IS 556 Project Management

IS 556 Project Management David A. Lash 630.979.5940 dlash@condor.depaul.edu Week 4 – Readings: On Time Within Budget Ch.11 Case: Timberjack Parts David Lash

Objectives • Project Plan • Work Breakdown Structure • Pert Chart • Gannt Chart • Dealing with Human Resources

Project Plan • One of the first Formal documents produced • Includes: • How project will proceed • What resources are needed • How risk will be used and managed • Ensures planning of project activities, sequences and • what equipment and staff is needed and when? • What activities and who will do them? • What contingency plans • Contents depends on project size/complexity

Project Plan - Page 243

Scheduled Activities and Milestones • Project schedule is list of activities, when started and end. • First step WBS - Break down activities into work tasks • Breakdown all tasks into • Start with listing the activities • Break down to task level • Will want to eventually define: • Activity ID and Activity name • Description • Start & End date • Dependencies - what other task this on depends on. • Assignment - who is doing this item

3 Steps to WBS Development First got to figure out all tasks needed 1. Begin at The Top 2. Name all tasks needed to produce deliverables 3. Organizing the WBS (there are multiple ways to organize WBS.)

Step 1 - Begin at The Top • List the major deliverables or high-level tasks from the scope • Might also include intermediate deliverables (if major and not an end-product) Landscape Project Design Lawn Fence Grass Shrubs

Step 2. Name all tasks needed to produce deliverables • For example put in grass might include • buy dirt & seed • spread dirt • spread seed • water for 2 weeks • Don’t worry about order of activities yet. • Need people closer to project tasks to help. • Can be difficult in new situations • E.g., if never before executed a process or new technology use • May need to call team together to develop strategies for WBS development (high level)

Step 3 - Organizing the WBS There are multiple ways to organize WBS. Some things to consider • organize in a way closer to development process • organize in a way easier to manage • organize in way meaningful to sponsors.

On to Sequencing Tasks • Once have a WBS need to figure out sequence of tasks. • Either Task 1 or 2 can go first (Can be concurrent) • Task 5 can't start until 2 • Task 3 needs 1 & 2 • Task 4 needs 3 (therefore needs 1 & 2 too!)

Using a Network Diagram • Network diagram - • A logical representation of tasks that define the sequence of work • For large projects can be many pages long • Shows project path and sequences of tasks. • Typically done before creating schedule.

Conventions Used in a Network Diagram Source: The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Project Management. Sunny and Kim Baker.

Five Steps to Create a Network Diagram • List the tasks from the WBS • Establish the interrelationships between tasks • Identify Milestones • Layout tasks and milestones on diagram • Review the Network diagram logic

Correct Network Diagram 2 concurrent paths Mile- stone (diamond)

Incorrect Network Diagram diamond • Common problem is removing redundant tasks for same resource • May not have resources to execute 4&5 concurrently but diagram should not reflect that yet. (only task sequence not resource constraints).

Setting Up Milestones • Milestones - significant events worth special tracking • Why track milestones? • Make network diagram easier to read • Can show input from an external dependency (E.g., government agency releases report) • Can represent significant events that aren’t tasks (e.g., receive progress payments) Milestones should be drawn as a diamond

Scheduled Activities and Milestones - pp.246-247 Prjct manager usually has significant pressure to complete ilestones on time

PERT Charts • Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) • A type of network chart that uses circles and arrows • Arrows represents tasks (activities) • Circles represent events (end state for >=1 actives). • Define Precedence network to plan sequence of activities • Dependence – one activity cannot be completed (or begun) until another has been finished • Like network diagrams defines precedence and activity sequence.

PERT chart Components • Start event = source • End event = sink • Link represents activity and time or effort • Examples: Figures 11.3, 11.4 p.252

Examples: Figures 11.3, 11.4 p.252

Examples: Figures 11.3, 11.4 p.252 Pert chart with critical path

Critical Path • A sequence of events critical to successful completion of the project • PERT chart or project can have one or more critical paths • Shortening critical path can shorten project time • Shortening a non-critical path item will NOT shorten project time • Can be used • To represent resources and costs • For analysis and simulation • May frequently need updating

Schedules are not engraved in stone • Milestone deliverable dates may need adjusting • Schedule and sometimes budget may need adjusting at intervals

Gantt Chart • Project development schedule • Start with high level • Add detail at lower levels • Good at showing • Timing of activities • Activity overlap • Not good at showing total amount of resources needed – just timeframe • Examples Figures 11.1, 11.2, pp. 249-250

Gantt Chart -Figures 11.1, 11.2, pp. 249-250 Does not indicate amount of resources required for each activity

Complex Time Relationships Source: Complete Idiots Guide to Project Management. Pg 95.

Development Team • Scheduling people not the same thing as scheduling equipment • Development team attributes includes • Number of activities • Intensity of activities • Schedule/duration of activities • Distribution varies with phases of project

Development Team Size • Varies over course of project • Manager may do some functions when work is light • Part time functions can sometimes be shared between projects • Version control • Library • QA • People might be shared with multiple projects. • E.g., test specialists

Skills Needed on Team • Varies by project and size • might include programmers, QA specialists, test specialists, admin support, managers, technical writers, tool support, standard IT. • Learning curve - often underestimated • Training needs - sometimes can be hard to predict early • E.g., if programming language decision not made yet or technical platform requirements.

Mythical Man Month (Work Month) • How much work gets done during the time period allotted • E.g., how many actual work hours/day? How many actual days / month or year. • What is the measure? • Calendar • Work • Schedule • Overhead when adding staff • Law of diminishing returns (e.g, can 365 engineers reduce time to complete project from 1 year to 1 day?)

Scheduling Resources • Space- may be critical especially for contract jobs. • Equipment - e.g., complex lab testing resources? • Vendor/Subcontractor performance - • how control something not in your control • how collect status?

Schedule Monitoring • Periodic - periodically PM gathers status and submits overall to management • How does PM know if status is accurate (no developer fudging), how much CYA is occurring, how much you trust reports. • E.g., takes 50% of the time to complete last 105. • When do you update project plan? • May have to add activities, put in vacation/sick time, schedule slips, unexpected items • PM needs to know enough about each status item to answer to management.

Customer Expectations and Project Management • Commitment- never commit to a schedule that doesn’t have a good chance of meeting • Communicate - Your job is to keep the lines of communication open. Don’t expect customer to do it or you. • Honesty is the best policy - Best not to try to “snow” customer on issues • PM must keep a customer prospective, e.g., easy-to-use, quality.

Summary • Project Plan - what is it, what goes in one • Work Breakdown Structure - figuring out tasks, creating WBS, sequencing tasks. • Pert Chart • Gannt Chart • Dealing with Human Resources • dealing with teams, scheduling, training, customers.

IS 556 Project Management