CS-868 Software Project Management

MS-20
Lec6
Dr Muhammad Abbas

Chapter 6:
Project Time
Management

Information Technology Project

Management, Eighth Edition
Learning Objectives
 Understand the importance of project schedules
and good project time management
 Discuss the process of planning schedule
management
 Define activities as the basis for developing
project schedules
 Describe how project managers use network
diagrams and dependencies to assist in activity
sequencing
 Understand the relationship between estimating
resources and project schedules
 Explain how various tools and techniques help
project managers perform activity duration
estimates 2
Learning Objectives
 Use a Gantt chart for planning and tracking
schedule information, find the critical path for a
project, and describe how critical chain scheduling
and the Program Evaluation and Review
Technique (PERT) affect schedule development
 Understand how time management is addressed
using Agile
 Discuss how reality checks and discipline are
involved in controlling and managing changes to
the project schedule
 Describe how project management software can
assist in project time management and review
words of caution before using this software
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Information Technology Project Management, Fourth Edition 4
 Importance of Project Schedules
 Managers often cite delivering projects on time as one of
their biggest challenges.
 Time has the least amount of flexibility; it passes no
matter what happens on a project
 Schedule issues are the main reason for conflicts on
projects, especially during the second half of projects
 People often compare planned and actual project
completion times without taking into account the
approved changes in the project

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 Individual Work Styles and Cultural
Differences Cause Schedule Conflicts
 One dimension of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
focuses on people’s attitudes toward structure and
deadline.

 Some people prefer to follow schedules and meet

deadlines while others do not.

 Different cultures and even entire countries have

different attitudes about schedules.

 Project time management, involves the processes

required to ensure timely completion of a project.
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•Seven main processes are involved in project time
management:
• Planning schedule management involves determining the
policies, procedures, and documentation that will be used for
planning, executing, and controlling the project schedule

• Defining activities involves identifying the specific

activities that the project team members and stakeholders
must perform to produce the project deliverables.
• Sequencing activities involves identifying and
documenting the relationships between project activities.
The main outputs of this process include project schedule
network diagrams and project documents updates.

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• Estimating activity resources involves estimating
how many resources—people, equipment, and
materials—a project team should use to perform
project activities.
• Estimating activity durations involves estimating
the number of work periods that are needed to
complete individual activities.
• Developing the schedule involves analysing
activity sequences, activity resource estimates,
and activity duration estimates to create the project
schedule.
• Controlling the schedule involves controlling and
managing changes to the project schedule.

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Project Time Management Summary

9
 Planning Schedule Management
 The project team uses expert judgment, analytical
techniques, and meetings to develop the schedule
management plan
 A schedule management plan includes:
 Project schedule model development
 The scheduling methodology
 Level of accuracy and units of measure
 Control thresholds
 Rules of performance measurement
 Reporting formats
 Process descriptions
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 PLANNING SCHEDULE MANAGEMENT
• Project schedule model development: Many projects include a
schedule model, which contains project activities with estimated
durations, dependencies, and other planning information
• Level of accuracy and units of measure: how accurate schedule
estimates should be and determines whether time is measured in
hours, days, or another unit
• Control thresholds: Variance thresholds, such as ±10%, are
established for monitoring schedule performance.
• Rules of performance measurement: this section specifies how to
determine the percentages of work completed
• Reporting formats: describes the format and frequency of schedule
reports required for the project.
• Process descriptions: describes how all of the schedule
management processes will be performed.

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 Activity Definition
 An activity or task is an element of work normally found
on the WBS that has an expected duration, a cost, and
resource requirements.
 Project schedules grow out of the basic documents that
initiate a project.
 The project charter includes start and end dates and budget
information.
 The scope statement and WBS help define what will be done.
 Activity definition involves developing a more detailed
WBS and supporting explanations to understand all the
work to be done, so you can develop realistic cost and
duration estimates.

