This white paper introduces a new technique for accelerating project schedules that goes beyond 'network crashing' and generates achievable acceleration scenarios for informed decision support.
This white paper covers a new approach to tracking project performance which identifies variance gaps between the baseline plan and actual performance for the project as a whole as well as specific deliverables, contractors, locations, or any other group of activities.
Taming an Unruly Schedule with the 14 Point Schedule AssessmentAcumen
This paper discusses why the emerging 14 Point Schedule Assessment, developed by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), is fast becoming an established standard within the scheduling community across multiple industries.
The Value of a Standard Schedule Quality IndexAcumen
This white paper describes the need for and value of adopting a single, standardized index to reflect the quality of a project schedule and using cloud technology to benchmark your project. Learn how using the Fuse Schedule Index™ as your schedule quality standard can accelerate your schedule maturity.
Developing Standards for Enterprise Schedule QualityAcumen
This white papers addresses the need to implement a standard for schedule quality and explains how ensuring quality in the IMS (Integrated Master Schedule) can be achieved through a three-step process.
How Does MS Project Works 6- Task Controlling FactorsSHAZEBALIKHAN1
MS Project is scheduling software. It takes multiple factors into account to schedule a task. The article explains all the inputs and their respective effect on the scheduling ability of the MS Project.
This white paper covers a new approach to tracking project performance which identifies variance gaps between the baseline plan and actual performance for the project as a whole as well as specific deliverables, contractors, locations, or any other group of activities.
Taming an Unruly Schedule with the 14 Point Schedule AssessmentAcumen
This paper discusses why the emerging 14 Point Schedule Assessment, developed by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), is fast becoming an established standard within the scheduling community across multiple industries.
The Value of a Standard Schedule Quality IndexAcumen
This white paper describes the need for and value of adopting a single, standardized index to reflect the quality of a project schedule and using cloud technology to benchmark your project. Learn how using the Fuse Schedule Index™ as your schedule quality standard can accelerate your schedule maturity.
Developing Standards for Enterprise Schedule QualityAcumen
This white papers addresses the need to implement a standard for schedule quality and explains how ensuring quality in the IMS (Integrated Master Schedule) can be achieved through a three-step process.
How Does MS Project Works 6- Task Controlling FactorsSHAZEBALIKHAN1
MS Project is scheduling software. It takes multiple factors into account to schedule a task. The article explains all the inputs and their respective effect on the scheduling ability of the MS Project.
Most Popular 20 Evergreen Project Management TermsSHAZEBALIKHAN1
Project management requires a deep understanding of the jargon and terminology for effective implementation of practices. The article presents 20 popular and common terms of project management
My 5 Learnings of Waterfall Project ManagementSHAZEBALIKHAN1
The waterfall technique is also called the traditional method of project management. Learn about the 5 key takeaways and how you can implement the techniques in your project.
Project Time Estimation 6 Powerful Tips & TricksSHAZEBALIKHAN1
Check out the 6-time estimation methods for project & activity duration. The approaches are used worldwide and are proven to be effective and powerful.
Does Better Scheduling Drive Execution Success?Acumen
This white paper outlines the statistics that support the relationship between better schedules and better execution. Based on an ongoing research study conducted by Acumen, this paper is the hard proof of a need for better planning across all industries.
An Alternate Approach to Cost and Schedule IntegrationAcumen
This paper discusses why the emerging 14 Point Schedule Assessment, developed by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), is fast becoming an established standard within the scheduling community across multiple industries.
This paper introduces benchmarking as a concept that not only helps provide a framework and a repeatable approach to developing structurally sound schedules (based upon accepted Critical Path/CPM techniques), but equally importantly, bring realism to the schedule.
Most Popular 20 Evergreen Project Management TermsSHAZEBALIKHAN1
Project management requires a deep understanding of the jargon and terminology for effective implementation of practices. The article presents 20 popular and common terms of project management
My 5 Learnings of Waterfall Project ManagementSHAZEBALIKHAN1
The waterfall technique is also called the traditional method of project management. Learn about the 5 key takeaways and how you can implement the techniques in your project.
Project Time Estimation 6 Powerful Tips & TricksSHAZEBALIKHAN1
Check out the 6-time estimation methods for project & activity duration. The approaches are used worldwide and are proven to be effective and powerful.
