project planning and scheduling project planning and scheduling

Project

Planning and Scheduling

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Definition of scheduling and its relationship to the project management process

Scheduling uses and benefits

Schedule types

Characteristics of a good schedule

Schedule preparation, reports and control

Network scheduling including analysis techniques and relationships

Scheduling Topics Covered

Project Planning and Scheduling

http://www.maxwideman.com/issacons/index.htm


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PM Process Summary

Launch Plan Recruit and organize project

team Establish team operating

rules Level project resources Assign work

Monitor & Control Progress

Establish progress reporting system

Set up change control process Define problem escalation

process Monitor progress vs. plan Revise project plan

Close Out Project Obtain client acceptance Install project deliverables Complete project

documentation Complete post-implementation

audit Issue final project report

Develop Detailed Plan Identify project activities Estimate activity duration Determine resource

requirements Construct / analyze project

network Prepare project schedule

Define Project State need, problem or

opportunity Define project objectives Identify success criteria List assumptions, risks and

obstacles Define project scope and work

breakdown structure Feedback

Adapted from Project Management, 1987 Kepner-Tregoe, Inc. and Effective Project Management by R.K. Wysocki, R. Beck Jr. & D.B. Crane (Wiley, 1995)

We are here

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The process of converting a general or outline plan for a project into a time-based graphic presentation using information on available resources and time constraints.

Scheduling




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Scheduling is a management tool

It can be used to satisfy a number of objectives – Coordination – Analysis and forecasting – Reporting against a baseline

Scheduling enables you to– Integrate the activities of the various project

participants – Show interface responsibilities particularly with

respect to timing – Secure, record and communicate commitment to

tasks by the various contributors to the project effort

Scheduling




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Scheduling also enables you to

– Identify the key activity sequence (critical path) determining the length of the project

– Display departmental work loading and hence facilitate departmental planning

– Provide the basis for more detailed scheduling

Scheduling




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Scheduling enables analysis and forecasting You can

– Show priorities for procuring equipment, material, labor and services

– Analyze complex work areas with many interrelated activities through network analysis

– Facilitate long range planning and future resource allocation

– Measure progress – Measure performance – Maintain control over time and cost of the project – Produce a cash flow forecast

Scheduling




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Use scheduling for reporting

– Provide a visible summary of important or major activities

– Report planned completion dates – Report deviations from plan – Provide an early warning system for delays– Monitor cash flow– Record actual dates– For forecasting – For estimating on future projects

Scheduling




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Three Basic Steps to a Project Schedule




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There are many ways of presenting similar information, each with different objectives

Gantt Chart is another name for Bar Chart

Milestone Chart

Progress Chart

Networks

Earned Value or Trend lines

Line of Balance

And several others

Types of Schedules




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Graphical representation shows horizontal bars against a time scale

At summary or detailed levels

Gantt or Simple Bar Chart




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Graphical representation shows milestone dates

Identifies key points in the project's life span

The bars are not necessarily visible

Milestone Chart




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Graphical representation shows progress relative to plan

In this case, behind

schedule

No indication of final completion

Progress Bar Chart




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Graphical representation shows original baseline schedule (red bars) and actual progress relative to current plan

No indication of final completion

Bar Chart Status Report




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Advantages Good communication tool Easy to prepare (minimal cost) Easy to update Good for small projects

Disadvantages Do not show relationships between

activities without a lot of extra lines Limited help for project control

Bar Charts Pros and Cons




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A good schedule will be– Logical – Simple and easy to work with – Easy to monitor – Flexible, easy to revise – Specific and timely

It will also– Anticipate problems– Promote effective communication


Characteristics of a Good Schedule



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The highest summary level schedule for a project showing the overall phasing and all major interfaces, key milestones and significant work elements

Also known as an Executive Summary Level Schedule

Usually prepared manually as an outline of intent very early in the project's life span

Master Schedule




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Developed as early as possible in the project life span Maintained by the project manager

For the project owner/sponsor

Preferably developed through negotiation with the project sponsor

Should show all major activities at a summary level

Include key milestones or events relating to each major activity at critical points in time

Master Schedule




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Original version is the baseline or target schedule Provides a yardstick for the overall project status

against which overall progress is measured Because of its simplicity, it can be used throughout

the project as the reporting base

Master Schedule




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The Baseline Master Schedule should not be changed unless

– A formal and agreed re-scheduling takes place for

the entire project or a major part of it

– The current actual progress and the target schedule become so far apart that recovery is impossible and target objectives have become meaningless

– Such changes are recognized by senior management and approved by the sponsor/client

Master Schedule




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Project scheduling can be very sophisticated

