Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Statistical Project Monitoring Section B 1

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Causes of Schedule Variance People spend less time on the project than they agreed Activity requires more effort than expected People are doing more than required without approval The activity requires more tasks than planned Less experienced are working on the task 2

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Causes of Work Effort Variance Staff are more or less productive than planned Insufficient time allowed for task preparation Staff is more or less efficient than planned Activity requires more or less work than planned 3

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Causes of Expenditure Variance Bill are paid later than expected You prepay for items to receive discounts Goods or services are cut from the project You need additional good or services 4

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Corrective Actions Decide if the project can be brought back in line with original plan or if change is required. 1.Is the variance a one-time occurrence? Wait to see impact on task/activity 2.Is the variance likely to repeat? Plan likely needs to be changed 5

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Adjusting the Baseline The baseline is the project plan based on the project scope statement Rebaselining is the official adoption of a new project plan Approval is required from project stakeholders Maintain all project baselines for final project report 6

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Responding to Change Clarify change requests in writing Assess potential impact of change Decide on change with all affected staff Reject change and document reasons Accept change and draft implementation plan Update project plan to reflect any adjustments Inform team members 7

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Incorporating Change Don’t count on change to make up for poor planning Change doesn’t come free Evaluate the impact of change on schedule, work effort and expenditures over the life of the project 8

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Avoiding Scope Creep Clarify project scope and objectives with team Don’t be a perfectionist Only have informed change requests Just say no Don’t put pride before reality 9

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Controlling Scope Creep Ensure detailed project descriptions and specifications of outputs Carefully assess the impact of any change requests Don’t fall victim to always saying yes, regardless of reality Develop good, honest relationships with clients 10

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Project Risk Project have greater risk: The longer their duration The more delayed the start of work The less experience you have The newer the technology you are using 11

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Minimizing Risks Learn from mistakes Learn from experts Be specific in describing risks Address risks as soon as possible 12

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Likelihood of Risk 1.If you have historical and comparable project risk information: –Calculate the probability of occurrence 2.If you don’t have a lot of relevant risk data: –Rank risks by high, med, low –Order risks from 1 (most likely) and down –Analyze pairs of related risks and determine which is more likely 13

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Increasing Accuracy of Likelihood Define the risk categories clearly Ask as many people as possible Ensure opinions come from similar projects Gather individual opinions not group consensus Discuss individual opinions as a group 14

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Risk Management Risk avoidance – eliminate the problem Transfer risk – it’s somebody else’s problem Mitigate the risk –Reduce likelihood of occurrence –Reduce negative impact if it does happen 15

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Project Evaluation Recognizes project and individual work Identifies what worked Identifies what didn’t work –Includes recommendations on how to solve these problems 16

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Difficulties with Project Evaluation No procedures for closing out a project Loss of team members Loss of interest after deliverable(s) produced Internal and external clients lose interest after they have deliverables Make project close-out and evaluation report part of the project plan. 17

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Suggestions for Data Gathering 1. Make the system and forms as simple as possible 2. Test forms and reporting procedures before implementation 3. Assign responsibility for record keeping 4. Practice using the forms 5. Begin gathering data as soon as possible 6. Keep records up-to-date 18

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Steps For Writing Reports Review the reporting requirements of organization and/or donors Decide which actions, concrete facts and observable evidence best document your progress Organize your data and identify gaps that need to be filled Select the most appropriate format for presenting your data Draft your report and ask another knowledgeable person to review it for completeness 19

Copyright 2010, The World Bank Group. All Rights Reserved. Section B Quiz 1.Unexpected staff productivity causes variance in what area(s)? 2.What type of variance does not require change to the project plan? 3.Project change can make up for poor planning. Yes or no? 4.Scope creep leads to better products. Yes or no? 5.How can you minimize risks? 6.When do you plan for end of project activities? 20