Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology

Mombasa CBD Campus

Project Management

Continuous Assessment Test 1 – Take Away

NAME: NANA MOHAMMED MSELLEM

REG NO: HDB212-C005-0444/2015
For a long period of time, Ferre Gola, a musical entrepreneur, has had a number of business
successes in music production and the retail sector. He is keen to move on to bigger things
and has identified an opportunity to develop a Shopping Mall in an affluent suburb of
Kinshasa. He has already secured the interest of several potential investors including a French
company named Credit Agricole; he has identified a suitable site, had an architect draw up
plans and received planning approvals from the local municipal authority of Kinshasa. Ferre
Gola is eager that construction work on the Shopping Mall should start as soon as possible.
He appointed Werrason Espirit Ngiama, who has an impressive record of managing
successful projects, to be the project manager. However, Ferre Gola is already interfering in
the management of the project and is in conflict with Werrason. He is frustrated by the time
Werrason seems to need in the planning phase, and is irritated by his insistence on
formalizing the project management process. Ferre is now putting pressure on Werrason to
miss out elements in the first stages of planning the project, and to get started on the actual
construction of the Shopping Mall.

Required:

Discuss the contribution of relevant project management tools and techniques that could help
Werrason in planning the project (15 marks).

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TECHNIQUES

The project management techniques related to the project planning phase include:

1. Describing project scope, alternatives, and feasibility. The understanding of the

content and complexity of the project. Some relevant questions that should be
answered include:
o What problem/opportunity does the project address?

o What results are to be achieved?

o What needs to be done?

o How will success be measured?

o How will we know when we are finished?

2. Divide the project into tasks. This technique is also known as the work breakdown
structure. This step is done to ensure an easy progression between tasks.
3. Estimating resources and creating a resource plan. This helps to gather and arrange
resources in the most effective manner.
4. Developing a preliminary schedule. In this step, you are to assign time estimates to
each activity in the work breakdown structure. From here, you will be able to create
the target start and end dates for the project.
5. Developing a communication plan. The idea here is to outline the communication
procedures between management, team members, and the customer.
6. Determining project standards and procedures. The specification of how various
deliverables are produced and tested by the project team.
7. Identifying and assessing risk. The goal here is to identify potential sources of risk
and the consequences of those risks.
8. Creating a preliminary budget. The budget should summarize the planned expenses
and revenues related to the project.
9. Developing a statement of work. This document will list the work to be done and the
expected outcome of the project.
10. Setting a baseline project plan. This should provide an estimate of the project's tasks
and resource requirements.

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 TOOLS

Project management is a challenging task with many complex responsibilities. Fortunately,

there are many tools available to assist with accomplishing the tasks and executing the
responsibilities. Some require a computer with supporting software, while others can be used
manually. Project managers should choose a project management tool that best suits their
management style. No one tool addresses all project management needs. Program Evaluation
Review Technique (PERT) and Gantt Charts are two of the most commonly used project
management tools and are described below. Both of these project management tools can be
produced manually or with commercially available project management software.

1) PERT

PERT is a planning and control tool used for defining and controlling the tasks necessary to
complete a project. PERT charts and Critical Path Method (CPM) charts are often used
interchangeably; the only difference is how task times are computed. Both charts display the
total project with all scheduled tasks shown in sequence. The displayed tasks show which
ones are in parallel, those tasks that can be performed at the same time. A graphic
representation called a "Project Network" or "CPM Diagram" is used to portray graphically
the interrelationships of the elements of a project and to show the order in which the activities
must be performed.

PERT planning involves the following steps:

1. Identify the specific activities and milestones. The activities are the tasks of the
project. The milestones are the events that mark the beginning and the end of one or
more activities.
2. Determine the proper sequence of activities. This step may be combined with #1
above since the activity sequence is evident for some tasks. Other tasks may require
some analysis to determine the exact order in which they should be performed.
3. Construct a network diagram. Using the activity sequence information, a network
diagram can be drawn showing the sequence of the successive and parallel activities.
Arrowed lines represent the activities and circles or "bubbles" represent milestones.
4. Estimate the time required for each activity. Weeks are a commonly used unit of time
for activity completion, but any consistent unit of time can be used. A distinguishing
feature of PERT is it's ability to deal with uncertainty in activity completion times.
For each activity, the model usually includes three time estimates:
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 o Optimistic time - the shortest time in which the activity can be completed.

o Most likely time - the completion time having the highest probability.

o Pessimistic time - the longest time that an activity may take.

From this, the expected time for each activity can be calculated using the following
weighted average:

Expected Time = (Optimistic + 4 x Most Likely + Pessimistic) / 6

This helps to bias time estimates away from the unrealistically short timescales
normally assumed.

