Job Maps
Friday, September 2nd, 2011
Critical Path Mapping
Critical Path Mapping with Activity Network Diagrams
The activity network diagram is a method of displaying the timelines of all the various subtasks that are involved in any project. By doing this, the total task duration and the earliest and latest start and finish times for each task are also calculated and displayed. In addition to showing which subtasks are critical to on-time task completion, the activity network diagram can help determine where extra effort to speed a subtask will have the greatest payoff to overall speed.
The activity network diagram has had a relatively long history, dating back to the 1930s. In the 1950s, the technique emerged as the Program Evaluation Research Technique (PERT) and as the Critical Path Method (CPM). There are several ways to represent the output of the PERT/CPM process.
The method called the activity-on-arrow or, more simply, the arrow diagram will be reviewed in this article. An arrow diagram treats numbered nodes as instantaneous stop/start points for activities. The activities themselves are considered to take place on the arrows connecting the nodes.
What can it do for you?
An activity network diagram can show you which activities or which series of activities is critical to the timing of a more complex collection of interactive activities. This can be very helpful in deciding where and when to apply extra energy to keep projects on time. Creating an activity network diagram is time-consuming, however, so you should consider these questions before you decide to create one:
1. Is the task a complex one with simultaneous paths that must be coordinated? Creating a diagram for a relatively simple task may be a waste of time.
2. Are the durations of the subtasks known with relative certainty? If the actual timing of events is markedly different from diagram times, it will have little value, and people will dismiss the diagram as a useless exercise.
3. Are the task and the timing of the task completion critical to the organization? The effort involved in creating a diagram should be applied to tasks that have little margin for timing error and have either serious consequences if completion of the overall task is delayed or large rewards if completion can be speeded.
Critical path mapping can be especially valuable in project bounding and in the measure and improve phases of the Lean Six Sigma methodology.
How do you do it?
1. Assemble the right team. The team must have either personal knowledge of the timing of all the subtasks involved or connection to that information. The team should include managers and other employees as close to the actual situation as possible.
2. Identify all of the subtasks necessary to complete the overall task. You might use brainstorming techniques or begin with a list of tasks from a previous project. Record the tasks so that you can rearrange them. A good way to do this is to write each job on the top half of a 3x5 card or Post-It™ note. (The bottom half of the card will be used for timing data later in the process.)
3. Put the activity cards in the sequence in which they must be performed to complete the overall task. To do this, create paths or strings of tasks that follow one after the other. These strings will often describe sequences of activities that occur in parallel with each other. After all the activities are in some string or path of activities, create the overall sequence by connecting the paths. These connections will show where jobs or tasks require input from parallel sequences before the next task can begin. Feel free to add new cards for missing tasks or to remove duplicates.
4. Assign time duration to each task or job. Write it on the bottom half of the card. Since you will be adding these times, keep the numbers consistent. For instance, do not have some cards showing days for completion, some showing hours and some showing minutes. Select the Lowest Common Denominator.
5. Calculate the shortest possible time within which the overall task can be completed by adding the times of each subtask to find the path of the longest cumulative duration. This is the critical path. Knowing the critical path is important because this will tell if the time objectives of the project are attainable. The critical path identifies those jobs or tasks that have no slack. Each must be done on time if the project is to stay on schedule. The critical path also identifies targets for improvement to increase speed. (If tasks on the critical path can be speeded, the overall time to complete the project may be able to be shortened. Remember, however, that if a task on the critical path is speeded up, a different path may become the critical path.)
6. Calculate the earliest starting and finishing times and the latest starting and finishing times for each job or subtask in the project. Begin at the start of the diagram. The earliest start time for each job is the cumulative duration of all the previous jobs on that path. The earliest finish time is the earliest start time plus the duration of that task. Repeat this process for each job on each path until you reach the finish point. Next calculate the latest start and finish times. Begin with the earliest finish time at the end of the diagram.
To calculate the slack time for any job or task, subtract the earliest start time from the latest start time. All of the jobs on the critical path, by definition, will have zero slack time. Remember that slack time is dependent on the time of completion of the previous job or task. If some of the slack time in a path other than the critical path is used in an early task, the slack times for the remaining tasks in that path will each be reduced by that amount.)
Note: A dummy is an extra node symbol used to clarify an activity network diagram if one node has more than one job or task feeding into it from one other node. Since the diagram cannot show two activities coming from one node and going to another, a dummy node is created, with zero as the job duration shown on the arrow connecting them.
7. Review the completed activity network diagram with the people who will be doing the work described by it. Consider any feedback. Expand or modify the diagram as necessary to fit the actual situation.
Now what?
