101 6.0 Student Gold

Primavera® P6™ Training Manual Course 101

Primavera® Course 101 Version 6.0

Version date of manual: April 2008

© 1997 - 2008 Primavera Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise noted, this software is the property of Primavera Systems, Inc. (Primavera) and is entitled to copyright protection. Any reproduction in whole or in part is strictly prohibited. While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of this document, Primavera assumes no liability resulting from any omission or inaccuracies in this document or from use of the information obtained herein. Primavera reserves the right to make changes to any products described herein to improve reliability, function, or design, and reserves the right to revise this document and to make changes from time to time in content hereof with no obligation to notify any person of revisions or changes. Primavera does not assume any liability arising out of the application or use of any product described herein; neither does it convey license under its patent rights or the rights of others. Please send your comments to: Primavera Systems, Inc. Three Bala Plaza West Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004 Telephone: 1-610-667-8600 FAX: 1-610-667-7894 World Wide Web site: http://www.primavera.com Computer Software Copyrights: The Primavera software products described in this document may not be copied, reproduced, modified, or distributed in any manner without Primavera's express written permission. Use and Disclosure Restrictions: The software described in this document is the property of Primavera Systems. It is furnished under a license agreement and may be used and/or disclosed only in accordance with the terms of the agreement. US Government Restricted Rights: If the Software is acquired for or on behalf of the United States of America, its agencies and/or instrumentalities (“U.S. Government”), it is provided with restricted rights. The Software and accompanying documentation are “commercial computer software” and “commercial computer software documentation,” respectively, pursuant to 48 C.F.R. 12.212 and “restricted computer software” pursuant to 48. C.F.R. 52.227-19 (a), as applicable. Use, modification, reproduction, release, performance, display, or disclosure of the Software and accompanying documentation by the US Government are subject to restrictions as set forth in the this Agreement and pursuant to 48 C.F.R. 12.212, 52.227-19, 227.7202, and 1852.227-86, as applicable. Trademarks: Primavera, the Primavera sundial logo, P3, P3e, Primavera Enterprise, Primavera Expedition, Primavera Project Planner, Primavera TeamPlay, myPrimavera, PrimeContract, and SureTrak are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Primavera Systems, Inc., in the United States and/or in other countries. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners. Printed in the United States of America.

Course Contents Lesson 1:

Introduction to Primavera

1

Introduction to Primavera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Primavera Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Primavera P6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Methodology Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Timesheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Lesson 2:

The Project Management Life Cycle

7

Project Management Life Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Initiating Process Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Planning Process Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Executing Process Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Controlling Process Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Closing Process Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Lesson 3:

Overview and Navigation

15

What is P6 Web? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 User Access to Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Login . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 License, Security Profile, Project Association . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 User Interface View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Logging In to P6 Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 The P6 Web Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

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Navigating in P6 Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Most Recently Used Items . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Breadcrumbs Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Tabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Lesson 4:

Creating a Project

25

Enterpise Project Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Enterprise Project Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Viewing the EPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Organizational Breakdown Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Viewing the OBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Creating a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Create Project Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Entering Required Project Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Lesson 5:

Editing Project Details

37

Selecting a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Exploring the EPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Using Project Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Editing Project Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 General Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Notebook Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Funding Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Codes Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Settings Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 User Defined Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

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Lesson 6:

Creating a Work Breakdown Structure

53

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Creating a WBS for the HR System Upgrade Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Creating a WBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Adding a Child WBS Element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Adding Sibling WBS Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Creating Additional Levels in the WBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Changing the Parent WBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Deleting a WBS Element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Reusing the WBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Lesson 7:

Adding Activities

65

Adding Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Viewing Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Adding a Start Milestone Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Adding an Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Copy/Pasting Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 Deleting Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Viewing and Editing Activity Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Viewing Activity Details in Tabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 Activity Details Sub-Tabs Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 General Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Steps Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Notebook Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Codes Sub-Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

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Lesson 8:

Using Activity Views

83

Using Activity Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Managing Activity Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Customizing Activity Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 Columns Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Grouping in Activity List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 Filtering Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Sharing Activity Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 Sorting, Ordering in the Activities Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Lesson 9:

Creating Relationships

99

Network Logic Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Relationship Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Finish-to-Start (FS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Finish-to-Finish (FF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Start-to-Start (SS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Start-to-Finish (SF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Relationships with Lag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Finish-to-Start with Lag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Start-to-Start with Lag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Assigning Relationships in P6 Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Adding Relationships in Activity Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Adding Relationships with Lag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Adding Relationships in the Gantt Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Editing Relationships in the Gantt Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 Linking Multiple Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Canceling Data Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 Deleting Relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

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Lesson 10:

Scheduling

113

Critical Path Method Scheduling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 Critical Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 What is the Data Date? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 Scheduling Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Forward Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Backward Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Total Float . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Backward Pass with Required Finish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 Critical Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 Scheduling a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 Viewing the Scheduled Finish Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 Scheduling Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Circular Relationships (Loops) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Open Ends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 Exercise: Calculating a Schedule Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 Exercise Answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Lesson 11:

Assigning Constraints

129

Assigning Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 Must Finish By . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131 Start On or After . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 Additional Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

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Lesson 12:

Optimizing the Project Schedule

141

Analyzing the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 Analyzing Schedule Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 Compare Scheduled Finish to Must Finish By . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 Focus on Critical Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 Shorten the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Adjusting Relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 Shortening Duration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 Rescheduling and Checking Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Lesson 13:

Assigning Resources

153

Assigning Resources and Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 Summarizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 Assigning Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 Filling the Unstaffed Role Assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 Assigning Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 Organizing Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 Resource Access Restrictions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 Assessing Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161 E-Mail Notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Editing a Resource Assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 Requesting Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

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Lesson 14:

Project Workspace

171

The Project Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172 Viewing the Project Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 Portlets on the Project Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 Customizing the Project Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Customizing Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Customizing Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 Customizing Portlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Lesson 15:

Analyzing Resources and Costs

183

Analyzing the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 Analyzing Resource Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 Viewing Overallocated Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 Resolving Resource Overallocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 Analyzing Resource Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 Analyzing the Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Lesson 16:

Baselining the Project

195

Baselines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 Adding Baselines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 Assigning Baselines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 Editing Baseline Names and Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 Deleting Baselines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

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Lesson 17:

Executing the Project Plan

201

Updating a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202 The Data Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Entering Actuals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204 For Completed Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204 For Activities In-Progress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204 Using Progress Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205 Statusing a Milestone Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 Statusing an Activity to Completion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207 Statusing an Activity In Progress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209 Rescheduling the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

Lesson 18:

Analyzing the Updated Project

215

Analyzing Schedule Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216 Analyzing Project Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218 Adjusting the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 Managing Project Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221 Adjusting Resource Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223 Rescheduling the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Closing an Issue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

Lesson 19:

Reporting

229

Project Reports Portlet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230 Assigning Reports to Project Reports Portlet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231 Scheduling Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232 Viewing Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 Deleting Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

viii

Course 101

Course Contents

Lesson 20:

Dashboards

237

Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 Viewing Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239 Customizing Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240 Filtering Portlet Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 Customizing Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 Portlets on Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 Modifying Portlet Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 Personal Information Portlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248 My Activities Portlet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248 Custom Portlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249 Managing Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 Creating a Dashboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

Lesson 21:

Portfolios

255

Creating a Portfolio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 User and Global Portfolios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 Manual and Filtered Portfolios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 Viewing Portfolios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257 Deleting a Portfolio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Creating a Portfolio Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259 Creating a Portfolio by Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 Refreshing the Portfolio Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 Analyzing Portfolio Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263 Project Score . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 How is Project Score Calculated? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

Course 101

ix

Course Contents

Appendix A:

Updating the Project Using Timesheets

269

Updating a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270 The Data Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271 Updating a Project Using Timesheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Reviewing Timesheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Approving Timesheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276 Applying Actuals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 Analyzing Results of Applying Actuals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279 Rescheduling the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Appendix B:

Construction Workshops

283

Appendix C:

Managing Project Issues

297

Viewing Project Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298 Creating Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299 Grouping Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302 Viewing Issue Charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304

x

Course 101

Course Objectives Course 101 will cover the following topics: ✔

Introduction to Primavera • Describe Primavera solutions • Describe P6

✔

The Project Management Life Cycle • Review the relationship between Primavera and the Project Management Life Cycle • Identify the five process groups in the Project Management Life Cycle

✔

Overview and Navigation • Log in to P6 Web • Navigate to sections • Locate Action bars

✔

Creating a Project • Create a project • Select a location in the Enterprise Project Structure • Assign a Responsible Manager from the Organizational Breakdown Structure

✔

Editing Project Details • Select a project in the EPS • View Project Details • Enter project data in the Details tabs

✔

Creating a Work Breakdown Structure • Describe a WBS • Create multiple levels of a WBS hierarchy

✔

Adding Activities • Describe activity types • View activity information in the Activities tab • Send an e-mail related to an activity • Edit Activity Details tabs • Add steps to an activity • Add a Notebook topic to an activity • Assign an activity code

✔

Using Activity Views • Customize columns • Filter data • Group and sort activities

© 2008 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior written permission of Primavera Systems Inc.

Course Objectives (continued) ✔

Creating Relationships • Differentiate between four relationship types • Create relationships in Activity Details • Create relationships in the Gantt Chart

✔

Scheduling • Define key scheduling terms • Perform a backward and forward pass • Define Total Float and its impact on the schedule • Schedule a project • Describe loops and open ends

✔

Assigning Constraints • Apply an overall deadline to a project • Apply a constraint to an individual activity • Add notebook topics to constrained activities • Describe available constraint types

✔

Optimizing the Project Schedule • Analyze schedule dates • Shorten a project schedule

✔

Assigning Resources • Assign a role • Fill a role assignment • Request resources • Assign a resource • Check resource availability • Send e-mails to assigned resources

✔

Project Workspace • Describe the Project Workspace • Add and remove portlets • Customize the Project Workspace

✔

Analyzing Resources and Costs • Analyze and remove resource overallocation • Analyze project costs

✔

Baselining the Project • Add a baseline • Select a baseline


Course Objectives (continued) ✔

Executing the Project Plan • Describe several methods for updating the project schedule • Define the data date

✔

Analyzing the Updated Project • Compare Must Finish By and Scheduled Finish dates • View issues • View schedule performance • Adjust the project based on issue information • View budget data

✔

Reporting • Assign reports to the Project Reports portlet • Schedule reports • View scheduled reports

✔

Dashboards • Create a dashboard • Add and remove dashboards • Filter data to display in portlets • View your projects and activities

✔

Portfolios • Create a portfolio manually • Create a portfolio by filter



LESSON 1

Introduction to Primavera Objectives ✔

Describe Primavera solutions

✔

Describe P6


1

Lesson 1: Introduction to Primavera

Introduction to Primavera Primavera Systems Inc. is the world’s leading project and portfolio management software company, providing the software foundation that enables all types of businesses to achieve excellence in managing their portfolios, programs, projects, and resources. It is estimated that projects totaling more than $5 trillion in value have been managed with Primavera products. Primavera began in 1983 with the launch of PC-based software for engineering and construction. Today Primavera is a diversified software company that provides both desktop and enterprise-class solutions that enable companies to prioritize, plan, manage, and measure the project investments necessary to grow the business and service their customers.

Primavera Solutions The graphic below lists Primavera solutions and the industries served by Primavera.

PROJECT & PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT FOR YOU

Technology

Public Sector

A&D, Manufacturing

Engineering & Construction

Power, Energy & Process

Services

2

Cost Manager Earned Value Earned Value

Earned value management reporting for P6.

Right people. Right projects. Right now.

Contract Manager Contract Control Contract Control

Manage contracts, commitments, changes.

How?

Evolve Resource Management

Risk?

Identify, select, and prioritize the right strategic initiatives.

Who?

ProSight Portfolio Management

Change?

How Much?

What?

SOLUTIONS P6 Project Management Plan and execute high quality projects on time, on budget

PertMaster Risk Management Mitigate project risk through predictive analytics



Primavera Solutions (continued) P6 — An enterprise-wide project planning, management, and control solution that enables organizations to meet budget and deadline commitments by managing schedules, resources, and costs across all of their projects and programs. P6 is the solution covered in this course. ProSight — A portfolio management and analysis solution that enables organizations to deliver maximum value by identifying and prioritizing strategic projects and investments, and complying with regulatory imperatives. Evolve — An enterprise resource management solution that enables services organizations to improve utilization and profitability by ensuring the right person is assigned to the right project at the right time. Cost Manager — A solution that reduces the work necessary to track earned value. Graphic representations are automatically generated using the latest project information from a centralized database. Download cost data from your accounting system by using a flexible interface module to ensure a consistent and complete view of project performance. Alternatively, actual cost data may be entered or imported from Primavera. Contract Manager — This solution, formerly known as Expedition, enables the tracking of contracts from original estimate to buy-out. Track all project submittals and automate the approval process via workflow management. Comprehensive change management functionality assures that changes are resolved, payments made, and claims are avoided. PertMaster — A risk analysis and mitigation solution that enables organizations to overcome project and portfolio uncertainty by modeling risks and analyzing the cost and schedule impacts of mitigation scenarios.


3


Primavera P6 FIG. 1.1: Primavera P6 includes clientserver and Web components.

Client-Server Project Architect

Methodology Management

Methodology Management Database - MMDB -

Project Management

Project Templates

(Methodologies and Processes)

Real-Time/ Summary Information

Project Management Database - PMDB (Project Plans)

Progress Reporting and Collaboration

Web P6 Web Project Architect

Portfolio Management Project Management

Timesheets

Resource Management Collaboration

P6 is used for planning, monitoring and controlling projects. Project data is stored in a central database and can be accessed via client-server and the Web. Among P6’s capabilities:

4

❑

Enterprise-wide project management, resource management, and portfolio analysis.

❑

Personalized role-based dashboards provide quick visual indicators of the health and status of projects and programs, and help determine which projects need help to get back on track.

❑

Extensive project reporting, including industry-standard templates and a customization wizard.

❑

Scorecards that contain project scores, schedule performance, cost performance, earned value metrics, and milestone dates.



Primavera P6 (continued) ❑

Capacity analysis and resource planning to anticipate resource usage requirements in future projects.

❑

Collaborative workspaces to initiate projects and document workflows; manage and approve documents; and communicate with the project team.

Methodology Management ❑

An integrated process improvement platform for delivering best practices, lessons learned, and organizational standards in the form of project templates, work product templates, and estimation metrics.

❑

Create, capture, organize, and improve reusable components for building future project plans.

Timesheets ❑

Enables Web-based timekeeping and communication.

❑

Team members see all supporting information they need to coordinate and perform their work while communicating directly with the central database.


5


6


LESSON 2

The Project Management Life Cycle Objectives ✔

Review the relationship between Primavera and the Project Management Life Cycle

✔

Identify the five process groups in the Project Management Life Cycle

Key Terms Project management Project Management Life Cycle


7

Lesson 2: The Project Management Life Cycle

Project Management Life Cycle Project management is the process of achieving set goals within the constraints of time, budget, and staffing restrictions. Lessons in your curriculum may cover some or all of the processes in the Project Management Life Cycle, as indicated below:

Initiating process group

Planning process group

Executing process group

Controlling process group

Closing process group

8



Project Management Life Cycle (continued) Each process can be broken down into these steps:

Project Information


Organizational Commitment

Team Development

Scope Definition

Activity Definition


Schedule Development

Resource and Cost Planning

Project Plan Development

Yes


Baseline Creation

Information Distribution

Project Plan Execution

Performance Reporting


No

Are there changes? No Project complete? Yes Contract Closeout


Administrative Closure

Project Closeout


9


Initiating Process Group Steps in the Initiating process group include: ❑

Collect project information.

❑

Obtain organizational commitment.

❑

Develop the team.

Project Information


Obtain organizational commitment

Team development





10



Planning Process Group Steps in the Planning process group include: ❑

Establish project objectives and scope of work.

❑

Define the work.

❑

Determine the timing.

❑

Establish resource requirements/availability.

❑

Establish a cost budget.

❑

Evaluate, optimize, and create baseline plan.


Scope definition


Activity definition

Schedule development

Resource and cost planning

Project plan development

Baseline creation





11


Executing Process Group Steps in the Executing process group include: ❑

Distribute information.

❑

Track work in progress and actual costs. Initiating process group



Information distribution Project plan execution



12



Controlling Process Group Steps in the Controlling process group include: ❑

Analyze and evaluate the project.

❑

Recommend necessary action.

❑

Modify the current project with realistic data.

❑

Re-forecast the schedule.

❑

Communicate project performance to the project team. Initiating process group


Executing process group Yes

Performance reporting No


Are there changes? No Project complete? Yes



13


Closing Process Group Steps in the Closing process group include: ❑

Document lessons learned.

❑

Determine if project can be used as a methodology.

❑

Deliver product to client or stakeholders.

❑

Back-up or archive project files. Initiating process group




Contract closeout


Administrative closure

Project closeout

14


LESSON 3

Overview and Navigation Objectives ✔

Log in to P6 Web

✔

Navigate to sections

✔

Locate Action bars

Key Terms Navigation bar Action bar User Interface view Breadcrumbs trail


15

Lesson 3: Overview and Navigation

What is P6 Web? P6 Web provides a Web-based interface to manage projects, portfolios, and resources while sharing data with other project team members. FIG. 3.1: P6 Web functionality areas.

The following four sections are targeted to roles within the organization: ❑

Portfolios — Executives can create portfolios of projects and use customizable reporting features to track project status and make informed decisions about strategic initiatives.

❑

Projects — Project managers can create and manage projects, request or staff resources, and update project status.

❑

Resources — Resource managers can establish teams by resource or role, monitor allocation of those resources, and assign them as requested by the project manager.

❑

Administration — System administrators can tailor the user interface to individual or group of users.

The Dashboards section is available to all users: ❑

16

Dashboards — Uses data windows called portlets to display portfolio, project, and resource data. Administrators can enforce standard dashboards across the organization.



User Access to Data When you log in to P6 Web your access and ability to manipulate data is determined by several layers of security. FIG. 3.2: Layers of security in P6 Web.

Login You need a valid Username and Password provided by your system administrator to log in to P6 Web.

License, Security Profile, Project Association Your organization provides licenses to access P6 Web depending on your role in the organization and the functions you need to perform your job. Your license determines what sections are visible in the application. Your security profile may further restrain your access and ability to manipulate data. Project association determines the project data to which you have access.

User Interface View Each user is assigned a User Interface view in P6 Web. The User Interface view controls the tabs and Action bar items that are displayed.


17


Logging In to P6 Web ✍ You can save the URL as a Favorite in Internet Explorer.

P6 Web is a Web-based application. To access P6 Web, launch a Web browser and type in the URL specified by your organization.

Logging In You must enter a valid Username and Password. Contact your system administrator if you do not know your Username and Password. In your work environment you may be required to change the default password by clicking Change Password. FIG. 3.3: Click Login to log in to P6 Web.

EXERCISE: Log in to P6 Web.

✍ The URL provided

by your instructor is for classroom use only. Your organization will specify a different URL to access Primavera at your work site.

18

Steps 1. Type the URL provided by your instructor in the Address bar in the Web browser. 2. Type a Username and Password . 3. Confirm PMDB$PRIMAVERA is selected in the Database drop-down list. 4. Click Login.



The P6 Web Screen After a successful login, the P6 Web application screen is displayed. Items displayed on the screen depend on your license, security profile, and the assigned User Interface view. Title bar Navigation bar

FIG 3.4: P6 Web screen.

There are areas of the application screen that do not change once you log in: ❑

Title bar — Displays the Primavera logo and provides access to printing, viewing context-sensitive help, setting user preferences, and logging out.

❑

Navigation bar — Provides access to sections: Dashboards, Portfolios, Projects, Resources, and Administration. Click to display a section. The selected section is bold.


19


Navigating in P6 Web Only one section can be displayed at a time. After you click a section button, the Action bar is displayed: ❑

Action bar — Displays commands related to the selected section. Available commands depend on your security profile and the assigned User Interface view.

FIG. 3.5: The Action bar displays section-related commands.

EXERCISE: Navigate to the Projects section.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Projects. 2. View the Action bar for the Projects section.

20



Most Recently Used Items Three of the sections, Portfolios, Projects, and Resources, provide shortcuts to most recently used items. For example, when you click the down arrow in the Navigation bar next to Projects, the list of most recently selected projects is displayed. FIG. 3.6: Use shortcuts to most recently used items.

EXERCISE: Select a project.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click

next to Projects.

2. Select a project, Finance System Upgrade.

Breadcrumbs Trail After the project is selected, it is indicated in the Breadcrumbs trail. You can use the Breadcrumbs trail to retrace your actions within a section. However, if you change sections, your steps are not retained. FIG. 3.7: Use the Breadcrumbs trail to retrace your steps within a section.


21


Tabs Tabs within a section provide access to a group of actions. The number and order of the tabs can be customized by the system administrator in the assigned User Interface view. Since tabs are related to the selected section, their titles often are referred to with the section name. For example, in the Projects section below, the Details tab can be called "Project Details," or the Tools tab "Project Tools." FIG. 3.8: Tabs are displayed for the selected section.

EXERCISE: View tabs in the Projects section.

Steps 1. Confirm that the Projects section is selected. 2. View tabs in the Projects section.

22



LESSON REVIEW Key Concepts ❑

There are several layers of security that determine data and functionality that is accessible for each user.

❑

The main sections on top of the application screen (Dashboards, Portfolios, Projects, Resources, and Administration) allow you to focus on a specific aspect of project management.

❑

Each section has an Action bar to execute section-related tasks.

Review Questions 1.

Which of the following is not a section in P6 Web? a. Dashboards b. User Interface views c. Portfolios d. Administration

2.

Which of the following is true? a. You can use the Breadcrumbs trail to retrace your steps across sections. b. You can view the name of the currently logged in user at the top of the application screen. c. Clicking the P6 logo takes you back to the login screen. d. Your licence determines what sections are accessible to you.

3. True or False: If an arrow is visible in the Navigation bar, you can access some of the most recently used items in that section.


23


24


LESSON 4

Creating a Project Objectives ✔

Create a project

✔

Select a location in the Enterprise Project Structure

✔

Assign a Responsible Manager from the Organizational Breakdown Structure

Key Terms Enterprise Project Structure Organizational Breakdown Structure


25

Lesson 4: Creating a Project

Enterpise Project Management Primavera provides the capability for organizations to manage enterprise-wide projects, portfolios, and resources while maintaining security and responsibility. Each project is a unique entity containing the following essential information:

26

❑

How is the project identified? — Each project has a unique Project ID that identifies the project.

❑

What is the name of the project? — Each project has a descriptive name. The project name is not required to be unique, but it is recommended.

❑

Where is the project stored? — Projects are stored in the Enterprise Project Structure (EPS), which resembles a hierarchical folder structure.

❑

Who is responsible for the project? — Each project has an assigned Responsible Manager, selected from the Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS).

❑

When is the project planned to start? — Each project has a Planned Start date that is set when the project is created.



Enterprise Project Structure ✍ EPS is defined by

your system administrator. In P6 Web, you can view the EPS when selecting a project.

The Enterprise Project Structure (EPS) provides the foundation for enterprise project management. It is a hierarchical arrangement of all projects in the enterprise, arranged so that data about projects can be rolled up and analyzed at multiple levels. The EPS, a hierarchy created by the enterprise to organize its projects, provides functionality to view project priorities, scope, budget, and resource information across the enterprise. It enables individuals to manage projects separately, and the organization to roll up and summarize data across multiple projects, view resource allocation across projects, and assign security at any level of the structure to provide users with appropriate access to project information. The EPS comprises roots and nodes: ❑

A root typically represents the top level of the organization.

❑

Nodes represent different levels within the EPS. Nodes can, for example, represent divisions within the organization, departments, or site locations.

All projects must be included in an EPS node. ❑

Each node can contain an unlimited number of projects.

❑

Projects always represent the lowest level of the hierarchy.

