Project Management

When completing a forward pass, you carry the early finish to the next activity where it becomes its early start unless the next scheduling activity is a merge activity. In this case you select the smallest early finished number of all its immediate predecessor activities

False

baseline costs typically include labor, equipment, materials

False

While organizational culture is important to the overall function of an organization, it has minor influence on its project management.

False it has a major influence

Why estimating time and cost is important

•To support good decisions •To schedule work •To determine how long the project should take and its cost •To determine whether the project is worth doing •To develop cash flow needs •To determine how well the project is progressing

effective methods for crashing specific project activities when resources are not constrained

*-Adding Resources *-Outsourcing Project work *-Scheduling Overtime -Establish a care project team -Do it twice - Fast and Correctly *methods most commonly used

Technical or Logic Constraints

-Constraints related to the networked sequence in which project activities must occur (1) design, (2) code, and (3) test. In other words, you cannot logically perform activity 2 until 1 is completed, and so on

Defining the Project Steps

Step 1:Defining the Project Scope Step 2:Establishing Project Priorities Step 3:Creating the Work Breakdown Structure Step 4:Integrating the WBS with the Organization Step 5:Coding the WBS for the Information System

Side-effect of lack of trust is in other party is

Excessive number of deadlines missed

project

a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result -Temporary -Unique (product, service or result) -Progressing elaboration (developing in steps and continuing by increments

when reducing project duration there will always be an Optimum class time point where the total cost of the project is less than it was when the project was initially planned under normal conditions

True

All of the following are types of resource constraints except

information

Resources are not adequate to meet Peak demand the resulting schedule is termed

resource-constrained scheduling

Which of the following is the balance of authority strongly in favor of the functional managers

weak matrix

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 the activity be delayed? (slack or float— SL)

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—TE)

Defining the Project Step 1: Project Scope

-A definition of the end result or mission of the project—a product or service for the client/customer Project Scope Checklist 1.Project objective 2.Deliverables 3.Milestones 4.Technical requirements 5.Limits and exclusions 6.Reviews with customer

These describe a project Network

-A graphic display of the flow and sequence of work through the project -provides the basis for scheduling labor and equipment -Gives the times when activities can start and finish and when they can be delayed -identifies critical activities

Physical Constraints

-Activities that cannot occur in parallel or are affected by contractual or environmental conditions

Risk Assumptions

-Activities with the most slack pose the least risk.-Reduction of flexibility does not increase risk.-The nature of an activity (easy, complex) doesn't increase risk

Resource Demand Leveling Techniques for Time-Constrained Projects

-Advantages •Peak resource demands are reduced. •Resources over the life of the project are reduced. •Fluctuation in resource demand is minimized. -Disadvantages •Loss of flexibility that occurs from reducing slack •Increases in the criticality of all activities

Establish a Core Project Team

Advantage = Speed Work full time on one project; give undivided attention This singular focus creates a shared goal that can bind a diverse set of professionals into a highly cohesive team capable of accelerating project completion.

Outsourcing project work: Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages -Cost reduction -Faster project completion -High level of expertise -Flexibility Disadvantages -Coordination breakdowns -Loss of control -Conflict -Security issues -Political hot potato

Profit, time and performance are all basic classifications of project priorities.

False

Project management software is important because it will manage the project for the project manager

False

Project manager should always assign the best people to the most difficult tasks

False

Resource constraint can be overcome by creative and efficient scheduling

False

Sequential activities hold just as much potential for resource conflicts as parallel activities

False

Setting the conditions for the completion and transfer of a project should happen at the beginning of the project close-out

False

Splitting is a scheduling technique used to get a better schedule or better resource utilization and should be used without hesitation

False

If a project has more than one activity that can begin when the project is to start, a common start node should be used to indicate a clear project beginning on the network. Without a common start node, each path is a

Dangler Path

Which of the following represents the correct order of stages within the Project Life Cycle

Defining, planning, executing, closing

All resource leveling techniques involve

Delaying non-critical activities

All resource leveling techniques involve

Delaying noncritical activities

After averaging out the under estimates and over estimates, a long-duration project is more likely to be on target than a short-term, small project

False

Because of its flexibility, project management is equally useful in ongoing, routine work as well as unique, one-time projects

False

Comparing Plan cost versus actual cost will give the project manager a quick understanding of the status of the project

False

For large companies, the organization breakdown structure is used rather than the work breakdown structure

False

The Matrix form of project management structure is a good choice when resource usage needs to be optimized by having individuals work on multiple projects

True

The hierarchical work breakdown structure provides management with information appropriate to each level

True

The storming stage of Team development is complete when conflicts are resolved and Leadership roles are accepted

True

Too many parallel activities for one individual is an example of a resource constraint

True

Toyota and DaimlerChrysler collaborating with suppliers to develop new automobile platform is an example of Outsourcing

True

Which of the following is a good condition for bottom-up estimating?

When there is a fixed price contract

Project Complexity is Influenced by: Project structure & organization

Which project structure is chosen to manage the project will influence time and cost estimates. One of the major advantages of a dedicated project team discussed earlier is the speed gained from concentrated focus and localized project decisions. This speed comes at an additional cost of tying up personnel full time. Conversely, projects operating in a matrix environment may reduce costs by more efficiently sharing personnel across projects but may take longer to complete since attention is divided and coordination demands are higher.

Matrix Management

a hybrid organizational form in which a horizontal project management structure is "overlaid" on the normal functional hierarchy. usually two chains of command, one along functional lines and the other along project lines. project participants report simultaneously to both functional and project managers.

Constructing a Project Network Terminology: Path (A->B->D)

a sequence of connected, dependent activities

Project Vision

a shared vision unites professionals with different backgrounds and agendas to a common aspiration. It helps motivate members to subordinate their individual agendas and do what is best for the project. involves the less tangible aspects of project performance. It refers to an image a project team holds in common about how the project will look upon completion, how they will work together, and/or how customers will accept the project. At its simplest level, a shared vision is the answer to the question, "What do we want to create?" Not everyone will have the same vision, but the images should be similar. Visions come in a variety of shapes and forms; they can be captured in a slogan or a symbol or can be written as a formal vision statement. What a vision is, is not as important as what it does. A vision inspires members to give their best effort.

Individual rewards for outstanding work would not include

all are examples of rewards

Constructing a Project Network Terminology: Burst Activity

an activity that has more than one activity immediately following it (more than one dependency arrow flowing from it)

Constructing a Project Network Terminology: Merge Activity (D)

an activity that has two or more preceding activities on which it depends (more than one dependency arrow flowing into it)

Constructing a Project Network Terminology: Activity

an element of the project that requires time but may not require resources

The process of forecasting or approximating the time and cost of completing project deliverables is called planning

false

Synergy

is derived from the Greek word sunergos: "working together." can best be seen on a basketball court, a soccer pitch, or a football field where teammates play as one to defeat a superior foe

Premature project closure

premature For a few projects, the project may be completed early with some parts of the project eliminated. For example, in a new product development project, a market- ing manager may insist on production models before testing: Give the new product to me now, the way it is. Early entry into the market will mean big profits! I know we can sell a bazillion of these. If we don't do it now, the opportunity is lost! The pressure is on to finish the project and send it to production. Before succumbing to this form of pressure, the implications and risks associated with this decision should be carefully reviewed and assessed by senior management and all stakeholders. Too frequently, the benefits are illusory, dangerous, and carry large risks.

Which of the following is not one of the requirements for successful implementation of strategies through projects

quality management

Linearity Assumption

the con- cern of some theorists—that the relationship between cost and time is not linear but curvilinear—is seldom a concern for practicing managers. Reasonable, quick comparisons can be made using the linear assumption.3 The simple approach is adequate for most projects.

Project closures can fall into all of the following categories except

successful

________ activities are to be completed immediately following a particular activity

successor

Program management

the process of managing a group of ongoing, interdependent, related projects in a coordinated way to achieve strategic objectives ex. Program:curing cancer Projects: all of the different cancer studies

Top-Down Approaches for estimating Times & Costs: Ratio Methods

(sometimes called parametric) usually use ratios, or surrogates, to estimate project times or costs. Top-down approaches are often used in the concept or "need" phase of a project to get an initial duration and cost estimate for the project.

ETC

Estimated cost to complete remaining work.

Learning curves are more likely to be applied in situations where most of the costs are

Labor

A ____ activity is one that has more than one activity taking place at the same time

Parallel

Conditions Favoring Development of High Performance Project Teams

•Ten or fewer team members •Voluntary team membership •Continuous service on the team •Full-time assignment to the team •An organization culture of cooperation and trust •Members report solely to the project manager •All relevant functional areas are represented on the team •The project involves a compelling objective •Members are in close communication with each other

Reasons for imposed project duration dates

•Time-to-market pressures •Unforeseen delays •Incentive contracts (bonuses for early completion) •Imposed deadlines and contract commitments •Overhead and public goodwill costs •Pressure to move resources to other projects

Long-Term Outsourcing Relationships

∙ Reduced administrative costs—The costs associated with bidding and selecting a contractor are eliminated. Contract administration costs are reduced as partners become knowledgeable of their counterpart's legal concerns. ∙ More efficient utilization of resources—Contractors have a known forecast of work while owners are able to concentrate their workforce on core businesses and avoid the demanding swings of project support. ∙ Improved communication—As partners gain experience with each other, they develop a common language and perspective, which reduces misunderstanding and enhances collaboration. ∙ Improved innovation—The partners are able to discuss innovation and associated risks in a more open manner and share risks and rewards fairly. ∙ Improved performance—Over time partners become more familiar with each other's standards and expectations and are able to apply lessons learned from previous projects to current projects.

And activities normal time and cost are 8 and $100 respectively. It's estimated crash time and cost are 6 and $160

$30

Which of the following correctly calculates an activity's cost slope

(crash cost -normal cost)/(normal time-crash time)

Learning Curves

(also known as improvement curve, experience curve, and industrial progress curve) the time it takes to perform a task improves with repetition. "Each time the output quantity doubles, the unit labor hours are reduced at a constant rate." In practice the improvement ratio may vary from 60 percent, representing very large improvement, to 100 percent, representing no improvement at all. Generally, as the difficulty of the work decreases the expected improvement also decreases and the improvement ratio that is used becomes greater.

Key Differences Between Partnering and Traditional Approaches to Managing Contracted Relationships

*Partnering Approach Mutual trust forms the basis for strong working relationships. Shared goals and objectives ensure common direction. Joint project team exists with high level of interaction. Open communications avoid misdirection and bolster effective working relationships. Long-term commitment provides the opportunity to attain continuous improvement. *Traditional Approach Suspicion and distrust; each party is wary of the motives of the other. Each party's goals and objectives, while similar, are geared to what is best for them. Independent project teams; teams are spatially separated with managed interactions. Communications are structured and guarded.Single project contracting is normal.

Key Differences Between Partnering and Traditional Approaches to Managing Contracted Relationships continued

*Partnering Approach Objective critique is geared to candid assessment of performance. Access to each other's organization resources is available. Total company involvement requires commitment from CEO to team members. Integration of administrative systems equipment takes place. Risk is shared jointly among the partners, encouraging innovation and continuous improvement *Traditional Approach Objectivity is limited due to fear of reprisal and lack of continuous improvement opportunity. Access is limited with structured procedures and self-preservation taking priority over total optimization. Involvement is normally limited to project-level personnel. Duplication and/or translation takes place with attendant costs and delays.Risk is transferred to the other party.

Laddering

- Activities are broken into segments so the following activity can begin sooner and not delay the work.

Determining Free Slack (FS)

- Is the amount of time an activity can be delayed after the start of a longer parallel activity or activities. - Is how long an activity can exceed its early finish date without affecting early start dates of any successor(s). - Allows flexibility in scheduling scarce resources. - Only activities that occur at the end of a chain of activities, where you have a merge activity, can have free slack.

The Critical Path

- Is the network path(s) that has (have) the least slack in common. - Is the longest path through the activity network. - Is the shortest expected time in which the entire project can be completed. - Is important because it impacts completion time. - Is where you put best people on. - Is where you pay extra extension when doing risk assessment. - Is where you look when other managers asking to 'borrow' people or equipment. - Is where you look when you don't have time to monitor all activities.

Hammock Activity

- Spans over a segment of a project. - Has a duration that is determined after the network plan is drawn. - Is very useful in assigning and controlling indirect project costs. - Is used to aggregate sections of the project to facilitate getting the right level of detail for specific sections of a project.

Determining Total Slack (TS) (or Float)

- Tells us the amount of time an activity can be delayed and not delayed the project. - Is how long an activity can exceed its early finish date without affecting the project end date or an imposed completion date. - Is simply the difference between the LS and ES (LS - ES = SL) or between LF and EF (LF - EF = SL).

Network Sensitivity

- The likelihood the original critical path(s) will change once the project is initiated. - A network schedule that has only one critical path and noncritical activities that enjoy significant slack would be labeled 'insensitive'.

Lags

- The minimum amount of time a dependent activity must be delayed to begin or end.

Responsibility Matrix (RM)

-Also called a linear responsibility chart -Summarizes the tasks to be accomplished and who is responsible for what on the project. •Lists project activities and participants responsible for each activity. •Clarifies critical interfaces between units and individuals that need coordination. •Provide a means for all participants to view their responsibilities and agree on their assignments. •Clarifies the extent or type of authority that can be exercised by each participant

Scope Statements

-Also called statements of work (SOW) Purposes of the Project Scope Statement -To clearly define the deliverable(s) for the end user. -To focus the project on successful completion of its goals. -To be used by the project owner and participants as a planning tool and for measuring project success

Purposes of a Baseline (PV)

-An anchor point for measuring performance •A planned cost and expected schedule against which actual cost and schedule are measured •A basis for cash flows and awarding progress payments •A summation of time-phased budgets (cost accounts as summed work packages) along a project timeline

Building Trust: The Key to Exercising Influence

-An elusive concept -See it as a function of character and competence •Character focuses on personal motives. •Competence focuses on skills necessary to realize motives. •The core of highly effective people is a character ethic(Stephen Covey in Seven Habits of Highly Effective People). -Consistency—more predictable -Openness—more receptive to others -A sense of purpose—what is best for the organization and the project

Integration (or centralization) of project management provides senior management with:

-An overview of all project management activities -A big picture of how organizational resources are used -A risk assessment of their portfolio of projects -A rough metric of the firm's improvement in managing projects relative to others in the industry -Linkages of senior management with actual project execution management

Project Success = Top Management Support

-Appropriate budget -Responsiveness to unexpected needs -A clear signal to the organization of the importance of cooperation

White Elephants (Mega Projects)

-Are large-scale, complex ventures that typically cost $1 billion or more, take many years to complete, and involve multiple private and public stakeholders. •High-speed rail lines, airports, healthcare reform, the Olympics, development of new aircraft -Showed promise at one time but are no longer viable -Often involve a double whammy. •Cost much more than expected but underdelivered on benefits they were to provide On some mega projects, there is a triple whammy. Not only are they over budget and under value, but the cost of maintaining them exceeds the benefits received. The 2015 FIFA scandal brought attention to the hidden costs of hosting the World Cup. South Africa built six new world class stadiums for the 2010 competition. None of the post-World Cup revenue generated from these stadiums exceeds their maintenance cost

Top-down Estimates

-Are usually derived from someone who uses experience and/or information to determine the project duration and total cost. -Are sometimes made by top managers who have little knowledge of the processes used to complete the project

Creating a Time-Phased Budget

-Assign each work package to one responsible person or department and deliverable -Compare planned schedule and costs using an integrative system called earned value

Assigning Project Work: Reasons why we should not always assign the best people the most difficult tasks

-Best people: resent to the fact that they are always given the toughest assignments -Less experienced participants: resent to the fact that they are never given the opportunity to expand their skill/knowledge base

Project Charter

-Can contain an expanded version of scope statement. -A document authorizing the project manager to initiate and lead the project

Design of a project portfolio system:

-Classification of a project -Selection criteria depending upon classification -Sources of proposals -Evaluating proposals -Managing the portfolio of projects

Factors leading to the increased use of project management:

-Compression of the product life cycle -Knowledge explosion -Triple bottom line (planet, people, profit) -Increased customer focus -Small projects represent big problems

Top-Down Approaches for estimating Times & Costs

-Consensus Methods -Ratio Methods -Apportion Methods -Function Point Methods for Software and System Projects -Learning Curve

The Technical Dimension (The "Science")

-Consists of the formal, disciplined, purely logical parts of the process. -Includes planning, scheduling, and controlling projects

Influence "Currencies" (Cohen and Bradford)

-Cooperative relationships are built on the exchange of organizational "currencies" (favors) If you want to do business in a given country, you have to be prepared to use the appropriate currency, and the exchange rates can change over time as conditions change. In the same way, what is valued by a marketing manager may be different from what is valued by a veteran project engineer, and you are likely to need to use different influence currency to obtain the cooperation of each individual. Although this analogy is a bit of an oversimplification, the key premise holds true that in the long run, "debit" and "credit" accounts must be balanced for cooperative relationships to work.

