Project Time Management

Executive Summary

A success or a failure of a project depends who is making the assessment. The primary objectives of the project owner and the project contractor must be considered. These objectives are the deliverables that the project owner expects and which the project manager is employed to achieve. The primary objectives for any project can be grouped under three headings: time, cost and quality.

The aim is to achieve success in all 3 aspects of the project. At times it is necessary to identify one of the three primary objectives as being of special importance

This paper looks at project time management in detail, the processes required to be performed in-order to ensure timely completion of a project. It also looks in depth at 3 project of different size and budget. It investigate the time management processes adopted by each project and the effectiveness of the processes used. It also looks at the lessons learnt and the ways of improving time management on future jobs.

There is a direct and very important relationship between time and cost. If the planned time scale is exceeded, the original cost estimates are almost certain to be overspent. Whereas the relationship between project quality and project cost is not as straightforward. There is a simple and acceptable trade-off. Down grading quality is not an option, as quality means fitness for purpose.

The major processes involved in developing a project time schedule are:

Ð'* activity definition Ð'- identifying the specific activities that must be performed to produce the various project deliverables;

Ð'* activity sequencing Ð'- identifying and documenting interactivity dependencies;

Ð'* activity duration estimating Ð'- estimating the number of work periods that will be needed to complete individual activities;

Ð'* schedule development Ð'- analysing activity sequences, activity duration, and resource requirements to create the project schedule; and

Ð'* schedule control Ð'- controlling changes to the project schedule.

1.0 Project Time Management

1.1 Introduction

This paper looks at the many aspects that make up project time management and the effects that certain activities have on the overall completion of a project. It investigates the various management tools and processes involved in creating efficient and manageable project timeframes.

1.2 Project Time Management Theory

The PMI has defined a project as "A temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product or service" (Project Management Institute 2001, p. 167)

Devaux (1993, p.109) believes "Project Management is planning a project in a flexible format so that it is able to adjust to changes, if and when they occur". Project management systems were designed to gain control over the time factor in large complex engineering projects (Faculty of Business 2005, p. 3.3).

To manage time effectively an accurate estimate of the project duration and the duration of activities that make up the project must be established. Then these time estimates must be monitored during the progress of the project (Trauner 1993, p. 91).

The evaluation of a completed project, as either a success or a failure depends who made the assessment. The primary objectives of the project owner and the project contractor must be considered. These are the deliverables (outcomes) that the project owner expects and which the project manager is employed to achieve. The primary objectives for any project can be grouped under three headings: time, cost and quality (Lock 2003, p. 6).

The aim of a project manager is to achieve success in all aspect of the project. But it is sometime necessary to identify one of the three primary objectives as being of special importance. The conflict between the three primary objectives are illustrated in Figure 1.2.1.

Figure 1.2.1 Triangle of Objectives (Lock 2003, p. 9)

There is usually a direct and very important relationship between time and cost. If the planned time scale is exceeded, the original cost estimates are almost certain to be overspent. A project costs money during every day of its existence whether work or non-working (Lock 2003, p. 9). The relationship between quality and project cost is not as straightforward. It is a fundamental error to believe that there is a simple and acceptable trade off. Down grading quality is not an option, as quality means fitness for purpose (Lock 2003, p. 11).

Scope management precedes time management. Scope management includes the processes required to ensure that the project includes all the work required, and only the work required to complete the project successfully (PMBOK 2000, p. 51). Within the task of defining the project scope the work breakdown structure is established.

"The purpose of the work breakdown structure (WBS) is to subdivide the scope of work into manageable work packages that can be estimated, planned, assigned to a responsible person or department for completion" (Burke 2003, p. 115).

Trying to estimate the time and cost of large projects and establishing budgets and plans against which to manage the work is often difficult. Most projects are too complex to be estimated planned and controlled effectively unless they are divided into smaller more manageable portion sizes. On very large projects it might have to be split into smaller projects or sub-projects, and then further divided into small work packages and tasks.

The work breakdowns must be made and analysed in a systematic fashion so there is a logical pattern to the breakdown. Once this and a series of other task have been completed in the scope management phase, the project time management phase can start.

As stated in the PMBOK (2000) the major processes involved in developing a project time schedule are:

Ð'* activity definition Ð'- identifying the specific activities that must be performed to produce the various project deliverables;

Ð'* activity sequencing Ð'- identifying and documenting interactivity dependencies;

Ð'* activity duration estimating Ð'- estimating the number of work periods that will be needed to complete individual activities;

Ð'* schedule