❑

Placement of a project in the hierarchy determines the summary level in which it is included. EPS Root

EPS Node

EPS Node

Project A

EPS Node

Project B

Project C

EPS Node

EPS Node

Project D

Project F

Project E

FIG 4.1: Elements of the EPS: root, nodes, and projects.


27


Viewing the EPS Below is a graphic representation of Signature Corporation’s EPS and how it appears in Primavera when you select a project. FIG. 4.2: The EPS represented graphically.

Signature Corporation

Legend

Construct Projects

IT Projects

EPS Node Name

Project Name Internal IT Projects

New Systems

ERP System Installation

External IT Projects

System Upgrades

Finance System Upgrade

IT Maintenance

HR System Upgrade

Upgrade Network

Integrate S/390

FIG. 4.3: The EPS displays in the Projects section.

EXERCISE: Display the Enterprise Project Structure.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Projects. to expand EPS nodes, Information Technology Projects, Internal IT Projects and System Upgrades.

2. Click

28



Organizational Breakdown Structure ✍ OBS is defined by

your system administrator. In Primavera, you can view the OBS when selecting a Responsible Manager.

The Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS) provides the foundation for enterprise project management. It is a hierarchical arrangement of an organization’s project management structure, controlling user access to project data and designation of the Responsible Manager. The OBS, a hierarchical arrangement of an organization’s project management structure, can be configured to represent a detailed organizational breakdown with employee names or a more general framework with departments and divisions. The OBS performs two key functions in enterprise project management: ❑

Designating the Responsible Manager — OBS elements are assigned as Responsible Managers for work within an EPS node, a project, a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), or an issue or risk within a project. Responsible Manager assignments can be "inherited" as well. For example, when you add a new project, the Responsible Manager is inherited from its parent EPS node.

❑

Controlling user access to project information — All users are assigned to an OBS element to establish their access to project data. For example, all members of the Development Dept. are assigned to the OBS element VP of Development. Due to this assignment, they can view all projects for which the VP of Development is the Responsible Manager — though they may not all have the same access to manipulate project data. That access is governed by a user’s security profile, which may limit their access to "read-only" status.


29


Viewing the OBS Below is a graphic representation of Signature Corporation’s OBS. In the next exercise you will see how it appears in P6 Web when you select a Responsible Manager. Signature Corporation

VP of Program Office

Project Coordinator

VP of Construction

Chief Technology Officer

Project Administrator

Andy Mason

Tom Mills

Meg Foley

Joe Nolan

Therese Swan

Tim Harris

Linda Haris

VP of Development Dept.

System Installations Lead

System Analysis Lead

VP of Training and Support

Testing Lead

Developments Lead

Training Lead

In House Development

Support Lead

VP of System Administration

Network Mgr.

Implementation Mgr.

Data Mgr.

FIG 4.4: OBS structure represented graphically.

30



Creating a Project There are several ways to create a project in P6 Web. For example, your system administrator may create one for you, or it can be created through the initiation process. This course focuses on the Create Project command.

Create Project Command You can launch the Create Project command in the Action bar in the Projects section. FIG. 4.5: In the Action bar, click Create Project.

EXERCISE: Create a new project.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Projects. 2. In the Action bar, click Create Project.


31


Entering Required Project Information The Create Project screen requires you to: ❑

Type a unique Project ID.

❑

Type a Project Name.

❑

Select a location for the project in the EPS.

❑

Assign a Responsible Manager from the OBS.

❑

Set a Planned Start date.

Required fields are marked with an asterisk in the Create Project screen. The

Must Finish By field is optional.

Data Fields in the Application ❑

Some of the fields in the application allow you to type in a value directly. For example, you type data in the Project ID and Project Name fields.

❑

Other fields may require you to click an icon first and then select a value from the list of available items. For example, in the EPS and Responsible

Manager fields, click

32

and then select a value.



Entering Required Project Information (continued) Since Project ID must be unique across the enterprise data, P6 Web will display an error after clicking Create if the Project ID already exists. FIG. 4.6: Click the list of values icon to select an item.

EXERCISE: Provide required information for a new project.

Steps 1. In the Project ID field, type . 2. In the Project Name field, type
. 3. In the EPS field, click

.

to expand EPS nodes, Information Technology Projects and Internal IT Projects.

4. Click

5. Select an EPS node, System Upgrades, and then click OK. 6. In the Responsible Manager field, click

.

to expand OBS nodes, Signature Corporation and Chief Technology Officer.

7. Click

8. Select a responsible manager, VP of Development, and then click OK. 9. In the Planned Start field, click

to display calendar.

10. Select a date, 04-Jan-10, and then click Select. 11. Click Create.


33


Creating a Project (continued) The Create Project Links page offers the following options to work with the newly created project: ❑

Add activities and WBS.

❑

Go to Project Workspace.

❑

Create another project.

❑

Run Project Architect, enabling you to create a project plan by retrieving methodology content from Methodology Management.

FIG 4.7: Options available after clicking Finish in Create Project.

These options, organized on one page, appear only after you create a project. However, you can always access them in the Projects section:

34

❑

Add activities and WBS — Select a project and then click the Activities tab.

❑

Go to Project Workspace — Select a project and then click the Workspace tab.

❑

Create another project — In the Navigation bar, click Projects and then click Create Project.

❑

Run Project Architect — Select a project and then click the Tools tab. In the Tools tab, click Run Project Architect.




The Enterprise Project Structure is hierarchical arrangement of all projects in the enterprise. It is arranged so that data about projects can be rolled up and analyzed at multiple levels.

❑

The Organizational Breakdown Structure is hierarchical arrangement of an organization’s project management structure. It controls user access to project data and designation of the responsible manager.

❑

Launch the Create Project command in the Action bar in the Projects section. The Create Project screen requires you to: • Select a location for the project in the EPS. • Type a unique Project ID. • Type a Project Name. • Assign a Responsible Manager from the OBS.

Review Questions 1. True or False: All projects must be included in an EPS node. 2. True or False: The Must Finish By field is required when you create a project. 3. True or False: You must enter a unique Project Name when creating a project.


35


36


LESSON 5

Editing Project Details Objectives ✔

Select a project in the EPS

✔

View Project Details

✔

Enter project data in the Details tabs

Key Terms Project Details


37

Lesson 5: Editing Project Details

Selecting a Project Once a project is created it can be accessed via the Enterprise Project Structure, which is displayed in the Projects section.

Exploring the EPS If you know where the project resides in the EPS, you can expand EPS nodes and find the project. For an EPS node ( ), only the EPS ID is displayed. For a project ( ), the Project ID and the Project Name are visible. Use the Delete link to delete the project from the EPS if you have the security privilege to do so. FIG. 5.1: Expand the EPS to locate projects.

EXERCISE: Locate the HR System Upgrade project.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Projects. 2. Expand EPS nodes, Information Technology Projects, Internal IT Projects and System Upgrades. 3. Locate a project, HR System Upgrade.

38



Using Project Search The Search function in the Projects section allows you to find projects in the EPS based on Project ID or Project Name. As you type in the Search field, P6 Web automatically displays only those projects whose Project ID or name starts with the value in the Search field. FIG. 5.2: Use the Search function to locate projects.

EXERCISE: Select the HR System Upgrade project.

Steps 1. In the Search field, type the first two letters of the project name,
. 2. To select the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS.


39


Editing Project Details After a project is selected, project information is organized in tabs in the Projects section. The Details tab allows you to edit details of the selected project via sub-tabs. The number and order of sub-tabs may vary based on your assigned User Interface view. FIG. 5.3: Click to edit details of the selected project.

EXERCISE: Display the Details tab for the

HR System Upgrade project.

Steps 1. Click the Details tab. 2. Confirm that the General sub-tab is selected.

40



General Sub-Tab The values for Project ID, Project Name, Parent EPS and Responsible Manager, assigned when you created the project, can be edited in the General sub-tab.

✍ Project owner is not

the same as Responsible Manager, though the same individual can be designated for both roles.

❑

Project Web site URL — Post the URL to the Web site created by your system administrator.

❑

Project Owner — The individual responsible for the project. The project owner designation provides the individual view-access to the project.

❑

Project Status — Select Planned, Active, Inactive, or What-if.

❑

Risk Level — Select from five categories, which can be used to rank, organize, and filter projects.

❑

Strategic Priority — Select a number from 1 to 10,000 to rank project in a strategic plan.

❑

Original Budget — Enter an estimate of the total budgeted amount required for this project, including all funding contributions.

❑

Current Budget — This calculated field displays planned budget plus all approved budget change logs.

❑

Total Activities — Number of activities in the project.

❑

Planned Start — The start date of the project. It is a required field you assigned in the Create Project wizard, but it can be edited here.

❑

Actual Start — This calculated field displays the actual start, based on the actual start of the first activity in the project.

❑

Data Date — Enter the date used as the starting point to calculate the schedule.

❑

Must Finish By — Enter a date to serve as a constraint placed on the project’s end date.

❑

Scheduled Finish — This calculated field displays the latest early finish date based on the schedule most recently generated for the project.

❑

Actual Finish — This calculated field displays the actual finish date of the project. A project is finished when all activities have actual finish dates.

❑

Checked Out By — The name of the user who checked out the project. If the project is not checked out, this field is blank.

❑

Date Checked Out — The date and time the user checked out the project. If the project is not checked out, this field is blank.


41


General Sub-Tab (continued) FIG. 5.4: Type a value in the

Original Budget field.

EXERCISE: Type an Original Budget.

Steps 1. In the Original Budget field, type a value <200,000>. 2. Click Save.

42



Notebook Sub-Tab ✍ Notebook topics are created by system administrator.

Use the Notebook sub-tab to view or modify project notes, such as the project’s purpose, core requirements, or other project-specific details.

FIG. 5.5: Use the Notebook sub-tab to edit project notes.

EXERCISE: Document that you use Primavera to manage the project.

Steps 1. Click the Notebook sub-tab. 2. Click Assign Notebook Topic. 3. Use the Search function to select a topic, Tools/Techniques. 4. Click Assign, and then click Close. 5. Click a notebook topic, Tools/Techniques. 6. Type a description . 7. Click Save. 8. Click

to view the description.


43


Adding Web Links to Notebook Topic Descriptions You can use HTML tags in the body of your description and you can create a link. The link is active when you place your cursor over it. FIG. 5.6: Click hyperlink to launch Primavera Web site.

EXERCISE: Add a link to a Notebook topic description.

Steps 1. Click a Notebook topic, Tools/Techniques. 2. Highlight Primavera in the notebook topic description. 3. Click

.

4. Type the Web site address in the Explorer User Prompt dialog . 5. Click OK. 6. Click Save. 7. Click

to expand the description.

8. Click the hyperlink Primavera to launch Primavera’s Web page, and then close the Web site window.

44



Funding Sub-Tab Use the Funding sub-tab to add, delete, review, and revise funding sources for your project.

✍ Funding sources are created by your system administrator.

❑

Funding Source — Lists funding sources assigned to the project. Click the name of the funding source to edit details.

❑

Amount — The amount of money allocated to the project from the funding source.

❑

Fund Share — Percentage of the total fund allocated to the project.

FIG. 5.7: Assign funding sources in the Funding subtab.

EXERCISE: Assign a Funding Source.

Steps 1. Click the Funding sub-tab. 2. Click Assign Funding Source. 3. Select a funding source, Apex. 4. Click Assign, and then click Close. 5. Click a funding source, Apex, to edit details. 6. In the Amount field, type <20,000>. 7. In the Fund Share field, type <10>. 8. Click Save.


45


Codes Sub-Tab Use the Codes sub-tab to assign project codes and values to the project. Project codes enable you to group projects into categories, such as location or priority.

✍ Project codes/

values are created by your system administrator.

❑

Project code — Lists project codes assigned to the project.

❑

Code value — Displays the selected value of the project code. A single project code, for example, Division, can have numerous values, such as Marketing, Engineering, Development, etc.

❑

Description — Displays the project code description.

FIG. 5.8: Assign project codes to the project in the Codes sub-tab.

EXERCISE: Assign a project code, ITSU: IT System Upgrade, to the project.

Steps 1. Click the Codes sub-tab. 2. Click Assign Project Codes. 3. Click

to expand a project code, Project Code: Product Group.

4. Select a project code value, ITSU: IT System Upgrade. 5. Click Assign, and then click Close.

46



Settings Sub-Tab Use the Settings sub-tab to choose default settings for adding new activities in the project; selecting a baseline for calculating earned value; and checking the last summarized date, the WBS level, and the resource assignment used for summarizing the project. The following default settings apply to new activities in the project. You can later change these default settings for individual activities as needed: ✍ Existing activities are not updated to reflect new default settings.

❑

Default Duration Type for New Activities — Determines whether schedule, resource availability, or cost is most important when modifying an activity. Note that duration type applies only when you have resources assigned to the activity. You can specify the default duration type for new activities in new projects in Projects Preferences.

❑

Default Percent Complete Type for New Activities — Determines how progress can best be measured for most of the activities in your project: Duration, Physical, or Units.

❑

Default Activity Type for New Activities — Determines how duration and schedule dates are calculated for an activity.

❑

Default Rate Type — Determines the price/unit for all new resource assignments on the project.

❑

Default Price/Unit or activities without resource or role Price/ Units — Determines the default price/unit to calculate cost for activities that have units but no assigned resource, or for activities that have assigned resources who do not have price/units specified. Enter a dollar value and a work unit separated by a forward slash: $20/h.

❑

Summarize to WBS Level — Indicates the number of summary WBS elements stored in the database.

❑

Last Summarized — Displays date project was last summarized. This is useful for assessing whether summary data is current.

❑

Summarize project based on — Determines whether summarization is based on high-level resource planning or detailed activity resource assignments.

❑

Baseline for Earned Value Calculations — Select the Project baseline or the Primary baseline to be used for earned value calculations. To manage baselines, click the Baselines tab in the Projects section.


47


Settings Sub-Tab (continued) FIG. 5.9: Set default values in the Settings tab.

EXERCISE: Set the default price/unit.

Steps 1. Click the Settings sub-tab. 2. In the Default Price/Unit for activities without resource or role Price/Units field, type <40>. 3. Click Save.

48



User Defined Sub-Tab ✍ User defined fields are created by your system administrator.

The User Defined sub-tab enables you to assign values to project-related user defined fields, which can be used to track additional project data as columns in the Project Statistics portlet on dashboards and in the Project Workspace.

FIG. 5.10: Set user defined fields in the User Defined sub-tab.

EXERCISE: Add the user defined field

Estimated Expense Cost.

Steps 1. Click the User Defined sub-tab. 2. Click Customize. 3. In the Available Columns section, click Defined.

to expand a grouping, User

4. Select a user defined field, Estimated Expense Cost. 5. Click

to move it to the Selected Columns section.

6. Click Save. 7. Type a value <40,000>. 8. Click Save.


49


WORKSHOP: EDITING PROJECT DETAILS Background The HR System Upgrade project has been created, and some of its attributes have been entered in Project Details.

Objectives Add the following attributes in Project Details: 1. Assign a Notebook topic, Purpose, and type a description . 2. Assign a project code value HIGH - High Priority from within the project code Priority Code. 3. Change the Responsible Manager to Solutions Delivery Group.

50




Use the Search function in the Projects section to locate projects quickly in the EPS.

❑

Use the Details tab in the Projects section to edit project details. Project data is organized in sub-tabs.

❑

To delete a project, click Delete next to the project.

Review Questions 1.

Which statement is false? a. Using the Search function on the Projects section displays projects in a flat list. b. You click the project name to select a project. c. Projects within an EPS are sorted by ID. d. You can select only one project at a time.

2. True or False: Sub-tabs under the Details tab may vary based on the assigned User Interface view.


51


52


LESSON 6

Creating a Work Breakdown Structure Objectives ✔

Describe a WBS

✔

Create multiple levels of a WBS hierarchy

Key Terms Work Breakdown Structure WBS element


53

Lesson 6: Creating a Work Breakdown Structure

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) The WBS is a hierarchical arrangement of products and services produced during and by a project. ❑

The project is the highest level of the WBS.

❑

An activity is the lowest level of the WBS.

A key benefit of the WBS is that it enables you to divide a project into meaningful smaller pieces for the purpose of planning and control. Elements within the WBS have a "parent/child" relationship, meaning you can roll up and summarize data from the lower levels. For planning and budgeting, you can set anticipated dates or budgets at a high level in the WBS before adding activities. WBS elements can also be used to assign responsibility, via the Organizational Breakdown Structure, to different managers for planning and accountability purposes. FIG. 6.1: The hierarchical structure of the WBS enables you to roll up data from "child" to "parent."

EPS Root

EPS Node

EPS Node

Project A/ WBS

WBS.1.1

54

WBS.1

WBS.2

WBS.1.2

WBS.1.3

EPS Node

Project B

Project C

EPS Node

EPS Node

Project D

Project F

Project E

WBS.3



Creating a WBS for the HR System Upgrade Project You will structure the WBS of the HR System Upgrade project into three phases: System Development, System Testing, and System Deployment. The three main phases will be further subdivided according to the chart below. HR System Upgrade

System Development

System Requirements

System Design

System Testing

System Implementation

System Integration Tests

System Deployment

QA Tests

System Installation Preparation

System Installation

FIG 6.3: The Work Breakdown Structure of the HR System Upgrade project.

Below, the WBS structure of the HR System Upgrade project as it is displayed in P6 Web:


55


Creating a WBS The WBS is created in the Activities tab in the Projects section. The Activities tab is the central location for maintaining the WBS and managing activities. The selected HR System Upgrade - Creating a WBS project has only one WBS element, its root. FIG. 6.4: The WBS root element is displayed.

EXERCISE: Select a project and an activity view.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Projects. 2. In the Search field, type
to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Creating a WBS. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-06. 4. Click the Activities tab. 5. In the View drop-down list, select Adding WBS.

56



Creating a WBS (continued) Each WBS element in the hierarchy is defined by three characteristics: ❑

WBS Code — A required field, the WBS code is a unique alphanumerical value appended to its parent WBS name. A "child" WBS element inherits part of its WBS code from its "parent," extending the suffix one place as it moves down the hierarchy. For example:

Table 1: Relationship of Parent/Child WBS Codes If parent’s WBS code is ...

... then WBS codes of its children are

Test

Test.1, Test.2, etc.

Test1

Test1.1, Test1.2, etc.

Test1.1

Test1.1.1, Test1.1.2, etc.

❑

WBS Name — A unique name, usually one that represents the product or service produced by activities within that element.

❑

Parent WBS — The parent WBS element in the hierarchy.


57


Adding a Child WBS Element In the Icon bar, click ( ) to add or delete ( ) a child WBS element. The WBS Code is automatically generated and you can edit its value any time by doubleclicking the WBS element. To edit the WBS name, display WBS Details. To edit the details of the selected WBS element, click

.

FIG. 6.5: Click the icon to edit details.

EXERCISE: Add elements to the WBS.

Steps 1. In the Icon bar, click 2. Click

to add a WBS element.

to save the WBS.

3. In the Icon bar, click

.

4. In the WBS Code field, confirm a value, 1. 5. In the WBS Name field, type . 6. Click Save. 7. Click Return.

58



Adding Sibling WBS Elements Add sibling WBS elements using the context-sensitive right-click menu. FIG. 6.6: Rightclick a WBS element to access commands.

EXERCISE: Add two sibling WBS elements to HRSYS-06.1.

Steps 1. Confirm that a WBS element, HRSYS-06.1, is selected. 2. Right-click and select Add sibling WBS. 3. Click

to save the WBS.

4. Right-click on a WBS element, HRSYS-06.2, and select Details. 5. In the WBS Name field, type . 6. Click Save and then click Return. 7. Right-click a WBS element, HRSYS-06.2, and select Add sibling WBS. 8. Click

to save the WBS.

9. Right-click on a WBS element, HRSYS-06.3, and select Details. 10. In the WBS Name field, type . 11. Click Save and then click Return.


59


Creating Additional Levels in the WBS By adding a child WBS to a child WBS, you can create additional levels in the hierarchy. You can also indent and outdent existing WBS element to modify the WBS structure. Use the arrows on the icon bar to indent, outdent, or change the order of sibling WBS elements. FIG. 6.7: Use arrows to move or indent/outdent WBS elements.

EXERCISE: Add WBS elements under the HRSYS-06.1 WBS element.

Steps 1. Right-click on a WBS element, HRSYS-06.1, and select Add sibling WBS. 2. Click

to save the WBS.

3. In the Icon bar, use 4. In the Icon bar, click

to move HRSYS-06.4 under HRSYS-06.1. to indent HRSYS-06.4.

5. Right-click on a WBS element, HRSYS-06.1.4, and select Details. 6. Click Yes to save data. 7. In the WBS code field, type <1>. 8. In the WBS name field, type . 9. Click Save and then click Return. 10. Right-click on a WBS element, HRSYS-06.1.1, and select Add sibling WBS. 11. Click

to save the WBS.

12. Right-click on a WBS element, HRSYS-06.1.2, and select Details. 13. In the WBS name field, type . 14. Click Save and then click Return.

60



Changing the Parent WBS On the WBS details page, you can select a new Parent WBS as an alternative to using arrows to indent/outdent. FIG. 6.8: Click to replace the current Parent WBS.

Deleting a WBS Element Deleting a WBS element deletes all WBS elements and activities within. To delete the WBS, click on the Icon bar or press Delete on your keyboard. When deleting a WBS that has activities, you can decide whether you want to delete those activities or merge them under the parent WBS.

Reusing the WBS You cannot export or import the WBS. However, using the Project Architect tool, you can bring in an existing WBS saved in the Methodology Management database.


61


WORKSHOP: CREATING A WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE Background The project structure has been defined for the HR System Upgrade project. You now need to add additional WBS elements.

Objectives 1. Add the following WBS codes and names within the parent WBS elements as indicated in the table below.

Parent WBS

WBS Code

WBS Name

HRSYS-06.2 System Testing 1

System Integration Test

1

System Installation Preparation

2

System Installation

HRSYS-06.3 System Deployment

2. Compare your WBS structure with the screenshot below. FIG. 6.9: WBS elements added to the project.

62




The WBS is a hierarchical arrangement of products and services produced during and by a project, where the highest level of the WBS is the project, and the lowest is an activity.

❑

The WBS structure enables you to divide a project into meaningful smaller pieces for the purpose of planning and control.

❑

Elements within the WBS have a "parent/child" relationship, meaning you can roll up and summarize data from the lower levels.

❑

Use the Activities tab in the Projects section to manage your WBS.

Review Questions 1. True or False: The project is the highest level of the WBS. 2.

What tab in the Projects section should you use to build the WBS? a. Details b. Tools c. Activities d. None of the above

3. True or False: Elements within the WBS have a parent/child relationship.


63


64


LESSON 7

Adding Activities Objectives ✔

Describe activity types

✔

View activity information in the Activities tab

✔

Send an e-mail related to an activity

✔

Edit Activity Details

✔

Add steps to an activity

✔

Add a Notebook topic to an activity

✔

Assign an activity code

Key Terms Activity Activity Details Activity Type


65

Lesson 7: Adding Activities

Adding Activities Activities are the fundamental work elements of a project. They are the lowest level of a WBS and contain all information about the work to be performed. Also known as tasks, items, events, or work packages, activities are the smallest subdivision of work that directly concerns the project manager and are generally the most detailed work unit tracked in a project schedule. Activities drive the schedule of a project as they represent work that must be completed in a determined amount of time, at a specific cost, or with a defined number of resources. Primavera supports the following six activity types:

Table 2: Comparing Activity Types Activity Type

Use Case

Notes

Start Milestone

Mark beginning of a phase or communicate project deliverables.

-- Zero duration activity. -- Only has start date. -- Can assign constraints,expenses, documents. -- Can assign primary resource. -- Cannot assign roles.

Finish Milestone

Mark end of a phase or communicate project deliverables.

-- Zero duration activity. -- Only has a finish date. -- Can assign constraints, expenses, documents. -- Can assign primary resource. -- Cannot assign roles.