Time-Phase Baseline Plan

-Corrects the failure of most monitoring systems to connect a project's actual performance to its schedule and forecast budget. •Systems that measure only cost variances do not identify resource and project cost problems associated with falling behind or progressing ahead of schedule.

Project Indirect Costs

-Costs that cannot be associated with any particular work package or project activity ex•Supervision, administration, consultants, and interest -Costs that vary (increase) with time ex•Reducing project time directly reduces indirect costs

Managing Multiproject Scheduling

-Create project offices or departments to oversee the scheduling of resources across projects -Use a project priority queuing system: first come, first served for resources -Centralize project management: treat all projects as a part of a "megaproject" -Outsource projects to reduce the number of projects handled internally

Organizing Projects: Functional Organization

-Different segments of the project are delegated to respective functional units -Coordination is maintained through normal management channels. -It is used when the interest of one functional area dominates the project or one functional area has a dominant interest in the project's success. Advantages -No structural change -flexibility -in-depth expertise -easy post-project transition Disadvantages -lack of focus -poor integration -SLOW -lack of ownership

Managing Customer Expectations

-Don't oversell the project; better to undersell. -Develop a well-defined project scope statement -Share significant problems and risks -Keep everyone informed about the project's progress -Involve customers early in decisions about project development changes -Handle customer relationships and problems in an expeditious, competent, and professional manner -Speak with one voice -Speak the language of the customer

How WBS Helps the Project Manager

-Facilitates evaluation of cost, time, and technical performance of the organization on a project. -Provides management with information appropriate to each organizational level. -Helps in the development of the organization breakdown structure (OBS), which assigns project responsibilities to organizational units and individuals -Helps manage plan, schedule, and budget. -Defines communication channels and assists in coordinating the various project elements.

Creating a High-Performance Project Team: Recruiting Project Members

-Factors affecting recruiting •Importance of the project •Management structure used to complete the project -How to recruit? •Ask for volunteers -Who to recruit? •Problem-solving ability •Availability •Technological expertise •Credibility •Political connections •Ambition, initiative, and energy •Familiarity In matrix environments, the project manager will have to request appointments with functional managers to discuss project requirements for staffing. The following documents should be available at these discussions: an overall project scope statement, endorsements of top management, and a description of the tasks and general schedule that pertain to the people from their departments. Man- agers need to be precise as to what attributes they are seeking and why they are important.

Selection Criteria

-Financial models:payback, net present value (NPV) -Non-financial models:projects of strategic importance to the firm

Organizing Projects: Matrix Structure

-Hybrid organizational structure (matrix) is overlaid on the normal functional structure -Matrix structure optimizes the use of resources •Weak Matrix Form-The authority of the functional manager predominates and the project manager has indirect authority. •Balanced Form-The project manager sets the overall plan and the functional manager determines how work to be done. •Strong Matrix Form-The project manager has broader control and functional departments act as subcontractors to the project Advantages -efficient -strong project focus -easier post-project transition -flexible Disadvantages -dysfunctional conflict -infighting -stressful -SLOW

Limitations of Payback

-Ignores the time value of money. -Assumes cash inflows for the investment period (and not beyond). -Does not consider profitability

Options When Resources Are Constrained

-Improve the Efficiency of the Project Team -Fast-Tracking -Critical-Chain -Reducing Project Scope -Compromise Quality

(CV) Cost Variance

-Indicates if the work accomplished costs more or less than was planned at any point in the project Cost variance is the difference between the earned value and the actual costs for the work completed to date where CV = EV -AC

Motivating the Project Team

-Influence top management in favor of the team: •Rescind unreasonable demands •Provide additional resources •Recognize the accomplishments of team members

Characteristics of Effective Project Managers

-Initiate contact with key stakeholders -Anticipate potential problems -Provide encouragement -Reinforce the objectives and vision of the project -Intervene to resolve conflicts and prevent stalemates

Reasons for Adjusting Estimates

-Interaction costs are hidden in estimates. -Normal conditions do not apply. -Things go wrong on projects. -Changes in project scope and plans -Overly optimistic -Strategic misrepresentation -Time and cost estimates of specific activities are adjusted as the risks, resources, and situation particulars become more clearly defined

Bread-and-butter Projects

-Involve evolutionary improvements to current products and services

Oysters

-Involve technological breakthroughs with high commercial payoffs

Resource Smoothing (or Leveling)

-Involves attempting to even out varying demands on resources by using slack (delaying noncritical activities) to manage resource utilization when resources are adequate over the life of the project.

The Sociocultural Dimension (The "Art")

-Involves contradictory and paradoxical world of implementation. -Centers on creating a temporary social system within a larger organizational environment that combines the talents of a divergent set of professionals working to complete the project

Management by Wandering Around (MBWA)

-Involves managers spending the majority of their time in face-to-face interactions with employees building cooperative relationships Effective project managers initiate contact with key players to keep abreast of developments, anticipate potential problems, provide encouragement, and reinforce the objectives and vision of the project. They are able to intervene to resolve conflicts and prevent stalemates from occurring.

resource-constrained project

-Is one in which the level of resources available cannot be exceeded.•Resources are fixed, time is flexible: inadequate resources will delay the project one that assumes the level of resources available cannot be exceeded. If the resources are inadequate, it will be acceptable to delay the project, but as little as possible. When the number of people and/or equipment is not adequate to meet peak demand requirements and it is impossible to obtain more, the project manager faces a resource- constrained problem. Something has to give. The trick is to prioritize and allocate resources to minimize project delay without exceeding the resource limit or altering the technical network relationships.

Direct Costs

-Labor, materials, equipment, and other can be influenced by the project manager, project team, and individuals implementing the work package. These costs represent real cash outflows and must be paid as the project progresses; therefore, direct costs are usually separated from overhead costs. Lower- level project rollups frequently include only direct costs.

Resource leveling or smoothing causes

-Lower Peak resource demand -Reduced resource need over the life of a project -Reduced fluctuations in resource demand -A more sensitive Network

The Project Manager

-Manages temporary, non-repetitive activities and frequently acts independently of the formal organization. •Marshals resources for the project. •Is linked directly to the customer interface. •Provides direction, coordination, and integration to the project team. •Is responsible for performance and success of the project. -Must induce the right people at the right time to address the right issues and make the right decisions.

The Payback Model

-Measures the time the project will take to recover the project investment. -Uses more desirable shorter paybacks. -Emphasizes cash flows, a key factor in business

time-constrained project

-Must be completed by an imposed date.•Time is fixed, resources are flexible: additional resources are required to ensure project meets schedule. -Require use of leveling techniques that focus on balancing or smoothing resource demands. -Use positive slack (delaying noncritical activities) to manage resource utilization over the duration of the project. •Peak resource demands are reduced. •Resources over the life of the project are reduced. •Fluctuation in resource demand is minimized. one that must be completed by an imposed date. If required, resources can be added to ensure the project is completed by a specific date. Although time is the critical factor, resource usage should be no more than is necessary and sufficient.

Quid pro Quo

-Mutual exchanges of resources and services ("back-scratching") build relationships

Project Direct Costs

-Normal costs that can be assigned directly to a specific work package or project activity ex•Labor, materials, equipment, and subcontractors -Crashing activities increases direct costs

The Law of Reciprocity

-One good deed deserves another, and likewise, one bad deed deserves another. The primary way to gain cooperation is to provide resources and services for others in exchange for future resources and services. This is the age-old maxim: "Quid pro quo (something for something)." Or in today's vernacular: "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours."

General and Administrative Overhead Costs

-Organization costs indirectly linked to a specific package that are apportioned to the project

(SV) Scheduled Variance

-Presents an overall assessment in dollar terms of the progress of all work packages in the project scheduled to date. Schedule variance is the difference between the earned value and the baseline line to date where SV = EV -PV

Leading by example

-Priorities -Urgency -Problem solving -Cooperation -Standards of Performance -Ethics

Resources and Priorities

-Project network times are not a schedule until resources have been assigned. •The implicit assumption is that resources will be available in the required amounts when needed. •Adding new projects requires making realistic judgments of resource availability and project durations. -Cost estimates are not a budget until they have been time-phased

Problems resulting from the uncoordinated project management systems include:

-Projects that do not support the organization's overall strategic plan and goals. -Independent managerial decisions that create internal imbalances, conflicts and confusion resulting in dissatisfied customers. -Failure to prioritize projects results in the waste of resources on non-value-added activities/projects

Commonly Used Options for Cutting Costs

-Reducing project scope -Having owner take on more responsibility -Outsourcing project activities or even the entire project -Brainstorming cost savings options

Time Is Money: Cost-Time Tradeoffs

-Reducing the time of a critical activity usually incurs additional direct costs. •Cost-time solutions focus on reducing (crashing) activities on the critical path to shorten overall duration of the project.

Pearls

-Represent revolutionary commercial opportunities using proven technical advances

Strategic Management

-Requires every project to be clearly linked to strategy. -Provides theme and focus of firm's future direction. •Responding to changes in the external environment—environmental scanning •Allocating scarce resources of the firm to improve its competitive position—internal responses to new programs -Requires strong links among mission, goals, objectives, strategy, and implementation

Resource-Constrained Projects

-Resources are limited in quantity or availability. -Activities are scheduled using heuristics(rules-of-thumb) that focus on: 1.Minimum slack 2.Smallest (least) duration 3.Lowest activity identification number -The parallel method is used to apply heuristics •An iterative process starting at the first time period of the project and scheduling period-by-period the start of any activities using the three priority rules.

Determining Activities to Shorten

-Shorten the activities with the smallest increase in cost per unit of time -Assumptions: •The cost-time relationship is linear. •Normal time assumes low-cost, efficient methods to complete the activity. •Crash time represents a limit—the greatest time reduction possible under realistic conditions. •Slope represents a constant cost per unit of time. •All accelerations must occur within the normal and crash time

Ethical Dilemmas

-Situations where it is difficult to determine whether conduct is right or wrong: •Padding of cost and time estimations •Exaggerating pay-offs of project proposals •Falsely assuring customers that everything is on track •Being pressured to alter status reports •Falsifying cost accounts •Compromising safety standards to accelerate progress •Approving shoddy work -Code of conduct •Professional standards and personal integrity

Limiting Assumptions

-Splitting activities is not allowed—once an activity is start, it is carried to completion. -Level of resources used for an activity cannot be changed

Organizing Projects: Dedicated Project Teams

-Teams operate as separate units under the leadership of a full-time project manager. -In a projectized organization where projects are the dominant form of business, functional departments are responsible for providing support for its teams Advantages -simple -fast -cohesive -cross-functional integration Disadvantages -EXPENSIVE -internal strife -limited technological expertise -difficult post-project transition

Issues in Maintaining Control of Projects

-Technical Performance Measurement -Scope Creep -Baseline Changes -Data Acquisition Costs and Problems

Bottom-Up Approaches for Estimating Project Times and Costs

-Template Methods -Parametric Procedures Applied to Specific Tasks -Range Estimating -A Hybrid: Phase Estimating

Resource Constraints

-The absence, shortage, or unique interrelationship and interaction characteristics of resources that require a particular sequencing of project activities•People, materials, equipment

Resource-Constrained Scheduling

-The duration of a project may be increased by delaying the late start of some of its activities if resources are not adequate to meet peak demands.

The Implementation Gap

-The lack of understanding and consensus on strategy among top management and middle-level (functional) managers who independently implement the strategy.

Stakeholders

-The project sponsor -The project manager -The project team -Support staff -Customers -Users-Suppliers -Opponents to the project

Scope Creep

-The tendency for the project scope to expand over time due to changing requirements, specifications, and priorities

Reasons for reducing the Duration of a project/Project duration

-Time to market -Unforeseen delays happen midway in a project and you need to get back on track -Imposed Deadlines -reassign key equipment and/or people to new projects

Why a Time-Phased Budget Baseline Is Needed

-To determine if the project is on, ahead, or behind schedule and over or under its budgeted costs? -To know how much work has been accomplished for the allocated money spent—the project cost baseline (planned value, PV)

Types of Estimates

-Top-down (macro) estimates: analogy, group consensus, or mathematical relationships -Bottom-up (micro) estimates: estimates of elements of the work breakdown structure

Multi-Criteria Selection Models

-Use several weighted selection criteria to evaluate project proposals

Checklist Model

-Uses a list of questions to review potential projects and to determine their acceptance or rejection. -Fails to answer the relative importance or value of a potential project and doesn't to allow for comparison with other potential projects

The Net Present Value (NPV) Model

-Uses management's minimum desired rate-of-return (discount rate) to compute the present value of all net cash inflows. •Positive NPV: project meets minimum desired rate of return and is eligible for further consideration. •Negative NPV: project is rejected

Multi-Weighted Scoring Model

-Uses several weighted qualitative and/or quantitative selection criteria to evaluate project proposals. -Allows for comparison of projects with other potential projects

Classification of Problem

-Using a priority matrix will help determine if the project is time or resource constrained.

Information System Structure

-What Data Are Collected? •Current status of project (schedule and cost) •Remaining cost to compete project •Date that project will be complete •Potential problems to be addressed now •Cost and/or schedule overruns and the reasons for them •Forecast of overruns at time of project completion -Collecting Data and Analysis •Who will collect project data? •How will data be collected? •When will the data be collected? •Who will compile and analyze the data? -Reports and Reporting •Who will receive the reports? •How will the reports be transmitted? •When will the reports be distributed?

Creating a project monitoring system involves determining:

-What data to collect -How, when, and who will collect the data -How to analyze the data -How to report current progress to management

Project Management Maxims

-You can't do it all and get it all done. •Projects usually involve a vast web of relationships. -Hands-on work is not the same as leading. •More pressure and more involvement can reduce your effectiveness as a leader. -What's important to you likely isn't as important to someone else. •Different groups have different stakes (responsibilities, agendas, and priorities) in the outcome of a project. -Remember: project management is tough, exciting, and rewarding—endeavor to persevere

Estimating

-the process of forecasting or approximating the time and cost of completing project deliverables. -The task of balancing expectations of stakeholders and need for control while the project is implemented - Estimating processes are frequently classified as top-down and bottom-up.

High-Performing Teams: Synergy

1 + 1 + 1 = 10 (positive synergy) 1 + 1 + 1 = 2 or -2 (negative synergy)

Orchestrating the Decision-Making Process

1 Problem Identification 2 Generating Alternatives 3 Reaching a Decision 4 Follow-up

major characteristics of a project

1. An established objective. 2. A defined life span with a beginning and an end. 3. the involvement of several departments and professionals. Across-the-organizational participation 4. Typically, doing something that has never been done before. 5. Specific time, cost, and performance requirements.

