Step 8: Create the Project Schedule

The project schedule consists of the WBS work packages extended to include the tasks necessary for each work package, the schedule network diagram, and the project schedule.

15.8.1 WBS Extended to Include Tasks

If some time has passed since the project manager last reviewed the WBS, it is good practice to look over the scope statement and WBS and address any questions that surface. The next step is to extend the WBS with the tasks necessary to create the project deliverables, continuing the use of sticky notes but using a different color or shape to differentiate the work packages and the tasks. The project manager augments the project scope, or “what,” with the “how” in the form of tasks to complete the work of the project. It is critically important to involve the people who will actually do the work of the project. If one person identifies the tasks and the time necessary to complete the tasks, and the project manager then assigns the tasks to another person, there is the risk that the person now responsible for the tasks may say that the tasks are not appropriate or that the times allocated to these tasks are not reasonable.

Ideally, the project manager identifies the people responsible for the deliverables and instructs them to list the tasks necessary to develop the deliverables. If the team members have not previously worked with WBS and WBS extended with tasks, the project manager may work with one or several team members on this. Once team members have worked on the decomposition of deliverables into tasks, they may mentor other team members who have not done this type of work in the past.

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Sometimes, the project manager may not know who will be doing the project work. In this situation, the project manager assigns the work of decomposing the work packages to a potential team member who has the necessary skills and knowledge to identify the tasks nec- essary to create the work package.

Once all of the work packages have been decomposed into the appropriate tasks, the project manager, together with the team mem- bers who decomposed the work packages, reviews all the tasks across all the work packages to discover overlaps or omissions that may not be apparent when looking at only one of the work packages. Using sticky notes makes it easy to add, delete, or move tasks from one work package to another. It’s not necessary that the team create a “perfect” set of tasks at this point; once the team proceeds to sequence the tasks to create the schedule network diagram, overlaps or omissions gener- ally surface, and corrections are made to the extended WBS at that time. The project manager extends the numbering of the work pack- ages to the tasks and takes a photo of the extended WBS.

If there are many tasks for a work package, or if the people respon- sible for the work package and the tasks are different, the project man- ager may develop a RAM that shows the relationship between the stakeholders and the tasks, identifying the tasks by number and name.

15.8.2 Schedule Network Diagram

The project manager brings the team members who developed the tasks for all of the work together to sequence the tasks. The WBS extended with tasks includes the deliverables at the top level, the work packages at the bottom level of the WBS, and the tasks associated with each work package organized beneath each work package.

The sequence of the tasks is independent of the task organization by work packages which are organized by deliverables. The project may begin with a task from deliverable 3, followed by tasks from deliver- ables 1 and 7. The numbering of the tasks ensures that task associa- tion with a particular work package is clear. For example, task 7.1.3 belongs with deliverable 7 and work package 7.1. The team members doing the work make sure that all necessary prerequisites are in place.

Rather than taking the task sticky notes from the extended WBS, the project manager replicates these sticky notes to build the schedule

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network diagram. The original extended WBS is available for refer- ence and changes at a later time. As the team sequences the tasks, they may find that additional tasks are needed or some tasks are unneces- sary. The team revises the extended WBS as appropriate. Once the team agrees that the task sequencing is correct and complete, the proj- ect manager takes a photo of the schedule network diagram to record and preserve the work. He shares this with the project sponsor and other key stakeholders. He may also have the team review the sched- ule network diagram after a week or two has passed, as sometimes the team sees the sequencing differently with the perspective of time.

Once the project team identifies the sequence of project tasks, the individual task owners determine how long it will take to complete the task. As noted earlier, the task owner identifies both effort and any delays or wait time (such as delay due to waiting for supplies to be delivered). The task owner identifies any materials or supplies that he may require to complete the task, including quantities and when required.

15.8.3 Project Schedule

While the task owners identify the time to complete the task(s), the project manager creates the outline for the project schedule. Using a computer program like word or excel, or pencil and paper (lined or graph paper), the project manager lists the tasks along the left side in order based on the sequence in the schedule network diagram, leaving columns for applied time, % time, duration, and number of resources. Then, he creates columns for each day or week (whatever unit of mea- sure used for the project).

For each task, he enters the information for each column and denotes work time with an “x” and delay time with “d” to generate an accurate schedule plan. For each task, the project manager allows a row for people resources and a second row for material or services to be pur- chased from outside the project. The project manager completes this level of detail later when preparing the budget. The task owner speci- fies material resources and services. The project manager may attach these specifications at the end of the project schedule or may include them separately in the project plan. In either case, these requirements must contain the number of the task for which they are needed.

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The project manager makes sure that the resources are available for the times the tasks are scheduled and may schedule a task for a different week if the resource is not available. The project manager also considers other schedule constraints such as school vacations, holidays, possible nonwork time due to poor weather in the form of storms, excessive heat or cold (if project requires work outdoors), and limited availability of team members due to other job and family commitments.

The project manager compares this projected schedule with the schedule constraints from the project charter and ensures that the project can be completed within the allotted time. If it appears that the project will not be complete by the schedule due date, the proj- ect manager and team revisit and modify task sequencing, determine if there are opportunities to complete tasks more quickly by apply- ing more resources or tools and possibly reduce scope to complete the project by the required date. Any changes require that the project manager adjust the appropriate project documents such as WBS, tasks, resources, or time to complete tasks.

At this point, there is a project schedule that forms a plan to com- plete the project by the date specified in the project charter.

15.8.4 Checkpoint for Project Status

This step is complete when there is a completed and approved WBS extended with project tasks, schedule network diagram, project sched- ule, and updates to the RAM for WBS work packages, and RAM for project tasks, if necessary.

15.8.5 Risk of Not Creating an Extended WBS, Schedule Network Diagram, and Project Schedule

If the project manager and team fail to identify the tasks necessary to develop each work package, there is the risk that the work to complete the project will be underestimated, with the project likely late and over budget. The lack of a schedule network diagram may result in team members sitting idle waiting for equipment that was not ordered with sufficient lead time. Alternatively, the equipment may be ordered too soon and subject to pilfering while sitting around. Another risk

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is that team members will work on the tasks that they most enjoy, so some work will be complete early, while other tasks will happen later, possibly delaying the work of other team members. The risk of no schedule includes schedule delays due to failure to consider nonwork time and the inability to assess the impact if a task should start or finish early or late.