Task Dependent

Work needs to be accomplished in a given time frame, regardless of assigned resources’ availability.

-- Resources scheduled to work according to activity calendar.

Resource Dependent

Multiple resources assigned to the same activity can work independently.

-- Activity resources are scheduled according to individual resource’s calendar. -- Duration determined by availability of resources assigned to work on activity.

Level of Effort

Ongoing tasks dependent on other activities. For example, status meetings, database maintenance, project management tasks.

-- Duration determined on its predecessor / successor activities. -- Cannot assign constraints.

WBS Summary

Roll up date, duration, and percent complete values for a group of activities that share a common WBS code level.

-- Rollup values are calculated when the project is scheduled. -- Start dates are set to the earliest start date of all activities in the group. -- Finish dates are set to the latest finish date of all activities in the group. -- Duration is calculated based on the earliest activity start and latest activity finish in the group.

66



Viewing Activities The Activities tab enables you to customize columns that are visible when managing activities. It provides filtering, grouping, and sorting functionality to better organize activities. It also allows you to turn on and off the Gantt Chart. All of these elements are organized in activity views that you can create, modify and share. You can also send an e-mail to project team members associated with the activity or click Export to file to export contents of the Activities tab to a comma-separated value (.csv) file, which can be opened in Microsoft Excel. FIG. 7.1: Only the WBS is displayed since the project does not have any activities.

EXERCISE: View the Activities tab.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Adding Activities. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-07. 4. Click the Activities tab. 5. In the View drop-down list, select Adding Activities.


67


Viewing Activities (continued) The following columns are displayed in the Activities tab:

68

❑

WBS/Activity — Type an Activity ID that is unique within the project. If you leave it blank, an Activity ID is generated automatically.

❑

Activity Name — Type a name for the activity. The Activity Name does not have to be unique, but it is recommended. Primavera provides the name New Activity by default.

❑

Activity Type — Identify the type of activity. The default activity type is specified in the Settings sub-tab in Project Details.

❑

Planned Duration — Type the estimated time required to complete the activity. If you leave this field blank, the default duration is set by your system administrator.

❑

Primary Resource — Identify the resource primarily responsible for performing the work.

❑

WBS Code — The WBS code of the parent WBS.

❑

WBS — The Parent WBS of the activity.



Adding a Start Milestone Activity Activity status is indicated for each activity by the following icons: Diamond: Milestone Bar: Green (no progress); blue/green (in progress); blue (completed); red (critical) FIG. 7.2: Activity ID is displayed in the WBS/Activity column.

EXERCISE: Add a Start Milestone activity in the System Requirements WBS.

Steps 1. Select a WBS element, HRSYS-07.1.1. 2. Right-click and select Add Activity. 3. Double-click in the Activity field and type . 4. Double-click in the Activity Name field and type . 5. Double-click in the Activity Type field. 6. In the drop-down list, select Start Milestone. 7. Leave the Planned Duration as default. 8. Double-click in the Primary Resource field. 9. In the Search field, type a name . 10. Select a resource, Susan Arnold, and then click OK. 11. Click

to save.


69


Adding an Activity Most fields are editable in the Activities tab. However, if values are not directly accessible, those fields are disabled or grayed out. In the example below, the Planned Duration of a milestone activity is always zero and you cannot change the WBS code of the parent WBS directly in the list. FIG. 7.3: Disabled fields are not editable.

EXERCISE: Add an activity under a WBS element, System Requirements.

Steps 1. Select a WBS element, HRSYS-07.1.1. 2. Right-click and select Add Activity. 3. Double-click in the Activity field and type . 4. Double-click in the Activity Name field and type . 5. Double-click in the Planned Duration field and type <4d>. 6. Click

70

to save.



Copy/Pasting Activities You can quickly add similar activities by copy-pasting existing ones. All activity information is copied, except the Activity ID, since it must be unique. FIG. 7.4: Activity ID’s are changed.

EXERCISE: Copypaste two activities.

Steps 1. Select an activity, HR1000 - Start development milestone. 2. Ctrl-click an activity, HR1010 - Define operational concept of new system. 3. Right-click and select Copy. 4. Select a WBS, HRSYS-07.1.2. 5. Right-click and select Paste. 6. Click

to save.


71


Deleting Activities You can delete a single or multiple activities by clicking menu and select Delete.

or use the right-click

FIG. 7.5: Click to delete selected activities.

EXERCISE: Delete multiple activities.

Steps 1. Select an activity, HR1020 - Start development milestone. 2. Ctrl-click an activity, HR1030 - Define operational concept of new system. 3. Right-click and select Delete. 4. Click Yes to confirm your decision. 5. Click

72

to save.



Viewing and Editing Activity Details You can view and edit activity information data such as relationships, codes, and steps in Activity Details. To access Activity Details, select an activity and then either click Icon bar or use the right-click menu and select Details.

on the

There are two ways to display Activity Details: form and tabs. The assigned User Interface view determines whether how Activity Details is displayed: ❑

Form — Project information on a single page.

❑

Tabs — Project information in a series of sub-tabs.

FIG. 7.6: Activity Details form.

FIG. 7.7: Activity Details sub-tabs.


73


Viewing Activity Details in Tabs In this course you will use sub-tabs to display Activity Details. FIG. 7.8: Sub-tabs in Activity Details.

EXERCISE: View Activity Details in subtabs.

Steps 1. Confirm that the activity you just added, Define operational concept of new system, is selected. 2. Right-click and select Details to display Activity Details.

74



Activity Details Sub-Tabs Summary Following is a summary of Activity Details sub-tabs: ❑

General — Edit activity ID/Activity Name; set activity type, Percent Complete type, and duration type; assign WBS, calendar, primary resource; set auto compute for actuals.

❑

Steps — Add, delete, and review steps; update steps status.

❑

Status — Manually status progress of an activity by updating dates and constraints, units and durations, and costs.

❑

Resources — Add/remove resource and role assignments; submit resource requests; and view units and cost data.

❑

Notebook — Add, edit, and delete Notebook topics/descriptions.

❑

Relationships — Assign predecessor/successor activities.

❑

Codes — Assign activity codes and activity code values.

❑

Expenses — Add, edit, and delete expense items, and view expenserelated data via customized column display.

❑

Documents — Assign documents to activity and display the document’s category, status, and public location.

❑

User Defined — Specify user-defined fields, which can be used to track additional activity data as columns in the Activities tab.


75


General Sub-Tab The General sub-tab enables you to define three key characteristics of an activity: activity type, duration type, and Percent Complete type. Each plays a role in how the activity is scheduled and updated. The sub-tab also allows you to select a WBS, a primary resource, and the calendar for the activity. Some of the key fields on the General sub-tab:

✍ Use the Settings

sub-tab in Project Details to set default settings for duration type, activity type and percent complete type. Default settings apply only to activities created after the default is set.

76

❑

Calendar — Use this field to assign an activity calendar, which specifies the available working time.

❑

Duration Type — Determines how Remaining Duration, units, and units/ time are calculated when you update an activity that has resources assigned. The activity's duration type should correspond to the factor that is least flexible in the project: schedule, costs/work effort, or resource availability.

❑

Percent Complete Type — Determines how an activity's Percent Complete is calculated. Choose a Percent Complete type that represents how activity progress can be most accurately reported.

❑

Auto Compute Actuals — Mark this checkbox if you want to measure progress as if the activity is proceeding on schedule. If you choose the Auto Compute Actuals option, Actual Units/Remaining Units and Actual Costs/Remaining Costs are automatically updated for all activity resources when you apply actuals.



Steps Sub-Tab The Steps sub-tab can be used to add/delete steps; add/revise step descriptions; and mark steps complete. Steps enable you to break down activities into smaller units and track their completion. They are often used a list of tasks to complete an activity. Unlike activities, they do not have duration estimates or dates. You can add an unlimited number of steps to an activity. FIG. 7.9: Steps are added to the activity.

EXERCISE: Add three steps to the

Define operational concept of new system activity.

Steps 1. Click the Steps sub-tab. 2. Click Add Steps. 3. In the Step Name field, type . 4. In the Step Name field, type . 5. In the Step Name field, type . 6. Click Save. 7. Click Done.


77


Editing Steps and Adding Descriptions Click a step name to edit step details, update step progress, and add a step description. FIG. 7.10: Click the Step Name to edit step details.

EXERCISE: Add a description to the

Provide justification for changes step.

Steps 1. Click a step, Provide justification for changes. 2. In the Step Description field, type . 3. Click Save. 4. Click

78

to view description for a step, Provide justification for changes.



Notebook Sub-Tab ✍ Notebook topics are defined by your system administrator.

The Notebook sub-tab enables you to assign Notebook topics and then add topic descriptions to an activity. These are typically instructions or descriptions that further describe the activity.

FIG. 7.11: Click Expand All to display all Notebook descriptions.

EXERCISE: Type a notebook topic description for the


Steps 1. Click the Notebook sub-tab. 2. Click Assign Notebook Topic. 3. Search for a notebook topic, Purpose. 4. Select a notebook topic, Purpose. 5. Click Assign, and then click Close. 6. Click a notebook topic, Purpose. 7. Type a description 8. Click Save. 9. Click

to view description for a Notebook topic, Purpose.


79


Codes Sub-Tab Use the Codes sub-tab to assign activity code values to the activity. Activity codes enable you to group activities into categories, such as location or priority. ✍ Activity codes/

values are created by your system administrator.

❑

Activity code — Lists activity codes assigned to the project. A single code, for example, Division, can have numerous values, such as Marketing, Engineering, Development, etc.

❑

Code value — Displays the selected value of the code.

❑

Description — Displays the code description.

FIG. 7.12: Click the Codes sub-tab to assign activity codes.

EXERCISE: Assign an activity code, Development, to the activity.

✍ Use the Search

feature to search by code value or code description.

Steps 1. Click the Codes sub-tab. 2. Click Assign Activity Codes. 3. Click

to expand activity code groupings, Global Codes and Activity

Code: Department. 4. Select an activity code value, DEV - Development. 5. Click Assign. 6. Click Close.

80



WORKSHOP: ADDING ACTIVITIES Background The WBS has been defined and approved for the HR System Upgrade project. The next step is to finish adding activities to the project.

Objectives ✍ The full list of

activities in the project is added for you in succeeding lessons.

Activity ID

1. Add activities to the project plan as indicated in the table below. (Resources are not assigned yet; leave the Primary Resource field empty for all activities.)

Activity Name

Planned Duration

Activity Type

Parent WBS

HR-ADMIN

Project administration

0d

Level of Effort

HR System Upgrade Adding Activities

HR1020

Perform system requirements analysis

10d

Task Dependent

System Requirements

HR1030

Perform interface requirements analysis

6d

Task Dependent

System Requirements

HR1040

Design system architecture

8d

Task Dependent

System Design

HR1050

Perform high-level software design

4d

Task Dependent

System Design


81



Use the Activities tab to add activities and edit activity details.

❑

Activity ID must be unique in the database.

❑

Use the right-click menu to add, copy, or remove activities, or to view Activity Details.

❑

Activity Details can be viewed in two ways: form or tabs, based on the assigned User Interface view.

Review Questions 1.

Which of the following fields must be unique in the project? a. Activity Name b. Activity ID c. Activity Code d. a & c

2. True or False: You cannot delete multiple activities at the same time. 3. True or False: You cannot edit any fields directly on the Activities tab. To modify fields, you must go to Activity Details.

82


LESSON 8

Using Activity Views Objectives ✔

Customize columns

✔

Filter data

✔

Group and sort activities

Key Terms Sorting Grouping Filtering


83

Lesson 8: Using Activity Views

Using Activity Views The Activities tab allows you to customize columns as well as sort, group, and filter data. You can then save the customized view for yourself or share it with a group of other users. In this lesson, you will customize an existing activity view to display activities that have Planned Start date between 01-Jan-10 and 31-March-10.

FIG 8.1: Original activity view

FIG 8.2: Customized activity view

84



Managing Activity Views If you have the proper privilege, you can create new or edit and delete existing activity views in the Projects section: ❑

To create a new activity view, click Create Activity View.

❑

To edit an activity view, click the name.

❑

To delete an activity view, click Delete.

FIG. 8.3: Click to create, view or delete activity views.

EXERCISE: Manage activity views.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Projects. 2. In the Action bar, click Manage Activity Views.


85


Customizing Activity Views Use the Save View As command to create a copy of an existing activity view before you start customizing it. FIG. 8.4: Enter a unique activity view name.

EXERCISE: Save a copy of an existing Activity view.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Reporting Performance. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-19. 4. Click the Activities tab. 5. In the View drop-down list, select Adding Activities. 6. Click Save View As. 7. Type a new activity view name . 8. Click OK.

86



Customizing Activity Views (continued) You can customize the name, columns, sorting, grouping and filtering in the Customize Activity View dialog. FIG. 8.5: Rename the current activity view.

EXERCISE: Display the Customize Activity View dialog.

Steps 1. Click Customize View.


87


Columns Tab The Columns tab in the Customize Activity View dialog allows you to customize the following:

88

❑

Available/Selected Columns — Add up to 30 columns to display. Use the arrows to add, remove, or change the order of columns.

❑

Sort by — Select a field to sort the list.

❑

Sort order — Select Ascending orDescending order.

❑

Show first column as — Select whether the first column is Activity ID or Activity Name. The selected field is always the first column.



Columns Tab (continued) You can add or remove columns on the Columns tab, as well as arrange their order. The Columns tab also allows you to set the default sorting order. FIG. 8.6: Doubleclick items to move.

EXERCISE: Add and remove columns.

Steps 1. In the Selected Columns section, double-click WBS to remove it. 2. In the Selected Columns section, double-click WBS Code to remove it. 3. In the Dates grouping, double-click Planned Finish to move it to the Selected Columns. 4. In the Dates grouping, double-click Planned Start to move it to the Selected Columns. 5. Confirm that Activity ID is selected in the Show first column as option.


89


Grouping in Activity List Activities can be grouped to better organize and categorize project data. Grouping enables you to organize data that share a common attribute. Groups are separated by bands that describe the attribute and can be customized for color and type size. ✍ Only one

hierarchical grouping can be selected.

When you choose to group by a hierarchical field, for example WBS or activity code, the To Level drop-down list is enabled so you can choose the number of hierarchy levels you want to group by. For example, if your WBS comprises five levels, you may want to group only to the third level. In this case, activities associated with lower levels of the WBS are listed under the Level 3 band. Groups are indented in the list by a grouping band. Use the Band Color and Band Text drop-down lists to specify color and text for each band. For grouping levels you can also specify: ❑

Show field title in band — Displays the grouping level field name, followed by the field value. For example, if you select to group activities by WBS, the field name WBS appears to the left of the date value for the group. If you do not choose this option, only the field value appears in the band.

❑

Show field rollups in band — Displays summary information for all cost, numeric, integer, start date, and finish date fields in the group. • Start date rollups reflect the earliest date for the group and finish date rollups reflect the latest date for the group. Unit and cost rollups are a total of the values for each activity in the group.

90



Grouping in Activity List (continued) You will remove the grouping from this view. When Level 1 is set to blank, activities appear in a flat list. FIG. 8.7: Set or remove grouping here.

EXERCISE: View the current Group tab settings.

Steps 1. Click the Grouping tab. 2. In the Level 1 drop-down list, select the blank item at the top of the list to remove grouping from this view.


91


Filtering Data When working with large list, you can better focus on activities by filtering out some data. Primavera offers two types of filters: ❑

Predefined — You cannot modify filter criteria or add new filters to the list. If you select the filter, Activities finishing in specified days or Activities occurring in specified days, you can specify the number of days.

❑

Custom — You can create your own filter by using multiple criteria. The filter is saved in the current activity view.

FIG. 8.8: Predefined filters are listed.

92



Filtering Data (continued) You will create a custom filter to show activities whose Planned Start date falls between 01-Jan-2010 and 31-March-2010. FIG. 8.9: Create multiple filter criteria.

EXERCISE: Display Milestone activities only.

Steps 1. Click the Filters tab. 2. Select Custom Filter. 3. In the Select Filter Criteria drop-down list, confirm All of the following. 4. In the Parameter drop-down list, select Planned Start. 5. In the Is drop-down list, select is greater than or equals. 6. Next to the Value drop-down list, click 7. Click

and select a date, 01-Jan-2010.

to add new filter criteria.

8. In the Parameter drop-down list, select Planned Start. 9. In the Is drop-down list, select is less than or equals. 10. Next to the Value drop-down list, click

and select 31-March-2010.


93


Sharing Activity Views The Access tab allows you to determine who has access to the view: ❑

Current User — The view is available for the current user only. In the View drop-down list, it is listed under the grouping, User.

❑

All Users — The view is available for all users. In the View drop-down list, it is listed under the grouping, Global.

❑

List of Users — The view is available for the selected users only. In the View drop-down list, it is listed under the grouping, Multiple Users.

FIG. 8.10: Click to determine access to the activity view.

EXERCISE: Make the current activity view available for all users.

Steps 1. Click the Access tab. 2. Select All Users. 3. Click OK.

94



Sorting, Ordering in the Activities Tab The Activities tab allows you to easily change the order of columns and the sorting preferences. ❑

Drag and Drop — Drag and drop columns to change their order in the list. However, to remove or add columns, you must open the Customize Activity View dialog.

❑

Sort — To change the sorted by preference, click a column header. You can toggle between ascending and descending order by clicking the same column header.

FIG. 8.11: Arrow indicates the current sorting order.

EXERCISE: Drag and drop columns in the Activities tab.

Steps 1. Click the Primary Resource column header and drag it to the last place. 2. Click the Planned Duration column header and drag it to the left of the Primary Resource column. 3. Click the Planned Start column header to order the list by their Planned Start date in ascending order. 4. Click the Planned Start column header again to order the list by their Planned Start date in descending order. 5. Click Save View.


95


WORKSHOP: USING ACTIVITY VIEWS Background The First Quarter Lookup activity view needs to be customized to display activities grouped by Primary Resource, and sorted by At Completion Total Cost.

Objectives 1. Customize the First Quarter Lookup Activity view to match the following screen:

If you need some hints:

96

❑

Add a column, At Completion Total Cost.

❑

For grouping, add a level 1 grouping, Primary Resource.

❑

Click the At Completion Total Cost column header to sort.




The Activities tab allows you to customize how data is displayed.

❑

You can save the customized activity view and then share it with a list of users or all users.

❑

To make a copy of an existing activity view, click Save View As.

Review Questions 1.

You can you sort the Activity list by a. Clicking the column header. b. Using the Sort by and Sort order drop-down lists in the Customize Activity View dialog. c. Right-clicking any column and select, Sort. d. a & b

2. True or False: You can remove grouping by selecting the blank item in the Level 1 drop-down list.


97


98


LESSON 9

Creating Relationships Objectives ✔

Differentiate between four relationship types

✔

Create relationships in Activity Details

✔

Create relationships in the Gantt Chart

Key Terms Relationship types Lag


99

Lesson 9: Creating Relationships

Network Logic Diagram A network logic diagram is commonly used to represent all activities in a project and their dependency relationships.

Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM) PDM is a technique for creating network logic diagrams. ❑

A box or rectangle represents each activity.

❑

Lines with arrows connect the boxes and represent the logical relationships between the activities. • Predecessor controls the start or finish of another activity. • Successor depends on the start or finish of another activity.

❑

Start with either the first activity in the network and enter each successor, or start with the last activity in the network and enter each predecessor.

Activity E Activity A Predecessor to Activity B

100

Activity B

Activity C Successor to Activity B

Activity D

Activity G Activity F



Relationship Types Primavera supports four relationship types. In the following diagrams, activity A represents the predecessor and activity B represents the successor.

Finish-to-Start (FS) ❑

When A finishes, B can start. This is the default relationship type.

Start-to-Start (SS) ❑

When A starts, B can start.

Activity A Activity A

Activity B

First Activity

Second Activity

First Activity

Activity B Second Activity

EXAMPLE: When High-level Design (Activity A) is completed, Detailed Design (Activity B) can begin.

Finish-to-Finish (FF) ❑

When A finishes, B can finish.

EXAMPLE: When Analysis of System Requirements (Activity A) starts,

Analysis of Interface Requirements (Activity B) can start.

Start-to-Finish (SF) ❑

When A starts, B can finish.

Activity A

Activity A

First Activity

First Activity

Activity B

Activity B

Second Activity

Second Activity

EXAMPLE: Development of Training Documentation (Activity B) can only finish when System Design (Activity A) finishes.

EXAMPLE: When the second-shift security guard starts his shift (Activity A), the first-shift security can finish his (Activity B).


101


Relationships with Lag Lag specifies an offset or delay between an activity and its successor. ❑

By default, it is scheduled based on the calendar of the successor activity, though this setting can be altered in Project Tools/Scheduling Options.

❑

Can be added to any relationship type.

❑

Can be a positive or a negative value.

Finish-to-Start with Lag ❑

The following example shows that the High-level Design activity must be finished for seven days before the Detailed Design activity can start. Activity A

Activity B FS7

High-level Design

Detailed Design

Start-to-Start with Lag ❑

The following example shows that the Test Code activity can start five days after the Write Code activity starts. Activity A Write Code

Activity B SS5

Test Code

102



Assigning Relationships in P6 Web You can assign relationships in the Activities tab or in Activity Details. Relationships are displayed as lines connecting activities in the Gantt Chart.

FIG 9.1: Relationship lines in the Gantt Chart

Adding Relationships in Activity Details You will add a relationship in Activity Details. Although you can display the Predecessors and Successors columns, you cannot edit their values directly. FIG. 9.2: The

Predecessors and Successors columns are disabled.

EXERCISE: Assign a successor activity to the Define operational

concept of new system.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Relationships. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-09. 4. Click the Activities tab. 5. In the View drop-down list, select Relationships.


103


Adding Relationships in Activity Details (continued) In Activity Details, use the Relationships sub-tab to assign relationships, specify a relationship type, and assign lag. Click either Assign predecessor activity or Assign successor activity, and select an activity from the hierarchy. Click on an activity to edit the assignment, or to specify a relationship type or lag. FIG. 9.3: Successor is added to the selected activity.

EXERCISE: Add a successor activity.

Steps 1. Select an activity, HR1010 - Define operational concept of new system. 2. Right-click and select Details. 3. Click the Relationships sub-tab. 4. Click Assign successor activity. 5. Click to expand groupings, HR System Upgrade, System Development, and System Requirements.

✍ The default

relationship type is Finish to Start.

6. Select an activity, Perform system requirements analysis. 7. Click Assign, and then Close. Click Previous Activity or Next Activity to display the activity according to the current sorting on the Activities tab.

104



Adding Relationships with Lag FIG. 9.4: Click to edit Relationship details.

EXERCISE: Create a start-to-start relationship with one day of lag.

Steps 1. Click Next Activity. 2. Click Assign successor activity. 3. Click to expand groupings, HR System Upgrade, System Development and System Requirements. 4. Select an activity, HR1030 - Perform interface requirements analysis. 5. Click Assign, and then click Close. 6. Click an activity name, HR1030 - Perform interface requirements analysis. 7. In the Relationship Type drop-down list, select Start to Start. 8. In the Lag field, type <1d>. 9. Click Save.


105


Adding Relationships in the Gantt Chart The Activities tab allows you to create single or multiple relationships between activities displayed in the Gantt Chart. FIG. 9.5: Rightclick an activity bar to create relationships.

EXERCISE: Assign a successor activity to the Perform interface requirement analysis.

Steps 1. Click Return to Activity List. 2. Click

to zoom to fit the Gantt Chart.

3. Select an activity, HR1030 - Perform interface requirements analysis. 4. In the bar area of the Gantt Chart, right-click the activity bar and select Create Relationship. 5. Click the finish connection box at the end of the activity bar, HR1030 Perform interface requirements analysis. 6. Drag the connection line to the start connection box on activity HR1070 -

Design external interfaces.

