You attended the Project Scheduling training for a week.

One of the issues stressed is activity

sequencing. Propose at least 3 basic reasons why activity sequencing is critical in scheduling
tasks. Discuss at least 3 different types of dependency your project activities could take.
 The strategy of distinguishing and authenticating affiliates amidst the project
activities, Sequence Activities illustrates the consistent planning of work to get the
highest effectiveness the project constraints. Throughout the project, the process of
execution plans for the better performance.
 Involves reviewing activities and determining dependencies
 A dependency or relationship is the sequencing of project activities or tasks
 You must determine dependencies in order to use critical path analysis
 Mandatory dependencies: inherent in the nature of the work being performed on
a project, sometimes referred to as hard logic. For example, you cannot test code
until the source code is written.
 Discretionary dependencies: defined by the project team; sometimes referred to
as soft logic and should be used with care since they may limit later scheduling
options. For example, the project team cannot start detailed designing before users
signing off all the analysis work.
 External dependencies: involve relationships between project and non-project
activities. E.g. Installation of new OS and other software may depend on delivery
of new h/w from an external supplier.

Many projects fail due to poor scope management. Very often it is a large number of small scope
changes that do the damage, rather than the big, obvious ones. As a successful Project Manager,
you’ve learned that rigorous scope control is essential to deliver projects on time and within budget.
Critically analyse FOUR key objectives of scope change control.

1. Keep the scope realistic. Don’t make projects so large that they can’t be completed. Break
large projects down into a series of smaller ones.
2. Involve users in project scope management. Assign key users to the project team and give
them ownership of requirements definition and scope verification.
3. Use off-the-shelf hardware and software whenever possible. Many IT people enjoy using
the latest and greatest technology, but business needs, not technology trends, must take
priority.
4. Follow good project management processes. As described in this chapter and others, there
are well-defined processes for managing project scope and others aspects of projects.

Create a Gantt chart for the Implementation Phase with FIVE (5) main activities for the Tasty Pizza
Ordering and Delivery project. Add on THREE (3) monitoring/ control activities you intend to employ
in this Gantt chart. Justify why such monitoring activities are needed
 team performance and task duration, identifying potential problems and taking corrective actions

A project manager in your organization has departed and you have been assigned his project. You
have reviewed documentation and met with team members and stakeholders. One theme that has
become apparent is that some team members and stakeholders are not sure who is performing
certain tasks. Critically analyse which document should you provide the team members and
stakeholders with? Justify any THREE (3) key reasons why such document is needed.

 responsibility assignment matrix (RAM) is a matrix that maps the work of the
project as described in the work breakdown structure (WBS) to the people
responsible for performing the work.
 RACI charts are a type of RAM that show Responsibility (who does the task),
Accountability (who signs off on the task or has authority for it), Consultation
(who has information necessary to complete the task), and Informed (who needs
to be notified of task status/results) roles for project stakeholders.

Since the deadline is imminent, you have asked the programmers to work in small groups which run
concurrently. But unfortunately, a few weeks into the project, you are dissatisfied with the
performance level of one of your team. Critically evaluate FIVE (5) key steps you will take to deal
with this performance issue

1. Planning risk management: deciding how to approach and plan the risk management
activities for the project

2. Identifying risks: determining which risks are likely to affect a project and documenting the
characteristics of each

3. Performing qualitative risk analysis: prioritizing risks based on their probability and impact
of occurrence

4. Performing quantitative risk analysis: numerically estimating the effects of risks on project
objectives

5. Planning risk responses: taking steps to enhance opportunities and reduce threats to
meeting project objectives

6. Monitoring and controlling risks: monitoring identified and residual risks, identifying new
risks, carrying out risk response plans, and evaluating the effectiveness of risk strategies
throughout the life of the project
Jackie is Project manager working with a team of more than 30 people. One of her subordinates tells
her that the team members at the lowest level are lazy and that they need to be supervised more
closely. Jackie responds that the workers are as committed to the project as she is, they are
ambitious and self-disciplined and don’t need to be watched every minute of the day. Justify Jackie is
which type of manager?

Theory Y

 Theory X: assumes workers dislike and avoid work, so managers must use coercion/force,
threats, and various control schemes to get workers to meet objectives

 Theory Y: assumes individuals consider work as natural as play or rest and enjoy the
satisfaction of esteem and self-actualization needs – keep balance between work, play, rest,
and sleep

 Theory Z: introduced in 1981 by William Ouchi and is based on the Japanese approach to
motivating workers, emphasizing trust, quality, collective decision making, and cultural
values

KPJ Specialist Centre requested for a “Healthcare Information System” that monitors the patient
records, diagnostic information, pharmacy descriptions, medical reports and discharge information.
Together with the senior software development executives, you are asked to create a report on the
potential major risks that may affect this project. Critically evaluate any FOUR (4) major risks and
explain the corresponding risk reduction technique that you would recommend

◦ Risk avoidance – you observe that during certain periods of your

project there is a chance of rain and you have work planned
outdoors at that time. Therefore, to avoid this risk, you move
these activities to a few days later to avoid the impact of rain.