Does Better Scheduling Drive Execution Success?Acumen
This white paper outlines the statistics that support the relationship between better schedules and better execution. Based on an ongoing research study conducted by Acumen, this paper is the hard proof of a need for better planning across all industries.
An Alternate Approach to Cost and Schedule IntegrationAcumen
This paper discusses why the emerging 14 Point Schedule Assessment, developed by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), is fast becoming an established standard within the scheduling community across multiple industries.
This paper introduces benchmarking as a concept that not only helps provide a framework and a repeatable approach to developing structurally sound schedules (based upon accepted Critical Path/CPM techniques), but equally importantly, bring realism to the schedule.
In our day today life we often need to manage project for various reasons. For efficiently
managing a project, project analysis, monitoring team development, controlling, Gantt chart,
critical paths, life cycles, consequences, administration panel are the crucial part. Project
administration is the craft of dealing with the undertaking and its deliverables with a perspective
to create completed items or administration. There are numerous routes in which a task can be
completed and the path in which it is executed is undertaking administration.
How Traditional Risk Reporting Has Let Us DownAcumen
This white paper discusses risk reporting techniques and ways of interpreting risk analysis results that actually enable the project team to make pro-active changes in reducing their risk exposure.
Simplifiying cost and schedule risk analysis with acumen riskAcumen
Schedule risk analysis doesn’t have to be complicated. In this webinar learn how Acumen Risk™ uses a more intuitive approach to evaluating risk to achieve truly integrated cost and schedule risk analysis.
Benchmarking Execution Performance and Earned ValueAcumen
Determining historic PV, BAC, EAC and other EVM measures in order to benchmark for future projects is a valuable technique for ensuring realistic and achievable forecasts. Determining historic EV performance using prior similar projects validates those forecasts. Additionally, the value of benchmarking increases exponentially as the benchmark basis improves. From previous iterations of the schedule to a database of thousands of projects, EVM indicators have a strong correlation with execution performance over time.
Fuse Customer Perspectives: Oil & Gas / EnergyAcumen
A webinar presentation with clients from the industries with some of the costliest, most complex projects on earth: Oil & Gas and Energy. Learn how these project teams manage the complexities of engineering, procurement, construction, and regulation using Acumen Fuse. Panelists include Marathon Oil, Florida Power & Light, and other major energy companies.
Acumen has completed the first leg of the World Tour. This presentation is an in-depth overview of Acumen's solutions, as well as several Fuse use cases from Fuse clients
Does Better Scheduling Drive Execution Success?Acumen
Delivered at PMI SCoP's 9th Annual Scheduling Conference, this presentation discusses the results from a recently conducted research project showing the correlation between the quality of a plan and overall project success, as well as a means of assessing schedule quality and forecasting accuracy using metric analysis.
Meet or Exceed Schedule Expectations through Intelligent AccelerationAcumen
Delivered at PMI SCoP's 9th Annual Scheduling Conference, this presentation is an introduction of a new approach which enables a project to undergo iterative "what if" scenarios until a balance between successful acceleration and achievability.
Dr. McNatty Webinar: An Introduction to Acumen 360Acumen
Dr. Dan Patterson delivered a sneak peek presentation of the soon-to-be-released Acumen 360. The presentation was first look at how Acumen 360 is capable of optimizing projects with its revolutionary scenario generating, criteria building and project integrating capabilities.
PMICOS Webinar: Building a Sound Schedule in an Enterprise EnvironmentAcumen
Dr. Dan Patterson presented a one-hour webinar on effective scheduling using metrics analysis. He reviewed some of the common problems found in schedules and the research that backs the claim that, in the end, the schedule drives project success.
Smarter Project Analysis and Improved Project PerformanceAcumen
A seminar presentation on the importance of baseline compliance and how the faster, easier metric, logic and forensic analyzers and informative visualization options of Fuse 2.1 support project performance and success.
Acumen teamed up with PT&C for this seminar presentation which covered the standards and best practices for project scheduling and using the proper framework to analyze schedules.
This presentation was given by Acumen CEO, Dr. Dan Patterson, and Kurt Voytell, Acumen customer and project manager at Constellation Energy. Created for the Oracle Primavera Special Interest Group webinar, it includes a comprehensive overview and a case study of the use of Fuse at Constellation Energy.