7. Click

106

to save.



Editing Relationships in the Gantt Chart FIG. 9.6: Rightclick a relationship line and select Edit Relationship.

EXERCISE: Assign a successor activity to the Design external interfaces and then edit the relationship type.

Steps 1. Select an activity, HR1070 - Design external interfaces. 2. Right-click the activity bar and select Create Relationship. 3. Click the finish connection box at the end of the activity bar, HR1070 Design external interfaces. 4. Drag the connection line to the finish connection box on activity HR1080 -

Perform detailed software design.

5. Click

to save.

6. Right-click the relationship line you just created. 7. Select Edit Relationship. 8. In the Type drop-down list, select Finish to Start. 9. Click OK. 10. Click

to save.


107


Linking Multiple Activities You can select multiple activities and create relationships with one click. The activities will be linked in sorting order using the default Finish to Start relationship type with zero lag. FIG. 9.7: You can link multiple activities.

EXERCISE: Link multiple activities.

Steps 1. Select an activity, HR1110 - Implement the database. 2. Ctrl-click an activity, HR1120 - Perform unit testing. 3. Ctrl-click an activity, HR2010 - Prepare for system integration and testing. 4. Right-click and select Link Selected Activities.

108



Canceling Data Changes You can undo your data changes as long as you have not saved them yet. On the Icon bar, click

to cancel unsaved changes.

FIG. 9.8: Click to cancel unsaved changes.

EXERCISE: Remove activity relationships by cancelling data changes.

Steps 1. Click

to cancel changes.

2. Click No to confirm your decision.

Deleting Relationships You can individually delete relationships by right-clicking the relationship line in the Gantt Chart and select Delete Relationship.


109


WORKSHOP: CREATING RELATIONSHIPS Background Additional relationships need to be established for the HR System Upgrade project.

Objectives 1. Use the Relationships sub-tab or the Gantt Chart to create relationships with zero lag between these activities:

Activity ID/Name

Successor

Relationship Type

HR1040 - Design system architecture

HR1060 - Design database

FS

HR1050 - Perform high-level software design

HR1080 - Perform detailed software design

FS


HR1070 - Design external interfaces

FS

HR1070 - Design external interfaces

HR1080 - Perform detailed software design

FS

2. Assign a predecessor and a successor to the level of effort activity, Project administration.

Activity ID\Name HR-ADMIN - Project administration HR - ADMIN -Project administration

Predecessor

Successor

HR1000 - Start development milestone

Relationship type SS

HR3060 - Project complete milestone

FF

The full list of relationships in the project plan is added for you in succeeding lessons.

110




Create relationships between activities in Activity Details or in the Gantt Chart.

❑

Primavera supports four relationship types that identify the type of dependency that exists between an activity and its predecessor or successor.

❑

You can also specify the lag between activities.

Review Questions 1. True or False: Four different relationship types are supported in Primavera. 2.

The default relationship type is: a. Finish-to-Start b. Finish-to-Finish c. Start-to-Start d. Start-to-Finish

3. True or False: In Activity Details the Next Activity link is based on the current sort order in the Activities tab. 4. True or False: Lag is the offset or delay between an activity and its successor.


111


112


LESSON 10

Scheduling Objectives ✔

Define key scheduling terms

✔

Perform a backward and forward pass

✔

Define Total Float and its impact on the schedule

✔

Schedule a project

✔

Describe loops and open ends

Key Terms Critical activity Critical Path Method scheduling Forward pass Backward pass Total Float


113

Lesson 10: Scheduling

Critical Path Method Scheduling The Critical Path Method (CPM) scheduling technique is utilized to calculate project schedules. CPM uses activity durations and relationships between activities to calculate schedule dates. This calculation is done in two passes through the activities in a project.

Critical Path

114

❑

The critical path is the series of activities that determines a project's completion date.

❑

The duration of the activities on the critical path controls the duration of the entire project; a delay to any of these activities will delay the finish date of the entire project.

❑

Critical activities are defined by either the Total Float or the longest path in the project network.



What is the Data Date? ❑

The data date is the date that is utilized as the starting point for schedule calculations. • Date used to schedule all remaining work.

❑

During the planning phase the data date should match the project start date.

FIG. 10.1: Data date, indicated by the dashed line in graphics at right, equals project start date during the project planning process.

Data Date J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

Schedule

Time Resource

Resource Quantity (persondays)

Time Cost

$

Time


115


Scheduling Concepts Forward Pass

FIG. 10.2: The numbers next to ES and EF are the day in the schedule that the activities are supposed to start and finish. In this example the data date is Day 1. The number in the bottom right hand corner of the box is the Remaining Duration.

❑

The forward pass calculates an activity’s early dates.

❑

Early dates are the earliest times an activity can start and finish once its predecessors have been completed.

❑

The calculation begins with the activities without predecessors.

❑

Early Start (ES) + Duration − 1 = Early Finish (EF)

A 5 ES 1

EF 5

C 15 ES 11

EF 25

B 10 ES 1

EF 10

F orw ard p ass

116



Backward Pass ❑

The backward pass calculates an activity’s late dates.

❑

Late dates are the latest times an activity can start and finish without delaying the end date of the project.

❑

The calculation begins with the activities without successors.

❑

Late Finish − Duration + 1 = Late Start

B ack w ard p ass

LS 6

LF 10

A 5 ES 1

EF 5

LF 25

LS 11

C 15 LS 1

LF 10

ES 11

EF 25

B 10 ES 1

EF 10 FIG 10.3: Critical path, activities B and C, is unchanged.


117


Total Float ❑

The amount of time an activity can slip from its early start without delaying the project.

❑

The difference between an activity’s late dates and early dates.

❑

Activities with zero Total Float are critical.

❑

Late date − Early date = Total Float (TF)

Types of Total Float

FIG. 10.4: Three different types of Total Float.

LS

LF

Positive Float EF

ES

Positive Float

LS

LF

Zero Float (Critical) ES

Zero Float (Critical)

LS

EF

LF

Negative Float (Extremely Critical) ES

EF

Negative Float

Legend Early Dates

Late Dates

118



Total Float (continued) An activity's Total Float is automatically calculated each time you schedule the project. You cannot edit an activity's float values directly.

B ack w ard p ass LS 6

LF 10

A 5 ES 1

EF 5

LF 25

LS 11

TF = 5

C 15 LS 1

LF 10

ES 11

EF 25

TF = 0

B 10 ES 1

EF 10

TF = 0

F orw ard p ass FIG 10.5: Activities B and C are on the critical path, the longest path of activities that determine the end date of the project. Also, Activity B drives the start of Activity C.


119


Backward Pass with Required Finish One of the most common project scenarios is a required finish date for the project. ❑

Used only during the backward pass.

❑

Required finish date specifies when the project must finish regardless of the network’s duration and logic.

❑

Late Finish − Duration + 1 = Late Start

B ack w ard p ass

LS 1

LF 5

A 5 ES 1

EF 5

LS 6

LF 20*

TF = 0

C 15 L S -4

LF 5

ES 11

EF 25

T F = -5

B 10 ES 1

EF 10

T F = -5 FIG 10.6: Critical path, activities B and C, remains the same. However, due to the Required Finish date, activities A and B and C are now all critical activities because Total Float for each is equal to or less than zero.

120



Critical Activities If your project schedule falls behind, focus on critical activities causing delay. Critical activities are usually defined as those with zero or negative float. FIG. 10.7: Select an option to define critical activities.

In the Define critical activities as section, you have two options:

EXERCISE: View scheduling options.

❑

If you are focusing on specific activities, define critical activities as those whose Total Float is less than or equal to a specific value.

❑

If you want to focus on the overall end date of the project, define critical activities as those on the longest path.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Scheduling. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-10. 4. Click the Activities tab. 5. In the View drop-down list, select Schedule. 6. Click

to open the Schedule Project dialog box.

7. Click Scheduling Options. 8. You will not change options at this time. Click Cancel.


121


Scheduling a Project Before scheduling the project, you should confirm the data date. The data date reflects the date used as a starting point for scheduling the project plan. Click

to specify the data date.

When you schedule a project, activity dates are calculated according to durations and logic. FIG. 10.8: Click to schedule.

EXERCISE: Schedule the activities in the HR System Upgrade project.

Steps 1. Confirm the data date, 04-Jan-10. 2. Mark a checkbox, Display scheduling log upon completion. 3. Click Schedule. 4. View the Schedule log and then close it.

122



Viewing the Scheduled Finish Date Now that the project has been scheduled, you can view the Scheduled Finish date in Project Details. Scheduled Finish is the latest early finish date based on the most recent schedule generated for the project. It is based on activity durations, relationships, constraints, and other project data. FIG. 10.9: Click the Details tab to view the scheduled finish date.

EXERCISE: Confirm that the project will finish on 13-Jan-11.

Steps 1. Click the Details tab. In the General sub-tab, the Scheduled Finish field indicates that the project will finish 13-Jan-11.


123


Scheduling Tips Avoid open ends, other than at the beginning and end of the project, and circular relationships when creating your project plan. These can cause difficulty when scheduling.

Circular Relationships (Loops) ❑

Loops indicate circular logic between two activities.

❑

The schedule will not calculate until the loop is eliminated. • Determine proper logic. • Rerun the schedule.

HR1000

HR1010

HR1020

FIG 10.10: Circular relationships

124



Open Ends Open ends are activities without a predecessor or successor in the project. Each project should have only two open ends: the first milestone activity and the last milestone activity. ❑

Activities without a predecessor or successor: • No predecessor: Activity uses data date as its early start • No successor: Activity uses project finish as its late finish

❑

Open ended activities can portray an unrealistic amount of positive Total Float.

10

70

FINISH

START

20

30

50

60

80

90

40 FIG 10.11: Open ended activities.


125


Exercise: Calculating a Schedule Manually Objective The following graphics are two unique schedules. Using the space provided, manually calculate the early and late dates and the Total Float of the activities.

No Imposed Finish Date LS

LF

B 13

TF = LS

LF

LS ES

A

D 7

TF =

5

TF = LS

ES

LF

EF

LF

EF

ES

EF

C TF = ES

1 EF

Imposed Finish Date of Workperiod 12 LS

LF

LS

A TF = ES

LF

LS

B 3 EF

TF = ES

LF

LS

C 1 EF

TF = ES

LF

D 4 EF

TF = ES

10 EF

Formulas: Early Start + Duration – 1 = Early Finish Late Finish - Duration + 1 = Late Start Late Start – Early Start = Total Float

126



Exercise Answers No Imposed Finish Date 8 LS

20 LF

B 1 LS

TF = 0

7 LF

8 ES

13

21 LS

20 EF

A TF = 0 1 ES

25 LF

D 7

20 LS

7 EF

5

TF = 0

20 LF

21 ES

25 EF

C TF = 12 8 ES

1 8 EF

Imposed Finish Date of Workperiod 12 -5 LS

-3 LF

-2 LS

A TF = -6 1 ES

-2 LF

-1 LS

B 3 3 EF

TF = -6 4 ES

2 LF

C 1 4 EF

TF = -6 5 ES

12

3 LS

LF

D 4 8 EF


TF = -6 9 ES

10 18 EF

127



Primavera uses the Critical Path Method scheduling technique to calculate project schedules. CPM uses activity durations and relationships to calculate schedule dates based on the forward and backward passes through each activity in the project.

❑

If your project schedule falls behind, focus on critical activities causing delay.

❑

In Project Tools/Scheduling Options, you can define critical activities to meet your needs.

Review Questions 1. True or False: A schedule’s late dates are calculated during the backward pass. 2. True or False: Primavera can calculate a schedule containing loops. 3. True or False: The critical path is longest continuous path of activities that determines the project end date.

128


LESSON 11

Assigning Constraints Objectives ✔

Apply an overall deadline to a project

✔

Apply a constraint to an individual activity

✔

Add notebook topics to constrained activities

✔

Describe available constraint types

Key Term Constraint type


129

Lesson 11: Assigning Constraints

Assigning Constraints Constraints are user-imposed date restrictions used to reflect project requirements that cannot be built into the logic. After applying a constraint, the project must be rescheduled to calculate the new dates. Constraints enable you to: ❑

Build a schedule that more accurately reflects the real-word aspects of the project.

❑

Provide added control to the project.

❑

Impose a restriction on the entire project or an individual activity.

The most commonly used constraints are: ❑

Project-level constraint: Must Finish By

❑

Activity-level constraint: Start On Or After

On the activity-level, you can assign a primary and a secondary constraints to the same activity. When you assign the primary constraint, it determines what secondary constraints, if any, you are able to use.

130



Must Finish By Must Finish By is used when an overall project deadline must be met: ❑

Forces all activities in the project to finish by that date.

❑

Affects the Total Float of the entire project.

Establishing a Must Finish By constraint creates a date from which late dates are calculated in the backward pass.

B ack w ard p ass

LS 1

LF 5

Required Finish Date.

A 5 ES 1

EF 5

LS 6

LF 20*

TF = 0

C 15 L S -4

LF 5

ES 11

E F 25

T F = -5

B 10 ES 1

EF 10

T F = -5


131


Must Finish By (continued) Because the Must Finish By constraint is assigned to the project, it is applied in Project Details, General sub-tab. FIG. 11.1: Enter Must Finish By date in the General sub-tab.

EXERCISE: Apply a Must Finish By date of 03-Jan-11 and reschedule.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Assigning Constraints. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-11. 4. Click the Details tab. 5. Click

in the Must Finish By field, and select a date, 31-Dec-10.

6. Click Save. 7. Click the Tools tab. 8. Confirm data date, 04-Jan-10, and then click Reschedule Project.

132



Must Finish By (continued) The Must Finish By date 31-Dec-10 is earlier than the scheduled finish of 13Jan-11. Therefore, activities on the critical path will contain negative float. FIG. 11.2: Activities with negative Total Float are on the critical path.

EXERCISE: View Total Float on the Activities tab.

Steps 1. Click the Activities tab. 2. In the View drop-down list, select Critical Activities. 3. View activities sorted by Total Float.


133


Start On or After Start On or After is used to set the earliest an activity can begin: ❑

Forces the activity to start no earlier than the constraint.

❑

Pushes the early start date to the constraint date.

❑

Affects the early dates of its successors.

FIG. 11.3: Total Float of activity before applying constraint.

EXERCISE: View the current status of an activity, Implement the database.

Steps 1. Select an activity, HR1110 - Implement the database. 2. Right-click and select Details. 3. Click the Status sub-tab. 4. View the Total Float for the activity.

134



Start On or After (continued) FIG. 11.4: Total Float of the activity after applying Start On or After constraint.

EXERCISE: Apply a constraint to the activity to reflect the delivery date and then reschedule the project.

Steps 1. Click Edit dates and constraint. 2. In the Primary Constraint drop-down list, select Start On or After. 3. Click

to select Primary Constraint Date, 10-May-10.

4. Click Select. 5. Click Save. 6. Click Return to Activity List. ✍ Reschedule the

project to view the new constraint’s impact on the project plan.

7. Click

, and then click Schedule to reschedule the project.

8. Scroll down to select an activity, HR1110 - Implement the database. The early start for the activity is pushed out the because the constraint date 10-May-10 is later than the original early start date 28-Apr-10. Also note that Total Float decreased from 43 days to 35 days.


135


Additional Constraints The following additional constraints can be imposed on the activity level: ❑

Start On — Forces the activity to start on the constraint date: • Shifts both early and late start dates. • Delays an early start or accelerates a late start. • Used to specify dates submitted by contractors or vendors.

❑

Start On or Before — Forces the activity to start no later than the constraint date: • Shifts the late start to the constrained date. • Affects the late dates of its predecessors. • Used to place a deadline on the start of the activity.

❑

Start On or After — Forces the activity to start no earlier than the constraint date. • Affects only early dates. • Used in the forward pass only if the calculated early start date will be earlier than the imposed date.

❑

Finish On — Forces the activity to finish on the constraint date: • Shifts both early and late finish dates. • Delays an early finish or accelerates a late finish. • Used to satisfy intermediate project deadlines.

❑

Finish On or Before — Forces the activity to finish no later than the constraint date: • Pulls the late finish date to the constraint date. • Affects the late dates of its predecessors. • Used to set intermediate completion points in the project.

❑

Finish On or After — Forces the activity to finish no earlier than the constraint date: • Shifts the early finish to the constrained date. • Affects the early dates of its successors. • Used to prevent an activity from finishing too early.

136



Additional Constraints (continued) ❑

As Late as Possible — Delays activity as late as possible without delaying successors: • Shifts early dates as late as possible. • Also called a zero free float constraint.

❑

Mandatory Start and Finish — Forces early and late dates to be equal to the constraint date: • Affects late dates of predecessors and early dates of successors. • May violate network logic.


137


WORKSHOP: ASSIGNING CONSTRAINTS Background When a constraint is assigned to an activity, it is recommended that you add a note to document why the constraint was assigned.

Objectives 1. In the Notebook sub-tab in Activity Details, add a Notebook topic, Constraint Log, for the HR1110 - Implement the database activity, and type a description 2. View the description in the Notebook tab.

138




Constraints are user-imposed date restrictions that more accurately reflect the real-word aspects of scheduling the project.

❑

After applying a constraint, the project must be rescheduled to calculate the new dates.

❑

Primavera allows you to apply constraints both at the project level and at the activity level.

❑

On the activity level, you can add a primary and a secondary constraint.

Review Questions 1.

A Start On or After constraint a. Affects early dates and early dates of successor activities b. Affects late dates and late dates of successor activities c. Violates network logic d. Delays an activity as long as resources are scarce

2. True or False: A Start On or After constraint affects the early dates of its successors.


139


140


LESSON 12

Optimizing the Project Schedule Objectives ✔

Analyze schedule dates

✔

Shorten a project schedule

Key Terms Schedule date


141

Lesson 12: Optimizing the Project Schedule

Analyzing the Project Once you have created the project plan, verify that it meets project stakeholders’ date, resource, and cost requirements. If a disconnect exists between the information in the project plan and the project requirements, you will be able to identify the source of the problem and define a solution. ❑

Analyze schedule dates — Evaluate the schedule to ensure that milestone dates and project dates are achieved.

❑

Analyze resource allocation — Evaluate resources to ensure they are not overallocated.

❑

Analyze costs — Evaluate the costs to ensure that the project is within its budget.

In this lesson you will focus on the Schedule (Scope) element.

Schedule (Scope)

Resources

Costs

FIG 12.1: Analyzing the project plan.

142



Analyzing Schedule Dates Two dates are critical in assessing whether the project is scheduled to finish on time: ❑

Scheduled Finish — Calculated finish date based on all project factors, such as durations, relationships, and calendars.

❑

Must Finish By — Finish date set by project stakeholders.

If the Scheduled Finish is beyond the Must Finish By date, the project must be shortened. In addition, each deliverable in the project should be scheduled to finish by the dates imposed by project stakeholders. ✍ Prior to making any

major changes to the schedule, you should contact your system administrator to export the project plan to use it as a backup.

Steps for Analysis 1. Compare the Scheduled Finish to the Must Finish By date. 2. Export the project to XER format. 3. Focus on critical activities. 4. Shorten the project.


143


Compare Scheduled Finish to Must Finish By To determine whether the project will finish on time, compare the Scheduled Finish and Must Finish By dates. FIG. 12.2: Compare Must Finish By and Scheduled Finish dates.

EXERCISE: Determine whether the project will finish on time by comparing the Scheduled Finish and Must Finish By dates.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Optimizing the Schedule. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-12. 4. Click the Details tab. The Scheduled Finish field indicates the project will not finish until 13-Jan-11, later than the 31-Dec-10 Must Finish By date.

144



Focus on Critical Activities To shorten the project, you should now focus on critical activities. These are defined (in Scheduling Options in Project Tools) as either the longest path or a value of Total Float. It is also useful to know each activity’s Total Float -- the amount of time an activity can slip from its early start without delaying the project. FIG. 12.2: Activities are sorted based on their Total Float.

EXERCISE: View critical activities.

Steps 1. Click the Activities tab. 2. In the View drop-down list, select Critical Activities. 3. View critical activities.


145


Shorten the Project If the schedule analysis leads you to conclude that the Must Finish By date is not being met, you need to concentrate your efforts on shortening the schedule. Several methods can help you accomplish this goal: ❑

Use relationships to overlap activities.

❑

Assign additional resources to reduce durations.

❑

Break down long activities.

❑

Apply/modify constraints.

❑

Change calendar assignments: • Put critical activities on a longer workweek. • Add exceptions to nonworktime.

146



Adjusting Relationships After analyzing the relationships in the schedule, you have found that you can shorten the schedule if you change a relationship between two activities. FIG. 12.3: Rightclick relationship line to edit details.

EXERCISE: Change the relationship type and add lag.

Steps 1. In the View drop-down list, select Optimizing the Schedule. 2. Select a relationship line connecting activities HR1060 - Design database and HR1070 - Design external interfaces. 3. Right-click on the relationship line and select Edit Relationship. 4. In the Type drop-down list, select Finish to Finish. 5. In the Lag field, type <4d>. 6. Click OK. 7. Click 8. Click

to save your changes. , and then click Schedule to reschedule the project.

9. In the View drop-down list, select Critical Activities to view Total Float.


147


Shortening Duration Another option to shorten to length of the project is to shorten the duration of a critical activity. You can do so by: ❑

Typing a new value in the Planned Duration column.

❑

Selecting an activity bar in the Gantt Chart and dragging the right end of the bar to the left to decrease duration. (Click to turn on full-screen mode when working with bars in the Gantt Chart.)

FIG. 12.4: Type a new value in

Planned Duration column.

EXERCISE: Shorten the duration of the activity to 5 days.

Steps 1. In the View drop-down list, select Optimizing the Schedule.. 2. Select a activity bar, HR2040 - Perform interface testing. 3. In the Planned Duration column, type <5d>. 4. Click

148

to save your changes.



Rescheduling and Checking Results You have taken two steps to shorten the project: ❑

Changed a relationship from Finish-to-Start to Finish-to-Finish and added 4 days of lag.

❑

Reduced the duration of an activity.

FIG. 12.5: The Scheduled Finish date is earlier than the Must Finish By date. The project is on schedule.

EXERCISE: Reschedule the project and then compare the Must Finish By date to the new Scheduled Finish date.

Steps 1. Click

, and then click Schedule to reschedule the project.

2. Click the Details tab. The Scheduled Finish date is earlier than the Must Finish By. The project is on schedule.


149


Rescheduling and Checking Results FIG. 12.5: Activities have no negative float after rescheduling the project.

EXERCISE: Return to the Activity List to confirm that no negative float exists for any activities in the project.

Steps 1. Click Activities tab. 2. In the View drop-down list, select Critical Activities. In this example, no activities have negative float. However, some activities remain critical because they have zero float, meaning a delay in the activity will impact the project’s finish.

150




Once you have created the project plan, verify that it meets project stakeholders’ date, resource, and cost requirements.

❑

If a disconnect exists between the information in the project plan and the project requirements, you should identify the source of the problem and define a solution.

❑

Primavera provides you several tools to optimize a project plan — shortening the schedule, removing resource overallocation, and analyzing the budget.

Review Questions 1. True or False: You should export the project to make a backup copy before making changes to the schedule. 2.

Which statement is false about the Gantt Chart? a. Allows you to modify activity duration. b. Displays both activity ID and name. c. Allows you to edit activity relationships. d. Displays activity bars.


151


152


LESSON 13

Assigning Resources Objectives ✔

Assign a role

✔

Fill a role assignment

✔

Request resources

✔

Assign a resource

✔

Check resource availability

✔

Send e-mails to assigned resources

Key Terms Resource Role Unstaffed role


153

Lesson 13: Assigning Resources

Assigning Resources and Roles You can assign resources and roles in different ways, suitable to your individual needs or the staffing policies of your organization: ❑

Assign a role — If you know which skill sets are required for an activity, but not the exact individual who will perform the work. You can assign a role to an activity to act as a placeholder until you or another individual in the organization staffs the assignment with a resource.

