Master Schedule

Definition

A master schedule is the management work product that documents the overall top-level schedule of all important planned dates for the endeavor.

Objectives

The typical objectives of a master schedule are to document the planned:

• Dates for the project phases.
• Dates and essential deliverables for the project milestones.
• Start and finish dates for performing the endeavor activities and major tasks.

Benefits

The typical benefits of a master schedule include:

• Minimizing endeavor risks related to schedules and delivery dates.

Contents

A master schedule typically has the following contents:

• Endeavor Phases
• Endeavor Milestones
• Task Scheduling and Dependencies
  (organized by activity, possibly including Gantt Charts or PERT Charts)
• Appendices:
  • Major Issues
  • TBDs
  • Assumptions

Stakeholders

A master schedule typically has the following stakeholders:

• Producers:
  • Program Management Team or Project Management Team
• Evaluators:
  • Technical Leader
  • Customer Representative
• Approvers:
  • Project Manager
  • Technical Leader
  • Customer Representative
• Maintainers:
  • Project Management Team
• Users:
  • Program Management Team or Project Management Team
  • Customer Organization, Subcontractor Organization, or Vendor Organization

Phases

A master schedule is typically produced and maintained during the following phases:

• Business Strategy: Completed
• Business Optimization: Maintained
• Initiation: Completed
• Construction: Completed
• Delivery: Completed
• Usage: Maintained
• Retirement: Archived

Preconditions

A master schedule can typically be started if the following preconditions hold:

• The contract has been signed.
• The statement of work (SOW) is approved.
• An initial application vision statement is available.
• The program management team or project management team is properly staffed and trained in budgeting.

Inputs

A master schedule typically has the following inputs:

• Work products:
  • Contract
  • Statement of Work (SOW)
  • Component Schedule
  • Team Schedule
  • Application Vision Statement
• Stakeholders:
  • Scheduler
  • Project Manager
  • Technical Leader
  • Customer Representative
  • Subcontractor Representative
  • Vendor Representative

Guidelines

• Because of the massive overlap of activities in an iterative, incremental, and parallel development cycle, Gantt and PERT Charts are not very effective for scheduling activities.
• Component and team schedules should be developed by the individual teams based on team estimates.

Conventions

A master schedule is typically constrained by the following conventions:

• Work Flow
• Content and Format Standard
• MS Word Template
• XML Template
• Inspection Checklist

Examples

• Example Master Schedule