CW2 IN PM

Table of Conten

Introduction:...................................................................................................................... 2

Literature Review:.............................................................................................................4

Resolution of the Delays in CP Activities:.........................................................................7

Effective Monitoring & Control Techniques:......................................................................8

4.1

Monitoring Tools for CP:.............................................................................................8

4.1.1

Project Tolerance.................................................................................................8

4.1.2

Project Inventory..................................................................................................8

4.1.3

Earned Value Analysis.........................................................................................9

4.2

Controlling tools.........................................................................................................9

4.2.1

Time management...............................................................................................9

4.2.2

Fast-tracking......................................................................................................10

4.3

Limitations................................................................................................................ 11

Recommendations:.........................................................................................................12

Conclusion:..................................................................................................................... 13

References........................................................................................................................... 14

1 Introduction:
The report was prepared and presented herewith as a partial fulfilment of <course>. The
study is focused on presenting the project plan developed for the construction of a school
building for a school located in central Scotland. The project has a contract period of 57
weeks (285 days). And the project plan was scheduled for 190 days allowing for the
contingencies that could arise and to achieve the best time value of money.
Project plan has been developed to demonstrate the critical path. Such would be useful in
analysing various scenarios and taking informed decisions in the perspective of a project
development entity by which the project is managed overall. Gantt Chart has been developed
in Ms Project Project Management software.
Further, assuming the project has been commenced already, the effort has been put on in
modelling the delays caused in critical activities and the potential ways of eliminating the
delays affecting the target project completion date whilst presenting a discussion on different
monitoring and control techniques used in project management.
Moreover, considering that this school is one of such twenty similar schools
recommendations have been provided from the learning outcomes from the same.

2 Literature Review:
Critical Path Analysis (CPA) is a powerful management tool that allows scheduling and
managing various kinds of projects. It is defined as a project-management technique that lays
out all the activities needed to complete a task, the time it will take to complete each activity
and the relationships between the activities. During management of a project, it allows
monitoring the achievement of project goals and to focus on the key activities of a project and
how they all fit together. It also guides to see where remedial action needs to be taken to get a
project back on course. Further benefit of Critical Path Analysis would be the determination
of the minimum time needed to complete a project. Where you need to run an accelerated
project, it helps us to identify which project steps that should accelerated to complete the
project within the available time. This helps in minimizing cost while still achieving your
objective.
Among the vast number of benefits, the CPA allows for a comprehensive view of the entire
project. Because of the sequential and concurrent relationships, time scheduling becomes
very effective. Identifying the critical activities keeps the executive alert and in a state of
preparedness, with alternative plans ready in case these are needed. Breaking down the
project into smaller components permits better and closer control. Critical path analysis offers
economical and effective system of control based on the principle of management by
exception, where need for corrective action arises only in exceptional situations and in most
of other cases, performance is in conformity with the plans. It is also a dynamic tool of
management, which calls for constant review, a reformulation of the network and finding the
current path of relevance and optimum resources allocation. Critical Path Analysis is a very
detailed process. However, the time and effort spent in conducting a CPA is well worth as it is
a key path for the success of a project.

3 Critical Path Analysis

The analysis of the project plan developed, accounting for the level of effort required and the
dependencies and prerequisites, allowed identifying the critical path of the project, which
could be automatically, derived using the software.
The developed critical path clearly demonstrates, the chain of critical activities, which leads
to the successful project completion.
For an example, in the work package associated with the Building Envelope, the
commencement and the end of the overall package lie on the critical path hence cannot be
delayed without causing a delay in the overall work. However all the other activities; each
has positive total float, hence can be delayed without causing delays to the overall project.
Layout of the critical path demonstrates that there are a large number of activities that can be
run in parallel to each other. Parallel tasks help shortening the critical path, hence reducing
the total project duration. Besides such may help achieving economies of scale in operations
and less effort and time consumed in managing the task.
External Works and Commissioning are the two work packages that reside totally away from
the critical path. Results of the analysis of the dependencies and the pre-requisites indicate
much more useful information. For example, the brick facing work in both the phases can be
delayed up to a maximum of 4 days beyond the schedule, with no adverse effect on the
project completion date. In a similar manner, the installing the curtain walls can also take up
to five weeks extra.
This information is helpful in taking decisions regarding the resource utilization. The
management can decide whether to free up resources from non-critical activities to assign
them in critical activities. Thereby being able to honour the original schedule with no time
overruns in the overall project.
Critical path analysis provides such detailed and valuable information, which allows the
project manager or the relevant authority to take informed decisions regarding the resource
allocation and their utilization throughout the project.

