Project Management Professional (PMP) Exam Prep Course 6 - Project Schedule Management

Transcription

1 Project Management Professional (PMP) Exam Prep Course 6 - Project

2 Slide 1 Looking Glass Development, LLC (303) / (888) S. Ulster St. #150 Denver, CO information@lookingglassdev.com

3 Slide 2 All the processes required to ensure timely completion of the project. The major output of these processes is the project schedule. Planning Process Group

4 Slide Plan Defines the rules for developing & managing the schedule. The benefit of this process is that it provides guidance & direction on how the schedule will be managed. Planning Process Group

5 Slide Plan Inputs.1 Project charter.2 Project management plan.3 Enterprise environmental factors.4 Organizational process assets Tools & Techniques.1 Expert judgment.2 Data analysis.3 Meetings Outputs.1 plan

6 Slide Define Activities Creating a list of all the work that needs to be done to produce the project deliverables. Work packages are decomposed into schedule activities. These schedule activities provide a basis for estimating, scheduling, executing, and monitoring and controlling. Planning Process Group

7 Slide 6 Less Details Project Initiation Rolling Wave Planning Analyze Existing Situation Define New System Requirements Purchase And Install Package Construct & Test System Components Test & Implement System Planning Details More Details Project Start Time

8 Slide 7 Inputs.1 Project management plan.2 Enterprise environmental factors.3 Organizational process assets 6.2 Define Activities Tools & Techniques.1 Expert judgment.2 Decomposition.3 Rolling wave planning.4 Meetings Outputs.1 Activity list.2 Activity attributes.3 Milestone list.4 Change requests.5 Project management plan updates

9 Slide Sequence Activities Ordering the activities that have been defined and assigning logical dependencies. Planning Process Group

10 Slide 9 PDM Finish to Start Start to Start Finish to Finish Start to Finish A S - S B C F - S D E S F is not common F G H F - F

11 Slide 10 Conditional Diagramming GERT is most common. Allows for probability. Allows for looping. 20% Eyeball Diagram 80% A B C

12 Slide 11 Dependencies Mandatory (hard logic) Mandatory dependencies are defined as situations where the ordering of task, activities or deliverables is locked into place by the work itself and there is no other alternative path. Discretionary (soft logic) Discretionary dependencies are situations where there is more than one possible path to complete the project work, but someone has chosen a specific path for some reason. External External dependencies refer to situations where dependencies are placed on the project team by some outside force, regardless of logic or preference. Regulations and laws are the most common form of external dependencies.

13 Slide 12 Leads & Lag Lead time occurs whenever a finish-to-start relationship allows the successor task to start prior to the completion of the predecessor. Lag time represents a relationship that requires a delay between the two tasks.

14 Slide Sequence Activities Inputs.1 Project management plan.2 Project documents.3 Enterprise environmental factors.4 Organizational process assets Tools & Techniques.1 Precedence diagramming method (PDM).2 Dependency determination and integration.3 Leads and lags.4 Project management information system Outputs.1 Project schedule network diagrams.2 Project document updates

15 Slide 14 Dependency Determination Mandatory External Dependency Mandatory Internal Dependency Discretionary External Dependency Discretionary Internal Dependency

16 Slide 15 Leads & Lag

17 Slide Estimate Activity Durations Compilation (not the sum) of activity duration estimates results in the project duration. All supporting data is documented. Uses identified risks and cost estimates. Accuracy improves over time. Ranges, e.g. 280 days -5% to +10%. Planning Process Group

18 Slide Estimate Activity Duration Inputs.1 Project management plan.2 Project documents.3 Enterprise environmental factors.4 Organizational process assets Tools & Techniques.1 Expert judgment.2 Analogous estimating.3 Parametric estimating.4 Three point estimating.5 Bottom-up estimating.6 Data analysis.7 Decision making.8 meetings Outputs.1 Duration estimates.2 Basis of estimates.3 Project document updates

19 Slide 18 Project Evaluation & Review Technique (PERT)

20 Slide 19 Project Evaluation & Review Technique (PERT) PERT Weighted = Average PERT Standard = Deviation Optimistic + 4X Most Likely 6 Pessimistic - Optimistic 6 + Pessimistic

21 Slide 20 Distributions A binomial distribution is used whenever there are only two possible outcomes. A uniform distribution represents a scenario where each value of a random variable has an equal probability of occurrence. A triangular distribution is a continuous probability distribution that begins with a minimum value, ends with a maximum value, and makes use of a mode, or most likely value somewhere along the continuum. A beta distribution represents a distribution of probabilities when we don t know what the probability is. The central limit theorem (CLT) states that the mean of a large population of independent and random variables, each having a finite mean and variance will be normally distributed.

