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BUAD 341: Final
A project is
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a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service.
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Characteristics of a project
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purpose: a one-time activity with well-defined end results
temporary: has a definite beginning and a definite end, hence a finite duration
Life Cycle: projects evolve in steps from a slow beginning they progress to a build-up of size, then peak, begin a decline and then must be terminated |
Stages of project (4)
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-conception
-selection
-planning, scheduling, monitoring, controlling
-evaluation and termination
[C,S,PSMC,E&T) |
inter dependencies
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projects can interact w/ other projects within the same parent organization and most typically, with the functional departments (marketing, finance, manufacturing, etc.) of the firm
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How are the projects organized?
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as part of the functional organization
matrix organization
pure project |
uniqueness
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every project has elements that make it unique - e.g. an office building has different owners, design, location, contractors, etc.
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conflict |
projects vs. functional dept. and project vs. project w/ respect to resources and personnel
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Why Project Management?
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exponential expansion of knowledge
growing demand for complex, customized goods and services
globalization of worldwide markets
ever-expanding size of projects |
Main projects objectives (3):
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performance (scope): refers to the outcomes, deliverable of the project and compares them against project specifications and stakeholder's expectations
Cost
Time |
The project manager is responsible to:
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the parent organization, the client, the project team
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major challenges of the project manager
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selecting and motivating the personnel
dealing w/ obstacles
making project-goal trade-offs
communicating w/ all parties
dealing w/ project risks and potential failure |
What it takes to be a good Project Manager
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strong technical & managerial background
credibility
excellent organizational (planning, goal-setting) skills
negotiator and team-builder
sensitive to political issues
ability to handle pressure |
The role of project management consists of constantly balancing _______ __________ & achievement of _______ ________ _________, while simultaneously delivering within the ______ _________.
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customer expectations; internal business objectives; triple constraint
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project scheduling inputs:
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>work breakdown structure
>precedence tables |
project scheduling outputs:
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Gantt charts and
network diagrams |
Goal of project scheduling
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want to identify and use effective tools for planning, scheduling, and monitoring project progress
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Common inputs to Project Scheduling:
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list of project tasks, sub-tasks, work packages and activities
logical sequence of activities in the project
activity durations
resources involved and their availability
usually presented as Work breakdown structure (WBS) & precedence tables |
Work Breakdown Structure:
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Level 1: Project (Develop Windows 7 Operating System)
Level 2: Major Tasks (system testing, project management, software design)
Level 3: Subtasks (develop GUIs, ensure compatibility w/ earlier versions, planning, cost/schedule management, module testing, defect tracking)
Level 4: Activities/Work Packages (Compatible w/ Windows ME/Vista/XP) |
Common formats for Project Schedules
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1) Gantt charts
2) Project Network Diagrams
includes: activity name and the duration |
critical path
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this is what determines the Project Duration. Project duration is given by the LONGEST PATH (critical path).
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Critical Path Method (CPM):
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This diagram gives you the earliest start time (ES), earliest finish time (EF), latest start time (LS), and the latest finish time (LF)
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CPM assumes durations are ________
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deterministic
is this realistic? No
how is it done in practice?
do ur normal cautious estimating
add a generous safety margin
then... double it! |
Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
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similar to CPM, but able to incorporate duration uncertainty
a = optimistic time estimate
b = pessimistic time estimate
m = most likely time estimate |
Time-cost models in Project Management:
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compute activity slopes
determine minimum cost schedule
to reduce project duration by a certain # of periods
to reduce the project to its minimum duration |
A delayed project must be _______ in order to be completed by deadline.
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expedited
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Resource constraints lead to changes in project ____ and _____ _________.
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scope; total duration
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Time-Cost Trade-offs Goal:
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Find either 1) the most cost-effective approach to reducing the duration of a project, or 2) the project duration corresponding to minimum cost
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Direct costs
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overtime costs, hiring costs, leasing/buying resource costs, etc.
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Indirect costs
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overhead, various fixed costs
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T/F Reducing project duration is usually done by adding manpower and/or resources to the project or working overtime.
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true |
T/F doubling manpower reduces activity durations in half
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FALSE - does oposite
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Brook's Law (IBM)
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adding manpower to a late software project makes it even later
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Fast-tracking
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rearrange the logic of project activities, such that (some) critical ones can be done in parallel, rather than sequentially
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Some Time-Cost Models:
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Goal: reduce project duration by x days
Constraint: find the most cost effective approach |
Steps taken in time-cost models to reduce project duration:
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Determine the project inputs
Find the cost per unit of time (slope), to expedite each activity
identify the critical path, using normal activity times
start crashing (reducing) the activities on the critical path, one activity at a time, one period (e.g. day) at a time, in increasing order of their slopes (the lower the slope, the cheaper the crashing)
Reevaluate the critical path after each one-period crash; stop if new duration is satisfactory, otherwise go back to step 4. |
(Minimum) Cost of Crashing Project to Minimum Duartion
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Step 1: replace all activity normal durations w/ their crashed durations
Step 2: identify the critical path (longest duration)
Step 3: relax non-critical activities in decreasing order of their slopes (i.e. what is the point of fully crashing non-critical activities?) |
Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
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-What to change? typical traditional assumptions, behavioral aspects
-What to change to? aggressive but possible times (ABPT), critical chain, the use of project and feeding buffers, avoiding multitasking |
Some project success statistics:
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53% = challenged (late or over-budget)
29% = successful
18% = failed |
CCPM deeply-rooted assumptions:
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padding task times w/ safety buffers will improve on-time performance
setting clear milestones for each task is essential
multitasking is beneficial
it is good to induct work as soon as possible |
Behavioral effects associated w/ traditional project management practices:
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Parkinson's Law: Work expands to fill (and often exceed) the time allowed
3-minute Egg Rule: It's not quality if a task is finished before the time is up
Student Syndrome: always wait to the last minute to start a task |
Some side effects of multitasking
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multitasking implies starting work on a new task (project) before finishing the current one
assume the example of 3 tasks that have to be executed by the same resource |
"Aggressive but possible times" (ABPT)
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cut task durations in HALF
aggressive estimate (with significant safety removed)
minimum time to complete work |
the critical chain
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the longest sequence of dependent events that prevents the project from completing sooner, based on ABPT durations
The correspondent of the "constraint" in a project environment
task and resource dependencies are key in identifying the critical chain |
Project Buffer
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added at the end of the project
protects final project completion date from variations in the duration of critical chain activities
the size of the buffer should equal about half of the safety removed from the tasks that make the critical chain |
Feeding Buffers
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placed at the merging points between a non-critical and the critical chain
protects the critical chain from variations in the duration of non-critical activities
The size of the buffer should equal about half of the safety removed from the tasks that make the specific non-critical chain |
Use Buffer Penetration as a means to track project progress..
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a function of the difference between the sum of actual completion times and sum of planned (ABPT) completion times
avoid displaying milestones (ES, EF, LS, LF)
Emphasize the "Relay Runner" work ethic |
Avoid using __________ for capacity-constrained resources, don't release projects as soon as possible, when there is a _________ __________.
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... |
multitasking; capacity constraint
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... |
Applying CCPM to an example:
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Step 1: determine ABPT
Step 2: identify the critical chain (what is the expected project duration?)
Step 3: Add the project & feeding buffers
Step 4: use buffer management to monitor project progress |
Summary of the Critical Chain Approach:
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Step 1: Use Aggressive but Possible Times (ABPT) for task durations
Step 2: Identify the Critical Chain by taking into account resource dependencies
Step 3: Use Buffer Management to track project progress
Step 4: Avoid Multitasking when faced with a capacity constraint |