❑

Request a resource — You can further refine a role assignment by requesting a resource who has a specific proficiency level and/or other attributes, assigned via resource codes. • For example, you could request an expert programmer experienced in Oracle who works in the Richmond office. This functionality is particularly useful in organizations where the task of requesting resources and assigning resources is completed by different individuals.

❑

Assign a resource — Select a resource from the resource hierarchy and check his/her allocation in your project, or all projects, before confirming the assignment. You can also designate a primary resource to update activity Start/Finish via timesheets.

Summarizing Resource usage data in Primavera is based on summary data. Any changes made to assignments within a project are not reflected until the project is summarized in Project Tools. A setting in Global Preferences enables you to choose to automatically summarize the project after assigning resources, so that summary data always reflects current resource usage. Click Preferences, and then select the Global tab. In the Resource Staffing section, mark the option to Automatically summarize project after assigning resources.

154



Assigning Roles Assigning roles enables you to assign a temporary placeholder for a resource assignment, to be filled later by a specific resource. Roles can represent job titles or skills and are commonly associated with a proficiency scale that ranks resources’ competency in the role. FIG. 13.1: Roles can function as placeholders until activity assignments are staffed by resources.

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Roles Dictionary

Assigning Roles to Activity

Replace Roles with Resources

Civil Engineer Activity A

Tom Acosta Mike Cross

Joan Peters

Project Manager

Tom Acosta

Mark Merwin

Civil Engineer Project Manager

Activity B

Activity A

Mike Cross

Tom Acosta

Activity B

Trainer Project Manager

Sara McGee

Joe Chris Hayden Braddell

Trainer

Mark Merwin

Sara McGee

Tami Boyle


155


Assigning Roles (continued) The Resources sub-tab in the Activity Details allows you to add, edit, and delete both resource and role assignments. FIG. 13.2: Click Assign Roles to assign an unstaffed role to the activity.

EXERCISE: Assign the System Analyst role to the Perform system

requirements analysis activity.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Assigning Resources. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-13. 4. Click the Activities tab. 5. In the View drop-down list, select Primary Resource. 6. Select an activity, HR1020 - Perform system requirements analysis. 7. Right-click and select Details. 8. Click the Resources sub-tab. 9. Click Assign Roles. 10. Click

to expand role groupings, IT Roles and Software Developer.

11. Select a role, System Analyst. 12. Click Assign, and then click Close.

156



Filling the Unstaffed Role Assignment If you click Assign Resources when an unstaffed role is already present, the hierarchy defaults to organized by Resources by Role. In this case, resources with the System Analyst role are displayed. FIG. 13.3: Ben Diamond is assigned to fill the unstaffed role.

EXERCISE: Assign a resource to the unstaffed role, System Analyst.

Steps 1. Click Assign Resources. 2. Click

to expand a role grouping, System Analyst.

3. Select a resource, Ben Diamond. 4. Click Assign, and then click Close. 5. Click OK when prompted.


157


Assigning Resources Executing a resource assignment via Assign Resource is recommended if you are familiar with the skill and competency of the resource pool, and have a particular individual in mind for the assignment. After selecting a resource from the hierarchy, you can: ❑

Check his/her allocation.

❑

Designate a primary resource and enter cost/unit information.

Organizing Resources The Select Resources dialog box enables you to organize the hierarchy to speed your resource selection. Use the Organized By drop-down list to organize resources in one of the following hierarchical lists: ❑

Resource Codes — Organizes resources according to resource code values assigned to them.

❑

Resource Teams — Organizes resources according to teams defined by you or others in the organization.

❑

Resource Hierarchy — Organizes resources according to the enterprise resource hierarchy.

You can select a group of favorites for each category as well. Favorites provide quick access to selected resources.

158



Organizing Resources (continued) FIG. 13.4: Organize resources by Resource Hierarchy.

EXERCISE: Assign a resource to the selected activity.

Steps 1. Click Assign Resources. 2. In the Organized By drop-down list, select Resource Hierarchy. 3. Click

to expand resource groupings, IT-Resources and Development.

4. Select a resource, Jennifer Boyle.


159


Resource Access Restrictions You may not see all enterprise resources in the Select Resources window because: ❑

Resources are organized by resource teams — Some resource teams can be viewed only by the user that created them.

❑

Primavera’s resource security — Your system administrator may restrict your access to resources. If resource security is enabled, you may only see resources that you have access to in the resource hierarchy. • Project resources — Project resources, those resources already assigned to the project, are always available for you, even if you do not have access to them in the resource hierarchy. Project resources are displayed in the Project Resources folder in a flat list in the resource hierarchy.

FIG. 13.5: Project resources are displayed in a flat list under the Project Resources folder.

160



Assessing Allocation Before assigning the resource, click Show Detail to view the resource’s availability. The histogram provides a graphic representation of allocation in all projects: ❑

Blue bar — Represents actual units.

❑

Green bar — Represents remaining units.

❑

Red bar — Represents overallocated units.

In the Display section, click Spreadsheet for a list of projects to which the resource is assigned. FIG. 13.6: Green bars indicate allocation in December 2010, but resource is available in January 2011 to perform the activity.

EXERCISE: View resource allocation and assign resource.

Steps 1. Click Show Detail. 2. View the time period when the activity is scheduled, 08-Jan-10 through 21-Jan-10. You cannot scroll to a time period prior to the resource’s initial assignment, in this case December 2010. Even though you cannot view the time period, you can safely infer that the resource is available. 3. Click Assign, and then click Close.


161


E-Mail Notification Primavera allows you to notify resources via e-mail when they are assigned to, or removed from, an activity. The e-mail notification can be automated or manual: ❑

Automated e-mail notification — A setting in Global Preferences enables you to notify resources via e-mail when they are assigned to, or removed from, an activity. You can also choose to be prompted before the e-mail is sent.

❑

Manual e-mail notification — If you do not wish to automate e-mail notification, you can click E-mail these resources in the Assign Resources form to notify resources currently assigned to the activity.

FIG. 13.7: E-mail form is populated with the resources’ name in the To field; activity name in the Subject line; and basic activity information in the body of the e-mail.

EXERCISE: View e-mail notification to resources manually.

Steps 1. Click E-mail these resources to view a sample e-mail. 2. Click Cancel.

162



Editing a Resource Assignment The Edit Resource Assignment window enables you to remove resource or role assignments, and to view or update resource details such as units and costs. Following is a summary of fields and sections in the Edit Resource Assignment window: ❑

General section — Basic resource assignment information. • Resource — Name of the resource assigned to the selected activity. • Role — The name of the resource’s assigned role for the selected activity. • Primary Resource — Indicates that the corresponding resource is the selected activity's primary resource.

✍ To view proficiency, you must have the required global security privilege set by your system administrator.

• Proficiency — The corresponding resource's skill level for the assigned role: master, expert, skilled, proficient, or inexperienced. ❑

Units section — Use fields in this section to enter unit information for the selected resource. All fields are editable, except Price/Unit, which is set in the Units/Prices tab in the Resources view.

❑

Costs section — Use Planned, Actual, and Remaining fields to enter cost information about the selected resource. Select a Curve to specify how the resource’s units and costs are distributed over the duration of an activity. • Rate Source and Rate Type determine the price/unit used to calculate costs for the activity assignment. If a single activity assignment includes both a resource and a role, you can choose to use the rates or price/unit values defined for the resource or use the rates defined for the role. You can also choose Override as the Rate Source, which allows you to manually enter a price/unit for the assignment. Your system administrator can define up to five price/units for Rate Type. • Calc Costs from Units — Use this field to override the resource's default setting for individual activities. Mark the checkbox to have resource costs for this activity calculated (Cost = Units * Price/Unit). Clear the checkbox to record resource costs manually. • Drive Activity Dates — Mark the checkbox to allow the resource dates to determine the activity’s start and finish dates. Clear the checkbox to allow the activity dates to be independent of the resources dates. The resource's default setting for this option is specified by the administrator, and is set at the project level for all project resources.


163


Editing a Resource Assignment (continued) FIG. 13.8: In the Resources tab, click a resource to edit resource assignment.

EXERCISE: View resource assignment details.

Steps 1. In the Resources tab, click a resource, Jennifer Boyle. 2. Click Cancel.

164



Requesting Resources Request Resources enables you to request resources or roles, and enhance your request by stipulating specific qualifications and skills to fill the assignment. Qualifications you express become the basis for a search of the resource pool to locate an appropriate resource. This functionality is particularly useful in organizations where the task of requesting resources and assigning resources is completed by different individuals. Resource requests appear as unstaffed assignments in the Open Requests for Resources portlet in dashboards, enabling you to communicate your request directly to the individual responsible for assigning resources.

FIG 13.9: Open a request for a resource form.

EXERCISE: Request a resource for the Perform interface

requirements analysis

Steps 1. Click Request Resources.

activity.


165


Requesting Resources (continued) Four search criteria are available. At the top of the form, specify whether the resource must match all or any of the following criteria: ✍ The number of

fields available in each column, four in the example on the previous page, can be changed in the Resource Staffing section of Global Preferences.

166

❑

Roles — Use this field to specify the role on the activity. This is the role that will appear as unstaffed in the Open Requests for Resources portlet. You must specify a primary role.

❑

Proficiency — Choose a proficiency from the menu or accept the default value, Any.

❑

Resources — Use this field to identify a resource you would like to fill the assignment. You can click Show Detail to check the resource’s availability to perform the activity. You can specify more than one resource -- provided that Any is selected at the top of the form -- but only one resource is assigned to the activity.

❑

Resource Codes — Use this field to specify resource code values for the assigned resources. You can use multiple fields to specify additional resource code values.



Requesting Resources (continued) FIG. 13.10: Enter resource request search criteria.

EXERCISE: Request a senior software engineer who works in the Atlanta office for the Perform

interface requirements analysis activity.

Steps 1. In the Find a resource matching field, confirm All search criteria is selected. 2. In the Primary Role field, click 3. Click

.

to expand role groupings, IT Roles and Software Developer.

4. Select a primary role, Senior Software Engineer. 5. Click Assign. 6. In the Resource Codes field, click 7. Click

.

to expand a resource code, Office.

8. Select a resource code value, ATL - Atlanta. 9. Click Assign. ✍ To edit the resource request, click Yes in the Search Criteria field.

10. Click Save.


167


WORKSHOP: ASSIGNING RESOURCES Background Additional resource and role assignments are required for the HR System Upgrade project.

Objectives 1. Create role assignments for the following activities:

Activity ID/Name

✍ Use Search to locate roles in the hierarchy.

Role(s)

HR1040 - Design system architecture

System Analyst System Architect


Database Administrator

2. Assign a resource to an unstaffed role:

Activity

Resource

HR1010 - Define operational concept of new system

Ben Diamond

Role System Analyst

3. Request a resource with the following criteria for the HR1070 - Design external interfaces activity.

Primary role System architect

168

Proficiency 3-Skilled

Resource code/value Department: DEV - Development




Select a resource from the resource hierarchy and after checking his/her allocation in your project (or all projects) commit the resource to the assignment.

❑

If you know which skill sets are required for an activity, but not the exact individual who will perform the work, you can assign a role to an activity to act as a placeholder.

❑

Remember to summarize after modifying any resource and role assignment in the project.

Review Questions 1. True or False: Resource usage in the P6 Web application is based on summary data. 2.

Which of the following is not one of the criteria available when requesting a resource? a. Primary role b. Resource code c. Resource team d. Proficiency

3.

Send an e-mail to newly assigned resources by: a. Marking e-mail notification options in Global Preferences b. Right-clicking on resource name c. Clicking E-mail these resources d. a & c


169


170


LESSON 14

Project Workspace Objectives ✔

Describe the Project Workspace

✔

Add and remove portlets

✔

Customize the Project Workspace

Key Terms Portlet Project Workspace Project access


171

Lesson 14: Project Workspace

The Project Workspace Consider the Project Workspace the homepage for your project in P6 Web. The Project Workspace, shared by project team members, is a single page that displays information about the selected project. Data is displayed in small data windows, called portlets. Each portlet displays specific type of project information. If you have the privilege, you can customize what portlets are displayed in the Project Workspace.

Portlets

FIG 14.1: The Project Workspace

172



Viewing the Project Workspace The Project Workspace is specific to each project. When you select a project, the Project Workspace is displayed in the Workspace tab. The Project Workspace contains portlets displaying the following icons:

Icon

Description Launch context-sensitive help. Refresh portlet content. Use this to refresh data rather than the Webbrowser’s refresh. Maximize/minimize portlet. Remove portlet from the workspace. You can add the portlet again on the Content tab of the customization page.

FIG. 14.2: Click the Workspace tab to display the Project Workspace.

EXERCISE: Display the Project Workspace for the HR System Upgrade project.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Project Workspace. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-14. 4. Confirm that the Workspace tab is selected.


173


The Project Workspace (continued) The Project Workspace can be accessed by users who are associated with a project by: ❑

Project Access — User is associated to the project through the Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS). This, in general, provides the widest access to project data.

❑

Project Resource Access — User is assigned to at least one activity in the project as a resource.

❑

Project Owner — User is assigned this role in the corresponding field in Primavera. The message No data available. Refer to Help for more information appears when there is no data to populate

a portlet. When a project is newly created it is normal to see the message in most portlets on the Project Workspace.

174



Portlets on the Project Workspace Following is a list of portlets available on the Project Workspace. (As noted in table, some portlets are available only if collaboration functionality is installed.) The table indicates: ❑

Portlet name — The name of the portlet.

❑

Description — Description of what data the portlet displays.

❑

Default — Check mark indicates portlet displayed by default.

❑

Hide — The project manager may wish to hide sensitive project data from resources and others who have access to the Project Workspace. The checkmark in the table indicates the ability to hide a portlet from team members and invited users.

Table 3: Portlets on the Project Workspace Portlet

Description

Default ✔

Project Documents

View project documents and document details; add new documents to the project; create and organize document folders.

Project Risks

View project risks that you are associated with, along with details such as status.

Project Issues

View open issues to which you are associated.

Project Notebooks

View notebook items assigned to a project.

Overallocated Project Resources

View name and role of resource who is overallocated. Click on a resource name to view allocation details.

Critical Activities Behind Schedule

View all activities with zero or negative float and a negative finish date variance.

✔

Milestone Status

View all project milestones completed or due within date ranges you specify. E-mail links let you contact team members associated with each milestone.

✔

Project Reports

Schedule and view reports.

Custom Portlets

Display a Web site.

Project Discussions

Add, participate in online conversations relating to projects or activities. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)

Project Events

Add, view project events such as meetings. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)


Hide ✔

✔

✔

175


Table 3: Portlets on the Project Workspace Portlet

Description

Default

Hide

Project News

Add, view custom messages. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)

✔

Communication Center

Create discussions; schedule events; start document review; send e-mail to team.

✔

Project Calendar

Lists events, activities associated with the project.

✔

Workgroups

Lists workgroups associated with the project. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)

✔

Schedule Performance

View current and forecast schedule and cost summary performance information.

✔

Earned Value Performance

View current and forecast earned value schedule variance and cost variance calculations.

✔

Index Performance

View schedule performance index, cost performance index, and to complete performance index calculations.

✔

Project Statistics

View project data via customizable columns.

Project Health

View project performance via graphical indicators.

176

✔

✔ ✔



Customizing the Project Workspace If you have the proper privilege, you can customize the Project Workspace by: ❑

Customizing the Project Workspace content and layout — Choose the content that appears in the workspace (Content tab) and organize the workspace layout into wide and narrow columns (Layout tab).

❑

Customizing portlet columns — Choose columns to display in portlets that are customizable.

If more than one individual has privilege to modify the Project Workspace, the name/date of the last modification is listed at the bottom of Project Workspace Preferences.

Customizing Content You can customize the Project Workspace by clicking Customize. On the Content tab, mark a checkbox to display a portlet; clear a checkbox to remove the portlet. On the Layout tab, you can design where and how the selected portlets display. FIG. 14.3: The Content tab allows you to turn portlets on and off.

EXERCISE: Customize the Project Workspace.

Steps 1. In the Project Workspace, click Customize.


177


Customizing the Project Workspace (continued) FIG. 14.4: Portlets with checkmarks will display on the Project Workspace.

EXERCISE: Add portlets to the Project Workspace.

Steps 1. Mark the checkbox next to a portlet, Project Risks. 2. In the Custom Portlets section, mark the checkbox next to Custom Portlet 1. 3. Click

next to Custom Portlet 1.

4. In the Title field, type . 5. In the URL field, type . 6. Click Save.

178



Customizing Layout After you select the portlets to be displayed, decide where and how the portlets should appear. On the Layout tab, drag and drop portlets to move them around or use the arrows at the right side of the screen. FIG. 14.5: Drag and drop portlets in the Layout tab.

EXERCISE: Customize portlet layout for the Project Workspace.

Steps 1. Click the Layout tab. 2. In the Primavera portlet, select Wide. 3. In the Project Issues portlet, select Narrow. 4. Drag and drop the portlets to match the screen above. 5. Click Save and Close.


179


Customizing Portlets Some of the portlets on the Project Workspace can be customized. For example, the Project Statistics portlet allows you customize its columns to view project data that meets your needs. FIG. 14.6: Click to customize the portlet.

EXERCISE: Customize columns in the Project Statistics portlet.

Steps 1. In the Project Statistics portlet, click Customize. 2. Use

to move all columns from the Selected Columns section.

3. In the Available Columns section, click 4. Use

to move Original Budget to the Selected Columns section.

5. In the Available Columns section, click 6. Use

to expand a grouping, Budget.

to expand a grouping, Cost.

to move At Completion Total Cost to the Selected Columns section.

7. Click Save.

180



WORKSHOP: PROJECT WORKSPACE Background As the project manager for the HR System Upgrade project, you will customize the Project Workspace to share data with the project team.

Objectives 1. Customize the Project Workspace to remove the Project Risks and Project Issues portlets. 2. On the Project Workspace, display descriptions for the Purpose notebook topic in the Notebook Topics portlet. 3. On the Project Workspace, view the Estimated Expense Cost column in the Project Statistics portlet.


181



The Project Workspace is your homepage for the project in Primavera.

❑

It displays information about a single project, including project management and performance data.

❑

Data is displayed in portlets.

❑

You can use the Project Workspace to discuss project data, communicate, and share information with other project members. However, you need the proper security privileges to customize the Project Workspace.

Review Questions 1. True or False: The Project Workspace displays information about a single project. 2. True or False: All members of the project team can customize the Project Workspace. 3.

Which statement is true about the Project Workspace? a. You can drag and drop portlets on the Project Workspace. b. You can customize the layout of the Project Workspace. c. You cannot refresh individual portlets. d. You can have multiple Project Workspaces per project.

182


LESSON 15

Analyzing Resources and Costs Objectives ✔

Analyze and remove resource overallocation

✔

Analyze project costs

Key Terms Overallocation


183

Lesson 15: Analyzing Resources and Costs

Analyzing the Project Once you have created the project plan, verify that it meets project stakeholders’ date, resource and cost requirements. If a disconnect exists between the information in the project plan and the project requirements, you will be able to identify the source of the problem and define a solution. ❑

Analyze schedule dates — Evaluate the schedule to ensure that milestone dates and project dates are achieved.

❑

Analyze resource allocation — Evaluate resources to ensure they are not overallocated.

❑

Analyze Cost Budget — Evaluate the costs to ensure that the project is within its cost budget.

Schedule (Scope)

Resources

Costs

FIG 15.1: Analyzing the project plan.

184



Analyzing Resource Allocation The project plan is now scheduled to be completed by the deadline. To ensure resource data is up to date, resummarize the project before making changes in resource allocation. You will then use the Overallocated Resources portlet on the Project Workspace to analyze resource overallocation. FIG. 15.2: Click the Workspace tab to use portlets for analyzing project data.

EXERCISE: Assess allocation of resources on the project team.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Analyzing Resources and Costs. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-15. 4. Click the Tools tab. 5. Click Summarize Project, and then click Refresh as necessary. 6. Click the Workspace tab.


185


Viewing Overallocated Resources The Overallocated Resources portlet is not currently displayed on the Project Workspace. You will customize the Project Workspace to display the portlet at the top in wide mode. FIG. 15.3: Click Customize to manage portlets on the Project Workspace.

EXERCISE: Add the Overallocated Resources portlet to the Project Workspace.

Steps 1. In the Project Workspace, click Customize. 2. In the Content tab, mark the checkbox next to a portlet, Overallocated Resources. 3. Click Save. 4. Click the Layout tab. 5. Drag the Overallocated Resources portlet to the top. 6. Select the Wide display mode for the portlet. 7. Click Save and Close.

186



Resolving Resource Overallocation Clicking the name of a resource in the Overallocated Resource portlet to launch the Team Usage tab, which displays details on the selected resource’s allocation in histogram or spreadsheet format. You can customize the Project Team Usage histogram to display allocation in the current project only or all projects. You can also display a specific timescale and display units or costs. FIG. 15.4: The red bar shows overallocation for Jennifer Boyle.

EXERCISE: Locate the time period of the overallocation.

Steps 1. In the Overallocated Resources portlet, click a resource name, Jennifer Boyle. 2. Scroll to the overallocated time period for Jennifer Boyle.


187


Resolving Resource Overallocation (continued) ✍ Click Customize to specify whether all projects or just the current project is listed in the spreadsheet.

Select Spreadsheet for a more detailed view of Jennifer’s overallocation. The top row of the spreadsheet contains allocation totals for each period. Red type in the middle row indicates overallocation. Cells in the spreadsheet indicate units allocated to each project. Click the name of the project to view activities or e-mail the project manager to discuss resource allocation.

FIG. 15.5: Click Spreadsheet to display activities that may cause overallocation.

EXERCISE: View Jennifer’s allocation in the spreadsheet view.

Steps 1. In the Display section, select Spreadsheet. 2. Drag the split bar to the right of the Resource/Project column to expose the Units column. 3. Confirm that Jennifer is overallocated in the week of 10-Jan-10. 4. Click a project, HR System Upgrade - Analyzing Resources and Costs, to view activities to which Jennifer is assigned. 5. Confirm that two activities, HR1020 - Perform system requirements analysis and HR1030 - Perform interface requirements analysis, are occurring in the same week, causing her overallocation. 6. Close the Resource-Project Activities window.

188



Resolving Resource Overallocation (continued) To resolve Jennifer’s overallocation, assign Donna Hansen, who is available during the week of 10-Jan. FIG. 15.6: Donna is available during the week of 10-Jan. to perform the activity.

EXERCISE: Confirm that Donna Hansen is available during the week of 10-Jan.

Steps 1. In the Display section, select Histogram. 2. Select a resource, Donna Hansen.


189


Resolving Resource Overallocation (continued) FIG. 15.7: Click a resource name to change resource assignment.

EXERCISE: Assign Donna Hansen and then return to the Project Team view to reassess allocation.

Steps 1. Click the Activities tab. 2. Select an activity, HR1030 - Perform interface requirements analysis. 3. Right-click and select Details. 4. Click the Resources sub-tab. 5. Click a resource name, Jennifer Boyle. 6. In the Resource field, click 7. Click

to select a new resource.

to expand resource groupings, IT Resources and Development.

8. Select a resource, Donna Hansen. 9. Click OK. 10. Click Save.

190



Analyzing Resource Allocation Jennifer Boyle is no longer overallocated in the week of 10-Jan-10. FIG. 15.8: With Donna assigned to the activity, Jennifer is no longer overallocated.

EXERCISE: Summarize the project and then view updated allocation for Jennifer and Donna.

Steps 1. Click the Tools tab. 2. Click Summarize Project, and click Refresh as necessary. 3. Click the Workspace tab. 4. View the Overallocated Resources portlet. 5. Click the Team Usage tab. to expand groupings, HR System Upgrade - Analyzing Resource Allocation and Costs.

