TYPES OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

Desktop
Desktop project management software requires installation to a specified computer or set of computers. Licenses are
required for each installation and this will incur a cost. Where there is only one project manager who will be closely
monitoring the whole project, this can be useful as desktop software can be sophisticated and cover a large variety of tasks.
Some desktop solutions allow multi user access, but this will require the software to be installed on several desktops and a
central network location being used to store the project files. The software will be responsive as it is installed locally and
the interface can be highly graphical. However, where collaboration is required on documents or plans are regularly
changing and need to be communicated; this type of software can have its limitations.

Web-based
Web based software can be accessed through a browser. The main software could be installed on an intranet that is also
made available as an extranet or it could be installed in the cloud. As the software is not installed locally, there can be
delays in waiting for data to be processed or delivered to the end user and the data isn’t available offline, meaning that if the
network connection is broken, then data is not available to the user. The graphical capability will also be limited due to
bandwidth limitations. However, web-based software has many advantages over desktop software including:

• access from any computer without the need to install software •access from a smartphone or tablet
• multiple users can access the data at once
• collaboration on documents is possible as they are stored centrally •only one version of the software will be installed and
maintained

Single User
Single-user project management systems are usually desktop systems and it is often the case that desktop systems are
usually single user systems, too. For small projects where there is just one project manager and maybe only a couple of
people assigned to tasks, then this software is appropriate, but it prevents any type of collaboration and communication
from within the software itself, meaning that alternative tools will need to be used.

Personal
Personal project management software is typically used by home users for small projects such as managing a building
extension or planning a holiday. It will be single-user software and include a simpler interface that a non-experienced
project manager is able to use. It will include basic features such as a timeline/calendar, task management and resource
planning, but it won’t include any collaboration features or complex features required by larger organizations.

Collaborative
Collaborative project management systems are used by several users at once. There may be several sub-project managers
who are responsible for updating different parts of the plan both during the planning stage and when monitoring and
controlling. This type of software is often web-based or delivered on a client-server model, with project and task
information being stored on a central server. Some client-server tools include a desktop application for detailed project
management and a web interface for other project team members to access when required.

SELF-STUDY
PROJECT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE stages

Planning
Most of the planning involved using project management software is concerned with scheduling tasks and allocating
resources to those tasks. However, key milestones can be identified in advance. These are when crucial points in the project
should be reached, so tasks should be scheduled to meet these milestones. Documents that are likely to be required can be
allocated to milestones, such as success criteria and specifications. Templates can be used for setting up an initial project
plan. These templates can be provided by the software or they could be templates that are created based upon an
organization’s previously successful projects. Through the use of project templates, company standards can be setup for the
way projects should be planned, so employees share a common, collaborative and recognizable structure.

Scheduling of Tasks
Tasks are jobs that need to be completed as part of the project. Project management software will enable a project manager
to create a Gantt chart to show an overview of the tasks that need completing on a timeline. Tasks will be assigned an
estimated number of hours or days that they will take to complete, together with a deadline for completion. The project
manager will be able to identify which tasks are dependent upon other tasks and cannot start until those other tasks have
been completed. Tasks can be delegated to other members of the team and prioritized to identify which should be completed
first. Team members will be able to record how many hours have been spent on each task and identify when the task is
complete. Milestones can be identified for crucial points of the project and these can be highlighted. The project manager
will be able to see an overall calendar of all tasks that need to be completed, together with calendars for each team member
that is responsible for those tasks.

Allocation of Resources
Resources can be equipment, property or people that are required to complete a task. These resources will need to be
defined with in the project management software and their availability can be identified so the project manager knows when
they can be utilized. Costs can be assigned to any resource, so the project manager can see how their use will affect the
budget. Resources can then be assigned to tasks and a number of hours or days be assigned to the use of that resource. The
software will help the project manager to avoid resource conflicts and also identify clearly situations where team members
could experience overload. This is when they have too many tasks to complete during a period of time.

Costings
All resources will have costs allocated to them, so the project manager will be able to calculate the total cost of each task
based on how many hours each resource is used for each task. The software can be used to keep a record of any expenses
incurred by team members and account for these in the overall costs. Daily, weekly, monthly or custom analysis of
expenditure and its comparison to the budget can be provided. The software can report on the total costs for each individual
resource or set of resources. The costings information will be able to be exported to common formats such as spreadsheets
for further manipulation and analysis.

