Ch 2

Project time management

2.1 Time Management definitions

Wikipedia define Time management: refers to a range of skills, tools,

and techniques used to manage time when accomplishing specific tasks,
projects and goals. This set encompasses a wide scope of activities, and
these include planning, allocating, setting goals, delegation, analysis of
time spent, monitoring, organizing, scheduling, and prioritizing. Initially
time management referred to just business or work activities, but
eventually the term broadened to include personal activities as well. A
time management system is a designed combination of processes, tools,
techniques, and methods.

PMBOK define Project Time Management:- includes the processes

required to ensure timely completion of the project.

Project Management for Development Organizations define time

management: The project schedule is the organization of all project
activities by time and by their logical dependencies and each with a start
.date and a finish date

So every time we plane project we had to pass throw a lot of action's (that
need an implementation) each action had specific characteristic's: action
time, the labor need for, start and finish of the action..etc the define
activity process is to identify this characteristic, and estimate this
characteristic, this action's lead to produce a project deliverable's .

The action's arranging by time with process call sequencing activities that
identifying the dependency of actions.

The estimation of project duration need to assign duration for each

activity and developing the schedule at this time we need to be accurate
as possible as we can (always we had a degree of uncertainty) in
estimation this depend on estimation method and the experience.

Accurate estimation safe money ….and safe time because it affect on the
whole project duration and the quantity of labor, material, equipment and
working hour's

:Activity definition 2.2

:Five steps must be prepared before start defining actions

Step # 1 : work breakdown structure must be done because the first piece
of information needed for this The creation of the project schedule
requires the team to define the conditions that will project step comes
from the WBS that has all the activities identified for the track when each
. activity should begin and finish

Step # 2 : scope statement must be situated the main point in planning

process is to set the goal's to knew what to do and ,and that contain
developing the time line of the project

Step # 3 : historical information ( experience ) from past similar project

. that was a feedback used to improve accuracy of estimation

Step # 4 : constrains affect on define activities because each time and

each place had specific constrains that control the project and the option
. will be limited

Step # 5 : assumption's will made in any project that will identify the
degree of risk so assumption must be real and based on accurate info
because it use in planning purpose but the assumption's become more
accurate later and later because after each project feedback will used in
.the next project amount of risk will decrease

:How to define activity 2.3

Decomposition : mean to divide the project to a subdivision's easy to deal
with and more manageable components in order to provide better
management control the final outputs here are described as activities
(action steps) rather than as deliverables (tangible items) some application
., the WBS and the activity list are developed concurrently

Template: is to use the activity list of previous project as template in the

next project and the activity list for a WBS element from the current
.project may be usable as a template for other, similar WBS elements

:Results

Activity list: finally activity should be listed including all activity that will
done in implementation phase and the description of each activity ,and
activity arrange as an extension to be sure than no addition activity the
. activity list understandably

Supporting detailed: Supporting detail for the activity list should be

documented and organized as needed to facilitate its use by other project
management processes. Supporting detail should always include
documentation of all identified assumptions and constraints. The amount
of additional detail varies by application area.

Work breakdown structure updates: that the deliverable descriptions need

to be clarified or corrected. Any such updates are needed, the project team
may identify missing deliverables or may determine In using the WBS to
identify which activities must be reflected in the WBS and related
documentation such as cost estimates These updates are often called
(refinements)and are most likely when the project involves new or
unproven technology.

2.4 Activity Sequencing:

Activity sequencing pass throw seven steps:

Step #1: activity list: Explained earlier

Step #2: constraint: Explained earlier
Step #3: assumption’s: Explained earlier
Step #4: product description: Explained in past chapter’s
Step #5: Discretionary dependencies: it mean to recognition dependency
of activities so the important of it comes from any error limit option’s of
team management the recognition based on:
*Experience in application area
*Some unusual aspect of the project where a specific sequence is desired
Step #6: External dependencies: between project activities and non-
project activities External dependencies are those that involve a
.relationship

Step #7: Mandatory dependencies: Mandatory dependencies are those

which are inherent in the nature of the work being done. They often
involve physical limitations (on a construction project it is impossible to
erect the superstructure until after the foundation has been built; on an
electronics project, a prototype must be built before it can be tested).
.Mandatory dependencies are also called

:How to sequence the activities 2.4.1

:(Precedence diagram method (PDM 2.4.1.1

Method that represent the activities as nodes connecting with an

arrows represent the relationship between this activity and most
scheduling software requires to user to input the data as a
precedence diagram form, and in PDM each element describe as
.follows
.Network Logic Diagram Drawn Using the Precedence Diagramming Method

:Shapes of Relationship in PDM are

Finish-to-start—the “from” activity must finish before the “to” activity -1

can start

Finish-to-finish—the “from” activity must finish before the “to” -2

.activity can finish

Start-to-start—the “from” activity must start before the “to” activity -3

can start

Start-to-finish—the “from” activity must start before the “to” activity -4

.can finish
:(Arrow diagramming method (ADM 2.4.1.2

This is a method of constructing a project network diagram using arrows

to represent the activities and connecting them at nodes to show the
dependencies.