22 Slide 21 Reserves Contingency Reserves These represent reserves controlled by the project manager and they are to be used for know unknowns. This means the project manager and team can plan for an event that they see as possible. Management Reserves These represent reserves controlled by the project sponsor or the senior management. They cannot be accessed without their permission. Management reserves are used to respond to unknown unknowns. These are events that cannot be planned for.

23 Slide 22 Agile Estimation Ideal Time - Assumes resources 100% dedicated Relative Sizing Often called T-Shirt sizing. Points Aggregates complexity & time. Fibonacci Sequence Another comparison technique. Affinity Estimating Process of grouping requirements into categories or collections. Used to group similarly sized user stories together.

24 Slide 23 Iterative. 6.5 Develop Schedule Determines planned start and end dates for activities and the whole project. Baseline for measuring progress. Planning Process Group

25 Slide 24 CPM The Critical Path is the project path which will be the longest duration or where all activities have zero float. The Critical Path does not necessarily have the greatest risk. The Critical Path determines the earliest completion of the project.

26 Slide 25 CPM ES - Early Start is the earliest the task can begin. Dur Duration is the amount of calendar time the task will take. EF - The Early Finish is the earliest the task can end. LS The Late Start is the latest the task can begin. LF The Late Finish is the latest the task can end. Float - The Slack, slip or float is amount of time the task can delay without impacting the project end date. Also called Total Float. Near Critical Path A network path close in length to the critical path. Free Float The amount of time a task can delay without delaying the early start date Project Float The amount of time the project can be delayed without impacting an externally imposed completion date. ES DUR EF Deliverable LS Float LF

27 Slide 26 The Critical Path Method EF = ES + DUR = Forward Pass LS = LF DUR = Backward Pass Float = LF EF or LS ES ES DUR EF Deliverable LS Float LF Deliverable C Deliverable D Deliverable A Deliverable B Deliverable E Deliverable F

28 Slide 27 After CPM. Resource Optimization Redistribute resource assignments where a resource is needed on more than one task in the same time period. Can change the critical path.

29 Slide 28 Critical Chain Method Critical Chain = Longest chain PDM/CPM of dependent tasks with zero slack taking into consideration resource constraints Progress equal burn rate of the buffers vs. work complete Measurement is done against the Project Buffer. OR 10 BL PR 10 FB R 15 OR 30 FB GR Y 20 PB 27 FB 5 BL 30 Y 10 Using CPM would take an estimated 75 units. Which is then missed by 100%. CCPM allows for more accurate estimates with smaller misses.

30 Optionality Slide 29 A Sample Map The Backbone Sequence Walking Skeleton Less Optional More Optional

31 Slide Develop Schedule Inputs Tools & Techniques Outputs.1 Project management plan.2 Project documents.3 Agreements.4 Enterprise environmental factors.5 Organizational process assets.1 Schedule network analysis.2 Critical path method.3 Resource optimization.4 Data analysis.5 Change requests.6 Schedule compression.7 Project management information system.8 Agile release planning.1 Schedule baseline.2 Project schedule.3 Schedule data.4 Project calendars.5 Change requests.6 Project management plan updates.7 Project document updates

32 Slide 31 Leveling vs. Smoothing Resource leveling involves adjusting the start and finish dates of tasks to prevent resources from becoming over allocated. Resource smoothing adjust the project activities so they do not exceed predefined resource limits. This is different from leveling in that smoothing does not allow the project s critical path to change and the project s completion date cannot be delayed.

33 Slide 32 Leveling vs. Smoothing Similarities Resource Leveling Resource Smoothing A schedule network analysis technique. A resource optimization technique. Improves resource utilization. A schedule network analysis technique. A resource optimization technique. Improves resource utilization.

34 Slide 33 Resource Leveling Leveling vs. Smoothing Aim is to adjust start and end dates of a project with resource constraints while balancing resource requirements and resource availability Used in resource-constrained scheduling. Critical path of the project will be affected, and usually the length of critical path will increase. Can be applied to resources on critical path. Free and total float (or slack) may be used. Will optimize all the resources and may change the duration of the project. Risk: May change the critical path and hence the duration. Differences Resource Smoothing Aim is to achieve optimal resource usage by avoiding peaks and valleys in the resource usage profile. Hence the name smoothing. Used in time-constrained scheduling. Critical path of the project won't change. Doesn't apply to resources on critical path. Free and total float (or slack) are used. May not be able to optimize all the resources if sufficient slack (or float) isn't available, but does not change the duration of the project. Risk: Loss of flexibility due to reduction in slack. Hence chances of increase in number of near-critical activities.

35 Slide 34 Other Terms One-Point Estimate A single value estimate. Regression Analysis A graphic analysis to track if two variables are related. Heuristic A rule of thumb. Learning Curve The improvement achieved by doing an activity more than once. Monte Carlo Simulation A computer model which allows the analyst to simulate an activity 1,000 or more times to achieve a probability of a result. Looking Glass Development, LLC.

