Re: Free Slack calculation?

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Steve House [Project MVP] wrote:
> Ahh HAH! Anothger crucial difference, then, is that for the most part I
> don't see project planning as a process of defining when you want things to
> occur at all. I *want* to finish the project in a certain time frame and
> within a certain budget. Planning, to my thinking, is mostly a process of
> DISCOVERY of when things *need* to occur in order to meet those objectives
> most efficiently. I don't decide we should fix the fidgets on the 15th of
> November, I run the numbers and find out that in order to complete in
> accordance with our firm's business objectives we NEED to fix the fidgets
> starting no later than the 15th of November. Neither my nor Senior
> Management's desires have anything to do with it except we both want to
> attain the final objective within a certain time constraint. My job is to
> discover how it can be done and that is driven more by the physical
> requirements inherent in the nature of the work and the number and
> capabilities of the resources than by anything else. My decisions about
> when things ought to occur has little if any influence over when they can
> occur and virtually no influence at all over when they need to occur if we
> are to meet our objectives.
> --
> Steve House [MVP]
> MS Project Trainer & Consultant
> Visit http://www.mvps.org/project/faqs.htm for the FAQs
>
>
> "davegb" <davegb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:1131138559.739331.220400@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >
> > Steve House [Project MVP] wrote:
> >> Perhaps the root of our different view on this is that I tend to think of
> >> ALL constraints, no matter what type, as generally modeling factors that
> >> influence the project's schedule but are outside the control of the
> >> project
> >> manager or planner. So if having a float in the Macy's Parade is a part
> >> of
> >> your advertising campaign project, the date that will occur is
> >> non-negotiable, completely outside of your control, and so legitimately a
> >> MSO constraint - your float is either ready to roll when the parade
> >> starts
> >> or that part of your project won't happen at all. There are exceptions
> >> of
> >> course but that's my basic rule of thumb.
> >> --
> >> Steve House [MVP]
> >> MS Project Trainer & Consultant
> >> Visit http://www.mvps.org/project/faqs.htm for the FAQs
> >>
> >>
> >> "davegb" <davegb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> >> news:1131118053.591651.199000@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >> >
> >> > Steve House [Project MVP] wrote:
> >> >> When you enter a MSO constraint my assumption is that is a model of
> >> >> physical
> >> >> reality - if it were possible by any means whatsoever for that change
> >> >> it
> >> >> would not be constrained - it goes far beyond the whim of the project
> >> >> manager or his senior management, it is something like an eclipse of
> >> >> the
> >> >> moon that will happen as described by the constraint date no matter
> >> >> what,
> >> >> engraved in granite. If you CAN change your mind and delay it by
> >> >> changing
> >> >> the date, than that date is not a legitimate MSO constraint date to
> >> >> begin
> >> >> with and should never have been there in the first place.
> >> >> --
> >> >> Steve House [MVP]
> >> >> MS Project Trainer & Consultant
> >> >> Visit http://www.mvps.org/project/faqs.htm for the FAQs
> >> >>
> >> >
> >> > I have to respectfully disagree with Steve here. I can see myself (not
> >> > Steve), planning an event. I decide to set the date for the event on
> >> > Oct 1, 2006, using an MSO constraint. As far as I'm concerned, it has
> >> > to occur on that date. I create a schedule and a scope and my project
> >> > plan.
> >> > Upon further planning, I decide that I don't have enough time to
> >> > prepare for the event next Oct 1. I change the MSO contraint to....
> >> > whatever. And I might even change it again. Of course, there comes a
> >> > point when changing that date becomes extremely expensive and may cause
> >> > the event not to occur at all. Once the announcements have gone out,
> >> > it's pretty hard for such a date to change, but I've seen it happen
> >> > even then. To me, an MSO is just a hard date that shouldn't be sent or
> >> > changed arbitrarily or capriciously. But it can be changed by
> >> > circumstances.
> >> > To quote Eisenhower, "Plans are meaningless, planning is everything".
> >> > It's just our best guess at the date for something important to happen,
> >> > probably something which will determine the timing for many other
> >> > things to occur. According to the plan, it must occur at a certain
> >> > date. Nature, and even some people, can change it if they decide to.
> >> > IT'S JUST A DATE ON A PIECE OF PAPER. Or on a computer screen.
> >> > That being said, according to MS Project, a task with an MSO constraint
> >> > has no slack because it HAS to occur on the set date. I guess it
> >> > doesn't matter much whether I agree with this decision or not, it's in
> >> > the algorithm. You can let MS know you don't like their choice, but
> >> > that's about it. You could also use some other software that doesn't
> >> > have this particular fluke.
> >> > Hope this helps in your world.
> >> >
> >
> > I agree,Steve, it's a fundamental difference in how we view the
> > schedule. I see constraints as a tool within Project, no more or less.
> > If I want something to occur on a given date, or before or after a
> > date, I use a constraint. As I see it, I have just as much right to set
> > constraints as does Macy's! Of course, experience has taught me to use
> > this particular tool judiciously. In my section on Constraints in my
> > Project classes, the First Rule of using constraints is to use them
> > sparingly, which is preceded by a discussion of how they can interfere
> > with CPM scheduling.
> > YMMV.
> >

