The Need for Planning: Implementation Planning

1. The Need for Planning: Implementation Planning William Tibben SITACS University of Wollongong. August 2002

2. Outline • Definition • Important Questions that you need to ask during Implementation Planning Phase • Building Project Networks • What is a Critical Path and why are these important

3. ‘…Spectacular achievements are always preceded by calculated preparation…’ (GCRH, 2002)

4. How long is a piece of string? Management says we need a piece of string….but ‘how long is a piece of string? Implementation Planning is required to define • how long the string will be, • where you will get the string, • who will cut it and • how much this will cost.

5. Definition • ‘…Implementation Planning ensures the compatibility of the planning and budgeting processes to support …[strategic goals]…It prescribes commensurate milestones, resource requirements, schedules and performance criteria at both the program and task levels…’ (NASA, 1996)

6. The Crouch Diagram Why are we in business? How do we do business? Where are we now? Where do we want to be? • Tactics • Resources How do we get there? How will we know we’ve arrived?

7. The Crouch Diagram Why are we in business? How do we do business? Where are we now? Where do we want to be? How do we get there? • Co-Ordination • Budgets • Controls • Reports • Milestones How will we know we’ve arrived?

8. Implementation Planning is an Information Intensive Process There is a need to communicate both • the detail • the vision

9. Implementation Planning is an Information Intensive Process • Implementation Planning (Gray and Larson, 2002, p.89) • provides the basis of scheduling labour and equipment; • determines how much money is required • becomes an instrument that melds managers and groups together into meeting time, cost and performance objectives • answers the question how long is it going to take?

10. Information Intensive Processes are usually… • Information Intensive Processes are usually those that must deal with a high degree of uncertainty. We must try to fill this void (create certainty) with information. • With that we are plagued with the normal information management problems of communication, structuring information, information overload, tacit knowledge etc…

11. Practical Example of an Implementation Plan • Northern Territory University’s Callista Project (Student Records System)

12. Essential Question 1.(Courtesy of Commworks, 2001) • What is the timeline for networkdeployment?

13. Essential Question 2 - Does your budget support the timeline? Work package cost estimate Gray & Larson, 2000, Figure 3-8

14. $6,000 5,000 4,000 Costs 3,000 2,000 Committed Actual cost 1,000 Scheduled budget Project Duration Essential Question 2 - Does your budget support the timeline? Gray & Larson, 2000, Figure 3-9

15. Complete project 1 Project Major deliverables 2 Deliverable Supporting deliverables Subdeliverable 3 Lowest managementresponsibility level 4 Lowest subdeliverable Grouping of work packagesfor monitoring progress andresponsibility 5 Cost account* Work package Identifiable work activities Essential Question 3 - Have you accounted for all tasks required to deploy the network? Gray & Larson, 2000, Figure 3-3

16. Personal computerprototype Level1 Moreitems 1.0 1.3 1.1 1.4 1.2 Vendor,software,applications Mouse,keyboard,voice Microprocessorunit Diskstorageunits 2 1.4.1 1.4.2 ~ ~ 1.1.1 1.1.2 1.1.3 Internalmemoryunit BIOS (basicinput/outputsystem) 3 Floppy Optical Hard ~ ~ 1.4.1.1 1.4.1.2 1.4.2.1 1.4.2.2 1.4.2.3 4 RAM ROM I/O File Utilities ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Lowest manageablesubdeliverables 1.1.3.1 1.1.3.2 1.1.3.3 1.1.3.4 5 Chassisframe Circuitboard Read/writehead Motor Cost accountnumber Cost 1.1.3.4.1 account Cost Cost account account Cost Cost account account Cost account Cost account Design Manufacturing Production Work packages WP1.1.3.4.2.1 WP1.1.3.4.2.2 WP1.1.3.4.2.3 Organization Test Purchasing Budget byperiod Software Gray & Larson, 2000, Figure 3-3

17. Essential Question 4 - Who will do the work required to deploy the network?

18. Essential Question 5 - Do you have a strong Project Manager in place to coordinate aspects of deployment?

19. Essential Question 6 - Who will manage all of the vendors needed for deployment?

20. Question • Are Implementation Planning processes the same for small projects as for large projects?

21. Risk Cost High Cost to fixrisk event Chances of risksoccurring Low Project life cycle Project Network • ‘…The project network represents ¾ of the planning process…’ (Gray and Larson , 2000, p. 90). Why? Gray and Larson, 2000, Figure 5-1

22. A B C Level 1 - Milestone Plan D E F Level 2 - Plans Level 3 - Plans WP-1 WP-4 WP-3 WP-2 Gray and Larson, 2000, p. 91

23. The Project Network melds managers, workers…together • Level 1 – Milestones – used by Project Management, Top management and the client. • Level 2 – Work packages shown in relation to each other for Department Managers • Level 3 – Work packages used by first-line managers

