Schedule

Management
 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

•A deliverable oriented hierarchical decomposition of the
work to be executed by the project team to accomplish the
team mission and create the required deliverables. The WBS
defines the project scope.

Team Mission

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Deliverable
•Any unique and verifiable product or result that must be
produced to complete a project. Usually the lowest level of
the WBS.

Team Mission

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Scheduled Activity (task)

•A component of work performed to create a deliverable.

Team Mission
(Scope)
WBS
Activity List
(Schedule)

Task 1 Task 1 Task 1 Task 1 Task 1 Task 1

Task 2 Task 2 Task 2 Task 2 Task 2 Task 2
(Etc.) (Etc.) (Etc.) (Etc.) (Etc.) (Etc.)
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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Schedule Milestone
•A significant event in the project schedule, such as an event
restraining future work or marking the completion of a major
deliverable. A “measuring point”. Milestones have “0” (zero)
duration and no resource assignments.

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Logical Relationships
•A dependency between scheduled activities, or between a
scheduled activity and a schedule milestone.

“Hard Logic” – Mandatory dependencies

“Soft Logic” – Discretionary dependencies

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Logical Relationships
“Finish to Start” (most common)

Finish Start

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Logical Relationships
“Finish to Finish”

Finish Finish

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Logical Relationships
“Start to Start”

Start Start

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Logical Relationships
“Start to Finish” (very rare, not available in
WSDOT project management software)

Finish Start

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Precedence (Network) Diagram

A schedule diagramming technique in

which schedule activities are represented
by nodes and arrows shown the logical
relationship between activities

A D

F
B
E
C G
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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Critical Path
• Longest duration path through the
project network
• Activities on Critical Path are called
“Critical Activities”
• Critical activities have no float or
slack

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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Critical Path
• A project can have more than one
critical path
• Activities not on the Critical Path are
called “Non Critical Activities”
• To shorten the project duration, a
scheduler must modify the critical
path activities or dependencies
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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Float (Slack)

“Total Float” – The amount of time a

scheduled activity has that is can be delayed
or extended without affecting the project end
date or violating a schedule constraint.

Activity Total
Duration Float
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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Float (Slack)

“Free Float” – The amount of time a

scheduled activity has that is can be delayed
or extended without affecting the start of the
next scheduled activity in the project network.

Activity Free
Duration Float
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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Float (Slack)

“Negative Float” – The amount of time that by

which a critical activity (or milestone) misses
a required date.

Negative Activity
Float Duration
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 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Critical Path Method (CPM)

A schedule network analysis technique used

to determine the amount of schedule
flexibility (float) on various network paths and
to determine the minimum project duration.
Forward Pass Backward Pass

•Late Start •Early Start

•Late Finish
A D •Early Finish

F
B
E
28 C G
 Schedule Terminology & Definitions

Gantt Chart (bar chart)

A graphic display of schedule related

information. A report from the project
management program.

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 Schedule Tracking

Schedule Tracking

Actual Start – This is the date that work on

the scheduled activity actually started. In
project management software applications,
this field is called “Actual Start”

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 Schedule Tracking

Schedule Tracking

Actual Finish – This is the date that the work

on the scheduled activity actually finished. In
project management software applications,
this field is called “Actual Finish”

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 Schedule Tracking

Schedule Tracking

% Complete – This is a function of time. The

formula for this value is

Elapsed Duration / Total Duration

With current project management software

applications, this field must be greater than
“0” before a Base Cost % Complete can be
entered.
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 Schedule Tracking

Schedule Tracking

Base Cost % Complete – This is the percent

of the deliverable that has been completed.
There are several ways to estimate this based
on the deliverable.

A project performance baseline must be

defined in the project management program
before this value can be entered.

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 Schedule Tracking

Base Cost % Complete

Units Produced Method – This is the ratio of

units produced to the total specified at
completion. Units must be nearly identical.

Example:
Drilling 10 holes, 4 complete – 40% complete

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 Schedule Tracking

Base Cost % Complete

Interim Milestone (Agreement) Method –

Establish the percent of the total that is to be
represented by each milestone.

Example:
Deliverable: Traffic Signal Design
•Data Collected – 10% complete
•Preliminary Design – 60% complete
•Final Design – 90% complete
29 •PS&E – 100% complete
 Schedule Tracking

Base Cost % Complete

50/50 Method – 50% complete assumed when

scheduled activity actual starts. 100%
complete when scheduled activity is actually
completed.

0/100 Method – 0% complete assumed when

scheduled activity actual starts. 100%
complete when scheduled activity is actually
completed.
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 Schedule Tracking

Base Cost % Complete

Proportional Relationship Method – This is

used when the completion of a measurable
amount of one work package indicates the
completion of another scheduled activity
cannot be easily measured. Use for
“hammock” tasks.

Example:
Project is 45% complete, Project Management
30 hammock task is 45% complete
 Schedule Recovery / Schedule Compression

Schedule compression
A technique used to shorten a project
duration without reducing the project scope.
There are two methods of schedule
compression:
•Schedule Crashing
•Schedule fast tracking

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 Schedule Recovery / Schedule Compression

Schedule crashing
A compression technique in which scheduled
activity durations are modified; working day
definitions are modified; or resource
requirements are modified.
Typically will increase costs.
Activities must be “resource dependant”

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 Schedule Recovery / Schedule Compression

Schedule fast tracking

A compression technique in which activities
that would be normally done in sequence are
performed in parallel.
Fast tracking does not change resource
requirements, but modifies the logical
relationships.
Typically, fast tracking will increase project
risk.
Cannot fast track “hard logic”
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 Schedule Recovery / Schedule Compression

What-if Scenario Analysis

Asking “what-if” for each situation and how it
affects the project model.
Outcomes can evaluate the effects to project
objectives
Also used for risk planning.

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 Schedule Management

Module 3 exercise
Task D
10 days
Task A Task G
20 days 14 days
Task E
20 days
S Task B
Task H F
16 days
Task F 10 days
7 days
Task C
Task J
25 days
15 days
St-A-D-G-Fin: 44 days
St-A-E-H-Fin: 50 days Critical Path
St-B-E-H-Fin: 46 days
St-C-F-H-Fin: 42 days
33 St-C-J-Fin: 40 days