Acumen & ARES delivered this presentation on the need to properly build, analyze and cost-load a schedule. Acumen gave a special sneak peek of Fuse 3.0 and 360.
Intelligent Project Acceleration: An Introduction to Acumen 360Acumen
A one-hour webinar introducing Acumen 360. Acumen 360 gives you the ability to accelerate time frames effortlessly in seconds. It provides pinpointed focus, intelligent optimization and selects the most efficient means of achieving your schedule goals.
Advanced Project Analysis: An Introduction to Fuse 3.0Acumen
An overview of Fuse 3.0. This one-hour webinar presentation focused on providing insight into the advanced project planning quality and execution performance assessment provided by Fuse.
Presented at the 2012 Construction CPM Conference, this presentation walks through the challenges of owner/contractor and JV disputes and reviews solutions and prevention techniques using Fuse.
Achieving the Unachievable: Aligning a Project with Stakeholder ExpectationsAcumen
This webinar presentation walks through a case study on a major capital expenditure project that was able to achieve a faster, risk-adjusted, and still achievable schedule using a combination of schedule and risk analytics based on Acumen's S1>S5 schedule maturity framework.
Advanced Project Analysis and Project Benchmarking with Acumen Cloud™Acumen
A presentation on project analysis, visualization and resolution including tips, tools and techniques for improved project intelligence through advanced analytics. Project benchmarking with Acumen Cloud was also introduced.
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 4DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 4. In this session, we will cover Test Manager overview along with SAP heatmap.
The UiPath Test Manager overview with SAP heatmap webinar offers a concise yet comprehensive exploration of the role of a Test Manager within SAP environments, coupled with the utilization of heatmaps for effective testing strategies.
Participants will gain insights into the responsibilities, challenges, and best practices associated with test management in SAP projects. Additionally, the webinar delves into the significance of heatmaps as a visual aid for identifying testing priorities, areas of risk, and resource allocation within SAP landscapes. Through this session, attendees can expect to enhance their understanding of test management principles while learning practical approaches to optimize testing processes in SAP environments using heatmap visualization techniques
What will you get from this session?
1. Insights into SAP testing best practices
2. Heatmap utilization for testing
3. Optimization of testing processes
4. Demo
Topics covered:
Execution from the test manager
Orchestrator execution result
Defect reporting
SAP heatmap example with demo
Speaker:
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
Encryption in Microsoft 365 - ExpertsLive Netherlands 2024Albert Hoitingh
In this session I delve into the encryption technology used in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Purview. Including the concepts of Customer Key and Double Key Encryption.
State of ICS and IoT Cyber Threat Landscape Report 2024 previewPrayukth K V
The IoT and OT threat landscape report has been prepared by the Threat Research Team at Sectrio using data from Sectrio, cyber threat intelligence farming facilities spread across over 85 cities around the world. In addition, Sectrio also runs AI-based advanced threat and payload engagement facilities that serve as sinks to attract and engage sophisticated threat actors, and newer malware including new variants and latent threats that are at an earlier stage of development.
The latest edition of the OT/ICS and IoT security Threat Landscape Report 2024 also covers:
State of global ICS asset and network exposure
Sectoral targets and attacks as well as the cost of ransom
Global APT activity, AI usage, actor and tactic profiles, and implications
Rise in volumes of AI-powered cyberattacks
Major cyber events in 2024
Malware and malicious payload trends
Cyberattack types and targets
Vulnerability exploit attempts on CVEs
Attacks on counties – USA
Expansion of bot farms – how, where, and why
In-depth analysis of the cyber threat landscape across North America, South America, Europe, APAC, and the Middle East
Why are attacks on smart factories rising?
Cyber risk predictions
Axis of attacks – Europe
Systemic attacks in the Middle East
Download the full report from here:
https://sectrio.com/resources/ot-threat-landscape-reports/sectrio-releases-ot-ics-and-iot-security-threat-landscape-report-2024/
Welocme to ViralQR, your best QR code generator.ViralQR
Welcome to ViralQR, your best QR code generator available on the market!
At ViralQR, we design static and dynamic QR codes. Our mission is to make business operations easier and customer engagement more powerful through the use of QR technology. Be it a small-scale business or a huge enterprise, our easy-to-use platform provides multiple choices that can be tailored according to your company's branding and marketing strategies.