36 Slide 35 Crashing vs. Fast Tracking Fast Tracking Fast Tracking is doing dependent items in parallel. It amounts to changing a finishto-start relationship to a start-to-start or a finishto-finish relationship. For the exam it is important that you remember that the negative impact of Fast Tracking is the potential for rework. Crashing Crashing is increasing the number of hours worked. This can be done by adding resources assigned to a task, activity or deliverable or by simply working overtime. The negative impact of Crashing that must be remembered is a likely increase in costs.

37 Slide 36 Gantt Charts

38 Slide 37 Milestone Chart

39 Slide Control Schedule Part of Integrated Change Control. Determine the current status of the project schedule. Influence the factors that create schedule changes. Determine that the project schedule has changed. Manage the changes as they occur.

40 Slide 39 Inputs.1 Project management plan.2 Project documents.3 Work performance data.4 Organizational process assets 6.6 Control Schedule Tools & Techniques.1 Data analysis.2 Critical path method.3 Project management information system.4 Resource optimization.5 Leads and lags.6 Schedule compression Outputs.1 Work performance information.2 Schedule forecasts.3 Change requests.4 Project management plan updates.5 Project documents updates

41 Slide 40 Project Time Management Summary Six (6) processes. PERT, GERT, PDM, CPM, CCPM. Crashing, fast tracking. Decomposition, baseline, float or slack. Schedule development is iterative.

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43 Review Questions Part 1: 1. A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 10 days and an optimistic estimate of 6 days. What is the standard deviation? A B. 4 C D A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 9 days and an optimistic estimate of 4 days. What is the standard deviation? A B C D A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 5 days and an optimistic estimate of 2 days. What is the standard deviation? A B. 0.5 C D A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 15 days and an optimistic estimate of 6 days. What is the standard deviation? A. 8.0 B C. 9.5 D A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 17 days and an optimistic estimate of 8 days. What is the standard deviation? A B C. 1.5 D. 1.83

44 6. A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 25 days and an optimistic estimate of 15 days. What is the standard deviation? A B C D A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 28 days and an optimistic estimate of 17 days. What is the standard deviation? A B C D A resource gives you a pessimistic estimate of 21 days and an optimistic estimate of 12 days. What is the standard deviation? A B C. 14 D Completion of the project scope is measured against all of the following A. The product requirements B. The project management plan C. The scope statement D. The WBS and the WBS dictionary 10. All of the following are inputs to the define scope process except: A. Project charter B. WBS dictionary C. Project documents D. Organizational process assets

45 Review Questions Part 2: 1. When comparing the Critical Chain to the Critical Path which of the following is true? A. The Critical Path accounts for resource limitations B. The Critical Chain accounts for resource limitations C. The Critical Path uses aggressive estimates D. The Critical Chain uses pessimistic estimates 2. The Critical Chain Methodology schedules each activity to: A. Occur as late as possible B. Occur as soon as possible C. Occur with the middle schedule D. Any of the above 3. The Critical Chain Method focuses on managing what? A. Total project float B. The Critical Path C. Buffers D. Specific network paths 4. What is the major difference between the Critical Path and the Critical Chain? A. The Critical Path takes into account resources B. The Critical Path is always longer C. The Critical Chain is always longer D. The Critical Chain takes into account resources 5. Which of the following statements about the Critical Chain is true? A. Critical Path management does not allow multi-tasking B. Critical Chain management uses bar charts C. Critical Chain management does not allow multi-tasking D. All of the above are true

46 6. Which of the following statements about Critical Chain Management is true? A. It is a methodology that creates an optimized project schedule that considers resource limitations B. It is a methodology that works best when resources are unlimited but schedule milestones are restricted C. It makes extensive use of PERT D. It is used primarily with Agile Methodologies in information technology projects. 7. Which of the following is not a step in the Theory of Constraints (TOC)? A. Identify the constraint B. Identify the next systems constraint C. Exploit the constraint D. Subordinate everything to the constraint 8. According to the TOC most current management philosophies focus on what? A. Throughput management B. Schedule management C. Cost management D. Balancing all of the above 9. According to the TOC, what is the only way to achieve good cost performance? A. Achieve good local performance everywhere B. Manage costs throughout the system C. Have visibility to all costs D. Have all project team members know the project costs

47 Review Questions Part 3: 1. What is the variance of a project that has a best case estimate of 6, a most likely case estimate of 7, and a worst case estimate of 10? A B C D Your project is significantly over budget and behind schedule. It is critical that you determine your projected duration. To gain a better understanding of the project you analyze the sequence of deliverables, activities or tasks to findthe ones with the least amount of schedule flexibility. What technique are you using? A. GERT B. CPM C. PERT D. PDM 3. A project manager is discussing her project with her boss. They are concerned that the project might be falling behind schedule and decide they must determine the project s likely completion date and find out where any flexibility exists. Which of the following tools would best provide this information? A. AOA B. PDM C. CPM D. Network Diagramming 4. You are the project manager for a new product. You are in the planning phase of your project and have just been told by one of your senior resources that they require the completed schematics before they can begin to build the product prototype. This is an example of what kind of dependency? A. Mandatory B. Discretionary C. Internal D. External