Outsourcing project work: Disadvantages

1. Coordination breakdowns. Coordination of professionals from different organiza- tions can be challenging, especially if the project work requires close collaboration and mutual adjustment. Breakdowns are exacerbated by physical separation with people working in different buildings, different cities, if not different countries. 2. Loss of control. There is potential loss of control over the project. The core team depends on other organizations that they have no direct authority over. While long- term survival of participating organizations depends on performance, a project may falter when one partner fails to deliver. 3. Conflict. Projects are more prone to interpersonal conflict since the different participants do not share the same values, priorities, and culture. Trust, which is essential to project success, can be difficult to forge when interactions are limited and people come from different organizations. 4. Security issues. Depending on the nature of the project, trade and business secrets may be revealed. This can be problematic if the contractor also works for your competitor. Confidentiality is another concern and companies have to be very careful when outsourcing processes like payroll, medical transcriptions, and insurance information. 5. Political hot potato. Foreign outsourcing of work is perceived as a major cause of underemployment and U.S. companies are under increased pressure to keep jobs local. Furthermore, companies like Apple have been criticized for the oppressive labor practices of some of their suppliers in China.

Outsourcing project work: Advantages

1. Cost reduction. Companies can secure competitive prices for contracted services, especially if the work can be outsourced offshore. Furthermore, overhead costs are dramatically cut since the company no longer has to internally maintain the con- tracted services. 2. Faster project completion. Not only can work be done more cheaply, but it can also be done faster. Competitive pricing means more resources for the dollar. For example, you can hire three Indian software engineers for the price of one American software engineer. Furthermore, outsourcing can provide access to equipment that can accelerate completion of project tasks. For example, by contracting a backhoe operator you are able to accomplish in four hours what it would take a landscaping crew four days to complete. 3. High level of expertise. A high level of expertise and technology can be brought to bear on the project. A company no longer has to keep up with technological advances. Instead, it can focus on developing its core competencies and hire firms with the know-how to work on relevant segments of the project. 4. Flexibility. Organizations are no longer constrained by their own resources but can pursue a wide range of projects by combining their resources with talents of other companies. Small companies can instantly go global by working with foreign partners.

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates

1. Responsibility 2. Use several people to estimate 3. Normal conditions 4. Time units 5. Independence 6. Contingencies 7. Adding risk assessment to the estimate helps to avoid surprises to stakeholders

Implementing close down

1. Getting delivery acceptance from the customer. 2. Shutting down resources and releasing to new uses. 3. Reassigning project team members. 4. Closing accounts and seeing all bills are paid. 5. Delivering the project to the customer. 6. Creating a final report.

Project Life Cycle 1. Defining stage

1. Goals 2. Specifications 3. Tasks 4. Responsibilities specifications of the project are defined; project objectives are established; teams are formed; major responsibilities are assigned.

Basic Rules to Follow in Developing Project Networks

1. Networks typically flow from left to right. 2. An activity cannot begin until all preceding connected activities are complete. 3. Arrows indicate precedence and flow and can cross over each other. 4. Each activity must have a unique identify number. 5. An activity identification number must be greater than that of any predecessor activities. 6. Looping is not allowed. 7. Conditional statements are not allowed. 8. Use common start and stop nodes.

Project Life Cycle 2. Planning stage

1. Schedules 2. budgets 3. resources 4. Risks 5. Staffing The level of effort increases, and plans are developed to determine what the project will entail, when it will be scheduled, whom it will benefit, what quality level should be maintained, and what the budget will be.

Project Life Cycle 3. Executing stage

1. Status reports 2. Changes 3. Quality 4. Forecasts A major portion of the project work takes place—both physical and mental. The physical product is produced (a bridge, a report, a software pro- gram). Time, cost, and specification measures are used for control. Is the project on schedule, on budget, and meeting specifications? What are the forecasts of each of these measures? What revisions/changes are necessary?

Request for Proposal (RFP) breakdown

1. Summary of needs and request for action. The background and a simple descrip- tion of the final project deliverable are given first. For example, through simulated war games, the U.S. Navy has found their giant warships of the past are too vulner- able against today's technology (an example is the Silkworm antiship missiles). In addition, the Navy's mission has shifted to supporting ground forces and peace- keeping missions, which require getting closer to shore. As a result, the Navy is revamping ships for near-shore duty. The Navy will select three designs for further refinement from the responses to its RFP. In general, it is expected that the new ship will be capable of at least 55 knots, measure between 80 and 250 feet in length, and be fitted with radar absorbing panels to thwart guided missiles. 2. Statement of work (SOW) detailing the scope and major deliverables. For example, if the project involves a market research survey, the major deliverables could be design, data collection, data analysis, and providing recommendations by February 21, 2014, for a cost not to exceed $300,000. 3. Deliverable specifications/requirements, features, and tasks. This step should be very comprehensive so bid proposals from contractors can be validated and laterused for control. Typical specifications cover physical features such as size, quan- tity, materials, speed, and color. For example, an IT project might specify require- ments for hardware, software, and training in great detail. Tasks required to complete deliverables can be included if they are known. 4. Responsibilities—vendor and customer. Failing to spell out the responsibilities for both parties is notorious for leading to serious problems when the contractor implements the project. For example, who pays for what? (If the contractor is to be on site, will the contractor be required to pay for office space?) What are the limits and exclusions for the contractor? (For example, who will supply test equipment?) What communication plan will be used by the contractor and owner? If escalation of an issue becomes necessary, what process will be used? How will progress be evaluated? Well-defined responsibilities will avoid many unforeseen problems later. 5. Project schedule. This step is concerned with getting a "hard" schedule which can be used for control and evaluating progress. Owners are usually very demanding in meeting the project schedule. In today's business environment, time-to-market is a major "hot button" that influences market share, costs, and profits. The schedule should spell out what, who, and when. 6. Costs and payment schedule. The RFP needs to set out very clearly how, when, and the process for determining costs and conditions for progress payments. 7. Type of contract. Essentially there are two types of contracts—fixed-price and cost-plus. Fixed-price contracts agree on a price or lump sum in advance, and it remains as long as there are no changes to the scope provisions of the agreement. This type is preferred in projects that are well defined with predictable costs and minimal risks. The contractor must exercise care estimating cost because any under- estimating of costs will cause the contractor's profit to be reduced. In cost-plus contracts the contractor is reimbursed for all or some of the expenses incurred during performance of the contract. This fee is negotiated in advance and usually involves a percent of total costs. "Time and materials" plus a profit factor are typical of cost-plus contracts. Both types of contracts can include incentive clauses for superior performance in time and cost, or in some cases, penalties—for example, missing the opening date of a new sports stadium. Appendix 12.1 elaborates further on contract management. 8. Experience and staffing. The ability of the contractor to implement the project may depend on specific skills; this necessary experience should be specified, along with assurance such staff will be available for this project. 9. Evaluation criteria. The criteria for evaluating and awarding the project contract should be specified. For example, selection criteria frequently include methodology, price, schedule, and experience; in some cases these criteria are weighted. Use of the outline in Figure 12.2 will help to ensure key items in the proposal are not omitted. A well-prepared RFP will provide contractors with sufficient guidelines to prepare a proposal that clearly meets the project and customer's needs.

Activity Graph

1. The cost-time relationship is linear. 2. Normal time assumes low-cost, efficient methods to complete the activity. 3. Crash time represents a limit—the greatest time reduction possible under realistic conditions. 4. Slope represents cost per unit of time. 5. All accelerations must occur within the normal and crash times

Project Life Cycle 4. Closing stage

1. Train customer 2. transfer documents 3. Release resources 4. Evaluation 5. Lessons Learned Closing includes three activities: delivering the project product to the customer, redeploying project resources, and post-project review. Delivery of the project might include customer training and transferring documents. Redeployment usually involves releasing project equipment/materials to other projects and finding new assignments for team members. Post-project reviews include not only assessing performance but also capturing lessons learned.

Project closure

1. Wrapping up the project. The major wrap-up task is to ensure the project is approved and accepted by the customer. Other wrap-up activities include closing accounts, paying bills, reassigning equipment and personnel, finding new opportunities for project staff, closing facilities, and the final report. Checklists are used extensively to ensure tasks are not overlooked. In many organizations, the lion's share of closure tasks is largely done by the project office in coordination with the project manager. The final report writing is usually assigned to one project office staff member, who assembles input from all stakeholders. In smaller organizations and projects, these closure activities are left to the project manager and team. 2. Project audit. Audits are post-project reviews of how successful the project was. They include causal analysis and thorough retrospectives which identify lessons learned. These post-project reviews should be held with the team and key stakeholders to catch any missing issues or gaps. 3. Evaluation of performance and management of the project. Evaluation includes team, individual team members, and project manager performance. Vendors and the customer may provide external input. Evaluation of the major players provides important information for the future.

Stakeholders such as human resources, Information Systems, purchasing agent, and maintenance are typically classified as

Administrative support

Developing an Integrated Cost/Schedule System

1.Define the work using a WBS. a.Scope b.Work packages c.Deliverables d.Organization units e.Resources f.Budgets 2.Develop work and resource schedules. a.Schedule resources to activities b.Time-phase work packages into a network 3.Develop a time-phased budget using work packages included in an activity. Accumulate budgets (PV). 4.At the work package level, collect the actual costs for the work performed (AC). Multiply percent complete times original budget (EV).` 5.Compute the schedule variance (EV-PV) and the cost variance (EV-AC).

Pre-Implementation Conditions: Team

1.Do standards for measuring performance exist? (You can't manage what you can't measure.) Are the goals clear for the team and individuals? Challenging? Attainable? Lead to positive consequences? 2.Are individual and team responsibilities and performance standards known by all team members? 3.Are team rewards adequate? Do they send a clear signal that senior management believes that the synergy of teams is important? 4.Is a clear career path for successful project managers in place? 5.Is the team empowered to manage short-term difficulties? 6.Is there a relatively high level of trust emanating from the organization culture? 7.Are there criteria beyond time, cost, and specifications?

Implementing Project Closedown

1.Getting delivery acceptance from the customer 2.Shutting down resources and releasing them to new uses 3.Reassigning project team members 4.Closing accounts and seeing all bills are paid 5.Delivering the project to the customer 6.Creating a final report

Estimating Guidelines for Times, Costs, and Resources

1.Have people familiar with the tasks make the estimate 2.Use several people to make estimates 3.Base estimates on normal conditions, efficient methods, and a normal level of resources 4.Use consistent time units in estimating task times 5.Treat each task as independent, don't aggregate 6.Do not make allowances for contingencies. 7.Add a risk assessment to avoid surprises to stakeholders

The Project Audit Process

1.Initiating and Staffing -Depends primarily on organization and project size -The outcome must represent an independent, outside view of the project. 2.Data Collection and Analysis -Gather information and data to answer questions from: -Organization view-Project team view 3.Reporting -The report attempts to capture needed changes and lessons learned from a current or finished project.

Multiproject Scheduling Problems

1.Overall project slippage •Delay on one project create delays for other projects. 2.Inefficient resource application •The peaks and valleys of resource demands create scheduling problems and delays for projects. 3.Resource bottlenecks •Shortages of critical resources required for multiple projects cause delays and schedule extensions

Characteristics of High-performing Teams with positive synergy

1.Share a sense of common purpose 2.Make effective use of individual talents and expertise 3.Have balanced and shared roles 4.Maintain a problem solving focus 5.Accept differences of opinion and expression 6.Encourage risk taking and creativity 7.Set high personal performance standards 8.Identify with the team High-performing teams become champions, create breakthrough products, exceed customer expectations, and get projects done ahead of schedule and under budget. They are bonded together by mutual interdependency and a common goal or vision. They trust each other and exhibit a high level of collaboration.

Developing a Communication Plan

1.Stakeholder analysis 2.Information needs 3.Sources of information 4.Dissemination modes 5.Responsibility and timing •Project status reports •Deliverable issues •Changes in scope •Team status meetings •Gating decisions •Accepted request changes •Action items •Milestone reports

Traits of an Effective Project Manager

1.Systems thinker 2.Personal integrity 3.Proactive 4.High emotional intelligence (EQ) 5.General business perspective 6.Effective time management 7.Skillful politician 8.Optimist

Guidelines for Conducting a Project Audit

1.The philosophy must be that the project audit is not a witch hunt. 2.Comments about individuals or groups participating in the project should be minimized. 3.Audit activities should be sensitive to human emotions and reactions. 4.Accuracy of data should be verifiable. 5.Senior management should announce support for the project audit. 6.The objective of project audits is not to prosecute but to learn and conserve valuable organization resources where mistakes have been made. 7.The audit should be completed as quickly as is reasonable project audit is conveniently divided into three steps: initiation and staffing, data collection and analysis, and reporting

Organizational Culture Review Questionnaire

1.Was the organizational culture supportive for this type of project? 2.Was senior management support adequate? 3.Were people with the right skills assigned to this project?4.Did the project office help or hinder management of the project? Explain. 5.Did the team have access to organizational resources (people, funds, equipment)?6.Was training for this project adequate? Explain. 7.Were lessons learned from earlier projects useful? Why? Where? 8.Did the project have a clear link to organizational objectives? Explain. 9.Was project staff properly reassigned? 10.Was the Human Resources Office helpful in finding new assignments? Comment.

System documentation cannot end until three days after testing has started. This is an example of which kind of lag

Start to finish

An expected output over the life of a project would be classified as

A deliverable

The Project Network

A flow chart that graphically depicts the logical sequences, interdependencies, and start and finish times of the project activities along with the longest path(s) through the network—the critical path • Provides the basis for scheduling labor and equipment. • Enhances communication among project participants. • Provides an estimate of the project's duration. • Provides a basis for budgeting cash flow. • Identifies activities that are critical. • Highlights activities that are "critical" and should not be delayed. • Help managers get and stay on plan.

Resource leveling or smoothing can have all the following results on a project except

A longer project Duration

Resource leveling or smoothing can have all of the following results on a project EXCEPT

A longer project duration

Monitoring Time Performance

A major goal of progress reporting is to catch any negative variances from plan as early as possible to determine if corrective action is necessary. Fortunately, monitoring schedule performance is relatively easy. The project network schedule, derived from the WBS/OBS, serves as the baseline to compare against actual performance. -Tracking Gantt Chart -Control Chart -Milestone Schedules

Sensitive Network/ sensitivity of a network

A network is sensitive if it has several critical or near-critical paths. In our example project movement toward the optimum time requires spending money to reduce critical activities, resulting in slack reduction and/or more critical paths and activities. Slack reduction in a project with several near-critical paths increases the risk of being late. The practical outcome can be a higher total project cost if some near-critical activities are delayed and become critical; the money spent reducing activities on the original critical path would be wasted. Sensitive networks require careful analysis.

program management office (PMO)

A project / program management office (PMO) is an organizational unit to centralize and coordinate the management of projects / program under its domain

Project Defined (according to PMI)

A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result

Work Packages

A work package is the lowest level of the WBS. -It is output-oriented in that it: 1.Defines work (what). 2.Identifies time to complete a work package (how long). 3.Identifies a time-phased budget to complete a work package (cost). 4.Identifies resources needed to complete a work package (how much). 5.Identifies a person responsible for units of work (who). 6.Identifies monitoring points for measuring success (how well)

Constructing a Project Network Terminology: Parallel Activities (A&B)

Activities that can occur independently and, if desired, not at the same time

When reviewing the variance on a project you compare earned value with

Actual cost and expected schedule of value

AC

Actual cost of the work completed. The sum of the costs incurred in accomplishing work. [ACWP—actual cost of the work performed].

Activity-on-node network forward pass

Adding and start from the right • Add activity times along each path in the network (ES + Duration = EF). • Carry the early finish (EF) to the next activity where it becomes its early start (ES) unless... • The next succeeding activity is a merge activity, in which case the largest early finish (EF) number of all its immediate predecessor activities is selected.

Major Characteristics of a Project: 2. defined endpoint

After helping to install a security system, an IT engineer may be assigned to develop a database for a different client

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates 4. Time units

All task time estimates need consistent time units Estimates of time must consider whether normal time is represented by calendar days, workdays, workweeks, person days, single shift, hours, minutes, etc. In practice the use of workdays is the dominant choice for expressing task duration. How- ever, in projects such as a heart transplant operation, minutes probably would be more appropriate as a time unit. When computer programs allow more than one option, some notation should be made of any variance from the standard unit of time.