◦ Risk acceptance – you are digging to construct a building, and

there is a risk that you may find artifacts, though the chances
are low. So you note it down and take no action as a response
plan may cost you a lot with no guarantee of finding an object
of interest.

◦ Risk transference – to deal with financial risk exposure, a company may

purchase special insurance for specific h/w needed for a project. If h/w fails,
insurer has to replace it.
◦ Risk mitigation – reduce probability of occurrence e.g., use proven
technology, buy maintenance or service contract
◦ Risk Sharing – Finding way to reduce risk by pooling resource with others
“Failing to plan is planning to fail”. This quote highlights the importance of planning in a software
development project. However, many people fail to realise the significance of a project plan. Being a
Project Manager in the Health Ministry Green Reserve Project called “Indah Water Treatment
System “, you decided to have a project plan. Explain to the key stakeholders the objective of project
planning and any THREE (3) activities involved.

 A project management plan is a document used to coordinate all project

planning documents and help guide a project’s execution and control.
 Plans created in the other knowledge areas are subsidiary parts of the overall project
management plan.
Determine the project requirements review and revise the following requirements: data, functionality
and infrastructure

Revise the risk assessment. Rank each risk on a scale of 1 to 5 according to the severity of its impact

Identify critical success factors.  A critical success factor is a condition that must exist for the project to
have a high chance for success

According to the PMBOK® Guide, there are eleven points that a project charter should address. As
the project manager, you are required to critically evaluate SIX (6) most important factors that need
to be discussed in a project charter.

Business case

The business case contains a description of the, the reason for taking up the project.

Problem statement

refer to business problem or pain, and an opportunity statement refers to improvement opportunity

Goals

objective of the improvement idea in quantified terms.

Goal Statement

describes the approach to solve the problem statement

Project Scope

It describes the boundary conditions and identifies key parameters covered or not covered by the project.

Project Plan

The project plan usually contains a chart with the major milestones of the project
Based on the description above, discuss THREE (3) business risks and project risks that might affect
your company when undertaking the project
◦ Market risk – Will the new service or product be useful to the organization or marketable
to others? Will the users accept it? Will someone else create a better product?

◦ Financial risk – can the organization afford to undertake the project? Will the project
meet NPV, ROI and payback estimates?

◦ Technology risk – is the project technically feasible? Is it leading edge or bleeding edge
technology?

◦ People risk – Are people with appropriate skills available to help complete the project?
Does senior management support the project?

◦ Structure/process risk – What is the degree of change the new project will introduce into
user areas and business procedures? With how many other systems does a new
project/system need to interact?

Discuss TWO (2) factors used in evaluating risk exposure. Justify your answer
◦ Probabilities of a risk occurring can be estimated based on several factors based on the
unique nature of each project

 For example: technology not being mature, technology too complex, inadequate
support base for developing the technology

◦ The impact of a risk could include factors such as the availability of fallback solutions or
the consequences of not meeting performance, cost and schedule estimates

Discuss TWO (2) types of qualitative assessments and how to apply them to prioritize risks.
Interviews

 Useful to have a prepared set of questions as a guide to the interview

 Interviewing people with similar project experience is an important tool for identifying
potential risks

Observations

Documents

Since you have identified the risks that you will be facing when taking up the project, discuss FOUR
key strategies to reduce positive risks.

 Escalate
 Enhance
 Exploit
 Accept
 Share

Covey 7 habits

◦ Be proactive
Proactive people recognize that they are "response-able." They don't blame circumstances,
conditions, or conditioning for their behavior

◦ Begin with the end in mind

 means to begin each day, task, or project with a clear vision of your desired
direction and destination, and then continue by flexing your proactive
muscles to make things happen

◦ Put first things first

Habit 3 is about life management as well--your purpose, values, roles, and priorities. What are "first
things?" First things are those things you, personally, find of most worth. If you put first things
first, you are organizing and managing time and events according to the personal priorities you
established in Habit

◦ Think win/win

 Win-win sees life as a cooperative arena, not a competitive one. Win-win is

a frame of mind and heart that constantly seeks mutual benefit in all human
interactions. Win-win means agreements or solutions are mutually
beneficial and satisfying.

◦ Seek first to understand, then to be understood

 Communication is the most important skill in life. You spend years learning
how to read and write, and years learning how to speak. But what about
listening?

 Most people listen with the intent to reply, not to understand. You listen to
yourself as you prepare in your mind what you are going to say, the
questions you are going to ask, etc.

◦ Synergize

 Synergize is the habit of creative cooperation. It is teamwork, open-

mindedness, and the adventure of finding new solutions to old problems.

 Synergy lets us discover jointly things we are much less likely to discover
by ourselves.

◦ Sharpen the saw

 You increase your capacity to produce and handle the challenges around
you.

 Brainstorming is a technique by which a group attempts to generate ideas or find a solution

for a specific problem by amassing ideas spontaneously and without judgment

 The Delphi Technique is used to derive a consensus among a panel of experts who make
predictions about future developments

 Interviewing is a fact-finding technique for collecting information in face-to-face, phone, e-

mail, or instant-messaging discussions

 SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) can also be used
during risk identification. Project teams focus on the broad perspectives of potential risks
 for particular projects. Helps identify the broad negative and positive risks that apply to a
project