48 5. You are the project manager at a major pharmaceuticals company. You are planning the release of a new drug and must wait for regulatory approval before you can begin manufacture of the drug. This is an example of what kind of dependency? A. Discretionary B. External C. Internal D. Mandatory 6. Which of the following is a type of bar chart? A. Gaussian distribution B. Scatter plot C. Gantt chart D. Logit model 7. As a general rule, which of the following is better illustrated by network diagrams than by bar charts? A. Project progress B. Logical relationships between activities C. The project s critical chain D. Resource needs 8. Which of the following is not correct about PDM? A. The critical path always has dummy tasks B. Every network has at least one critical path C. The network displays all task interdependencies D. Tasks not on the critical path have slack or float 9. Which of the following terms represents a method of problem solving that relies on inductive reasoning from past experience or expert judgment when there is no relevant mathematical algorithm available? A. A heuristic B. A logit C. GERT D. Analogous estimating

49 10. Which of the following best describe the amount of time that one activity can be delayed without impacting the early start of its succeeding task or activity? A. Lead time B. Float C. Lag time D. None of the above 11. Which of the following terms best represents the amount of time one activity can begin prior to the completion of its preceding dependent task? A. Lag time B. Lead time C. Float D. None of the above 12. Which of the following statements is correct? A. A network diagram allows you to determine the amount of time the project will take. B. A WBS allows you to determine the longest chain of dependent tasks. C. Changing the end date of the project will cause the network diagram to change. D. The critical path will always contain dummy tasks. 13. Which of the follow statements about a milestone is true? A. A milestone can have any duration B. A milestone has the same duration as the task, activity or deliverable it represents C. A milestone always has zero duration D. None of the above 14. Which of the following statements best describes the relationship between standard deviation and risk? A. Standard deviation provides the level of uncertainty about the estimate B. Standard deviation defines whether or not safety is in the estimate C. Standard deviation defines the accuracy of the estimate D. There is no relationship between risk and standard deviation

50 15. Your boss asks you to use Monte Carlo analysis to evaluate your project. For what purpose was this request most likely made? A. To create an activity s estimated length B. To gain an indication of the risk in the project C. To define the order in which activities occur D. Define project resource requirement 16. On Monday morning your boss comes into your office and asks about the amount of slack you have on a specific activity in your project. This is determined by which of the following: A. Performing a PERT analysis. B. Estimating the task or activity length. C. Creating a PDM diagram. D. Determining the total amount of time that a schedule activity may be delayed without impacting the project delivery. 17. Your boss enters your office and is concerned that a particular activity will delay the delivery of the project. What is the best thing to do? A. Determine if the activity is on the critical path. B. Explain why your boss should not worry. C. Perform a GERT analysis. D. Examine the activity s risk triggers. 18. You and your project team have obtained estimates for your project, assigned resources, and developed a precedence diagram of the project. Several of your resources are very concerned that two of the activities are not being focused on enough and will end up delaying the project because they are critical components of the project s end product. What is the best thing to do? A. Sit down with the resources to discuss the project Gantt chart. B. Determine if the activities in question are on the critical path. C. Examine the project s risk register. D. Evaluate alternative project execution paths. 19. Which of the following best describes the impact of multiple critical paths on a project? A. The project takes longer to complete. B. The project is more expensive. C. The project takes more resources to manage. D. The project risk increases.

51 20. You and your project team have just completed the development of your PDM diagram. The current diagram shows there are three critical paths in your project. What is the best thing to do next? A. Re-evaluate the network for errors. B. Develop the project schedule. C. Examine the project risk register. D. Discuss alternative networks with your team. 21. In discussing your project with management you determine that the project schedule is the most flexible and the project scope is the least flexible. If the allowable monthly project expenditures are fixed, then what is the best thing to do? A. Level the resources. B. Examine the project s critical path. C. Analyze the project s life cycle costs. D. Crash the project. 22. Your manager asks you to produce a report on your project for management. Which of the following would best meet the request? A. Bar chart B. PERT chart C. Milestone chart D. Gantt chart 23. You and your project team have just completed the development of your project schedule. Based on the constraints provided by the project sponsor, the project is scheduled to be completed after the project deadline. Assuming that costs are the least important constraint and scope is the most important constraint, which of the following is the best thing to do? A. Fast track the project. B. Crash the project. C. Reassess the critical path. D. Develop a critical chain model for the project.

