Chapter Quiz

1.	A project schedule is comprised of which of the following? Choose all that apply: The network of all of the tasks within the project The assignment of resources The budget for the project The reflection of the WBS
2.	What two things can a project manager do to reduce the amount of time required to complete a task? Partition the task into smaller work units. Increase the resources assigned to the task. Move the task out of the critical path . Move the task into the critical path.
3.	Which of the following will add time to a project schedule? Lag Lead time Crashing Fast tracking
4.	Of the following, what are two drawbacks of a Gantt chart? Gantt charts are difficult to create and adjust. Gantt charts do not display task details. Gantt charts do not reflect the shortest path to completion. Gantt charts work well with the WBS creation.
5.	What is a Project Network Diagram? An expansion of the WBS An expansion of the Gantt chart A sequential mapping of the project work A topology of a project phase
6.	Of the following, which one is not a true statement about network diagrams? Network diagrams allow for detailed project planning. Network diagrams allow for contingency plans. Network diagrams allow for implementation tracking. Network diagrams allow for detailed time management.
7.	All of the following statements about slack are incorrect except for which one? Every project will have slack. Only complex projects will have slack. Slack is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without increasing the project costs. Slack is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without causing the project to be late.
8.	What is the Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)? PDM is a charting method that focuses on the start and end of each activity within a project. PDM is a charting method that focuses on each activity within a project rather than the start and end of activities. PDM focuses on only the successors of each task in a project. PDM starts at the deliverables and maps each dependent task back to the origin predecessor of the project.
9.	What law states that work will expand to fill the amount of time allotted to it? Law of Diminishing Returns Moore s Law Parkinson s Law Murphy s Law
10.	You are the project manager of a web server and web site upgrade. You have assigned Mark the task of creating the web pages and Janice the task of developing the web pages. Mark and Janice can work on their assigned tasks concurrently. What type of relationship do these tasks have? FS SS FF SF
11.	Phil is the project manager of a network upgrade. All of the client workstations are to be replaced , and this task has been assigned to Steve, Harry, and Beth. Once the physical workstations are in place, Sam will release an automated script to deploy an operating system to each of the new workstations. What type of relationship best describes these two tasks? FS SS FF SF
12.	When a project manager begins to create the network diagram, what type of relationship between all of the tasks would reduce any risk in the original plan? FS SS FF SF
13.	Why should a project manager avoid assigning specific dates to tasks when at all possible during the creation of the network diagram? Dates cannot change, tasks can. Dates require the activity to happen at a specific time. Tasks assigned to dates do not consider successor tasks. Tasks assigned to dates do not consider both successor and predecessor tasks.
14.	Elizabeth is the project manager for the development of a new database and a web application that will access the database. Originally, the creation of the database and a portion of the application development was scheduled to happen concurrently. Elizabeth felt, however, that the application development phase should not start until most of the database was created. What type of constraint is this? Discretionary constraint Experience constraint Resource constraint Organizational constraint
15.	Why must lag times be scheduled between tasks in a Project Network Diagram? Lag times allow the team to take a break. Lag times reflect instances when task overruns are anticipated. Lag times reflect weekends and holidays. Lag times allow other events to be completed before successors tasks can begin.

Answers

1.	A, B, D. A project schedule is the compilation of all of the tasks to be completed within a project and the assignment of resources, and should reflect the entries of the WBS. If you are using Microsoft Project, then you can streamline your efforts, as Microsoft Project will allow you to create the network diagram and work toward the WBS.
2.	A, B. By partitioning a task into smaller work units, a project manager can allow the work units to overlap. A project manager can also add more resources, particularly team members , to a task to reduce the amount of time it takes to complete the task. Moving the task into or out of the critical path isn t really an option.
3.	A. Lag time is waiting time. If a project manager adds lag time, the project schedule will expand.
4.	B, C. Gantt charts do not display task details like a network diagram does. Gantt charts also do not reflect the short path to project completion. A network diagram is more powerful than a Gantt chart because it allows tasks to be moved and adjusted to participate in schedule compression.
5.	C. A network diagram is a fluid mapping of the entire project, not just one phase. A network diagram is not an extension of the Gantt chart or the WBS.
6.	D. Network diagrams do not allow for detailed time management. They do allow for some time planning, but usually only down to days or weeks ” not hours and minutes. Network diagrams do allow for contingency plans, detailed planning, and implementation tracking.
7.	D. Slack is the amount of time an activity s completion can be delayed without delaying the project end date.
8.	B. PDM, Precedence Diagramming Method, focuses on the activities required within a project rather than the start and end of activities.
9.	C. When project team members and project managers add time to their time estimates they ll likely succumb to Parkinson s Law: work expands to fill the time allotted to it.
10.	B. These tasks can use SS dependency, which means start to start. The FS dependency is the most common, which means finish to start. The FF means the tasks must be finish to finish and the last dependency is start to finish.
11.	A. FS. Because the tasks involving the replacement of workstations must be completed before the script can run, the dependency used is FS, or finish to start.
12.	A. FS. To reduce practically all risk in the network diagram, all tasks can begin with FS relationships. This means that no task would begin until its predecessor had been completed. Once the diagram has been created, tasks can be rearranged to represent other relationships.
13.	D. Tasks assigned to dates do not consider successor and predecessor tasks. This becomes a huge problem when upstream tasks are delayed by several days; the task assigned to a specific date does not change to reflect the changes of the tasks upstream. Whenever possible, do not assign tasks to a specific date. Examples include when a particular resource is available or a consultant is scheduled to be present.
14.	A. Because Elizabeth had a gut feeling that the tasks should be changed to FS, it s a discretionary constraint. If the decision had been made on prior experience, it would have been an experience constraint. If the task needed to be delayed because of a resource, it would have been a resource constraint. An organization constraint is typically enforced when another project within the organization is delaying the success of the current project.
15.	D. Lag times allow other events to be completed before successor tasks can begin. For example, a dependent task is to mail a survey to all of the network users. Before the successor task, analyzing the user surveys, can happen, there must be time allotted for the users to respond to the survey. It s not an actual task, but it still requires times within the diagram.