4 Effects of Delays in CP Activities:

4.1 Scenario 1:
The latest estimate says that the new site entrance would take up to 30 days a minimum.

Activity 1.1.2 lies within the critical path and the latest finishing time is the same as end of
Phase 1. Hence 30 days is the maximum time that can be allowed without allowing any
delays to the project completion
In case the building of the new entrance will subject to further one day delay i.e. 31 days to
complete, then the total project would take 191 days rather than 190 days. In case, the activity
takes only up to 30 days, no delays will reflect on the overall project completion. Effective
monitoring and controlling techniques in place would be helpful in resolving such possible
delays.

4.2 Scenario 2:
Gym block work is to be delayed by one day caused by a delay in the supply of material.

Activity 1.2.3.5 is again a critical activity and in contrast to the previous scenario, there is
zero free slack. Hence one-day delay would cause the duration for the project completion to
become 191 days instead of the 190 days.
Above analysis demonstrates the effect of slack availability within the project and emphasis
the need for the effective monitoring and controlling techniques to be in place.

5 Effective Monitoring & Control Techniques:

5.1 Monitoring Tools for CP:
5.1.1

Project Tolerance

Project Tolerance has been defined in PRINCE2 Manual as the The permissible deviation
above and below a plans target for time and cost without escalating the deviation to the next
level of management. There may also be tolerance levels for quality, scope, benefits and
risk.
Such can be useful in the school building project as it provides the project manager a great
level of flexibility and helps keeping the senior managers in control. Once such
technique/tool is in place the project manager can comfortably manage the project, where all
the senior managers are already informed of their limits and held accountable to act within
their scope and limits.
Project Inventory

Project inventory is a relatively simple technique, which would facilitate informed decisionmaking and progress tracking. Determination of the trade-offs between projects can be
achieved easily via the project inventory technique such as which projects to keep, which to
get rid of, which need to be reengineered and redefined and which need more resources.
Such potential exits for the application of Project inventory tool within the school building
project to determine such trade-offs between different work packages and major activities
especially with regard to resource allocation.
Earned Value Analysis

Earned Value Analysis (EVM) is considered as an umbrella of guidelines that define a set of
requirements that a contractors management system must meet rather than merely a
unique project management process or technique.
Properly designed EVM system may benefit the contractor by providing increased visibility
and control to quickly and proactively respond to issues that may arise within the project.
Such would facilitate the compliance with the project schedule, cost, analysis, and technical
objectives. Customer benefits may include the improved transparency and confidence in the
contractors ability to perform, early identification of the issues, challenges or threats.
Moreover such may enable achieving an objective contract-cost analysis and schedule status.

5.2 Controlling tools

Time management

Time management is an aspect referring to a collection of tools, rather than a single tool,
which is being referred to as the approach organizing and planning as to how much time, can
be allocated/ spent on specific activities.
Effective time management might have helped us performing the school building project with
Greater productivity and efficiency, better professional reputation, less stress, increased
opportunities for advancement, greater opportunities to achieve important life and career
goals. And failure to do so might lead us to many undesirable consequences such as missed
deadlines, inefficient workflow, poor quality in work, poor professional reputation and
unnecessarily higher stress levels.
Fast-tracking

Fast tracking is a technique in which the activities are performed in parallel rather than in
series, which has been already utilized in our school building project, which enable achieving
a schedule of 190 days. These are activities that would have been performed sequentially
using the original schedule. Having adopted the fast tracking technique, the activities are
worked on simultaneously instead of waiting for each piece to be completed separately.
Applicability of such will be largely depend on the availability of resources and provided the
resources are hired on man hour basis, then resource cost will not be significantly higher than
a series run.
Practical aspect should be the first concern in developing such a plan where we need to
consider and differentiate which can be run in parallel and which activities that cannot.
Accounting for the prerequisites and dependents will be in need.