52 24. You and your project team have just completed the development of your project schedule. Based on constraints provided by the project sponsor, the project is scheduled to be completed after the project deadline. Assuming that costs are the most important constraint and scope is the least important constraint, which of the following is the best thing to do? A. Crash the project. B. Reassess the critical path. C. Develop a new project schedule. D. Fast track the project. 25. Your manager comes to you and demands that you complete your project three weeks early. What is the best thing to do? A. Meet with your project team to examine alternatives for crashing and fast tracking. B. Tell your boss the project critical path does not allow for a three week early completion. C. Ask the project to work overtime. D. Ask your manager if you can reduce the scope of the project. 26. When evaluating the impact that crashing will have on your project, which of the following should be included in the evaluation? A. The project sponsor s interest. B. Risks associated with the schedule changes. C. The amount of overtime to be worked. D. The impact of a reduction in project scope. 27. Which of the following PM processes requires the project manager to reach an agreement with the activity resources on the calendar date for each activity? A. Sequence activities. B. Estimate activity durations. C. Estimate resources. D. Develop schedule. 28. It is late Friday afternoon when your project sponsor informs you that the project schedule has been reduced by two weeks. What is the best thing to do? A. Meet with your project team to determine options for schedule compression. B. Cut the project scope. C. Crash the project. D. Inform management that the date cannot be met.

53 29. As the project manager, you estimate the time that is needed for each activity, assign tasks to specific resources and then add the estimates to create the project estimate. You then use this value to establish the project delivery date which you provide to the project sponsor. What is incorrect with this process? A. The project manager created the estimates without the team. Additionally, summing the tasks will lead to a significantly longer project duration. B. Project duration estimates should be developed by the project sponsor. C. The project manager created the estimates without the project resources and did not use a network diagram to define the critical path. D. The project completion date should be derived from an evaluation of the triple constraints. 30. You are the project manager for a large construction project. It is early in the project lifecycle and you have completed the activity definition. In analyzing the activities you see a number of activities that are dependent on each other but can start at the same time. Which methodology is the best one to properly evaluate this project? A. CPM B. PDM C. AOA D. GERT 31. You are the project manager for a $250,000 software development project. You are working with your project team and you determine that the project has a number of project tasks that are dependent on each other. However, one of your team members also points out that the tasks can finish at the same time. Which of the following is the best technique to understand this situation? A. Critical path method B. Activity on arrow method C. Precedence diagramming method D. Program evaluation and review technique

54 32. You are the project manager for a large consulting company leading a process improvement project for your organization s largest client. The project currently has a CPI of 1.04 and SPI of.98. Your customer has just asked if you can produce a diagram that shows the probabilistic project path. Which of the following tools would be best in this situation? A. Graphical evaluation and review technique B. Program evaluation and review technique C. Critical path method D. Precedence diagramming method 33. Which of the following is best suited to define a project network that has potential looping of the activities, deliverables or tasks? A. PERT B. CPM C. GERT D. PDM 34. You are the project manager for a software development project with an estimated budget of $650,000. You have just completed the duration estimates, and activity sequencing for your project. Which of the following do you still need to complete the initial project schedule? A. Performance measurement baseline B. Contingency reserves C. Schedule data D. Schedule management plan 35. You are just taking over for a project manager who was forced to take a medical leave of absence. Your project has a CPI of.93 and an SPI of.89. To gain a better understanding of how the previous project manager was managing schedule changes, to which of the following would you turn? A. The project plan B. The project schedule C. The schedule management plan D. The project Gantt chart

55 36. You are taking over for a project manager who was terminated. The previous project manager was using weighted average duration estimates to develop the schedule network. What type of modeling are you using? A. Monte Carlo analysis B. Project evaluation and review technique analysis C. Critical chain analysis D. Critical path analysis 37. You are the project manager for a large mechanical engineering project. You have completed your scope statement, the WBS, the resource estimate, duration estimates, and the network diagram. Which of the following is the thing you should do next? A. Create the schedule B. Complete the cost estimates C. Define the project budget D. Solicit purchase 38. You work as a project manager and have completed the scope statement, resource estimates, and the WBS. You ve just received the activity duration estimates. Which of the following is your best course of action? A. Finalize the schedule B. Compress the schedule C. Complete the risk register D. Develop RFPs 39. One of your resources comes into your office to discuss their task. The project has a CPI of.89 and an SPI of.92. The resource s task has an early start of week 14 and a late start of week 17. What do you know about this activity? A. It is ahead of schedule B. It is behind schedule C. It is on the critical path D. It is not on the critical path 40. You have an activity that has an ES of 12 weeks, an LS of 15 weeks, an EF of 21 weeks, and an LF of 24 weeks. What do you know about this activity? A. It is not on the critical path B. It is ahead of schedule C. It is behind schedule D. It is on the critical path

