Project Management Basics

Identifying and Defining

Project Activities

Identifying and Defining ActivitiesFiguring out what your time will be spent doing…

When assigned a project, a rookie will make the mistake of jumping into the actual work, before all of the work has been laid out.

Instead of rushing to actually start working on tasks, identifying as many tasks as possible ahead of time is a critical step.

The list of activities will end up forming the basis for your project schedule.

Would you build a house without a blueprint or plan?

Would you bake a cake without a recipe?

Project Management Context

Activity definition is the process of converting major categories of work (as laid out in the Scope Statement and Work Breakdown Structure) into smaller, measurable activities and subtasks, so each activity can be resourced and scheduled. This step moves the project forward from scope planning to time management planning.

Project Create 5-Year Strategic Plan

Major Category I Assess Organizational Performance

Major Category II Conduct Staff Retreat

Activity I Identify Retreat Goals

Activity II Target Participants

Activity III Schedule Retreat

Activity … Develop Agenda

Activity … Invite Participants

Major Category … Conduct Market Analysis

Work Breakdown Structure

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Learning objective

• Learning objective: as a result of this module you should be able to produce an accurate outline of the work that needs to be done including specific activities, the time and resources needed, and the milestones for progress, such that this information can be compiled into the project schedule.

• Topics– Activity Definition – Activity Attributes– Milestones– Activity Sequencing– Dependencies and Relationships – Activity Resource Allocations– Activity Duration– Schedule Development

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Module ActivitiesCourse Plan (revise this…)• This video is intended to be used prior to the in-class session.

• Students will identify the activities, their duration, sequence and resource requirements• Students will contribute their content to the group wiki space • Students will review the class wiki and examine their classmate’s activities, paying particular attention to the

specificity of activities and the estimated durations • Students will indicate whether they agree or disagree with classmates’ duration estimates, and will take note of

vague activities • Students will identify what questions they would need answers to, in order to determine if the estimated duration is

accurate.• Students will post these reflections in the wiki.

• In class, students will work in groups to discuss the process of defining activities, attributes, duration and resources.

– To identify relevant background information and assumptions that should be considered when defining activities, students will develop a list of questions that they need answers to in order to accurately define the activities (duration, resources, sequence). A group member will take notes and submit this list to the wiki.

– Students will make recommendations on how activity definitions could be improved.• Working independently, students will re-evaluate the activities they identified for their own

project. To assess and apply what they have learned about durations, dependencies, resources and sequencing, they will improve the activity definitions and submit these to the wiki.

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Survey

• Questions pending…

• What do you know?

• What do you do now?

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Applying the triple constraint

• Scope—work is identified in the work breakdown structure (WBS) and is then dissected into specific activities

• Time—time to complete each activity is estimated and incorporated into the schedule

• Budget—required resources for each activity are accounted for

Activity Definition is an essential component of staying within scope,on time and on budget.

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Defining Activity Attributes

• Dissect major categories of work into their tasks and subtasks

• Add sufficient details, so expectations are clear– Name: description, details

• Quantify and Qualify • Example Activity: “produce study report”

… what does this mean to you? “Summarize available information into 1 pg study report” vs. “Report findings from research study in 50 page document”

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Measure progress with Milestones• The accomplishment of certain activities or the

culmination of several completed activities is often marked as a milestone.

• A milestone is a significant accomplishment in the project which is achieved as a result of one or more critical activities.

• Usually milestones mark turning points in the project’s progress. Milestones are important for reporting progress, particularly on long-range projects.

• Milestones are also important for providing reasons to celebrate accomplishments, motivating the team and keeping up morale.Previous Next

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Example activity list

• The following activities are part of the work of “Conduct Staff Retreat” and part of the project “Develop 5-Year Strategic Plan.”

• Other work associated with the

project includes “Conduct SWOT Analysis” “Review Market Analysis,” “Set Goals,” “Seek Board Approval” and so on.

