“Cost trend analysis” diagram
V-fact is preliminary actual cost and a signal of overspending. V-fact = budget + additional expenses + space remaining.
Milestone trend analysis
Milestone trend analysis is a method of project monitoring, as well as its backlog or proceeding ahead of schedule. The method allows detecting deviations in the early stages and responding appropriately to improve the situation. The method is based on the analysis of current and planned milestones status. Each milestone has an estimated deadline, which is planned at the project planning stage. This time is the starting point of regular reconciliation. Upon the milestones completion those responsible report to the project manager on the work done. The report should answer the following questions:
• What has been done?
• What should be done to complete the milestone?
• Is the work due?
“MILESTONE TREND ANALYSIS” Diagram
The visual trend analysis is often displayed graphically.
Horizontal: reporting periods, for example, every week.
Vertical: the same scale with milestones marked. The milestones mark at X = 0, corresponds to the planned milestone indicators at the stage of project start.
The bisector indicates the position of the milestones reached.
During the reporting period, the chart is updated and analyzed. The chart indicates new forecast dates for milestones completion. Each milestone has a trend line (curve). When it reaches the bisector, it finishes.
The ideal state is when the line is clear and unchanged along the Y axis.
Vertical deviations (deviation of the predicted period from the originally planned):
Up: due deadline
Down: ahead of schedule.
Project Management Triangle
The Three Constraints are:
• Time required carrying out the project;
• Cost (money, people, budget);
• Scope (goals, tasks, quality).
An example of a good project development – The scope of work is met and even exceeded at lower costs and deadlines.
“PROJECT MANAGEMENT TRIANGLE” Diagram
An equilateral triangle with equal sides indicates the planned values for cost, time, and scope. The picture changes depending on the deviation from the baseline values.
Project results are measured at regular intervals.
Time is measured by the time spent on the project.
Actual expenses measure costs.
Scope is measured as a percentage of the planned and completed work.
Measured values on the reporting date are applied to the axes and generate a new triangle, which is different from the original equilateral triangle. Project Management Triangle is applicable to demonstrate intermediate and general project results.
Other Methods and Techniques
Assumptions Analysis is a method used for the accuracy analysis of the assumptions and the identification of project risks, caused by inaccuracy, incompleteness or contradictory assumptions. Any project and any specific project risk is initiated and executed based on a number of hypotheses, scenarios and assumptions. Assumptions analysis explores the validity of the assumptions applied to the project. This analysis allows identifying project risks arising from inaccuracies, instabilities, inconsistencies or incompleteness of assumptions.
Expected Monetary Value (EMV) Analysis is a statistical method that calculates the average result with future scenarios that might occur. Typically, this method is used as a part of decision tree analysis.
Variance Analysis is an analysis of total variance of content variables, cost, and schedule as variance of individual elements linked to certain factors and affecting the variables of content, cost, and schedule.
Schedule Network Analysis or Network Analysis is a method for determining early and late starts and early and late finishes for incomplete project operations. See also Critical Path Method, Critical Chain Method, analysis of available scenarios and resource leveling.
Trend Analysis is an analytical method using mathematical models to predict future results based on historical data. This method allows determining the variance from the base plan by cost, time or content using data from previous reporting periods and predicting the variance of this parameter at a certain point in the future, if no changes are made to the project.
Reserve Analysis combines analysis methods to identify the essential characteristics and interrelationships of the elements in a project management plan for establishing a reserve for the duration of the schedule, budget, estimated cost or project funds.
Sensitivity Analysis is a method of quantitative risk analysis and modeling used to determine the risks with the greatest likelihood to affect the project. The analysis establishes the impact of uncertainty of each project element within the studied project objective, if the remaining indefinite elements have basic values. Usually these results are presented as a tornado diagram.
Fast tracking is a special method for compressing a project schedule that changes the network logic by overlaying phases that would have been performed sequentially, for example, the design and construction phases, or parallel performance of planned operations.
Resources Leveling is a method of optimizing the load of project resources by arranging the optimal project performance, taking into account task priority, deadlines for implementation and limited resources.
Decomposition is a method of splitting the project content and project delivery results into smaller and easily manageable elements as long as the performance related activities on the project content and ensuring the delivery results are not sufficiently specified to perform, track and monitor these activities.
Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM) is a method for creating network diagrams in which planned operations are represented by rectangles (or nodes). Scheduled operations are graphically related to one or more logical relationships that show the sequence of operations.
Network Diagram Method is a common group of visual graph display. Unlike Gantt chart, the network diagrams graphically display the dependencies between the operations, as well as the duration of each of them and resources assigned. It is then determined which tasks are critical and which ones are not. There are two types of network diagrams, i.e. Critical Path Method (CPM) and Meta Potential Method (MPM).
Critical Path Method (CPM) is a step-by-step (network diagram) method used in the implementation of interdependent tasks. The activities are listed, their decomposition structure, time scale, dependencies, reference points and results are determined. Critical and non-critical activities are distinguished by calculating the greatest (on the critical path) and the smallest (floating) execution time of various tasks. The critical path method is often used in construction and characterized by a clearly defined project path; this path is formed by the longest