Course Title: Manage project time
Part B: Course Detail
Teaching Period: Term2 2023
Course Code: BUSM6654C
Course Title: Manage project time
Important Information:
Please note that this course may have compulsory in-person attendance requirements for some teaching activities.
To participate in any RMIT course in-person activities or assessment, you will need to comply with RMIT vaccination requirements which are applicable during the duration of the course. This RMIT requirement includes being vaccinated against COVID-19 or holding a valid medical exemption.
Please read this RMIT Enrolment Procedure as it has important information regarding COVID vaccination and your study at RMIT: https://policies.rmit.edu.au/document/view.php?id=209.
Please read the Student website for additional requirements of in-person attendance: https://www.rmit.edu.au/covid/coming-to-campus
Please check your Canvas course shell closer to when the course starts to see if this course requires mandatory in-person attendance. The delivery method of the course might have to change quickly in response to changes in the local state/national directive regarding in-person course attendance.
School: 525T Business & Enterprise
Campus: City Campus
Program: C5405 - Diploma of Project Management
Course Contact: Nick Reynolds
Course Contact Phone: +61399250791
Course Contact Email: nick.reynolds@rmit.edu.au
Name and Contact Details of All Other Relevant Staff
Sukant Arora
sukant.arora@rmit.edu.au
Nominal Hours: 40
Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.
Pre-requisites and Co-requisites
None
Course Description
In this course you will learn the skills and knowledge required to manage time during projects.
National Codes, Titles, Elements and Performance Criteria
National Element Code & Title: |
BSBPMG531 Manage project time |
Element: |
1. Determine project schedule |
Performance Criteria: |
1.1 Develop work breakdown structure with sufficient detail to enable effective planning and control 1.2 Estimate duration and effort, sequence and dependencies of tasks, to achieve project deliverables 1.3 Use project scheduling tools and techniques to identify schedule impact on project time management, resource requirements, costs and risks 1.4 Contribute to achieving an agreed schedule baseline and communication of the schedule to stakeholders |
Element: |
2. Implement project schedule |
Performance Criteria: |
2.1 Implement mechanisms to measure, record and report progress of activities according to agreed schedule 2.2 Conduct ongoing analysis to identify baseline variance 2.3 Analyse and forecast impact of changes to the schedule 2.4 Review progress throughout project life cycle and implement agreed schedule changes 2.5 Develop responses to potential or actual schedule changes and implement them to maintain project objectives |
Element: |
3. Assess time management outcomes |
Performance Criteria: |
3.1 Review schedule performance records to determine effectiveness of time management activities 3.2 Identify and document time management issues and recommend improvements |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this course you will have developed and applied the skills and knowledge required to demonstrate competency in the above elements.
Details of Learning Activities
The objectives of this course are to develop the foundational of skills and knowledge required to manage time during projects. It involves determining and implementing the project schedule and assessing time management outcomes.
You will also explore how different methods and how it applies to individuals responsible for managing and leading a project in an organisation, business, or as a consultant.
The main elements of this course include:
- Determine project schedule
- Implement project schedule
- Assess time management outcomes
Teaching Schedule
| Week 1 | 10 July 2023 |
Introduction to the course
Determine project schedule
|
|
| Week 2 | 17 July 2023 |
Determine project schedule
|
AT1A Due (Saturday 11:59 PM) |
| Week 3 | 24 July 2023 |
Determine project schedule
|
AT1B Due (Saturday 11:59 PM) |
| Week 4 | 31 July 2023 |
Implement project schedule
|
AT2A Due (Saturday 11:59 PM) |
| Week 5 | 7 Aug 2023 |
Implement project schedule
|
AT2B Due (Saturday 11:59 PM) |
| Week 6 | 14 Aug 2023 |
Assess time management outcomes
|
AT3A & AT3B Due (Saturday 11:59 PM) |
| Week 7 | 21 Aug 2023 |
Determine project schedule
|
AT4 Due (Saturday 11:59 PM) |
|
Mid-Semester Break 28 August - 3 September | |||
| Weeks 8 | 4 Sep 2023 | Assessment resubmissions |
Resubmissions (Saturday 11:59 PM) |
Learning Resources
Prescribed Texts
References
Other Resources
None
Overview of Assessment
Assessment for this course is ongoing throughout the semester. Your knowledge and understanding of course content is assessed through participation in class exercises, oral/written presentations and through the application of learned skills and insights. Full assessment briefs will be provided and can be found on CANVAS.
Assessment Tasks
Assessment 1A
As project manager (Tina Hughes, Sales and Marketing Manager) for the Expansion of Marino Enterprises Project Stage 2 you are required to review information received about the project and determine the project schedule. The schedule is to be prepared using suitable word processing, spreadsheet or project software.