When negotiating the tendency is to want to win! Why is this not a good approach when managing contracted relationships

All of these are reasons a competitive approach to negotiation should not be used when managing contracted relationships

Major Characteristics of a Project: 4. Doing something New

Always are doing something new. It just depends on the degree. Obviously, accomplishing something that has never been done before, such as building an electric automobile or landing two mechanical rovers on Mars, requires solving previously unsolved problems and using breakthrough technology. On the other hand, even basic construction projects that involve established sets of routines and procedures require some degree of customization that makes them unique.

Strategies for Communicating with Outsourcers STRATEGY 4: SET DEADLINES

Another important cultural difference relates to sched- ules and deadlines. To most Americans, a deadline is a set completion date. In many other cultures, a deadline is a suggestion that maybe something will be finished by that indicated date. To ensure that outsourced work is completed on time it is imperative to add a penalty clause to your contract or enforce late fees. Although these strategies were directed toward working with foreign outsourcers, you would be surprised to find how many project managers use them when working with their American counterparts!

Which of the following top-down methods is used when projects closely follow past projects in regard to features and costs of those features, and results in costs being assigned by percentages to major segments of the project?

Apportion

The Five-Stage Team Development Model Stage 2: Storming

As the name suggests, this stage is marked by a high degree of internal conflict. Members accept that they are part of a project group but resist the constraints that the project and group put on their individuality. There is conflict over who will control the group and how decisions will be made. As these conflicts are resolved, the project manager's leadership becomes accepted, and the group moves to the next stage.

All of the following organizational consideration when determining the right project management structure except

Assess current practices and determine any changes that are needed to more effectively manage projects

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates 1. Responsibility

At the work package level, estimates should be made by the person most familiar with the task. those responsible for getting the job done on schedule and within budget are usually first-line supervisors or technicians who are experienced and familiar with the type of work involved. They will give an estimate based on experience and best judgment. A secondary benefit of using those responsible is the hope they will "buy in" to seeing that the estimate materializes when they implement the work package. If those involved are not consulted, it will be difficult to hold them responsible for failure to achieve the estimated time.

Which of the following is not an element of good negotiation

Avoid dealing with unreasonable people

VAC

BAC-EAC Cost variance at completion. VAC indicates expected actual over-or under-run cost at completion.

Gantt Chart

Bar charts are popular because they present an easy-to-understand, clear picture on a time-scaled horizon. They are used during planning, resource scheduling, and status reporting. The format is a two-dimensional representation of the project schedule, with activities down the rows and time across the horizontal axis. In this computer output the shaded bars represent the activity durations. The extended lines from the bars represent slack.

Principled negotiation emphasizing developing win-win Solutions while protecting yourself against those who would take advantage of your forthrightness which of the following is not one of the key points of principled negotiation

Be honest and forthright

BAC

Budgeted cost at completion. Total budgeted cost of the baseline or project cost accounts

A ____ activity is one that has more than what activity immediately following it

Burst

Managing Virtual Project Teams

Challenges: -Developing trust •Exchange of social information •Set clear roles for each team member -Developing effective patterns of communication •Don't let team members vanish •Establish a code of conduct to avoid delays •Establish clear norms and protocols for surfacing assumptions and conflicts •Use electronic video technology to verify work •Share the pain

Co-location

Co-location of team members. The most obvious way to make the project team tangible is to have members work together in a common space. This is not always possible in matrix environments where involvement is part time and members are working on other projects and activities. A worthwhile substitute for co-location is the creation of a project office, sometimes referred to as the project war room or clubhouse. Such rooms are the common meeting place and contain the most significant project documentation. Frequently, their walls are covered with Gantt charts, cost graphs, and other output associated with project planning and control. These rooms serve as a tangible sign of project effort.

Crash Times

Collecting crash times for even a moderate-size project can be difficult. The meaning of crash time is difficult to communicate. What is meant when you define crash time as "the shortest time you can realistically complete an activity"? he accuracy of crash times and costs is frequently rough at best, when compared with normal time and cost

Best Practices in Outsourcing Project Work

Convincing people from different professions, organizations, and cultures to work together is difficult. If expectations and requirements are fuzzy or open to debate, this is even harder. •Well-defined requirements and procedures •Extensive training and team-building activities •Well-established conflict management processes in place •Frequent review and status updates •Co-location when needed •Fair and incentive-laden contracts •Long-term outsourcing relationships

After reviewing the project scope statement, the owners specifies that cost MUST stay within $400,000. This Criterion is classified as

Constrained

Control - can overcome most problems in small projects

Control is one of the most neglected areas of project management Control by "wandering around" and "involvement" can overcome most problems in small projects Control holds people accountable, prevents small problems from mushrooming into large problems, and keeps focus. Except for accounting controls, project control is not performed well in most organizations. Neglecting control in organizations with multiple projects is even more serious

Triple Constraint

Cost Scope Time

Percent Complete Rule

Costs are periodically assigned to a baseline as units of work are completed over the duration of a work package This rule is the heart of any earned value system. The best method for assigning costs to the baseline under this rule is to establish frequent checkpoints over the duration of the work package and assign completion percentages in dollar terms. For example, units completed could be used to assign baseline costs and later to measure progress. Units might be lines of code, hours, drawings completed, cubic yards of concrete in place, workdays, prototypes complete, etc. This approach to percent complete adds "objectivity" to the subjective observation approaches often used. When measuring percent complete in the monitoring phase of the project, it is common to limit the amount earned to 80 or 90 percent until the work package is 100 percent complete.

Rules for Placing Costs in Baselines

Costs are placed exactly as they are expected to be "earned" in order to track them to their point of origin Percent Complete Rule

Direct cost for completing an activity in the shortest time it can realistically be completed In is called its ______ cost

Crash

Met-expectations model

Customer satisfaction is a complex phenomenon. One simple but useful way of viewing customer satisfaction is in terms of met expectations. According to this model, customer satisfaction is a function of the extent to which perceived performance (or outcome) exceeds expectations. Mathematically, this relationship can be represented as the ratio between perceived performance and expected performance (see Figure 12.7). When performance falls short of expectations (ratio < 1), the customer is dissatisfied. If the performance matches expectations (ratio = 1), the customer is satisfied. If the performance exceeds expectations (ratio > 1), the customer is very satisfied or even delighted. High customer satisfaction is the goal of most projects.

Which of the following is NOT one of the more common problems associated with scheduling multiproject resources?

Decline in project Quality

Which structure would be most appropriate for developing a new, highly Innovative product that has strict time constraints?

Dedicated Project team

typical kinds of costs found in a project

Direct Costs Overhead costs General and Administrative (G&A) Overhead Costs

The Five-Stage Team Development Model Stage 1: Forming

During this initial stage the members get acquainted with each other and understand the scope of the project. They begin to establish ground rules by trying to find out what behaviors are acceptable with respect to both the project (what role they will play, what performance expectations are) and interpersonal relations (who's really in charge). This stage is completed once members begin to think of themselves as part of a group.

The cost variance for a project is calculated by

EV-AC

Which of the following methods will measure the scheduling efficiency of the work accomplished to date

EV/AC

Earned Value Cost/Schedule System

Earned value is not new; the original earned value cost/schedule system was pioneered by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in the 1960s. -An integrated project management system based on the earned value concept that uses a time-phased budget baseline to compare actual and planned schedule and costs being used on internal projects in the manufacturing, pharmaceutical, and high-tech industries.

Establishing a Team Identity

Effective Use of Meetings Co-location of team members Creation of project team name Team rituals Get the team to do something together

Which of the following is not considered a project indirect cost

Equipment

There are five steps involved when defining a project which of the following is second

Establish project priorities

EAC

Estimated cost at completion.

Which of the following does not help describe a bottom-up estimating approach

Estimates are made at the work package level and then rolled up to determine estimate for major deliverables and for the project itself

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates 3. Normal conditions

Estimates should be based on normal conditions, efficient methods, and a normal level of resources. If the normal workday is eight hours, the time estimate should be based on an eight-hour day. possible conflicts in demand for resources on parallel or concurrent activities should NOT be considered at this stage. The need for adding resources will be examined when resource scheduling is discussed in a later chapter.

Team Evaluation

Evaluation of performance is essential to encourage changes in behavior and to support individual career development and continuous improvement through organizational learning. Evaluation implies measurement against specific criteria.

Which of the following would be the best method for projects where the final product is not known and the uncertainty is very large?

Phase Estimating

Assigning Project Work: Factors to be considered in deciding who should work together

Factors to be considered in deciding who should work together

Failed Project project closure

Failed Project Failed projects are usually easy to identify and easy for a review group to close down. However, every effort should be made to communicate the technical (or other) reasons for termination of the project; in any event project participants should not be left with an embarrassing stigma of working on a project that failed. Many projects will fail because of circumstances beyond the control of the project team. See Snapshot from Practice 14.1: The Wake, for a novel response to a canceled project.

A project budget report is showing that our project is spending $35,000 against a budget amount of $40,000. We can assume that everything is going as planned and that we are under budget.

False

The final stage in defining a project is coding the organization breakdown structure or OBS for the information system.

False

The key requirement in selection of the facilitator is one who is that end-user

False

The process of forecasting or approximating the time and cost of completing project deliverables is called planning.

False

The salary of the project manager and her administrative assistant is classified as direct labor costs.

False

There is a high degree of internal conflict in the forming stage of Team development

False

Principled negotiation

Fisher and Ury from the Harvard Negotiation Project It emphasizes developing win/win solutions while protect- ing yourself against those who would take advantage of your forthrightness. 1. Separate the people from the problem. 2. Focus on interests, not positions. 3. Invent options for mutual gain. 4. When possible, use objective criteria

The Five-Stage Team Development Model Stage 5: Adjourning

For conventional work groups, performing is the last stage of their development. However, for project teams, there is a completion phase. During this stage, the team prepares for its own disbandment. High performance is no longer a top priority. Instead attention is devoted to wrapping up the project. Responses of members vary in this stage. Some members are upbeat, basking in the project team's accomplishments. Others may be depressed over loss of camaraderie and friendships gained during the project's life.

Project Complexity is Influenced by: Other Factors

For example, equipment down-time can alter time estimates. National holidays, vacations, and legal limits can influence project estimates. Project priority can influence resource assignment and impact time and cost.

These are symptoms of organizations struggling with strategy disconnect and unclear priorities

Frequent conflicts between managers inadequate resources confused employees regarding which projects are more important people are working on multiple projects and feel inefficient

Accounting would be an example of which of the following costs typically found in a project

General and administrative overhead

Going Native

Going native is a phrase first used by the British Foreign Service during colonial times to describe agents who assumed the customs, values, and prerogatives of their foreign country assignment.11 They did so to the point that they were no longer rep- resenting the best interests of the British government but rather those of the natives. This same phenomenon can occur within project teams working abroad or in those who become closely identified with their customers. In essence, the customer's interests take precedence over the parent organization's interests. This change in viewpoint can lead to excessive scope creep and open defiance of corporate policy and interests.

Managing Project Reward Systems

Group Rewards -Who gets what as an individual reward? -How to make the reward have lasting significance? -How to recognize individual performance? •Letters of commendation •Public recognition for outstanding work •Desirable job assignments •Increased personal flexibility

Hard or soft skills?

Hard skills are required for entry / survival and soft skills are required for success

Team Spirit Becomes Team Infatuation

High-performance project teams can be a tremendous source of personal satisfaction. The excitement, chaos, and joy generated by working on a challenging project can be an invigorating experience. Leavitt and Lipman-Blumen (1995) even go so far as to say that team members behave like people in love. They become infatuated with the challenge of the project and the talent around them. This total preoccupation with the project and the project team, while contributing greatly to the remark- able success of the project, can leave in its wake a string of broken professional and personal relationships that contribute to burnout and disorientation upon completion of the project.

Which of the following does NOT help describe a project network

Highlights major deliverables and identifies their completion dates

Project Cost-Duration Graph

How to make one 1•Find total direct costs for selected project durations 2•Find total indirect costs for selected project durations 3•Sum direct and indirect costs for these selected project durations -Compare additional cost alternatives for benefits

KISS

However, many organizations do not have the luxury of holding elaborate retreats. In other cases the scope of a project does not warrant such an investment of time. In these cases, the key operating principle should be KISS (keep it simple, stupid!). Too often when constrained by time, project managers try to accomplish too much during the first meeting; in doing so, issues do not get fully resolved, and members come away with an information headache. The project manager needs to remember that the primary goal is to run a productive meeting, and objectives should be realistic given the time available. If the meeting is only one hour, then the project manager should simply review the scope of the project, discuss how the team was formed, and provide an opportunity for members to introduce themselves to the team.

The Project Control Process Step 4: Taking Action

If deviations from plans are significant, corrective action will be needed to bring the project back in line with the original or revised plan. In some cases, conditions or scope can change, which, in turn, will require a change in the baseline plan to recognize new information.

resource smoothing

If resources are adequate but the demand varies widely over the life of the project, it may be desirable to even out resource demand by delaying noncritical activities (using slack) to lower peak demand and, thus, increase resource utilization. ∙ The peak of demand for the resource was reduced. ∙ The number of resources over the life of the project have been reduced. ∙ The fluctuations in resource demand were minimized.

Bottom-Up Approaches for Estimating Project Times and Costs: Template Methods

If the project is similar to past projects, the costs from past projects can be used as a starting point for the new project. Differences in the new project can be noted and past times and costs adjusted to reflect these differences. This approach enables the firm to develop a potential schedule, estimate costs, and develop a budget in a very short time span. Development of such templates in a database can quickly reduce estimate errors.

Do It Twice—Fast and Correctly

If you are in a hurry, try building a "quick and dirty" short-term solution, then go back and do it the right way. The additional costs of doing it twice are often more than compensated for by the benefits of satisfying the deadline.

Which of the following problems refers to lack of understanding and consensus of organization strategy among top and middle level managers

Implementation Gap

Creating a High-Performance Project Team

In many matrix structures, the functional manager controls who is assigned to the project; the project manager will have to work with the functional manager to obtain necessary personnel Often for high- priority projects that are critical to the future of the organization, the project manager will be given virtual carte blanche to select whomever he or she deems necessary. For less significant projects, personnel will simply be assigned to the project.

Dysfunctional conflict

In one team, members may exchange a diatribe of four-letter expletives and eventually resolve their differences. Yet in another project team, such behavior would create irreconcilable divisions and would prohibit the parties from ever working together productively again. Members can be upset and dissatisfied with the interchange, but as long as the disagreement furthers the objectives of the project, then the conflict is functional.

Functional conflict

In one team, members may exchange a diatribe of four-letter expletives and eventually resolve their differences. Yet in another project team, such behavior would create irreconcilable divisions and would prohibit the parties from ever working together productively again. The distinguishing criterion is how the conflict affects project performance, not how individuals feel. Members can be upset and dissatisfied with the interchange, but as long as the disagreement furthers the objectives of the project, then the conflict is functional.

Function Points

In the software industry, software development projects are frequently estimated using weighted macro variables called "function points" or major parameters such as number of inputs, number of outputs, number of inquiries, number of data files, and number of interfaces. These weighted variables are adjusted for a complexity factor and added. The total adjusted count provides the basis for estimating the labor effort and cost for a project (usually using a regression formula derived from data of past projects).

Project Complexity is Influenced by: Padding estimates

In work situations where you are asked for time and cost estimates, most of us are inclined to add a little padding to increase the probability and reduce the risk of being late. If everyone at all levels of the project adds a little padding to reduce risk, the project duration and cost are seriously overstated. This phenomenon causes some managers or owners to call for a 10-15 percent cut in time and/or cost for the project. Of course the next time the game is played, the person estimating cost and/or time will pad the estimate to 20 percent or more. Clearly such games defeat chances for realistic estimates, which is what is needed to be competitive.