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 Activity Lists and Attributes
 An activity list is a tabulation of activities to be included
on a project schedule. The list should include:
 The activity name
 An activity identifier or number
 A brief description of the activity
 Activity attributes provide more information about each
activity, such as predecessors, successors, logical
relationships, leads and lags, resource requirements,
constraints, imposed dates, and assumptions related to the
activity.

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 Milestones
 A milestone is a significant event that normally has no
duration.

 It often takes several activities and a lot of work to

complete a milestone.

 Milestones are useful tools for setting schedule goals

and monitoring progress.

 Examples include completion and customer sign-off on

key documents and completion of specific products.

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 Activity Sequencing
 Involves reviewing activities and determining
dependencies.

 You must determine dependencies in order to use

critical path analysis.

 A dependency or relationship is the sequencing of

project activities or tasks

 You must determine dependencies in order to use

critical path analysis

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 Three Types of Dependencies
Mandatory dependencies: inherent in the nature of the
work being performed on a project, sometimes referred to as
hard logic
Discretionary dependencies: defined by the project team.,
sometimes referred to as soft logic and should be used with
care since they may limit later scheduling options
External dependencies: involve relationships between
project and non-project activities

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 Network Diagrams
 Network diagrams are the preferred technique for
showing activity sequencing.

 A network diagram is a schematic display of the

logical relationships among, or sequencing of, project
activities.
 Some people refer to network diagrams as project
schedule network diagrams or PERT charts

 Two main formats are the arrow and precedence

diagramming methods.
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 Sample Activity-on-Arrow (AOA) Network
Diagram for Project X

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 Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM)

 Also called activity-on-arrow (AOA) network

diagram.
 Activities are represented by arrows.
 Nodes or circles are the starting and ending
points of activities.
 Can only show finish-to-start dependencies.

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 Process for Creating AOA Diagrams
1. Find all of the activities that start at node 1. Draw their finish nodes
and draw arrows between node 1 and those finish nodes. Put the
activity letter or name and duration estimate on the associated arrow
2. Continuing drawing the network diagram, working from left to right.
Look for bursts and merges. Bursts occur when a single node is
followed by two or more activities. A merge occurs when two or
more nodes precede a single node
3. Continue drawing the project network diagram until all activities are
included on the diagram that have dependencies
4. As a rule of thumb, all arrowheads should face toward the right, and
no arrows should cross on an AOA network diagram

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Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)

 Activities are represented by boxes.

 Arrows show relationships between activities.

 More popular than ADM method and used by project

management software.

 Better at showing different types of dependencies.

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Figure 6-3. Task Dependency Types

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Task Dependency Types

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24
25
 Example Step 1

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Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002

 Activity Duration Estimating
 Duration includes the actual amount of time worked on an
activity plus the elapsed time.
 Effort is the number of workdays or work hours required to
complete a task.
 Effort does not normally equal duration.
 People doing the work should help create estimates, and an
expert should review them.

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Project Management: Scheduling Projects with Certain
Time Estimates
 Create Network Diagram
 Based on order of precedence
among activities
 Calculation of the Critical Path
 Network approach helps calculate project duration
 A “path” is a sequence of activities that begins at the start of
the project and goes to the end of the project
 1,2,3,5,6,7,8
 1,2,4,6,7,8
 The “critical path” is the path that takes the longest to
complete
 and thus determines the minimum duration of the project

3 5
1 2 6 7 8
4
Calculation of the Critical Path
 Calculation of the Critical Path
 Critical Path
 The path that
takes the longest
to complete

2 weeks 3 weeks

4 weeks 10 weeks 3 5 16 weeks 4 weeks 1 week

1 2 4 weeks
6 7 8
4
 Calculation of the Critical Path
 Critical Path
 The path that
takes the longest
to complete

2 weeks 3 weeks

4 weeks 10 weeks 3 5 16 weeks 4 weeks 1 week

1 2 4 weeks
6 7 8
4 C.P. = 40 weeks
 Calculation of the Critical Path
 It is possible for multiple
Critical Paths to exist
 New information suggests that
Activity 4 will take 5 weeks
instead of 4
5
X