6. Click

7. Select a resource, Donna Hansen. 8. Select a resource, Jennifer Boyle.


191


Analyzing the Budget Before finalizing the project plan, you should ensure that planned costs do not exceed the amount allocated by your organization. You will customize the Project Statistics portlet to displays cost information. FIG. 15.9: The At Completion Total Cost is within the $200,000 budget.

EXERCISE: Customize the Project Statistics portlet to view budget data.

Steps 1. Click the Workspace tab. 2. In the Project Statistics portlet, click Customize. 3. Move all columns in the Selected Columns section to the Available Columns section.

✍ Select all columns

by Shift-clicking on the first and the last columns, then click .

4. In the Available Columns section, click

to expand a grouping, Budget.

5. Move the following column to the Selected Columns section: Original Budget. 6. In the Available Columns section, click

to expand a grouping, Cost.

7. Move the following column to the Selected Column section: At Completion Total Cost. 8. Click Save. 9. View the Project Statistics portlet. The project is under the $200,000 original budget.

192




Use the Overallocated Resources portlet to identify resources with overallocation.

❑

View resource allocation in the Team Usage tab.

❑

Summarize after you make resource assignment changes.

Review Questions 1. True or False: The Histogram can be customized to view allocation in the current project and in all projects. 2. True or False: The Overallocated Resources portlet lists resources who are overallocated and provides links to projects where overallocation occurs. 3.

Which portlet on the Project Workspace enables you to customize columns to view project-related data? a. Project News b. Project Statistics c. Project Calendar d. Communication Center


193


194


LESSON 16

Baselining the Project Objectives ✔

Add a baseline

✔

Select a baseline

Key Terms Project baseline Primary baseline


195

Lesson 16: Baselining the Project

Baselines Before updating the schedule for the first time, you should create a baseline to measure and control the project as it progresses. A baseline is a copy of a project that provides a target against which you can track a project’s cost, schedule, and resource performance.

Adding Baselines The Baselines tab enables you to add, edit, and delete a project baseline and a primary baseline:

196

❑

Project baseline — This baseline is generally established by the project manager. Security privileges significantly restrict the ability of users to edit or delete this baseline, ensuring all users have a single, consistent project baseline to compare to the current project schedule. In P6 Web, the project baseline is used to calculate and display summarized baseline data, generate enterprise-wide reporting, and for comparing to the current project in the Gantt Chart view. It is also used for milestone status reporting and to determine which critical activities are listed as behind schedule in the Critical Activities Behind Schedule portlet.

❑

Primary baseline — This baseline is generally established by individual users so they can conduct baseline analysis independent of the project baseline. It is used to calculate and display live baseline data, for example, in the Activities tab.



Adding Baselines (continued) If no baselines have been assigned to the project, the baseline is the project itself. Current Project is listed in the drop-down lists. ✍ Baseline types

typically are created by a project administrator.

To add a baseline, click Add Baseline and then specify a baseline name that is unique to the project. You can also choose a baseline type. After a baseline is created, it can be assigned as either a project baseline or primary baseline, or both. Note that when you create a baseline, you are copying the project in its current state.

FIG. 16.1: Click Baselines tab to display baselines.

EXERCISE: Display the Baselines tab.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Baselining the Project Plan. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-16. 4. Click the Baselines tab.


197


Adding Baselines (continued) FIG. 16.2: Baseline Name is required when you create a baseline; Baseline Type is optional.

EXERCISE: Create a baseline.

Steps 1. Click Add Baseline. 2. In the Baseline Name field, type . 3. In the Baseline Type field, click

.

4. Select a Baseline Type, Initial Plan, and then click OK. 5. Click Save.

198



Assigning Baselines After a baseline is created it can be assigned as a project baseline or primary baseline by selecting it in the drop-down lists. FIG. 16.3: Select a project baseline.

EXERCISE: Assign a project baseline to the project.

Steps 1. In the Project Baseline drop-down list, select Base 1: HR System Upgrade.

Editing Baseline Names and Types Click a baseline name to edit its name or the currently assigned type. You can edit the baseline name and type even if the baseline is currently assigned as a project baseline or primary baseline.

Deleting Baselines Click a baseline and then click Delete Baseline. You cannot delete a baseline if it is assigned as a project baseline or primary baseline. Assign another baseline or the current project before deleting the baseline.


199



Before updating the schedule for the first time, you should create a baseline to provide a target against which you can track a project’s cost, schedule, and resource performance.

❑

The project baseline is used to calculate and display summarized baseline data.

❑

The primary baseline is used to calculate and display live baseline data, for example, on the Activities tab.

❑

Both baselines can be set as the baseline to calculate live earned value data at the activity level.

Review Questions 1. True or False: There can be only one Project Baseline assigned to the project. 2. True or False: You cannot create baselines in P6 Web. 3.

Which sub-tab in Project Details enables you to select a baseline for earned value calculation? a. General sub-tab b. Settings sub-tab c. Codes sub-tab d. None of the above

200


LESSON 17

Executing the Project Plan Objectives ✔

Describe several methods for updating the project schedule

✔

Define the data date

Key Terms Date date Actuals Progress Spotlight


201

Lesson 17: Executing the Project Plan

Updating a Project Once a project has started, you need to update actual schedule information and resource usage at regular intervals. Your company will establish a standard procedure for how data is collected and how often it is updated.

How Often? You may need to update daily, weekly, or monthly, depending on the length of your project and how frequently you want to adjust your forecasts.

How Collected? ❑

Approve and apply timesheets. • Team members use timesheets to update activities. • Project managers review and approve timesheets. • Project managers apply timesheets to the project.

❑

Enter actual date, resource, and cost information manually. • Record actual dates and progress, actual resource usage and cost, and nonlabor costs. • Apply actuals to the project.

❑

Auto compute actuals. • Progress of activities is automatically calculated according to the original schedule.

202



The Data Date When updating a project, actuals are recorded for each activity relative to the data date. The data date is the date up to which actual performance data is reported and the date from which future work is scheduled. Data Date J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

Schedule

Time

Resource


Time Cost

$

Time


203


Entering Actuals Once a project is underway, you must enter actual schedule and resource usage at regular intervals. You may need to update daily, weekly, or monthly, depending on the timespan of your project and how frequently you want to adjust your forecasts. Actual data is different than planned data -- it is the real time/cost associated with an activity. Enter schedule, resource, and cost data in the following order:

For Completed Activities 1. Actual Start and Actual Finish dates 2. Actual Regular Units/Actual Regular Costs 3. Actual expense costs

For Activities In-Progress 1. Actual start date 2. Percent Complete and/or Remaining Duration 3. Actual Regular Units/Costs and Remaining Units/Costs 4. Actual and remaining expense costs

204



Using Progress Spotlight The Progress Spotlight feature allows you to focus on activities on which progress should have occurred in a time period. As you drag the spotlight curtain to reflect the data date, all activities will be highlighted where progress should be reported. In the example below, according to the schedule, there are four activities highlighted you should record progress on. FIG. 17.1: In the Gantt Chart, you can drag the spotlight curtain to the data date.

EXERCISE: Activate Progress Spotlight in Gantt Chart.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Executing the Project Plan. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-17. 4. Click the Activities tab. 5. In the View drop-down list, select Record Activity Progress. 6. Click

to turn on Progress Spotlight.

7. Confirm that the spotlight curtain is set to the new data date, 11-Jan-10.


205


Statusing a Milestone Activity Milestone activities have zero duration. When you set the Actual Start of a start milestone activity, the Actual Finish will be set automatically. FIG. 17.2: Set the Actual Start of the milestone to 04Jan-10.

EXERCISE: Set the start date of a milestone activity.

Steps 1. Select a milestone activity, HR1000 - Start development milestone. 2. Double-click in the Actual Start field. 3. Click

206




Statusing an Activity to Completion Three steps must be performed to update an activity to completion: 1. Enter Actual Start and Actual Finish dates. 2. Enter Actual Regular Units for the resources. 3. Enter Actual Costs for expenses. FIG. 17.3: Set Actual Start and Actual Finish dates for completed activities.

EXERCISE: Set Actual Start and Actual Finish dates.

Steps 1. Select an activity, HR1010 - Define operational concept of new system. 2. Right-click and select Details. 3. Click Yes to save data changes. 4. Mark the Started checkbox. 5. In the Started field, confirm the date, 04-Jan-10. 6. Mark the Finished checkbox. 7. In the Finished field, confirm the date, 07-Jan-10. 8. Click Save.


207


Statusing an Activity to Completion (continued) FIG. 17.4: Click the resource name to enter Actual Units.

EXERCISE: Enter Actual Units for resources.

Steps 1. Click the Resources sub-tab. 2. Click a resource, Ben Diamond. 3. In the Actual field in the Units section, type <34>. 4. Click Save. 5. Click a resource, Jennifer Boyle. 6. In the Actual field in the Units section, type <32>. 7. Click Save. 8. Click Return to Activity List.

208



Statusing an Activity In Progress Four steps must be performed to update an activity in progress: 1. Enter Actual Start date. 2. Enter Percent Complete and/or Remaining Duration. 3. Enter Actual Regular Units and Remaining Units for resources. 4. Enter Actual Costs and Remaining Costs for expenses. FIG. 17.5: Mark Started for activities with actual start.

EXERCISE: Status an activity in progress.

Steps 1. Select an Activity, HR1020 - Perform system requirements analysis. 2. Right-click and select Details. 3. Mark the Started checkbox. 4. In the Started field, confirm the date, 08-Jan-10. 5. In the Remaining Duration field, confirm a value, 10d. 6. Click Save.


209


Statusing an Activity In Progress (continued) FIG. 17.6: Enter actual units for a resource.

EXERCISE: Enter actual units for Ben Diamond.

Steps 1. Click the Resources sub-tab. 2. Click a resource, Ben Diamond. 3. In the Actual field in the Units section, type <8h>. 4. In the Remaining field in the Units section, type <72>. 5. Click Save.

210



Rescheduling the Project Now that actuals have been recorded, you should reschedule with the new data date and then summarize the project. FIG. 17.7: Successors to the

Perform system requirements analysis activity are delayed.

EXERCISE: Reschedule the project with a data date of 11-Jan-10, and then return to the Gantt Chart to analyze results.

Steps 1. Click the Tools tab. 2. Click Cancel if you are prompted about saving view changes. 3. In the New Data Date field, click

.

4. Select a date, 11-Jan-10, and then click Select. 5. Click Reschedule Project, and then click Refresh as necessary. 6. Click Summarize Project, and then click Refresh as necessary. 7. Click the Activities tab. 8. In the View drop-down list, select Analyzing Progress. 9. Right-click on the timescale and select Month/Week.


211


Analyzing Results of Rescheduling To further analyze activities, select an activity view to compare your current schedule and the baselines. FIG. 17.8: Due to Jennifer’s inability to start the

Perform system requirements analysis activity, it is scheduled to finish 1 day late.

EXERCISE: View the impact of the activity delay.

Steps 1. In the View drop-down list, select an activity view, Variance BL & BL1. 2. View an activity, HR1020 - Perform system requirements analysis.

212




Once a project has started, you need to update actual schedule information and resource usage at regular intervals.

❑

Remember to summarize project data if resource assignment information has changed.

❑

Reschedule the project and analyze the impact of actuals entered in the timeperiod.

❑

Use the Progress Spotlight to highlight activities on which progress should be reported.

Review Questions 1. True or False: The data date is the date used as the starting point for schedule calculations. 2. True or False: You can drag the Progress Spotlight curtain on the Gantt Chart. 3.

Which sub-tab in Activity Details enables you to enter resource assignment actuals? a. General sub-tab b. Resources sub-tab c. Codes sub-tab d. Status sub-tab


213


214


LESSON 18

Analyzing the Updated Project Objectives ✔

Compare Must Finish By and Scheduled Finish dates

✔

View issues

✔

View schedule performance

✔

Adjust the project based on issue information

✔

View budget data

Key Terms Baseline analysis Project performance portlets Issues


215

Lesson 18: Analyzing the Updated Project

Analyzing Schedule Dates To determine whether the project will finish on time, view the Project Statistics portlet on the Project Workspace. If the Scheduled Finish of the project is beyond the Must Finish By date, the project must be adjusted. To adjust the project, perform the following steps for analysis: 1. Perform baseline analysis. 2. Focus on critical activities. 3. Monitor issues. 4. Copy the project for what-if analysis. 5. Adjust the project.

216



Analyzing Schedule Dates (continued) The Scheduled Finish, 03-Jan-11, is later than the Must Finish By date, 31-Dec-10. Even though there are no workdays between 31-Dec-10 and 03Jan-11 — 01-Jan is a Saturday, 02-Jan is a Sunday — the Must Finish by date requires all work done by the morning of 31-Dec-10. Thus, the project is 1 day behind schedule. FIG. 18.1: Compare Must Finish By and Scheduled Finish.

EXERCISE: Compare dates in the Project Statistics portlet to assess whether the project is on schedule.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Analyzing the Updated Project. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-18. 4. On the Project Workspace, view the Project Statistics portlet.


217


Analyzing Project Performance You can use other portlets on the Project Workspace to assess project performance: ❑

Schedule Performance — Displays current and forecast schedule and cost summary performance information.

❑

Earned Value Performance — Displays current and forecast earned value, schedule variance, and cost variance calculations.

❑

Index Performance — Displays schedule performance index, cost performance index, and to complete performance index calculations.

❑

Project Health — Displays project status based on status indicators defined in Global Preferences.

FIG. 18.1: The portlet indicates that the project is behind schedule.

EXERCISE: Display the Schedule Performance portlet on the Project Workspace.

Steps 1. On the Project Workspace, scroll down to the Schedule Performance portlet. The portlet indicates that the project is behind schedule and labor units are exceeding planned values.

218



Adjusting the Project You can use several methods to shorten the project: ✍ Prior to making any

major changes to the schedule, it is recommended that you make a copy of the project. Your system administrator can make a copy of the project for you.

❑

Use relationships to overlap activities.

❑

Add additional resources to reduce durations.

❑

Break down long activities.

❑

Change calendar assignments: • Put critical activities on a longer workweek. • Add exceptions to nonworktime.

You can use the following set of questions to help you decide how to most appropriately adjust the schedule.

Can the Finish Date of the Project Slip? ❑

The project may need to be delayed if no other options are available.

❑

If the delay is approved, adjust the Must Finish By date.

❑

If the delay is not approved, find another way to meet the project milestones and finish date of the project.

Can the Scope of the Activity/Project Decrease? ❑

In some cases, in order to meet the project milestones and finish date, you can decrease the total amount of work that will be accomplished, for example, decreasing the scope of the project.

❑

If the scope change is approved, decrease the scope by decreasing the total hours worked on activities. This will change the duration of the activities.

❑

If the scope change is not approved, find another way to meet the project milestones and finish date of the project.


219


Were the Planned Hours Over- or UnderEstimated? ❑

You may have overestimated the number of hours to complete activities; the scope of work can be accomplished in fewer hours.

❑

You can decrease the total hours worked on activities, which decreases the duration of the activities.

Can an Additional Resource be Assigned? ❑

You can assign another resource to the activity to finish it on time.

❑

This may be possible if another resource with the necessary skills is available.

Can the Resource Work Overtime?

220

❑

The resource may need to work overtime to complete an activity on time.

❑

The hours the resource works each day will increase.



Managing Project Issues Issues are known problems within a project that require attention or corrective action before the project can be completed. You can view issues in: ❑

Issues tab in the Projects section.

❑

Project Issues portlet on the Project Workspace.

Issues are derived from three sources: ❑

Created manually in P6 Web.

❑

Created manually in the P6 client-server application.

❑

Generated by monitoring thresholds. • Thresholds are created and monitored by the system administrator. Thresholds enable you to define acceptable tolerances within a project, for example, Total Float, and automatically generate an issue when the threshold is exceeded. A typical threshold would require an issue to be generated when an activity has negative float.


221


Managing Project Issues (continued) An issue generated by a threshold shows that the Finish Date Variance for activity HR1020 - Perform system requirements analysis is -1 day, meaning that the activity is scheduled to finish 1 day later than indicated in the baseline. The delay in the activity was caused when Jennifer Boyle was out sick on 08Jan-10, the day she was scheduled to begin the task. FIG. 18.2: Click issue name to view Issue Details.

EXERCISE: View the Project Issues portlet.

222

Steps 1. On the Project Workspace, view the Project Issues portlet.



Adjusting Resource Usage Jennifer has agreed to work overtime to get the activity back on schedule. FIG. 18.3: Activity is scheduled to finish 22-Jan.

EXERCISE: View the current status of an activity, Perform system requirements analysis.

Steps 1. Click the Activities tab. 2. In the View drop-down, select Analyzing Progress. 3. Select an activity, HR1020 - Perform system requirements analysis. 4. Right-click and select Details. 5. Click the Status sub-tab.


223


Adjusting Resource Usage (continued) You will shorten the Remaining Duration of the activity by 1 day to 9 days, while keeping Jennifer’s remaining units at 80h. Primavera will calculate how many hours Jennifer should work each day to complete her remaining 80 hours work in 9 days. FIG. 18.4: Jennifer is now scheduled to work 9 hours a day.

EXERCISE: Adjust Remaining Duration and Remaining Units.

Steps 1. Click Edit duration and units. 2. In the Remaining Duration field, type <9d>. 3. Click Save. 4. Click the Resources sub-tab. 5. Click a resource name, Jennifer Boyle. 6. In the Remaining Units field, type <80h>. 7. Click Save. In the Remaining Units/Time column, Jennifer is now scheduled to work 9 hours per day to complete activity. You will also re-adjust Ben’s units. 8. Click a resource name, Ben Diamond. 9. In the Remaining Units field, type <72h>. 10. Click Save. Ben’s Remaining Units/Time are recalculated to 8h/d.

224



Rescheduling the Project To see the effect of this change, you need to reschedule the project. After scheduling: ❑

Comparing the Must Finished By date and Scheduled Finish, the project is back on schedule.

❑

Comparing the Original Budget and At Completion Total Cost, the project is under the $200,000 Original Budget.

FIG. 18.5: The project is back on schedule and under budget

EXERCISE: Reschedule and then check the Scheduled Finish date.

Steps 1. Click the Tools tab. 2. Confirm a data date, 11-Jan-10. 3. Click Reschedule Project, and then click Refresh as necessary. 4. Click Summarize Project, and then click Refresh as necessary. 5. Click the Workspace tab. 6. View the Project Statistics portlet.


225


Closing an Issue If the issue is resolved to your satisfaction, you can close the issue in the Project Issues portlet. FIG. 18.6: Click the issue name to change its status.

EXERCISE: Close an issue.

Steps 1. Click the Workspace tab. 2. In the Project Issues portlet, click an Issue Name, Finish Date Variance (days) is -1 on Activity: HR1020. 3. In the Status drop-down list, select Closed. 4. Next to the Resolution Date field, click


5. Click Save.

226




To determine whether the project finishes on time, view the General subtab in Project Details or use the Project Statistics portlet on the Project Workspace.

❑

If the Scheduled Finish of the project is beyond the Must Finish By date, the project must be adjusted.

❑

Primavera provides several tools to assist you with the analysis before you adjust the project: baseline analysis, displaying critical activities, monitoring issues, and portlets for projects performance analysis.

Review Questions 1.

The project’s Scheduled Finish and Must Finish By date are displayed in a. Tools tab b. Project Details, Settings sub-tab c. Project Details, General sub-tab d. Baselines tab

2. True or False: Issues can be created in the P6 Web. 3.

Prior to making major changes to the schedule, you should: a. Summarize b. Export the project to create a backup copy c. Apply actuals d. Create an issue


227


228


LESSON 19

Reporting Objectives ✔

Assign reports to the Project Reports portlet

✔

Schedule reports

✔

View scheduled reports

Key Term Project Reports portlet


229

Lesson 19: Reporting

Project Reports Portlet The Project Reports portlet enables you to schedule and view reports in P6 Web. You can run reports manually or schedule them to run on a regular basis, for example, every morning at 9 am. Reports can be viewed in HTML directly in your Web browser, or you can view them in MS Excel. ❑

You need the proper privilege to assign or remove reports. When you assign a report, it always runs against the current project.

❑

Since the Project Reports portlet is on the Project Workspace, project team members have access to the assigned reports. However, in order to view data, each team member must schedule them in their own Project Reports portlet.

FIG. 19.1: The No

data available

message appears until reports are assigned in the Project Reports portlet.

EXERCISE: Display the Project Reports portlet on the Project Workspace.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Reporting Performance. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-19. 4. On the Project Workspace, click Customize. 5. Remove all existing portlets from the Project Workspace. 6. Mark a checkbox next to a portlet, Project Reports. 7. Click Save and Close.

230



Assigning Reports to Project Reports Portlet You need the proper privilege to assign reports to the Project Reports portlet. Usually, only the project manager customizes the Project Workspace and decides which reports should be accessible to team members. Click Assign Report to add a report to the Project Reports portlet. When you add a report to the portlet, its schedule status is Disabled, meaning the report is not yet scheduled to run. FIG. 19.2: Initially, the assigned report is disabled.

EXERCISE: Assign a report to the portlet.

Steps 1. In the Project Reports portlet, click Assign Report. 2. Search for a report, SR-15 Schedule Report - Sorted by Total Float. 3. Select the report, and then click Assign. 4. Click Close.


231


Scheduling Reports When you schedule a report, the portlet submits the job request to the Primavera Job Service. The Job Service processes the request at the scheduled time and runs the report. Note that the Job Service runs the reports by logging in as the user who schedules the report. Thus, user security and access settings always apply, and the same report might not return the same data for users with different privileges. For example, you may run a report that contains data you do not have the privilege to view. In that case, you can still run the report, but some of the columns will be blank. The Schedule State column indicates whether the report is scheduled to run. When the column displays Enabled, the report will run based on scheduling options. When the field displays Disabled, the report will not run even if scheduling options have been specified. Disable a report if you want to suspend its scheduling now but run it at a later time. The My Reports portlet retains its scheduling information, but the report will not run until you enable it again. Other columns in the portlet:

232

❑

Report name — Report name will become a link after the report has run.

❑

Last Run date — Date when report was last successfully run.

❑

Schedule Type — Displays when the report is selected to run, for example, every day, every week, etc.

❑

Status — Displays status of current report job.



Scheduling Reports (continued) To set scheduling options, mark a checkbox adjacent to a report and click Schedule. To schedule multiple reports, mark the checkbox prior to each report name. To select all reports, mark the checkbox prior to the column header, Report Name. FIG. 19.3: Click Schedule to schedule a report to run.

✍ EXERCISE: View report scheduling options.

Steps 1. Mark a checkbox prior to a report, SR-15 Schedule Report - Sorted by Total Float, to select it. 2. Click Schedule.


233


Scheduling Reports (continued) In the Report Schedule Options dialog box, select Enabled in order to access scheduling options. You can choose to run the report at a specific time every day, every week, every two weeks, or every month. You can also choose to run the report as soon as possible, meaning it will be submitted to the Job Service immediately after the last job currently in the service runs. FIG. 19.4: When the Status column displays Complete, the name of the report becomes a link.

EXERCISE: Schedule the report to run as soon as possible.

Steps 1. In the Report Schedule State section, select Enabled. 2. Confirm that Run as soon as possible option is set. 3. Click OK. 4. Click

234

to refresh as necessary.



Viewing Reports When the Status column of a scheduled report displays Complete, the name of the report becomes a hyperlink. To view the report in your Internet browser, click the name of the report. ✍ In order to view the report in MS Excel, you must have MS Excel properly installed on your computer.

To view the report in MS Excel, mark the checkbox next to the report name, and click Open In Excel. The Open In Excel link is enabled only if you have at least one report checkbox marked.

FIG. 19.5: Click the name of the report to view report data.

