Use project management tools (Gantt charts, PERT charts)

2. Core Project Artefacts (What Every Project Needs)

• Project Charter / Brief – authorises the project, defines sponsor, objectives, high‑level scope and constraints.
• Scope Statement & Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) – decomposes the overall scope into manageable work packages.
• Resource‑Allocation Matrix (RACI) – shows who is Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed for each activity.
• Budget Baseline – total cost estimate broken down by activity; forms the financial baseline for earned‑value analysis.
• Risk Register, Quality Plan, Stakeholder Register – supporting documents for risk, quality and stakeholder management.
• Schedule Baseline – Gantt chart and/or PERT network that records planned start/finish dates.
• Post‑Implementation Review & Lessons‑Learned Report – evaluates project success, captures improvements for future work.
• Ethical & Sustainability Statement – identifies environmental, social and professional considerations.

3. Planning & Scheduling Tools

The following tools are used together to produce a complete schedule and to support monitoring.

• Gantt chart – visual bar‑chart of activities against a time scale.
• PERT (Program Evaluation Review Technique) network – activity‑on‑node diagram with probabilistic time estimates.
• Critical‑path analysis – identifies the longest path of dependent activities (zero slack).
• Resource‑allocation matrix – links people/equipment to activities.
• Budget baseline & earned‑value calculations – provide cost‑control information.

4. Gantt Charts

4.1 Key Features

• Horizontal time scale (days, weeks, months).
• Vertical list of activities (derived from the WBS).
• Bars representing planned duration; colour‑coding for resources or work‑package type.
• Milestones shown as diamonds.
• Dependency arrows or linking lines.
• Baseline version stored for later variance analysis.

4.2 Creating a Gantt Chart – Step‑by‑Step

1. Develop a **Work Breakdown Structure** and list every activity.
2. Estimate the **duration** of each activity (in days or weeks).
3. Identify **predecessors** (activities that must finish before the current one can start).
4. Assign **earliest start** and **finish dates** respecting dependencies.
5. Allocate **resources** using a RACI matrix or colour‑code directly on the chart.
6. Plot the activities on a time‑scaled grid; add **milestones** and **dependency arrows**.
7. Save the chart as the **schedule baseline**. During execution, compare the baseline with actual progress bars to calculate variance.

4.3 Example – Student‑Information System (SIS) Project

5. PERT (Program Evaluation Review Technique) Charts

5.1 Time Estimates – O, M, P

• Optimistic (O) – shortest realistic duration.
• Most likely (M) – best‑guess duration.
• Pessimistic (P) – longest realistic duration.

The **expected time** (TE) for an activity is calculated by:

$$ TE = \frac{O + 4M + P}{6} $$

5.2 Constructing a PERT Chart – Step‑by‑Step

1. List all activities, their predecessors and O‑M‑P estimates.
2. Calculate TE for each activity.
3. Draw the **network diagram** (nodes = events/milestones, arrows = activities).
4. Perform a **forward pass** to obtain Earliest Start (ES) and Earliest Finish (EF).
5. Perform a **backward pass** to obtain Latest Start (LS) and Latest Finish (LF).
6. Compute **Slack (Float)** = LS – ES = LF – EF.
7. Identify the **Critical Path** – the longest path with zero slack.

5.3 Example – SIS Project PERT Data

5.4 Forward & Backward Pass (Worked Example)

All activities have zero slack, therefore the **critical path** is A → B → C → D → E → F with an expected duration of 35 days.

5.5 Using PERT for Ongoing Monitoring

• Update the network with actual durations as work proceeds.
• Re‑calculate ES/EF/LS/LF; if any activity on the critical path overruns, the project finish date shifts.
• Apply corrective actions (e.g., add resources, re‑sequence activities) to bring the project back on track.

6. Resource‑Allocation Matrix (RACI)

Shows who is Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed for each activity.

7. Cost Management & Budget Baseline

7.1 Estimating Costs

• Identify cost categories: labour, hardware, software licences, travel, training, contingency.
• Estimate each activity’s cost using **bottom‑up** (sum of work‑package costs) or **analogous** techniques.

7.2 Building the Budget Baseline

Combine the activity‑level cost estimates with the schedule baseline to produce a **cost baseline** (often presented as a table or a cumulative cost‑time graph).

7.3 Earned‑Value Management (EVM)

Provides quantitative insight into schedule and cost performance.

8. Risk Management

8.1 Risk Register (Core Columns)

8.2 Risk Matrix (Probability vs. Impact)

• Use a 3 × 3 or 5 × 5 grid to visualise high‑risk items (red), medium (amber) and low (green).
• Prioritise mitigation for red‑zone risks.

9. Quality Management

• Quality Plan – defines quality objectives, acceptance criteria, testing levels (unit, integration, system, UAT) and review checkpoints.
• Key artefacts: test‑case specifications, defect‑log, code‑review checklist, sign‑off forms.
• Use **continuous integration** and **automated testing** where possible to maintain quality throughout execution.

10. Stakeholder Management

10.1 Interest‑Influence Matrix

11. Monitoring & Control Techniques

• Compare **actual progress** with the Gantt baseline (schedule variance).
• Update the **PERT network** with real durations to re‑calculate the critical path.
• Apply **Earned‑Value Management** (see Section 7.3) for quantitative cost‑schedule control.
• Use **Variance Analysis**:
  • Schedule Variance (SV) = EV − PV
  • Cost Variance (CV) = EV − AC
• Trigger corrective actions when:
  • SV < 0 (behind schedule) or CV < 0 (over budget)
  • CPI < 0.9 or SPI < 0.9 (significant deviation)

12. Project Closure

12.1 Post‑Implementation Review

• Assess whether project objectives, scope, time, cost and quality targets were met.
• Gather quantitative data (final EV, AC, CPI, SPI) and qualitative feedback (user satisfaction).
• Document **Lessons‑Learned** – what worked well, what could be improved, and recommendations for future projects.

12.2 Ethical & Sustainability Considerations

• Data privacy – ensure compliance with GDPR or local data‑protection laws.
• Accessibility – design to meet WCAG standards, ensuring inclusivity.
• Environmental impact – choose energy‑efficient hardware, minimise waste, consider cloud‑based hosting with green‑energy credentials.
• Professional conduct – adhere to the BCS Code of Conduct (integrity, competence, confidentiality).

13. Project Documentation Checklist (Revised)