Before an evaluation of the project team can be effective and useful a minimum core of conditions needs to be in place before the project begins. Which of the following would not be one of those conditions

Individuals have the skill set necessary to successfully complete the project

essential to maximizing the performance of a project team

Ingenuity, discipline, and sensitivity to team dynamics

Scheduling over time

Is the easiest way to add more labor to a project Salary- don't need to pay more $ Hourly- will need to pay time and a half Sustained overtime work by salaried employees may incur intangible costs such as divorce, burnout, and turnover. The key is to use overtime judiciously. Remember a project is a marathon not a sprint! You do not want to run out of energy before the finish line.

Crash Time

Is the shortest possible time an activity can realistically be completed in

Mapping Stakeholder Dependencies

It is always better to overestimate rather than underestimate dependencies -Project team perspective: •Whose cooperation will we need? •Whose agreement or approval will we need? •Whose opposition would keep us from accomplishing the project? -Stakeholders' perspective: •What differences exist between the team and those on whom the team will depend? •How do the stakeholders view the project? •What is the status of our relationships with the stakeholders? •What sources of influence does the team have relative to the stakeholders?

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates 7. Adding risk assessment to the estimate helps to avoid surprises to stakeholders

It is obvious some tasks carry more time and cost risks than others. For example, a new technology usually carries more time and cost risks than a proven process. Simply identifying the degree of risk lets stakeholders consider alternative methods and alter process decisions. A simple breakdown by optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic for task time could provide valuable information regarding time and cost.

Groupthink

Janis (1982) first identified groupthink as a factor that influenced the misguided 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba. His term refers to the tendency of members in highly cohesive groups to lose their critical evaluative capabilities. This malady appears when pressures for conformity are combined with an illusion of invincibility to suspend critical discussion of decisions. As a result decisions are made quickly with little consideration of alternatives; often the practice leads to fiascoes that, after the fact, appear totally improbable. Some of the symptoms of groupthink include the following: ∙ Illusion of invulnerability. The team feels invincible. It is marked by a high degree of esprit de corps, an implicit faith in its own wisdom, and an inordinate optimism that allows group members to feel complacent about the quality of their decisions. ∙ Whitewash of critical thinking. The group members discuss only a few solutions, ignoring alternatives; they fail to examine the adverse consequences that could fol- low their preferred course of action; and they too quickly dismiss any alternatives that, on the surface, appear to be unsatisfactory. ∙ Negative stereotypes of outsiders. "Good guy/bad guy" stereotypes emerge in which the group considers any outsiders who oppose their decisions as the bad guys, who are perceived as incompetent and malicious and whose points are unworthy of serious consideration. ∙ Direct pressure. When a team member does speak out or question the direction in which the team is headed, direct pressure is applied to the dissenter. He or she is reminded that speed is important and that the aim is agreement, not argument.

Team Rituals

Just as corporate rituals help establish the unique identity of a firm, similar symbolic actions at the project level can contribute to a unique team subculture. For example, on one project members were given ties with stripes that corresponded to the number of milestones on the project. After reaching each milestone, members would gather and cut the next stripe off their ties to signify progress.4 Ralph Katz (2004) reports it was common practice for Digital Equipment's alpha chip design team to recognize people who found a bug in the design by giving them a phosphorescent toy roach. The bigger the bug that was discovered, the bigger the toy roach received. Such rituals help set project work apart from mainstream operations and reinforce a special status.

Bottom-Up Approaches for Estimating Project Times and Costs: Parametric Procedures Applied to Specific Tasks

Just as parametric techniques such as cost per square foot can be the source of top- down estimates, the same technique can be applied to specific tasks To estimate the wallpapering allowance on a house remodel, the contractor figured a cost of $5 per square yard of wallpaper and $2 per yard to install it, for a total cost of $7. By measuring the length and height of all the walls she was able to calculate the total area in square yards and multiply it by $7.

Which of the following would best represent direct project costs?

Labor, materials and equipment

Scope Creep

Large changes in scope are easily identified. It is the "minor refinements" that eventually build to be major scope changes that can cause problems. These small refinements are known in the field as scope creep. Although scope changes are usually viewed negatively, there are situations when scope changes result in positive rewards A small change in the production pro- cess may get the product to market one month early or reduce product cost

Level of detail

Level of detail is different for different levels of management. At any level the detail should be no more than is necessary and sufficient. Top management interests usually center on the total project and major milestone events that mark major accomplishments—e.g., "Build Oil Platform in the North Sea" or "Complete Prototype." Middle management might center on one segment of the project or one mile- stone. First-line managers' interests may be limited to one task or work package.

Managing versus Leading a Project

Managing—coping with complexity -Formulate plans and objectives -Monitor results -Take corrective action -Expedite activities -Solve technical problems -Serve as peacemaker -Make tradeoffs among time, costs, and project scope Leading—coping with change -Recognize the need to change to keep the project on track -Initiate change -Provide direction and motivation -Innovate and adapt as necessary -Integrate assigned resources

A _____ activity is one that has more than one activity immediately preceding (before) it.

Merge

Milestone Schedules

Milestone schedules are often used to keep more distal stakeholders informed on the progress of a project. Such stakeholders, whether it is senior management, the owner, or regulatory agencies often neither need or desire a detailed accounting of project progress. Instead, their interests can be satisfied by reporting progress towards major project milestones.

Combinations of Lag Relationships

More than one lag relationship can be attached to an activity. These relationships are usually start-to-start and finish-to-finish combinations tied to two activities. For exam- ple, debug cannot begin until two time units after coding has started. Coding must be finished four days before debug can be finished (see Figure 6.19).

Reducing Project Scope

Most common (have to be careful not to reduce the value leads to a reduction in the functionality of the project Ex. new car will average only 25 mpg instead of 30 *While scaling back the scope of the project can lead to big savings in both time and money, it may come at a cost of reducing the value of the project. If the car gets lower gas mileage, will it stand up to competitive models? **Calculating the savings of reduced project scope begins with the work breakdown structure. Reducing functionality means certain tasks, deliverables, or requirements can be reduced or even eliminated. These tasks need to be found and the schedule adjusted. Focus should be on changes in activities on the critical path.

Which of the following is not one of the requirements for successful Implementation of strategies through projects

Motivation of project contributors

Resource Conflicts and Multitasking

Multiproject environment creates interdependency relationships of shared resources which results in the starting, stopping, and restarting projects

Methods of Variance Analysis

NO critical path information •Comparing Earned Value with: -The expected schedule value -The actual costs -comparisons can be made at the project level or down to the cost account level -Project status can be determined for the latest period, all periods to date, and estimated to the end of the project •Assessing Status of a Project -Required three data elements •Planned cost of the work scheduled (PV) •Budgeted cost of the work completed (EV) •Actual cost of the work completed (AC) -Calculate schedule and cost variances •A positive variance indicates a desirable condition, while a negative variance suggests problems or changes that have taken place tells us if the work accomplished costs more or less than was planned at any point over the life of the project. If labor and materials have not been separated, cost variance should be reviewed carefully to isolate the cause to either labor or materials—or to both

Research consistently points out that project success is strongly affected by the degree to which a project has the support of top management. The following are ways a project manager can manage upward relationships except

Never ignore the chain of comand

Same as the coach of a high school soccer team and has noticed that someplace relationship has formed

Norming

All the following are symptoms of organizations struggling with strategy disconnect and unclear priorities EXCEPT

Not enough projects within the portfolio to make a project

Fast-Tracking

Not without risk. late design changes can produce wasted effort and rework Sometimes it is possible to rearrange the logic of the project network so that critical activities are done in parallel (concurrently) rather than sequentially. requires close coordination among those responsible for the activities affected and confidence in the work that has been completed When this alternative is given serious attention, it is amazing to observe how creative project team members can be in finding ways to restructure sequential activities in parallel.

Team Building

Nothing reinforces a sense of a team more than working on something together. In the case of one international project, the manager simply hosted a potluck dinner where each member brought a dish his or her country was famous for.

It is common to use the functional organizational model when

One functional area plays a dominant role in the project

Compression of the Product Life Cycle

One of the most significant driving forces behind the demand for project management is the shortening of the product life cycle. or example, today in high-tech industries the product life cycle is averaging six months to three years. Only 30 years ago, life cycles of 10 to 15 years were not uncommon

Project Complexity is Influenced by: Organization Culture

Organization culture can significantly influence project estimates. In some organizations padding estimates is tolerated and even privately encouraged. Other organizations place a premium on accuracy and strongly discourage estimating gamesmanship. Organizations vary in the importance they attach to estimates. The prevailing belief in some organizations is that detailed estimating takes too much time and is not worth the effort or that it's impossible to predict the future. Other organizations subscribe to the belief that accurate estimates are the bedrock of effective project management. Organization culture shapes every dimension of project management; estimating is not immune to this influence.

Defining the Project Step 4: Integrating the WBS with the Organization

Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS) -Depicts how the firm is organized to discharge its work responsibility for a project. •Provides a framework to summarize organization unit work performance. •Identifies organization units responsible for work packages. •Ties organizational units to cost control accounts

Hard Skills or Technical Skills

PLANNING / detailing -devil is in the details!!! Defining the approval hierarchy (executive council, gate committee) Time management Budget management Risk analysis Decision making / risk taking Computer skill (MS Office; MS Project;......) Knowledge of the area e.g. civil engineering, IT, banking .....(icing on the cake

benefits of Reference class forecasting (RCF)

Outside empirical data mitigates human bias. ∙ Political, strategic, and promoter forces have difficulty ignoring outside RCF information. ∙ Serves as reality check for funding large projects. ∙ Helps executives avoid unsound optimism. ∙ Leads to improved accountability. ∙ Provides basis for project contingency funds.

Outsourcing Project Work

Outsourcing -The process of transferring of business functions or processes (e.g., customer support, IT, accounting) to other, often foreign companies -Being applied to contracting significant chunks of project work -Being applied to the creation of new products and services The shift toward outsourcing is readily apparent in the film industry.

During which stage of Team development is the team fully functional and accomplishing project goals

Performing

Inspiration-related currencies

Perhaps the most powerful form of influence derive from people's burning desire to make a difference and add meaning to their lives. Creating an exciting, bold vision for a project can elicit extraordinary commitment. Vision: Being involved in a task that has larger significance for the unit, organization, customer, or society Excellence: Having a chance to do important things really well Ethical Correctness: Doing what is "right" by a higher standard than efficiency

Perpetual project closure

Perpetual Some projects never seem to end. The major characteristic of this kind of project is constant "add-ons," suggesting a poorly conceived project scope. At some point the review group should recommend methods for bringing final closure to this type of project or the initiation of another project. For example, adding a new feature to an old project could replace a segment of a project that appears to be perpetual

Bottom-Up Approaches for Estimating Project Times and Costs: A Hybrid: Phase Estimating

Phase estimating is used when an unusual amount of uncertainty surrounds a project and it is impractical to estimate times and costs for the entire project. Phase estimating uses a two-estimate system over the life of the project. A detailed estimate is developed for the immediate phase and a macro estimate is made for the remaining phases of the project. Begins with a top-down estimate for the project and then refines estimates for phases of the project as it is implemented. Some projects by their nature cannot be rigorously defined because of the uncertainty of design or the final product.

Richard is collecting estimates for a house that he will have the funding to build in 12 months. Which of the following factors does Richard need to consider in regard to the quality of these estimates

Planning Horizon

Factors Influencing the Quality of Estimates

Planning Horizon project complexity people project structure and organization padding estimates organization culture other (nonproject) factors

Projects are usually classified into all but one of the following categories. Which one is not one of the typical classifications

Political necessity

Portfolio

Portfolio is a collection of projects or programs and other work that are grouped together to facilitate management of that work to meet the strategic business objective

In terms of commonly traded organizational currencies, sharing tasks that increase someone's skills and abilities and letting others have ownership and influence are examples of ______- related currencies

Position

To the following is not one of the aspects of leading by example

Power

When the project may be completed early the some parts of the project eliminated this is considered to be ________ closure

Premature

Task-related currencies

Probably the most significant form of this currency is the ability to respond to subordinates' requests for additional manpower, money, or time to complete a segment of a project. Resources: Lending or giving money, budget increases, personnel, etc. Assistance: Helping with existing projects or undertaking unwanted tasks Cooperation: Giving task support, providing quicker response time, or aiding implementation Information: Providing organizational as well as technical knowledge

Crashing

Process of shortening an activity *Crashing the project duration increases the risk of being late.

Phase estimating is used when a project cannot be rigorously defined because of uncertainty of the design or the final product

True

A series of coordinated, related, multiple projects that continue over an extended time period and are intended to achieve a goal is known as a

Program

In-process project audits

Project audits early in projects allow for corrective changes, if they are needed, on the audited project or others in progress. In-process project audits concentrate on project progress and performance and check if conditions have changed. For example, have priorities changed? Is the project mission still relevant? In rare cases, the audit report may recommend closure of a project that is in process.

What Costs Are Included in Baselines?

Project direct overhead costs: labor, equipment, materials They are included because they are direct costs the Manager can control Overhead cost and profit are typically added later

Regardless of the criteria differences among different types of projects typically the most important Criterion for project selection is

Project fit to the organization strategy

Organization Politics

Project selection is based on the persuasiveness and power of people advocating the projects

Projects success

Project success does not just depend on the performance of the project team. Success or failure often depends on the contributions of top management, functional managers, customers, suppliers, contractors, and others.

Bureaucratic Bypass Syndrome

Project teams are often licensed to get things done without having to go through normal protocols of the parent organization. Bypassing bureaucratic channels is appealing and invigorating. However, if bypassing becomes a way of life, it results in the rejection of bureaucratic policies and procedures, which provide the glue for the overall organization. A team that operates outside the organization may alienate other workers who are constrained by the norms and procedures of the organization; eventually, these outside bureaucrats will find ways to put up roadblocks and thwart the project team

Project Examples

Projects •Designing pension scheme. •Defining levels of management. •Setting up security systems. •Construction of a building. •Developing a restaurant menu. •Setting up a sales

Major Characteristics of a Project: 5. Specific time. cost & performance requirements

Projects are evaluated according to accomplishment, cost, and time spent.

Bottom-Up Approaches for Estimating Project Times and Costs: Range Estimating

Range estimating works best when work packages have significant uncertainty associated with the time or cost to complete. If the work pack- age is routine and carries little uncertainty, using a person most familiar with the work package is usually the best approach. when work packages have significant uncertainty associated with the time or cost to complete, it is a prudent policy to require three time estimates—low, average, and high

Strategies for Communicating with Outsourcers STRATEGY 1: Recognize cultural differences

Realize that not everyone you communicate with shares your assumptions. What is obvious to you is not necessarily obvious to your partner. This is especially true with foreign outsourcers. As an American, you likely assume that laws are generally obeyed. Believe it or not, that's generally not true in most of the world, where laws are guidelines that are not necessarily followed. This can lead to major communication problems! You think if you write a contract, everybody is going to adhere to it. For many people, a contract is merely a suggestion.

Advantages of Long-term Partnerships

Reduced administrative costs •More efficient utilization of resources •Improved communication •Improved innovation •Improved performance

One way for a project manager to communicate the authority granted to individual project members is to publish a

Responsibility Matrix

Comparison of Routine Work with Projects

Routine, Repetitive Work -Taking class notes -Daily entering sales receipts into the accounting ledger -Responding to a supply-chain request -Practicing scales on the piano Projects -Writing a term paper -Setting up a sales kiosk for a professional accounting meeting -Developing a supply-chain information system

Characteristics of Objectives

SMART Specific-Be specific in targeting an objective Measurable-Establish a measurable indicator(s) of progress Assignable-Make the objective assignable to one person for completion Realistic-State what can realistically be done with available resources Time related-State when the objective can be achieved, that is, duration

Strategies for Communicating with Outsourcers

STRATEGY 1: Recognize cultural differences STRATEGY 2:Choose the right words STRATEGY 3:Confirm your requirements STRATEGY 4:Set deadlines

A project Network provides the basis for _______________.