2 weeks 3 weeks

4 weeks 10 weeks 3 5 16 weeks 4 weeks 1 week

1 2 4 weeks
6 7 8
4
 Calculation of the Critical Path
 It is possible for
multiple Critical
Paths to exist
5
 New information X
suggests that Activity 4
will take 5 weeks instead
of 4

2 weeks 3 weeks

4 weeks 10 weeks 3 5 16 weeks 4 weeks 1 week

1 2 5 weeks
6 7 8
4 C.P. = 40 weeks
 Calculation of the Critical Path
 Critical Path may also
shift if non-critical
activity is lengthened or
Critical Path activity is 6
shortened X
 Another update indicates it
will actually take 6 weeks for
Activity 4

2 weeks 3 weeks

4 weeks 10 weeks 3 5 16 weeks 4 weeks 1 week

1 2 4 weeks
6 7 8
4
 Calculation of the Critical Path
 Critical Path may also
shift if non-critical
activity is lengthened or
Critical Path activity is 6
shortened X
 Another update indicates it
will actually take 6 weeks for
Activity 4

2 weeks 3 weeks

4 weeks 10 weeks 3 5 16 weeks 4 weeks 1 week

1 2 6 weeks
6 7 8
4 C.P. = 41 weeks
 Determining Slack
 Slack - The amount of time an activity on a non-critical path
can be delayed without affecting the duration of the project
(i.e., without putting it on the critical path)
 Uses four calculated values
 Early start - Earliest an activity can start (based on prerequisites)
 Early finish - Earliest it can finish (based on prerequisites & duration)
 Late start - Latest an activity can start and not delay the project
 Late finish - Latest an activity can finish and not delay the project
 Calculating Early Start (ES) and
Early Finish (EF)
 Move from left to right in
network
 ES for 1st activity usually zero
 EF equals ES plus activity
duration
 ES is latest of the EF times of
an activity’s predecessors
THIS IS CALLED
THE FORWARD
PASS
 Calculating Late Start (LS) and
Late Finish (LF)
• Move from right to left in
network
– LF for last activity equals EF
for last activity
• Or target date if different
– LS equals LF minus activity
duration
– LF is earliest of the LS times of
an activity’s followers
THIS IS CALLED THE
BACKWARD PASS
 Calculating Slack
 Slack - The amount of time an
activity on a non-critical path can be
 Computed by either:
delayed without affecting the
duration of the project (i.e., putting Late Start - Early Start
it on the critical path) or
Late Finish - Early Finish

• Activities that have zero slack are, by definition, on the critical path
 Three-Point Estimates
 Instead of providing activity estimates as a discrete
number, such as four weeks, it’s often helpful to create
a three-point estimate:
 An estimate that includes an optimistic, most likely, and
pessimistic estimate, such as three weeks for the
optimistic, four weeks for the most likely, and five
weeks for the pessimistic estimate.
 Three-point estimates are needed for PERT estimates
and Monte Carlo simulations.

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 Schedule Development
 Uses results of the other time management processes
to determine the start and end dates of the project.

 Ultimate goal is to create a realistic project schedule

that provides a basis for monitoring project progress
for the time dimension of the project.

 Important tools and techniques include Gantt charts,

critical path analysis, critical chain scheduling, and
PERT analysis.

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 Schedule Development

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 Gantt Charts
 Gantt charts provide a standard format for displaying
project schedule information by listing project activities
and their corresponding start and finish dates in a
calendar format
 Symbols include:
 A black diamond: a milestones
 Thick black bars: summary tasks
 Lighter horizontal bars: durations of tasks
 Arrows: dependencies between tasks

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 Figure 6-5. Gantt Chart for Project X

Note: In Project 2003 darker bars are red to represent critical tasks.