Our Vision
We are here to make the process of creating QR codes easy and smooth, thus enhancing customer interaction and making business more fluid. We very strongly believe in the ability of QR codes to change the world for businesses in their interaction with customers and are set on making that technology accessible and usable far and wide.
Our Achievements
Ever since its inception, we have successfully served many clients by offering QR codes in their marketing, service delivery, and collection of feedback across various industries. Our platform has been recognized for its ease of use and amazing features, which helped a business to make QR codes.
Our Services
At ViralQR, here is a comprehensive suite of services that caters to your very needs:
Static QR Codes: Create free static QR codes. These QR codes are able to store significant information such as URLs, vCards, plain text, emails and SMS, Wi-Fi credentials, and Bitcoin addresses.
Dynamic QR codes: These also have all the advanced features but are subscription-based. They can directly link to PDF files, images, micro-landing pages, social accounts, review forms, business pages, and applications. In addition, they can be branded with CTAs, frames, patterns, colors, and logos to enhance your branding.
Pricing and Packages
Additionally, there is a 14-day free offer to ViralQR, which is an exceptional opportunity for new users to take a feel of this platform. One can easily subscribe from there and experience the full dynamic of using QR codes. The subscription plans are not only meant for business; they are priced very flexibly so that literally every business could afford to benefit from our service.
Why choose us?
ViralQR will provide services for marketing, advertising, catering, retail, and the like. The QR codes can be posted on fliers, packaging, merchandise, and banners, as well as to substitute for cash and cards in a restaurant or coffee shop. With QR codes integrated into your business, improve customer engagement and streamline operations.
Comprehensive Analytics
Subscribers of ViralQR receive detailed analytics and tracking tools in light of having a view of the core values of QR code performance. Our analytics dashboard shows aggregate views and unique views, as well as detailed information about each impression, including time, device, browser, and estimated location by city and country.
So, thank you for choosing ViralQR; we have an offer of nothing but the best in terms of QR code services to meet business diversity!
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 3DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 3. In this session, we will cover desktop automation along with UI automation.
Topics covered:
UI automation Introduction,
UI automation Sample
Desktop automation flow
Pradeep Chinnala, Senior Consultant Automation Developer @WonderBotz and UiPath MVP
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
The Art of the Pitch: WordPress Relationships and SalesLaura Byrne
Clients don’t know what they don’t know. What web solutions are right for them? How does WordPress come into the picture? How do you make sure you understand scope and timeline? What do you do if sometime changes?
All these questions and more will be explored as we talk about matching clients’ needs with what your agency offers without pulling teeth or pulling your hair out. Practical tips, and strategies for successful relationship building that leads to closing the deal.
Builder.ai Founder Sachin Dev Duggal's Strategic Approach to Create an Innova...Ramesh Iyer
In today's fast-changing business world, Companies that adapt and embrace new ideas often need help to keep up with the competition. However, fostering a culture of innovation takes much work. It takes vision, leadership and willingness to take risks in the right proportion. Sachin Dev Duggal, co-founder of Builder.ai, has perfected the art of this balance, creating a company culture where creativity and growth are nurtured at each stage.
Observability Concepts EVERY Developer Should Know -- DeveloperWeek Europe.pdfPaige Cruz
Monitoring and observability aren’t traditionally found in software curriculums and many of us cobble this knowledge together from whatever vendor or ecosystem we were first introduced to and whatever is a part of your current company’s observability stack.
While the dev and ops silo continues to crumble….many organizations still relegate monitoring & observability as the purview of ops, infra and SRE teams. This is a mistake - achieving a highly observable system requires collaboration up and down the stack.
I, a former op, would like to extend an invitation to all application developers to join the observability party will share these foundational concepts to build on:
Elevating Tactical DDD Patterns Through Object CalisthenicsDorra BARTAGUIZ
After immersing yourself in the blue book and its red counterpart, attending DDD-focused conferences, and applying tactical patterns, you're left with a crucial question: How do I ensure my design is effective? Tactical patterns within Domain-Driven Design (DDD) serve as guiding principles for creating clear and manageable domain models. However, achieving success with these patterns requires additional guidance. Interestingly, we've observed that a set of constraints initially designed for training purposes remarkably aligns with effective pattern implementation, offering a more ‘mechanical’ approach. Let's explore together how Object Calisthenics can elevate the design of your tactical DDD patterns, offering concrete help for those venturing into DDD for the first time!
