Planning Based on Task Duration Only Is a Delusion

When I start working with new clients I often see project plans with activities, connections, and only tasks' duration. This is not a project plan, this is a delusion.

These plans miss the most important component which is the primary skill of the resource needed and the number of effort (hours). If you use only duration you can hide your safety to absorb uncertainty. This does not make your plan a good instrument for your organisation. It is not transparent at all.

What to do?

1. Add the effort in an ambitious case plus the needed primary skill to all activities. Do not overestimate.

2. Create a budget task to overcome uncertainty. You can also call it a risk task.

3. Add a time buffer (float) and make this visible.

4. The consumption of the last two is a good measurement.

5. Change the duration only when it has value, e.g., when you have drying times during an activity and the resources can’t continue.

By following these simple steps, you can calculate the expected load on resources of your total portfolio. You can monitor the budget task and time buffer of an individual project. And what’s even more important, you can analyze and understand if the resource groups are able to meet their demand coming from all projects.