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Gantt Chart for Software Launch Project

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 Adding Milestones to Gantt Charts
 Many people like to focus on meeting milestones,
especially for large projects.

 Milestones emphasize important events or

accomplishments in projects.

 You typically create milestone by entering tasks that

have a zero duration, or you can mark any task as a
milestone.

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 SMART Criteria
 Milestones should be:
 Specific
 Measurable
 Assignable
 Realistic
 Time-framed

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Figure 6-7. Sample Tracking Gantt Chart

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 Critical Path Method (CPM)
 A critical path for a project is the series of activities that
determine the earliest time by which the project can be
completed.
 CPM is a network diagramming technique used to predict
total project duration.
 A critical path for a project is the series of activities that
determines the earliest time by which the project can be
completed.
 The critical path is the longest path through the network
diagram and has the least amount of slack or float.
 Slack or float is the amount of time an activity can be delayed
without delaying a succeeding activity or the project finish
date.
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 Critical Path Method (CPM)
 What does the critical path really mean?
 Even though the critical path is the longest
path, it represents the shortest time required to
complete a project.
 If one or more activities on the critical path
take longer than planned, the whole project
schedule will slip unless the project manager
takes corrective action.

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 Calculating the Critical Path
 Develop a good network diagram.

 Add the duration estimates for all activities on each

path through the network diagram.

 The longest path is the critical path.

 If one or more of the activities on the critical path takes

longer than planned, the whole project schedule will
slip unless the project manager takes corrective action.

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Determining the Critical Path for Project X

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 More on the Critical Path

 The critical path is not the one with all the

critical activities; it only accounts for time
 Remember the example of growing grass being on
the critical path for Disney’s Animal Kingdom
 There can be more than one critical path if the
lengths of two or more paths are the same
 The critical path can change as the project
progresses

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 Using Critical Path Analysis to Make
Schedule Trade-offs
 Free slack or free float is the amount of time an
activity can be delayed without delaying the early start
of any immediately following activities.
 Total slack or total float is the amount of time an
activity can be delayed from its early start without
delaying the planned project finish date.
 A forward pass through the network diagram
determines the early start and finish dates.
 A backward pass determines the late start and finish
dates.
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Calculating Early and Late Start and
Finish Dates

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Calculating Early and Late Start and
Finish Dates

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Table 6-1. Free and Total Float or Slack
for Project X

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 Reducing Project Duration
 How can you shorten the schedule?
 Via
 Reducing scope (or quality)
 Adding resources
 Concurrency (perform tasks in parallel)
 Substitution of activities

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Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002

 Compression Techniques
 Shorten the overall duration of the project
 Crashing
 Looks at cost and schedule tradeoffs
 Gain greatest compression with least cost
 Add resources to critical path tasks
 Limit or reduce requirements (scope)
 Changing the sequence of tasks
 Fast Tracking
 Overlapping of phases, activities or tasks that would otherwise be
sequential
 Involves some risk
 May cause rework

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Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002

 Using the Critical Path to Shorten a
Project Schedule
 Three main techniques for shortening schedules:

 Shortening the duration of critical activities or tasks by

adding more resources or changing their scope.

 Crashing activities by obtaining the greatest amount of

schedule compression for the least incremental cost.

 Fast tracking activities by doing them in parallel or

overlapping them.

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 Importance of Updating Critical
Path Data
 It is important to update project schedule information
to meet time goals for a project.

 The critical path may change as you enter actual start

and finish dates.

 If you know the project completion date will slip,

negotiate with the project sponsor.

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 Many Horror Stories Related to Project Schedules

 Creating realistic schedules and sticking to them is a

key challenge of project management.
 Crashing and fast tracking often cause more problems,
resulting in longer schedules.
 Organizational issues often cause schedule problems.
See the “What Went Wrong?” example that describes
the need to take more time to implement Customer
Relationship Management (CRM) software so that
users will accept it.

