Planning a Project: Processes, Tools, and Techniques

UPI Study › Courses › Software Engineering › Free lessons › Lesson 13.2 Free with a free account

Planning a Project: Processes, Tools, and Techniques

Software Engineering · Chapter 13: Project Management, Planning, and Agile GovernanceSection 13.2 · lesson 81 of 1036 min · free with a free account

← Identifying and Managing Risk in Software ProjectsNext lesson: Assembling Teams and Assigning Roles →

Earn 3 college credits for Software EngineeringRecommended for credit by NCCRS · Computer Science 301 · self-paced · one payment, lifetime access
Enroll in Software Engineering · $250 →Download the syllabus (PDF)

In this lesson

What are we building, who is building it, and when does each piece happen?

  • Explain the 3 fundamentals planning settles: scope, resources, schedule
  • Describe the general planning process
  • Read a Gantt chart and a PERT chart, and what each shows best
  • Identify the critical path on a simple project network

Transcript

Everything said in the video, section by section (840 words). Read along, or search it.

Project Management, Planning, and Agile Governance

Planning a Project: Processes, Tools, and Techniques

Before a single line of code gets written, someone has to answer three deceptively simple questions. What are we building? Who is building it? And when does each piece happen? This section covers how project planning answers them, and two classic tools for showing a schedule.

The Fundamentals

3 Questions Planning Settles

Project planning settles three interlocking questions before work begins. Scope answers what will actually be built, and just as importantly, what will not. Resources answers who and what will do the work. People, budget, tools, and time. And schedule answers when each piece happens, and in what order. These three interlock. A larger scope demands more resources or a longer schedule. And a fixed schedule limits how much scope realistic resources can deliver. Planning means settling all three together, consistently.

Table 1

The Planning Process

However formal or informal it is, planning generally moves through the same broad stages. Define the scope. Identify the resources actually available. Then sequence and schedule the work, deciding the order of tasks and when each starts and ends. Publish the plan, so everyone is working from the same picture. And revisit it as real progress and new information arrive. That last stage is easy to treat as an afterthought. But a plan that is never revisited stops reflecting reality the moment anything changes.

Gantt Charts

The Schedule on a Calendar

A Gantt chart shows a schedule as horizontal bars, one per task, positioned along a shared timeline. Each bar's position shows when the task starts and ends. Its length shows how long it is expected to take. In this nine-week project, requirements run from week zero to week two, and design from week two to week four. Development runs from week four to week seven, testing from week six to week eight, and deployment finishes in week nine. The real strength is answering what should be happening right now. At week five, only development is underway, and nothing else starts or finishes.

Figure 2

A PERT Network and Its Critical Path

A PERT chart shows a project differently. It is a network of tasks, connected by arrows showing which tasks must finish before others can start. Where a Gantt chart emphasizes the calendar, a PERT chart emphasizes dependency. Here, requirements lead to design, design to development, and development to testing. Content prep also has to finish before development can start, but it runs on a separate branch. The highlighted chain is the critical path.

The Critical Path

The Longest Chain Sets the Pace

The critical path is the longest chain of dependent tasks, from start to finish. It sets the shortest possible time the whole project can take. Here, that is requirements, design, development, and testing. Two plus two plus three plus two, which is nine weeks. Any delay on this path delays the project. Content prep sits off the path. It reaches development in two plus one, or three weeks, compared with four weeks through design. So it has one week of slack to spare.

Table 2

Gantt vs. PERT

Here are the two tools side by side. A Gantt chart is best for showing where each task sits on the calendar. It answers, what is happening this week? A PERT chart is best for showing how tasks depend on each other. It answers, what is actually driving the project's total length?

Think About It

Does Content Prep's Timing Matter?

Think about this. Content prep is not on the critical path. So does it matter when it happens? It does, within limits. It still has to finish before development can proceed, because development depends on it. But it has some slack. It could start a little later, or take a little longer than planned, without pushing back the project's finish. As long as it still finishes before development needs it.

Apply It

Which Slip Delays the Project?

Let's apply that. Which of these slips would delay the nine-week project? If design runs one week long, the finish moves to week ten. Design is on the critical path, so every day it slips, the project slips. If content prep runs one week long, nothing changes. It simply uses up its one week of slack. But if content prep runs two weeks long, it exceeds its slack by a week. Development has to wait, and the finish moves to week ten.

Key Terms

The Vocabulary of This Section

Let's lock in the key terms. Scope is what a project will, and will not, deliver. Resources are the people, budget, tools, and time available to carry it out. A Gantt chart shows a schedule as horizontal bars along a shared timeline, showing when each task starts and ends. A PERT chart shows a schedule as a network of tasks, connected by arrows representing dependencies. And the critical path is the longest chain of dependent tasks, which sets the shortest possible time the whole project can take.

Key Takeaways

What to Carry Forward

To pull this together. Project planning settles three interlocking questions. Scope, resources, and schedule. The process moves from defining scope, through resources and scheduling, to publishing and then revisiting the plan. A Gantt chart shows tasks on a calendar timeline, making it easy to see what should be happening when. A PERT chart shows tasks as a network of dependencies, making the critical path visible. And delays on the critical path delay the whole project, while tasks off it have slack.

