Management of Project coursework
Linda111
week2lecture.pptxOverview of Project Planning
Project Scheduling
Dr Kun Wang [email protected]
Learning objectives:
Understand project planning and its importance
Understand project scope management, product breakdown structures, and work breakdown structures
Compare different project scheduling tools
Apply project crashing techniques (Elearning, Week4, Week 7)
By the end of this week, we would like you to be able to:
Leading case for this lecture
There is a Covid -60061 around and the
cases of infection have increased dramatically.
Let’s build a hospital within 19 days for the kingdom of MoP!
Project planning
Planning is the process of thinking regarding the activities required to achieve a desired goal.
Let’s roll this material
Let’s save life
Look up at the starry sky, stand on solid ground
The project plan, also called project management plan, answers the who, what, where, why, how and when of the project.
Project planning is a –
Team sport
Progressing work
Key to project success
(Conrad Heine, 2022)
You are going to use it for:
Guiding your project implementation;
Tracking progress;
Acting as a baseline and correcting actions;
Communicating with stakeholders.
Scope management during the planning
We need a scope of work before starting any project!
•Scope comprises the totality of the outputs, outcomes and benefits and the work required to produce them
•Scope management is the process whereby outputs, outcomes and benefits are identified, defined, and controlled
It also determines what are out of the scope
What we have set up in the scope management is deliverable, which is a tangible or intangible good or service produced as a result of a project that is intended to be delivered
Expectations
&justifications
Scope management
Details of what should we deliver
The output of scope management is a specification that can be presented as a product breakdown structure (PBS) showing the deliverables and a work breakdown structure (WBS) showing the work required to produce the deliverables
(Project management institution Body of knowledge 6th edition, 2017)
PBS is a hierarchical structure that shows the deliverables of the project.
Considering some construction projects with unique functions as a product, some project managers also use zone breakdown structure.
Hospital
1.1Entrance
1.1.1Reception
1.1.2Sterile
1.1.2.1Changing room
1.1.2.2Sterilization of instruments room
1.2 in-patient department
1.2.1 normal beds
1.2.2 ICU
1.3 Surgical room
A simplified hospital PBS
An example of WBS (Source :Abdellatif, 2017)
WBS is a hierarchical structure that shows work required to create the products. Lowest level of a WBS shows the activities that would be used to create a network diagram for time scheduling
What information can we obtain from/ why do we need a breakdown structure?
https://smallbusiness.chron.com/importance-work-breakdown-structure-54294.html
A milestone is a specific point within a project’s life cycle used to measure the progress toward the ultimate goal. Milestones in project management are used as signal posts for a project's start or end date, external reviews or input, budget checks, submission of a major deliverable, etc. A milestone is a reference point that marks a significant event or a branching decision point within a project.
Examples of project milestones
While the final deliverable or product is indeed a significant milestone, there are several other milestones that will help you move smoothly toward the final goal. An example of a milestone in project management could be any of the following:
The beginning and end dates for project phases
Getting approval from a stakeholder that allows you to move to the next phase
Key deliverables, meetings, or events
Milestone
Gantt chart
WBS
Milestones
What information can you obtain from a Gantt chart? Any benefits of using
Gantt chart?
https://gobridgit.com/blog/what-is-a-gantt-chart-and-why-is-it-important/
(Blackwell, 2015)
(Blackwell, 2015)
Network Diagram
The network diagram is a graphical representation of the project’s activities showing the planned sequence of work; it turns a list of activities to be completed into a flow diagram that outlines:
–Project activities to be completed
–Logical sequence of activities during project life cycle
–Duration of activities and the project duration
–Length of time an activity can be delayed by
–Activities that are more sensitive to delay (critical)
A network is a group or system of interconnected people or things. So a network diagram includes nodes and connections.
Information in a node
Putting activities into the nodes of a network
A: Designing
B: Foundation digging
C: Equipment transportation
D: Plumbing
E: Wiring
F: Unit fitting
Step 1: Draw table to highlight Activities and Dependencies
Step 2: Draw the Network Diagram
Arrows to link the nodes
Critical path analysis calculates the earliest and latest dates for the performance of each activity and hence the overall duration of the project. It then calculates the amount that individual activities can be delayed without affecting the project finish.
Critical path is the longest path (or paths) through the network
Delayed tasks were only worth worrying about if they were likely to affect (go on to) the critical path
We must constantly run schedule risk analysis and determine what the current critical path is (as it WILL change)
Forward Pass
The forward pass through the network determines the earliest an activity can start, based on the defined schedule logic
0
3
3
3
8
7
8
8
10
16
16
19
Forward Pass—Earliest Times
How soon can the activity start? (early start—ES)
How soon can the activity finish? (early finish—EF)
How soon can the project finish? (expected time—ET)
Float is a measure of an activity’s flexibility, showing how many units (minutes, hours, days) an activity can be delayed before it will extend the completion date of the project
Float = LS - ES
= LF - EF
Backward Pass
The backward pass through the network determines the latest an activity can finish without delaying the project completion date, based on the defined schedule logic.
19
0
19-19=0
16
16
16
16
6
16-10=6
0
9
14
8+6=14, since the latest finish time is 16, earliest finish time is 10
it gives us a 6 days float to delay the day 8 start with 6 days
12
8
3+9=12
8+0=8
8
8 VS 14, the latest start time for D,E are 8 and 14, if we finished B later than day 8, D start will be delayed, so we chose 8
0
8-8=0
3
3+0=0
3
0
0
16-2=14, Finish time – duration = start time
Backward Pass—Latest Times
How late can the activity start? (late start—LS)
How late can the activity finish? (late finish—LF)
Which activities represent the critical path?
How long can activity be delayed? (slack or float—SL)
A->B->D->F
Basic Rules
1.Networks have a start and an end, flow left to right
2.Activities should not be looped
3.An activity cannot begin until all preceding connected activities are complete (finish-to-start relationship)
4.An activity needs a unique identification number and activities should be numbered sequentially
5.Lines can cross (although it makes it more difficult to read and follow)!
6. You may have more than one critical path
Finished ?
Why do we need to know critical path?
If it's important for your project to finish on schedule, pay close attention to the tasks on the critical path and the resources assigned to them. If a critical task takes longer than expected or a resource is suddenly unavailable for a critical task, the project will not be completed by the original finish date. (Micosoft, 2021)
Mostly, it’s a challenge to allocate resources effectively to ensure optimal utilization of resources. Without knowing the critical tasks, you may end up assigning your best resources to tasks that are of less importance and vice-versa.
Another major highlight of the CPM technique is that you can modify your network diagram to adjust work changes that may happen while proceeding with project tasks. (proofhub, 2022)
More importantly – how can we manage a critical path?
See you in mid-term
Project crashing
Project crashing is a method for shortening project’s duration by reducing time of one or more activities;
Usually we will cost more due to we need to finish one activity sooner; such cost called direct cost, which are the resources that are directly spent on project, e.g labour.
However, there are also indirect cost that is you need to spend every day/week/year anyway, such as renting an office, this can be reduced if the overall duration can be dropped;
To achieve highest value of money and to reduce the duration, you need to consider both costs.
Note: in reality, the cost for each activity need to be estimated by yourself.
So does the crashed cost. You will learn about this in week 4.
Start with the cheapest one
The faster the better? Another point in iron triangle - cost
We must constantly run schedule risk analysis and determine what the current critical path is (as it WILL change)
