Goal: Optimize the project plan to meet the finish date - Project

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Goal: Optimize the project plan to meet the finish date

Applies to
Microsoft Office Project 2003 Microsoft Office Project Server 2003 Microsoft Project 2000 and 2002

After you build your project plan, you need to review the scheduled finish date. If the plan does not meet your targeted finish date, and if meeting your finish date is important to project success, you can optimize the plan to meet this date. As you change the aspects of your plan that relate to the finish date, however, remember that you are likely to change the costs and scope.

Tip This article is part of a series of articles that describe a broad set of project management activities. We call these activities "goals" because they are organized around the project management life cycle: Build a plan, track and manage a project, and close a project. The project life cycle is outlined in The Project Map, where you can find a link to an article about each project management goal. Most of the articles include links to supporting information or procedures that you perform in Project or Project Server. These "goal" articles were designed to help you not only use Project but also better understand project management.

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number 1 Specify and review project dates Reviewing project dates can help you to see whether you are meeting the targeted finish date and whether you need to make any further adjustments to meet that date.

Click all of the following that apply:

Determine if the project end date has changed by viewing the time difference between the baseline that you set for your project and the currently scheduled end date.
View project date information in the Projects page by using Microsoft Office Project Web Access 2003 (Project Web Access: The Web-based user interface that is used to access information in Project Server.). You can view project date information for your project or for projects that have been published to Project Server.

Number 2 Identify the critical path If you are not meeting your targeted finish date, seeing the critical path (critical path: The series of tasks that must be completed on schedule for a project to finish on schedule. Each task on the critical path is a critical task.) can help you to focus on adjusting calendars (calendar: The scheduling mechanism that determines working time for resources and tasks. Project uses four types of calendars: the base calendar, project calendar, resource calendar, and task calendar.), scope (scope: The combination of all project goals and tasks, and the work required to accomplish them.), tasks (task: An activity that has a beginning and an end. Project plans are made up of tasks.), and assignments (assignment: A specific resource that is assigned to a particular task.) to make changes to the critical path tasks and therefore the finish date.

Show the critical path

Number 3 Estimate durations by using PERT analysis The duration (duration: The total span of active working time that is required to complete a task. This is generally the amount of working time from the start to finish of a task, as defined by the project and resource calendar.) estimation tools in Project can help you to develop realistic durations for the tasks in your project plan.

Estimate task durations by using PERT analysis

Number 4 Adjust the plan to meet the finish date You can use a variety of strategies, including adjusting calendars, scope, tasks, and assignments, to meet the targeted finish date.

Click all of the following that apply:

