Time Management 6.6 Control Schedule:

Quick Link for Time Management

Time Managment 6.1 define activities

Time Management 6.2 sequence activities

Time Managment 6.3 Estimate Activity Resources

Time Management 6.4 Estimate Activity Durations:

Time Management 6.5 Develop Schedule:

Time Management 6.6 Control Schedule:

 

Schedule change control is concerned with the usual factors:

·         Determining the current status of the schedule

·         Influencing the factors that create schedule changes

·         Determining (and tracking) that schedule changes have occurred

·         Managing the changes as they occur

Control Schedule
Inputs	Tools	Outputs
·         Project management plan ·         Project schedule ·         Work performance information ·         Organizational process assets	·         Performance reviews ·         Variance analysis ·         Project management software ·         Resource leveling ·         What-if scenario analysis ·         Adjusting leads and lags ·         Schedule compression ·         Scheduling tool	·         Work performance measurements ·         OPA updates ·         Change requests ·         Project management plan updates ·         Project document updates

Four Key inputs for control schedule:

1.       Project Management plan: As described earlier, the project management plan contains the schedule management plan and the schedule baseline. The schedule management plan establishes how the schedule will be managed and how changes will be processed. The baseline is compared to actual outcomes to determine if preventive actions, corrective actions, or changes are needed.

2.       Project schedule: The most recent, approved project schedule is the baseline. It is this baseline that will change if schedule changes are approved.

3.       Work Performance information: Provides information on whether planned dates have been met- Performance reports also alert the team to issues that may cause future schedule problems. These problems may potentially read to change requests.

4.       Organizational Process Assets: organizational process Assets that may affect schedule control include:

·         Formal and informer policies regarding scheduling control (changes, preventive action, corrective action, and monitoring actual results)

·         Schedule control tools

·         Monitoring and reporting methods

Eight key tools for control schedule: 

1.       Performance reviews: Includes information such as actual start and finish dates as well as remaining duration for partially completed activities. If earned value is used, a method for measuring “in-progress” activities must be adopted (e.g., percent complete or the 50-50 rule). The details of earned value will be covered in the cist management chapter. An important part of schedule control id to determine whether schedule variations are sufficient to devise responses such as corrective actions.

2.       Variance analysis: Used to assess the magnitude of schedule variations against the planned baseline. Variance is defined plan minus actual. Negative variances indicate that work took longer than expected. For example, if a task was supposed to take five days and actually took eight days, the variance is negative three days. Variances outside acceptable boundaries or thresholds may require corrective action.

3.       Project management software: Provides the means to track planned versus actual dates and to forecast expected future performance.

4.       Resource leveling: Uses to optimize the distribution of work against the available resources (section 6.5.2.4).

5.       What-If scenario analysis: Uses simulation to analyze various scenarios and determine the probability of different schedule outcomes (section 6.5.2.5).

6.       Adjusting leads and legs: used to refine the schedule by delaying or accelerating work (6.5.2.6).

7.       Schedule compression: techniques such as crashing and fast tracking to reduce the current schedule (6.5.2.7).

8.       Schedule tool: The schedule data are updated to reflect actual progress. Manual or automated scheduling methods are used to produce an updated schedule.

Five key outputs for control schedule:

1.       Work performance measurements: For schedule purposes, the schedule variance and the schedule performance index should be calculated and reported to appropriate stakeholders.

2.       Organizational process assets updates: Organizational process assets that may be updated as a result of schedule control include:

·         The causes of variances that have occurred

·         Corrective actions chosen and the rationale

·         Other lessons learned with respect to schedule control

3.       Change requests: If change requests occur during analysis of schedule variances, they should be processed using integrated change control.

4.       Project management plan updates: Updates to the project management plan may include:

·         Schedule baseline (in response to approved change request)

·         Schedule management plan (changes in the way the schedule is to be managed)

·         Cost baseline (additional costs incurred in compressing the schedule)

5.       Project document updates: Documents that may be updated include:

·         Schedule data (new network diagrams may be developed to show remaining duration and/or modifications to the original plan).

·         Project schedule (an updated schedule that reflects approved changes).