UNIT 3

1. List the objectives (advantages) of activity planning?

1. Clarity amongst the project team with respect to ‘who is doing what activity and when’.
2. Measurement of achievement/milestone of the project.
3. Reserve appropriate resources during the exact time when required (this would ensure for
common resources to plan their time across various projects).
4. Parallel activities can be identified and executed, saving the precious time of the project.
5. Project budget can be calculated.
6. Daily monitoring and management of the project is possible and whenever any major
deviation occurs or expected, we can rework out the project plan.
7. Critical activities can be identified and monitored. Series of such critical activities lead to
‘critical path’ of the project. Critical path determines the minimum time required to complete
the project.
2. What are the benefits of project schedule?
The various benefits of project schedule are
a) Gives total project duration
b) Big picture emerges about the project
c) Investors (sponsors of the project), customers, project manager and project team
gets full idea about the project.
3. Define –scheduling.
Scheduling is the process of deciding how to commit resources between a variety of
possible tasks and the determination of time for every task. All activities in a project, their
relationship, time and resources required to carry out them is called ‘Schedule’. Scheduling
gives the time and cost estimate of a project.
4. What is WBS?
A Work Breakdown Structure or WBS is a list of all micro tasks needed to be
executed in a project. A WBS tree-like structure that permits summing of subordinate cost for
tasks, materials, etc., into their successively higher level “Parent” tasks, materials etc. It is
instead a comprehensive classification of project scope.
5. What are the 2 approaches in building a WBS? When each approach to be used?
Top down Approach - When all the tasks and their relationship in a project are very well
known from the beginning.
Bottom up Approach – When a new project is taken and the tasks and their relationships are
not known.

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6. What are the major steps to follow in building on WBS?
1. Identify all the items which might impact the software deliverable
2. Find any higher system WBS
3. Determine software WBS architecture
4. Populate the software WBS
5. Determine cost
7. How does a WBS help a project manager prepare reliable estimates?
A work breakdown structure is a hierarchical list or diagram representing all the
activities that must be completed in order to finish the project. It is the foundation from which
all baseline plans are built. The WBS helps the project manager identify all of the work
required, at a detailed level. Without the WBS, you cannot get reliable estimates because you
may not have all the parts of the project defined.
8. Distinguish between Task and Activity.
Task is the lowest possible effort in a project. Task is an element of work . Task is not
included in the Software Project Management Plan (SPMP).
Activity can be considered as a group of task. Activity is included in the SPMP. When
a set of tasks are executed, the activity gets completed.

Task1

Task2

Task1
Relationship between task and activity
9. How are project schedule represented?
 Table (e.g. MS Excel spread sheet)
 Gantt chart(e.g. MS Project)
 Network diagram (Activity on Node or Activity on Arrow)
10. When will you use a Gantt chart?
 When scheduling and monitoring tasks within a project.
 When communicating plans or status of a project.
 When the steps of the project or process, their sequence and their duration are known.
 When it is necessary to show which tasks depend on completion of previous tasks

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11. List the various forms of network diagram.
 GERT – Graphical Evaluation and Review Technique
 PERT – Program Evaluation and Review Technique
 CPM – Critical Path Method
 PDM – Precedence Diagramming Method
 ADM – Arrow Diagramming Method
12. List the analysis techniques based network models.
 GERT – Graphical Evaluation and Review Technique
 PERT – Program Evaluation and Review Technique
 CPM – Critical Path Method
13. List the diagrammatic techniques based network models.
 PDM – Precedence Diagramming Method
 ADM – Arrow Diagramming Method
14. How a network diagram can be represented?
(0, 20) Earliest start, Earliest finish
Node id A
20
Time remaining Node

(20, 40) Latest start, Latest finish

Activity on Node

Arrow id Earliest start, Earliest finish

A (0, 20)
20 (20, 40)

Time remaining Latest start, Latest finish

Activity on Arrow

15. What are the information, you get from a network diagram’s base component?
A network diagram’s based component could be a node or an arrow (based on whether we
used AON or AOA network). In both , the information we get are

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  Activity or Node identity()
 Earliest finish
 Latest start
 Latest finish
 Duration
16. Explain a ‘loop’ in network diagram.
Network diagram may not contain loops.

