Project Management & Planning Flashcards

Which scheduling technique uses probabilistic time estimates (optimistic, most likely, pessimistic) to calculate expected activity durations?

Answer: PERT

PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique) uses three-point estimates to account for uncertainty in activity durations.

In project scheduling, what does 'total float' represent?

Answer: The amount of time an activity can be delayed without delaying the project finish

Total float is the amount of time an activity can be delayed from its early start without delaying the project completion date.

A project manager needs to compress the schedule by overlapping activities that were originally planned sequentially. This technique is called:

Answer: Fast tracking

Fast tracking involves performing activities in parallel that would normally be done sequentially, accepting increased risk.

Which WBS element represents the lowest level of the Work Breakdown Structure where cost and schedule can be monitored?

Answer: Work package

A work package is the lowest WBS level at which cost and schedule are tracked and managed.

When a project schedule shows a Scheduled Performance Index (SPI) of 0.85, this means the project is:

Answer: Behind schedule, accomplishing only 85 cents of work for every dollar planned

An SPI below 1.0 indicates the project is behind schedule; 0.85 means only 85% of planned work has been accomplished.

The process of identifying and documenting relationships among project activities is known as:

Answer: Activity sequencing

Activity sequencing identifies logical dependencies between activities and documents them to create a network diagram.

Which type of dependency between activities is MOST commonly used in project scheduling and represents that one activity must finish before the next can start?

Answer: Finish-to-Start (FS)

Finish-to-Start is the most common dependency, requiring the predecessor to finish before the successor can begin.