Chapter 2 Project Management
Explain the purpose of project organization
Make sure existing programs continue to run smoothly on a day-to-day basis while new projects are successfully completed. An effective way of assigning the people and physical resources needed.
Scheduling
relate people, money, and supplies to specific activities
Planning
goal setting, defining the project, team organization
What is the use of Gantt charts in project management?
Gantt Charts are low-cost means of helping managers make sure that 1. activities are planned 2. order of performance is documented 3. activity time estimates are recorded 4. overall project time is the developed
What would a project manager have to do to crash a project?
1. Calculate the crash cost per time period 2. Using current activity times, find the critical path and identify the critical activities 3. One critical path: select activity on this CP that (a) can still be crashed, and (b) has the smallest crash cost per period More critical paths: select one activity from each critical path such that (a) selected activity can stell be crashed, and (b) the total crash cost of selected activities is the smallest 4. Update all activity times
What are some of the questions that can be answered with PERT and CPM?
1. When will the entire project be completed? 2. What are the critical activities or tasks in the project? 3. Which are the noncritical activities? 4. What is the probability the project will be completed by a specific date? 5. Is the project on schedule, behind schedule, or ahead of schedule? 6. Is the money spent equal to, less than, or greater than the budget? 7. Are there enough resources available to finish the project on time? 8. If the project must be finished in a shorter time, what is the way to accomplish this at least cost?
How is the variance of the total project computed in PERT?
2 ơp Project variance is calculated by summing the variances of critical activities 2 = 0,11 + 0,11 + 1,00 + 1,78 + 0,11 = 3,11 ơp Project standard deviation ơp 2 = √3,11 = 1,76 weeks
What is the use of Gantt charts in project management?
A Gantt chart is a visual device that shows the duration of tasks in a project. It is a low-cost means of ensuring that (1) all activities are planned for, (2) their order of performance is planned for, (3) the activity times are recorded, and (4) the overall project time is developed.
What are dummy activities? Why are they used in activity-on-arrow (AOA) project networks?
A dummy activity is a simulated activity of sorts, one that is of a zero duration and is created for the sole purpose of demonstrating a specific relationship and path of action on the arrow diagramming method.
activity-on-arrow (AOA) network <--> activity-on-node (AON) network?
AOA - The activities involved in a project are all placed side by side and the arrows are meant to be the activity which leads to the next one and so on AON - The activities involved in a project are all placed side by side but here are the nodes the activities and the arrows just show the way from on activity-node to another
What is the significance of the critical path?
Any late start or extension of an activity on the critical path will delay the completion of the project.
Define erliest start, earliest finish, latest finish and latest start times
Earliest start (ES) = earliest time at which an activity can start, assuming all predecessors have been completed Earliest finish (EF) = earliest time at which an activity can be finished Latest start (LS) = latest time at which an activity can start so as to not delay the completion time of the entire project Latest finish(LF)= latest time by which an activity has to be finished so as to not delay the completion time of the entire project
Describe how expected activity times and variances can be computed in a PERT network
Expected time: t = (a + 4m + b)/6 Variance of times: v = [(b - a)/6]2 a = optimistic time b = pessimistic time m = most realistic estimate
Would a project manager ever consider crashing a noncritical activity in a project network?
No. In networks, there is no possibility that crashing a non-critical task can reduce the project duration. Only critical tasks offer the possibility of reducing path length. However, other criteria for crashing may exist: for instance, skills required in one of the activities may also be needed elsewhere.
How can we determine the probability that a project will be completed by a certain date?
Once the mean and standard deviation of the critical path are known it is possible to calculate the probability of completing the project in a certain time.
What are the three time estimates used with PERT?
Optimistic time (a) - if everything goes according to plan Pessimistic time (b) - assuming very unfavorable conditions Most likely time (m) - most realistic estimate
situation in which project management is needed
Organizing a huge ___ including opportunities___
What are the three phases involved in the management of a large project
Planning Scheduling Controlling
Describe the meaning of slack, and discuss how it can be determined.
Slack is the length of time an activity can be delayed without delaying the entire project After computing the ES, EF, LS, and LF times for all activities, compute the slack or free time for each activity Slack = LS - ES or Slack = LF - EF
Critical path is NOT the shortest path through a network, EXPLAIN!
The critical path is the shortest time, NOT path, in which the project can be completed. That means, the path through the network can also be longer than others, but be accomplished in the shortest time
Define work breakdown structure. How is it used?
by dividing it into its major subcomponents, which are then subdivided in to more detailed components, and finally into a set of activities and their related costs Level: 1. Project 2. Major tasks in the project 3. Subtasks in major tasks 4. Activities to be completed
Controlling
monitor resources, costs, quality, and budgets; revise plans and activities to each other shift resources to meet time and cost demands