Resetting the Project Schedule

 

Unless the duration of your project is extremely short (< 30 days) or risk-free, you can't expect to always accurately predict its length. That being said, sooner or later, you'll need to readjust your project schedule and reset your milestones.

How to Recalibrate a Project Schedule

Suppose that your project starts off with a six-month schedule with major milestones set at 4, 8, 12, 20 and 26 weeks. Unfortunately, your development team runs into a few technical problems. After putting in a little extra effort evenings and weekends, your team meets its first milestone at week 5.

How should you recalibrate your schedule given that you delivered your first milestone one week late? Should you:

(a)     Plan to catch up over the next 21 weeks?

(b)     Delay the entire project schedule by 1 week?

(c)     Multiply the remaining duration by the magnitude of the slip, which in this case represents 25 percent?

Survey Says

Most people answer B or C. But in actual fact, the most common approach is A. (This just goes to show that project managers don't always do what they know is right.)

Option A

Most Project Managers who notice a one-week slip early in a six-month project don't recalibrate their project schedule. And they don't warn management about a …

Please log in or sign up below to read the rest of the article.