Project Management and Schedule Alignment
Below is a typical schedule one might see to deliver a small project. It can be easily represented in a spreadsheet or presentaion tool.
If we start to look at this as a multidimensional activity, the schedule above is only a 2-dimensional view. Note the loss of perspective with a multi-dimensional view. Given projects are multidimensional – it is no wonder they are so difficult to manage. Seeing things from this angle – the issues become obvious. How do we integrate everything in to one perspective?
So what are these other dimensions. They are basically the domains spelled out in the PMBOK – Scope, Risk, Resources, Budget, Procurement etc. As these dimensions are not included in the schedule above properly, then they cannot be reconciled and aligned properly. The result: misalignment of Project domains.
It is assume that to deliver a project, all domains must be managed together.
In this diagram, it is apparent that the budget and resources will run out before deployment and should be addressed. It also appears that the risk has been understated, and perhaps not kept up-to-date. So, without immediate attention, this project is a "watermelon" - green on the outside and red in the middle.
The Atomic Schedule integrates, aligns and reconciles the missing dimensions into the Project Management field of vision in a deliberate and focussed manner – ensuring they can be easily aligned and reconciled. It improves the likelihood of project delivery success while reducing management overhead.
Attempts have been made to do this, but the schedules have become too big and complicated to manage. So the key, is how. Traditional methods become too difficult once a schedule starts to exceed 100 lines. Fortunately, an Atomic Schedule will enable Projects to manage larger schedules more easily.
The technique is a quantum leap beyond Project Management and scheduling techniques commonly in use today.