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 Critical Chain Scheduling
 Critical chain scheduling is a method of scheduling
that considers limited resources when creating a project
schedule and includes buffers to protect the project
completion date.

 Uses the Theory of Constraints (TOC), a

management philosophy developed by Eliyahu M.
Goldratt and introduced in his book The Goal.

 Attempts to minimize multitasking, which occurs

when a resource works on more than one task at a time.

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 Multitasking Example

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 Buffers and Critical Chain
 A buffer is additional time to complete a task.
 Murphy’s Law states that if something can go wrong, it
will.
 Parkinson’s Law states that work expands to fill the time
allowed.
 In traditional estimates, people often add a buffer to each
task and use the additional time whether it’s needed or not.
 Critical chain scheduling removes buffers from individual
tasks and instead creates:
 A project buffer or additional time added before the project’s
due date.
 Feeding buffers or additional time added before tasks on the
critical path.
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 Figure 6-11. Example of Critical
Chain Scheduling

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 Program Evaluation and Review
Technique (PERT)
 PERT is a network analysis technique used to estimate
project duration when there is a high degree of
uncertainty about the individual activity duration
estimates.

 PERT uses probabilistic time estimates:

 Duration estimates based on using optimistic, most

likely, and pessimistic estimates of activity durations, or
a three-point estimate.

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 PERT Formula and Example
 PERT weighted average =
optimistic time + 4X most likely time + pessimistic time
6
 Example:
PERT weighted average =
8 workdays + 4 X 10 workdays + 24 workdays = 12 days
6
where:
optimistic time= 8 days
most likely time = 10 days
pessimistic time = 24 days
Therefore, you’d use 12 days on the network diagram instead of 10 when
using PERT for the above example.

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 Schedule Control
Some of the tools and techniques include:
 Performance reviews, where progress reports are often
provided
 A schedule change control system, operated as part of the
integrated change control system described in Chapter 4,
Project Integration Management
 A scheduling tool and/or project management software,
such as Project 2016 or similar software
 • Variance analysis, such as analyzing float or slack and
using earned value, as described in Chapter 7, Project
Cost Management

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 Schedule Control
 What-if scenario analysis, which can be done
manually or with the aid of software
 Adjusting leads and lags
 Schedule compression, such as crashing and fast
tracking, as described earlier in this chapter
 Resource optimization techniques, such as
resource leveling, as described in Chapter 9,
Project Human Resource Management

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 Schedule Control
 Perform reality checks on schedules.

 Allow for contingencies.

 Don’t plan for everyone to work at 100 percent

capacity all the time.

 Hold progress meetings with stakeholders and be clear

and honest in communicating schedule issues.

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 Schedule Control
 Goals are to know the status of the schedule, influence
factors that cause schedule changes, determine that the
schedule has changed, and manage changes when they
occur.
 Tools and techniques include:
 Progress reports.
 A schedule change control system.
 Project management software, including schedule comparison
charts, such as the tracking Gantt chart.
 Variance analysis, such as analyzing float or slack.
 Performance management, such as earned value (see Chapter 7).

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 Reality Checks on Scheduling
 Review the draft schedule or estimated completion date
in the project charter.

 Prepare a more detailed schedule with the project team.

 Make sure the schedule is realistic and followed.

 Alert top management well in advance if there are

schedule problems.

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 Working with People Issues
 Strong leadership helps projects succeed more than
good PERT charts do.

 Project managers should use:

 Empowerment

 Incentives

 Discipline

 Negotiation

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 Using Software to Assist in Time
Management
 Software for facilitating communications helps people
exchange schedule-related information
 Decision support models help analyze trade-offs that
can be made
 Project management software can help in various time
management areas

85
 Chapter Summary
 Project time management is often cited as the main
source of conflict on projects, and most IT projects
exceed time estimates.
 Main processes include:
 Activity definition
 Activity sequencing
 Activity resource estimating
 Activity duration estimating
 Schedule development
 Schedule control

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