Transcript: Selling digital books in 2024: Insights from industry leaders - T...BookNet Canada
The publishing industry has been selling digital audiobooks and ebooks for over a decade and has found its groove. What’s changed? What has stayed the same? Where do we go from here? Join a group of leading sales peers from across the industry for a conversation about the lessons learned since the popularization of digital books, best practices, digital book supply chain management, and more.
Link to video recording: https://bnctechforum.ca/sessions/selling-digital-books-in-2024-insights-from-industry-leaders/
Presented by BookNet Canada on May 28, 2024, with support from the Department of Canadian Heritage.
Securing your Kubernetes cluster_ a step-by-step guide to success !KatiaHIMEUR1
Today, after several years of existence, an extremely active community and an ultra-dynamic ecosystem, Kubernetes has established itself as the de facto standard in container orchestration. Thanks to a wide range of managed services, it has never been so easy to set up a ready-to-use Kubernetes cluster.
However, this ease of use means that the subject of security in Kubernetes is often left for later, or even neglected. This exposes companies to significant risks.
In this talk, I'll show you step-by-step how to secure your Kubernetes cluster for greater peace of mind and reliability.
Epistemic Interaction - tuning interfaces to provide information for AI supportAlan Dix
Paper presented at SYNERGY workshop at AVI 2024, Genoa, Italy. 3rd June 2024
https://alandix.com/academic/papers/synergy2024-epistemic/
As machine learning integrates deeper into human-computer interactions, the concept of epistemic interaction emerges, aiming to refine these interactions to enhance system adaptability. This approach encourages minor, intentional adjustments in user behaviour to enrich the data available for system learning. This paper introduces epistemic interaction within the context of human-system communication, illustrating how deliberate interaction design can improve system understanding and adaptation. Through concrete examples, we demonstrate the potential of epistemic interaction to significantly advance human-computer interaction by leveraging intuitive human communication strategies to inform system design and functionality, offering a novel pathway for enriching user-system engagements.
Dev Dives: Train smarter, not harder – active learning and UiPath LLMs for do...UiPathCommunity
💥 Speed, accuracy, and scaling – discover the superpowers of GenAI in action with UiPath Document Understanding and Communications Mining™:
See how to accelerate model training and optimize model performance with active learning
Learn about the latest enhancements to out-of-the-box document processing – with little to no training required
Get an exclusive demo of the new family of UiPath LLMs – GenAI models specialized for processing different types of documents and messages
This is a hands-on session specifically designed for automation developers and AI enthusiasts seeking to enhance their knowledge in leveraging the latest intelligent document processing capabilities offered by UiPath.
Speakers:
👨🏫 Andras Palfi, Senior Product Manager, UiPath
👩🏫 Lenka Dulovicova, Product Program Manager, UiPath
Dev Dives: Train smarter, not harder – active learning and UiPath LLMs for do...
Faster, Yet Less Risky Projects through Goal-Based Schedule Acceleration
1. // Faster, Yet Less Risky Projects
through Goal-Based Schedule Acceleration
Dr. Dan Patterson, PMP
CEO & President, Acumen
November 2011
+1 512 291 6261 // info@projectacumen.com
www.projectacumen.com
2. Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................. 3
What is Goal-Based Schedule Acceleration? ................................................................ 3
Setting the Acceleration Goal ...................................................................................... 4
Figure 1 – Defining an Acceleration Goal ............................................................. 4
Figure 2 – Project-based Acceleration Goal ......................................................... 4
Figure 3 – Activity-based Acceleration Goal ........................................................ 5
Defining Acceleration Criteria ...................................................................................... 5
Generate Scenario ....................................................................................................... 6
Figure 4 – Example of Multiple Acceleration Scenarios ........................................ 6
The Benefit and Return on Investment (ROI) of Goal-Based Acceleration .................... 7
How Does it Differ from a Monte-Carlo Simulation? ..................................................... 7
When Should Schedule Acceleration Be Carried Out? .................................................. 7
Accounting for Resources ............................................................................................ 8
Goal-based Acceleration: Faster Completion, but at What Price? ................................ 9
Figure 5 – Impact of Risk on an Accelerated Scenario ......................................... 9
Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 10
+1 512 291 6261 // info@projectacumen.com
www.projectacumen.com 2
3. Introduction
This white paper introduces a new, highly compelling technique for accelerating project
schedules. Unlike traditional techniques such as ‘network crashing’, goal-based schedule
acceleration results in informed acceleration decisions based on criteria that are relevant and
specific to your project. In short: targeted, meaningful changes to a schedule so as to achieve
acceleration, yet still retain realism and achievability.