Scheduling labor and equipment

Soft Skills or Socio cultural Skills

Self-motivation -passion for project management Communication -written and verbal Ability to motivate the team members Empathy Sense of humour

Automatically customers action is function of the extent to which perceive performance exceeds expectations. Customer satisfaction ratio of .95 indicates that a customer is

Slightly dissatisfied

Software for Project Cost/Schedule Systems

Software developers have created sophisticated schedule/cost systems for projects that track and report budget, actual, earned, committed, and index values. These values can be labor hours, materials, and/or dollars. This information supports cost and schedule progress, performance measurements, and cash flow management. 1. Schedule variance (EV − PV) by cost account and WBS and OBS. 2. Cost variance (EV − AC) by cost account and WBS and OBS. 3. Indexes—total percent complete and performance index. 4. Cumulative actual total cost to date (AC). 5. Expected costs at completion (EAC). 6. Paid and unpaid commitments

Top-Down Approaches for estimating Times & Costs: Learning Curves

Some projects require that the same task, group of tasks, or product be repeated several times. Managers know intuitively that the time to perform a task improves with repetition. This phenomenon is especially true of tasks that are labor intensive. In these circumstances the pattern of improvement phenomenon can be used to predict the reduction in time to perform the task. From empirical evidence across all industries, the pattern of this improvement has been quantified in the learning curve (also known as improvement curve, experience curve, and industrial progress curve)

Concurrent engineering,

Start to start all working together at the same time breaks activities into smaller segments so that work can be done in parallel and the project This start-to-start relationship with a small lag allows a sequential activity to be worked on in parallel and to compress the duration of the critical path. This same concept is frequently found in projects in which concurrent engineering is used to speed completion of a project

Activity-on-node network backward pass

Subtracting and start from the left • Subtract activity times along each path starting with the project end activity (LF - Duration = LS). • Carry the late start (LS) to the next preceding activity where it becomes its late finish (LF) unless... • The next succeeding activity is a burst activity, in which case the smallest late start (LS) number of all its immediate successor activities is selected.

While balancing assignment, a project manager must also balance:

Talent Development

360-degree feedback

The 360-degree feedback approach gathers behavioral observations from many sources within the organization and includes employee self-assessment. The individual completes the same structured evaluation process that superiors, project team members, peers and, in many cases, external customers use to evaluate a performance. Survey questionnaires, augmented by a few open-ended questions, are typically used to gather information. Summary results are compared against organizational strategies, values, and business objectives. The feedback is communicated to the individual with the assistance of the company's human resource department or an outside consultant. The technique is used by a growing number of firms including General Electric, AT&T, Mobil Oil, Nabisco, Hewlett-Packard, and Warner-Lambert.

Project Manager/Management

The Project Manager is the person assigned to achieve the project objectives. The role of a project manager is distinct from a functional / operations manager Project Management is the application of knowledge, SKILLS, tools and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements. It is accomplished through the application of 49 processes in following 5 groups: ▪Initiating ▪Planning ▪Executing ▪Monitoring and control ▪Closing

There are five steps involved when defining a project which is last

The WBS for tracking

Tracking Gantt Chart

The actual start time for activity C is period 2; the actual finish time is period 5; the actual duration is three time units, rather than four scheduled time periods. Activity F, which has not started, shows a revised estimated actual start (9) and finish time (13). Activity D's revised duration results in an expected delay in the start of activity F.

Best alternative to a negotiated agreement (BATNA)

The best defense against unreasonable, win/lose negotiators is having what Fisher and Ury call a strong BATNA (best alternative to a negotiated agreement). They point out that people try to reach an agreement to produce something better than the result of not negotiating with that person. What those results would be is the true benchmark for determining whether you should accept an agreement. A strong BATNA gives you the power to walk away and say, "No deal unless we work toward a win/win scenario." Your BATNA reflects how dependent you are on the other party. If you are negotiating price and delivery dates and can choose from a number of reputable suppliers, then you have a strong BATNA. If on the other hand there is only one vendor who can supply you with specific, critical material on time, then you have a weak BATNA

Crash Cost

The direct cost for completing an activity in its crash time

Project evaluation

The purpose of project evaluation is to assess how well the project team, team members, and project manager performed.

When determining which activity to crash there are other factors that should be assessed Beyond cost. Which of the following is NOT one of these factors

The level of difficulty involved in completing the activity

Crash Point

The maximum time an activity can be compressed

Project Complexity is Influenced by: People

The people factor can influence the quality of time and cost estimates. For example, accuracy of estimates depends on the skills of the people making the estimates. How familiar are they with the task they are estimating?

PV

The planned time-phased baseline of the value of the work scheduled. An approved cost estimate of the resources scheduled in a time-phased cumulative baseline [BCWS—Budgeted Cost of the Work Schedule

It is coming to use the functional organizational model when

The project manager has functional authority over any of the department heads

Improve the Efficiency of the Project Team

The project team may be able to improve productivity by implementing more efficient ways to do their work. This can be achieved by improving the planning and organization of the project or eliminating barriers to productivity such as excessive bureaucratic interference and red tape.

Planning Horizon

The quality of the estimate depends on the planning horizon; estimates of current events are close to 100 percent accurate but are reduced for more distant events. For example, cost estimates for a party you are organizing this weekend should be much more accurate than the estimates for a party that will take place in six months. The accuracy of time and cost estimates should improve as you move from the conceptual phase to the point where individual work packages are defined. Long-duration projects increase the uncertainty in estimates.

The Five-Stage Team Development Model Stage 3: Norming

The third stage is one in which close relationships develop and the group demonstrates cohesiveness. Feelings of camaraderie and shared responsibility for the project are heightened. The norming phase is complete when the group structure solidifies and the group establishes a common set of expectations about how members should work together.

Completing the backward pass you carry the LS to the next preceding activity to establish that LF

The smallest LS of all is immediate successor activities to establish the LF

The Five-Stage Team Development Model Stage 4: Performing

The team operating structure at this point is fully functional and accepted. Group energy has moved from getting to know each other and how the group will work together to accomplishing the project goals.

Partnering charter

The team-building sessions often culminate with the creation of a partnering charter signed by all of the participants. This charter states their common goals for the project as well as the procedures that will be used to achieve these goals

Reference class forecasting (RCF)

The use of RCF is increasing as governments and organizations require this method be used to temper project promoters' estimates and reduce cost/benefit inaccuracies. 1. Select a reference class of projects similar to your potential project, for example, cargo ships or bridges. 2. Collect and arrange outcome data as a distribution. Create a distribution of cost overruns as a percentage of the original project estimate (low to high). 3. Use the distribution data to arrive at a realistic forecast. Compare the original cost estimate for the project with the reference class projects. (For example, ask an advo- cate of rail tunnel what strong evidence do you have that your project will not follow the tunnel projects in the reference class?)

When recruiting project team members which of the following factors is not something a project manager might consider

Their skills that as it compares to the project manager

Postproject audits

These audits tend to include more detail and depth than in- process project audits. Project audits of completed projects emphasize improving the management of future projects. These audits are more long-term oriented than in-process audits. Postproject audits do check on project performance, but the audit represents a broader view of the project's role in the organization; for example, were the strategic benefits claimed actually delivered?

General and Administrative (G&A) Overhead Costs

These represent organization costs that are not directly linked to a specific project. These costs are carried for the duration of the project. Examples include organization costs across all products and projects such as advertising, accounting, and senior management above the project level. Allocation of G&A costs varies from organization to organization. However, G&A costs are usually allocated as a percent of total direct cost, or a percent of the total of a specific direct cost such as labor, materials, or equipment.

Dedicated Project Team

These teams operate as separate units from the rest of the parent organization. Usually a full-time project manager is designated to pull together a core group of specialists who work full time on the project. The project manager recruits necessary personnel from both within and outside the parent company. The subsequent team is physically separated from the parent organization and given marching orders to complete the project

Which of the following does not help describe a bottom-up estimating approach

They are made by someone who uses experience and/or information from someone else to determine overall project cost and duration

Control Chart

This chart is another tool used to monitor past project schedule performance and current performance and to estimate future schedule trends. The chart is used to plot the difference between the scheduled time on the critical path at the report date with the actual point on the critical path. Although Figure 13.2 shows the project was behind early in the project, the plot suggests corrective action brought the project back on track. If the trend is sustained, the project will come in ahead of schedule. Because the activity scheduled times represent average durations, four observations trending in one direction indicate there is a very high probability that there is an identifiable cause. The cause should be located and action taken if necessary. Control chart trends are very useful for giving warning of potential problems so appropriate action can be taken if necessary.

Time and cost database

This database approach allows the project estimator to select a specific work package item from the database for inclusion. The estimator then makes any necessary adjustments concerning the materials, labor, and equipment. Of course any items not found in the database can be added to the project—and ultimately to the database if desired. Again, the quality of the database estimates depends on the experience of the estimators, but over time the data quality should improve. Such structured databases serve as feedback for estimators and as bench- marks for cost and time for each project.

Balanced Matrix

This is the classic matrix in which the project manager is responsible for defining what needs to be accomplished while the functional man- agers are concerned with how it will be accomplished. The merger of "what and how" requires both parties to work closely together and jointly approve technical and operational decisions.

Top-Down Approaches for estimating Times & Costs: Consensus Methods

This method simply uses the pooled experience of senior and/or middle managers to estimate the total project duration and cost. This typically involves a meeting where experts discuss, argue, and ultimately reach a decision as to their best guess estimate. Firms seeking greater rigor will use the Delphi Method to make these macro estimates. these first top-down estimates are only a rough cut and typically occur in the "conceptual" stage of the project. sometimes significantly off the mark because little detailed information is gathered

Finish-to-Finish Relationship

This relationship is found in Figure 6.17. The finish of one activity depends on the finish of another activity. For example, testing cannot be completed any earlier than four days after the prototype is complete. Note that this is not a finish-to-start relationship because the testing of subcomponents can begin before the prototype is completed, but four days of "system" testing is required after the prototype is finished.

Start-to-Finish Relationship

This relationship represents situations in which the finish of an activity depends on the start of another activity. For example, system documentation cannot end until three days after testing has started (see Figure 6.18). Here all the relevant information to complete the system documentation is produced after the first three days of testing.

The Project Control Process Step 2: Measuring Progress and Performance

Time and budgets are quantitative measures of performance that readily fit into the integrated information system. Qualitative measures such as meeting customer technical specifications and product function are most frequently determined by on-site inspection or actual use. Measurement of time performance is relatively easy and obvious. That is, is the critical path early, on schedule, or late; is the slack of near-critical paths decreasing to cause new critical activities? Measuring performance against budget (e.g., money, units in place, labor hours) is more difficult and is not simply a case of comparing actual versus budget. Earned value is necessary to provide a realistic estimate of performance against a time-phased budget. Earned value (EV) is defined as the budgeted cost of the work performed.

Project Complexity

Time to implement new technology has a habit of expanding in an increasing, nonlinear fashion. Sometimes poorly written scope specifications for new technology result in errors in estimating times and costs. -People -project structure and organization -padding estimates -organizational culture -other factors

And looking at the critical path for delayed project in the project manager sees that adding resources will reduce or remove the delay, the project manager knows that the project is

Time-constrained

Crashing a more expensive activity may be wise if you are inherent risks are involved

True

Creating a communication plan typically follows a process that begins with a stakeholder analysis.

True

360-degree performance evaluation includes feedback from peers project manager subordinates and even customers

True

A control chart can be used to estimate schedule trends

True

All leveling techniques still a non-critical activities by using positive slack to smooth out the resource requirements

True

Although it is very difficult to measure measuring technical performance is as important as measuring schedule and cost performance

True

Comparing plan to cost versus actual cost look at the project manager a quick understanding of the status of the project

True

Determine if a project is time-constrained resource-constrained you would consult the project priority Matrix

True

Different activities along the same path can have different total slack

True

Evaluation of performance is essential to encourage changes in behavior and to support individual Career Development and continuous Improvement through organizational learning

True

Even though a project costs time and money to develop, it is worth the effort.

True

Experience suggests that one there are multiple starts a common start note should be used to indicate a clear project beginning on the network. Similarly a single project and Nota can be used to indicate a clear ending.

True

Gantt charts are popular because they represent an easy-to-understand, clear picture on a Time-scaled horizon

True

Inspiration related currency is derived from people's burning desire to make a difference and add meaning to their lives

True

Instruments that are typically based on estimates of elements found in the work breakdown structure are called bottom-up estimates

True

Managing upward relationships involve project managers become skilled at the art of persuading superiors

True

One important factor that a project manager must acknowledge one recruiting project members is the management structure

True

One of the major disadvantages of a projectized form of project management structure is that it tends to be more expensive than other forms of organization

True

One way to offset the influence of Politics on project management within an organization is to have a well-defined project selection model

Ture

Project Closure

Types of Project Closure -Normal -Premature -Perpetual -Failed Project -Changed Priority Close-out Plan: Questions to be Asked -What tasks are required to close the project? -Who will be responsible for these tasks? -When will closure begin and end? -How will the project be delivered?

Which of the following describes the consensus method?

Uses pooled experience of senior and/or middle managers to estimate the total project duration and cost

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates 5. Independence

Use of first-line managers usually results in considering tasks independently; this is good. Top managers are prone to aggregate many tasks into one time estimate and then deductively make the individual task time estimates add to the total. each task time estimate should be considered independently of other activities.

Delphi Method

Used to make Macro estimates. is a group decision process about the likelihood that certain events will occur.

Which of the following methods of variance analysis is the best indicator of how far off the budget a project will be at completion

VAC

Fair and Incentive-Laden Contracts

When negotiating contracts the goal is to reach a fair deal for all involved. Managers recognize that cohesion and cooperation is undermined if one party feels he or she is being unfairly treated by others. They also realize that negotiating the best deal in terms of price can come back to haunt them with shoddy work and change order gouging.

Bottom-up estimates

When there is a fixed price contract. establish low-cost, efficient methods. This process can take place after the project has been defined in detail. -Can serve as a check on cost elements in the WBS by rolling up the work packages and associated cost accounts to major deliverables at the work package level Good sense suggests project estimates should come from the people most knowledgeable about the estimate needed. The use of several people with relevant experience with the task can improve the time and cost estimate. The bottom-up approach at the work package level can serve as a check on cost elements in the WBS by rolling up the work packages and associated cost accounts to major deliverables.

Strategies for Communicating with Outsourcers STRATEGY 2: Choose the right Words

When you explain your requirements to an outsourcer, word choice is critical. For many outsourcers, English is still a foreign language—even in India, where both out- sourcing and the English language are common. No matter how prevalent English has become, your outsourcer might have a basic understanding of each word you utter yet be not completely clear on the exact meaning of the message you're trying to convey. This is why you should speak in a direct manner using short sentences made of basic, simple words.

Establishing Ground Rules

Whether as part of an elaborate first meeting or during follow-up meetings, the project manager must quickly begin to establish operational ground rules for how the team will work together. These ground rules involve not only organizational and procedural issues but also normative issues on how the team will interact with each other. Although specific procedures will vary across organizations and projects, some of the major issues that need to be addressed include the following: Planning Decisions Tracking Decisions Managing Change Desisions Relationship Decisions

Information to develop a project network is collected from the

Work Breakdown Structure

Defining the Project Step 3: Creating the WorkBreakdown Structure

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) -A hierarchical outline (map) that identifies the products and work elements involved in a project -Defines the relationship of the final deliverable (the project) to its subdeliverables, and in turn, their relationships to work packages. -Best suited for design and build projects that have tangible outcomes rather than process-oriented projects

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates 6. Contingencies

Work package estimates should not include allowances for contingencies. The estimate should assume normal or average conditions even though every work package will not materialize as planned. For this reason top management needs to create an extra fund for contingencies that can be used to cover unforeseen events.

