EPM, Microsoft Project and You

BY Collin Quiring

In our book, “Mastering Resource Management Using Microsoft Project and Project Server 2010” we concentrate on the tool itself and on Work Resources.  This document is an addendum of sorts to that and is designed to better define specifically the Budget Resource Type and the Cost Resource Type that are available in Project.

From Chapter 5 of the book:

A Resource can be defined as a Work, Material or Cost Type.  Material Resources are consumable items like concrete or paint.  Cost Type Resources are meant for controlling or reporting costs such as airfare or lodging.  Work Resources are people or equipment and can be generic or actual (sometimes called named).  A Generic Resource is a resource identified by the skill set or type of resource and an actual resource is a person.

For example, a Generic Resource might be called something like Carpenter, Painter, System Administrator, DBA or Project Manager.  The Generic Resource is then replaced by an actual resource with the appropriate skill set at a later time

To more deeply define the Cost and Budget Resources I have come up with this:

A Cost Resource is a specific cost that occurs that is usually related to a specific task.  For example, to accomplish a specific task you may incur some airfare.  But, throughout the life of the Project, there may be numerous times where airfare expenses are incurred – each one based on the deliverable for a specific task.  (Yes, if you want to, you can be more advanced and spread a cost across multiple tasks but that requires a bit more effort on your part and we are going to stay simple in this document.)

And, each time you assign the Resource to a task, you can put in the amount of the cost as it pertains to that specific task.  For example, I have created the Cost Resource named Airfare and on these two tasks have two different cost amounts for each ticket – the first one being $750 and the second being $250.  I assign the same Resource (Airfare) but with different costing.  When you enter the information into the Resources tab of the Task Information box the amount of the cost will appear in the Resource Name field.

For the rest of this post, view the full document:  http://pmpspecialists.com/WhitePapers/PMP_Specialists_Resource_Types.pdf

BY: Collin Quiring

I know that I haven’t blogged as much lately.  The reason is simple – I have been busy getting ready for a few different large presetnations.  One of them is for Microsoft Project User Group – MPUG – that is a public event on April 28.  Just go to www.mpug.com and look for the “Upcoming MPUG WebNLearns” section on the right hand side.  Here are the details about the upcoming presentation.

BY: Tim Gryder

This accountability thing…such an important term yet subject to so much variance in opinion as to what it really means. In today’s world, accountability is constantly being redefined to us by a political and culture flag that shifts with every change in the direction of the wind. While terms and opinions vary, it’s good to know that some things never change…for example: gravity.

While gravity isn’t a social topic it is definitely a physical force which keeps us accountable to something…such as the ground. It is well defined and absolute and not up for debate as to what it means. In dealing with gravity we apply many points of physics and as a result, we are able to achieve flight but always within the boundaries of rules and physics of gravity.

So what does this have to do with Project Management you might ask? Well in my mind, Project Management is simply like the rules and physics of the absolute of time. If we apply the right business rules, sequences and events, we can manage time and ultimately cost. I recently heard an associate claim the being a Project Manager is like being a glorified note taker and task chaser. I also heard another associate claim that we never get anything done on time and on budget. These perspectives are symptomatic of not understanding the absolutes of time and its best and most profitable use.

Today, we have proven techniques, logic and technology that allow us to manage time. Never before in the history of humanity have we been able to define, plan, schedule, analyze, resource, cost, track, report etc, etc. The access to these tools are great, the use and understanding is maybe not so much.

Look at the resources at our disposal; we have tools like Microsoft Project that allow us to manage the absolutes of time. These tools are way underutilized. What is the biggest reason for not using these tools? I have come to this conclusion: Its accountability! Yes there can be other reasons but I truly believe that accountability is the culprit that deters us from unfettered time management.

Project Management tools and techniques are extremely oriented towards absolutes and holding us accountable to a “Due Date”. There….I said it…yes, time is an absolute.

Does this sound familiar?

•       “The reality is if we don’t ship our product by this date the customer will reject it”.

•       “The buyout transition must happen by a certain date or we will lose our tax advantage”.

•       “Yes, the interest will accumulate on the mortgage note if the construction is not completed on
time”.

These are simple realities that have real implications when not met. Yet I see where it is still often easier to avoid accountability than to manage these processes with business rules, techniques and tools that drive us to deliver. Human nature hates to be run like a machine, but the bottom line sure likes it.

The reality is… we all need accountability. Project Management gives us techniques and processes by which to manage time. Tools such as Microsoft Project and Project Server enable us to acknowledge the absolutes and manage them as fact. Dealing with the truth is well worth the investment of using these techniques and tools….as opposed to the cost of not being on time.

By:  Collin Quiring

In trying to set up schedules, one of the best ways to find out how much time is needed for a specific task is to ask the person doing the task.  And, one of the worst ways to get an accurate amount of time is to ask the person doing the task.  More often than not, when asking the person that is assigned the work how much time they need to complete their task, they will give a padded number – sometimes significantly.