As a tool, the activity network diagram is like a time-map of any time-sensitive project. As you are proceeding down the paths of the project, the map will help keep you on track. If you should falter or wander off the path, the map can be used to help get you back on the critical path. This description of the activity network diagram will help you to manually calculate and construct a process map.
Automated tools, such as SigmaFlow, are also available. SigmaFlow produces other valuable scheduling information, as well. Computer scheduling programs like SigmaFlow are able to easily deal with complex processes, recalculating times whenever you modify the data.
A critical path map can help uncover opportunities for increasing speed. Used in this fashion, critical path mapping is another tool to make the Lean Six Sigma method work smoothly. It is important to remember, however, that these diagrams, whether produced manually or by computer, are not intended to drive you, but to signal you if something is wrong.
About the Author
Steven Bonacorsi is a Senior Master Black Belt instructor and coach. Steven Bonacorsi has trained hundreds of Master Black Belts, Black Belts, Green Belts, and Project Sponsors and Executive Leaders in Lean Six Sigma DMAIC and Design for Lean Six Sigma process improvement methodologies.
Author for the Process Excellence Network (PEX Network / IQPC)
Process Excellence Network
Steven Bonacorsi, President of International Standard for Lean Six Sigma(ISLSS)
Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt
47 Seasons Lane
Londonderry, NH 03053
Phone: +(1) (603) 401-7047
E-mail: [email protected]
Process Excellence Network: http://bit.ly/n4hBwu
I just started a new job and I have this new project to work on?
Okay, I just started a new job and my first task is to map a couple of cities and show where they are at and the distance between the cities. What is the best way to accomplish this? They are going to estimate the price of windows in these certain cities. Please help.
Kindly send your Project and its Target Range with Investment Cost I must provide you more concepts in this regards.
Job Maps
How Use Google Maps To Find Truck Jobs
Competency Mapping
COMPETENCY MAPPING
ABSTRACT
This paper focus on competency marketing. Competency mapping is an process an individual uses to identify and describe competencies that are the most critical to success in a work situation or work role. This paper deals with component of competency, competency model, mapping process and benefits of using competency.
INTRODUCTION
Competency Mapping is processes of identifying key competencies for an organization and/or a job and incorporating those competencies throughout the various processes (i.e. job evaluation, training, recruitment) of the organization. It generally examines two areas: emotional intelligence or emotional quotient (EQ), and strengths of the individual in areas like team structure, leadership, and decision-making. Large organizations frequently employ some form of competency mapping to understand how to most effectively employ the competencies of strengths of workers. . Competency mapping can also be done for contract or freelance workers, or for those seeking employment to emphasize the specific skills which would make them valuable to a potential employer. These kinds of skills can be determined, when one is ready to do the work.
DEFINITION:
According to Boyatzis(1982) “A capacity that exists in a person that leads to behaviour that meets the job demands within parameters of organizational environment, and that, in turn brings about desired results”
COMPONENTS OF COMPETENCY
There are four major components of competency:
1.SKILL: capabilities acquired through practice. It can be a financial skill such as budgeting, or a verbal skill such as making a presentation.
2.KNOWLEDGE: understanding acquired through learning. This refers to a body of information relevant to job performance. It is what people have to know to be able to perform a job, such as knowledge of policies and procedures for a recruitment process.
3.PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES: inherent characteristics which are brought to the job, representing the essential foundation upon which knowledge and skill can be developed.
4.BEHAVIOR: The observable demonstration of some competency, skill, knowledge and personal attributes. It is an essentially definitive expression of a competency in that it is a set of action that, presumably, can be observed, taught, learned, and measured.
COMPETENCY MODEL:
Competency model is a set of competencies that include the key behaviors required for excellent performance in a particular role.
DESIGN DECISION
In term of grand design, competency model should be guided by firm’s strategy which is shaped by four factors: vision & mission, stakeholder requirements, market realities and core capabilities of the firm.
In a more technical design, competency model development should be determined in the process of design decision. In this stage, one should discuss the design of the model with clients, based on their specific needs and expected outcomes of the competency model.
The following are some factors that need to be considered in deciding the design of the competency model.
1.CONTEXT:
Competencies are actually context bound. They answer the question ‘What does a superior performer look like in a specific setting?’ In other words, effective competencies are linked to a particular organizational target or goal. Therefore, depending on the context, the design of models may be geared toward:
- the total organization (e.g., core competencies or values)
- an entire function (e.g., finance, human resources)
- a specific role (e.g., HR generalist)
- a specific job (e.g., compensation analyst)
2.LEVEL OF ORIENTATION:
This factor deals with the level of orientation of the model: will the model reflect future or current job requirements. The degree of future orientation depends on how the organization plans to apply the model and the pace and nature of changes occurring within the organization. If an organization decides that their model will be based on future requirements, they might use future performance needs (i.e., benchmark data; best practices) to create competencies.
3.LEVEL OF COMPLEXITY:
Two other critical factors should be considered in developing competencies the length of models and the degree of complexity and detail described in behavioral indicators. Frequently, competency initiatives fail because models are too long and too detailed or because organizations spend too much time and too many resources researching and editing behaviors. Consequently, organizations fail to provide a simple framework to users in a timely manner. Models that work best follow the 80-20 rule. They provide the 20% of behaviors that drive 80% of excellent performance.
4.THE MODEL SHOULD BE LINKED TO STRATEGY:
Effective competency models support and contribute to the company's and the function's strategy and goals. For instance, if a goal of the company is to transcend functional barriers, the model needs to describe the behaviors that demonstrate that competency. Likewise, if a goal is ensuring that all employees communicate and work together effectively, the model should describe the behaviors that demonstrate that competency.
5.THE MODEL SHOULD BE COMPANY SPECIFIC:
Unlike many job descriptions, competency models are not easily transferable among companies. Competencies needed for a company are determined by the company's unique characteristics, such as culture, strategy, size, and industry. This is true even of the competencies needed for a position common to many companies, such as the job of a financial analyst. The competencies required of a financial analyst at an automobile manufacturer are vastly different from those required of a financial analyst at a health care company, for instance.
6.THE DEVELOPED MODEL SHOULD BE FLEXIBLE:
A good competency model functions as a performance management tool. It provides enough detail to distinguish between employees who are operating at different levels of proficiency. It also helps a company articulate why an employee is at the current level and the competencies needed to advance. In this sense, a competency model is prescriptive, yet it must not be too binding. It needs to be flexible enough to accommodate differing approaches to success, simple enough to be easily understood, and readily adaptable to changing business environments.
7.THE MODEL SHOULD BE FUTURE-ORIENTED:
Competency models with a forward-looking perspective stimulate organizational change. Rather than defining competencies in the context of "tasks," or how a job has traditionally been carried out, useful competencies articulate how the job is evolving and will best be performed in the future. Not only does this approach increase a model's shelf life, it ensures that employees have enough time to understand what the required competencies are and to develop them.
MAPPING PROCESS:
There are about five stages while performing competency mapping. The following are the five stages discussed in detail.
FIRST STAGE:
The first stage of mapping requires understanding the vision and mission of the organization.
SECOND STAGE:
Second stage requires understanding from the superior performers the behavioural as well as the functional aspects required to perform job effectively.
THIRD STAGE:
Third stage involves thorough study of the BEI Reports/ Structured Interview Reports.
- Identification of the competency based on competency frame work.
- Measurement of competency.
- Required levels of competency for each job family.
- Development of dictionary which involves detail description of the competency based on the indicators.
- Care should be taken that the indicators should be measurable and gives objective judgment.
FOURTH STAGE:
a. This stage requires preparation for assessment.
b. Methods of assessment can be either through assessment centers or 360 Degree Feedback
c. If assessment centre is the choice for assessment then tools has to be ready beforehand
i. Tools should objectively measure the entire competency required. ii. Determine the type of the tools for measuring competency
ii. Prepare the schedule for assessment
iv. Training to the assessor should indicate their thorough understanding of the competencies and the tools and also as to how the behavior has to be documented.
FIFTH STAGE:
This stage involves conducting assessment centre. Usually it is a two day program which would involve giving a brief feedback to the participant about the competencies that has been assessed and where they stand to.
SIXTH STAGE:
Sixth stage involves detailed report of the competencies assessed and also the development plan for the developmental areas.
BENEFITS OF USING COMPETENCY MODEL
There are some useful benefits of using competency model for the company, managers, and employees as well.
FOR THE COMPANY
- Reinforce corporate strategy, culture, and vision.
- Establish expectations for performance excellence, resulting in a systematic approach to professional development, improved job satisfaction, and better employee retention.
- Increase the effectiveness of training and professional development programs by linking them to the success criteria (i.e., behavioral standards of excellence).
- Provide a common framework and language for discussing how to implement and communicate key strategies.
- Provide a common understanding of the scope and requirements of a specific role.
- Provide common, organization-wide standards for career levels that enable employees to move across business boundaries.
FOR MANAGERS:
- Identify performance criteria to improve the accuracy and ease of the hiring and selection process.
- Provide more objective performance standards.
- Clarify standards of excellence for easier communication of performance expectations to direct reports.
- Provide a clear foundation for dialogue to occur between the manager and employee about performance, development, and career-related issues.
FOR EMPLOYEES:
About the Author