Developing A Status Report

Working through an example demonstrates how the baseline serves as the anchor from which the project can be monitored using earned value techniques. •Assumptions 1. Each cost account has only one work package, and each cost account will be represented as an activity on the network. 2. The project network early start times will serve as the basis for assigning the baseline values. 3. From the moment work on an activity begins, some actual costs will be incurred each period until the activity is completed Work packages are in one of three conditions on a report date: 1. Not yet started. 2. Finished. 3. In-process or partially complete. Earned values for the first two conditions present no difficulties. Work packages that are not yet started earn zero percent of the PV (budget). Packages that are completed earn 100 percent of their PV. In-process packages apply the percent complete rule to the PV baseline to measure earned value (EV)

Strategies for Communicating with Outsourcers STRATEGY 3: CONFIRM YOUR REQUIREMENTS

You should take the following steps to confirm that the outsourcer thoroughly understands your requirements: 1. Document your requirements. Follow up your con- versations in writing. Commit your requirements to Four Strategies for Communicating with Outsourcers* paper for the outsourcer. Many people understand written language better than spoken language, probably because they have more time to process the message. 2. Insist your outsourcer re-document your require- ments. Leave nothing to chance. Require outsourc- ers to write the requirements in their own words. If outsourcers cannot relay to you what you explained to them, then they didn't understand. 3. Request a prototype. After the requirements are written, ask the outsourcer to create a prototype for you. This is a safety net to ensure that your wants and needs are positively understood. Ask the provider to sketch what you want your final product to look like or build a quick, simple program that reflects how the final product will look

One of the primary jobs the project manager is to manage the trade-offs associated with the project. Which of the following is not one of the basic classification for project priorities

all of these correct

Top management

approves funding of the project and establishes priorities within the organization. They define success and adjudicate rewards for accomplishments. Significant adjustments in budget, scope, and schedule typically need their approval. They have a natural vested interest in the success of the project, but at the same time have to be responsive to what is best for the entire organization

Top-Down Approaches for estimating Times & Costs: Function Point Methods for Software and System Projects

are frequently estimated using weighted macro variables called "function Points" or major parameters such as number of inputs, number of outputs, number of inquiries, number of data files, and number of interfaces. These weighted variables are adjusted for a complexity factor and added. The total adjusted count provides the basis for estimating the labor effort and cost for a project (usually using a regression formula derived from data of past projects).

The Project Control Process Step 1: Setting a Baseline Plan

baseline plan provides us with the elements for measuring performance The base- line is derived from the cost and duration information found in the work breakdown structure (WBS) database and time-sequence data from the network and resource scheduling decisions. From the WBS the project resource schedule is used to time- phase all work, resources, and budgets into a baseline plan.

Nominal group technique (NGT)

begins by gathering project team members and/or stakeholders around a table and identifying the project problem at hand. Each member then writes his or her solutions. Next, each member presents his or her solution to the group, and the leader writes these solutions on a chart. No criticism is allowed. This process continues until all of the ideas have been expressed. Each solution then is discussed and clarified by the group. After all the ideas have been discussed, the group members privately rank-order their preferred solutions. The balloting is tal- lied to create a rank-ordering of each solution. These steps are repeated if necessary to refine the list further in order to get the most preferred solution. NGT provides an orderly process for dealing with potentially inflammatory problems. It also prevents groupthink from occurring. NGT discourages any pressure to conform to the wishes of a high-status, powerful group member since all ideas are discussed and all preferences are expressed privately. Creativity should be enhanced since members are able to offer a solution based on their expertise and viewpoint. Finally, important decisions can be made in a relatively timely manner. NGT works best when there is a well-defined problem

large projects that have long time Horizons and very high complexity can be referred to as

both mega and white elephants

All of the following organizational considerations when determining the right project management structure except

budget constraints

which of the following is not part of the technical dimension of project management

budgets

Project sponsors

champion the project and use their influence to gain approval of the project. Their reputation is tied to the success of the project, and they need to be kept informed of any major developments. They defend the project when it comes under attack and are a key project ally.

Outsourcing Project work

common method for shortening the project time is to subcontract an activity subcontractor may have access to superior technology or expertise that will accelerate the completion of the activity ex. contracting for a backhoe can accomplish in two hours what it can take a team of laborers two days to do

Which of the following is not true regarding scope creep

commonly occurs late in projects

Requirements for an Effective Project Vision

communication passion strategic sense inspire others

Major Characteristics of a Project: 1.defined objective

constructing a 12-story apartment complex by January 1 or releasing version 2.0 of a specific software package as quickly as possible. This singular purpose is often lacking in daily organizational life in which workers perform repetitive operations each day.

Bleeding team evaluations replies upon to be in place before the project begins

core of conditions?

And work packages are integrated with organizational units our control point is created called a

cost account

Seven guidelines to develop work package estimates 2. Use several people to estimate

cost or time estimate usually has a better chance of being reasonable and realistic when several people with relevant experience and/or knowledge of the task are used (sometimes called "crowd- sourcing") Discussion of the individual differences in their estimate leads to consensus and tends to eliminate extreme estimate errors.

Personal-related currencies

deals with individual needs and an overriding sense of self-esteem. Some argue that self-esteem is a primary psychological need; the extent to which we can help others feel a sense of importance and personal worth will naturally generate goodwill. A project manager can enhance a colleague's sense of worth by asking for help and seeking opinions, delegating authority over work and allowing individuals to feel comfortable stretching their abilities. Challenge/learning: Sharing tasks that increase skills and abilities Ownership/involvement: Letting others have ownership and influence Gratitude: Expressing appreciation

Customers

define the scope of the project, and ultimate project success rests in their satisfaction. Project managers need to be responsive to changing customer needs and requirements and to meeting their expectations. Customers are primarily concerned with getting a good deal and, as will be elaborated in Chapter 11, this naturally breeds tension with the project team.

Functional managers

depending on how the project is organized, can play a minor or major role toward project success. In matrix arrangements, they may be responsible for assigning project personnel, resolving technical dilemmas, and overseeing the completion of significant segments of the project work. Even in dedicated project teams, the technical input from functional managers may be useful, and acceptance of completed project work may be critical to in-house projects. Functional managers want to cooperate up to a point, but only up to a certain point. They are also concerned with preserving their status within the organization and minimizing the disruptions the project may have on their own operations.

Critical-Chain (CCPM)

designed to accelerate project completion. requires considerable training and a shift in habits and perspectives that takes time to adopt. Although there have been reports of immediate gains, especially in terms of completion times, a long-term management commitment is probably necessary to reap full benefits

Heuristics (rules of thumb)

do not always yield an optimal schedule, but they are very capable of yielding a "good" schedule for very complex networks with many types of resources. allocate resources to activities to minimize project delay parallel method is the most widely used approach to apply heuristics, which have been found to consistently minimize project delay over a large variety of projects.

A cost/schedule graph can be interpreted using ______ and ______ for its axis

dollar amounts; schedule

EV

earned value for a task is simply the percent complete times its original budget. Stated differently, EV is the percent of the original budget that has been earned by actual work completed. [BCWP- Budgeted Cost of the Work Performed]

old-fashioned view of managing projects

emphasized planning and directing the project team;

The key elements to any conflict management process is

escalation

A major portion of the project work both physical and mental takes place during the production stage of the Project Life Cycle

false

Are more options available for reducing project time if you are not resource constrained

false

Because of thought profitability motive project management is nearly always limited to the private sector

false

Brooks law states that adding manpower to a software project helps keep it on schedule

false

In calculating scheduled variance and cost variance and negative variance indicates the desirable condition and a positive variance suggest problems

false

In most cases if someone can manage a project well then they are also a great leader

false

It's time and costs are important to project a top-down approach to estimating time and cost but the project is the best choice

false

Many poor performing project managers for guilty of management by wandering around

false

Process breakdown structures are used one size in the scope of the project do not warrant an elaborate WBS or OBS

false

Which of the following is not one of the characteristics of effective objectives

flexible

Who is responsible for determining how tasks will be done in a weak Matrix project management structure

functional manager

Administrative support

groups, such as human resources, information systems, purchasing agents, and maintenance, provide valuable support services. At the same time they impose constraints and requirements on the project such as the documentation of expenditures and the timely and accurate delivery of information.

Project Team Pitfalls

groupthink bureaucratic bypass syndrome going native team spirit becomes team infatuation

Retrospective

has emerged in recent years to denote specific efforts at identifying lessons learned on projects. Proponents believe that the traditional audit pro- cess focuses too much on project success and evaluation which interferes with the surfacing and transferal of important lessons learned. They advocate a separate effort toward capturing lessons learned. In many ways this effort mirrors the auditing process. Typically, an independent, trained facilitator acts as a guide who leads the project team through an analysis of project activities that went well, what needs improvements, and development of follow-up action plan with goals and accountability.

Relationship-related currencies

have more to do with strengthening the relationship with someone than directly accomplishing the project tasks. The essence of this form of influence is forming a relationship that transcends normal professional boundaries and extends into the realm of friendship. Acceptance: Providing closeness and friendship Personal support: Giving personal and emotional backing Understanding: Listening to others' concerns and issues

The first step in facilitating group decision making is to

identify problem

The project is crashed and project duration is reduced direct costs typically

increase

Indexes to Monitor Progress

index less than 1.00 suggests progress is poorer than planned and deserves attention. •Performance Indexes -Cost Performance Index (CPI) = EV/AC •Measures the cost efficiency of work accomplished to date. The CPI is the most accepted and used index. It has been tested over time and found to be the most accurate, reliable, and stable. .-Scheduling Performance Index (SPI) = EV/PV •Measures scheduling efficiency to date. -Percent Complete Indexes •Indicate how much of the work accomplished represents of the total budgeted (BAC) and actual (AC) dollars to date. •Percent Complete Index Budgeted Costs (PCIB) = EV/BAC •Percent Complete Index Actual Costs (PCIC) = AC/EAC •Management Reserve Index (MRI) = CV/MR -Reflects the amount of Management Reserve (MR) that has been absorbed by cost over runs -Is popular in the construction industry

In terms of commonly traded organizational currencies sharing tasks that increase someone skills and abilities and letting others have ownership and influence are examples of __________- related currencies

inspiration

Program

is a group of related projects designed to accomplish a common goal over an extended period of time

360-degree review

is becoming more popular. In project- driven organizations, the project office typically will be responsible for collecting information on a specific project manager from customers, vendors, team members, peers, and other managers. This approach has tremendous promise for developing more effective project managers

Project kick-off meeting

is critical to the early functioning of the project team. There are 3 objectives The first is to provide an overview of the project, including the scope and objectives, the general schedule, method, and procedures. The second is to begin to address some of the interpersonal concerns captured in the team development model: Who are the other team members? How will I fit in? Will I be able to work with these people? The third and most important objective is to begin to model how the team is going to work together to complete the project. It is not uncommon in major projects for the kick-off meeting to involve one or two days, often at a remote site away from interruptions. This retreat provides sufficient time for preliminary introduction, to begin to establish ground rules, and to define the structure of the project. One advantage of off-site kick-off meetings is that they provide ample opportunity for informal interaction among members during breaks, meals, and evening activities; such informal interactions are critical to forming relationships.

Compromise Quality

is rarely acceptable or used

Escalation

is the primary control mechanism for dealing with and resolving problems. The basic principle is that problems should be resolved at the lowest level within a set time limit (say, 24 hours), or they are "escalated" to the next level of management. If so, the principals have the same time limit to resolve the problem, or it gets passed on to the next higher level. No action is not an option. Nor can one participant force concessions from the other by simply delaying the decision. There is no shame in pushing significant problems up the hierarchy; at the same time, managers should be quick to point out to subordinates those problems or questions that they should have been able to resolve on their own.

Apportionment

is used when projects closely follow past projects in features and costs. Given good historical data, estimates can be made quickly with little effort and reasonable accuracy. This method is very common in projects that are relatively standard but have some small variation or customization.

Top-Down Approaches for estimating Times & Costs: Apportion Methods

is used when projects closely follow past projects in features and costs. Given good historical data, estimates can be made quickly with little effort and reasonable accuracy. This method is very common in projects that are relatively standard but have some small variation or customization. Anyone who has borrowed money from a bank to build a house has been exposed to this process.

The pattern of improvement identified from a worker having performed attack multiple times is known as

learning curve

Which part of the final report is designed to be the most useful on future projects

lessons learned

Position-related currencies

manager's ability to enhance others' positions within their organization. A project manager can do this by giving someone a challenging assignment that can aid their advancement by developing their skills and abilities. Being given a chance to prove yourself naturally generates a strong sense of gratitude. Advancement: Giving a task or assignment that can result in promotion Recognition: Acknowledging effort, accomplishments, or abilities Visibility: Providing a chance to be known by higher-ups or significant others in the organization Network/Contracts: Providing opportunities for linking with others

Contractors

may do all the actual work, in some cases, with the project team merely coordinating their contributions. In other cases, they are responsible for ancillary segments of the project scope. Poor work and schedule slips can affect work of the core project team. While contractors' reputations rest with doing good work, they must balance their contributions with their own profit margins and their commitments to other clients.

Adding Resources

most common method for shortening project time is to assign additional staff and equipment to activities There are limits Doubling the size of the workforce will not necessarily reduce completion time by half

Earned-Value examples

negative and positive SV & CV's

Normal project closure

normal The most common circumstance for project closure is simply a completed project. For many development projects, the end involves handing off the final design to production and the creation of a new product or service line. For other internal IT projects, such as system upgrades or creation of new inventory control systems, the end occurs when the output is incorporated into ongoing operations. Some modifications in scope, cost, and schedule probably occurred during implementation.

Insensitive Network

occur in 25% of all projects A project network is insensitive if it has a dominant critical path, that is, no near-critical paths. In this project circumstance, movement from the normal time point toward the optimum time will not create new or near-critical activities. The bottom line here is that the reduction of the slack of noncritical activities increases the risk of their becoming critical only slightly when compared with the effect in a sensitive network. Insensitive networks hold the greatest potential for real, sometimes large, savings in total project costs with a minimum risk of noncritical activities becoming critical.

sacred cow

often used to denote a project that a powerful, high- ranking official is advocating.

Sometimes very high ________ costs are recognized before a project begins and reducing these costs through shorter project durations becomes a high priority

overhead

Government agencies

place constraints on project work. Permits need to be secured. Construction work has to be built to code. New drugs have to pass a rigorous battery of U.S. Food and Drug Administration tests. Other products have to meet safety standards, for example, Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards.

Which of the following is not part of the technical dimension of project management

problem solving

One of the primary jobs of a project manager is to manage the tradeoffs the associated with the project. Which of the following is not one of the basic classifications of project priorities

profit

Long-term Partnerships will provide all the following except

reduced communication requirements

Advantages of Outsourcing Project work May likely include all of the following except

reduced conflict

Resources are adequate but demand varies widely over the life of the project delaying them critical activities to lower beat Demand on resources is known as resource

smoothing

The Project Control Process Step 3: Comparing Plan against Actual

status reports should take place every one to four weeks to be useful and allow for proactive correction Because plans seldom materialize as expected, it becomes imperative to measure deviations from plan to determine if action is necessary. Periodic monitoring and measuring the status of the project allow for comparisons of actual versus expected plans. It is crucial that the timing of status reports be frequent enough to allow for early detection of variations from plan and early correction of causes.

During which stage of Team development do members accept that they are part of a project group but resist the constraints of the project in the group put on their individuality

storming

The content of the final report typically includes the following topics except

team reviews

Ability of a 911 emergency system to identify the caller's phone number

technical requirement

New view of managing projects

the new perspective emphasizes managing project stakeholders and anticipating change as the most important jobs. Project managers need to be able to assuage concerns of customers, sustain support for the project at higher levels of the organization, quickly identify problems that threaten project work, while at the same time defend the integrity of the project and the interests of the project participants.

Virtual Project Team

the team members are geographically situated so that they may seldom, if ever, meet face-to-face as a team. Two of the biggest challenges involved in managing a virtual project team are developing trust and effective patterns of communication Electronic communication such as the Internet, e-mail, and teleconferencing takes on much more importance in virtual projects because this is the primary means of communication. establish effective patterns of communication. E-mail and faxes are great for communicating facts—but not the feelings behind the facts; nor do they allow for real-time communication. Conference calls and project chat rooms can help, but they also have their limitations. Videoconferencing is a significant improvement over non-visual electronic forms of communication. Still, it is a very expensive medium, and real-time interaction is available on only the most advanced and expensive systems.

