TIME

Project Time Management

The processes required to ensure timely completion of the project.

Activity
Normally has an expected duration, an expected cost, and expected resource requirements.
Identifying and documenting the specific activities performed to produce deliverables.

Critical Path
In a project network diagram, the series of activities which determines the earliest completion
of the project. The critical path will generally change from time to time as activities are
completed ahead or behind schedule. Although normally calculated for the entire project, the
critical path can also be determined for a milestone or subproject. The critical path is usually
defined as those activities with float less than or equal to a specified value, often zero.

Float
The amount of time that an activity may be delayed from its early start without delaying the
project finish date.

Project Time Management (6)

1. Activity Definition (Planning)
Involves identifying and documenting the specific activities that must be performed in order
to produce the deliverables and sub-deliverables identified in the WBS.
2. Activity Sequencing (Planning)
Involves identifying and documenting interactivity dependencies, which must be sequenced
accurately in order to support later development of a realistic and achievable schedule.
3. Activity Duration Estimating (Planning)
Involves assessing the number of work periods likely to be needed to complete each
identified activity.
4. Schedule Development (Scheduling)
Process of formalizing acceptance of the project scope by the stakeholders. It requires
reviewing work products and results to ensure that all were completed correctly and
satisfactorily.
5. Schedule Control (Scheduling)
Is concerned with a) influencing the factors which create scope changes to ensure that
changes are beneficial, b) determining that a scope change has occurred, and c) managing
the actual changes when and if they occur.

Activity Definition (6.1)

1. Inputs
a. Work breakdown structure
 b. Scope statement
The project justification and the project objectives contained in the scope statement
must be considered explicitly during activity definition.
c. Historical information
d. Constraints
e. Assumptions
2. Tools and Techniques
a. Decomposition
Involves subdividing project elements into smaller, more manageable components in
order to provide better management control. Final outputs are described as activities,
which are made up of tasks, rather than deliverables (tangible items).
b. Templates
An activity list or a portion thereof, from a previous projects which is usable for a new
project.
3. Outputs
a. Activity list
Must include all activities, which will be performed on the project. It should not include
any activities which are not required as part of the project scope.
b. Supporting detail
Should be documented and organized as needed to facilitate its use by other project
management processes.
c. WBS updates
Project team may identify missing deliverables or may determine that a deliverable
description needs to be clarified or corrected. These updates are called refinements.

Activity Sequencing (6.2)

1. Inputs
a. Activity List
b. Product description
Product characteristics often affect activity sequencing.
c. Mandatory dependencies
Those dependencies which are inherent in the nature of the work being done. They
often involve physical limitations. Also called hard logic.
d. Discretionary dependencies
Those dependencies that are defined by the project management team. Also called soft
logic.
e. External dependencies
 Those dependencies that are involve a relationship between project activities and non-
project activities.
f. Constraints
g. Assumptions
2. Tools and Techniques
a. Precedence diagramming method (PDM)
Method of constructing a project network diagram using nodes to represent the
activities and connecting them with arrow that show the dependencies. Also called
activity-on-node (AON). Four types of dependencies:
1) Finish-to-start – “From” activity must finish before the “to” activity can start.
(Most common)
2) Finish-to-finish – “From” activity must finish before the “to” activity can finish.
3) Start-to-start – “From” activity must start before the “to” activity can start.
4) Start-to-finish – “From” activity must start before the “to” activity can finish.
(Rarely used)
b. Arrow diagramming method (ADM)
Method of constructing a project network diagram using arrows to represent the
activities and connecting them at nodes to show the dependencies. (AOA). Uses only
finish-to-start activities and may require the use of dummy activities.
c. Conditional diagramming methods
Allows for non-sequential activities such as loops or conditional branches; neither are
used by first two methods.
d. Network templates
Standardized networks can be used to expedite the preparation of project network
diagrams. Subnets are especially useful where project includes several identical or
nearly identical features.
3. Outputs
a. Project network diagram
A schematic display of the project’s activities and the logical relationships
(dependencies) among them. Often incorrectly called a PERT chart.
b. Activity list updates
Preparation of the project network diagram may reveal instances where an activity must
be redefined in order to diagram the correct logical relationships.

