Lecture 27 - Project Plan

Figure 1: Project Plan

Everyone needs Milestones and Deadlines in Projects. Isn't it?

Project planning is a procedural step in project management, where required documentation is created to ensure successful project completion. Documentation includes all actions required to define, prepare, integrate and coordinate additional plans. The project plan clearly defines how the project is executed, monitored, controlled and closed.

Learning from class:

Lecturer stated off the lecture by stating project characteristics. According lecturer Project is consist of,

• Clear Time Frame - Specification of start to end date
• Clear budget - Availability of resource and acquired necessary resource
• Overall goal - What are consequences try to achieve from the project basically objectives  

Then lecturer noted 4 phases in Project. They are,

• Initiation Stage
• Planing Stage
• Controlling Stage
• Concluding / Completing Stage

After specifying above facts lecturer discussed about the necessity of project management,

Project management is all about managing the four pillars of management which are Planing, Controlling, Organizing and Controlling. In Project Management Triangle lecturer told that some people substitute the quality with scope basically quality and scope more or less reflects how it server the purpose or client requirements. When the quality/scope variable changes its affect to the project time and the cost.

Then lecturer moved the lecture into project planing discussion by stating when students focus on risk management, mitigation strategies should identified to overcome unexpected circumstances. In Virtusa example lecturer pointed out that "people at the bench" allocated for projects with high risk where it applicable for industrial level projects. In order to have better collaboration or for quickly adopt to the project track, each ones work can be share by using software like PEGA and case stools techniques enable programmers to write comments or to keep daily activity log in order for the knowledge management.

Then lecture discussed about SSASM, Agile Methodologies and RUP and when to use it. According to lecturer,

SSADM (Structured System Analysis and Design Methodologies) - This method focus more on requirements analysis and it more document driven process such as Feasibility Study, Design Document, Design Specification, Requirements Document, Logical and Physical Design Document. But this methodology doesn't have a Development Phase. If students face to Develop a System SSADM can use with a conjunction with a another Methodology like prototyping which focuses more on the Development phase. The bottom line is hat SSADM is used when the requirements are uncertain/difficult to the project team. Theses methodologies follows a sequence of action so there is a less probability in en-counting problems. 

After that lecturer stated when breakdown the project into paths that all the information available in Gantt Chart and it also identified time allocated for each particular activity. Then lecturer stated when students try to schedule things should identify dependencies between tasks basically need identity for each activity what is the predecessor(previous task that dependent on).

And the lecturer stated the principles of Pert Chart. They are

Last node LCT equals to ECT

In the Dummy node it always starts with 0

Then lecturer discussed the importance of critical path. According to lecturer there is no possibility delay the critical path activities since its affects to the entire timeline. The total time duration stated by LCT. Slack is time out basically slack activities can consumes more time if their is a need arise. In project management its better to add some Slack activities because some activities may required some more time while without affect to the project timeline.

After that lecture pointed out how to realistically estimate the time. As stated by lecturer there are different estimation methods. They are,

• Cocomo
• Functional Points

The main purpose of those above methodologies to estimate by identity the optimistic time to complete a task.

Then lecturer driven the lecture in to functions of the project Manager/Supervisor. As students its required to identify the functions of the project manager basically to update the completed the work on time and to address any questions that students encounter as well as based on that project supervisors will motivate and encourage students to complete the project task.  

Before concluding the lecture, lecturer stated the purpose of the project manager is to advice on students project. When students goes to meet project supervisor, students need to provide a project log sheet. The project log sheet contain the information such as what are the questions that student currently encountered, What points need to discuss with supervisor.

The things that students going to discuss with supervisor,

Kiosk Boxes

In 1st Box - Write down the questions and the areas student need to discuss (list) with supervisor

In 2nd Box - Note down the things that been discuss during the project basically the actual discussion had during the project as well as can mention additional discussion that been done beside to the stated facts. 

In 3rd Box - Note down about the action that student going to perform after the meeting.

Then lecturer stated how to prepare for supervisory meeting. Those facts are,

• Need to know about the work - Proper knowledge on the content been done
• Prepare list of questions that planing to discuss at the meeting
• Be clear on the project plan - How much of work completed so far, what stage currently working on, Whether the task is been done according to schedule or below the schedule, How far gone back in the schedule, What are the tasks still needed to do. What are the thing can be done to get back into schedule.
• Know the in an out of the project and answer to the supervisors questions.

Activity Done:

As for the activity lecturer gave us a scenario as show in in Figure 2 to draw a Pert Chart for that . 

Figure 2: Pert Chart Scenario

 According to that I drew the Pert Chart diagram as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3: Pert Chart

Then Lecturer stated that students need to calculate ECT (Earliest Completion Time) and  LCT (Last Completion Time). And the different between ECT and LCT is the stated to be Slack.

 According to above Figure 3 Diagram,

• The ECT = 53 and LCT = 155.

• Critical Path = A, C, E, H, J

• Slack = 130 - 53 (LCT - ECT) = 77. 

Reality of the Lecture:

From this lecture I understood and gained experienced on Pert Charts, how to draw it and when to use it as well as to gain outcomes from the Pert Charts Principles such as LCT, ECT, Critical Path and Stack period which allows non critical paths to stretch the timeline. There are various methodologies to estimate optimistic time to complete a project which will really helps me to arrange my final year project time line in a realistic manner. The next important thing I understood was how to deal with project manger/supervisor during my final year project period, Preparation required for the supervisory meeting and how to get their maximum potential outcomes in align to my project scope to achieve my objectives.