56 41. You are leading a project that you have just learned is 3 weeks behind schedule. The dependencies are discretionary. The project has an SPI of.81 and a CPI of.83. Due to cost overruns you cannot add more resources. What is the best thing to do? A. Move resources from tasks with discretionary dependencies B. Complete activities in parallel where possible C. Reduce resources D. Reduce project scope 42. You ve been brought into the organization because senior management is struggling to get a strong understanding of the state of their projects. You only have a week to prepare a 30 minute presentation on the status of all the projects. Which of the following would best help senior management understand the current portfolio status? A. Project management plan executive summaries B. Detailed cost and schedule analysis C. Milestone charts D. Gantt charts 43. Sally is a brand new project manager within a company that manufactures household products. She s just taken over a project that is seriously over budget and behind schedule. Originally, the project was slated to have spent $135,000 and they have already spent $170,000. It appears that most of the overage is because of flawed original estimates. This project is critical to the organization s success. Who has primary responsibility to solve these issues? A. The project sponsor B. The project manager C. The project team D. Senior management 44. You are the project manager for a project that you have just learned is 30 days behind schedule. You do not have any additional resources that may be engaged. The project has a CPI of.84 and an SPI of.79. The BCR is 1.45 and only a few of the project tasks have mandatory dependencies. What is the best thing to do? A. Meet with the project sponsor to inform them of the delay. B. Reduce the project scope to meet the deadline. C. Crash the project. D. Make more activities concurrent.

57 45. Rearranging dependent tasks or activities so they are done in parallel is called what? A. Fast tracking B. Leveling C. Paralleling D. Crashing 46. Rearranging resources and resource workloads so that the amount of work done in each month or specified time period is constant is called what? A. Fast tracking B. Paralleling C. Leveling D. Crashing 47. Adding additional resources to reduce the schedule time of a task or activity is called what? A. Fast tracking B. Crashing C. Paralleling D. Leveling 48. Which of the following is a benefit of a three point project estimate? A. It shows a better understanding of the task. B. It allows the project manager to better manage stakeholder expectations. C. It helps determine if the project will meet the schedule. D. It provides a probabilistic estimate. 49. Which of the following is a benefit of analogous project estimates? A. It helps to raise questions about expectations. B. The estimates will more accurately reflect actuals C. It helps the project resources understand their obligations. D. It helps senior management feel better about the estimates. 50. Which of the following is an advantage of parametric estimating? A. It accounts for estimating uncertainty. B. It provides for improved communication. C. It provides a quantifiable deterministic estimate. D. It provides estimates at the lowest possible level.

58 51. You are the project manager for a very large and important project within your organization. Your project has been progressing very well until the last couple of weeks when you began to experience a large number of scope changes. Your current CPI is 1.02 and your SPI is.98. As the project manager, what should you do? A. Maintain the baseline and make approved changes. B. Maintain the baseline and resist all changes. C. Make only the changes approved by the project sponsor. D. Initiate a discussion with management about the level of changes. 52. Your boss asks you to change a presentation slide showing a network diagram to one showing a bar chart. Which of the following best explain this request? A. Bar charts show logical relationships more effectively than network diagrams. B. Bar charts better display resource trade-offs than network diagrams. C. Bar charts better show the critical path than network diagrams. D. Bar charts better display progress or status. 53. You are leading a large project for your organization. Early in the project the sponsor informs you that neither time nor costs are as important as the number of resources used each month. Which of the following is the best thing for you to do? A. Level the project resources B. Crash the project C. Fast track the project D. Apply a heuristic 54. Upon presenting your plan to your sponsor you are informed that the schedule exceeds the target completion date the sponsor desired. If the project network diagram cannot change, but the sponsor offers extra resources what is the best thing to do? A. Crash the project B. Fast track the project C. Level the resources D. Perform a Monte Carlo analysis

59 55. You ve determined that crashing your project is the best option for reducing your project schedule. The best approach to crashing would also include looking at the: A. Sponsor s opinion of which activities to crash. B. Risk impacts of crashing each activity. C. Customer or end user s opinion of which activities to crash. D. When in the project timeline the activities occur. 56. You are assigned as the project manager for a manufacturing project within your organization. During the planning phase of the project, you estimate the time needed for each activity and then add the estimates to create the project estimate. You then commit to delivering the project by the defined date. What is wrong with this scenario? A. The team did not create the estimate, and compilation was not used. B. The estimate is too short and should be created by management. C. The team did not create the estimate and a network diagram was not used. D. The estimate should be matched to the customer s required completion date. 57. You have a project with the following activities: Activity A takes 40 hours and is the first task. Activity B takes 25 hours and should happen after the project starts. Activity C must happen after activity A and takes 35 hours. Activity D must happen after activities B and C and takes 30 hours. Activity E must take place after activity C and takes 10 hours. Activity F takes place after activity E and takes 22 hours. Activities F and D are the last activities of the project. Which of the following is true if activity B actually takes 37 hours? A. The critical path is 67 hours. B. The critical path changes to Start, B, D, End. C. The critical path is Start, A, C, E, F, End. D. The critical path increases by 12 hours. 58. The WBS, activity duration estimates, and the precedence diagram are completed. Which of the following should you do next? A. Validate project scope. B. Identify project risks. C. Sequence the activities. D. Create a preliminary schedule and get the team s approval.

