What is Time Management

"the ability to use one's time effectively or productively, especially at work"

https://www.lexico.com/definition/time_management

Tools for Time Management

Network Diagram
Gantt Chart

When we think of time management, I think most of us will only think of the gantt chart. However, the network diagram is one tool which I find super useful in helping my group plan out our gantt chart.

Network Diagram

Ideally a network diagram should look like this

So an example when starting a new business, you need to apply for business license first [A]. After applying for the license you need to find a land or lease premises for your business to operate [B].

[B] could not be done before finish [A] and we call activities like [B] dependence activities. Activities like [A] is what we call precedence activities.

So if [B] is the precedence, [C],[D],[E],[F] are the dependece activites.

Activities [G],[H] and [I] are what we call parallel activities which are happening at the same time.

Precedence - Which activity must be completed before another can start?
Dependence - Which activity cannot start until another is completed?
Parallel - Which activities can be done concurrently with another?

After we are done identifying the flow of the activities, we need to estimate the duration for the activites. For this we should thinks the

Requirements - Time within which the activity is required to be completed
Unit of measure can be days, weeks or months
Considerations - Activity Effort: time that must be spent to complete the activity
Buffer Time: includes all ‘wait time’
Techniques - Historical data
Vendor quotations
P.E.R.T. (Program Evaluation & Review Techniques)

P.E.R.T is a three-point estimates tool to help you estimate the duration needed for completion of an activity.

Optimistic duration [O] - best-case estimate
Pessimistic duration [P] - worst-case estimate
Most likely duration [M] - most-likely estimate

After estimation, your network diagram should look like this. Now we can move on to identify the critical path for the project.

The critical path in this case is path 4 because it is the shortest time for the project to complete (making sure that every other activity could be completed).

Some may argue that path 2 is the shortest time to project completion but you have to take note that the activities in in the whole network diagram could not be completed within 11 weeks and that is why path 4 is the critical path. As it allows all task to be completed.

Critical Path
- It has the highest accumulated duration
- It does not always have the most number of nodes
- It indicates the shortest time required to complete a project
- It has a sequence of critical activities continuously tied with no slack (overrun of any critical activity would affect project schedule)
Non-Critical Path
- Difference between duration for a non-critical and critical path is known as ‘slack time’ or ‘float’
- Floating activities have some flexibility in their start and end time without affecting the project schedule

[C],[D],[G],[E],[H] are all floating activities because it does not clash with other paths.

After properly identifying the critical activites and floating activities from the network diagram, we are now able to create a gantt chart. Here I will show you how our gantt chart that project CASA used.

P.E.R.T is a three-point estimates tool to help you estimate the duration needed for completion of an activity.

Optimistic duration [O] - best-case estimate

Pessimistic duration [P] - worst-case estimate

Most likely duration [M] - most-likely estimate

After estimation, your network diagram should look like this. Now we can move on to identify the critical path for the project.

The critical path in this case is path 4 because it is the shortest time for the project to complete (making sure that every other activity could be completed).

Some may argue that path 2 is the shortest time to project completion but you have to take note that the activities in in the whole network diagram could not be completed within 11 weeks and that is why path 4 is the critical path. As it allows all task to be completed.

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[C],[D],[G],[E],[H] are all floating activities because it does not clash with other paths.

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After properly identifying the critical activites and floating activities from the network diagram, we are now able to create a gantt chart. Here I will show you how our gantt chart that project CASA used.