Microsoft Word - SLIM-Estimate MS Project Best Practices.docx

QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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SLIM‐EstimateandMicrosoftProject

BestPractices

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Therearemanyactivitiestoperformduringthelifeofasoftwaredevelopmentproject.Nosingletool

providesallofthefunctionalityordatathatisneededtoperformalltheseactivities.SLIM‐Estimateis

builttoestimateprojects.ManyorganizationsuseMicrosoftExcelandMicrosoftProject(MSProject)to

fordetailedplanning.Eac hplanningtooloffersfeaturesthatsupportdifferent,yetcomplimentary 

methodologies.

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SLIM‐Estimatecanexchangeprojectdatawithanumberofapplications,usingtheimportandexport

utilities,ortheApplicationProgramInterface(API).Althoughthesefeaturesaresimple,somefore

thoughtisrequiredtotakefull

advantageofSLIM,andsharemeaningfuldatawithotherapplications.

ThispaperpresentsbestpracticesforusingSLIM‐EstimatewithMicrosoftProjectformodelingsoftware

developmentlifecyclesandtheirdetailedWorkBreakdownStructures(WBS).BestPracticesforproject

trackingandoversightwillbepresentedinaseparatepaperonSLIM

‐Control.

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DefiningtheProductRelationship

HowdoesSLIM‐EstimatedifferfromMSProject?ThesimplestansweristhatSLIM‐Estimateisamacro

levelestimatingtool,andMSProjectisamicrolevelplanningandschedulingtool.Afeature

comparisontablecanbefoundattheendofthisdocument.

TheSLIMmethodologyisactualizedin

severalfeaturesthatdistinguishitasthebestestimationtool:

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 SLIMestimatestheentireprojectbaseduponsoftwareproductsizeandteamproductivity.

 SLIMdesignatesWBStaskandresourceallocationasapercentofthehighesttaskgroup(phase)

topreservethe

relativesizeoflowlevelactivities,i.e.,distributionofworkrequired.

 SLIM’ssoftwareproductionequationmodelsthenon‐linearrelationshipbetweeneffortand

durationinherentinsoftwaredevelopmentprojects.

 SLIMincludesdefectdiscov eryandremovalindeter miningeffortanddurationrequirements.

 SLIMexplicitlycalculatesprojectriskas

afunctionofproductsizeandteamproductivity

uncertainty.

 SLIMpromotesin‐depthanalysisofarangeofprojectoutcomesbyloggingandcomparing

alternativesolutions.

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QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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Thescreenbelowisthedefaultdisplaypresentedwithinitialprojectestimates.

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ThisStaffing&ProbabilityAnalysisViewisabir d’s‐eyeviewoftheentireproject.Staffingneedsare

shownasafunctionoftime,alongwithmajormilestoneoccurrences.TheControlPanelallowsreal‐

timeanalysisoftheimpactofchangesinproductivity(PI),resourceavailability(PeakStaff),and

softwaresize

(EffIU(K)).TheRiskGaugeshowstheprobabilityofmeetingprojectconstraints with

variousscope,productivity,resource,andlifecyclescenarios.

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MSProjectisanexcellenttoolforschedulingandtrackingprojectdetails.Itisimportanttoproperly

identifyalltheworkthatneedstobeperformed,inwhatorder,bywhom,andbywhen.Theproject

WBSistheprojectelementcommontobothtools,thepointofintegration.Thefollowing

sections

describethebestpracticesforusingSLIM‐EstimateandMSProjecttogether.

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ModelingHistoryinSLIM‐Estimate–ImportfromMSProject

TheSLIMestimationprocess beginswithconfiguringaSLIMdefaulttemplatetotheproject’s

environment,usingdatafromhistoricalprojects.Thereareseveraltemplatesavailablepre‐configured

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forarangeofprojecttypes,fromtraditionaldevelopment,toAgile,topackageimplementationand

infrastructure.Nomatterthechosenthetemplate,theconfigurationstepsarethesame.(SeeCreating

orModifyingEstimateTemplatesdocumentforaguidetogeneraltemplateconfiguration).

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Theflowdiagrambelowpresentstheba sicprocess

stepsforusingMSProjectdatatoconfigureaSLIM‐

Estimatetemplate,andthencreatingtwonewcustomized templatesforbothtools.

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1. SelectSLIM‐EstimateTemplate–OpenafilefromtheSamplesdirectoryunderC:/Programs

(86)/QSMTools80,orcreateaNewfileusingoneoftheavailablesolution

methods.

2. ImportWBSfromMSProject‐DecomposeSLIMPhasestooneortwostructurelevelsfora

detailedanalysisofeffort,cost,anddurationatthoselevels.

3. SaveCustomizedSLIM‐EstimateTemplate–Createatemplatetobeusedasthestartingpoint

forallnewprojectsusing

astandardorsanctioneddevelopmethodology.

QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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4. ExporttheCustomizedWBStocreateaMSProjectTemplate–Createaplanningtemplate

baseduponadefensibleSLIMprojectestimatefordetailedprojectmanagement.

5. MaintainCustomizedSLIM‐EstimateTemplate–ImportWBSfromMSProjectisincorporate

changesinlifecyclemethodology.

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Step1.CreateaSLIM‐Estimateworkbook,orselectoneofthemanytemplatesavailableintheS amples

directory.SLIM’sAgileTemplatewillbeusedasanexampletowalkthroughtheprocess(seescreen

shot,page2).Thistemplatehasbeenpreconfiguredwithphasenameanddescription information,

milestone

definitions,andsizingusinguserstories.TheScheduleandProbabilityAnalysisviewGantt

chartshowsthetemplate’sdefaultWBS.

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Step2.SelectarepresentativecompletedMSProjectschedulethattypifiestheorganization’slifecycle,

environment,andprojectcomplexity.Ifeffortanddurationactualsarenotavailableatalltaskslevels,

summaryleveland/orprojecttotalswillbeagoodbeginning.

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SelectFile|Import|WBSfromMSProject…toreplacethephasenamesandWBStaskswiththenames

andhierarchyyourorganizationuses.The importoptionsscreenwillbepresented.Usethebrowse

buttontoselecttheMSProjectfile.

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Thebestpracticeforimportingthemaximumamountofinformationisasfollows:

 Thetemplatehasaphasemappingfield–Donotselect.TheText1toText10fieldnamesshown

inthepull‐downboxcorrespondtoMSProject’scustomfieldswiththesamename.Thismay

behelpful

ifyoualreadyusethesefieldstoidentifytasknamesorstructureinformation.

QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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Otherwise,extraworkisrequiredtopopulateoneofthesefieldsandmapittoSLIM‐Estimate.

 SetPhaseNamesandTaskNames–Selectthisoption.Add‘Phasex:’asaprefixtothe

correspondingsummarytasksinMSProjectscheduletoenableSLIMtoproperlymaptask

names

andhierarchy.BecauseSLIMconvertstheactualdurationandeffortvaluesinMSProject

torelativepercentages,thisdatatells SLIMhowtoadjustallofthechildrentasksassociated

witheachphase.

Example:EditTaskName‘ConceptDefinition’toread‘Phase1:ConceptDefinition’

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 SelectPhaseTuningFactors

(Overlap%,Effort%,andDuration%)fromTaskRelationships–

Selectthisoption.OneoftheadvantagesofimportingactualdataisthatSLIMwillpreservethe

staffingprofileandphaserelationshipsreflectedbytheWBS.

 SelectActivePhasesfromActiveTasks–Selectthisoption.SLIM

willusetheMSProjectphase

mappinginformationtodesignatetheactivephases,asshownontheSolutionAssumptions

screenwithinSLIM‐Estimate.

 SetAccountingOptions(forconsistencybetweenEffortandWorkcalculations)–Selectthis

option.EffortcalculationsinSLIMareperformedin“PersonMonths.”Usingthisoption

automatically

setstheSLIM’sManhoursperManMonthvaluetobeconsistentwithMSProject’s

settingsforHoursperDayandDaysperMonth.ChangetheDayspermonthvalueinMSProject

to22usingOptions|Schedule.ThiswillincreasetheaccuracyofSLIMdatecalculations.

(ConsulttheSLIM‐Estimate

UserManualforacompleteexplanationofeffortandduration

conversionconsiderations.)

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Oncetheimportroutinehascompleted,SLIMwillpresenttheAssignTaskstoPhasesscreen.Validate

thattheschedulecorresp ondingtoSLIMphasesareproperlymapped.Inthisparticularexamplethe

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mappingfunctionperformedcorrectlyduetothetwominoradjustmentstotheMSProjectschedule

mentionedinthebulletsabove.ThetableinthelowerportionofthescreenshowsthetaskIDsthat

correspondtothestartandendofeachSLIMPhase.Fortheexamplebelow,theMSProject

schedule

summarytaskReleasePlanningwillbeginwithTaskID7,ReleaseDefinition,andcommencewithTaskID

11,Estimation.Thus,SLIMproperlyidentifiedeachphase’ssubordinatetasks.Makeadjustmentstothe

mappingusingthisscreenifnecessary.

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ThescreenbelowshowsthenewupdatedSLIM‐Estimatetemplate.

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ItisimportanttoknowwhatdataSLIM‐Estimatedoe s notimport,andhowthataffectsthe

configurationoftheCustomSDLCTemplate:

QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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 TaskDependencies–ThisdatahasnoeffectonSLIM ’s estimationcalculations.Phasesubtasks

startandenddatesaredesignatedasapercentageofphasestartorphaseend.SLIMcalculates

thepercentageuponimport,baseduponrelativedurationofthesubtasks.TheresultingGantt

chartaccuratelydepictstaskrelative

startandenddates.

 ResourceInformation–SLIMusesresourcetypes,knownasSkillsCategories.Thedefault

templatescontaineightSkillsCategorieswithassociatedlaborrates.Thisdatamustbetailored

myhand,asitisnotimportedfromMSProject.Anynumberofcategoriesmaybeentered.

Also,

SLIMallocatesSkillsCategoriestoPhasesbypercent.Thesecondscreenbelowshowsthe

labordistributionacrosstheWBS.NotethatthelowleveltasksdonothaveassociatedSkills

Categories.Thisdatamaybeenteredmanually,butitisnotpartoftheimportroutine.Taking

timetoconfigureSLIM

toasetofresourcetypesandcorrespondinglaborratesensuresSLIM

phaseandprojectcostcalculationsareaccurate. 

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 Milestones–SLIMrecognizesmilestonesastaskswithzeroduration.Iftherearemilestonesin

theMSProjectimportfile,SLIMwillimportthemastasks,anddisplaythemonthetaskmap.

Thismaybeconfusing.ThebestpracticeistoremovemilestonetasksfromtheMSProject

file

priortoimport.UseSLIM’sCustomizeProjectEnvironmentutility tomodifydefaultmilestone

names,descriptionandoccurrencedata.

 PhaseInformation–ThePhaseNameimportedwiththeWBSisnottranslatedtothedata

displayedontheCustomizeProjectEnvironmentutilityPhasetab.Modify thisdatamanuallyfor

consistent

phasenamesonallSLIMreportsandcharts.

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LeveragingSLIM‐EstimateTemplates–ExporttoMSProject

ThefirsttwostepsoftheSLIMtemplateconfigurationprocesstookadvantageoftheSLIM‐Estimateand

MSProjectintegrationtotailorSLIM’sestimationmodeltotheprojectenvironment.Thelastfewsteps

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showhowtoleverageSLIMtoestablishbothstandardorganization‐levelestimationandscheduling

templates.

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Step3.SavetheconfiguredSLIM‐EstimatefileasyourCustomSDLCTemplate.Useanamethattells

othersthetypeofprojectitmodels.Thetemplateisalmostcomplete.Adjustmentsmustbemade

using

otherhistoricaldatatoensuretheSLIMmodelisaccurate.

 AdjustEffortandStaffing–WhenSLIML‐EstimateimportedtheprojectWBS,effortdatainthe

Workfieldwasalsoimported.DuetotheQSMdefaultprojectconfiguration,theeffortshown

inSLIMmaybeoffbyasmallpercentage.

RunanestimatesolutionmethodinSLIM,usingthe

DesigntoInputmethod,andselectPhase3Effort(WhatevernameyouhavegiventoPhase3

willbereflectedinthepull‐downlist).

 EnterSizeData–EffortandDurationareoutputsofSLIM’sestimationprocess.Theinputs

are

sizeandproductivity.Obtainanactualsizemeasureoftheproductproducedwiththe

completedproject.Selectasizeunittherepresentsthesmallestelementofwork,suchas

sourcelinesofcode,oragenericunitsuchasimplementationuni ts. UsetheSizingbyHistory

methodinSLIM’sSizing

CalculatortoestimatesizefromtheQSMdatabaseifactualdataisnot

available.

 DetermineProductivity(PI)–Ifthetotalactualsizecanbedetermined,thenPIcanbecalculated

fromthisandafewmoredataelements:totaleffort,Phase3startdate,Phase3enddate.

AnotheroptionistouseSLIM‐Estimate’sSolveforPIWizardtocomputethePIrequiredto

producethecompletedproject’ssizewiththeactualeffortanddurationexpended.Aswith

size,PIcanbedeterminedfromtheQSMdatabaseifactualdataisnotavailable(SeeSLIM‐

DataMangerUserManual

sectiononReconstructingCompletedProjects).

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Step4.EstimatefutureprojectsusingtheCustomSDLCTemplate,andexporttoMSProjectoncea

defensibleestimatehasbeenproduce d. SLIMincorporatesriskassessmentandwhat‐ifanalysisto

promoteacompleteanalysisofpotentia lprojectoutcomes,quicklyandeasily.

 Selectthe

agreedtosolutionintheSolutionLog,makingittheCurrentSolution.Savethe

estimateusingthenewprojectname.

 ExporttheWBStoMSProjecttocreateaschedulederivedfromtheestimate.

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QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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NOTE:AlthoughthemorerecentMSProjectfiletype.MPXisavailable,exporting.MPPismorerobust.

Thefollowingscreenispresentedwhenanewfilenameisentered.Selectthesecondoptiontocreateabrand

newMSProjectfilewithfromtheSLIMestimate.Thefirstoptionshould

bereservedforupdatingadefaultMS

ProjecttemplatewheretheWBSitemshavenotbeenalteredwithinSLIM,butanupdatedestimatedhasbeen

performed.

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QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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MSProject’sdefaultTaskviewwilldisplaythefirst4columnsonly.ToviewtheEffortandWBSfields

SLIMexported,selecttheAddColumnlistandselectWorkandWBSrespectively.

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StayingCurrentwithMicrosoftProject

Softwaredevelopmentmethodologiesevolverapidly.Manyorganizationsdeliverawidevarietyof

productsandservices.Importantlifecyclemethodologyimprovementswillmostlyfirstappearina

completedprojectschedule.UpdatetheCustomSDLCTemplateinoneoftwoways:

 UpdateoneormoreorganizationalSLIM

templatefilespreviouslycreatedwiththemostrecent

WBSfromasimilarproject.

 Repeattheentirefour‐stepprocesstocreateanewCustomSDLCTemplate fordifferentproject

typesand/orprojectteams.Eachcompletedprojectaddedtothehistoricalprojectdatabase

increasesestimationaccuracy.

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AugmentingwithMicrosoftExcel

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MSExcelisusedbymany organizationstoestimateandplanprojects,becauseofitspowerand

flexibilityasageneralutilityprogram.ExportingSLIMestimatedatatoMSExcel,andthencreatingaMS

Projectfilefromthespreadsheetisanotherapproachtointegratingtheestimationandplanning

processes.

ThisapproachprovidestheopportunitytomessageandaugmenttheSLIMestimatedata

priortocreatingtheschedule.

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SLIMexportsreportdata,ratheraspecificdatasetaswiththeMSProjectexport.Anydatathatcanbe

reportedfromSLIMcanbeexportedtoMSExcel.Reportscanbe

exportedindividuallyasagroup.

 SelectFile|ExportSelectedDisplayObject|ToMSExceltoexportthecurrentlyviewedreport

asaseparatespreadsheetfile.AllSLIMchartsmaybeexportedafterbeingconvertedto

reports.

 SelectFile|ExportMultipleReportstoExceltoexportaseveral

reports,whereeachreport’s

datawillbestoredonaseparateMSExcelsheet.Thi soptionmayrequiresomepreplanningto

modifyandarrangechartsandreportviewssotheyareinconsecutiveorder.Alternatively,use

QSM,Inc.HelpfulHints2014

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MSExceltomergeseparatefilesheetsintoonefile.DonotexporttheReportTitleorSection

TitlesifyouplantopullthedataintoMSProject. 

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MSProject2010hasaspecialfeatureforcreatingnewfilesfromanMSExcelspreadsheet.Selectthis

option,following

thedirectionsinMSProjectHelp,toopentheMSExcelfilecreatedfromtheSLIM

export.Datainthespreadsheetmustbemappedtotheschedule.

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Themappingcanbesavedandreusedwithintheorganization.

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Thebestpracticeforusinganytoolintegrationistounderstandthemainpurposeforwhichthetoolwas

designed.TheSLIMToolSuiteisbuiltfo r estimating,trackingandcontrol,metricsanalysisand

performancebenchmarking.CreativeuseofSLIM’simport

andexportroutines,alongwiththeAPI,will

increaseprojectsuccess.