Planning and Management Tools

C h r i s t o p h e r S a l d a n a , P h . D.W o o d r u f f S c h o o l o f M e c h a n i c a l E n g i n e e r i n gG e o r g i a I n s t i t u t e o f T e c h n o l o g yA t l a n t a , G e o r g i a U S A

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Understand the role of management and planning tools to:• Plan more formally• Organize information• Deal with qualitative information• Show relations between items and issues

Utilize techniques and tools for project managementIdentify critical project tasksCreating project timelinesAssigning responsibilities to work as a team

Learning Objectives

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Techniques and tools for project management• Planning tree diagram (determine tasks)

• Responsibility matrix (assign tasks)

• Gantt chart (schedule tasks, determine critical path, monitor resource load)

• Prioritization matrix (prioritize tasks)

• Interrelationship diagram (determine causal relationship between inter-related items)

• Affinity diagram (determine needs – customer)

• Matrix diagram (quantitative relationship between items)

• PDPC chart (failure modes and contingency)

Project management tools

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• Management goal = CQI

• The 8 MP tools are part of the “plan” segment of CQI.

• Tools encourage the participation and input from more people.

• Tools organize the non-quantitative information from “a chaotic situation [into] an implementable action plan” (p. 7, MJP).

Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI)

Deming Cycle

Charles Deming

Walter Shewhart

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Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI)PDCA cycle

Johannes Vietze, 2013.

Christoph Roser, 2016.

Continuous improvement

Iterative problem solving

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8 Management & Planning Tools

Affinity Diagram (2) Interrelationship Digraph (3) Tree Diagram (4)

Prioritization Matrices (5)

a b c d

Matrix Diagram (6)

123456

a b c d e f g h

Process Decision Program Chart (7)

x x o

Activity Network Diagram (8)

Gantt Chart (1)

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Relationship of 8 MP Tools to QFD

(1)Affinity

Diagram

(3)Tree

DiagramRequirements

Flow

(4)Prioritization

Matrices

(2)Interrelationships

Digraph

(5)PDPC

(Unknown)

(7)Activity

NetworkDiagram(Known)

QFDDevelopment

Matrices

(How)Product

Characteristics

(5)Matrix

DiagramRelationships

How Much

ImportanceTarget Values

Importance Ratings

Interrelationships

Characteristics

Requirements

(What)Customer

Requirements

Com

petit

ive

Asse

ssm

ent

Prio

ritiza

tion

8

Purpose: communicate project scheduling and track project progressFirst: schedule critical tasks and deliverables/milestonesThen: work backward to schedule sequential, parallel, and coupled tasksUpdate: to evaluate progress and feasibility of deadlines/goals

Gantt Charts

Timeline of Required Tasks: Design an Aerial Lift

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Gantt Charts (detail)

Fn RFID project, 2017.

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Purpose:• Creative process (generate

ideas)• Gathers language data

Start with:• What is issue under discussion?

Then:• Brainstorm ideas, gather ideas

under affinity headings

Affinity Diagram

Improved Training

Error Prevention

Problem Solving

Improved Hardware

Optical Scanning System

On-Line System at Customer

Site

Voice Activated System

Automated Entry

Clear Paperwork

Standardize completion Format

Increase Size to Increase Legibility

Train Clerical Sales and Customer Service

Personnel

Shorten 11-Digit Product Code

Color Code Forms by Product Group

Forms Contain Only Non-Standard Customer

information

Friendly Software

Inlet

Menu Driven

Outlet

Display Only Non-Standard Info. On Screen

Improve Prompts

Reducing data entry complexity

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Purpose:• To show causality between items• To identify drivers and bottlenecks• Can be used to fill in roof of HOQ

First:• Place items to be discussed

Then:• Draw arrows between items• From to indicates causality

Arrows• Most out arrows primary: driver• Most in arrows secondary: bottleneck

Interrelationship Digraph

Lack of Knowledge of Job by Subcontractor

Interviewer

Wrong Person Sent

Lack of Good People

Lack of Formal Record of What

Final Job isRepeat Service

Calls Lack of Clear Job Expectations by Subcontractor

Unreasonable Customer

Poor Matching of People

Lack of Trades Experience in Management

Wrong Tools

Lack of Info. on Job

Lack of Knowledge of Matching People to Job

Requirements

Unclear Customer Expectations

Advertising Promises

Issues involved in repeated service calls

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Purpose: Paths and tasks to accomplish primary goal and its related sub-goalsFirst: List main “what” (goal)Then: List “hows” (means), these become goals (“whats”) for next level, continue until you get to assignable tasks

Planning Tree Diagram

Reducing data entry complexity

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Purpose: to prioritize items by:

• Prioritization against themselves

• Prioritization against criteria

Allows you to focus resources on important tasks

Prioritization Matrix A B C D E %A ΣR1/ΣCB ΣR2/ΣCC ΣR3/ΣCD ΣR4/ΣCE ΣR5/ΣC

ΣC1 ΣC2 ΣC3 ΣC4 ΣC5 ΣC

Total(+) = 5; (-) = 0.2

Taste Smell Safe Color Temp %Taste X - + + + ΣR1/ΣC 0.2923 29.23Smell + X + + + ΣR2/ΣC 0.3846 38.46Safe - - X + - ΣR3/ΣC 0.1077 10.77Color - - - X - ΣR4/ΣC 0.0154 1.54Temp - - + + X ΣR5/ΣC 0.2000 20.00

ΣC1 ΣC2 ΣC3 ΣC4 ΣC5 ΣC

5.6 0.8 15.2 20 10.4 52Total 100.0

Coffee example

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Purpose: List tasks and action items, clarifies roles and shows points of contact

First: List tasks and team members

Then: Assign primary, secondary, and need to know to provide manageable load distribution, Update and re-assign as necessary

Job Responsibility Matrix

● = Primary ResponsibilityO = Secondary Responsibility∆ = Needs To Know

Task Team Member 1

Team Member 2

Team Member 3

1

2

3

4

5

6

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Pre-meeting communication• Timely response (email, phone)• Documentation

Have an agenda for meetingDon’t spend too much time on one item

• Table and return• Do more research

Don’t spend too little time on an item• Ask how else can this be done?

Action items: be honest, accountable

Tips for Team Meetings

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1. Teamwork.com

• Paid subscription through Georgia Tech, see ME2110 website for details

• Ability to create tasks, edit a project Gantt chart, assign tasks, etc.

• Accessible by iOS/Android/browser

2. Trello – web-based project management

3. Slack – web-based chat and project collaboration

4. Github – code repository w/version control (paid subscription through GT)

5. e-Collaboration: Dropbox (paid subscription through GT)

6. Other: OneDrive, Google Drive, etc.

Useful tools

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Understand the role of management and planning tools to:• Plan more formally• Organize information• Deal with qualitative information• Show relations between items and issues

Utilize techniques and tools for project managementIdentify critical project tasksCreating project timelinesAssigning responsibilities to work as a team

Learning Objectives