Code Test Delivery

Correct Debug

Loop in a network diagram

Logically, the above loop may be fine with respect to functionality. But a network diagram, a
loop, violates the basic rules i.e. no start node, no end node, testing cannot start until error are
corrected, time does not move forward.
17. Explain a ‘Dangling Activity’ in a network diagram.
No dangling activity to be present.
See the figure bellow

Design Code Test Delivery

Write
‘User manual’

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Example of ‘Dangling’
Here, the ‘Write user manual’ and ‘Deliver’, both look like end nodes, which is against the
basic rule (there should be only one end node). But we know that ‘Deliver’ is the end node,
so ‘Write user manual’ is a dangling activity. The above situation can be corrected as below.

Design Code Test Delivery Sign off

Write
‘User manual’

Addition of an activity to avoid dangling

Here the end activity is ‘Sign off’ from customer. Also preceding activities to ‘Deliver’ are
both ‘Test’ and ‘Write user manual’. I.e. delivery can be made only after complete testing and
when the user manual is ready.
18. What is a ‘dependency’ in a network diagram?
Dependencies are any relationship connection between two activities that may impact
the scheduling of the project.
19. List the various dependencies in a network diagram?
 External dependency
 Internal dependency
 Resource driven dependency
 Activity driven dependency
20. Describe ‘External dependency’ in a project?
 If the project A, Which is on hand, depends on the work product from other project B
(on which we have no control), the project A is said to be externally dependant on
project B.
 Other type of external dependency is ‘Stakeholders’. The, sponsor, customer, user,
project team, functional managers, suppliers are all stake holders in a project. Any
stake holder can impede the project progress, by putting spokes. So, project team will
have people to handle them carefully so that ‘surprises’ will not be encountered in a
project.
 Suppliers, as external dependency, need a special mention. Any hardware, special
software or an utility may stop or slow down the project as we have no control over
this type of dependency.

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 21. Describe ‘Resource driven dependency’?
If an activity in a project gets halted due to the non availability of resources, then
they are considered as dependent on resources
For example a database engineer is not ready for the project for databases design.
OR an automatic testing tool is not ready when the coding is completed. OR project
consultant, on hour, is not available during working hours for discussions.
22. List the four activity driven dependencies?
o Finish to Start (F-S)
o Start to Start(S-S)
o Finish to Finish (F-F)
o Start to Finish (S-F).
23. Explain F-S dependency in a project schedule?
FS

Activity A Activity B

Only when activity A completes, the activity ‘B’ can start. The first occurrence must be
activity A finishing. Then the second occurrence is activity B starting.
For example, coding must be finished before testing starts. Modules of
software must be finished before the integration starts.
24. Explain S-S dependency in a project schedule?

Activity A

Activity B

Here the activity ‘B’ starts when activity ‘A’ starts. For example writing requirement
specifications can start simultaneously with writing testing plans
25. Explain F-F dependency with an example?
Activity B cannot be finished until activity A is defined.
For example, requirement study phase is not completed until the SRS is
signed off.
Activity A

Activity B

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26. Describe ‘Hard dependency’ with example.
In some cases the relationship is like hard wired. It is physically impossible to start
activity B before activity A is completed.
For example we cannot compile a code without completing the ‘writing of the code’. This
kind of relationship is ‘sequential’ in nature.
27. Describe soft dependency.
Parallel activities are called ‘soft dependency’.
28. What parameters are considered while allocating human resource to a project?
 Skill level
 Knowledge competency
 Experience level
 Salary
 Available requirements
 Personal traits
29. List some of the non human resources.
 Servers
 Client PCs
 Other computer peripherals
 Network components
 Operating system
 Utility software
 Software needed for application development
30. How activity sequencing is done?
A project has so many activities. Some are independent activities and some depend on the
previous activities, in part or in full. When two activities are totally independent of each
other, then they are carried out in parallel. When two activities are having dependency on
previous activity, then they are sequenced one after other, either partially or fully depending
on the dependencies.
31. What is the difference between PERT and CPM estimates? How is PERT/CPM
technique useful.
In PERT, estimates are captures and an weighted average is calculated. Whereas in CPM,
only one estimate is used.

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 PERT and CPM charts are visualization tools used by project managers to control and
administer the tasks in project.
32. How is estimation done in PERT method?
In PERT method,
 Time estimate is based on ‘beta’ probability distribution.
 3 estimates are captured
o Optimistic
o Most likely
o Pessimistic
 Since we are using only 3 estimates, the beta distribution becomes triangle.
33. Explain the salient features of critical path method.
 CPM uses one estimate for activities resulting in fixed length activity bar.
 Most project management software use CPM only.