Fractal structuration of project universe

Hi, Jean-Yves.

I really like the term "fractal structure". However, I have one slight caveat: while I agree that the basic macro model at the program level repeats at the project and activity level, not all the activities are similar. There is a crucial distinction between activities that are ON the critical path (and have drag) and those that are OFF it (and have float).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_path_drag

This is not just a quantitative distinction, but a qualitative one: an activity with one day of float is MUCH more like an activity with 200 days of float than it is like an activity with one day of drag. And the implications of that distinction for project value and resource assignments can be profound.

I don't think this negates the value of your fractal model, though.

Fraternally in project management,

Steve the Bajan

Hi Stephen,

Thanks for your answer.

My thought was to say that when you structure a program, a project or a projet portfolio, you always ask the same questions: what, how, where, who, why, for what, how much and when. Whatever the level, it is the same, as fractals.

Best regards,

Hi, Jean-Yves. I completely agree with the value of that approach. I don't know if this will help (or if PP will even show it!) but here is a slide I used about five years ago as the outline of a short course I was teaching:

And here is a flow chart that this approach triggers:

Fraternally in project management,

Steve the Bajan

P.S. Oh, well, doesn't look as though PP will let me do this. But under any circumstances, let me say that I think a Why? What? How? Where? Who? When? How much? approach is  a very useful model for planning.

Steve

Oy! James, thank you so much!

So is there something simple I can do to get diagrams to appear? I think a lot of people here would love to have some of the problems I teach in my graduate classes on critical path drag and drag cost, but they really need diagrams.

Fraternally in project management,

Steve the Bajan

3D WBS process of project structuration :

1) Why?

2) What?

3) How?

4) Where?

5) Who? 

6) When?

7) How much?

8) For what?

;-) 

http://3d-wbs.blogspot.fr/

http://3d-wbs.blogspot.fr/2014/06/part-124-3d-wbs-process-of-projects.html

;-)

Hi Steve,

When you added your images did you use the 'image upload' button... 

...as this works for me.  

I think this should (famous last words... as you prove me wrong.. ha ha) this should allow us to include images in our posts?

Let me know my friend.

James

James , you're wonderful!  Thank you so much. I just posted one of the quizzes I give my graduate students on network schedule calculations including critical path drag, drag cost and true cost -- two PNG files and it seems to have worked like a breeze.

Care to lead off in posting your answers to the quiz? :-)

Thanks again, James.

Fraternally in project management,

Steve the Bajan