Baseline project budgets are derived from

time-phasing the work packages

People within an organization working on multiple efforts concurrently is an indicator of

too many projects

In practice, estimating processes are frequently classified as

top-down/bottom-up

One of the defining characteristics of project management is that projects are not Confined to Signal Department but involve several departments in professionals

true

Principled negotiation emphasizes developing win-win solution while protecting yourself against those who would take advantage of your forthrightness

true

Relationship related currencies have more to do with strengthening the relationship with someone then directly accomplishing the project tasks

true

Responsibilities matrices are useful first binding and organizing responsibilities

true

The only is project management critical to many careers the skills that is transferable across most business and profession

true

Today Project are the modus operandi for the method used for implementing organizations strategy

true

Developing Work Package Estimates

use people familiar with the tasks use several people to make estimates assume normal conditions use consistent time units assume tasks are independent make NO allowance for contingencies include a risk assessment

Major Characteristics of a Project: 3. Involve several departments & professionals

variety of specialists working closely together under the guidance of a project manager to complete a project, instead of working in separate offices under separate managers

Imposed Deadlines

without any consideration of the problems or cost of meeting such a date. The project duration time is set while the project is in its "concept" phase before or without any detailed scheduling of all the activities in the project. This phenomenon occurs very frequently in practice! Unfortunately, this practice almost always leads to a higher-cost project than one that is planned using low-cost and detailed planning.

Suggestions for Project Managers

•Build relationships before you need them. •Trust is sustained through frequent face-to-face contact. •Realize that "what goes around comes around."

Practical Considerations

• Network Logic Errors • Activity Numbering • Use of Computers to Develop Networks (and Gantt Chart) • Calendar Dates • Multiple Starts and Multiple Projects

Conducting Performance Reviews

•Begin by asking the individual to evaluate his or her own performance •Avoid drawing comparisons with other team members; rather, assess the individual in terms of established standards and expectations. •Focus criticism on specific examples of behavior rather than on the individual personally. •Be consistent and fair in treatment of all team members. •Treat the review as one point in an ongoing process

Constructing a Project Network Terminology: Critical Path

• The longest path through the activity network that allows for the completion of all project-related activities • The shortest expected time in which the entire project can be completed. • Delays on the critical path will delay completion of the entire project.

Activity-on-Node (AON)

• Uses a node to depict an activity. Node is a box The dependencies among activities are depicted by arrows between the rectangles

Activity-on-Arrow (AOA)

• Uses an arrow to depict an activity. Over time the availability of advanced computer graphics improved the clarity and visual appeal of the AON method. Today, the activity-on-node method has come to dominate nearly all project network plans.

Difference between a project & operations

•A project is defined as a temporary endeavor that consumes resources, incurs cost and produce deliverables over a finite period of time to achieve a specific goal. Projects are in all shapes and sizes and can vary in length or complexity. •Operations may have some or all the elements of a project, however it is repetitive in nature

Request for Proposal (RFP)

•Be announced to external contractors/vendors with adequate experience to implement the project •Development steps: 1. Summary of needs and request for action 2. Statement of work (SOW) detailing the scope and major deliverables 3. Deliverable specifications/requirements, features, and tasks 4. Responsibilities—vendor and customer 5. Project schedule 6. Costs and payment schedule 7. Type of contract 8. Experience and staffing 9. Evaluation criteria

Benefits of Project Portfolio Management

•Builds discipline into the project selection process •Links project selection to strategic metrics •Prioritizes project proposals across a common set of criteria, rather than on politics or emotion •Allocates resources to projects that align with strategic direction •Balances risk across all projects •Justifies killing projects that do not support strategy •Improves communication and supports agreement on project goals

Defining the Project Step 2: Establishing Project Priorities

•Causes of Project Trade-offs -Shifts in the relative importance of criterions related to cost, time, and performance parameters •Budget-Cost •Schedule-Time •Performance-Scope •Managing the Priorities of Project Trade-offs -Constrain: original parameter is a fixed requirement. -Enhance: optimizing a criterion over others -Accept: reducing (or not meeting) a criterion requirement

A Common Outline for Project Audit Reports

•Classification -Project type -Size -Number of staff -Technical level -Strategic or support •Analysis -Project mission and objectives -Procedures and systems used -Organization resources used -Outcomes achieved Recommendations -Technical improvements -Corrective actions •Lessons Learned -Reminders -Retrospectives •Appendix -Backup data -Critical information

Project Completion—Celebrating Success

•Conduct a joint review of accomplishments and disappointments •Hold a celebration for all project participants •Recognize special contributions

Norms of High-performance Teams

•Confidentiality is maintained; no information is shared outside the team unless all agree to it. •It is acceptable to be in trouble, but it is not acceptable to surprise others. Tell others immediately when deadlines or milestones will not be reached. •There is zero tolerance for bulling a way through a problem or an issue. •Agree to disagree, but when a decision has been made, regardless of personal feelings, move forward. •Respect outsiders, and do not flaunt one's position on the project team. •Hard work does not get in the way of having fun

Top-Down Approaches for Estimating Project Times and Costs

•Consensus methods •Ratio methods (sometimes called parametric) •Apportion method •Function point methods for software and system projects •Learning curves

The Project Control Process

•Control -The process of comparing actual performance against plan to identify deviations, evaluate courses of action, and take appropriate corrective action •Project Control Steps 1.Setting a baseline plan 2.Measuring progress and performance 3.Comparing plan against actual 4.Taking action •Tools for Monitoring Time Performance -Tracking Gantt chart -Control chart -Milestone schedules

Managing Customer Relations

•Customer Satisfaction -The negative effect of dissatisfied customers on a firm's reputation is far greater than the positive effect of satisfied customers. -Every customer has a unique set of performance expectations and met -performance perceptions. -Satisfaction is a perceptual relationship: Perceived performance/ Expected performance -Project managers must be skilled at managing both customer expectations and perceptions.

Managing Conflict within the Project Team

•Encouraging Functional Conflict -Encourage dissent by asking tough questions -Bring in people with different points of view -Designate someone to be a devil's advocate -Ask the team to consider an unthinkable alternative •Managing Dysfunctional Conflict -Mediate the conflict -Arbitrate the conflict -Control the conflict -Accept the conflict -Eliminate the conflict During the planning phase, the chief source of conflict remains priorities, followed by schedules, procedures, and technical requirements. This is the phase where the project moves from a general concept to a detailed set of plans. The relative importance of the project is still trying to be established as well as project priorities (time, cost, scope). Disagreements often emerge over the final schedule, the assignment of resources, communication and decision making procedures, and technical requirements for the project. During the execution phase, friction arises over schedule slippage, technical problems, and staff issues

Project Implementation—Sustaining Collaborative Relationships

•Establish a "we" as opposed to "us and them" attitude toward the project -Co-location: employees from different organizations work together at the same location •Establish mechanisms that will ensure the relationship withstands problems and setbacks -Problem resolution -Continuous improvement -Joint evaluation -Persistent leadership

Project Audits

•Examine project success and review why the project was selected. •Include a reassessment of the project's role in the organization's priorities. •Include a check on the organizational culture and external factors. •When to perform the project audits: -In-process project audits •Concentrate on project progress and performance. •Perform early in projects to allow corrective changes. -Post-project audits •Emphasize on improving the management of future projects. •Include more detail and depth than in-process project audits

Operation Examples

•Hiring according levels. •Monitoring security systems. •Taking class notes. •Daily entering sales receipts into the accounting ledge

Rejuvenating the Project Team

•Informal Techniques -Institute new rituals -Take an off-site break as a team from the project -View an inspiration message or movie -Have the project sponsor give a pep talk •Formal Techniques -Hold a team building session facilitated by an outsider to clarify ownership issues affecting performance -Engage in an outside activity that provides an intense common experience to promote social development of the team

Contradictions of Project Management

•Innovate and maintain stability •See the big picture while getting your hands dirty •Encourage individuals but stress the team •Hands-off/Hands-on •Flexible but firm •Team versus organizational loyalties

Splitting

•Is considered the major reason why projects FAIL to meet schedule -A scheduling technique for creating a better project schedule and/or increase resource utilization •Involves interrupting work on an activity to employ the resource on another activity, then returning the resource to finish the interrupted work. •Is feasible when startup and shutdown costs are low.

Benefits of Scheduling Resources

•Leaves time for consideration of reasonable alternatives: -Cost-time tradeoffs -Changes in priorities •Provides information for time-phased work package budgets to assess: -Impact of unforeseen events -Amount of flexibility in available resources

Estimating Projects: Preferred Approach

•Make rough top-down estimates •Develop the WBS/OBS •Make bottom-up estimates •Develop schedules and budgets •Reconcile differences between top-down and bottom-up estimates

Forecasting Final Project Cost- Forecasting models

•Methods used to revise estimates of future project costs: -Revised estimated cost at completion (EACre) •Allows experts in the field to change original baseline durations and costs because new information tells them the original estimates are not accurate. -Forecasting cost at completion (EACf) •Uses actual costs-to-date plus an efficiency index to project final costs in large projects where the original budget is unreliable •Method supplemented to the estimate at completion (EACf) computation: -To Complete Performance Index (TCPI) •Measures the amount of value each remaining dollar in the budget must earn to stay within the budget .•A ratio less than 1.00 indicates an ability to complete the project without using all of the remaining budget.

Individual Performance Assessment

•Multiple rater appraisal (360-degree feedback) -The objective is to identify areas for individual improvement. -Involves soliciting feedback concerning team members' performance from all of the people that their work affects. •Project managers, area managers, peers, subordinates, and customers

Project Performance Evaluation: Individual

•Performance Assessment Responsibilities: -Functional organization or functional matrix: the individual's area manager. •The area manager may solicit the project manager's opinion of the individual's performance on a specific project. -Balanced matrix: the project manager and the area manager jointly evaluate an individual's performance. -Project matrix and project organizations: the project manager is responsible for appraising individual performance

Project Progress Report Format

•Progress since last report •Current status of project 1.Schedule 2.Cost 3.Scope •Cumulative trends •Problems and issues since last report 1.Actions and resolution of earlier problems 2.New variances and problems identified •Corrective action planned

About Project Management Institute

•Project management existed for centuries. However, Project Management Institute (PMI) was founded in 1969 •Over 740,000 Project Management Professional (PMP)® by 2016 •283 chapters in over 207 countries •13 global standards e.g. program management, portfolio management •Over 5 million copies of all editions (including official translations into more than 10 languages) of A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®Guide)in circulation.

The Art of Negotiating

•Project management is NOTa contest. -Everyone is on the same side—OURS. -Everyone is bound by the success of the project. -Everyone has to continue to work together. •Principled Negotiations 1. Separate the people from the problem. 2. Focus on interests, not positions. 3. Invent options for mutual gain. 4. When possible, use objective criteria. •Dealing with Unreasonable People -If pushed, don't push back. -Ask questions instead of making statements -Use silence as a response to unreasonable demands -Ask for advice and encourage others to criticize your ideas and positions -Use Fisher and Ury's best alternative to a negotiated agreement (BATNA) concept to work toward a win/win scenario

Post-Implementation Evaluation

•Reasons for Poor -Quality Project Performance Evaluations: -Evaluations of individuals are left to supervisors of the team member's home department. -Typical measures of team performance center on time, cost, and specifications.

The Impacts of Resource-Constrained Scheduling

•Reduces slack; reduces flexibility •Increases criticality of events •Increases scheduling complexity •May make the traditional critical path no longer meaningful •Can break sequence of events •May cause parallel activities to become sequential •Activities with slack may become critical

Why do we need project management

•Reduction in product life cycle •Global competition •Knowledge explosion •Corporate downsizing •Increased customer focus •Small projects that represent big problem

Options for Accelerating Project Completion

•Resources NotConstrained -Adding resources -Outsourcing project work -Scheduling overtime -Establishing a core project team-Do it twice—fast and then correctly •Resources Constrained -Improving project team efficiency -Fast-tracking -Critical-chain -Reducing project scope -Compromise quality

Project Retrospectives

•Retrospectives -Denote specific efforts at identifying lessons learned on projects. •An Independent Facilitator -Guides the project team through the analysis project activities. -Uses several questionnaires focusing on project operations and on how the organization's culture impacted project success and failures. -Visits one-on-one with project participants to dive deeper into cause-effect impacts. -Leads a team retrospective session. -Works with the team to develop a system that prioritize information for different recipients.

Four Activities of the Strategic Management Process

•Review and define the organizational mission •Set long-range goals and objectives •Analyze and formulate strategies to reach objectives •Implement strategies through projects

Earned Value Rules

•Rules applied to short-duration activities and/or small-cost activities -0/100 percent rule •Assumes 100% of budget credit is earned at once and only when the work is completed. -50/50 rule •Allows for 50% of the value of the work package budget to be earned when it is started and 50% to be earned when the package is completed. •Ruled used gates before the total budgeted value of an activity can be claimed -Percent complete with weighted monitoring gates •Uses subjective estimated percent complete in combination with hard, tangible monitoring points.

Direct (project) Overhead Costs

•Salary, rents, supplies, specialized machinery -Costs incurred that are directly tied to project deliverables or work packages

Three Steps of the Reference Class Forecasting (RCF) Process

•Select a reference class of projects similar to your potential projects. •Collect and arrange outcome data as a distribution. Create a distribution of cost overruns as a percentage of the original project estimate. •Use the distribution data to arrive at a realistic forecast. Compare the original cost estimate for the project with the reference class projects

Pre-project Activities—Setting the Stage for Successful Partnering

•Selecting a Partner(s) -Voluntary, experienced, willing, with committed top management •Team Building: The Project Managers -Build a collaborative relationship among the project managers •Team Building: The Stakeholders -Expand the partnership commitment to include other key managers and specialists

Defining the Project Step 5: Coding the WBS for the Information System

•WBS Coding System -Defines: •Levels and elements of the WBS •Organization elements •Work packages •Budget and cost information -Allows reports to be consolidated at any level in the organization structure •WBS Dictionary-Provides detailed information about each element in the WBS

less obvious considerations that need to be factored into the recruitment process

∙ Problem-solving ability. If the project is complex and fuzzy, then a manager wants people who are good at working under uncertainty and have strong problem- identification and problem-solving skills. These same people are likely to be bored and less productive working on straightforward projects that go by the book. ∙ Availability. Sometimes the people who are most available are not the ones wanted for the team. Conversely, if members recruited are already overcommitted, they may not be able to offer much. ∙ Technological expertise. Managers should be wary of people who know too much about a specific technology. They may be technology buffs who like to study but have a hard time settling down and doing the work. ∙ Credibility. The credibility of the project is enhanced by the reputation of the people involved in the project. Recruiting a sufficient number of "winners" lends confidence to the project. ∙ Political connections. Managers are wise to recruit individuals who already have a good working relationship with key stakeholders. This is particularly true for projects operating in a matrix environment in which a significant portion of the work will be under the domain of a specific functional department and not the core project team. ∙ Ambition, initiative, and energy. These qualities can make up for a lot of shortcom- ings in other areas and should not be underestimated. ∙ Familiarity. Research suggests repeat collaboration stifles creativity and innovation. On challenging, breakthrough projects it is wise to interject the team with experts who have little previous working experience with others.

high-performance project teams are much more likely to develop under the following conditions

∙ There are 10 or fewer members per team. ∙ Members volunteer to serve on the project team. ∙ Members serve on the project from beginning to end. ∙ Members are assigned to the project full time. ∙ Members are part of an organization culture that fosters cooperation and trust. ∙ Members report solely to the project manager. ∙ All relevant functional areas are represented on the team. ∙ The project involves a compelling objective. ∙ Members are located within conversational distance of each other. it is rare that a project manager is assigned a project that meets all of these conditions