Schedule Management Plan Template

This Schedule Management Plan template is developed to support a wide range of project types and sizes. It identifies processes for defining work activities, sequencing work activities, estimating activity durations, developing the project schedule, and controlling the project schedule. Generally, it supports development of a subsidiary management plan that becomes part of the Project Management Plan.

More specifically, it:

• begins with a section that captures relevant project information;
• provides for the identification of project roles and responsibilities, as they pertain to project schedule management; and
• includes a section for planning schedule management. For example, it prompts the project manager to define units of measure, project phases, the scheduling approach, scheduling method, the scheduling tool, and the rules of performance measurement.

This template also:

• defines work activities, project milestones, and specifies the process for sequencing work activities;
• identifies schedule constraints and describes how activity durations will be estimated;
• prescribes the level of accuracy for duration estimates and identifies how contingency reserves are calculated;
• identifies the schedule model, its’ location, and the persons responsible for validating the project schedule; and
• includes a section about controlling the schedule. That section houses the schedule baseline, prescribes schedule updates and forecast frequencies, establishes performance reviews, specifies the variance threshold, the work performance information that will be captured, and the procedure for initiating a change request.

Further, it includes:

• sections for documents assumptions, issues, and risks, as they present themselves during the planning process;
• a section for attaching relevant project documents for approval; and
• a section for schedule management plan approval.

Who Creates the Schedule Management Plan?

 Typically, the Project Manager develops the Schedule Management Plan. Of course, effective planning accounts for the input of various project team members, other stakeholders, and the project sponsor.

What Are the Inputs?

There are numerous inputs to the development of a Schedule Management Plan, including the project charter, the project management plan, the development approach, resource availability, and more.

How is the Schedule Management Plan Constructed?

The Schedule Management Plan varies greatly, depending on project needs. For some projects, the Schedule Management Plan is developed in detail and becomes formally approved before the start of project work.

For other projects, this highly detailed and rigid approach to project planning would be disastrous. In these situations, the Schedule Management Plan is often developed more loosely and from a high-level perspective. As the project progresses, the project schedule may become more elaborate.

Make Work Easier

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Consider a Complete Set of Templates