Software Project Management

Session 6: MS-Project Intro & Mid-term Exam Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 1

Today

• WBS Homework Review • Brief introduction to MS-Project • Exam Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 2

WBS Review

• For process approaches – It sometimes appears that you think requirements = analysis = design – Or that doing a few diagrams (ERD, DFD) = requirements • Consistency – Consistent use of verb+noun descriptions of activities • Language – Inclusion of some phases but missing others • Some at beginning, some at end • Use of a spell checker (spelling counts in project plans too) 3 Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002

WBS Review

• Disappearing ‘plot lines’ – Like designing a network or choosing hardware but never implementing • Consistency across phases – If ‘Development’ includes four major modules, typically ‘Design’ should reflect those same four • If using a ‘process’ model, then there should be a visible ‘flow’ to the process – Not like this: Systems Engineering, Hardware & Software, Project Management, Test, Training, Site Implementation Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 4

WBS Review

• Some MS-Project plans had all 1 day assignments, • That's good for this point of process • This is prior to estimation • Tone & Content – Some are very “generic” • Tell me nothing about your system • Not enough to say 'requirements, analysis, design, etc, done’ Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 5

WBS Review

• Some activities overly general 'Control Project‘ • Forget things at equal level like ‘architecture design’ • Think all activities through • Aim for a consistent level of detail • Know the basic order of things: testing doesn’t occur before development – Other details: QA is not part of ‘Rollout’ • I am lenient now but will be less so going forward Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 6

MS-Project

• Mid-market leader • Has approx. 50% overall market share • 70-80% MS-Project users never used automated project tracking prior (a “first” tool) • Not a mid/high-end tool for EPM (Enterprise Project Mgmt.) Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 7

Project Pros

• Easy outlining of tasks • Resource management • Accuracy: baseline vs. actual; various calculations • Easy charting and graphics • Cost management • Capture historical data Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 8

Project Cons

• Illusion of control • Workgroup features ok, still in-progress • Scaling • No estimation features • Remember: – Being a MS-Project expert does not make you an expert project manager!

– No more so than knowing MS-Word makes you a good writer.

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The MS-Project Process

• Move WBS into a Project outline (in Task Sheet) • Add resources (team members or roles) • Add costs for resources • Assign resources to tasks • Establish dependencies • Refine and optimize • Create baseline • Track progress (enter actuals, etc.) Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 10

Project Overview

• This is a ‘quickie’ overview • We will return to all of these steps individually over the next few weeks • Sample project from McConnell Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 11

Project UI

• Views – Default is Gant Chart View • 2 panes • Task Sheet on left (a table) • Gantt Chart on right – View Bar on far left Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 12

Outline Buttons Indicators Enter Tasks Here View Bar Task Sheet

Project UI

(Un)Link Buttons Toolbars

Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002

Timescale Gantt Chart Task Bars Milestone Split Bar

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Create Your Project

• File/New • Setup start date • Setup calendar – Menu: Project/Project Information – Often left with default settings – Hours, holidays Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 14

Enter WBS

• Outlining • Sub-tasks and summary tasks • Do not enter start/end dates for each • Just start with Task Name and Duration for each • Use Indent/Outdent buttons to define summary tasks and subtasks • You can enter specific Start/End dates but don’t most of the time Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 15

Establish Durations

• Know the abbreviations – h/d/w/m – D is default • Can use partial – .5d is a half-day task • Elapsed durations • Estimated durations – Put a ‘?’ after duration Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 16

Add Resources

• Work Resources – People • Material Resources – Things – Can be used to track costs • Ex: amount of equipment purshased – Not used as often in typical software project Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 17

Resource Sheet

• Can add new resources here – Or directly in the task entry sheet • Beware of mis-spellings (Project will create near-duplicates) • Setup costs – Such as annual salary (put ‘yr’ after ‘Std. Rate’) Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 18

Effort-Driven Scheduling

• MS-Project default • Duration * Units = Work • Duration = Work / Units (D = W/U) • Work = Duration * Units (W = D*U) • Units = Work / Duration (U = W/D) • Adding more resources to a task shortens duration • Can be changed on a per-task basis • In the advanced tab of Task Information dialog box • Task Type setting • Beware the Mythical Man-month • Good for laying bricks, not always so for software development Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 19

Link Tasks

• On toolbar: Link & Unlink buttons – Good for many at once • Or via Gantt chart – Drag from one task to another Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 20

Milestones

• Zero duration tasks • Insert task ‘normally’ but put 0 in duration Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 21

Make Assignments

• Approach 1. Using Task Sheet – Using Resource Names column – You can create new ones by just typing-in here • 2. Using Assign Resources dialog box – Good for multiple resources – Highlight task, Tools/Resources or toolbar button • 3. Using Task Information dialog – Resources tab • 4. Task Entry view – View/More Views/Task Entry – Or Task Entry view on Resource Mgmt. toolbar Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 22

Save Baseline

• Saves all current information about your project – Dates, resource assignments, durations, costs Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 23

Fine Tune

• Then is used later as basis for comparing against “actuals” • Menu: Tools/Tracking/Save Baseline Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 24

Project 2002

• 3 Editions: Standard, Professional, Server • MS Project Server 2002 • Upgrade of old “Project Central” • Includes “Project Web Access”, web-based UI (partial) • Workgroup and resource notification features • Requires SQL-Server and IIS • “Portfolio Analyzer” – Drill-down into projects via pivot tables & charts • “Portfolio Modeler” – Create models and “what-if” scenarios • SharePoint Team Services integration Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 25

Project 2002

• MS-Project Professional – “Build Team” feature • Skills-based resource matching – Resource Pools: with skill set tracking – Resource Substitution Wizard • “Project Guide” feature – Customizable “process component” Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 26

Homework

• McConnell: 5 “Risk Management”, 14 “Feature-Set Control” • Schwalbe: 10, “Project Risk Management”, Appendix A “Guide to Using Microsoft Project 2000” (447-477) • Install MS-Project if you haven’t done so already 27 Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002

Questions?

Q7503, Principles of Project Management, Fall 2002 28