Why?  Is it that they don’t really know how long it takes?  Is it that they are born liars?  Is it because they want free time and hope that you will build it into the schedule?  The answer to all of these is a resounding “No!” 

It seems that Resources (what Project Managers like to call people) have a few concerns about answering the time question.  Usually, a Resource has multiple projects that they work on.  And, they have overlapping work from those projects.  And, they have non-scheduled time (from mandated training to watercooler discussions).  And, they are given conflicting priorities.  And, and, and, and….. 

So, what are they often doing when they give a time estimate?  Are they padding the time unrealistically?  They might be padding it a bit but I think that most people add up the “and’s” of their work life and they come up with a relatively accurate time estimate.  The disconnect seems to be between the Resource and the Project Manager (or Resource Manager).

The Project or Resource Manager wants to know how long it will take to do the task in THE schedule of the moment while the Resource is providing how long it will take due to ALL of their work.  There are lots of “solutions” to resolve this problem– some technical and some business or company cultural.  However, I submit that the core issues are not resolved and that we tend to address the symptoms. 

The root causes of the problem seem to me to be trust of each other and understanding.

Part of the reason that the Resource gives seemingly extreme time estimates is because they have learned that if they give a short time frame, the Project/Resource Manager will hold them to it regardless of other work or variables.  And, from the other perspective, the Project/Resource Manager has seen the Resource do this work “in less time than that” but doesn’t seem to understand that there were other tasks neglected to do so.  (And, Project Managers have learned that at the start of a schedule it is easier to have an unrealistically short deadline and then deal with missing it when the time comes than it is to tell the sponsor from the beginning they can’t meet the deadline – but, that is a different post.)

How can this tidbit of knowledge improve scheduling?  If we would just sit down and sing Kumbaya together the world of scheduling would be a better place.  Ok, maybe not.  But, the way to immediately improve scheduling is to try and understand the capacity and utilization of a Resource.  From the Resource’s perspective, they would need to give estimates that are “in a vacuum” – a time estimate for how long it takes to do the work, if that was all they did.  The Project/Resource Manager needs to understand and compensate for variables that affect the time estimates for THE schedule by accounting for ALL work.  With a real time estimates and a schedule that can move with the changing realities of work, a schedule can become a powerful and accurate tool.

Easy to say, difficult to do. 

However, we have found when working with customers that getting to this point has always paid off. 

I think about the phrase “We never have time to do it right the first time, but we always have time to do it again.”  Perhaps, if we trusted each other and extended an understanding of work realities we would have done it right the first time because we would have scheduled enough time.

By: Collin Quiring

How do you justify Project Management or Project Server in these tough times?  While looking for a document recently that I wrote about this, I came up with these thoughts.

Some business areas that are affected by Project Management are harder to quantify than others.  One of the biggest benefits that results from using Project Management principles is the increased flow of information and ability to make better informed decisions.  It is difficult to put a dollar amount on “doing things better” but there are some intuitive benefits.  Being able to make better decisions means fewer mistakes and a reduction in the number of times costly projects are started and then later stopped or completed without the expected gains.

Collaboration and easy to access real time information are business benefits that shouldn’t be underestimated.  The ability for everyone (with the appropriate security permissions) to see information from their own desktop, through a web browser, without having to request it from somebody else, or waiting for the “official report” to appear, is valuable.  Using templates allows for everybody to start from the same spot and to use pre-existing and approved information and methodologies.  This saves time and effort and permits the Project Managers and the users to have a familiar format – increasing collaboration and understanding.

A few of the questions that we like to ask Senior Managers are: What is a single view of ALL your projects worth?  What would the value to your organization be if you could see every project that you have?  How does each project align with the company’s stated strategies? How does the portfolio align? With Portfolio and Project Management in place the ability to see, and understand, individual projects or the entire project portfolio is straightforward.  Project Management can provide you with productivity improvements, better resource allocation, time- to- market enhancements, cost reductions, and current information.

As an organization becomes more and more “mature” in the area of Project Management and their use of Microsoft Project, they can use the built-in timesheet functions in addition to the task functions.  This allows for the tracking and understanding of what each resource within the organization is doing.  It allows you to answer the question “Can we do this next project with the people we have; on budget?”.   The system allows you to see instantly where a resource may be overloaded, or have free – or perhaps what work can be shuffled around to free up a resource.

In a survey of 166 companies by the Center for Business Practice, The Value of Project Management, 94% or respondents stated that implementing Project Management added value in terms of :

                                                ROI – 25%

                                                Productivity – 15%

                                                Time to Market reduction – 15%

                                                Project/Process Performance – 20%

Microsoft Project Server allows you to see at a glance the information that is important to you.  Dashboards can be easily created with information that is specific to the needs of various groups within an organization.  For example, the Executives can look at budget information while the Project Managers are looking at scheduling information while other groups are looking at information specific to them.  As an example, here is a screenshot showing the Cost Status and Schedule Status in graphical format: