Chapter 06 Developing a Project Plan Multiple Choice

Chapter 06 Developing a Project Plan Answer Key Multiple Choice Questions 1. Information to develop a project network is collected from the A. Organization breakdown structure B. Work breakdown structure C. Budget D. Project proposal E. Responsibility matrix The network is developed from the information collected for the WBS and is a graphic flow chart of the project job plan. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Developing the Project Network Level: Easy 2. Which of the following represents an activity on an AON project network? A. An arrow B. A line C. A node D. Both A and B are correct E. A, B, and C are all correct The two approaches used to develop project networks are known as activity-on-node (AON) and activity-on-arrow (AOA). Both methods use two building blocks— the arrow and the node. Their names derive from the fact that the former uses a node to depict an activity. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Easy 3. Arrows on an AON project network represent: A. An activity B. Project flow C. Dependency D. Both B and C are correct E. Both A and B are correct The node depicts an activity, and the arrow shows dependency and project flow. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: From Work Package to Network Level: Medium 4. When translated into a project network, a work package will become A. A single activity B. One or more activities C. A milestone D. A critical path E. An arrow Work packages from the WBS are used to build the activities found in the project network. An activity can include one or more work packages. The activities are placed in a sequence that provides for orderly completion of the project. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: From Work Package to Network Level: Medium 5. Which of the following is provided by a project network but not by the work breakdown structure? A. Dependencies B. Sequencing C. Interrelationships D. Both A and B are correct E. A, B, and C are all correct Project networks are developed from the WBS. The project network is a visual flow diagram of the sequence, interrelationships, and dependencies of all the activities that must be accomplished to complete the project. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: From Work Package to Network Level: Medium 6. On a project network, the activity times are derived from the A. Organization breakdown structure B. Work packages C. Budget D. Project proposal E. Responsibility matrix Work packages from the WBS are used to build the activities found in the project network. An activity is an element in the project that consumes time—for example, work or waiting. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: From Work Package to Network Level: DifÏcult 7. Part of a project is to Develop Product Specifications. This is best classified as a(n) A. Event B. Path C. Activity D. Node E. Milestone Activities usually represent one or more tasks from a work package. Descriptions of activities should use a verb/noun format: for example, develop product specifications. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Medium 8. An activity that has more than one dependency arrow flowing into it is termed a(n) A. Parallel activity B. Critical path C. Burst activity D. Merge activity E. Independent activity Merge activity is an activity that has more than one activity immediately preceding it (more than one dependency arrow flowing to it). AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Easy 9. The critical path in a project network is the A. Shortest path through the network B. Longest path through the network C. Network path with the most difÏcult activities D. Network path using the most resources E. Network path with the most merge activities When this term is used, it means the path(s) with the longest duration through the network; if an activity on the path is delayed, the project is delayed the same amount of time. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Medium 10. A/an _________ activity has more than one dependency arrow flowing from it. A. Parallel B. Critical path C. Burst D. Merge E. Independent Burst activity is an activity has more than one activity immediately following it (more than one dependency arrow flowing from it). AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Easy 11. An item on a project network is Design Software Completed. This is best described as a(n) A. Event B. Path C. Activity D. Node E. Milestone Event is a term used to represent a point in time when an activity is started or completed. It does not consume time. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Easy 12. Activities which can take place at the same time are termed A. Parallel activity B. Critical path C. Burst activity D. Merge activity E. Independent activity These are activities that can take place at the same time, if the manager wishes. However, the manager may choose to have parallel activities not occur simultaneously. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Easy 13. A sequence of connected, dependent activities is termed a(n) A. Critical path B. Parallel path C. Activity chain D. Path E. Dependent chain A Path is a sequence of connected, dependent activities. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Easy 14. An AON project network uses which of the following basic building blocks? A. Arrows B. Bars C. Nodes D. Both A and C are correct E. A, B, and C are all correct The two approaches used to develop project networks are known as activity-on-node (AON) and activity-on-arrow (AOA). Both methods use two building blocks— the arrow and the node. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Easy 15. Which of the following is not one of the basic rules to follow when developing project networks? A. An activity cannot begin until all preceding activities have been completed B. Each activity must have a unique identification number C. Conditional statements are allowed but looping statements are not allowed D. An activity identification number must be larger that that of any preceding activities E. Networks flow from left to right See List on Page 161. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Constructing a Project Network Level: Medium 16. ________ activities must be completed immediately before a particular activity. A. Merge B. Burst C. Predecessor D. Successor E. Critical Which activities must be completed immediately before this activity? These activities are called predecessor activities. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Activity-on-Node (AON) Fundamentals Level: Easy 17. ________ activities are to be completed immediately following a particular activity. A. Merge B. Burst C. Predecessor D. Successor E. Critical Which activities must immediately follow this activity? These activities are called successor activities. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Activity-on-Node (AON) Fundamentals Level: Easy 18. The forward pass in project network calculations determines the A. Earliest time's activities can begin B. Earliest time's activities can be finished C. Duration of the project D. Both A and B are correct E. A, B, and C are all correct The forward pass starts with the first project activity(ies) and traces each path (chain of sequential activities) through the network to the last project activity(ies). AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Network Computation Process Level: Medium 19. The backward pass in project network calculations determines the A. Latest time's activities can begin B. Earliest time's activities can be finished C. Critical path D. Both A and C are correct E. A, B, and C are all correct See list on Page 165. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Network Computation Process Level: Medium 20. Which of the following correctly calculates the early finish for an activity? A. LS + DUR B. ES + DUR C. LF + DUR D. ES + SL E. LF + SL The early finish for activity = (ES + DUR). AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Network Computation Process Level: Medium 21. Which of the following correctly calculates the late start for an activity? A. EF - DUR B. ES - DUR C. LF - DUR D. ES - SL E. LF - SLACK You subtract activity times along each path starting with the project end activity (LF - DUR = LS). AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Network Computation Process Level: Medium 22. The amount of time an activity can be delayed and yet not delay the project is termed A. Total slack B. Free slack C. Critical float D. Float pad E. Slip pad Total slack tells us the amount of time an activity can be delayed and yet not delay the project. Stated differently, total slack is the amount of time an activity can exceed its early finish date without affecting the project end date or an imposed completion date. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Network Computation Process Level: Easy 23. Which of the following will correctly calculate the total slack in an activity? A. LS - ES B. LF - EF C. LS - LF D. LF - ES E. Both A and B are correct Total slack or float for an activity is simply the difference between the LS and ES (LS - ES = SL) or between LF and EF (LF - EF = SL). AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Network Computation Process Level: Easy 24. The laying pipe example in the text illustrates the concept of A. Laddering B. Hammock activities C. Critical path D. Concurrent engineering E. Forward pass The assumption that all immediate preceding activities must be 100 percent complete is too restrictive for some situations found in practice. This restriction occurs most frequently when one activity overlaps the start of another and has a long duration. Under the standard finish-to-start relationship, when an activity has a long duration and will delay the start of an activity immediately following it, the activity can be broken into segments and the network drawn using a laddering approach so the following activity can begin sooner and not delay the work. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Extended Network Techniques to Come Closer to Reality Level: Medium 25. Using a special color copy machine for a tradeshow publication illustrates the concept of A. Laddering B. Hammock activities C. Critical path D. Concurrent engineering E. Forward pass Hammock activities are frequently used to identify the use of fixed resources or costs over a segment of the project. Typical examples of hammock activities are inspection services, consultants, or construction management services. A hammock activity derives its duration from the time span between other activities. For example, a special color copy machine is needed for a segment of a tradeshow publication project. A hammock activity can be used to indicate the need for this resource and to apply costs over this segment of the project. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Extended Network Techniques to Come Closer to Reality Level: Medium 26. If, for some reason, the project must be expedited to meet an earlier date, which of the following actions would the project manager take first? A. Check to see which activities cost the least B. Check to see which activities have the longest duration C. Check to see which activities are on the critical path D. Check to see which activities have the most slack E. Check to see which activities have the highest risk If for some reason the project must be expedited to meet an earlier date, it is possible to select those activities, or combination of activities, that will cost the least to shorten the project. Similarly, if the critical path is delayed and the time must be made up by shortening some activity or activities on the critical path to make up any negative slack, it is possible to identify the activities on the critical path that cost the least to shorten. If there are other paths with very little slack, it may be necessary to shorten activities on those paths also. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Using the Forward and Backward Pass Information Level: Medium 27. Typically an activity on a project network represents A. A single work package B. One or more tasks from a work package C. Several work packages D. A sub-deliverable E. A cost account Work packages from the WBS are used to build the activities found in the project network. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: From Work Package to Network Level: Medium 28. Project network logic errors include which of the following? A. Activities with less than 1 day duration B. Sequences such as "if test successful build prototype, if failure redesign" C. A sequence such as B succeeds A, C succeeds B, A succeeds C D. Both B and C are network logic errors E. A, B, and C are all network logic errors One rule is that conditional statements such as "if test successful build proto, if failure redesign" are not permitted. Another rule that defeats the project network and computation process is looping. Looping is an attempt by the planner to return to an earlier activity. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: Practical Considerations Level: Medium 29. Which company utilized concurrent engineering to design a new line of cars and in the process completed its development six months ahead of schedule? A. General Motors B. Chrysler C. Ford D. Nissan E. Toyota The traditional chainlike sequence of finish-to-start relationships is replaced by a series of start-tostart lag relationships as soon as meaningful work can be initiated for the next phase. Figure 6.17 summarizes the dramatic gains in time to market achieved by this approach. For example, this approach was used by Chrysler Corporation to design its new line of SC cars including the popular Neon sedan. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Extended Network Techniques to Come Closer to Reality Level: Easy 30. The minimum amount of time a dependent activity must be delayed to begin or end is referred to as: A. Hammock B. Laddering C. Lag D. Cushion E. Buffer A lag is the minimum amount of time a dependent activity must be delayed to begin or end. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Extended Network Techniques to Come Closer to Reality Level: Easy 31. The requirement for a freshly poured foundation to cure before beginning construction is an example of which of the following type of lag? A. Start to Start B. Start to Finish C. Finish to Finish D. Finish to Start E. Any of these could be correct There are situations in which the next activity in a sequence must be delayed even when the preceding activity is complete. For example, removing concrete forms cannot begin until the poured cement has cured for two time units. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Extended Network Techniques to Come Closer to Reality Level: Easy 32. Concurrent engineering is a good example of good use of A. Start to Start lags B. Start to Finish lags C. Finish to Finish lags D. Finish to Start lags E. Any of these could be correct Concurrent Engineering, basically breaks activities into smaller segments so that work can be done in parallel and the project expedited. Start-to-start relationships can depict the concurrent engineering conditions and reduce network detail. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Extended Network Techniques to Come Closer to Reality Level: Easy 33. If testing cannot be completed any earlier than four days after the prototype is built, which of the following type of lag exists? A. Start to Start B. Start to Finish C. Finish to Finish D. Finish to Start E. Any of these could be correct The finish of one activity depends on the finish of another activity. For example, testing cannot be completed any earlier than four days after the prototype is complete. AACSB: Analytic Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: Extended Network Techniques to Come Closer to Reality Level: Easy 34. Which of the following represents an activity on an AOA project network? A. An arrow B. A line C. A node D. Both A and B are correct E. A, B, and C are all correct The activity-on-arrow (AOA) uses an arrow to depict an activity. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Knowledge Learning Objective: From Work Package to Network Level: Easy 35. Nodes on an AON project network represent: A. An activity B. An event C. Responsibility D. Both B and C are correct E. Both A and B are correct The activity-on- node (AON) uses a node to depict an activity. AACSB: Reflective Thinking Bloom's: Comprehension Learning Objective: From Work Package to Network Level: Medium