60 59. You are leading an engineering project for your organization and have developed a six level WBS that has been sequenced using PDM. The activity duration estimates have been received. What should you do next? A. Create an activity list. B. Begin the work breakdown structure. C. Finalize the schedule. D. Compress the schedule. 60. You are the project manager for an information technology project within your organization. A five-level work breakdown structure has been developed for the project. The network diagram and duration estimates have been created and the schedule has been developed and compressed. Which of the following time management activities should you do next? A. Gain approval. B. Estimate activity resources. C. Use parametric estimating. D. Control the schedule. 61. The project is calculated to be completed two weeks after your sponsor s deadline. You have been told there are no additional resources. The project is low risk, the benefit cost ratio is expected to be 1.71, and the project dependencies are preferential. What is the best thing to do? A. Remove non-critical activities from the project. B. Make more activities concurrent. C. Cut resources from non-critical activities. D. Move resources from preferential dependencies to external dependencies.

61 Answer Key Part 1: 1. A Answer A. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals 10-6 = 4 and then 4/6 = C Answer C. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals 9-4 = 5 and then 5/6 = B Answer B. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals 5-2 = 3 and then 3/6 =.5 4. D Answer D. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals 15-6 = 9 and then 9/6 = C Answer C. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals 17-8 = 9 and then 9/6 = A Answer A. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals = 10 and then 10/6 = C Answer C. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals = 11 and then 11/6 = 1.83

62 8. D Answer D. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals = 9 and then 9/6 = A Answer A. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals = 18 and then 18/6 = B Answer B. The standard deviation in this case is the PERT standard deviation. The formula for the PERT standard deviation is Pessimistic - optimistic / 6. For this question that equals = 12 and then 12/6 = 2.0

63 Answer Key Part 2: 1. B Answer B. The Critical Chain is the longest chain of dependent tasks with zero slack or float taking into consideration resource constraints. The difference between the Critical Path and the Critical Chain is the resource considerations. When using the Critical Chain Methodology it is important that you use true, most likely case estimates without safety. 2. A Answer A. The Critical Chain Method requires the creation of a PDM Diagram and then scheduling from the late finish date for each activity asks the project manager to add in resource, feeder and project buffers. 3. C Answer C. Critical Chain Management focuses on managing the three different types of project buffers: Project, feeder, and resource. 4. D Answer D. While in most cases the Critical Chain will be longer, there is no set rule guaranteeing it. However, it is true that the Critical Chain does take into account resource limitations while the Critical Path does not. 5. C Answer C. Because CCPM focuses on the longest chain of dependent tasks that takes into account resource constraints, it specifically excludes multi-tasking. 6. A Answer A. The core argument of Critical Chain Management is that most projects fail because they do not consider the limitations of the resources. This means that one resource cannot be doing two tasks at the same time. When this happens, the resource in question becomes the bottleneck and will delay the project.

64 7. B Answer B. The Theory of Constraints has five major steps: A - Identify the system constraint B - Exploit the constraint C - Subordinate everything to the constraint D - Elevate the systems constraints E - Repeat the process 8. C Answer C. According to the Theory of Constraints, most current management philosophies focus on either cost or throughput management. In reality, most are simply focused on cost management. 9. A Answer A. According to the Theory of Constraints, the only way to achieve good cost performance is to achieve it at each local or independent stage of the process. This localizing factor becomes a major problem for overall project performance because this can be very different from good overall project cost performance. Sometimes a local step needs to be sacrificed to ensure good overall performance.

65 Answer Key Part 3: 1. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p The correct answer is The PERT variance is calculated by first calculating the PERT standard deviation for the case using the formula of (pessimistic optimistic) / 6. Once you have the PERT standard deviation you must square that result to obtain the PERT variance. 2. B Answer B. Each of these methods provides an evaluation of the project in some way. However, only the critical path method or CPM, focuses in on the amount of slack or float contained by a task. 3. C Answer C. Each of these methods provides an evaluation of the project in some way. However, only the critical path method or CPM, focuses in on the amount of slack or float contained by a task. 4. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p Internal dependencies are not a type defined by PMI. This is an example of a discretionary dependency because the question clearly states that the schematics are required to go the next step. 5. D Answer D. PMBOK Guide p Internal dependencies are not a type defined by PMI. This is an example of a mandatory dependency. Neither the manufacturing nor the project management processes require the regulatory approval. However, governmental approval is required in order to sell the completed product. 6. C Answer C. PMBOK Guide p A Gantt chart is a type of bar chart laid on its side that also shows a project calendar. The lengths of the bars reflect the length of time the task, deliverable, or activity take. 7. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p Network diagrams are modeling methods that display the relationships between task, deliverable and activities. Since the bars in a bar chart are independent of each other, they cannot provide this information.