What is Goal-Based Schedule Acceleration?
Goal-based schedule acceleration1 is a CPM (critical path method) based technique for
accelerating project schedules. It has been developed to solve the challenge of ensuring that a
project schedule is realistic; is aligned with stakeholder expectations; and, of course, is
executed successfully. Put forward a schedule that is too aggressive and it will not be
achieved; put forward a conservative schedule and it will not satisfy stakeholders desires to
finish earlier...
The technique builds upon the widely accepted scheduling technique known as –CPM
scheduling. CPM scheduling is a means of determining start and finish dates based upon a
sequence of activities whose durations are known. This is the underpinning of widely used
commercial scheduling tools such as MS Project and Primavera.
Goal-Based Schedule Acceleration takes this technique a step further by conducting multiple
CPM analyses in the form of a simulation incrementally adjusting pinpointed sets of activities
based upon defined criteria.
The reason why this technique is so powerful is two-fold:
• Firstly, it is using CPM analysis to schedule the project – it is true to the widely
accepted, and globally used, technique for scheduling projects.
• Secondly, it uses criteria that are defined by project team members to make informed
decisions as to which activities (or groups of activities) should be targeted for
acceleration.
The technique is based upon three steps:
Set
Goal
Define
Criteria
Generate
Scenario
1
For more information about schedule acceleration, visit http://www.projectacumen.com/products/acumen-360/features/
+1 512 291 6261 // info@projectacumen.com
www.projectacumen.com 3
4. Setting the Acceleration Goal
The acceleration goal is the target that we are trying to achieve. It can be either a project-
based target, for example, “accelerate the project as a whole by 10%” or it can be an
activity/milestone-based target e.g. “accelerate Project Sanction or First Oil by three months”.
Acceleration goals can be defined as:
• Percentage acceleration: e.g., accelerate by 5%
• Duration acceleration: e.g., reduce duration by 30 days
• New finish date: e.g., complete by 30 June 2015
All three acceleration goal types have one common objective: define a new target relative to
the current schedule target as a means of making an improvement or adjustment to the project
plan. Figure 1 shows an example of defining a new target date to be 50% of the original
duration. The current project completion date is February 6, 2013 and the new goal date has
been targeted at January 16, 2012.
Figure 1 – Defining an Acceleration Goal
In the case of accelerating a specific activity, compression or other changes needed to achieve
this acceleration are only applied to activities leading up to the targeted activity. Activities
falling after the targeted activity do not get altered; however, they may incur a date change as a
result of the knock-on effect of predecessor activities now finishing earlier. Figure 2 shows an
example of a project-based acceleration target (50% project acceleration). Figure 3 shows an
example of a specific activity being targeted with a 50% acceleration. What is unknown until
the simulation has been run is the impact on the project as a whole from the acceleration of the
targeted activity.
Figure 2 – Project-based Acceleration Goal
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5. Figure 3 – Activity-based Acceleration Goal
Defining Acceleration Criteria
Once the acceleration goal has been defined, the second step is to define acceleration criteria.
Acceleration criteria are rules that the simulation adheres to when incrementally attempting to
accelerate the schedule. Criteria steps define the following:
The Action: What change should be applied during the acceleration. For example,
• Reduction in activity duration (e.g., reduce activity duration by up to 20%)
• Change in activity calendar (e.g., change from a 5 to a 6 day working week)
• Reduction of a lag (e.g., reduce lags by up to 50%)
• Removal of constraints (e.g., remove constraints on the schedule to determine the
impact of a more free-flowing schedule)
The Target Set: which activity or groups of activities should the rule apply to? Analogous to
filter sets, the target set defines which activities receive the action e.g., “reduce engineering
durations by up to 10% with the exception of mechanical engineering.”
