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The Five Secrets of Project Scheduling
A PMO Approach
Michelle Colodzin
PMP, PMI-SP, MCTS, MS Project Black Belt
MetaVista Consulting Group
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Introduction
What is a good project schedule?
A good project schedule is one that accurately models the work of theproject, encapsulates the full scope and nothing extra and whichmaintains a consistent and appropriate level of detail
How is a good schedule built and maintained? The Five Secrets of Project Scheduling provide a framework and
methodology for consistently producing and maintaining good projectschedules
How can a good schedule improve project performance? A good schedule can provide advanced warning of possible schedule
slippage, resource issues, cost overruns and general project risksgiving the project manager time to avoid or mitigate potential problems
What is the role of the PMO in developing and maintaining goodproject schedules? The PMO can develop, champion and support good scheduling
practices, provide templates, train schedulers and project managers andperform project and portfolio analysis on an organization-wide basis
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The Five Secrets of Project Scheduling
The Five Secrets of Project Scheduling are five factors(or secrets) that when used together will help project
managers and project schedulers consistently produce
and maintain good project schedules
These secrets are not new concepts - they provide a
context, framework and methodology, which when
followed consistently, result in better project schedules
that are easier to maintain and analyze
Taking full advantage of these secrets requires a
centralized group such as a PMO - overseeing and
enforcing their use throughout the organization
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The Five Secrets of Project Scheduling
1. Create deliverables-based project schedules
2. Determine the appropriate level of detail
3. Implement a regular status update and reportingprocess
4. Review and adjust the schedule regularly
5. Create and follow project scheduling standards
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Secret # 1
Create Deliverables-based Project Schedules
Deliverables vs. Activities Deliverables are products produced by a project all
projects have deliverables
Deliverables are tangible: documentation, physical computer
hardware, application accessible by users, etc.
Activities are performed by team members in order to
create a deliverable
Activities consist of one or more tasks: gather system
requirements, install hardware, install software, test systemaccess and features
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Secret # 2
Determine the Appropriate Level of Detail
The best project schedules are those which contain all ofthe required information and nothing more
There must be sufficient detail to accurately track and manage theprojects activities and deliverables
There must not be so much detail that the schedule becomesunmanageable
Since each project is unique there is no single level ofdetail that is appropriate for all projects or projectschedules
The level of detail required for a particular project must bedefined prior to the start of scheduling and followedconsistently throughout the life of the project
S #
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Secret # 3
Implement a Regular Schedule Status Update and
Reporting Process
A project schedule must be updated regularly to ensure
ongoing integrity and to enable monitoring of project
progress
The project scheduler is responsible for determining how
to gather task status information, how often the information
will be collected and the method for collecting and
validating the information
The first step in developing a regular update and reporting
process is to work with the project manager and key
stakeholders to determine the reporting requirements and
expectations
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Secret # 4
Review and Adjust the Schedule Regularly
A good project schedule must not be static - it must reflectactual changes occurring on the project
All projects experience unexpected events successfulprojects have a process for incorporating these events into
the project schedule
All projects should establish and follow a schedule changecontrol process
For smaller projects, this may be informal and occur on an as-needed basis
For larger projects, this must be formal and occur regularly
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Secret # 5
Create and Follow Scheduling Standards
The use of scheduling standards can significantly reduce
the time required and eliminate some of the complexity
involved in developing a realistic and maintainable project
schedule.
Scheduling standards help ensure consistency when
schedules are created by multiple schedulers and/or
project managers.
Scheduling standards provide the PMO with objective
measures to evaluate, monitor and provide feedback on
specific schedules and scheduling practices
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What Are Scheduling Standards?
Scheduling standards are specific guidelines forcreating and maintaining project schedules within asingle or multiple related organizations
Scheduling standards are created or adopted by anorganization (such as a PMO) which thenchampions, supports and monitors their use withinthe project schedules developed for projects undertheir sphere of influence or control.
It is a good practice to base specific schedulingstandards on an industry-accepted documents suchas the PMICOS standard and/or industry-acceptedbest practices.
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Why Follow Scheduling Standards?
They contribute to the development of realisticand manageable project schedules
They help ensure consistency in the structure
and level of detail across project schedules
They help ensure that the information reported is
more easily compared and leveraged
They help ensure consistency in schedule-
related processes (such as reporting and
change control)
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The Role of the PMO in Project
Scheduling The PMO can by a key enabler of good project scheduling the
more active and widespread the influence of the PMO the betterthe results from a centralized approach to scheduling
Key PMO Responsibilities related to scheduling:
Define, document and enforce scheduling standards Define, document and enforce schedule-related processes
Length of reporting cycle
Triggers and/or time interval for reviewing and updating schedules
Specific reports to be submitted to the PMO
Develop and distribute tools and templates whenever possible
Train project managers in scheduling practices and tools
If possible, centralize scheduling services within the PMO and providescheduling resources to projects
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The Benefits of an Active PMO in
Project Scheduling The PMO can by a key enabler of good project
scheduling practices the more active and widespreadthe influence of the PMO the more likely projectperformance and success rates will improve throughoutthe organization
Use of standard practices, tools and templates reducesthe time required to create and maintain projectschedules
Standard processes help facilitate the ongoing captureand application of lessons learned across theorganization
Standard report formats and content enable faster andmore accurate comparison of status and issues acrossmultiple projects this is vital for organizations doingportfolio management
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Using the Five Secrets for the First Time
When implementing these secrets for the first time: start small and focus on the strengths of the
organization
Develop a small set of scheduling standards,
simple processes, tools and templates
Capture lessons learned and build a repository
where schedulers and project managers can:
document and share their experiences and knowledge Store and retrieve schedules which worked well in
similar situations
build and share new processes, tools and templates
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Conclusion
These secrets are not new concepts however, many
organizations overlook or downplay their importance
Using the five secrets requires discipline and consistency
this can best be provided through a PMO
Developing, championing and managing scheduling
processes through a PMO:
accelerates organizational learning improves schedule quality
improves the likelihood of project success throughout an
organization
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For further information contact
Michelle Colodzin via e-mail or phone