Specify a project start date or finish date that begins or finishes on a date earlier than the date of the current plan. If this is an option for your project, try changing the start date first.
Modify a calendar
Click all of the following that apply:
- Modify or remove a task calendar if the task calendars (task calendar: The base calendar that you can apply to individual tasks to control their scheduling, usually independent of the project calendar or any assigned resources' calendars. By default, all tasks use the project calendar.) applied to the critical path tasks are unnecessarily delaying the finish date. Modifying or removing a task calendar may have the least effect of any changes to the three types of calendars (task, resource, and project) in Project.
- Modify a resource calendar if the resources (resources: The people, equipment, and material that are used to complete tasks in a project.) are actually working more than their calendar reflects. For example, if the resource calendar (resource calendar: A calendar that specifies working and nonworking time for an individual resource. A resource calendar differs from a base calendar, which specifies working and nonworking time for more than one resource.) for a resource assigned to critical path tasks indicates a four-day workweek, but the resource actually works five days, you will probably meet the finish date.
- Modify the project calendar if the project is being worked on for more hours or days than your project calendar reflects. For example, if the project calendar (project calendar: The base calendar used by a project.) indicates that weekends are nonworking time (nonworking time: Hours or days designated in a resource or project calendar when Project should not schedule tasks because work is not done. Nonworking time can include lunch breaks, weekends, and holidays, for example.), but you actually are running weekend shifts, changing the project calendar will probably meet your finish date.
Reduce the project scope
Click all of the following that apply:
- Determine whether to change the deliverables or the scope
  You might need to reduce the scope (scope: The combination of all project goals and tasks, and the work required to accomplish them.) to meet the finish date or the budget (budget: The estimated cost of a project that you establish in Project with your baseline plan.). Or, after building your project plan, you might have more time or money than expected. In either case, you can change the scope of the project. You can choose between changing the deliverables (deliverable: A tangible and measurable result, outcome, or item that must be produced to complete a project or part of a project. Typically, the project team and project stakeholders agree on project deliverables before the project begins.) of the product or changing the scope of the project.
  - Cut the product deliverables By cutting product deliverables, you are actually providing less to the customers or stakeholders than you planned. For example, to meet a project's finish date or budget, you decide to cut features from the product that were originally planned and approved by the customers. In this case, you probably need to obtain customer approval and you may need to adjust the contract, if applicable.
  - Cut the project scope Change the way that you produce the project deliverables. For example, you decide to remove a market research task from a project, and you also reduce the duration of product testing in order to meet the finish date or budget. In this case, the end product and deliverables don't change. However, you changed the method for providing this end product by reducing the scope of the project.
  - Use available time or budget You can add project deliverables. Or you can increase the scope of the project itself, which often results in a higher quality product.
  - Consider the impact that changes in the scope can have on the quality You might need to reduce the scope to meet the finish date or the budget (budget: The estimated cost of a project that you establish in Project with your baseline plan.). Or, after building your project plan, you might have more time or money than expected. In either case, you can change the scope of the project. When you decide whether and how to change the project scope, consider that the quality and scope are closely related. If you cut the scope, you might have to accept a reduced level of quality. If you increase the scope, you will probably increase the quality in the project and in the resulting product.
- Change a duration to meet the finish date by reducing the amount of time planned for critical path tasks. Be sure that the reduced duration still reflects a minimum reality. Also be sure to adjust the corresponding amount of work assigned to resources.
- Remove a task to meet the finish date. Removing tasks can decrease the quality of the overall project implementation. Tasks that must be done should still be reflected in the plan, and only those tasks that are considered optional should be removed.
- Replace a resource assignment to meet the finish date. You can replace a slower resource with a faster one, such as a person with more experience, equipment with higher capacity, or material with a quicker setting time.
Adjust a task on the critical path
Click all of the following that apply:
- Show the critical path to keep an eye on the critical path (critical path: The series of tasks that must be completed on schedule for a project to finish on schedule. Each task on the critical path is a critical task.) and meet the finish date.
- Change a task constraint if inflexible date constraints (constraint: A restriction set on the start or finish date of a task. You can specify that a task must start on or finish no later than a particular date. Constraints can be flexible [not tied to a specific date] or inflexible [tied to a specific date].) (such as Must Start On or Must Finish On) were set on tasks. When you make task constraints in the critical path more flexible, Project can calculate the schedule with fewer restrictions, and you might be able to meet the finish date.
- Change a duration for a task on the critical path to meet the project finish date.
- Adjust the time a work resource spends on a critical task by adjusting work hours, units, assignment start and finish date, and work contours. If several resources are assigned to a task, you can distribute work among them in different ways.
- Split a task if the single task comprises multiple elements that can be worked on simultaneously by different resources. If you break a critical path task into these different elements with different assignments, you might be able to meet the finish date.
- Change a task link to review the relationships (or dependencies) among tasks in the critical path and to see if there are any incorrect or unnecessary links that you can change.
- Set overlap or delay for tasks to adjust lead and lag time between linked tasks. Adding lead time (lead time: An overlap between tasks that have a dependency. For example, if a task can start when its predecessor is half-finished, you can specify a finish-to-start dependency with a lead time of 50 percent for its successor [has a negative lag value].) between linked tasks can help meet the finish date. Adding lag time (lag time: A delay between tasks that have a dependency. For example, if you need a two-day delay between the finish of one task and the start of another, you can establish a finish-to-start dependency and specify a two-day lag time [has a positive value].) where necessary can make the schedule more realistic.
Adjust an assignment to meet the finish date
Click all of the following that apply:
- Assign a resource to decrease the duration of a task on the critical path. Assigning more resources to decrease a task duration works as long as the task is effort-driven (effort-driven scheduling: The default method of scheduling in Project; the duration of a task shortens or lengthens as resources are added or removed from a task, while the amount of effort necessary to complete a task remains unchanged.) and not fixed-duration (fixed-duration scheduling: A scheduling method in which the duration for a task remains the same regardless of the number of resources assigned to the task.).
- Replace a resource assignment to help meet the finish date if the resource (person, equipment, or material) can work faster or more efficiently or can be assigned more units (units: The quantity of a resource assigned to a task. The maximum units is the maximum number of units available for the resource. For example, if you have three plumbers, the maximum units is 300 percent or three plumbers working full-time.) for tasks on the critical path.
- Adjust the time a work resource spends on a task by changing the resource's assignment units (assignment units: The percentage of a work resource's time, or units, that the resource is assigned to a task.) on a critical task or having the resource start on the assignment at an earlier date.