6 Recommendations:
The activities residing on the critical path needs to be rigorously monitored and controlled in
order to ensure negative deviations are identified in advance and the corrective actions are
taken in a timely manner. Progress needs to be monitored and reported on a regular basis.
The biweekly and daily progress reports would be necessary. However, simple visual
progress monitoring tools need to be maintained which can be easily understood and updated
by any of the parties involved in performing the task.
With the progress updates, the schedule needs to be continuously modified and the changes to
the critical path need to be modelled accordingly. Such changes to the original plan need to
be communicated to the relevant stakeholder groups in an efficient and effective manner.
This alerts the need for a proper communication plan in place. Each and every change to the
original plan needs to be well communicated to the stakeholders well in advance, so that they
can take important decisions regarding their individual work schedules which would be
highly valued by each and every stakeholder groups engaged in the project going forward.
Stakeholder matrix needs to be used in mapping stakeholders based on the level of power and
interest they have regarding the project. Static map will of less use. Hence the matrix needs to
be updated regularly, which would allow the management to take more informed decisions
regarding the way forward.
Typical project would require large number of changes and modifications to the project plan
as it progresses towards the completion. Hence the critical path also needs to be modified
relative to the each version of the project plan. Therefore, the critical path ends up being
dynamic parameter of the project rather than being static.

7 Conclusion:
Shortening the critical path is the same as shortening the total project timeline. One option to
shorten the critical path is to change the sequence. Changing the predecessor or successor
relationships allow for the changes in the sequence, which needs to be realistic to materialise.
The project plan needs to be developed in, as much as detailed possible. In order to achieve a
shorter overall project timescale, communicating and tracking a more detailed sequence of
tasks is helpful. Shortening the critical path increases the level of complexity and inevitably
increases the risk introduced to the project.
Accomplishing a shorter project timescale would necessarily require the critical path
activities to be closely monitored and to efficiently communicate the dynamic action plan
throughout the project.
Stakeholders engaged in the critical activities need to be managed closely and they should be
educated well in advance, about the criticalness of the activities they are engaged in, and the
level of contribution they need to put in, at each stage.
Such effective and timely communication of the deadlines facilitates the successful
collaboration and coordination between the stakeholder groups engaged in each task.
Moreover, the critical path analysis allows identifying the non-critical activities and the
associated slack so that the stakeholders can be educated on such to avoid them rushing
towards the milestones compromising on the quality, which would be unnecessary.
Communicating the amount slack that can be allowed for each task would help stakeholders
in avoiding unnecessary stress being built up, which would otherwise reflect on the quality of
their deliverables.
Close relationships, effective communication and coordination between the stakeholders are
all facilitated by the tool critical path analysis directly or indirectly.

References
Aguanno,

K.

(2002).

Critical

Path:

An

Extended

Definition.

From

http://www.mmpubs.com/aguanno
Critical path analysis. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.
Freeman, R. (1984). Project success and failure is directly related to its stakeholders
perceptions of the value. Boston: Pitman.
Huber, M., Scharioth, J., & Pallas, M. (2004). Putting Stakeholder Management into Practice.
Berlin: Heidelberg Springer.
Meredith, J., & Mantel, S. (1995). Project Management: A Managerial Approach. New York:
John Wiley & Sons.
Pierse, R. G. (n.d.). CRITICAL PATH ANALYSIS . Lectures on Operations Research .
Scharioth, M., & Hurber, M. (2003). Achieving Excellence in Stakeholder Management.
Berlin: Heidelberg Springer.