1)What formula can a project manager use to estimate task duration? Provide an example

1)What formula can a project manager use to estimate task duration? Provide an example.

2. What is a common problem in calculating start and finish times? Provide an example.

3. Why is the critical path important? Why would a task be on the critical path?

4. Why is it important to deliver effective project reports and communications?

5. What is risk management, and why is it important? Provide an example.

Discussion Topics

1. In Poor Richard’s Almanac, Benjamin Franklin penned the familiar lines: “For the want of a nail the shoe was lost, for the want of a shoe the horse was lost, for the want of a horse the rider was lost, for the want of a rider the battle was lost, for the want of a battle the kingdom was lost—and all for the want of a horseshoe nail.” Looking at the outcome in hindsight, could project management concepts have avoided the loss of the kingdom? How?

2. Microsoft Project is powerful, but quite expensive. As a manager, how would you justify the purchase of this software?

3. Suppose you want to manage a small project, but you don’t have access to project management software. Could you use a spreadsheet or database program instead? How?

4. Some managers believe that they have “seat of the pants” intuition and don’t need project management tools. Does that make sense to you? Why or why not?

Forest point Construction

At Forest Point Construction, your boss says that he can estimate the total project time based on his personal experience. You are trying to convince him that he should use project management techniques to handle a complex project. To prove your point, you decide to use a simple example of a commercial steel building construction project, with eight steps. You create a hypothetical work breakdown structure, as follows: • Prepare the site (3 days), and then set the building footers (3 days). • Finish the foundation (5 days), and then assemble the building (3 days). • When the building is assembled, start two tasks at once: finish the interior work (5 days) and set up an appointment for the final building inspection (15 days). • When the interior work is done, start two more tasks at once: landscaping (7 days) and driveway paving (3 days). • When the landscaping and driveway are done, do the painting (2 days). • Finally, when the painting is done and the final inspection has occurred, arrange the sale (2 days). Now you ask your boss to review the tasks, estimate the total time, and write the answer on a piece of paper. You look at the paper and see that his guess is wrong.

Tasks

1. What is the correct total time?

2. What is the critical path?

3. Create a Gantt chart that shows the WBS.

4. Create a PERT/CPM chart.