Project Initiation, Planning and Execution
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MBA642
Project Initiation,
Planning and Execution
Workshop Week 5
Project Scheduling: Work Activity
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Week 4 Review
• Precedence relationships
• Time and Action (Gantt)
• Crashing projects
• Understand the factors that describe a project
• Examine the process for a planning work activity
• Identify the advantages of using a work
breakdown structure
• Construct a milestone plan
Week 5 Lecture Objectives
Describing a Project
1. The purpose of the project
- Why
2. The overall scope of work
- What
3. The outputs from the project
- Deliverables at end of project
4. The areas of work
- Intermediate deliverables
1. The Purpose of the Project
The purpose of a project could include:
• A statement of a business need
– e.g., launch a new product,
• A problem to be resolved
– e.g., too many customer complaints,
reduce costs
• A strategic objective
– e.g., open a new facility
2. The Overall Scope
• The work to be undertaken:
– What is included?
– What is required to solve the problem?
– What are the benefits?
• The work excluded
– What we are NOT going to do
• Interfaces with other projects
3. The Project Outputs
• Deliverables
– Must address all the work within the scope of the project
– Not address work outside the scope
– Set parameters for managing quality, cost and time
• Quantitative measures
– Use of metrics
• Qualitative measures
– Use of expert opinion
Quantitative Measures
• Defining “what” to measure: Measures that provide the maximum
insight into the objectives and bear the maximum correlation with the
objectives should be used.
• Define the measurement framework: This involves deciding the tools
used, the frequency at which the observations will be pooled, and
assigning responsibilities for measurement and presentation.
• Collection and presentation of data: project controllers collect the
information and present it to management in an easy to digest format.
• Analysis of the data and initiating corrective action as necessary.
• Review the effectiveness of the measurement and corrective actions
by comparing “before” and “after” numbers.
Shouche, S., Borthakur, A., & Mate, N. (2006). Quantitative project management—use of metrics for effective project
management. Paper presented at PMI® Global Congress 2006—Asia Pacific, Bangkok, Thailand. Newtown Square, PA:
Project Management Institute.
Qualitative Measures
• Qualitative measurements measure a project based largely on
quality determinations
• They are documents that provide requirements, specifications,
guidelines, or characteristics that can be used consistently to ensure
that materials, products, processes, and services are fit for their
purpose.
4. The Areas of Work
Areas of work emanating from the project need to be defined;
• Facilities
• Technology
• Organisation
Why?
• To monitor intermediate deliverables
• Sets a stable framework
• Controls devolution of management in the hierarchy
Workshop Activity
• In small groups of 3 or 4, prepare a project
description for the following scenario
• Share your results with the class
Scenario:
Yourself and 3 friends have
decided to go to Bali together for
a holiday. You have decided that
you want to stay for 3 days in 3
different locations. You are also
aware that you all have varying
interests.
Hierarchy of Work Activity
• Areas of Work
– Intermediate deliverables
• Milestones
– Packages of work
– Deliverables
• Activities
– Tasks
– Assigned work
Advantages of using a Work
Breakdown Structure (WBS)
1. Better control
2. Coherent delegation
3. Levels of estimating and control
4. Containment of risk
WBS 1. Better Control
• Managing through the WBS with a
single point of responsibility
• Focus on results: what is to be
achieved, not how to do it
• Balance results through the WBS
2. Coherent Delegation
• Parcelling of work is
natural
• Responsibility can easily
be assigned
• Resources can be
controlled and measured
3. Levels of Estimating and
Control
The level of estimating the WBS,
depends on:
• The size, type and duration of
a project
• The purpose for which the
estimates will be used
• The current state in the
project life cycle
• The requirements for effective
control
4. Containment of Risk
• The uncertainty introduced by risk
• The need to contain risk
Workshop Activity • In small groups of 3 or 4, identify specific
advantages and disadvantages of a creating a
WBS for the following scenario
• Share your results with the class
Scenario:
Yourself and 3 friends have
decided to go to Bali together
for a holiday. You have decided
that you want to stay for 3 days
in 3 different locations. You are
also aware that you all have
varying interests.
The Hierarchy of the WBS
• Areas of Work
– Intermediate deliverables
• Milestones
– Packages of work
– Deliverables
• Activities
– Tasks
Source: Adapted from, Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-
Based Management: leading Strategic Change in Organizations, 3rd
edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
Features of a Milestone
• Be understandable to everyone
• Provide qualitative and quantitative control
• Focus on decisions
• Show the logical sequence
• Give a single page overview
Source: Adapted from, Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-Based Management:
leading Strategic Change in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
Developing a Milestone Plan
1. Start by agreeing to the final milestone, the end of the project
2. Generate ideas for interim milestones
– Identify the area of work for each
3. Review the milestones
– Are these activities or key deliverables?
– Are they discrete or do they belong to other milestones?
4. Draw logical dependencies between the milestones
5. Make the final drawing
– Repeat 2,3 4 until a coherent drawing emerges
Source: Adapted from, Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-Based Management:
leading Strategic Change in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
Workshop Activity
• In small groups of 3 or 4, identify the
milestones the following scenario
• Share your results with the class
Scenario:
Yourself and 3 friends have decided to go to Bali
together for a holiday at the end of term. You have
decided that you want to stay for 3 days in 3
different locations. You are also aware that you all
have varying interests.
The Milestone Overview
Source: Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-Based Management: leading
Strategic Change in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
The WBS as a Tree
Source: Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-Based Management: leading
Strategic Change in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
The Milestone List
Source: Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-Based Management: leading
Strategic Change in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
The Milestone Statement
Source: Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-Based Management: leading Strategic
Change in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
The Milestone Plan
Source: Turner, JR (2009) The Handbook of Project-Based Management: leading Strategic
Change in Organizations, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, Sydney.
Workshop Activity
• In small groups of 2, select one milestone from the
previous activity and prepare a milestone statement
• Share your results with the class
Scenario:
Yourself and 3 friends have
decided to go to Bali
together for a holiday. You
have decided that you want
to stay for 3 days in 3
different locations. You are
also aware that you all have
varying interests.
Summary
• A project can be described by its:
– purpose, scope, outputs
• Breaking down work activity (WBS) is a
process by which the project is subdivided
for management and control purposes:
– Areas of work
– Milestones
– Activities and Schedule
For Week 7
• Week 6 – guest lecturer
Week 7
• Understand the factors that determine
technology adoption
• Identify different types of project
management software
• Examine a range of software applications