Communications
Project management software can offer a large variety of communication tools which help team members to collaborate
throughout the whole project:
• Calendars each team member will have a calendar showing what they are doing at any time. These can be synchronized
with third party calendars, such as Google, iCal or Outlook, so that each member’s availability is always up to date. This
enables meetings to be scheduled with each team member. Documents can be attached to these meetings so that they are
readily available to each participant.
• Instant messaging / video chat / videoconferencing: these tools will enable team members who are working remotely
from each other to communicate in real time so that they can share ideas and discuss progress.
• Shared documents: all documents should be stored in a central repository so that they are available to the team members
who require access to them. Documents can be assigned to tasks, resources or milestones so that they are available at the
right time to the right people. Changes to the documents can be tracked so that each team member knows what
modifications have been made and which is the latest version of the document. The software can email team members to
inform them when changes to documents have been made or display an alert on their project dashboard, their homepage for
the project management software. This is a much more controlled manner of dealing with documents than the nightmare of
email attachments and mixed revisions.
• Discussions/forums: these can be set up for tasks, documents or milestones so that discussions between team members
can be held. This is particularly useful when all team members are not available at the same time. Team members will be
able to see comments and suggestions that have been made by others and respond to them. Email notifications of new
contributions to discussions can be sent or alerts can be displayed on project dashboards.
• Progress: the software can inform team members and the project manager of progress that is being made. Team members
can update tasks to show how near to completion they are and this progress can be fed into the whole project plan. If
changes are made to the project timeline, automated email notifications can be sent out to all affected team members.

Decision Making
All communications within the project management software can be logged and tracked so that if decisions have been
made, then it is possible to clearly identify who made each decision and for what reasons. If problems or issues have been
experienced, then these will be highlighted by the software and decisions can be made as to what adjustments need to be
made, such as changing the timeline or allocating additional resources. These issues can also be monitored to check on
progress of the resolution. Graphs, charts and reports can be used to analyse the budget, scheduling and task progress.
Comparisons can be made between the plan and what is actually happening during the execution of the project, and then
decisions can be made to make changes if necessary. The software can show how much time was spent on each task
compared to how much time was planned for that task, so that lessons can be learned for future tasks that are similar in
nature. The software will identify a critical path, which will show all tasks that must complete on time if the project is to
meet its deadline. This can then be monitored closely and delays can be anticipated in advance and resources diverted to
critical tasks if necessary. The software will show an overview of the availability of resources and the time allocated to each
and their respective costs, so that the project manager is able to reallocate them as necessary.

CRITICAL PATH ANALYSIS

A critical path analysis (CPA) finds a project’s critical path. The critical path identifies which tasks must complete on time
in order for the whole project to complete on time, and defines the minimum time in which the project can be completed.

The circles represent milestones in the project and are numbered for identification purposes. The tasks are represented by
arrows. The numbers next to each task represent the number of seconds the task will take. For example, pouring water into
the cup will take 10 seconds. Some tasks can be completed in parallel to other tasks. For example, boiling the kettle can take
place at the same time as putting tea in the cup, putting sugar in the cup and getting milk out of the fridge. Where there are
parallel tasks, the longest timeline forms the critical path. In this case,180 seconds to boil the kettle is longer than the 60
seconds it takes to do the three parallel tasks. Sequential tasks cannot be carried out at the same time because they are
dependent upon other tasks completing first. For example, boiling the kettle is dependent upon the kettle being filled with
water and so cannot start until the kettle is filled with water. In this case, the kettle being filled with water is a predecessor
to boiling the kettle. The total length of the critical path is calculated by adding up all the sequential tasks plus the longest of
each of the parallel sets of tasks. In this case that is15+180+10+5+10=220 seconds, which is the shortest time it will take to
complete the project. If any of the tasks on the critical path takes longer than planned, then the whole project will be
delayed.
Some tasks aren’t critical and have what is known as float time. The float time is the time an activity can be delayed
without affecting the rest of the project. In the example CPA for making a cup of tea, getting the milk out of the fridge has a
float time of 120 seconds as it can be delayed this long before it would catch up with milestone 4.
To create a CPA it is necessary to know the following information:
• the list of tasks
• how long each task will take
• which tasks are dependent upon predecessors
 GANTT CHARTS

A Gantt chart is used to show the start and finish dates of each task, the predecessors for each task, the progress of each
task and the current position within the project. Tasks are listed with their start and finish dates. A bar will represent each
task. Each bar can be shaded into show the percentage of the task that has been completed. Arrows are used to show which
tasks are dependent upon other tasks. A line or other indicator can be used to show the current position (time) with in the
project. It’s also possible to identify the resources required, usually by listing the person responsible for each task. Creating
a Gantt chart follows a similar process to creating a CPA. In addition to knowing the list of tasks, how long each task will
take and which tasks are dependent upon predecessors, you will also need to know the start date of the first task and the
resources that are allocated to each task.

On the left hand side you can see the task list together with beginning dates and times, coordinators and the duration. The
yellow bars represent the time that each task takes. This makes it much easier to see the float time that is available.
Dependencies are shown by the arrows from the end of a predecessor to the start of another task. The black lines represent
how much of each task has currently been completed and the red line represents the current time. Therefore, assuming that
the progress is correct, the project is running slightly behind schedule. The diagonal lines on the yellow bars represent the
critical path.

DISASTER RECOVERY MANAGEMENT

Sometimes disasters occur, such as a power cut, flood, fire, theft of data, malware, and corruption of data, loss of network
admin password or loss of the network manager. When this happens it is necessary to recover from the disaster. A disaster
recovery plan (DRP) is needed for such events so that recovery can be completed as quickly and effectively as possible,
minimizing disruption to the organization.
Risk assessment involves identifying the potential risks to an organization, analysing the potential impact to the
organization and the likelihood of each risk occurring. This is often carried out alongside a systematic process known as
business impact analysis (BIA), which quantifies the impact of a disaster in terms of financial and non-financial costs.
A risk assessment will identify a number of potential hazards including:
 power cut
 fire
 flood
 denial of access to premises
 malware
 unauthorized access to data
 theft of data
 corruption of data
 loss of key personnel

Some of these risks involve people who could deliberately cause problems. These people are known as perpetrators. Each
risk will then be quantified in terms of its likelihood on a scale from 0.0 to 1.0, where 0.0 represents it never happening to
1.0 which represents it as being almost inevitable. Within an organization, there will be a number of business activities
that are carried out. Each business activity will need to be identified. The impact of that business activity not being able to
take place then needs to be analysed. The impact for each activity not being able to take place will be measured on a scale
from 0.0 to1.0 where 0.0 means that there is no impact to 1.0 meaning that the impact is absolutely critical to the aims of
the organization.
Impacts could include:
  loss of revenue
 damage to organization’s image
 penalty fees
 cost of recovery
 effect on other business activities.

From this analysis, activities can be categorized, for example:

 activities which must continue
 activities which could be scaled down
 activities which could be suspended.
Analysis of the impacts should also cover how the impact changes over different time periods, for example in the first
hour,24 hours, 48 hours, week, etc. The overall risk to an organization of each potential disaster/risk can now be
quantified by multiplying the likelihood by the impact: Risk = Likelihood x Impact

Securing the risk

Once the risks have been identified and prioritized, measures need to be put into place to protect against those risks. One of
the risks that hasn’t been discussed previously is the potential to lose key personnel. If a person leaves, is suddenly ill, dies
or has to be dismissed, then the organization loses all of that person’s knowledge which has not been documented. It is
therefore important to guard against personnel loss by requiring key personnel to document procedures that they follow.
It’s also wise to have at least two people who know the main system administration password or to have a copy of it
written down in a sealed envelope in a safe that has limited access.

Recovery Management
Procedures need to be put into place to plan for recovery after a disaster has occurred. This can include planning for:
restoration of backups, replacement of hardware, reinstallation of software, emergency replacement of key personnel and
emergency office accommodation.
When planning for these situations, any resources in terms of personnel, technology, data, supplies and premises.
That are required to recover from the disaster must be identified and planned for. The recovery point objective (RPO) must
also be identified. The RPO is the point in time prior to the disruption to which data must be recovered. It is important to
plan how long each recovery process will take. There will be some parts of recovery where the time is fixed, but other parts
where if more resources are allocated then the recovery can be quicker. When planning for the recovery time, two key
measurements should be considered:
 maximum tolerable downtime (MTD): this is the maximum time that each business activity could tolerate not
having access to their essential system functionality
 recovery time objective (RTO): this is the estimated maximum amount of time that the organization or business
activity has in which to recover its system sand resume operations. Priorities will be identified based on the MTD
for each business activity, therefore ensuring that activities with the lowest MTD are functioning again the soonest.

Recovery Testing
Plans are important, and a plan is better than no plan, but plans don’t always work. It is therefore important to test disaster
recovery plans. This is particularly applicable to restoring data and systems. Backed up data should be tested daily to ensure
that the backup process has succeeded and that the backup data is accessible. Full system restorations should be tested
periodically by attempting to restore whole server backups onto a clean server and testing their success.