About Software Engineering at UPI Study

Software Engineering (Computer Science 301) is a self-paced online course of 103 video lessons in 15 chapters, from process models and agile to requirements, design, user interfaces, reliability, security and project management. It carries a NCCRS credit recommendation for 3 semester credits.

Every lesson transcript is free on pages like this one, and the videos are free with a free UPI Study account. Enrolling adds a practice quiz after each lesson, the graded work and final exam that earn the credit, lifetime access, and an official transcript on completion. UPI Study has helped over 130,000 students with college credits. ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.

Enroll now → Course details Download the syllabus All Computer Science courses Every course with PRO →

Compare: Software Engineering vs Systems Analysis

Why take it here

Why students take Software Engineering with UPI Study

How professional software gets builtSoftware Engineering covers how teams turn requirements into working, maintainable software: process models, agile, requirements, design, testing, reliability and project management. It is a core course in computer science and software degrees.
Credit at a fraction of the priceThe same 3 credits can cost $750 or more at a US college. Here it is one payment, self-paced, with lifetime access.
Finish your degree soonerTransfer credits reduce the courses you still owe, so you can graduate earlier or lighten a heavy semester.
Strengthen an applicationA completed college-level course on an official transcript shows admissions and scholarship committees you can do the work.
Study on your own scheduleNo start dates, no deadlines. Watch the lessons, practice, and take the final when you are ready.
130,000+students helped with college creditsACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.

Where the credit goes

Universities that work with NCCRS

Software Engineering carries a NCCRS credit recommendation. These universities work with NCCRS; some are UPI Study's signed partners. ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.

Thomas Edison State UniversityThomas Edison State UniversitySigned partnerUniversity of the PeopleUniversity of the PeopleSigned partnerCharter Oak State CollegeCharter Oak State CollegeSigned partnerStrayer UniversityStrayer UniversitySigned partnerColumbia Southern UniversityColumbia Southern UniversitySigned partnerIndiana TechIndiana TechSigned partnerPenn StatePenn StateWorks with NCCRSSouthern New Hampshire UniversitySouthern New Hampshire UniversityWorks with NCCRSSUNYSUNYWorks with NCCRS +many more cooperating universitiesFind my college →

Find my college → Not listed? Ask Athena in the corner of this page, or book a 15-minute call.

FAQ

Questions students ask us

About Planning a Project: Processes, Tools, and Techniques

What three things does project planning settle?
Project planning settles scope, resources, and schedule. Scope defines what will and will not be built, resources cover the people, budget, tools, and time available, and the schedule sets when each piece happens and in what order. The three interlock: a larger scope needs more resources or a longer schedule, and a fixed schedule limits how much scope realistic resources can deliver.
What is the difference between a Gantt chart and a PERT chart?
A Gantt chart shows tasks as horizontal bars on a shared calendar timeline, while a PERT chart shows tasks as a network connected by arrows that represent dependencies. A Gantt chart best answers what should be happening this week. A PERT chart best answers what is actually driving the project's total length, because it makes the critical path visible.
What is the critical path in a project schedule?
The critical path is the longest chain of dependent tasks from start to finish, and it sets the shortest possible time the whole project can take. For example, if requirements, design, development, and testing take 2, 2, 3, and 2 weeks in sequence, the project needs at least nine weeks. Any delay on that chain delays the finish date.
What is slack in project scheduling?
Slack is the amount of time a task off the critical path can slip without delaying the project. If content prep reaches development in three weeks while the critical path takes four weeks through design, content prep has one week of slack. Running one week late changes nothing, but running two weeks late exceeds its slack and pushes the finish back a week.

About the Software Engineering course

How many college credits is Software Engineering?
Software Engineering (Computer Science 301) carries a NCCRS credit recommendation for 3 semester credits. ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
How much does Software Engineering cost and what is included?
$250, paid once, with lifetime access: all 103 video lessons, a practice quiz after each, the graded work and final exam, and an official transcript when you finish. Students who want several courses choose UPI Study PRO instead.
Which universities accept UPI Study credits?
UPI Study has signed partner agreements with universities such as Thomas Edison State University, University of the People and Charter Oak State College, and works with universities such as Penn State, SNHU and SUNY. ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities. Use "Find my college" on this page to check yours.
How long does Software Engineering take?
It is self-paced with no deadlines. The 103 lessons total about 11 hours of video; most students add reading and practice time and finish in a few weeks to a few months, on their own schedule.
How are the exams done?
Quizzes and assignments are online in the course. The final exam is taken online with proctoring; a person on the UPI Study team checks assignments, usually within two days.
How do my credits reach my college?
When the course shows 100% complete, request the official transcript from your dashboard. It is sent to the college you name, and you can send it to more than one. Check your college first with "Find my college" on this page, or ask Athena.

Ready for the full course? Earn 3 credits in Software Engineering.

103 video lessons, a quiz after each one, and the graded work that earns the credit. Recommended for credit by NCCRS.

Enroll in Software Engineering →Download the syllabusEvery course with PRO →
Software Engineering
3 credits · NCCRSEnroll →