Refer to some of the many books on the subject for an in-depth understanding

For our purposes there are ten general steps in preparing a reliable schedule

Preparing a Schedule




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Before you start preparing a serious detailed schedule, you must first have

– A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

– A list of tasks derived from each Work Package

– Staffing and resources required, or available, for each task





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Do you really need all of that information? – Yes. And also assemble any other information

that will affect schedule calculations You can of course start developing a schedule long

before you have all of that information, but – Such a schedule will be "High-level" – And correspondingly less reliable

In fact, your detailed schedule should only come after several schedule iterations earlier in the project life span





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There are a number of recommended steps, depending on your particular project

But first – Assemble key team members who will be

responsible for conducting the project – Brief them on the purpose of the meeting

Inevitably there will be some preliminary discussion





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Establish and agree the scheduling assumptions, especially a clear set of scheduling objectives – For example, product quality grade, time and

cost limitations that will affect activities

Overall strategy for the project

Methodology or technology to be used and how it will be applied

Sources of resources and their competence, or

training needs

Working hours, holidays, other interruptions



Step 1



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Identify each logical work area as reflected in the WBS and the activities associated with each

Make sure that all the necessary major

activities and tasks have been included to create the required intermediate and final deliverables

If you have too many activities consider

using "hammocks” to group discrete tasks as one activity



Step 2

Hammock - An aggregate or summary activity. All related activities are tied as one summary activity and reported at the summary level.



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Establish the project's natural or "inherent" logic Some projects have very clear logic while others

provide more options depending on resources or the nature of the project or other circumstances

Nevertheless, there is almost always a preferred

way of doing things

It is worth spending time to look for it

Work the activities from the beginning to the end Then work from the end back to the beginning!



Step 3



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Develop a flow chart or logic diagram – AKA a network diagram – paint a picture of the schedule

Use the work breakdown structure as a “To do” list

Which of these items must be done first?– Label that item “A”

What must follow next?– Label those B, C, D, etc

Now ask what can be done concurrently with A, B or C?

Assemble a simple logic diagram arranged from left to right


Step 3, continued Preparing a Schedule



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Logic Diagram

Use large sheets of paper, cards on the wall or sticky notes More than 30 activities, separate project into two phases


Step 3, continued



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Incorporate any "Management Choice" logic, i.e., dates or sequence mandated by management

These may or may not make sense

Make sure that management understands the implications of imposed management decisions

Adjust the logic accordingly

Always double check that the schedule logic is sound Steps 3 and 4 establish the schedule network

configuration



Step 4



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Estimate the duration of each activity or task Pay particular attention to this step since the whole

schedule will depend upon it Use all available sources of information Be careful with published information since the

circumstances of your project may be different Some tasks will still be difficult to estimate, seek expert

help, use ranges Document areas of high uncertainty (risk) Always aim for the “most likely" duration – don't build in

contingency at every step, or the project will not fly Always be realistic – you can refine on the second pass

and make appropriate contingency allowances later



Step 5



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Calculate the Forward Pass by adding the durations along each path in your network to establish the earliest start (ES) and finish (EF) dates for each activity

Calculate the Backward Pass by repeat this operation

but working backwards from the last date established in the Forward Pass or from a specified Required Completion date to establish the latest start (LS) and finish (LF) dates for each activity

This is much easier using scheduling software



Step 6



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If you examine the values of (ES-LS) and (EF-LF) you will note that

– The string of activities where these values are zero is the longest path through the network

– This is known as the Critical Path

– Where the values are positive indicates that there is Float for those activities



Step 6, continued



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A negative ES-LS value implies that you must start an activity before you are logically able to do so, that is, you don't have enough time to do all of the work as planned

This usually only happens when you are given a mandated finish date which is inadequate or too tight (senior management's favorite pastime)

If you have negative values the schedule doesn't work, and you need to go to Step 7



Step 6, continued



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There are a number of things you can do to fix an unworkable schedule

To meet a predetermined end date – Check whether all activities are really necessary – Move activities off the critical path or eliminate

them altogether – Accelerate critical activities – Using overtime or more resources – Work some activities in parallel (concurrently) or

increase the amount of overlap

Insist that management provides faster feedback on decision-making



Step 7



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Make sure the resulting schedule chart makes sense and looks good

A well-presented bar chart will show the grouped activities in a progressive cascade making it clear and easy to read

Use the calendar dates and create an ideal master schedule of milestone dates identifying the completion of major or key activities



Step 8



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Finally, when everyone is satisfied, follow up with these last two steps

Chart or print the results and distribute for final team review and acceptance before issuing it to management

Abstract or summarize schedule data for different levels of management



Step 9

Step 10



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Schedule Reports




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Strictly speaking, you cannot control the schedule What you can do is

