1. Manage Project Time Project Time Processes Part 1 Diploma of Project Management Qualification Code BSB51507 Unit Code BSBPMG503A

2. Project Time Processes – Part 1
PMBOK Project Time Management Processes -
6.1 Define Activities
6.2 Sequence Activities
6.3 Estimate Activity Resources
6.4 Estimate Activity Duration
6.5 Develop Schedule
6.6 Control Schedule
Related processes from Project Integration Management –
4.1 Develop Project Charter
4.2 Develop Project Management Plan

3. Learning Objectives – Part 1
Understand of the processes required to manage define all the activities that contribute to the completion of the deliverables in the Work Breakdown Structure
Understand how to sequence the activities to create the project schedule
Understand the different types of relationships that can be used between activities
Explain the project scheduling process and several tools and techniques used to estimate activity resourcing and duration

4. 4.1 Develop Project Charter
The process of developing a document that formally defines and authorises a project by documenting the initial requirements that will satisfy the needs of the Project Sponsor and stakeholder
The high level Project Timeframe is often specified during this process
Any Project Timeframes specified at this stage are predictions or preferences only, they have been subject to detailed planning and scheduling processes
Assumptions should be documented and formal commitments avoided
Occurs during the Initiation Phase
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

5. 4.1 Develop Project Charter
Inputs into the Project Charter that have a major impact on Project Timeframe -
Business need or rationale
Strategic Plan
Business Case assumptions
Contractual requirements
Methodologies, policies and procedures
The output at this stage is a preferred Project Timeframe
It is best specified as a range estimate eg 6 months +/- 4 weeks
Assumptions made with respect to Time must be documented to prevent misunderstandings and conflict

6. 4.2 Develop Project Management Plan
This is the process of defining and documenting the actions necessary to prepare and integrate all subsidiary plans for each of the 8 key knowledge areas of project management.
Good practice dictates that the Project Management Plan is baselined at the end of the Planning Phase, particularly in the areas of scope, cost and time
It is progressively updated during project execution via the Perform Integrated Change Control process (PMBOK 4.5)
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

7. 4.2 Develop Project Management Plan
The planning processes for all project management key knowledge areas are normally performed at the same time and during this process, or expanded upon shortly afterwards
The relationship to Scope, Time and Cost is slightly different to the other areas of Communication, Risk, Human Resources, Quality and Procurement
There are no stand alone Scope, Time or Cost Planning processes, they contained within the Develop Project Management Plan process
The other key knowledge areas have discrete processes for planning that are defined in their process groups
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

8. Schedule Management Plan
The Schedule Management Plan is a critical output of this process and is critically connected to all the Project Time Management processes that occur within the Planning phases – (6.1 to 6.5)
Often called the Time Management Plan and very often overlooked entirely, which is unfortunate as it is a critical management tool for the Project Schedule
Common inclusions in the Schedule Management Plan –
Schedule baseline
Processes, tools and techniques used to estimate activity duration
Processes to Monitor and Control time
Change Control process
Assumptions, dependencies and constraints
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

9. 6.1 Define Activities
The process of identifying the specific activities to be performed to produce the project deliverables
All activities should relate to a project deliverable
Takes the deliverables and work packages defined in the WBS and decomposes them into activities
Activities provide the basis for estimating, scheduling, executing, and monitoring and controlling the project work
Links back to the Project Objectives
Occurs during Planning
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

10. 6.1 Define Activities Inputs to Define Activities
Scope Baseline
Project Management methodologies and procedures
Standard project schedules and activities
Historical data on similar projects
Tools and techniques to Define Activities
Decomposition
Expert
Judgement
Rolling Wave
Planning
Templates
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

11. 6.1 Define Activities Decomposition – Templates
Involves sub dividing the project and deliverables into smaller pages of work known as activities or tasks
Activities should only be undertaken if they contribute to the production of a deliverable within the Work Breakdown Structure
Templates
Often lists of activities and milestones from previous, similar projects
Start planning a project by finding a
similar project that has been completed
previously
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

12. 6.1 Define Activities Rolling Wave Planning –
Progressively elaborate on the project plan and schedule
Plan near term activities in detail and later activities at a high level
Sometimes used on very long projects where the future activities are unclear
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

13. 6.1 Define Activities Outputs of this process include – Activity List
Includes scope of work description for each activity
Activity Attributes
Progressively fleshed out during time planning processes
Milestone List
Highlight significant points in project execution to focus attention on the project schedule
Can be related to contract obligations, external dependencies, completion of major deliverables or phases
Can be mandatory or for information purposes
Often used for summary level reporting
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

14. 6.2 Sequence Activities
The process of identifying and documenting relationships between the project activities
Every activity, except the first and last, must be connected to at least one predecessor and one successor
Milestones are generally connected to predecessor and successor activities with some exceptions, particularly when the milestone denotes an external dependency or a major event that is outside of the project
Simplified by using project management software
Occurs during Planning
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

15. 6.2 Sequence Activities Inputs to Sequence Activities
Activity List and Attributes
Milestone List
Project Scope Statement
Work Breakdown Structure
Learning from past projects
Tools and techniques to Sequence Activities
Lead &
Lag Times
(advanced technique)
Precedence
Diagramming
Schedule
Templates
Dependency
Determination
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