66 8. A Answer A. PMBOK Guide p PDM or the precedence diagramming method is a method of network diagram designed to display task dependencies and relationships. One of its most valuable outputs is the critical path which is the longest chain of dependent tasks where there is no slack or float. 9. A Answer A. A heuristic is a method of problem solving that relies on inductive reasoning from past (expert) judgment when there is no relevant mathematical algorithm. It is also sometimes referred to as a rule of thumb. 10. C Answer C. PMBOK Guide p Lag time represents the amount of time a task or activity can be delayed without impacting the early start of the next task or activity. Often lag is added to a chain to produce a gap between tasks or activities. 11. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p Lead time represents the amount of time one activity can begin prior to the completion of its preceding dependent task. Lead time is used to compress a schedule and can run the risk of rework. 12. A Answer A. PMBOK Guide p The network diagram is specifically designed to allow you to determine all the potential project paths and the longest time the project can take. A work breakdown structure is used to show the project deliverables. Changing the end date of a project does not necessarily change a network diagram and the critical path never contains dummy tasks. 13. C Answer C. PMBOK Guide p.157. A milestone is a marker representing the completion of a task, activity or deliverable. It never has duration of any length. 14. A Answer A. Standard deviation allows you to determine the amount of dispersion from the mean that your estimates have. The more dispersed the estimates, the more variance exists between the estimates and therefore the greater the risk is.

67 15. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p Several of these answers are close, but the correct answer is to gain an indication of the risk in the project. Monte Carlo simulations will not tell you about specific risk. They reveal the probabilistic nature of risk. A Monte Carlo simulation enables the user to determine the probability that a result will occur within a given range. The wider the range, the greater the uncertainty or risk. 16. D Answer D. PMBOK Guide p.210. Slack or float represents the amount of time a specified activity may be delayed without impacting the project s critical path. Only items not on the Critical Path have slack or float. It is the difference between the early finish and late finish or the early and late start. 17. A Answer A. PMBOK Guide p.210. Slack or float represents the amount of time a specified activity may be delayed without impacting the project s Critical Path. Only items not on the Critical Path have slack or float. It is the difference between the early finish and late finish or the early and late start. In this case the best answer is to first determine if the task is on the Critical Path and find out how much slack or float it has. 18. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p.210. Slack or float represents the amount of time a specified activity may be delayed without impacting the project s Critical Path. Only items not on the critical path have slack or float. It is the difference between the early finish and late finish or the early and late start. In this case the best answer is to first determine if the tasks are on the Critical Path and find out how much slack or float it has. 19. D Answer D. PMBOK Guide p.210. Multiple critical paths are not unusual in the real world. This simply means that if any of the activities on any of the Critical Paths are delayed, the entire project will be delayed. This sometimes causes an increase in project resources or cost and it might cause the project to take longer. However, it is a guarantee that the project has an increase in risk because the project now has more chance for an activity delay to impact the delivery of the project.

68 20. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p.210. Multiple critical paths are not unusual in the real world. This simply means that if any of the activities on any of the critical paths are delayed the entire project will be delayed. Therefore, the existence of multiple critical paths does not represent an error in your process. The development of the PDM Diagram is part of activity sequencing. The next step in the process is developing the project schedule. 21. A Answer A. PMBOK Guide p.211. This is a triple constraints question. If the project schedule is the most flexible, this means the project could continue for several months past the original forecast. This is especially true because the project has an inflexible scope. Because the project cost is fixed on a monthly basis but not on a total basis the best thing to do is level the resources to ensure the monthly project costs do not exceed the allowable amount. 22. C Answer C. PMBOK Guide p.218. The best tool for reporting to management is a milestone chart. This provides the correct level of information for management. 23. B Answer B. PMBOK Guide p.215. The best thing to do in this case is crash the project. This usually entails adding resources to the project to get project work done more quickly. This will cause a likely increase in project costs. Fast tracking is doing tasks in parallel which decreases the schedule, but this often causes rework which in this case is unacceptable. 24. D Answer D. PMBOK Guide p.215. The best thing to do in this case is fast track the project. This is because you do not have the ability to increase the cost by adding resources (crashing). Reassessing the critical path and developing a new schedule are not preferred alternatives. 25. A Answer A. PMBOK Guide p.215. Whenever your due date is reduced, the first thing to do evaluate the two alternatives you have. You can either crash or fast track the project.