QUESTION 1: Identify three risks that should be considered during disaster recovery planning.
QUESTION 2: Explain why it is important to test recovery procedures.

PROTOTYPING
A prototype is a ‘mock up’ of a software solution in a primitive form. It is used during the design stage to demonstrate how
a system will look and work. It is usually focused on the user interface, rather than any data structures. It is used so that the
client can get a feel for the new system before it is developed and can provide feedback that can then be acted upon. The
client is also able to compare the prototype against the requirements specification. The client also has an opportunity to
explain their requirements more clearly having seen the designer’s interpretation.

Types of prototypes

Evolutionary / incremental prototyping.

This type of prototyping takes an iterative approach in that requirements are specified, an initial prototype is developed, the
prototype is reviewed and then requirements are clarified and the prototype is improved based on feedback.

Iterative prototyping
Each prototype will be built upon the previous one and include more functionality until a final product is built. A teach
stage, only clearly understood requirements are developed. Each prototype can be functional and if required can be used by
the client until the next evolution of the prototype is ready. This means that the end users may request enhanced or new
features that they discover they require as the prototypes are being developed, features they wouldn’t have envisaged at the
initial requirements specification stage.

Throwaway / rapid prototyping

With throwaway prototyping, also known as rapid prototyping, the prototype will never become part of the final
delivered software, but will be discarded. A loosely working model is created following a short investigation, with the
aim being to get something tangible to the client as soon as possible for feedback as to how well the requirements are
being met.

ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES of PROTOTYPING

 ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
Problems can be identified early during the process and Requirements analysis can be rushed, meaning that
modifications made before it becomes very costly to make prototypes don’t reflect much of what the end users were
changes. expecting.
With rapid prototyping, the prototype can become rushed
and, when trying to develop it into a working system, it may
Requirements can be clarified and refined following have significant design flaws or structural errors that carry
feedback on the prototypes. through to the end solution.

When users see the prototype, they can often get lots of new
The end users will be involved more in the process, giving ideas about features they would like to be included, which
them more ownership of the solution and providing valuable can lead to disappointment if these features can’t be funded.
feedback. This is known as ‘feature creep’.
When users see what looks like a working interface with a
throwaway prototype, they don’t realize how much more
If the prototype is evolutionary, then users can get used to effort is required to make it into a working solution and may
using parts of the system before having to use the whole have false expectations as to the timescale. The iterative
system, which will reduce the need for bulk training. It’s process of feedback can sometimes last too long if the user
much cheaper to make changes earlier in the process than is regularly wanting changes to be made to the latest
after real development has taken place. prototype.
By listening to feedback from end users, the developers will
have a much better understanding of what the users are The initial costs of developing a prototype are high
expecting and so a better quality solution will be provided. compared with traditional designs.

Methods of Software Development

Rapid application development

Rapid application development (RAD) uses prototyping to develop a system in a very short time frame, usually less than
six months. Instead of following a traditional requirements gathering approach, requirements are gathered through focus
groups. Users are key players in the prototyping stage and provide feedback for refinements. This type of user involvement
is known as joint application development (JAD) because the user is jointly involved with the developer in the development
of the system. Less time is spent on planning and design and more emphasis put on the development phase. Strict deadlines
are allocated throughout the development of the system to ensure that the product is developed and finished on time by
allocating time boxes to the development of each requirement. This requires understanding from the user that, if
requirements are too complex, then they must be simplified or removed from the project. The RAD approach will also try
to reuse any modules of software that already exist and are available, rather than always developing from scratch. Software
application frameworks can be used to develop the solution whereby a complex graphical user interface can be created
using drag and drop functionality. This enables users to be involved in the actual design of the interface as part of the JAD
approach and they can see the interface taking shape in real time.

WATERFALL METHOD
The waterfall method involves gathering all the user requirements at the
beginning of the project. There will be considerable communication with the
user at this stage in order to elicit the requirements of the potential solution.
When the requirements are defined, the process runs ‘downhill’ like a
waterfall. During the design stage, the interface and the structure of the system
will be designed. During implementation, often referred to as development,
the system will be developed, which often involves programming. The
purpose of the verification phase is to ensure that the project meets the
customer’s requirements. The system will then be used and during its use
there may be problems that are discovered that need to be corrected or other
changes that need to be made. This is known as maintenance. The waterfall
method relies upon the requirements being clearly defined, which is an
unrealistic expectation, so it is fundamentally flawed. It was originally used in
manufacturing and then adopted into computing, but with adaptions that included the need to revisit the requirements.
 ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES of RAD

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
The high level of user involvement means that the end Requirements are not clearly specified from the outset and
solution is more likely to be suitable for the end users, who so the final solution may not meet the entire needs of the
will also have ownership of the solution. organization.

