BTE417 chapter 8 Exam 2

tracking Gantt chart

a Gantt chart that compares planned and actual project schedule information. Many project managers believe that tracking Gantt charts are an excellent tool for tracking project schedule performance and reporting that information to stakeholders

histogram

a bar graph of a distribution of variables. Each bar represents an attribute or a characteristic of a problem or situation, and the height of the bar represents its frequency.

control chart

a graphical display of data that illustrates the results of a process over time. Control charts allow you to determine whether a process is in control or out of control

flow chart

a graphical display of the logic and flow of processes that help you analyze how problems occur and how processes can be improved. They show activities (using the square symbol), decision points (using the diamond symbol), and the order of how information is processed (using arrow symbols).

Pareto chart

a histogram that can help you identify and prioritize problem areas. The variables described by the histogram are ordered by frequency of occurrence in a column chart, and a line chart is added to show cumulative percentage on the right of the chart Pareto charts help you identify the vital few contributors that account for most quality problems in a system.

slipped milestone

a milestone activity that was completed later than originally planned

Stratification

a technique used to separate data to see patterns in data. Some sources use run charts or flow charts in place of stratification.

check sheet

also called a tally sheet -structured form for collecting and analyzing data. Check sheets are often used during inspections to log the frequencies of defects

Monitoring and controlling

involves regularly measuring progress to ensure that the project is meeting its objectives and addressing current business needs

To-Complete Performance Index (TCPI)

A measure of the cost performance that is required to be achieved with the remaining resources in order to meet a specified management goal, expressed as the ratio of the cost to finish the outstanding work to the remaining budget.

tools and techniques for performing risk monitoring

Data analysis (i.e., technical performance measurement and reserve analysis), audits, and meetings

Seven Basic Tools of Quality

Histogram, Pareto Chart, Scatter Plot, Control Chart, Fishbone (Cause-and-effect diagram) , Flow Chart, Check Sheet

Integrated change control

Identifying, evaluating, and managing changes throughout the project life cycle

negative numbers for cost and schedule variance indicate what problems in those areas?

Negative numbers mean the project is costing more than planned (over budget) or taking longer than planned (behind schedule)

Monitoring risks

involves tracking identified risks events and implementing the risk response plans, while continuing to identify and analyze new risks and evaluate risk process effectiveness.

Earned value management (EVM)

is a project performance measurement technique that integrates scope, time, and cost data. Given a baseline, project managers and their teams can determine how well the project is meeting scope, time, and cost goals by entering actual information and then comparing it to the baseline.

Constructive change orders

oral or written acts or omissions by someone with actual or apparent authority that can be construed to have the same effect as a written change order

Forecasts

predict future project status and progress based on past information and trends. How long will it take to finish the project based on how things are going?

If the project team or someone else causes significant changes during project execution...

project managers must formally revise the project management plan and have it approved by the project sponsor

Estimate at Completion or EAC

se the indexes to forecast what the project will cost when completed

not part of controlling procurements

selecting sellers

seven run rule

states that if seven data points in a row are all below the mean, above the mean, increasing, or decreasing, then the process needs to be examined for nonrandom problems.

budget at completion (BAC)

the approved total budget for the project

planned value (PV)

the authorized budget assigned to scheduled work

earned value (EV)

the measure of work performed expressed in terms of the budget authorized for that work. It cannot be greater than the authorized PV budget for a component as it is calculated as the sum of the PV of the completed work

actual cost (AC)

the realized cost incurred for the work performed on an activity during a specific time period

how a tracking gannt chart differs from a regular gantt chat

the tracking Gantt chart shows two horizontal bars for tasks. The top horizontal bar represents the planned or baseline duration for each task. The bar below it represents the actual duration. If the top and bottom bars are the same length and start and end on the same date, the actual schedule was the same as the planned schedule for that task. If the bars do not start and end on the same date, the actual schedule differed from the planned or baseline schedule.

workarounds

unplanned responses to risk events—when they do not have contingency plans in place.

problematic CPI and SPI is:

when its less than one or less than 100% -indicate problems

estimate at completion (EAC)

which is a forecast of how much the project will cost upon completion.

In earned value management, a baseline includes:

-Scope (WBS deliverables) -Time (start and finish estimates for each activity) -Cost information (cost estimates for each activity)

main tools for performing scope validation

-inspection and decision- making. -The customer inspects the work after it is delivered to decide if it is acceptable. -The customer is often more than one person, so group decision- making is often required for the inspection and acceptance.

Performance Reports

-keeps stakeholders informed about how resources are being used to achieve project objectives. -Performance reports are normally provided as status reports or progress reports

Controlling procurements involves

-managing procurement relationships -monitoring contract performance -making changes and taking corrective actions as needed -closing out contracts

Key output of schedule control

-schedule forecasts and work performance information. There are several tools and techniques for schedule control, including data analysis (such as earned value management, as described earlier in this chapter), project management information systems, resource optimization, and several tools discussed in Chapter 5 (such as critical path method, leads and lags, and schedule compression).

project is over budget and behind schedule graph

-the earned value line is below both the planned value and actual cost lines. -The estimate at completion, therefore, is higher than the budget at completion, and the end date of the project is later than planned.

Quality-Control Tools

1. Data gathering: Checklists, check sheets, statistical sampling, questionnaires, and surveys 2. Data analysis: Performance reviews and root cause analysis 3. Inspection 4. Testing/product evaluations 5. Data representation: cause-and-effect diagrams, control charts, histograms, and scatter diagrams 6. Meetings

three main objectives of integrated change control

1. Influencing the factors that cause changes to ensure that changes are beneficial 2. Determining that a change has occurred 3. Managing actual changes as they occur

Earned value management involves determining three values for each deliverable or summary deliverable from a project's WBS:

1. planned value (PV) 2. Actual cost (AC) 3. Earned value (EV)

80/20 Rule (Pareto Principle)

80% of problems are often due to 20% of the causes.

Monitoring and controlling project work includes

collecting, measuring, and disseminating performance information also involves assessing measurements and analyzing trends to determine what process improvements can be made

what do project managers find to be the hardest thing to control?

delivering projects on time (schedule control) as one of their biggest challenges, because schedule problems often cause more conflict than other issues. During project initiation, priorities and procedures are often most important, but as the project proceeds, especially during the middle and latter stages of a project, schedule issues become the predominant source of conflict.

Progress reports

describe what the project team has accomplished during a certain period. In many projects, each team member prepares a weekly or monthly progress report. Team leaders often create consolidated progress reports based on the information received from team members.

Status reports

describe where the project stands at a specific point in time. Recall the importance of the triple constraint. Status reports address where the project stands in terms of meeting scope, time, and cost goals

run chart

displays the history and pattern of variation of a process over time. It is a line chart that shows data points plotted in the order in which they occur. You can use run charts to perform trend analysis to forecast future outcomes based on historical results.

project cost control tools

expert judgment, data analysis, project management information systems, and the To-complete performance index (TCPI)

Cause-and-effect diagram

help you find the root cause of quality problems aka fishbone diagram

scatter diagram

helps show if there is a relationship between two variables. The closer data points are to a diagonal line, the more closely the two variables are related

Scope validation

involves formal acceptance of the completed project deliverables by the project customer or designated stakeholders. This acceptance is often achieved through customer inspection and then sign-off on key deliverables.