Practice Activities
For projects the following practice activities are appropriate:
• Define the planned work by decomposing WBS work packages into schedule activities
• Sequence schedule activities in the order in which they will be performed
• Identify resources needed to complete the work
• Estimate the level of effort required to complete the work utilizing the available resources
• Develop a project schedule. Ensure that adjustments are made to the sequence of activities that account for resource availability
• Control the schedule by identifying, monitoring,and influencing factors that cause schedule change
Overview
A successful project schedule requires proper estimation of the effort, definition of staffing needs and resource requirements, and the identification of work durations. In order to build a project schedule the project work defined in the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) work packages must be further decomposed into smaller, more manageable components referred to as schedule activities. These schedule activities are then sequenced in order to build a project schedule. The ultimate goal of this effort is to build an effective project schedule that answers questions such as:
The processes for accomplishing this include the following project scheduling practices:
•Activity definition focuses on identifying and documenting the planned work.
•Activity sequencing focuses on identifying and documenting relationships among scheduled activities.
•Resource and duration estimating focuses on determining what resources are required, in what quantities, and for how long, to complete the project work as planned.
•Schedule development focuses on determining schedule activity start and finish dates.
•Schedule control focuses on influencing factors that create project schedule change.
Define Activities
For scheduling purposes, WBS work packages are decomposed into even smaller components known as
schedule activities. This process is referred to as activity definition. Schedule activities are work defined to
a level that can be easily estimated, scheduled, executed, and monitored and controlled.
Good project planning practice is to define these activities to a level no smaller than one full work day (~8hrs) and no larger than ten full work days (~2wks). Anything more than ten working days most likely can be better managed if further decomposed. Anything less than one working day is usually too detailed to be managed effectively.
To facilitate this effort a project manager may seek out examples of similar projects, review project templates, reuse all or some part of schedules from past projects, solicit feedback from subject matter
experts, the project team, etc. The ultimate goal is to develop a list of schedule activities and to identify any dependencies or conflicts that may exist between them. If prospective conflicts do exist, work on resolving them as early in the project life cycle as possible utilizing the project’s defined schedule control process.
Sequence Activities:
Many times schedule activities have inherent inter-dependencies, resource limitations, date constraints, etc. that all need to be considered when outlining how project work aligns in the form of a defined project schedule. The project schedule links schedule activities together in a manner that creates a timeline of work throughout the project’s life. Schedule activities that need to be conducted early in the project, or are depended upon by other tasks later in the project need to be performed in the project’s life cycle to accommodate these types of dependencies. During the practice of activity sequencing the project manager aligns the sequence of schedule activities in a way to best avoid any factors that may limit how
quickly project work can be completed. To facilitate this effort a project manager may use project scheduling tools such as Microsoft Project or advanced sequencing techniques using various diagramming methods and/or applying scheduling leads or lags to individual tasks. The ultimate goal is to often structure the sequence of schedule activities in a way that completes the project as quickly as possible. Understanding and effectively managing the schedule’s critical path is vital to completing a project as planned.
Resource and Duration Estimating
The practice of estimating involves determining what quantity of a resource is required to complete the
project work that it is assigned to. Resources could include people, equipment, material, etc. Estimates
are usually provided by the person or group on the project team who is most familiar with the nature of
the work to be estimated. Once work effort estimates have been developed, determining the time duration of how that effort will be distributed through out the project’s life is known as duration estimating. The Project Management Institute’s Project Management Body of Knowledge defines duration as the total number of work periods required to complete a schedule activity or WBS component, usually expressed as work days or work weeks. Duration estimates are determined by identifying when the required project resource is needed and then adjusting the project schedule to accommodate for its actual availability. Most project
management software for scheduling can handle this automatically.
For projects the following practice activities are appropriate:
• Define the planned work by decomposing WBS work packages into schedule activities
• Sequence schedule activities in the order in which they will be performed
• Identify resources needed to complete the work
• Estimate the level of effort required to complete the work utilizing the available resources
• Develop a project schedule. Ensure that adjustments are made to the sequence of activities that account for resource availability
• Control the schedule by identifying, monitoring,and influencing factors that cause schedule change
Overview
A successful project schedule requires proper estimation of the effort, definition of staffing needs and resource requirements, and the identification of work durations. In order to build a project schedule the project work defined in the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) work packages must be further decomposed into smaller, more manageable components referred to as schedule activities. These schedule activities are then sequenced in order to build a project schedule. The ultimate goal of this effort is to build an effective project schedule that answers questions such as:
The processes for accomplishing this include the following project scheduling practices:
•Activity definition focuses on identifying and documenting the planned work.
•Activity sequencing focuses on identifying and documenting relationships among scheduled activities.
•Resource and duration estimating focuses on determining what resources are required, in what quantities, and for how long, to complete the project work as planned.
•Schedule development focuses on determining schedule activity start and finish dates.
•Schedule control focuses on influencing factors that create project schedule change.
Define Activities
For scheduling purposes, WBS work packages are decomposed into even smaller components known as
schedule activities. This process is referred to as activity definition. Schedule activities are work defined to
a level that can be easily estimated, scheduled, executed, and monitored and controlled.
Good project planning practice is to define these activities to a level no smaller than one full work day (~8hrs) and no larger than ten full work days (~2wks). Anything more than ten working days most likely can be better managed if further decomposed. Anything less than one working day is usually too detailed to be managed effectively.
To facilitate this effort a project manager may seek out examples of similar projects, review project templates, reuse all or some part of schedules from past projects, solicit feedback from subject matter
experts, the project team, etc. The ultimate goal is to develop a list of schedule activities and to identify any dependencies or conflicts that may exist between them. If prospective conflicts do exist, work on resolving them as early in the project life cycle as possible utilizing the project’s defined schedule control process.
Sequence Activities:
Many times schedule activities have inherent inter-dependencies, resource limitations, date constraints, etc. that all need to be considered when outlining how project work aligns in the form of a defined project schedule. The project schedule links schedule activities together in a manner that creates a timeline of work throughout the project’s life. Schedule activities that need to be conducted early in the project, or are depended upon by other tasks later in the project need to be performed in the project’s life cycle to accommodate these types of dependencies. During the practice of activity sequencing the project manager aligns the sequence of schedule activities in a way to best avoid any factors that may limit how
quickly project work can be completed. To facilitate this effort a project manager may use project scheduling tools such as Microsoft Project or advanced sequencing techniques using various diagramming methods and/or applying scheduling leads or lags to individual tasks. The ultimate goal is to often structure the sequence of schedule activities in a way that completes the project as quickly as possible. Understanding and effectively managing the schedule’s critical path is vital to completing a project as planned.
Resource and Duration Estimating
The practice of estimating involves determining what quantity of a resource is required to complete the
project work that it is assigned to. Resources could include people, equipment, material, etc. Estimates
are usually provided by the person or group on the project team who is most familiar with the nature of
the work to be estimated. Once work effort estimates have been developed, determining the time duration of how that effort will be distributed through out the project’s life is known as duration estimating. The Project Management Institute’s Project Management Body of Knowledge defines duration as the total number of work periods required to complete a schedule activity or WBS component, usually expressed as work days or work weeks. Duration estimates are determined by identifying when the required project resource is needed and then adjusting the project schedule to accommodate for its actual availability. Most project
management software for scheduling can handle this automatically.
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