16. Precedence Diagramming Method
This is one of the key techniques used to sequence activities in projects
It has become an industry standard and underpins project management software that produces both GANTT and PERT charts
Defines 4 types of logical relationships between activities
Finish-to-start (FS)
Finish-to-finish (FF)
Start-to-start (SS)
Start-to-finish (SF)
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

17. Application of Interdependencies
Rule of Thumb Application
Finish to Start
95%
Start to Start
2.5%
Finish to Finish
Start to Finish
Not applicable
Many finish to start relationships are used in sequencing activities
Start to start and finish to finish are sometimes used to assist with planning

18. Finish-to-Start Relationships
The initiation of the successor activity depends on the completion of the predecessor activity
Translated this means…the start of the second activity is dependent on the completion of the first activity
In a GANTT chart this is depicted as an arrow from the end of the first activity pointing to the start of the second activity
Most common type of logical relationship between activities, sometimes this is a mandatory dependency, but often it is a preference for planning purposes
Activity 1
Finish-to-start
Activity 2
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

19. Finish-to-Finish Relationships
The completion of the successor activity depends on the completion of the predecessor activity
Translated this means…the completion of the second activity is dependent on the completion of the first activity
It does not necessarily mean that both activities need to finish at the same time
In a GANTT chart this is depicted as an arrow from the end of the first activity pointing to the end of the second activity and the end dates need to be the same
Activity 1
Finish-to-finish
Activity 2
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

20. Start-to-Start Relationships
The initiation of the successor activity depends on the initiation of the predecessor activity
Translated this means…the first activity must start before the second activity can start
Many people incorrectly assume that the activities need to start at the same time
In a GANTT chart this is depicted as an arrow from the start of the first activity pointing to the start of the second activity and the start dates need to be the same
Activity 1
Start-to-start
Activity 2
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

21. Start-to-Finish Relationships
The completion of the successor activity depends on the initiation of the predecessor activity
Translated this means…the second activity can’t finish until the first activity starts
Very RARE and not available in some project management software, can normally be replanned as a finish to start relationship
In a GANTT chart this is depicted as an arrow from the start of the first activity pointing to the end of the second activity
Activity 1
Start-to-finish
Activity 2
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

22. Example Relationships
Finish-to-start
Finish-to-finish
This means that Activity B cannot start until Activity A has completed. This is by far the most common relationship between multiple activities.
Activity A is “Create the Project Charter”
Activity B is “Obtain Project Charter approval from the Project Sponsor”
This finish-to-start relationship would say that we must create the Project Charter before we obtain Project Charter approval from the Project Sponsor
This means Activity A must finish before Activity B can finish. Assume you’re cooking dinner and you want the turkey to finish cooking before the potatoes.
Activity A is “Cook turkey”
Activity B is “Cook potatoes”
The finish-to-finish relationship says that the turkey must finish cooking (activity A) before the potatoes finish cooking (activity B). This relationship is based on the end times. They can each start whenever they need to, as long as they finish in this order.
Start-to-start
Start-to-finish
This means Activity A must start before Activity B can start. Assume that you are having your walls painted in one room and wallpaper is being hung in another room. You want to minimize the total disruption by having both activities happen at the same time.
Activity A is “Paint the walls”
Activity B is “Hang the wallpaper”
The wallpaper hangers may be ready to go (activity B). However, the start-to-start relationship says that they cannot start until the painting starts (activity A). This relationship is based on the activity start times. The end times of each activity are not related and, in fact, one activity could end at a much later time than the other.
Let’s assume that you want to fertilize your garden, but the plants must all be wet when the fertilizer is applied.
Activity A is to “fertilize the garden.”
Activity B is to “water the garden”
The start-to-finish relationship says we need to start watering the garden (activity B) first to get the plants wet. This activity must continue until the fertilizing starts (activity A).
This will ensure the plants remain wet until the fertilizer is ready to be applied. Note that you can start watering at any time and you can finish fertilizing at any time. The relationship only ties the start of activity A to the completion of activity B.

23. Types of Dependencies Mandatory Discretionary External
Contractually required or inherent in the nature of the work
Often involve physical limitations
Discretionary
Based on preferences and knowledge of best practice
Can be reviewed if fast tracking of project schedules is required
External
A relationship between project activities and activities outside of the project and outside of the project team’s control
Often regulatory
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

24. 6.2 Sequence Activities Outputs of this process include –
Draft Project Schedule – Most Common
High level project schedule with phases, deliverables, activities and interdependencies
Project Network Diagrams
High level PERT chart excluding time estimates, shows interdependencies between all activities
Project Document Updates
Changes to Activity Lists and Attributes
Changes to the Risk Register
Changes to the Work Breakdown Structure
Changes to Project Scope via Change Requests
Initiation
Planning
Execution
Close
Monitor
Control
Adapted from PMBOK 4th Edition

25. Activity Relationships Forum
Take some time to reflect on the 4 different types of interrelationships that are possible between project activities.
Reflect on projects that you have been involved with, or do some online research, to find your best examples, one for each of the 4 relationship types (FF, SF, FS, SS)
Write up your examples and provide comment on the examples provided by others.
Research
Practice
Comment

26. Next Steps
Please proceed to Time Processes Part 2 in the Learning Program. Best of Luck! 26