Activity Duration Estimating (6.3)

1. Inputs
a. Activity list
b. Constraints
c. Assumptions
 d. Resource requirements
The duration of most activities will be significantly influenced by the resources
assigned to them.
e. Resource capabilities
The duration of most activities will be significantly influenced by the capabilities of the
humans and material resources assigned to them.
f. Historical information
Following sources may be available for review:
1) Project files
2) Commercial duration estimating databases
3) Project team knowledge
2. Tools and Techniques
a. Expert judgment
Expert judgment guided by historical information should be used whenever possible.
b. Analogous estimating
Also called top-down estimating, which uses the actual duration of a previous, similar
activity as the basis for estimating the duration of a future activity.
c. Simulation
Involves calculating multiple durations with different sets of assumptions. The most
common is the Monte Carlo analysis.
3. Outputs
a. Activity duration estimates
Activity duration estimates are quantitative assessments of the likely number of work
periods that will be required to complete an activity.
b. Basis of estimates
Assumptions made in developing the estimates must be documented.
c. Activity list updates

Schedule Development (6.4)

1. Inputs
a. Project network diagram
b. Activity duration estimates
c. Resource requirements
d. Resource pool description
Knowledge of what resources will be available at what times and in what patterns is
necessary for schedule development.
e. Calendars
 Project and resource calendars identify periods when work is allowed. Project calendars
affect all resources while resource calendars affect a specific resource or category of
resource.
f. Constraints
1) Imposed dates – Completion of certain deliverables by a specified date may be
required by the project sponsor, customer or external factors.
2) Key events (Major deliverables) - Completion of certain deliverables by a specified
date may be requested by the project sponsor, customer or other stakeholders.
g. Assumptions
h. Leads and lags
2. Tools and Techniques
a. Mathematical analysis
Involves calculating theoretical early and late start and finish dates for all project
activities for any resource pool limitations. The most common analysis techniques are:
1) Critical Path Method (CPM) – The focus of CPM is on calculating float in order to
determine which activities have the least scheduling flexibility. Calculates a single,
deterministic early and late start and finish date for each activity based on specified,
sequential network logic and a single duration estimate. The focus of CPM is on
calculating float in order to determine which actives have the least scheduling
flexibility.
2) Graphical Evaluation and Review Technique (GERT) – Allows for probabilistic
treatment of both network logic and activity duration estimates.
3) Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) – Uses sequential network logic
and a weighed average duration estimate to calculate project duration. Seldom used
today.
b. Duration compression
Duration compression looks for ways to shorten the project schedule without changing
the project scope. (See drawing on page 68)
1) Crashing – Cost and schedule trade-offs are analyzed to determine how to obtain the
greatest amount of compression for the least incremental cost.
2) Fast Tracking – Doing activities in a parallel that would normally be done in
sequence. Fast tracking often results in rework and usually increases risk.
c. Simulation
d. 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. Resource leveling often results in a project duration that
is longer than the preliminary schedule. Resource constrained scheduling is a special
case of resource leveling where the heuristic involved is a limitation on the quantity of
resources available.
e. Project management software
 Is widely used to assist with schedule development.
3. Outputs
a. Project schedule
Includes at least planned start and expected finish dates for each detail activity. This
remains as a preliminary schedule until resource assignments have been confirmed.
Schedule may be presented graphically in one of the following formats:
1) Project network diagram – Date information has been added
2) Bar charts (Gantt) – Show activity and end dates as well as expected durations, but
do not usually show dependencies.
3) Milestone charts – Similar to the bar chart but identifies the schedule start or
completion of major deliverables and key external interfaces.
4) 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.
b. Supporting details
Includes at least documentation of all identified assumptions and constraints.
c. Schedule management plan
Defines how changes to the schedule will be managed.
d. Resource requirement updates
Resource leveling and activity list update may have a significant effect on preliminary
estimates of resource requirements.

Schedule Control (6.5)

1. Inputs
a. Project schedule
The approved project schedule, called the schedule baseline, is a component of the
overall project plan.
b. Performance reports
Provide information on schedule performance such as when planned dates have been
met and which have not. Performance reports may also alert the project team to issues,
which may cause problems in the future.
c. Change requests
Change requests may occur in many forms – oral or written, direct or indirect,
externally or internally initiated, and legally mandated or optional. Changes may require
extending the schedule or may allow accelerating it.
d. Scope management plan
2. Tools and Techniques
a. Schedule change control system
Defines the procedures by which the project schedule may be changed. It includes the
paperwork, tracking systems and approval levels necessary for authorizing changes.
 b. Performance measurement
Techniques to help access the magnitude of any variations that occur in the performance
project. An important part of schedule control is to decide if the schedule variation
requires corrective action.
c. Additional planning
Prospective changes may require new or revised activity duration estimates, modified
activity sequences, or analysis of alternative schedules.
d. Project management software
3. Outputs
a. Schedule updates
A schedule update is any modification to the schedule information, which is used to
manage the project. Revisions are a special category of schedule updates. Revisions are
changes to the scheduled start and finish dates in the approved project schedule.
Also used to measure performance.
b. Corrective action
Activity performed to bring expected future schedule performance into line with the
project plan.
c. Lessons learned
Causes of variances, reasoning behind corrective actions and other type of lessons
learned from schedule change.