Glad to have given you an "Ah-ha" moment, Steve! :)
Steve wrote:
>Anothger crucial difference, then, is that for the most part I
> don't see project planning as a process of defining when you want things to
> occur at all. I *want* to finish the project in a certain time frame and
> within a certain budget.
I find these 2 statements contradictory and confusing. Which is it? Is
the want encircled in asterisks less powerful than the unencumbered
want? Or the other way around? In your planning methodology allow for
your "wants" or not?

>Planning, to my thinking, is mostly a process of
> DISCOVERY of when things *need* to occur in order to meet those objectives
> most efficiently.

Kind of like the sculptor cuts away the marble that isn't part of the
final product, huh? An old art cliche, probably with some truth. But I
seriously doubt if Michaelangelo didn't have the David in mind when he
made that first chip! Certainly, anyone who tries to control all of the
variables in a project, including when every task starts and finishes,
is in trouble. Nonetheless, I believe that I'm smarter than MS Project.
It's a tool in my hand. It may show me that task 31 should start of
Sept 5 rather than the first, based on dependencies. But it can't know
all the factors which might make that not a viable date. That's up to
me. I have the responsibility to know what can and can't happen in the
real world.
It's easy to forget that Project is basically a SIMULATION of the real
world. It's merely a computer program trying to duplicate the realities
of the timing of a project. IT'S NOT THE PROJECT. To effectively apply
any simulator, you have to understand both the capabilities and
LIMITATIONS of that simulator.
Your explanation sounds as though you've subjugated your good judgement
to the superior judgement of a program. I doubt this is really true. I
hope not. I've seen this happen, and it's just as much of a disaster as
the overcontrolling I mentioned above. (From what I know of you Steve,
I doubt you really do this.)
For example, at one point in the planning of the Denver International
Airport project, the planned opening date for the new airport was Dec.
18th! I can't imagine anyone stupid enough to try to start up a system
as complex as an entire international airport during one of it's peak
periods. Total insanity! Can you picture the snafu that would have
occured had it actually opened one week before Christmas? (Luckily, it
got rescheduled by circumstances!) Of course, whatever scheduling
software was used would have had no problem in setting that date.
That's where a human brain should have over-ridden the software and
postponed the date until early January.
MS Project, or any other software for that matter, is not a substitute
for using the human brain. Nothing on earth comes close, at this time,
to being able to account for numerous variables and make a reasonable
decision about anything, including project schedules. To me, Project
remains, and always will remain, a tool. I believe that my hand should
be sensitive to the feedback the tool gives me, but I'm ultimately
responsible for a useful final product.

.

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