Users are often not sure of what the requirements of a Users are required throughout the whole process and they
system should be from the outset and so the evolutionary also have their normal day jobs to do. This can lead to work
approach of RAD enables the requirements to evolve. overload or the need for temporary staff.

As users are involved throughout the whole project, it is The structure of the system may be compromised, leading to
quickly recognized when a requirement is over-ambitious instability, as the focus is on the user interface and getting a
and therefore the requirement can be simplified or removed system developed rapidly.
at an early stage.

The strict deadlines ensure that the project will be completed The strict deadlines mean that some parts of the project
on time and prevents ‘feature creep’. could be rushed and not completed to a high enough quality.

Prototyping of the interface with user involvement means Existing software modules will not have been designed for
less time is spent on design and more on development, the exact requirements of the system and so may not provide
leading to a shorter overall project. sufficient functionality.

Software application frameworks mean that a user interface Software application frameworks don’t produce particularly
can be developed quickly and users can even be involved in efficient code and so the end solution will not run as quickly
configuring the layouts of screens and reports. as if it had been developed from scratch.

Users who are not involved in the JAD approach may be

disaapointed that they did not have a say in the process and the
system may not meet their specific needs.

QUESTION 3: Compare and contrast evolutionary and throwaway prototyping.

QUESTION 4: Describe joint application development.

COMPUTER–AIDED DESIGN & COMPUTER–AIDED MANUFACTURING

Computer-aided design (CAD) involves the use of computers to design physical products. Computer-aided
manufacturing (CAM) involves the use of computers to manufacture physical products. CAD/CAM applications involve
the use of computers to design the physical products and then the application uses the design to manufacture the physical
product to match the exact design.

MOTOR VEHICLE DESIGN

CAD uses vector graphics to create objects in two dimensions (2D) or three dimensions (3D). Due to the manufacturing
nature of CAD, it is common to use 3D tools. A plan view is often used in 2D and the CAD software will render a 3D view,
which can be viewed from any angle and zoomed in or out. Objects can be stretched, resized and moved and properties such
as material and color can be changed. Object libraries will be available within CAD software so that the user can select
standard objects. For example, if designing a house, an object library could include steel beams, walls, paving slabs,
windows and doors. Other applications for CAD/CAM include: landscaping, vehicle manufacturing, textiles production,
carpentry, manufacturing of components and printed circuit boards.

EXAMPLE: IKEA provides CAD tools to its customers for designing living spaces such as kitchens, bedrooms and
bathrooms. This enables a customer to position furniture in a virtual room and to try out different layouts. The customer can
view the layout from different angles in a 3 D view. Different options for colours of walls, style of cupboards and worktops
can be selected and modified until a preferred solution is found. The customer is also given a full breakdown of the parts
needed and the cost for each part.

The Benefits and Drawbacks of CAD and CAM

BENEFITS DRAWBACKS
Expensive prototypes are not always necessary as users can Both CAD and CAM have led to the loss of jobs and the
experience 3D models, and stress testing can be carried out need to retrain employees.
on these 3D models.

CAD drawings can be modified and enhanced without Testing using a model will never provide the same results as
manufacturing cost until a final version is completed. testing using the manufactured product and so at least one
manufactured prototype is required before mass production.

A list of required materials can be produced from the CAD Although a user can experience a 3D model, it is not the
drawings automatically. same as walking through a real building or holding a real
product.

CAD models can be viewed from many angles by rotating CAD software is very complex and so highly trained staff
the model and elements can be magnified by zooming in. are required to use it.

Components that have been designed once can be reused. Initial costs of purchasing CAD software can be high.

CAD requires fewer designers than traditional drafters and Designs developed with CAD will include errors made by
so is cheaper for business. the designer as the software is not intelligent enough to
know when the wrong material shave been used.

CAM enables products to be mass-produced consistently. Designers are limited to using vector objects based on
geometrical modelling.

CAM is more precise than manufacturing by hand and can

deal with tiny measurements.

Manufacturer’s drawings can be created seamlessly.

CAM removes the need for manual labor and so reduces

costs for business.