To prepare the schedule for the project you are to undertake the following. You might not do the tasks in the same order, but you must provide a response to all parts in your submission.
- Create an activity list or similar document from the information provided. Include things about the project you think are relevant from the information provided and that should be highlighted or need to be remembered
- Identify and document a major milestone list for the project activities. Include whether the milestones are mandatory or optional. You might do this as a separate document, or it may be part of your activity list
- Select and document the immediate predecessors for each project activity.
- Develop a work breakdown structure (WBS) for the project. You might like to divide the project into phases for easier handling of information
- Create an outline (template) only for the WBS dictionary with a description of what will be included under each heading. There is no need to add the specifics for this project
- Create a network diagram for the project activities to identify any dependencies and/or interdependencies within the project and when activities need to start and finish
- Work out the critical path, the period of time over which the project will be undertaken and identify the activity/s of each project (if any) that can be done at the same time as another project step in the same project. Show or describe your workings
- Develop a graphic representation of the project schedule (e.g. Gantt chart, spreadsheet or similar software) to visually show:
- the sequencing of the project activities
- the critical path
- the length of time for each activity
- the potential risk points in the schedule and
- any dependencies or interdependencies between project activities
Estimate the human resources for each phase of the project. Show your workings and explain the reason for identifying the number of people to be involved in the project
Assessment 1B
You are required to communicate the proposed project schedule in discussion with the project sponsor, Gavin Stead (your assessor), Con Kafatos (IT Manager), Adrian Russo (Marketing Strategist) and Kelly Munroe (Business Development Specialist) to obtain agreement for the resources and schedule.
Prior to the meeting, you are to:
- prepare for the meeting
- know what you want to cover to obtain agreement on the schedule
- have any documentation prepared you will use in the presentation.
During the meeting, you are required to complete the following:
- Explain the purpose of the Expansion of Marino Enterprises Stage 2 project and identify the project deliverables.
- Outline the progress to date on the project schedule, resourcing, the projected outcomes and timelines.
- Outline the dependencies and interdependency between the activities and their impact, including risks, on the project.
- Ask questions of the stakeholders in the meeting to clarify any discrepancies found during your preparation of the schedule and their impact on the project, including:
- the photographs and description of the product are scheduled before any of the products have been produced
- the product costing is being undertaken prior to product development and finalisation.
- Briefly outline the expectations of stakeholders in relation to:
- following the schedule
- making any unexpected changes to the schedule and/or resources
- communicating information and changes using appropriate change management forms and the appropriate communication channels according to the organisation’s communication policy and procedures.
- Seek approval from the stakeholders for:
- the schedule timelines and project end date (schedule baseline)
- resource requirements
- making any changes to the schedule as discussed.
After the meeting you are required to complete the following:
- Make changes to the schedule as agreed to at the meeting.
- Distribute the amended schedule to the project sponsor (your assessor) and stakeholders by email using the CBSA email template .
- At the assessor’s discretion, you are to answer a series of oral questions asked by the project sponsor (assessor). This may occur during the meeting or after the meeting is completed.
The questions will be about the process followed to develop the project schedule and the procedures you used to develop the schedule for Expansion of Marino Enterprises Stage 2 project.
The questions are as follows so you can prepare for them prior to the meeting. You may take notes about the questions with you to the meeting:
-
-
- Outline two procedures that might be followed to select predecessors for activities in a project.
- Describe the procedure you followed in selecting the predecessors for the activities in this project (Expansion of Marino Enterprises Stage 2).
- Define a work breakdown structure and a WBS dictionary and describe their purpose in developing a project schedule.
- Explain what is meant by task dependency and why it is important in preparing a project schedule.
- Explain what is meant by the critical path of a project.
- Outline two procedures you might follow to identify the critical path for a project.
- List six factors you might consider when identifying the critical path for this project.
- Identify the procedure you used to work out the critical path for this project (Expansion of Marino Enterprises Stage 2) and why you chose the method.
- Discuss how a critical path analysis can help in managing the project schedule.
-
Provide an explanation as to the reason for identifying the human resources to be involved in the Expansion of Marino Enterprises Stage 2.
Assessment 2A
You are to implement changes to the project schedule in response to the two scenarios. To do this you are to:
- Check the timeframe by using the PERT estimating technique and showing workings. Explain your findings.
- Work out the changes (if any) to the schedule as a result of Betsy’s request and explain whether the schedule and the project outcome will be affected or not.
- Complete a time impact analysis to identify the baseline variance for the requested change.
- Include in your analysis a description of a time impact analysis and its use in project management.
Seek approval from the project sponsor for the change to the schedule via an email including an explanation of the effect the two incidents might have on the project end date.
Assessment 2B
It is time for the regular update on the project progress.