The Priority: when the acceleration simulation is run, emphasis is inherently around activities
that fall on or near the critical path. By definition, a project is driven by its critical (longest) path,
so only the activities on this path will actually drive a project completion. Within this set of
activities, the “action” and “target set” together pinpoint where and how in the schedule the
acceleration should be specifically aimed. Further, there is an additional layer known as
priority. Prioritization enables us to specify which of these activities is targeted first. There are
several options for prioritization:
• Earliest first: this results in most of the acceleration occurring in the early part of the
project providing a front end-loaded acceleration scenario
• Latest first: this results in back-end activities being given focus during the acceleration
• Longest duration first: focuses on those activities with the longest duration first
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6. • Easiest first: the topic of a separate white paper2 on “Schedule Compression
Efficiency™,” this approach determines which activities are the best candidates for
acceleration based on what is known as the path of least resistance.
Generate Scenario
Once the goal and criteria have been defined, the simulation can be run. A simulation consists
of hundreds or thousands of CPM analysis runs, with each iteration of the simulation applying
one or more of the criteria. What is important to note is that as each iteration is run, the
schedule incrementally accelerates until the goal is reached (or not reached, if indeed the goal
is too aggressive relative to the criteria defined).
The net result is an acceleration scenario that can be used as decision support during both
tactical and strategic project discussions regarding acceleration e.g., “how can we support a
three-month acceleration” or, “could we get back on track by focusing on construction,” or,
“can we define a stretch goal and incentivize the contractor to meet this goal.”
Figure 4 shows an example of two alternate scenarios, both using differing criteria, resulting in
two different accelerated project finish dates.
Figure 4 – Example of Multiple Acceleration Scenarios
There is no limit to the number of criteria or indeed the number and complexity of steps within
a criteria set. This means that a project team can develop and capture very detailed knowledge
about the project and use this as the basis for conducting the acceleration simulation.
2
All white papers are available at http://www.projectacumen.com/resources/whitepapers.
+1 512 291 6261 // info@projectacumen.com
www.projectacumen.com 6
7. The Benefit and Return on Investment (ROI) of Goal-Based Acceleration
One of the key benefits of running a goal-based acceleration is the immense time saving. The
technique runs thousands of iterations in a matter of seconds to generate a scenario that
would otherwise, in a scheduling tool, take days if not weeks to create manually.
Secondly, for those software or simulation skeptics, this approach is not taking away from the
expertise of the planner; in fact, the very opposite. By capturing the criteria as defined by the
planner, the technique is eliminating the manual process of generating alternate scenarios,
allowing them to focus instead on analyzing the results and making highly informed decisions
as to which scenario to adopt.
Thirdly, without getting into the deep mechanics of CPM scheduling, whenever a change is
made to a schedule, there is a likelihood that the critical path may not just change in length,
but even worse, the path itself may actually jump to a different set of activities. Trying to
predict or second-guess this type of impact on a schedule when making changes is nigh on
impossible. Adopting a simulation based-approach removes this complexity, again allowing the
planner to focus on making informed decisions about the scenarios generated.
How Does it Differ from a Monte-Carlo Simulation?
While this could be perceived as similar in nature to a risk-based Monte-Carlo simulation, the
technique, in reality, is very different. Risk-based simulations use ranges of durations to
determine a statistically most likely outcome. Instead, goal-based acceleration targets specific
activities using incremental duration compression based upon criteria that the project team put
forward. Further, a goal-based acceleration actually produces a deterministic end-result—that
is, an accelerated schedule that can be adopted going forward as the project plan. This output
is very different from the range-based output from a schedule risk analysis, which often causes
confusion.
When Should Schedule Acceleration Be Carried Out?
As well as having several phases (e.g., planned, in progress, complete), projects also carry
multiple “bases.” Think of a project basis as a viewpoint or perception…
Firstly there is the plan basis. Often known as a baseline, this is the agreed upon schedule for a
project that forecasts when key milestones will be completed.
Secondly there is the actual basis. This is the statused version of an in-progress schedule that
(ideally) reflects true reality. It accounts for historical completions, actual progress and delays
as well as changes made to the original plan. The actual basis all too often deviates from the
+1 512 291 6261 // info@projectacumen.com
www.projectacumen.com 7
8. plan basis. Comparing the differences between these two enables us to track and understand
project performance.
