Project Management: Deliverables, Milestones & Scheduling
Project Deliverables
Definition: Products that, in a certain state, are exchanged between customers and developers throughout the IT project implementation.
Feasibility Study Deliverables
Brief description of the proposed system and its features.
Analysis Deliverables
- Requirements capture
- System Specification
Design Deliverables
A detailed description of the system will contain:
- Programs, reusable modules, and objects.
- Files and databases.
Coding Deliverables
Documents the final design of the system and each program.
Test Deliverables
- System Test Plan (updated).
Installation/Maintenance Deliverables
Installation Deliverables
Detailed contingency plans, operating system crashes, and recovery.
Maintenance Deliverables
List of detected faults in the system.
Project Milestones
A convenient point in the calendar where you can check the progress of work.
External Milestones
They are normally visible to the customer, distant in time, allowing for the overall direction of the project.
Internal Milestones
Allow detailed examination, and if problems are detected, quick action.
Steps in Creating an Acceptable Time Frame
- Creating a calendar and critical path.
- Management tasks.
- Creating a calendar.
- Review and adjustment of the calendar:
- Depending on the use of resources
- According to user needs
- Widespread acceptance of the plan.
Graphical Representation of Management Tasks
There are several methods for visually representing the sequence of tasks:
- Gantt chart
- Precedence graph
- Arrow diagram
Gantt Chart
It is represented by a double-entry table.
- Disadvantages: Does not explicitly show the relationship between tasks.
- Advantages: It’s easy to understand for everyone.
Network Diagrams
Associated definitions:
- Activity: Work to do that takes a certain time.
- Event: A moment in time.
- Milestone: A significant event for the project.
- Critical Path: The longest path between the initial and terminal node; this gives the expected duration of the project.
- Network Planning: Used to schedule and determine how much the project may be delayed and when to schedule the execution of each activity.
Precedence Diagram
It is the most common form of representation in software, along with Gantt charts. It is a totally ordered graph.
- Tasks are represented as nodes.
- The relationships between tasks are the arches.
- All nodes have the same size and can contain much information about the task.
- The arches go from the predecessor task to the successor, indicated by an arrow.
Arrow Diagram
It is a dual representation to the former.
- Tasks are represented as arcs.
- The nodes are point events in time (events) and show that a state has been reached upon completion of all tasks that lead to it.
- Dummy activities appear to associate partial states.
Critical Path Method (CPM)
Process to determine and optimize the critical path.
Description of Activity: Name given to the activity.
Activity Tag: The number that identifies each activity.
Duration: Time estimate it will take to complete the task.
Early Start: Earliest date you can start the task.
Early Finish: Earliest date you can complete the task.
Late Start: Delayed date on which you can start without affecting the project completion date.
Late Finish: Delayed date on which you can complete the task without affecting the project end date.
Maximum Time Available: Maximum time that a task can last, should it start at its Early Start and finish at its Late Finish.
Slack: Time available to adjust the start of the task without affecting the project.