Project Management

Assignment $2\_2$: Project Scheduling

Questions

Why does the scheduling function depend on the planning function? Which one must be done

first? Why?

Describe what an activity estimated duration is$.$ How is it determined?

Why might a contractor prefer to state a project completion time in terms of number of days after

the project starts rather than a specific date? Give some examples of instances when this would be

appropriate.

Describe the different types of project slack and how each is calculated. Why is it important to

determine the critical path of a project? What happens if activities on this path are delayed? What

happens if activities on this path are accelerated?

Why should a project have a regular reporting period? Should all projects have the same reporting

period?

Describe how you would apply the four steps of schedule control to a project. If the project needs

to be accelerated, what kinds of activities would be the primary focus? Why?

Calculate the ES$,$ EF$,$ LS$,$ and LF times and the slack for each activity in the figure below, and

identify the critical path for the project. Can the project be completed in $40$ weeks? Assume that

activity A actually finished at $3$ weeks, activity B actually finished at $12$ weeks, and activity C

actually finished at $13$ weeks. Recalculate the expected project completion time. Which activities

would you focus on to get the project back on schedule?

Calculate the ES$,$ EF$,$ LS$,$ and LF times and the slack for each activity in the figure below, and

identify the critical path for the project. Can the project be completed in $30$ weeks? Assume that

"Systems Analysis" actually finished at $8$ weeks. "Design Input & Output" actually finished at $15$

weeks, and "Design Database" actually fimished at $19$ weeks. Recalculate the expected project

Calculate the ES$,$ EF$,$ LS$,$ and LF times and the slack for each activity in the figure below, and

identify the critical path for the project. Can the project be completed in $40$ weeks? Assume that

activity A actually finished at $3$ weeks, activity B actually finished at $12$ weeks, and activity C

actually finished at $13$ weeks. Recalculate the expected project completion time. Which activities

would you focus on to get the project back on schedule?

Calculate the ES$,$ EF$,$ LS$,$ and LF times and the slack for each activity in the figure below, and

identify the critical path for the project. Can the project be completed in $30$ weeks? Assume that

"Systems Analysis" actually finished at $8$ weeks, "Design Input & Output" actually finished at $15$

weeks, and "Design Database" actually finished at $19$ weeks. Recalculate the expected project

completion time. Which activities would you focus on to get the project back on schedule?

Calculate the ES$,$ EF$,$ LS$,$ and LF times and the slack for each activity in the figure below, and identify the critical path for the project. Can the project be completed in $30$ weeks? Assume that activity A actually finished at $5$ weeks and activity B actually finished at $5$ weeks. Recalculate the expected project completion time. Which activities would you focus on to get the project back on schedule?

Case Study: A Not$-$for$-$Profit Medical Research Center $($The same case in the last

assignment$)$

You are Alexis, the director of external affairs for a national not$-$for$-$profit medical research center that

does research on diseases related to aging. The center's work depends on funding from multiple sources,

including the general public, individual estates, and grants from corporations, foundations, and the federal

government.

Your department prepares an annual report of the center's accomplishments and financial status for the

board of directors. It is mostly text with a few charts and tables, all black and white, with a simple cover.

It is voluminous and pretty dry reading. It is inexpensive to produce other than the effort to pull together

the content, which requires time to request and expedite information from the center's other departments.

At the last board meeting, the board members suggested the annual report be "upscaled" into a document

that could be used for marketing and promotional purposes. They want you to mail the next annual report

to the center's various stakeholders, past donors, and targeted high$-$potential future donors. The board

feels that such a document is needed to get the center $"$in the same league" with other large not$-$for$-$profit

organizations with which it feels it competes for donations and funds. The board feels that the annual

report could be used to inform these stakeholders about the advances the center is making in its research

efforts and its strong fiscal management for effectively using the funding and donations it receives.

You will need to produce a shorter, simpler, easy$-$to$-$read annual report that shows the benefits of the

center's research and the impact on people's lives. You will include pictures from various hospitals,

clinics, and long$-$term care facilities that are using the results of the center'