Thirdly there are various types of what is know as management basis. Also referred to as a
target schedule, a management basis is often driven by commercial or strategic factors such
as “time to market”, “investor requirements” and even simple factors such as “management
would like to finish by…”
It is extremely rare for a project to have perfect alignment and absence of deviation between a
plan, actual and management basis. In other words, a project essentially has three schedules
that are being worked. The further out of alignment that these are with each other, the more the
project is perceived to be slipping, failing or, “doing badly.”
In response to this alignment challenge, goal-based schedule acceleration is an ideal
technique for bringing these three forecasts back into alignment. Typical use cases include:
• Aligning a planned schedule to fit a management-defined completion date. e.g., “the
schedule shows a December 2015 completion date and management are asking for a
June 2015 completion at the latest.”
• Providing “what if…” scenarios when determining how a planned project can be
accelerated. E.g., “if we were able to bring the project on-line sooner so as to benefit
from earlier operational revenue, what would be the best scenario to achieve this?”
• Bringing a delayed project in execution back on track (realignment to the plan). E.g.,
“what is the most effective means of regaining the three months of schedule slippage
that we’ve already incurred?”
• Achieving schedule competitiveness. E.g., “independent benchmarking shows we
should complete within 50 months; our schedule shows a 55 month completion—what
is the best means of achieving this 50-month benchmark?”
Accounting for Resources
So what of the added complexity of resources within a schedule? Questions such as, “surely, if
I accelerate my schedule, don’t I need to consider the impact on resources?” The answer is
yes. If you happen to use resource-leveling when developing schedules (irrespective of
whether you are using goal-based acceleration), each time you make a change to your
schedule, you need to conduct resource leveling to determine whether the defined resource
pool can satisfy the schedule demand.
The exact same approach applies to goal-based acceleration. Develop your schedule, conduct
an acceleration, and then conduct resource leveling to determine the impact of resources on
the schedule i.e., can my resources provide for the demand of the acceleration?
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9. If your scheduling preference is not to use resource-leveling, then once you have conducted a
schedule acceleration, you can simply look at the change to resource usage by plotting
resource histograms and profiles in the exact same way you would using a traditional CPM
approach.
Goal-based Acceleration: Faster Completion, but at What Price?
One of the additional benefits of conducting a goal-based acceleration is to get a better
understanding of the acceleration/risk benefit. Acceleration of course comes with a price so
being able to determine the change in schedule risk exposure as a result of the acceleration is
very valuable.
An example of this is shown in Figure 5. A recent application of this technique was applied to a
project with a December 2018 completion date. A previous risk assessment had shown that
the P50 date pushed out to March 2019, a 3-month slip. The project investment group wanted
to look at faster alternatives and so a goal-based acceleration was applied resulting in an
accelerated scenario of 12 months earlier (early December 2017). A subsequent risk analysis
on this scenario showed a P50 accelerated date of May 2018.
So as a result of the simulation, 12 months acceleration was achieved but the risk exposure
increased from three months to five months. With this insight, the investment team was able to
make an informed decision about moving forward with the accelerated scenario knowing that
despite the increase in risk exposure, the new risk-adjusted accelerated date was still 7
months earlier than the original schedule date. Earlier completion with managed risk
exposure—a true win-win scenario.
3 month
5 month risk exposure risk
exposure
Figure 5 – Impact of Risk on an Accelerated Scenario
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10. Conclusion
Goal-based schedule acceleration is a technique that combines advanced CPM simulation
with a knowledge-based approach to generate informed and realistic scenarios for project
acceleration. It acts as a highly valuable decision-support tool eliminating days of manual
“what if…” analysis and enables schedule alignment during both the planning and execution
phase.
Combined with schedule risk analysis, it is an excellent basis for determining the
cost/risk/schedule benefit of adopting a chosen accelerated scenario and equally importantly,
it is defendable given it is based on criteria as defined by the project team themselves.
Goal-based schedule acceleration has been developed by Acumen and is a core component of
the Acumen S1 > S5™ Schedule Maturity Model. Acumen 360, Acumen’s goal-based
acceleration software, integrates with both MS Project and Primavera.
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