HKSM

Ongoing oversight of the schedule to compare actual progress with the approved plan, forecast finish dates, and take actions or raise changes to keep the timeline realistic and achievable.

Purpose & When to Use

• Confirm work is proceeding on time by comparing actuals to the approved schedule baseline.
• Detect slippage early, understand causes, and decide on corrective or preventive actions.
• Forecast key dates and completion, keeping stakeholders informed with reliable schedule information.
• Use throughout the project, especially at reporting cycles, milestones, major deliveries, or when risks or changes affect timing.

Mini Flow (How It’s Done)

• Gather actual progress: starts, finishes, percent complete, remaining duration, and impediments.
• Update the schedule model in the PMIS with the latest actuals and confirmed logic, calendars, and resources.
• Compare to the baseline using variance and trend analysis, critical path review, and metrics such as SV and SPI if using EVM.
• Identify root causes and impacts, focusing on critical and near-critical paths, resource constraints, and external dependencies.
• Forecast new dates by recalculating the network, re-estimating remaining work, and assessing risks to the timeline.
• Select and apply responses: resequence work, adjust resources, fast-track, crash, or implement preventive actions; raise change requests if the baseline must change.
• Communicate updates via schedule reports and dashboards, and update logs, risks, assumptions, and lessons as needed.

Quality & Acceptance Checklist

• Actuals are current, traceable to evidence such as timesheets or system data, and use a consistent data date.
• Critical and near-critical paths are recalculated after each update, with total float reviewed.
• No open-ended activities exist; start and finish constraints and lags are justified and documented.
• Calendars and resource availability are correctly applied to durations and forecasts.
• Progress measurement rules are consistent across activities, including how percent complete is determined.
• Variance thresholds are defined, and actions are triggered when thresholds are exceeded.
• Schedule forecasts and reports match the PMIS output, and stakeholders receive updates appropriate to their needs.
• Baseline changes follow formal change control; no unauthorized rebaselining occurs.

Common Mistakes & Exam Traps

• Rebaselining to hide variance instead of first applying corrective or preventive actions.
• Ignoring near-critical paths that may overtake the critical path after changes.
• Choosing fast-tracking or crashing without analyzing risks, costs, and resource limits.
• Confusing calendar days with working days, leading to incorrect finish forecasts.
• Relying only on percent complete instead of re-estimating remaining duration and recalculating the schedule.
• Applying changes to leads, lags, or constraints without documenting and controlling them.
• Using SPI at project end to judge schedule health when it naturally trends to 1.0; focus on remaining work and path analysis.

PMP Example Question

A project is two weeks behind schedule, but the sponsor wants to keep the original completion date. What should the project manager do first?

1. Submit a change request to rebaseline the schedule to the new forecast.
2. Add resources to all late activities to recover time.
3. Fast-track the entire project by running as many tasks in parallel as possible.
4. Analyze the critical and near-critical paths to identify targeted fast-tracking or crashing options and their risks.

Correct Answer: D — Analyze the critical and near-critical paths to identify targeted fast-tracking or crashing options and their risks.

Explanation: Evaluate schedule drivers before choosing a response. Do not rebaseline or add resources broadly without focused analysis and risk assessment.