Although less prevalent than PDM, is still the technique of choice in

some application areas. ADM uses only finish-to-start dependencies and
may require the use of dummy activities to define all logical relationships
correctly.
ADM can be done manually or on a computer
 Arrow Diagram Method

2.5 Activity list updates

In much the same manner that the activity definition process may
generate updates to the WBS, preparation of the project network diagram
may reveal instances where an activity must be divided or otherwise
redefined in order to diagram the correct logical relationships.
:Activity estimation time

:Estimation of activity time need to make 2.5.1

Activity list: Explained earlier -1

Constraints: Explained earlier -2

Assumptions: Explained earlier -3

Resource requirements: amount of resource affect on the time of any -4

activity for example two person can achieve some activity in specific
time however one of them will need double time and one person with
apart time work need more time so assigning the resources and leveling it
affect on the time needed for activity

Resource capabilities: the productivity of any unit of resource affect on -5

the time estimation which need an accurate estimation for the
productivity of each unit for example old equipment or old staff member
need time more than the new equipment or young staff member to
. achieve the specific work
6- Historical information: Historical information on the likely durations
of many categories of activities is often available from one or more of the
following sources:

1- Feedback from previous projects helps estimation time for project

by comparing and interpolating two projects with area and member
of the team which work

2- Commercial duration estimating databases: historical information

is often available commercially. These databases tend to be
especially useful when activity durations are not driven by the
actual work content for example how long it takes concrete to cure;
how long does a government agency usually take to respond to
certain types of requests.

3- Project team knowledge: experience of team member facilitate the

estimation process from previous project they work in.

2.5.2 How to estimate time needed for any

project:
1- Expert judgment: it’s guided by historical information should be
used whenever possible. If such expertise is not available, the
estimates are uncertain and risky

2- Analogous estimating: some activities repeated in more than one

project so estimating activity using previous data from previous
project will be accurate enough It is frequently used to estimate
project duration when there is a limited amount of detailed
information about the project.

3- Simulation: involves calculating multiple durations with different

sets of assumptions. The most common is Monte Carlo Analysis

2.6 Schedule development

Developing the schedule need to prepare:
1- Project network diagram: explained earlier
2- Activity duration estimates: explained earlier
3- Resource requirements: explained earlier
4- Assumptions: explained earlier

5- Resource pool description: Knowledge of what resources

will be available at what times and in what patterns is necessary
for schedule development. The amount of detail and the level of
specificity in the resource pool description will vary.

6- Calendars: Project and resource calendars identify periods

when work is allowed. Project calendars affect all resources,
Resource calendars affect a specific resource or category of
resources .

7- Constraints: explained earlier

There are two major categories of constraints that must be

considered during schedule development:

• Imposed dates: Completion of certain deliverables by a specified

date may be required by the project sponsor, the project customer,
or other external factors.

• Key events or major milestones: Completion of certain

deliverables by a specified date may be requested by the project
sponsor, the project customer, or other stakeholders. Once
scheduled, these dates become expected and often may be moved
only with great difficulty.

8- Leads and lags: Any of the dependencies may require

specification of a lead or a lag in order to accurately define the
relationship.

2.6.1 How to develop a schedule for any project:

1- Mathematical analysis: Mathematical analysis involves calculating
theoretical early and late start and finish dates for all project
activities without regard for any resource pool limitations.
The data that we get from this process are not a schedule but indicate
the period of time which activity should scheduled

Most common mathematical analysis techniques are:

• Critical Path Method (CPM): it focusing on CPM is on

calculating float in order to determine which activities have the
least scheduling flexibility.

• Graphical Evaluation and Review Technique (GERT):

allows for probabilistic treatment of both network logic and
activity duration estimates

• Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT): uses

sequential network logic and a weighted average duration
estimate to calculate project duration.

2- Duration compression:
Duration compression is a special case of mathematic analysis that
looks for ways to shorten the project schedule without changing the
project scope .

Duration compression includes techniques such as:

• Crashing:
In which cost and schedule trade-offs are analyzed to determine
how to obtain the greatest amount of compression for the least
incremental cost. Crashing does not always produce a viable
alternative and often results in increased cost.

• Fast tracking:
Doing activities in parallel that would normally be done in
sequence , Fast tracking often results in rework and usually
increases risk.

3- Simulation: explained earlier.

4- Resource leveling heuristics:

Mathematical analysis often produces a preliminary schedule that
requires more resources during certain time periods than are available,
or requires changes in resource levels that are not manageable.
Heuristics such as “allocate resources to critical path activities first”
can be applied to develop a schedule that reflects such constraints.
Resource leveling often results in a project duration that is longer than
the preliminary schedule.

5- Project management software:

Project management software is widely used to assist with schedule
development. These products automate the calculations of
mathematical analysis and resource leveling and thus allow for rapid
consideration of many schedule alternatives. They are also widely
used to print or display the outputs of schedule development.

Result:

Project schedule: The project schedule includes at least planned start

and expected finish dates for each detail activity
The project schedule may be presented in summary form (the “master
schedule”)
or in detail. Although it can be presented in tabular form, it is more
often presented graphically using one or more of the following
formats:

• Project network diagrams: with date information added these charts

usually show both the project logic and the project’s critical path
activities

• Bar charts: also called Gantt charts, show activity start and end dates
as well as expected durations, but do not usually show dependencies.
They are relatively easy to read and are frequently used in
management presentations.

• Milestone charts: similar to bar charts, but identifying the Scheduled

start or completion of major deliverables and key external interfaces

• Time-scaled network diagrams: are a blend of project network

diagrams and bar charts in that they show project logic, activity
durations, and schedule information.

Supporting detail: Supporting detail for the project schedule includes

at least documentation of all identified assumptions and constraints.
The amount of additional detail varies by application area. For
example:
• On a construction project: it will most likely include such items as
resource histograms, cash flow projections, and order and delivery
schedules.

• On an electronics project: it will most likely include resource

histograms only. Information frequently supplied as supporting detail
includes, but is not limited to:

• Resource requirements by time period, often in the form of a

resource histogram.

• Alternative schedules

• Schedule reserves or schedule risk assessments

Schedule management plan: A schedule management plan defines

how changes to the schedule will be managed. It may be formal or
informal, highly detailed or broadly framed based on the needs of the
project. It is a subsidiary element of the overall project plan

Resource requirement updates: Resource leveling and activity list

updates may have a significant effect on preliminary