Project Planning & Scheduling Flashcards

Which output of the Plan Schedule Management process provides guidance on how the project schedule will be developed, monitored, and controlled?

Answer: Schedule management plan

The schedule management plan is the primary output of Plan Schedule Management, defining policies, procedures, and documentation for managing the project schedule.

A project manager uses a network diagram to show that Task B can start 5 days after Task A starts, regardless of Task A's completion. This represents:

Answer: Start-to-Start with a 5-day lag

A Start-to-Start dependency with a lag allows the successor to begin a set period after the predecessor has started, enabling partial overlap.

Schedule crashing is BEST described as:

Answer: Adding resources to critical path activities to compress the schedule at minimum cost increase

Crashing adds resources (cost) to critical path activities to reduce duration, and should be applied first where the cost-time tradeoff is most favorable.

In a precedence diagramming method (PDM) network, which type of dependency reflects a natural sequence that cannot be changed due to the nature of the work?

Answer: Mandatory dependency

Mandatory dependencies, also called hard logic, are inherent in the nature of the work and cannot be reordered (e.g., you must pour a foundation before building walls).

A schedule network analysis technique that calculates the early and late start and finish dates for all activities WITHOUT resource constraints is called:

Answer: Critical path method (CPM)

CPM calculates the longest path through the network to determine the minimum project duration and identifies which activities have float, assuming unlimited resources.

A project has 6 milestones, and the team is reporting progress on the schedule. Milestones are BEST characterized as:

Answer: Significant points or events with zero duration in the project schedule

Milestones mark significant points or events in the project and have zero duration because they represent a moment in time, not an activity with work.

Which tool is MOST useful for visually displaying project schedule information to stakeholders who need a simple, easy-to-read format?

Answer: Gantt chart

Gantt charts display activities against a timeline in a bar chart format, making them the most widely used and easily understood schedule communication tool for stakeholders.