In your role as project manager (Tina Hughes) you are to organise a meeting with the project sponsor, Gavin (your assessor) and Betsy (Marino Director) to discuss the progress of the project at this time according to the agreed schedule.
You will need to include any prior changes to the schedule that may have occurred and how they have been addressed.
It happens that you also receive the email from Con just before the meeting. You are to discuss with Gavin and Betsy the issue identified and reach an agreement on the changes to the schedule as a result of Con’s email.
Prior to the meeting, be prepared to discuss the issues outlined in the email by:
- Determining the estimated time to complete the activity in the project you feel is appropriate
- Determining the cost of the change to the schedule in monetary terms and make a recommendation regarding the budget. The original budget was $75,000 for the project
- Making notes as to what you would need to cover in the meeting including:
- a brief report on the progress of activities up to this time according to the agreed schedule
- justifying the need for the change as a result of Con’s email, including:
- the impact on the project schedule including identified trends
- what you will have to amend in relation to your time management documents
- who you will need to inform and get approval from for the change in scheduled time.
During the meeting you are to:
Lead the meeting in your role as the project manager to:
- explain the purpose of the meeting
- report on the progress of the project against the scheduled baseline
- explain the issue arising from Con’s email, the impact on the project outcomes and discuss and obtain agreement for the required changes
- highlight trends that might be showing that need to be monitored and how you will do this
- identify the mechanism as project manager you will use to monitor the trends identified
- identify who will need to be informed of the changes to the schedule
- prepare a table as follows – this is to be used at the meeting to note down any agreed changes that will need to be made to the schedule as well as the forecast of the effect on the present status of the schedule and project outcomes.
Activity ID |
Activity |
Impact on baseline schedule |
Actions to improve performance and meet project outcomes |
|
|
|
|
After the meeting, as a result of your calculations, the discussion with Betsy and Gavin and the decisions made at the meeting you are to:
- modify the critical path diagram
- modify the project schedule
- select and implement an appropriate method of communication to inform relevant stakeholders about:
- the project schedule changes that affect them
- why the changes are occurring including the trends in relation to number of changes in schedule and activities being completed
- the impact of the number of changes on the project in relation to time and budget/resources.
Your selected communication method must be in line with the CBSA Communication Policy and Procedure. What, as project manager, you expect of the stakeholders at this time in the project in order to meet the desired project outcomes including the mechanism you will use to monitor the trends and changes to project schedule more closely.
Assessment 3A
In this task, taking into account all of the processes, information available from the various sources and changes that have occurred over the project life cycle, review and analyse the project outcomes to determine the effectiveness of the schedule and the time management processes and documentation.
To do this:
- outline the process you took to review and analyse the effectiveness of the schedule and time management processes against the project outcomes
- write a series of notes as you review and analyse the project outcomes for reference for Task 3 Part B.
Assessment 3BUse the information from your analysis and review in Task 3 Part A to document your findings in the CBSA FM024 Lessons Learned document using a suitable software program.
You may need to modify some headings to include the information required and this is acceptable. Ensure you use appropriate language, correct English and suitable structure such as paragraphing, sentencing, punctuation and/or bullets as appropriate.
You must complete the form in full with feedback to inform continuous improvement consisting of at least:
- the background to the time management and scheduling for the project
- identifying the time management issues that occurred over the life of the project, why they occurred and the impact they had on the project
- the time management techniques and tools used
- two points about the effectiveness of the application, planning and implementation of the time management techniques and tools used
- three recommendations for what could be improved or done differently in relation to selecting and using appropriate time management tools and techniques and managing issues related to time management over the life of the project
- the authority and other persons to whom the Lessons Learned form is to be circulated.
Assessment 4
You are to develop a schedule for the Indoor Sustainable Garden project and present it in Gantt chart format.
Assume for this task that the project begins on Monday, 1st November
You may use digital software of your choice to prepare the schedule in this format; however, you must:
- Provide documented evidence of the procedure you followed, and the time management documents you used, to develop the project schedule, including at a minimum:
- activity list
- estimated time for each activity
- a predecessor table for project activities
- milestones
- a risk rating for each milestone
- network diagram including dependencies between tasks
- work breakdown structure (WBS) including tasks and subtasks
- WBS dictionary using the template create in Task 2, Part A
- an estimate of the human resource requirements
- critical path analysis
- an estimated cost for each sub-task
- the roles and number of persons required for each role in the project.
Assessment Matrix
Available on Canvas
Other Information
By submitting your work, you declare that:
- These tasks are your own work and you have not cheated, plagiarised another person’s work, or colluded with any other students on your answers.
- You have correctly referenced all resources, reference texts and quotes you have used to research your answers.
- You understand that if your RTO becomes aware that you have not acted in accordance with this declaration, disciplinary action will be taken against you which may ultimately lead to cancellation of your enrolment.
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