– Create a schedule

– Have it distributed for action – Observe what is actually going on – Compare and update the schedule – Report your findings to those in charge

– Conduct review meetings with your team

Schedule Control




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The agenda should include

– Significant variances

– Impact on future milestones

– Impact on activities of others

– Proposed actions to catch up

– Summary of expected future key milestone dates

Planning and Schedule Review Meetings




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If there is a severe problem with the schedule, recovery actions may well depend on the technology that you are dealing with

However, management steps that you might

consider include– Closer control – Crashing – reduce time by increasing resources – Working overtime or double shifts– Fast tracking – overlap serial activities – Trade-offs between scope, quality, time and cost – Change methods, materials or equipment – Negotiate a revised schedule

Changing the Schedule




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If the schedule gets really out of whack you may need to do more than just negotiate a revised schedule

You may need to obtain approval for

– A major revision of the timeline – Major revisions of the methodology or resources – Revision of the project scope with all appropriate

approvals, of course – In other words, a major re-planning effort

A suggested flow chart for a schedule change process

is shown on the next slide

Changing the Schedule




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Schedule Change Process




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A graphical display of the logical order of activities that defines the sequence of work in a project where activities are represented by boxes

Networks are usually drawn from left to right with lines drawn between the boxes to show the precedence relationships between them

Arrow heads are sometimes placed on the lines to indicate the direction of the flow through time

Network Scheduling




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Precedence diagram format is the most common (see next slide)

Shows logical inter-relationships between activities, that is, their interdependence

Enables easy calculation of critical path either manually or with software

Critical Path activities have zero float and constitutes the longest path in the project

Shows how much float other activities have

Network Advantages




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Precedence Network Diagram



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The critical path determines length of project according to the project logic and the critical activities for that particular scenario

Easy to assign leads and lags between activities to solve a deadline problem

Easy to apply resources and determine resource or time trade-offs

Facilitates “what if" scenarios

By running the same network with actuals it is fairly easy to assess project progress and performance

Network Advantages




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If you have more than a few activities you need to use software

The network itself is not a good presentation communication tool

Good software will present the same information as a bar chart

The network itself is really only a means to an end

Network Disadvantages




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Activity – An item of work that consumes time and resources to produce some result

Critical Path – – The series of activities all of which must finish on

time for the whole project to finish on time – Sometimes described as the longest path through a

network, hence the shortest project time – A critical path has zero float – A critical path assumes that the network logic is

sound

Network Terminology




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Event or Milestone – – A point in time when certain conditions have been

fulfilled, such as the start or completion of one or more activities

– Unlike an activity, does not consume time or resources

– Hence, expresses a state of being – Activities take place between events

Float or Slack Time – The additional time available to complete a non-critical activity

Network Terminology




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Leads and Lags – An imposed modification of the logical relationship between activities to accelerate or delay the apparent natural order

Scheduling Network – Graphical representation of activities or nodes and the dependencies between them

Time Estimate – The prediction of the most likely

duration of an activity

Network Terminology




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Essentially there are three different approaches – Activity-oriented systems, – Event-oriented systems – Event-oriented systems plus probability

Activity-oriented systems use either activities as

connectors or Activities as nodes

Event-based approach focuses on start and finish times and may involve PERT

Shown graphically on the next slide

Approaches to Network Analysis




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Network Analysis Techniques



PERT – Project Evaluation and Review Technique

Calculation produces an "Expected time" Te, where Te = (To+4Tm+Tp)/6, that is to say, the mean value of the three estimates


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Networks depend on relationships

Relationships between activities are central to the concept of network analysis

Several relationships, including lag factors, are shown

graphically on the next several slides Note that with Arrow Diagramming you have to use

dummy activities to correctly display certain relationships – not intuitive, but it works

Network Relationships




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Arrow Diagramming




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Precedence Diagramming




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Lag Factor Notation




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Start is dependent, but not completion




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Completion is dependent, but not start




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B depends on A after a specified lag



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Precedence Network Activity Data Boxes



Suggested display of key data

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Precedence Network Diagram


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You'll probably want to make your first cut at a complicated network schedule on paper

Start with a large sheet of paper Fill it with blank data boxes (previous slides) all neatly

lined up in rows and columns with space between them all

Use sticky notes for the boxes so you can move them around

Display as many activities as you can think of Now draw in the dependency lines Enter any other data you have – this all makes it

easier to computerize later

Larry’s note – It’s easier said than done

First Cut at a Complex Schedule



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We’ve covered the essentials of project scheduling

– Definition of scheduling

– Uses and benefits

– Types of schedules

– Schedule preparation

– Schedule reports and control

– Network scheduling and analysis techniques

Summary


project planning and scheduling project planning and scheduling

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