6.2 Define Activities

"The process of identifying and documenting the specific actions to be performed to produce the project deliverables."

The definition shown above in italics is taken from the Glossary of the Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Fifth Edition, Project Management Institute Inc., 2013

Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Fifth Edition, Project Management Institute Inc., 2013 Figure 6 - 5 Page 149

Decompose work package deliverables into tasks/activities

An Activity:

  • Is an element of project work that requires an action to produce a deliverable.
  • Has an expected duration.
  • Consumes budget and/or human resources.
  • Is named in verb-noun format “Design cover”.

Activity List

"Documented tabulation of schedule activities that show the activity description, activity identifier and a sufficiently detailed scope of work description so project team members understand what work is to be performed"

Must:

  • Include all activities to be performed on the project
  • Not include any activities that are outside the project scope

Work packages are focused on deliverables

Activities are focused on work and used for scheduling

The definition shown above in italics is taken from the Glossary of the Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Fifth Edition, Project Management Institute Inc., 2013

Activity List, Attributes, Milestones

OUTPUTS:

  • Activity List with Attributes
    • Activity identifier, description, predecessor and successor activities, logical relationships, leads and lags, resource requirements, work owner, and constraints and assumptions
  • Milestone List Identifies schedule milestones
    • mandatory (required by contract) or
    • optional (based on historical information)
  • Used for schedule development.

The definition shown above in italics is taken from the Glossary of the Project Management Institute, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, (PMBOK® Guide) – Fifth Edition, Project Management Institute Inc., 2013

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