5. Determine the critical path. The critical path is determined by adding the times for the
activities in each sequence and determining the longest path in the project. The critical
path determines the total calendar time required for the project. The amount of time
that a non-critical path activity can be delayed without delaying the project is referred
to as slack time.

If the critical path is not immediately obvious, it may be helpful to determine the
following four times for each activity:

o ES - Earliest Start time

o EF - Earliest Finish time

o LS - Latest Start time

o LF - Latest Finish time

These times are calculated using the expected time for the relevant activities. The
earliest start and finish times of each activity are determined by working forward
through the network and determining the earliest time at which an activity can start
and finish considering its predecessor activities. The latest start and finish times are
the latest times that an activity can start and finish without delaying the project. LS
and LF are found by working backward through the network. The difference in the
latest and earliest finish of each activity is that activity's slack. The critical path then
is the path through the network in which none of the activities have slack.

The variance in the project completion time can be calculated by summing the
variances in the completion times of the activities in the critical path. Given this
variance, one can calculate the probability that the project will be completed by a
certain date assuming a normal probability distribution for the critical path. The
normal distribution assumption holds if the number of activities in the path is large
enough for the central limit theorem to be applied.

6. Update the PERT chart as the project progresses. As the project unfolds, the estimated
times can be replaced with actual times. In cases where there are delays, additional
resources may be needed to stay on schedule and the PERT chart may be modified to
reflect the new situation. An example of a PERT chart is provided below:
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Benefits to using a PERT chart or the Critical Path Method include:

 Improved planning and scheduling of activities.

 Improved forecasting of resource requirements.
 Identification of repetitive planning patterns which can be followed in other projects,
thus simplifying the planning process.
 Ability to see and thus reschedule activities to reflect interproject dependencies and
resource limitations following know priority rules.
 It also provides the following: expected project completion time, probability of
completion before a specified date, the critical path activities that impact completion
time, the activities that have slack time and that can lend resources to critical path
activities, and activity start and end dates.

2) GRANTT CHARTS

Gantt charts are used to show calendar time task assignments in days, weeks or months. The
tool uses graphic representations to show start, elapsed, and completion times of each task
within a project. Gantt charts are ideal for tracking progress. The number of days actually
required to complete a task that reaches a milestone can be compared with the planned or
estimated number. The actual workdays, from actual start to actual finish, are plotted below
the scheduled days. This information helps target potential timeline slippage or failure points.
These charts serve as a valuable budgeting tool and can show dollars allocated versus dollars
spent.

To draw up a Gantt chart, follow these steps:

1. List all activities in the plan. For each task, show the earliest start date, estimated
length of time it will take, and whether it is parallel or sequential. If tasks are
sequential, show which stages they depend on.
2. Head up graph paper with the days or weeks through completion.
3. Plot tasks onto graph paper. Show each task starting on the earliest possible date.
Draw it as a bar, with the length of the bar being the length of the task. Above the task
bars, mark the time taken to complete them.
4. Schedule activities. Schedule them in such a way that sequential actions are carried
out in the required sequence. Ensure that dependent activities do not start until the

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 activities they depend on have been completed. Where possible, schedule parallel
tasks so that they do not interfere with sequential actions on the critical path. While
scheduling, ensure that you make best use of the resources you have available, and do
not over-commit resources. Also, allow some slack time in the schedule for holdups,
overruns, failures, etc.
5. Presenting the analysis. In the final version of your Gantt chart, combine your draft
analysis (#3 above) with your scheduling and analysis of resources (#4 above). This
chart will show when you anticipate that jobs should start and finish. An example of a
Gantt chart is provided below:

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Benefits of using a Gantt chart include:

 Gives an easy to understand visual display of the scheduled time of a task or activity.
 Makes it easy to develop "what if" scenarios.
 Enables better project control by promoting clearer communication.
 Becomes a tool for negotiations.
 Shows the actual progress against the planned schedule.
 Can report results at appropriate levels.
 Allows comparison of multiple projects to determine risk or resource allocation.
 Rewards the project manager with more visibility and control over the project.

OTHER TOOLS ARE:

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Product Breakdown Structure (PBS)

In project management, a Product Breakdown Structure (PBS) is an exhaustive, hierarchical

tree structure of components that make up a project deliverable, arranged in whole-part
relationship. A PBS can help clarify what is to be delivered by the project and can contribute
to building a work breakdown structure.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

A Work Breakdown Structure is a hierarchical decomposition of the deliverables needed to

complete a project. It breaks the deliverables down into manageable work packages that can
be scheduled, costed and have people assigned to them. A Work Breakdown Structure is a
standard project management tool and the basis for much project planning.

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Hartman, Francis; Ashrafi, Rafi A. "Project Management in the Information Systems

and Information Technologies Industries." Project Management Journal. Sep 2002.
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