24. Lowestelement Circuitboard BP-10-1 AD-1-1D-1-2 DP-10-2 FS-22-2 KT-13-1 Designcostaccount OrganizatioUnits DesignWP D-1-1 SpecificationsWP D-1-2 Documentation CS-22-1 Productioncostaccount ProductionWP P-10-1 Proto 1WP P-10-2 Final Proto 2 BProto 15 Testcostaccount Test systemsWP T-13-1 Test ASpecificationsand documentation2 DFinalproto 24 FFinalsoftware2 KTest3 Softwarecostaccount SoftwareWP S-22-1 Software preliminaryWP S-22-1 Software final version CPreliminarysoftware3 Figure 4-2 Gray and Larson, 2000, p. 92

25. LegendR = ResponsibilityC = ContributesA = Advises OrganizationUnit/Individual Activities Gray and Larson, 2000,Figure 4-10

26. Constructing a Network • Networks flow typically left to right • An activity cannot begin until all preceding activities have been completed • Arrow on each network indicate precedence and flow. Arrows can cross over each other • Each activity should have a unique identification number • An activity number must be larger than that of any activities that precede it. • Looping is not allowed • Conditional statements are not allowed • A common start and end node clearly delineates start/finish respectively

28. B. Boil Jug 5 Approval A. C. Rinse Pot E. Make Tea F. Serve Tea 1 1 5 1 D. Milk Sugar 1

29. Critical Time Path & Free Slack • The Critical Time Path is the longest path through the network. If one of the activities on this path is delayed the project completion time will be extended. • Free slack refers to those activities that are not critical and who’s start/finish time can be varied (e.g to suit resource allocation)

30. Calculating Critical Time Path & Free Slack • Forward Pass (start with first activity) • How soon can an activity start? (Early Start – ES) • How soon can the activity finish? (Early Finish – EF) • How soon can the project finish? • Backward Pass (start with last activity) • How late can an activity finish? (late finish – LF) • How late can an activity start? (late start – LS)

31. ES EF 0 Boil Jug 1 B. 6 SL 1 5 6 LS Dur LF ES EF ES EF ES EF ES EF 0 Approval 0 A. 1 4 Rinse Pot 1 C. 2 6 E. 11 0 Make Tea 11 F. 12 0 Serve Tea SL SL SL SL 0 1 1 5 1 6 6 5 11 11 1 12 LS Dur LF LS Dur LF LS Dur LF LS Dur LF ES EF 9 Milk Sugar 1 D. 2 Items that have SL = 0 are Critical Path Activities Items that have SL >0 are activities with Slack SL 10 1 11 LS Dur LF

32. Scenario 1 • A Project leader for a television news organisation had been working on a major refurbishment of the operational area. The changes included new data cabling and new terminals for about 20 journalists. New video and audio facilities were to be provided to enable journalists to monitor news from other stations. The plan was to move all operations to another floor while work took place. Projects groups were surprised to learn one day that the project manger was redeployed and that the new project manager had been given the directive to get the work done over a single night. This was subsequently organised and executed 2 months later. Though the new installationsuffered minor ongoing commissioning problems for some months after, the change in project implementation schedule was generally viewed as a success. • Why was this so?

33. Why shorten the critical path? • Imposed project finish date: • Unforeseen event • Political or marketing reason • The need to get a software product out in order to grab market share • Shortening the critical path will usually result in higher cost.

34. 60 Total costs Optimumcost-timepoint 50 40 Low-costplan duration point 30 Costs Direct costs 20 Indirect costs 10 0 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 Project duration The cost equation… Direct Costs – labour, materials, equipment Indirect costs – overheads such as administration, consultants, interest Gray & Larson, 2000, Figure 6-1

35. How to shorten the Critical Path • Reduce quality (not recommended) • Use better technology (machine, methods etc) • e.g Outsource • Work longer hours • Reassign labour to critical path activities (eg outsource non-critical activities to enable internal specialist staff to be redeployed). • A management and communication penalty exists if too many people are required to coordinate their activities within a single task.

36. References • Gray, Clifford F and Larson, Erik W. 2000, Project management : the managerial process / Irwin/McGraw-Hill,Boston. • NASA, 1996 ‘NASA Strategic Management Handbook’, NASA. Available at: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/codez/strahand/implemen.htm Accessed on: 12 August 2002 • Karunaratne, Ishan 2002, ‘Callista Implementation Project’, Northern Territory University, Available from: http://mindil.ntu.edu.au/ntu/apps/callistaimp.nsf/vwURL/Implementation+Planning?OpenDocument Accessed; on 12 August 2002 • Commworks, 2001, ‘As you Implement: Planning for Deployment’. Commworks Available from http://www.commworks.com/Professional_Services/Implement/Planning_Deployment/ Accessed on 12 August 2002. • GCRHCorporation 2002, ‘Implementation Planning: When its Got to be Appropriate, Now’, GCRHCorporation, Midland Michigan. Available from http://www.rightanswer.com/english/plan.html Access on 12 August 2002.