Deleting Reports To delete a report, mark the checkbox next to the report name, and click Remove. Removing a report deletes the report from the Project Reports portlet with all existing scheduling information. Removing the Project Reports portlet from the Project Workspace will not delete its reports. Scheduled reports will run even if the portlet is not displayed.


235



The Project Reports portlet on the Project Workspace enables you to assign and schedule reports to run periodically or once.

❑

You can then view the reports in HTML in your Web browser or in MS Excel format.

❑

Project team members have to schedule the report to run for themselves.

Review Questions 1.

Once the report status is Complete, you can view report data, by a. Clicking Assign Report b. Marking its checkbox and clicking Schedule c. Clicking the report name d. Clicking Remove

2. True or False: Removing the Project Reports portlet from the Project Workspace cancels all scheduled reports as well. 3. True or False: Your user security settings do not have any impact on the data returned by reports.

236


LESSON 20

Dashboards Objectives ✔

Create a dashboard

✔

Add and remove dashboards

✔

Filter data to display in portlets

✔

View your projects and activities

Key Terms Dashboard Filter by field


237

Lesson 20: Dashboards

Dashboards The Dashboards section is your personalized homepage in P6 Web. Like the Project Workspace, the Dashboards section uses portlets to display project or portfolio data. (A different set of portlets is available for dashboards.) The following table lists the similarities and differences between the Dashboards section and the Project Workspace:

Feature

238

Dashboards Section

Project Workspace

Data source

Dashboard content determined by dashboard filter (single project, multiple projects or single portfolio)

Selected project only

Number

Multiple dashboards per user.

One Project Workspace per project.

Customizable

Yes. Individuals can customize their own dashboards.

Yes. Usually only by the project manager.

Shared

If you have the privilege to create dashboards, you can make them accessible to all or a group of users.

Automatically shared by project resources. It cannot be shared with all users.



Viewing Dashboards The Dashboards section allows you to display multiple dashboards in P6 Web. Each dashboard is represented as a tab. Click a tab to view the dashboard. Each dashboard uses a Filter by field to determine whether portlets in the dashboard display project or portfolio data. FIG. 20.1: Click tabs to view dashboards.

EXERCISE: View John Brunner’s displayed dashboards.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Dashboards. 2. Click the displayed dashboard tabs.


239


Customizing Dashboards Dashboards provide information specific to your role in the organization and data related to projects to which you are associated. You can customize dashboards by:

240

❑

Filtering portlet data — Filter data by projects, portfolios, or project codes.

❑

Customizing content and layout — Choose the content that appears in the workspace (Content tab) and organize the workspace layout into wide and narrow columns (Layout tab).

❑

Customizing portlets — Choose columns to display in each portlet. Note that not all portlets are customizable.



Filtering Portlet Data The Filter by field at the top of the dashboard enables you to filter portlet data by: ❑

Project — Portlet data relates to the selected project.

❑

Portfolio — Portlet data relates to projects in the selected portfolio.

❑

Project Code — Portlet data relates to the projects assigned the selected project code value.

Data in the following portlets is not filtered by Filter by field: Action Required, Project and Document Workflows, Resource Team Summary, and Open Requests for Resources. Preferences for some portlets enable you to further filter data based on project association. For example, in the My Projects portlet, you can choose to view projects for which you have access rights, you are a resource, or you are a project owner. Use the Select drop-down list to select a project, portfolio or project code. You can also search to quickly locate items.

FIG. 20.2: Select

Projects, Portfolios, or Project Codes in the Select dropdown list.

EXERCISE: View available Filter by options.

Search parameters are linked to the item in the Select drop-down list. For example, if Project is selected in the Select dropdown list, you can search for Project Name or Project ID only.

Steps 1. Click the John’s Projects dashboard tab. 2. In the Filter by field, click 3. Click

.

to expand Global Portfolio.

You will not change the Filter by selection at this time. 4. Click Close.


241


Customizing Dashboards If you have the proper privilege, you can customize dashboards by setting which portlets are displayed, the type of data shown in the portlets, and how the portlets are organized. The customization page is divided into three tabs: ❑

Content — Mark a checkbox to display a portlet. Click additional portlet options.

to display

❑

Layout — Use right/left arrows to move portlets to wide and narrow columns; up/down arrows to arrange portlets vertically in a column. You can also drag and drop portlets to create a layout.

❑

Access — Select user(s) who can access the dashboard.

FIG. 20.3: Click to customize the current dashboard.

EXERCISE: Customize the current dashboard.

242

Steps 1. Click Customize.



Portlets on Dashboards Following is a list of portlets available on dashboards. (As noted in table, some portlets require installation of collaboration functionality.)

Table 4: Portlets Available for Dashboards Portlet

Functionality

My Projects

Displays projects to which you are associated.

My Activities

View all activities where you are assigned as a resource.

My Risks

View project risks to which you are associated.

My Issues

Displays all open issues to which you are associated.

My Documents

Access to project documents you have recently worked on; manage private documents for your own use.

Communication Center

Start discussion, schedule event, start document review, send e-mail to team members associated with a project.

My Events

Track meetings relating to specific projects or activities and notify team members. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)

My Calendar

See a week's worth of events and activities that pertain to your projects.

My Reports

Schedule and display reports created by the Administrator.

My Workgroups

Displays Workgroups. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)

Custom Portlet

Displays a Web site. You can have up to 50 custom portlets in your Personal Workspace.

Action Required

Lists project request/process workflows and document reviews that require your attention. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)

Project and Document Workflows

Track project request/process workflows and document reviews. (Requires installation of collaboration functionality.)

Portfolio View

Displays Portfolio Views created in the Portfolios section.

Schedule Performance

Displays schedule and cost summary performance information.

Earned Value Performance

Displays both current and forecast earned value schedule variance and cost variance calculations.

Index Performance

Displays schedule performance index, cost performance index, and to complete performance index calculations.

Project Health

View status indicators on portfolio, project performance.

Project Statistics

Customize columns to view project data.

Project Notebooks

Displays notebook topics, descriptions assigned to a project.


243


Table 4: Portlets Available for Dashboards Portlet

Functionality

Resource Team Summary

View resources, roles, and the number of active projects for each resource in the selected team.

Open Requests for Resources

View which roles require staffing at any time in your projects. Click unstaffed role to view or define search criteria, assign resource.

Resource Analysis Chart

View total units/costs for a resource, resource team, or resource code.

244



Portlets on Dashboards (continued) FIG. 20.4: Mark the checkbox next to My Activities to add the portlet to a dashboard.

EXERCISE: Add the My Activities portlet to a dashboard.

Steps 1. Mark a checkbox next to a portlet, My Activities. 2. Click

to display additional options.

3. In the Show activities scheduled for the next days field, type <999>. The maximum value, 999 days, is entered in the scheduled for the next days field for training purposes. In an actual environment, you would likely enter a smaller number of days to more efficiently track upcoming activities. 4. Click Save.


245


Modifying Portlet Layout In the Layout tab you can control where and how selected portlets are displayed: ❑

Drag and drop portlets to organize the layout.

❑

Use

❑

For each portlet, select Narrow or Wide.

to move portlets.

To remove a portlet from the dashboard, clear its checkmark in the Content tab. FIG. 20.5: Drag and drop portlets in the Layout tab.

EXERCISE: Move the My Activities portlet to the top of the dashboard.

Steps 1. Click the Layout tab. 2. Click the My Activities portlet and drag it to the top. 3. In the My Activities portlet, select Wide. 4. Click Save and Close.

246



Modifying Portlet Layout (continued) Buttons within each portlet enable you to control its display directly in a dashboard (and in the Project Workspace): ❑

Click Collapse All to collapse all active portlets to their title bars.

❑

Click Expand All to expand all active portlets.

❑

Click

to collapse a single portlet.

❑

Click

to expand a single portlet.

❑

Click

to access online help for a portlet.

❑

Click

to refresh a portlet.

❑

Click

to maximize/minimize a single portlet.

❑

Click

to close a single portlet.

❑

Click

to search within a portlet

FIG. 20.6: Click to collapse all portlets.

EXERCISE: Expand the My Activities portlet only.

Steps 1. Click Collapse All. 2. Click

on the My Activities portlet.


247


Personal Information Portlets Personal Information portlets focus on information that affects you. Most of the portlet names begin with "My", such as My Projects, My Issues, My Calendar, etc. You can customize data displayed in portlets according to your role in a project.

My Activities Portlet This portlet lists activities based on the project, portfolio, or project code in the Filter by field, and future activities based on the number of days specified in the Show Activities scheduled for next __ days field in Personal Workspace Preferences. ❑

Activities are grouped by project.

❑

Click

❑

Click an activity to launch Activity Details.

❑

Click Enter Time to launch Timesheets.

to expose activities within the project.

FIG. 20.7: Click Activity Name to launch Activity Details.

EXERCISE: View Activity Details for

Project execution activity.

Steps 1. Click

to expose activities within a project, ERP System Installation.

2. Click an activity, Project execution, to view Activity Details. 3. Scroll to view the Resources section. 4. Click Return to return to the dashboard.

248



Custom Portlets Up to 50 Custom portlets can be displayed on a dashboard. These portlets can be used to display a Web site or a Web application. For example, you can use a custom portlet to access your organization’s intranet or run programs written against the Primavera Application Programming Interface (API). Mark a checkbox next to each Custom portlet to display it on a dashboard. Click to specify a portlet title and portlet URL. To change the number of available custom portlets, enter a value from 1 to 50 in the Number of Custom Portlets field. FIG. 20.8: Mark checkbox to display the portlet on a dashboard.

EXERCISE: Add a Custom portlet displaying the Primavera Web site.

Steps 1. Click Customize. 2. Mark a checkbox next to a portlet, Custom Portlet 1. 3. Click

next to Custom Portlet 1.

4. In the Portlet Title field, type . The title appears in the portlet title band. 5. In the Portlet URL field, type . 6. Click Save and Close. 7. Scroll to view the Custom portlet, Primavera.


249


Managing Dashboards If you have the proper privilege you can create, modify, delete, display or remove dashboards on the Manage Dashboards page. You can access the Manage Dashboard page through the Manage Dashboards command in the Action bar. FIG. 20.9: Click to access the Manage Dashboards page.

EXERCISE: Display and remove dashboards.

Steps 1. In the Action bar, click Manage Dashboards. 2. Mark a checkbox next to an available dashboard, Default Dashboard. 3. Using

, move the Default Dashboard up to the first place.

4. Clear the checkbox next to a displayed dashboard, Planned Projects. 5. In the Navigation bar, click Dashboards to view the changes.

250



Creating a Dashboard On the Manage Dashboard page you can create a new dashboard by clicking Create Dashboard. FIG. 20.10: Click to create a new dashboard based on an existing one or the default.

EXERCISE: Create a new dashboard.

Steps 1. In the Task bar, click Manage Dashboards. 2. Click Create Dashboard. 3. Expand User Dashboards, and then select a dashboard, John’s Projects. 4. Click OK.


251


Creating a Dashboard (continued) Once the dashboard is created, you can customize its portlets, layout and access. FIG. 20.11: The new dashboard is displayed.

EXERCISE: Customize the new dashboard.

Steps 1. In the Dashboard Title field, type . 2. Mark all the portlets in the Personal Information section. 3. Clear checkboxes next to other portlets. 4. Click Save and Close. 5. In the Navigation bar, click Dashboards. 6. Click the My Dashboard tab to view portlets.

252



WORKSHOP: DASHBOARDS Background Signature Corp. permits each user to create a dashboard.

Objectives 1. Create a dashboard called My Personal Info. 2. Select portlets you would use at your work site. 3. Customize the layout. 4. Display a Custom portlet with a Web site from a news source in your hometown.


253



Dashboards display data in portlets.

❑

You can choose portlets and customize how they appear in dashboards.

❑

The data displayed in most portlets is filtered by the Filter by field.

❑

You can manage dashboards by clicking Manage Dashboards in the Action bar.

Review Questions 1. True or False: Data in all portlets is filtered by the selection in the Filter by field. 2. True or False: Not all portlets can be displayed in the narrow column. 3.

Which statement is false about dashboards? a. You can display multiple dashboards b. Dashboards and the Project Workspace share portlets. c. You cannot delete Multiple User Dashboards if you did not create them. d. You can place the same portlet on several dashboards.

254


LESSON 21

Portfolios Objectives ✔

Create a portfolio manually

✔

Create a portfolio by filter

Key Terms Portfolio Portfolio filter


255

Lesson 21: Portfolios

Creating a Portfolio A portfolio is a group of projects organized by criteria specific to your needs. For example, you can create a portfolio of the projects you manage; projects starting in the current fiscal year; projects over a specific budget figure; or projects involving a certain department. You can view information about the portfolio, and projects within it, by specifying the portfolio in the Filter by field on the Personal Workspace.

User and Global Portfolios A security privilege is required to create/modify portfolios and create global portfolios. In addition, you must have access to a project in order to add it to a portfolio. You can create a portfolio: ❑

For another single user: User portfolio.

❑

For yourself: User portfolio.

❑

For all users: Global portfolio.

Manual and Filtered Portfolios Projects in a portfolio can be added manually or via filter. Manual portfolios do not change unless you manually modify the portfolio. When a filtered portfolio is created, projects are automatically placed in the portfolio if they meet filter criteria. When you manually refresh the filter, additional projects that meet the criteria are added, and projects that no longer meet the criteria are removed.

256

❑

Manual portfolios are indicated by

(User) or

(Global).

❑

Filtered portfolios are indicated by

(User) or

(Global).



Viewing Portfolios The Action bar in the Dashboards section allows you to launch the Manage Portfolios page, where you can create, edit and delete portfolios. Click to a portfolio to display its projects.

next

FIG. 21.1: Click to view project names.

EXERCISE: View current portfolios.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Dashboards. 2. In the Action bar, click Manage Portfolios. 3. Click the

next to a portfolio, New Systems.


257


Deleting a Portfolio If you have the proper privilege, you can delete portfolios by clicking Delete. You will delete the New Systems portfolio. FIG. 21.2: Click to delete a portfolio.

EXERCISE: Delete the New Systems portfolio.

Steps 1. Click Delete next to a portfolio, New Systems. 2. Click OK.

258



Creating a Portfolio Manually Portfolios are created on the Manage Portfolios page by clicking Create Project

Portfolio. FIG. 21.3: Click to create a portfolio.

EXERCISE: Create a portfolio, New Systems, containing manually selected projects.

Steps 1. Click Create Project Portfolio. 2. In the Project Portfolio Name field, type . 3. In the Manage this Portfolio field, confirm Manually. 4. In the This portfolio is available to field, select All Users. 5. In the Available Projects section, click to expand EPS groupings, Information Technology Projects, Internal IT Projects, and New Systems. 6. Select all projects, and use the arrow to move them to the Selected Projects section. 7. Click Save.


259


Creating a Portfolio by Filter Up to three separate parameters can be used to build the portfolio. When using multiple parameters, specify whether a project must meet all or any of the parameters to be included in the portfolio. FIG. 21.4: Up to three different parameters can be used to build the portfolio filter.

Each filter component is comprised of three elements: ❑

Parameter — Select a parameter field from the drop-down list. Available parameters include cost, labor, and date-related fields. Project code values and user-defined fields enable you to further customize a filter with data specific to your organization.

❑

Is — Select an operator from the drop-down list. Options for data-based parameters include: • greater than • less than • equals

❑

260

Value — Type a value or use

to select a value.



Creating a Portfolio by Filter (continued) FIG. 21.5: The icon indicates that the portfolio is created by using a filter.

EXERCISE: Create a portfolio to monitor all projects that are assigned a project code value of Important.

Steps 1. Click Create Project Portfolio. 2. In the Portfolio Project Name field, type . 3. In the Manage this portfolio field, select By Filter. 4. In the Parameter drop-down list, scoll to the Project Code grouping, and then select Priority Code. 5. In the Is drop-down list, confirm equals. 6. In the Value field, click 7. Click

.

to expand a project code grouping, Project Code: Priority Code.

8. Select a project code value, Imp - Important. 9. Click OK. 10. Click Save. 11. Click

to view projects in the Important Projects portfolio.


261


Refreshing the Portfolio Filter You can refresh a currently selected filtered portfolio by clicking next to the Filter by field on a dashboard. Projects that no longer meet filter criteria are removed from the portfolio; projects that meet filter criteria are retained or added. The icon appears only if a filtered portfolio is specified in the Filter by field. FIG. 21.6: Click the icon to refresh a filtered portfolio.

EXERCISE: Refresh a filtered portfolio.

Steps 1. In the Navigation bar, click Dashboards. 2. Select a dashboard, John’s Projects. 3. In the Filter by field, click

.

4. Expand a grouping, Filtered Portfolio. 5. Select a portfolio, Important Projects. 6. Click OK. 7. Click

262

to expand the Project Statistics portlet.



Analyzing Portfolio Performance The Dashboards section offers four portlets designed to analyze project and portfolio performance: ❑

Schedule Performance — Displays both current and forecast schedule and cost summary performance information.

❑

Earned Value Performance — Displays both current and forecast earned value schedule variance (SV) and cost variance (CV) calculations.

❑

Index Performance — Displays schedule performance index (SPI), cost performance index (CPI), and to complete performance index (TCPI) calculations. • SPI indicates whether you are meeting earned and planned values within your schedule. • CPI indicates whether you have spent money over the budget to date. • TCPI enables you to determine the level of performance needed to achieve the cost or time objectives.

❑

Project Health — View project performance in narrative form.

In addition, Project Score, a column in Project Statistics, is useful in assessing a project’s strategic value.


263


Analyzing Portfolio Performance (continued) FIG. 21.7: Portlets display data based on the Filter by selection.

EXERCISE: Change the Filter by selection to a manual portfolio.

Steps 1. Select a dashboard, Project Performance. 2. In the Filter by field, click

.

3. Expand a grouping, Global Portfolio. 4. Select a portfolio, New Systems. 5. Click OK.

264



Analyzing Portfolio Performance (continued) The Project Health portlet indicates that one of the three projects in the portfolio is both over-budget and behind schedule. Its narrative form is wellsuited for project reports. FIG. 21.8: The icon indicates that the project is not meeting earned value objectives.

The Earned Value Performance portlet indicates that two projects in the portfolio are not meeting earned value objectives. To assess the cause of the delays, click a project name to display earned value data at the WBS level. FIG. 21.9: Click project name to view earned value data at the WBS level.


265


Project Score Project Score is a method to rank or prioritize projects via weighted project codes and project code values. The combined weights of the project code values assigned to a project are calculated to determine a relative score. FIG. 21.10: The

Payroll Manager project, assigned to Accounting and New IT Systems project codes, has the highest Project Score.

EXERCISE: View the Project Score in the Project Statistics portlet.

Steps 1. Click Manage Dashboards. 2. In the Available Dashboards section, mark a checkbox next to a dashboard, Project Score. 3. In the Navigation bar, click Dashboards. 4. Select a Dashboard, Project Score. 5. In the Display field in the portlet, select Group. 6. Click the Project Score column header to list in descending order.

How is Project Score Calculated? ✍ Project codes/

weights are created by your system administrator.

Projects in the New Systems portfolio were assigned project code values in two project codes: Product Group and Division. In the Product Group project code, the highest weighted project code value is assigned to New IT Systems. In the Division project code, the highest weighted project code value is assigned to projects affecting Accounting. The Payroll Manager project, assigned to the New IT Systems and Accounting project code values, has the highest Project Score.

266




You can create portfolios manually or automatically using filters.

❑

User portfolios can be accessed by only the selected users. Global portfolios are available for all users.

❑

Dashboards provide four portlets to measure project or portfolio performance.

❑

The Project Score is a calculated value that can be used to rank projects based on their importance to your organization.

Review Questions 1. True or False: A portfolio filter can be manually refreshed via an icon on the Dashboard. 2.

Project Score is a column in a. Project Statistics portlet b. Schedule Performance portlet c. Project Health portlet d. All of the above


267


268


APPENDIX A

Updating the Project Using Timesheets Objectives ✔

Describe several methods for updating the project schedule

✔

Define the data date

✔

Review timesheets

✔

Approve/reject timesheets

✔

Apply actuals

Key Terms Timesheet approval manager Applying actuals


269

Appendix A: Updating the Project Using Timesheets

Updating a Project Once a project has started, you need to update actual schedule information and resource usage at regular intervals. Your company will establish a standard procedure for how data is collected and how often it is updated.

How Often? You may need to update daily, weekly, or monthly, depending on the length of your project and how frequently you want to adjust your forecasts.

How Collected? ❑

Approve and apply timesheets. • Team members use timesheets to update activities. • Project managers review and approve timesheets. • Project managers apply timesheets to the project.

❑

Enter actual date, resource, and cost information manually. • Record actual dates and progress, actual resource usage and cost, and nonlabor costs. • Apply actuals to the project.

❑

Auto compute actuals. • Progress of activities is automatically calculated according to the original schedule.

270



The Data Date When updating a project, actuals are recorded for each activity relative to the data date. The data date is the date up to which actual performance data is reported and the date from which future work is scheduled.

Data Date J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

Schedule

Time

Resource


Time Cost

$

Time


271


Updating a Project Using Timesheets Although the process for updating a project using timesheet information may vary from company to company, the steps below provide a general outline for completing this process: ❑

Review timesheets

❑

Approve/reject timesheets

❑

Apply actuals

❑

Analyze results of applying actuals

❑

Reschedule the project

❑

Analyze results of rescheduling the project

Reviewing Timesheets The Approve Timesheets function enables you to view timesheets that affect your project. As the timesheet approval manager, you can approve or reject timesheets, notify resources about timesheet status, and view detailed timesheet information for your assigned resources. You can also determine if a resource has not started or not submitted a particular timesheet. Three tabs are available: ❑

Approval — Approve or reject submitted timesheets. After reviewing timesheets, choose either: • Reject — Rejects the selected timesheet. This button is disabled when there are no submitted or approved timesheets to reject. • Approve — Approves the selected timesheet. This button is disabled when there are no submitted timesheets to approve.

272

❑

Notes — View notes associated with a specific timesheet.

❑

Details Report — Display detailed timesheet information for specified project resources.



Reviewing Timesheets (continued) FIG. A.1: In the Resources section, click Approve Timesheets to manage timesheets.

EXERCISE: Review timesheets for the period 03-Jan-10 09-Jan-10, when the first two activities in the

HR System Upgrade project are scheduled to begin.

Steps 1. Click the Resources section button. 2. Click the Approve Timesheets command. 3. Click

to select a period, 03-Jan-10 - 09-Jan-10.

4. Click OK.


273


Reviewing Timesheets (continued) Jennifer Boyle performed work on one activity in the HR System Upgrade project, Define operational concept of new system. She worked 8 h/d from Monday to Thursday on the activity. Jennifer was supposed to start working on the Perform system requirements analysis activity on Friday, but she was out sick. She added a timesheet note explaining that there will be a delay in the activity due to her absence. FIG. A.2: Jennifer reported 8 hours of sick leave on Friday.

EXERCISE: View Jennifer’s timesheets and attached notes.

Steps 1. Click

Details to view hours for a resource, Jennifer Boyle.

2. Click Close to close Timesheet Details. ✍ You can also click

the Notes to view all notes in the time period.

274

3. Click

Notes for a resource, Jennifer Boyle.

4. Click Close to close Jennifer’s note.



Reviewing Timesheets (continued) Ben Diamond performed work on two activities in the HR System Upgrade project, Define operational concept of new system and Perform system requirements analysis. He worked 8 h/d from Monday to Thursday on the first activity, plus 2 hours of overtime on Tuesday. He then began work on the second activity on Friday. FIG. A.3: Ben worked 2 overtime hours on the


EXERCISE: View Ben’s timesheets.

Steps 1. Click

Details to view hours for a resource, Ben Diamond.

2. Click Close to close Timesheet Details.


275


Approving Timesheets To approve a timesheet, mark checkbox next to resource name and then click Approve. You can also mark the checkbox at the top of the Select field to select all displayed resources. FIG. A.4: Click Approve to approve selected timesheets.