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Activity List: Conduct Staff Retreat

1. Schedule Date and Times

1. Send Staff Memo

1. Reserve Conference Room

1. Recognize Staff Accomplishments

1. Assign Facilitators

1. Develop Agenda

1. Order Catering

1. Welcome Attendees

1. And others…

1. And others…

Activity list revised

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Activity List: Conduct Staff Retreat

1.Schedule Date and Times

1.Send Staff Memo

1.Reserve Conference Room

1.Recognize Staff Accomplishments

1.Assign Facilitators

1.Develop Agenda

1.Order Catering

1.Welcome Attendees

1.And others…

1.And others…

• What’s wrong with this list? – Does it define activities in quantity and

quality terms?

• Improved activity definitions:– “Send Staff Memo to all VPs, Directors,

Managers and Supervisors”– “Schedule two full days in March” – “Reserve Conference Room at Hilton

Hotel, to accommodate 100 people”

• Don’t forget Milestones– “Finalize Date, Location and Room

Reservation”– “Finalize Agenda and Speakers”

Your turn

• Take a moment to identify one element of work that is part of a project you are currently, or were previously, working on.

• For the sake of this exercise, choose a relatively small chunk of work.

• It does not need to be a project related to your job, it could be something you do on a volunteer basis, part of a hobby, or work in your home.

Enter Category of Work:__________Enter Activities:__________• Do all your activities have an appropriate level of parameters to

define them?• Make special notes if certain things need to be before the activity. • Great work! We’ll store this list for later.

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Activity Sequencing

• To put activities in a logical sequence, there must be an understanding of the relationships and dependencies between the activities.

• Mandatory dependencies: inherent in the nature of the work. Ie. You could not proofread a document until it is written.

• Discretionary dependencies: good practice suggests a logical sequence. Ie. A product won’t be available until sufficient tests are completed.

• External dependencies: activities that impact the project, but are derived outside of the project’s work. Ie.Delivery of inventory or publication of a news article.

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Resource Estimating

• Who’s doing the work?– It is just you, or will others be able to

help you?– Outsourcing?– Delegating?– Teamwork?

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Other resource needs

• Resources are more than people

– equipment– software – supplies

• Don’t forget about the financial costs

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Resource Considerations• Is there a specific skills set needed for these activities?

• Does the organization have experience with this sort of activity, or is it new?

• Are there any organizational policies that govern how resources can be used?

• If external resources are needed, what are the procurement guidelines?

• When using personnel from other departments, find out to what extent they are available to work on the project.

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example

• What are the resources needed for the work “Conduct Staff Retreat?” – Site– Catering– Keynote speaker– Facilitators– Participants– Event planner– Handouts– Multimedia presentation

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Your turn

• Define resources that will be needed for your project– Recall work category and activities– Enter resources for each

– Also take this time to place your activities in consecutive order. (Note: some activities may happen concurrently.)

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Activity duration• In addition to considering the actual work hours to complete the

activity, consider how much time will elapse before it can come up in someone’s queue and how much wait-time in between steps is needed.

• Ways to estimate duration:– Past records, simulations, duration of similar

activities, approximating, asking SMEs

• Three-point estimate:– Optimistic

– Most likely **

– Pessimistic

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Other considerations for time

• Environmental factors• Operational processes• Concurrent activities• Overdrawn resources

• Accuracy of time estimates on previous activities can be an indicator of accuracy of future activities. If estimates are off—make mid-stream adjustments.

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Your turn

• Fill in the estimated time for your activities

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Activity Duration in Days

Summary

• Activity Definition

• Activity Attributes

• Milestones

• Activity Sequencing

• Dependencies and Relationships

• Activity Resource Allocations

• Activity DurationPrevious Next

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Quiz

Quiz questions• What planning resource are activities derived from?• What is the relationship between the project scope and the

activities?• Why are milestones important?• What types of characteristics of activities should be captured?• Identify three types of dependencies:• Identify three types of resources:• What is the appropriate rule of thumb for estimating duration?• Identify 3 factors you should consider when estimating duration?

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What’s next??

• After you’ve successfully defined activities—including their attributes, sequence, resources and duration—you’re ready to assemble this into your project schedule.

• Congratulations, you’re ready to move on to Project Scheduling in the next module!

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