, and costs.
Activity Lists and Attributes
- Activity lists tabulate activities to be included in project schedules.
- Attributes include the activity name, identifier, description, predecessors, successors, logical relationships, leads/lags, resource requirements, constraints, dates, and assumptions related to the activity.
Sequencing Activities
- Sequencing activities involves reviewing activities and dependencies.
- A dependency or relationship sequences project activities or tasks.
- Understanding dependencies is vital for critical path analysis.
Types of Dependencies
- Mandatory dependencies: Inherent in the nature of the work, can't be performed until a prior step is complete (e.g., writing code before testing).
- Discretionary dependencies: Defined by the project team based on good practices.
- External dependencies: Involve relationships between the project and non-project activities, often involving external suppliers.
Task Dependency Types
- Finish-to-Start (FS): Task B begins after Task A is finished.
- Start-to-Start (SS): Task B begins simultaneously with Task A.
- Finish-to-Finish (FF): Task B ends when Task A ends.
- Start-to-Finish (SF): Task B ends after Task A has started.
Network Diagrams
- Network diagrams graphically illustrate logical project activity relationships.
- The preferred method of illustrating project activity sequencing.
Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM)
- Also known as Activity-on-Arrow (AOA) network diagrams.
- Activities are represented by arrows, and nodes represent starting/ending points.
- ADM diagrams can only showcase finish-to-start dependencies.
- An example of an AOA Network Diagram shows activities with durations, and node connections, illustrating activities and dependencies within a project.
Creating AOA Diagrams
- Construct the diagram by identifying activities starting at node 1.
- Indicate dependencies with arrows and include activity names/duration estimates.
- Analyze for "bursts" (single node leading to multiple activities) and "merges" (multiple nodes uniting into a single activity).
Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)
- Activities shown as boxes.
- Relationships shown via arrows connecting activities (predecessors, successors, etc.).
- PDM is more popular than ADM. Preferred for illustrating various dependencies.
PDM Network Diagram
- Visual example of how the precedence diagram method is represented for project activities, including task-names, and durations.
Estimating Activity Resources
- Understanding resource quantities and types is crucial before duration estimations.
- Crucial questions include activity difficulty, organizational history, material/resource availability, and potential needs for additional resources.
Estimating Activity Durations
- Duration considers both work time and elapsed time.
- Effort differentiates itself from duration and is measured in work days or hours.
- Estimates created by those directly involved in activities should be reviewed by an expert.
Three-Point Estimates
- This approach offers optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic estimates for a more nuanced understanding of task durations that is needed for PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique).
Schedule Development
- Schedule development uses results from time management processes to determine project start and end dates.
- The goal is to construct a realistic schedule that monitors progress.
- Important tools include Gantt charts, critical path analysis, critical chain scheduling, and PERT analysis.
Gantt Charts
- Standardized format for displaying project schedules, representing tasks and their start and finish dates in a calendar-based format.
- Arrows indicate dependencies between tasks.
- A Gantt chart example is provided, illustrating how tasks are linked and scheduled.
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