EXERCISE: Approve Ben Diamond’s and Jennifer Boyle’s timesheets.

Steps 1. In the Select field, mark the top checkbox to select all resources. 2. Click Approve. 3. In the Display field, select Approved.

FIG. A.5: The Display field enables you to view submitted, not submitted, approved, rejected, or all timesheets.

276



Applying Actuals Applying actuals is a process in which the hours from timesheets are added to activities. ✍ Actual Start and

Actual Finish are immediately assigned to activities when the primary resource updates them in the Timesheet module.

When applying actuals, select a new data date. ❑

The new data date represents the date up to which you are recording progress.

❑

The new data date is used to calculate the actual durations of activities in the statusing period. • Actual duration equals the number of workperiods between the activity’s actual start date and the new data date.

❑

Applying actuals to a project differs from scheduling a project: • When applying actuals, only activities that have been progressed are recalculated, allowing you to focus immediately on activities that may be causing the project to slip. • When scheduling, all activities are scheduled based on durations and relationships.


277


Applying Actuals (continued) You have reviewed and approved the timesheets. You will now apply these timesheet hours. In this cycle, the project has progressed from Monday, 04-Jan-10 to Friday, 09-Jan-10. Since no work will occur over the weekend, you will move the data date to Monday, 11-Jan-10, when you apply actuals. FIG. A.6: Click to apply actuals.

EXERCISE: Move the data date and apply actuals to the project.

to locate a project, HR System Upgrade Executing the Project Plan. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, HRSYS-17. 4. Click the Tools tab. 5. In the New Data Date field, click 10.

and select a new data date, 11-Jan-

6. Click Apply Actuals to Project, and then click Refresh as necessary.

278



Analyzing Results of Applying Actuals After applying actuals, analyze the activities within the statusing period. Focus on activities causing the project to slip from its baseline/objectives. The Gantt Chart shows that the Perform system requirements analysis activity is finishing late compared to the baseline, due to the fact that Jennifer was sick on 8-Jan, when she was scheduled to begin work on the task. However, the successors to the activity have not moved because the project has not been rescheduled. FIG. A.7: The

Perform system requirements analysis activity is finishing late compared to the baseline.

EXERCISE: View Gantt Chart after applying actuals to the project.

Steps 1. Click the Activities tab. 2. In the View drop-down list, select Analyzing Progress. 3. Click

✍ Roll mouse cursor over bars in the Gantt Chart to view activity information.

to maximize the screen.

4. Right-click the Timescale and select Month/Week. 5. Zoom in to the time period 03-Jan-2010 through 07-Jan-2010.


279


Rescheduling the Project Now that actuals have been applied, you should reschedule the project based on the new data date. Any activities that were delayed during the apply actuals process will delay their successor activities. FIG. A.8: Successors to the Perform

system requirements analysis activity are delayed.

EXERCISE: Reschedule the project with a data date of 11-Jan-10.

Steps 1. Click

to reschedule the project.

2. Confirm data date, 11-Jan-10. 3. Click Schedule.

280



Analyzing Results of Rescheduling To further analyze activities, view impact of the delay on activities. FIG. A.9: Due to Jennifer’s inability to start the

Perform system requirements analysis activity, it is scheduled to finish one day late.

EXERCISE: View the impact of the delay.

Steps 1. In the View drop-down list, select an activity view, Variance BL & BL1. 2. View the impact of the delay shown in the columns.


281



Once a project has started, you need to update actual schedule information and resource usage at regular intervals.

❑

When you apply actuals, the hours from timesheets are added to activities. After applying actuals, do not forget to reschedule the project.

Review Questions 1. True or False: The data date is the date used as the starting point for schedule calculations. 2. True or False: When you apply actuals to a project, all activities in the project are scheduled based on relationships and durations.

282


APPENDIX B

Construction Workshops Objectives ✔

Create a project

✔

Imbed a link in a notebook topic description

✔

Create a Work Breakdown Structure

✔

Add activities to the WBS

✔

Create relationships

✔

Assign constraints

✔

Assign resources


283

Appendix B: Construction Workshops

WORKSHOP: LOGGING IN Signature Corporation’s Construction Division is building an addition to the company’s main office building. Tim Harris is assigned to manage the project. The project is divided into the following phases: Design and Engineering, Procurement, Foundation Construction, Structural, Rough-in, Close-in, and

Finishes. FIG. B.1: The Office Building projects are under EPS node, Apex

Inc.

EXERCISE: Log in to P6 Web as a project manager Tim Harris.

Steps 1. Type the URL provided by your instructor in the Address bar in the Web browser. 2. Type a Username and Password . 3. Confirm PMDB$PRIMAVERA is selected in the Database drop-down list. 4. Click Login. 5. In the Navigation bar, click Projects. 6. Expand the EPS.

284



WORKSHOP: CREATING A PROJECT Background You will create the Office Building Addition project and type a Notebook topic description outlining the project’s objectives. The project’s EPS location, Apex Inc., can be found under Construction Projects, Caprini Corporation. For this workshop, you need to log in as Tim Harris with a Username and Password .

Objectives 1. Use the Create Project command to create the Office Building Addition project, with the values defined in the table below:

Field

Value

Project ID

BLDG

Project Name

Office Building Addition

Location in EPS

Apex Inc.

Responsible Manager

Tim Harris

Planned Start

11-Jan-10

2. Assign a Notebook topic, Project Objectives, and type a description . • Add a hyperlink to on the word Signature in the description. FIG. B.2: Notebook topic and description for the newly created project. Imbedded link is evident when you place cursor on the word Signature.


285


WORKSHOP: CREATING A WBS Background The project structure has been defined for the Office Building Addition project. You now need to create WBS elements. For this workshop, you need to log in as Tim Harris with a Username and Password .

Objectives 1. In the Projects section, select a project, Office Building Addition - Creating a Work Breakdown Structure. ✍ Remember to click Save before selecting

another WBS element.

2. Add the WBS codes and names within the parent WBS elements as indicated in the table below:

Parent WBS

WBS Code

WBS Name

Office Building Addition - Creating a Work Breakdown Structure (root element) 1

Design and Engineering

2

Foundation

3

Structure

4

Mechanical/Electrical Systems

5

Exterior Finishes

6

Interior Finishes

1

Elevator

2

HVAC

3

Plumbing and Electrical

1

Brick

2

Roof

3

Doors and Windows

Mechanical/Electrical Systems

Exterior Finishes

286



Workshop: Creating a Work Breakdown Structure (continued) Parent WBS

WBS Code

WBS Name

Interior Finishes 1

Plumbing and Lighting Fixtures

2

Floor and Carpeting

3

Carpentry

4

Paint

3. Expand WBS elements and check your completed WBS below: FIG. B.3: WBS elements added to the project.


287


WORKSHOP: ADDING ACTIVITIES Background The WBS has been defined and approved for the Office Building Addition project. The next step is to add activities and assign activity codes. For this workshop, you need to log in as Tim Harris with a Username and Password .

Objectives 1. In the Projects section, select a project, Office Building Addition - Adding Activities. 2. In the View drop-down list, select Adding Activities. 3. Add the following activities to the project plan:

Parent WBS

Activity ID

Activity Name

Activity Type

Planned Duration

Bldg-07.D&E - Design and Engineering

BA1000

Building addition kickoff

Start Milestone

0d

Bldg-07.D&E - Design and Engineering

BA1030

Assemble technical data for heat pump

Task Dependent

3d

Bldg-07.Found Foundation

BA2000

Begin building construction

Start Milestone

0d


BA2010

Site preparation

Task Dependent

15d


BA2020

Excavation

Task Dependent

10d

To change default activity type, click in the Activity Type cell. 4. Check completed activities on next page.

288



Workshop: Adding Activities (continued) The Activities tab displays the activities you just added to the project. The full list of activities in the project plan is added for you in succeeding workshops. FIG. B.4: Activities added to the project.


289


WORKSHOP: CREATING RELATIONSHIPS Background Relationships need to be established for the Office Building Addition project. For this workshop, you need to log in as Tim Harris with a Username and Password .

Objectives 1. In the Projects section, select a project, Office Building Addition - Creating Relationships. 2. In the Activities tab, select an activity view, Relationships. 3. Use the Gantt Chart to locate activities or right-click and select Details. 4. Select each activity in the table below, and create relationships:

Activity

Relationship Type

Successor

BA1010 - Design building addition

BA1020 - Review and approve designs

SS

BA6060 - Prepare and solicit bids for flooring

FS

BA6060 - Prepare and solicit bids for flooring

BA6070 - Review bids for flooring

FS

BA6070 - Review bids for flooring

BA6080 - Award contract for flooring

FS

BA6080 - Award contract for flooring

BA6090 - Fabricate and deliver flooring

FS

BA4020 - Prepare and solicit bids for heat pump

BA4030 - Review bids for heat pump

FS

BA4030 - Review bids for heat pump

BA4040 - Award contract for heat pump

FS

BA4040 - Award contract for heat pump

BA5020 - Prepare and solicit bids for brick exterior

FS

BA4050 - Fabricate and deliver heat pump and controls

FS

290



Workshop: Creating Relationships 5. The BA2060 - Concrete foundation walls activity requires both a predecessor and a successor: a. Predecessor: Finish-to-start relationship with BA2050 - Form/pour concrete footings with 1 day of lag. b. Successor: Start-to-finish relationship with BA2070 - Form and pour slab. Check your work against the screen below: FIG. B.5: Activity relationships are displayed.


291


WORKSHOP: SCHEDULING Background The initial project plan is complete. You will schedule the project and review critical activities. For this workshop, you need to log in as Tim Harris with a Username and Password .

Objectives 1. In the Projects section, select a project, Office Building Addition Scheduling the Project Plan. 2. In the Activities tab, select an activity view, Schedule. 3. Mark the checkbox to create schedule report, and then schedule the project with a data date, 11-Jan-10. 4. View schedule report. 5. In the Activities tab, review critical activities (indicated by red bar). FIG. B.6: Click to schedule the project.

292



WORKSHOP: ASSIGNING CONSTRAINTS Background The Office Building Addition project must be completed by the first week of November in 2010. You will apply a Must Finish By date of 02-Nov-10. Due to unavailability of resources, you will also assign a Start On or After constraint to the Assemble brick samples activity to push it back one week, and then use a Notebook topic to document the reason for the constraint. For this workshop, you need to log in as Tim Harris with a Username and Password .

Objectives 1. In the Projects section, select a project, Office Building Addition Assigning Constraints. 2. In Project Details, assign a Must Finish By date for the project, 02-Nov-10. 3. Assign a Start On or After primary constraint, 25-Jan-10, to the BA5000Assemble brick samples activity. 4. Add a Notebook topic, Constraint Log for the Assemble brick samples activity and type a description: 5. Reschedule the project. 6. In the Activities tab, select an activity view, Critical Activities.


293


Workshop: Assigning Constraints (continued) FIG. B.7: Constraints are applied to the project plan.

294



WORKSHOP: ASSIGNING RESOURCES Background You have identified resources that will work on the Office Building Addition project. You will assign resources to activities and customize columns in the Expenses tab to track expenses. You can also assign material resources, such as bricks, concrete, and piping, to activities. Unlike labor (people) and nonlabor (equipment) resources, material resources are measured in units other than time -- for example, square feet or tons, for example. Units for material resources are created by your system administrator but can be selected in Resources section/General tab. For this workshop, you need to log in as Tim Harris with a Username and Password .

Objectives 1. In the Projects section, select a project, Office Building Addition Assigning Resources and Costs. 2. Use the Activities tab to locate the activity in the table below. 3. Right-click and select Details to display Activity Details. 4. Assign resources in the Resources sub-tab as indicated in the table below.

Activity BA2060 - Concrete foundation walls

Resource(s) Carpenter Laborer Construction Polyform (material resource)

5. Adjust Planned Units/Time for the Laborer resource to <16h/d>. This will assign two laborers to the activity. 6. Adjust Planned Units of Polyform to <1000 l/f>. 7. Check resource assignments on the next page.

Workshop continued on next page


295


Workshop: Assigning Resources (continued) FIG. B.8: Click on resource name to adjust Planned Units/Time and Planned Units.

8. Customize columns in the Expenses tab to display, in order: • Expense Category • Accrual Type • Planned Units • Unit of Measure • Price/Unit 9. Enter expenses to activities as indicated in the table below: • In the Add Expense window, type only the Expense Item. Then, after clicking Save and Done, click the Expense Item to edit fields required in the table.

Activity

Expense Item

Expense Category

Accrural Type

Planned Units

Units of Measure

Price/ Unit

Install ceiling grid

Ceiling tile

Materials

Uniform over Activity

1

Each

$6,620

Rough-in plumbing/piping

Piping

Materials

Start of activity

500

Cubic yards

$10

Erect structural frame

Crane

Equipment

Uniform over Activity

1

Each

$3,600

296


APPENDIX C

Managing Project Issues Objectives ✔

View project-related issues

✔

Customize the appearance of issues

Key Terms Issue code Issue form Issue form category


297

Appendix C: Managing Project Issues

Viewing Project Issues Issues are known problems within a project plan that require attention or corrective action. You can create an issue for a project in the Projects section on the Issues tab. FIG. C.1: Click to view project issues.

EXERCISE: View project issues.

Steps 1. On the Navigation bar, click Projects. 2. In the Search field, type to locate a project, Finance System Upgrade. 3. To open the project, click its Project ID, FUSYS. 4. Click the Issues tab.

298



Creating Issues Create an issue for the project by filling in an issue form. ❑

Issue form — Ensures consistency and standards throughout the organization. While all issue forms are created in the Administration section, project managers still must assign them to the project before project team members can use them to create issues. Assign issue forms on the Issue Forms tab in the Projects section.

When you click Add an Issue, you are prompted to select an issue form assigned to the project: ❑

Expand issue form categories to select an issue form.

❑

Select the Default Form to create an issue based on the standard issue form.

FIG. C.2: Fields marked by an asterisk are mandatory.

EXERCISE: Create an issue based on an issue form.

Steps 1. Click Add an Issue. 2. Click

to expand an issue form category, Software.

3. Select an issue form, Bug Report, and then click OK. 4. In the Issue Name field, type .


299


Creating Issues (continued) 5. Click

in the Date Identified field.

6. Select a date, 1-April-10, and then click Select. 7. Click

in the Resolution Date field.

8. Select a date, 8-April-10, and then click Select. 9. Select a Priority, Top. 10. Click 11. Click

in the Bug Severity field. to expand an issue code, Bug Severity.

12. Select Level 1-Inoperable, and then click OK. 13. In the Area Affected field, type . 14. Click

in the Impact on Go Live field.

15. Select an indicator

300

and then click OK.



Viewing the Newly Created Issue The issue you just created is now displayed in the Top category. FIG. C.3: The issue is displayed.

EXERCISE: View issues.

Steps 1. Click Save. 2. View issues displayed in groups.


301


Grouping Issues You can group issues and view them in chart form for enhanced analysis. In the Grouping tab, you can select up to three levels, or fields, to group issues. Grouping gathers, or groups, all of the issues together that contain the same value for the selected field. For example, if you select to group by Priority, all issues with an Top priority are grouped together, all issues with a Normal priority are grouped together, etc. Each selected grouping level appears with a colored band when displaying issues in the List format. From the Band Color drop-down list, you can select the background color for each grouping level. The Text drop-down list lets you choose the color of the text that displays in the grouping level band. FIG. C.4: You can select up to three levels of grouping.

You can also choose:

302

❑

Show field title in band — Displays the selected grouping level field name, followed by the field value.

❑

Show field rollups in band — Displays summary information for all cost, numeric, integer, start data, and end date fields in the grouping level.

❑

Show ID/Code Value in band — When grouping by an issue code, displays the issue code value associated with the grouping level.

❑

Show Name/Code Description in band — When grouping by an issue code, displays the issue code description associated with the grouping level.



Grouping Issues (continued) FIG. C.5: Issues are grouped by Priority, and then by Responsible Manager.

EXERCISE: Group issues by Priority and Responsible Manager.

Steps 1. Click Customize. 2. Click the Group tab. 3. In the Level 1 drop-down list, select Priority. 4. In the Level 2 drop-down list, select Responsible Manager. 5. Click Save.


303


Viewing Issue Charts Issues can be viewed in three types of charts: histogram, stacked histogram, and pie chart. Click Customize to change chart type and color theme. ✍ A pie chart can be grouped to only one level.

To display issues in the chart format, issues must be grouped at least one level.

FIG. C.6: Click Customize to change chart type and color theme.

EXERCISE: View issues in chart form.

Steps 1. In the Display field at the top of the page, select Chart. 2. Click Customize. 3. In the Chart Type drop-down list, select Stacked Histogram.

FIG. C.7: Issue displayed in a stacked histogram.

304




The Issues tab allows you to view project-related issues and if you have the proper privilege, create new issues using consistent forms.

❑

Issue forms, issue codes and issue categories are managed in the Administration section.

❑

Issues can be displayed as a list or a chart.

Review Questions 1. True or False: You cannot group and sort issues at the same time. 2. True or False: All issue forms are available for the project.


305


306


Glossary Activity Details — Activity Details sub-tabs provide access to activity details for advanced project management functions. It is available through the Activities tab. Activities tab — A tab in the Projects section that provides access to the WBS and activities. Activity relationship type — Identifies the type of dependency that exists between the selected activity and its predecessor or successor. Activity type — Determines how the activity's schedule is calculated. Primavera distinguishes the following types: Task Dependent, Resource Dependent, Milestone, Level of Effort, and WBS Summary. Applying actuals — The process of applying timesheet actuals to the project. Backward pass — Calculates the latest times an activity can start and finish without delaying the end date of the project. These are called the late start and late finish. Breadcrumb trail — A "trail" at the top of the Primavera screen that shows your current page and clickable links to the previous two pages visited. Closing process group — Part of the Project Management life cycle that includes the process of documenting lessons learned, determining if project can be used as a methodology, delivering product to client or stakeholders, and backing up or archive project files. Constraint type — User-imposed date restriction used to reflect project requirements that cannot be built into the logic.


307

Glossary

Controlling process group — A component of the Project Management life cycle, which includes the process of analyzing and evaluating the project, recommending necessary action, modifying the current project with realistic data, re-forecasting the schedule, and communicating project performance to the project team. Create Project command — Enables you to create a project in Primavera. You can launch the Create Project command on the Action bar in the Projects section. Critical activity — Critical activities are defined by the user as either the longest path through the project or the having an amount of float, usually zero or negative. Critical Path Method scheduling — Primavera uses the Critical Path Method scheduling technique to calculate project schedules. CPM uses activity durations and relationships to calculate schedule dates based on two passes through each activity in the project. E-mail notification — Automated e-mail messages sent to resources when they are assigned to/removed from an activity. Settings for e-mail notification can be found in Preferences. Enterprise Project Structure — Key component in defining the scope of the project. It is the hierarchical arrangement of an organization’s projects. Enterprise-wide solution — Primavera provides multi-project, multi-user tools for enterprise-wide project management, providing comprehensive information on all projects in the enterprise, from executive-level summaries to detailed work assignments for each team member. Executing process group — A component of the Project Management life cycle, which includes the process of distributing information, tracking work in progress and actual costs. Filter by field — Data in many portlets is filtered based on selection in the Filter by field, located at the top of the dashboards. Only data about the project, portfolio, or project code in the Filter by field displays in the portlet. Filtering — Display data according to certain filter criteria. Forward pass — Calculates the earliest times an activity can start and finish once its predecessors have been completed. These are called the early start and early finish. Grouping — Arranging elements in common categories. When elements are sorted, they are sorted within each group.

308


Glossary

Initiating process group — A component of the Project Management life cycle, which includes the process of defining templates and workflow for initiation request, initiating request, and obtaining organizational commitment. Issue form category — Group of issue forms. Issue code — Enables you to quickly categorize and organize issues that affect your project by creating issue codes and assigning values to them. Issue form — Issue forms enable you to create templates for the creation of project issues. You can specify fields that display in the issue form; designate default values to those fields; and assign project codes and user-defined fields. Issues — Issues are known problems within a project plan that require attention or corrective action. Labor resource — A resource who performs labor, measured in units of time. Lag — An offset or delay from an activity to its successor. Lag can be positive or negative, and by default, it is based on the calendar of the successor activity. Material resource — Substance or material, for example cable or wire, not measured in units of time. My Reports portlet — Portlet on the Personal Workspace that allows you to schedule to run reports periodically or manually. Navigation bar — Comprises the following sections: Dashboards, Projects, Portfolios, Resources and Administration. Your license determines what sections are available. Nonlabor resource — Equipment or other nonlabor entity, measured in units of time. Organizational Breakdown Structure — Key component of defining a project. It is a hierarchical arrangement of the project management structure. Parent WBS — The WBS element to which an activity is assigned. Planning process group — A component of the Project Management life cycle, which includes the process of establishing project objectives and scope of work, defining the work, determining the timing, establishing resource requirements/availability, establishing a cost budget, and evaluating, optimizing, and freezing baseline plan. Portfolio — Projects grouped together for performance analysis either manually or by automatic filter criteria.


309

Glossary

Portfolio filter — Automated process of grouping projects into a portfolio based on filter criteria. When you manually refresh the filter, additional projects that meet the criteria are added, and projects that no longer meet the criteria are removed. Portlet — A small portal that provides a window into specific types of information. Portlets can be displayed and customized on the Personal Workspace and Project Workspace. Project access — A type of project association. User is associated to the project through the Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS). This generally provides the widest access to project data. Project association — The type of project data you can access, and your ability to manipulate that data is controlled by three factors in Primavera: your license, your project association, and your user security profile. Project baseline — Of the two baseline types that can be assigned to a project. You need the proper privilege to change the project baseline. Earned value calculations are based on either the project baseline or the user’s primary baseline. Project Reports portlet — Portlet on the Project Workspace that allows team members to share report data. Project Score — Field to help assess the project’s strategic priority. It is displayed in the Project Statistics portlet on the Personal Workspace Project and the Statistics view in Portfolios. Project Workspace — A workspace that functions as the homepage for a project. It is generally maintained by the project manager and is accessible by those who are associated to the project. Resource — Resources include the personnel and equipment that perform work on activities across all projects. Resource security — Administrative settings that may limit your ability to view or assign resources. Role — Roles are assigned to resources to describe a resource’s skills. In the planning stage of a project, roles can be used as placeholders until a resource is assigned. Role-specific tool — Primavera provides tools tailored to specific roles in the organization to satisfy each team member’s needs, responsibilities, and skills. Schedule date — Date when the project is scheduled.

310


Glossary

Score — A numerical score that helps you assess each resource’s availability to perform the activity in the Resource Search. The score is calculated as: Available units across the expanded activity time frame - Total requested units. Search criteria — Criteria, in the form of roles, proficiency, and resource codes, expressed in a Resource Request and filled via Resource Search. Sorting — Arranging elements ascending or descending order by one or more factors. Summarization — Most resource data in Primavera is based on summary data. Enterprise-level resource records are updated each time a project is summarized. Timesheet approval manager — A resource that has the privilege to approve or reject submitted timesheets. The privilege is set by the system administrator. Total float — The amount of time an activity can slip from its early start without delaying the project, based on the difference between an activity’s late dates and early dates. Unit — A unit of time, such as hour or day, applied to an activity. Planned Units represent a resource's planned/budgeted number of work units for an activity. Actual Units represents the actual number of units spent working on an activity. Unstaffed role — A role assigned to an activity that has not been staffed by a resource. User’s primary baseline — Of one the two baseline types you can assign to a project. You can have several user’s primary baseline, but only one can be assigned to the project at a time. Earned value calculations are based on either the project baseline or the user’s primary baseline. WBS element — A single component in the Work Breakdown Structure. Work Breakdown Structure — The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a hierarchical arrangement of products and services produced during and by a project.


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ISBN 1-57408-272-8

101 6.0 Student Gold

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