QUESTION 5: Describe how CAD could be used to design an extension to a house.

QUESTION 6: Give one disadvantage of CAM.

EXERCISES: A landscape gardening company has commissioned a software development company to develop a new
piece of software that can be used by customers to view a model of what their new garden might look like. A project
manager has been appointed to oversee the project.

1. Identify four stages of project management that will be coordinated by the project manager. The project will involve a
large team.
2. a Give reasons for the use of web-based collaborative project management software.
2. b Identify one other type of project management software that would not be suitable.
3. Describe how the project management software can help the project manager to allocate resources to the project.

The project manager has the option of using critical path analysis (CPA) and a Gantt chart for planning the time scales of
the project.
4. a Compare CPA with a Gantt chart.
4. b Identify two features available in a Gantt chart that are not shown on CPA.
An evolutionary prototype approach will be used during the design and development of the software.
5. a Define the term‘ prototype’.
5. b Evaluate the reasons for the project manager choosing an evolutionary approach. The software will include CAD tools.

6. Suggest three objects that could be included in the object library for the CAD software.
ANSWERS

QUESTIONS

1. During monitoring and control of the execution, resources may become unavailable, timescales may not be met and the
budget may be exceeded. If this happens, plans will need to be revised to allocate different resources, adjust timescales
and adjust expenditure.

2.Web based software can be used by multiple users at once, whereas, single-user desktop software is only available to
one user, web-based software can be used by any device, whereas desktop software can only be used by the device(s) on
which it is installed, web-based software can be used for collaboration, whereas single user desktop software can only be
used by one person.

3. Resources will have been defined within the software, including their availability and costs. The project manager can
then select available resources and allocate them to tasks where they are required. Allocation of already assigned resources
at specified times will be prevented by the software. The project manager will be able to assign an amount of time to each
resource for each task. The project manager will be able to see the costs involved for each resource and how much each task
will cost.

4. Power cut; fire flood; denial of access to premises; malware; unauthorized access to data; theft of data; corruption to
data; loss of key personnel.

5. Recovery procedures are not used very often, if at all, so they need to be tested to ensure they work, if they don’t
work, then disaster recovery won’t work and that could shut down an organization.

6. Evolutionary prototyping develop each prototype further, whereas throwaway prototyping involves disposing of the
prototype. Evolutionary prototyping involves refining user requirements after each evolution of the prototype and
throwaway prototyping also involves refining requirements after the prototype is developed. Both methods involve
producing a basic version of what the user interface will look like. Both methods involve getting feedback from the
user early during the project.

7. JAD involves both users and developers working together to develop a working prototype, with the user being able to
refine the design and layout as development progresses. Software application frameworks are used to develop the
prototype and end solution.

8. A library of objects (e.g. walls, windows) could be used to see what the extension will look like from a variety of
angles, windows and doors can be added to the design and their size and position altered, the color of walls can be
experimented with until the right one is found, different lighting options can be experimented with to give the right
amount of light.

9. Loss of jobs, imperfect testing, not the same as a prototype, highly trained staff required, initial costs of
purchasing software still prone to human error, limited to vector objects.

EXERCISES

1. Conception / initiation, planning, execution, monitoring / controlled

2a. A large team is likely to require sub-project managers who will need to update different parts of the plan at different
stages of the project; members of the team will be able to use a web interface to update their progress; assess will be
available from any computer which is important for a large team who may be working in different places; team members
can collaborate on documents throughout the project; each team member will be using the same version of the software so
there won’t be compatibility issues.

b) Personal desktop single user.

3. The software will provide an option to define resources, availability of each resource can be identified costs can be
assigned to each resource, resources can be allocated to individual tasks, resource conflicts and overload can be
highlighted.
4a. Both charts can show the critical path, both charts show the length of time each task takes, both charts
show predecessors / dependencies.

b) Resource allocation, start / finish dates, task progress.

5a. A ‘mock up’ of a software solution, partially completed product used for evaluation / feedback.

b) Evolutionary prototyping develops each prototype further whereas throwaway prototyping involves disposing of the
prototype so the prototype can grow rather than having to start again. Evolutionary prototyping involves refining user
requirements after each evolution of the prototype which will enable the landscape gardening company to better
understand their own requirements as the prototype develops. The landscape gardening company can canvass opinion from
customers on what the user interface will look like. The project team can get feedback from the landscape garden company
early during the project.

6. Paving slabs; shed; borders; flowers; trees; shrubs; garden furniture; soil; grass; hedge; wall