Midterm Review

1
Midterm Review

• SE503
• Advanced Project Management

2
Exam Content

• Closed book, no notes
• Target time 2 hours
• Total points 200
• Multiple choice 25 x 2 points 50 points
• Short answer and problems 90 points
• Discussion questions 60 points
• Compare traditional project management and
  Critical Chain

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• Closed book, no notes-Target time 2 hours-Total
  points 200
• Multiple choice 25 x 2 points 50 points
• -Planned Task duration always add safty-time
  within (T/F)
• -PERT uses three-point-estimates (T/F)
• Short answer and problems 90 points
• -What is the relationship between Critical Path
  and Critical Chain?
• Discussion questions 60 points
• -Compare traditional project management and
  Critical Chain

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Project Management

• PM history
• What is a project?
• Project types
• Project elements
• Scope, budget, schedule, resources, environment
• Project life cycle
• What is project success?
• Project terminology

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Project Justification

• Project types
• Sacred cow
• Market driven
• Necessary
• Economic
• Project value
• Economic return on investment
• Kano value model

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Traditional Project Management

• Organize Effort
• Plan Work (Scope, Budget, Schedule)
• Obtain and Manage Resources
• Resolve Conflicts and Problems
• Control Technical Quality
• Control Budget
• Control Schedule

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Critical Path Method

• Tasks
• Milestones
• Logical relationships between tasks
• Project network
• Critical path
• Slack

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Contracting

• Single contractor
• Fixed bid
• Time and material
• Incentive fee
• Which is best?
• Multiple contractors
• Work for the common good
• Incentive fee pool contract

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PM Issues

• Most projects fail
• Scope (quantity or quality) of work
• Budget overruns
• Schedule delays
• Finishing on-time (or early) is a big advantage
• Return on investment
• Market entry
• Resource usage

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Uncertainty

• Difficult estimates/padding/safety
• Hard to make a firm plan
• Triggers behavior response
• Students syndrome
• Parkinsons law
• Uncertainty modeling
• Normal distribution, Beta, triangle, PERT
• Assumption of independence

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Traditional approach

• Firm plan
• Focus on cost often leads to bad decisions
• Focus on schedule leads to early start
• Percent complete progress reporting
• No global focus on return on investment

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Theory of Constraints

• Measurements T, I, and OE
• Statistical fluctuations, dependent events
• Synchronize and balance flow
• Optimize globally
• Identify, Exploit, Subordinate, Elevate, Repeat
• Nelson Wood Shims

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Critical Chain

• Two-point estimates
• Project and feeder buffers (collected safety)
• Resource buffers (more feeder buffers and wake-up
  call)
• Monitor and manage buffers
• Progress report work remaining
• Use TOC on bottleneck resources
• Reduces Parkinsons, Students syndrome

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Good Luck!