Number 5 Adjust the plan to take advantage of additional time

More . . .

After you build your plan and Project calculates the schedule (schedule: The timing and sequence of tasks within a project. A schedule consists mainly of tasks, task dependencies, durations, constraints, and time-oriented project information.) and cost (cost: The total scheduled cost for a task, resource, or assignment, or for an entire project. This is sometimes referred to as the current cost. In Project, baseline costs are usually referred to as "budget.") for the project, you might have more time or an increased budget (budget: The estimated cost of a project that you establish in Project with your baseline plan.). You can choose to end the project ahead of schedule or under budget. Or, you can increase the scope (scope: The combination of all project goals and tasks, and the work required to accomplish them.) and add quality (quality: The degree of excellence, or the desired standards, in a product, process, or project.) to the project deliverables.

Check with the customers If appropriate, check with the customers or stakeholders (stakeholders: Individuals and organizations that are actively involved in the project or whose interests may be affected by the project.) to see how they prefer to use the time or budget. They might prefer to leave the plan as is and have the project come in ahead of schedule or under budget.
Check your contract See if there are contractual incentives (or in some cases, even penalties) for coming in ahead of schedule or under budget. The type of contract you have (fixed price, cost reimbursable, or unit price) can help you determine how you can take advantage of available time or budget.
Add scope If you have extra time or budget available, you can add tasks (task: An activity that has a beginning and an end. Project plans are made up of tasks.) or phases (phase: A group of related tasks that completes a major step in a project.) that you wanted to implement but thought you wouldn't have enough time or money for. You can increase duration (duration: The total span of active working time that is required to complete a task. This is generally the amount of working time from the start to finish of a task, as defined by the project and resource calendar.) on existing tasks so that resources (resources: The people, equipment, and material that are used to complete tasks in a project.) have more time to complete them. Be aware that adding scope is likely to add both time and cost to your plan. Changing the scope and deliverables (deliverable: A tangible and measurable result, outcome, or item that must be produced to complete a project or part of a project. Typically, the project team and project stakeholders agree on project deliverables before the project begins.) may have contractual implications, so be sure to check the contract and obtain client approval when necessary.
Raise the standard of quality You can use surplus time or budget to add tasks or phases that add or check for quality. You can increase duration on existing tasks, so that resources have more time to do higher quality work. Another way to raise quality is to add more highly skilled staff, more efficient equipment, or higher grade materials. These types of resources can be more expensive, but they can also be a good use of surplus budget.

Number 6 Enter a note about schedule changes Log information about changes you made to meet the finish date. Such notes can be helpful when you are tracking actual progress, closing the project, or collecting data for the next project.

Add a note about schedule changes

Number 7 Evaluate the results of schedule optimization This evaluation ensures that you did indeed meet the finish date and that costs, workload, and other projects were not adversely affected by these changes.

Click all of the following that apply:

Show the critical path to see how the changes you made to optimize for the finish date affected the critical path. This can help you see whether you actually achieved your goal of meeting your targeted finish date.
Determine if the project end date has changed by viewing the time difference between the project baseline that you set and the currently scheduled end date of your project.
View project date information in the Projects page when using Microsoft Office Project Web Access 2003 (Project Web Access: The Web-based user interface that is used to access information in Project Server.). You can view date information for your project or for projects that have been published to Project Server.
Review resource workloads to see whether any assigned resources are now overloaded or underutilized as a result of optimizing to meet the finish date.
Check the impact on other projects if you are working with consolidated project (consolidated project: A project containing one or more inserted projects [also known as subprojects]. These can retain links to their source projects and may be linked to one another. A consolidated project is also called a master project.) files. Make sure that any changes you made to your plan are updated in any linked or consolidated projects.

Number 8 Communicate assignment changes to resources If you assigned new tasks to resources (resources: The people, equipment, and material that are used to complete tasks in a project.) or changed or removed existing assignments as a result of meeting the finish date, you can communicate these changes to the affected resources, either online or by printing assignment reports (report: A format in which you can print schedule information that is appropriate for the intended recipients. You can use the predefined reports provided by Project or create custom reports.).

Communicate assignment changes to team members

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