Communication was one of the key elements of CCPM listed early in this chapter. Parts of the internal communication plan were discussed briefly. Communicating (reporting) both internally and externally is presented in this section.

Internal Reporting

The two main aspects of internal reporting are communications among the project team members and information provided to those within the project control functions of the organization. Necessary information is generated from CC Buffer Management. Some aspects of this topic, such as the resource and scheduling buffers, were introduced in the section "Project Control." Excessive consumption of buffers always should be reported.

Review of Project and Feeding Buffers

The most relevant information to provide inside the company is buffer consumption for all active projects. Consumption of a project buffer that does not match completion of CC tasks (the buffer burn rate) is most revealing.31 Because the project buffer serves as an additional protection for feeding buffers, the ratio of consumption compared to completion of noncritical tasks is not terribly important.

Buffer consumption over time, as revealed in "fever" charts showing which region (zone) of a buffer [green (represented as light grey in chapter figures), yellow (dark grey), or red (black)] has been penetrated at a particular status date, displays trends and charts the history of project operations. As demonstrated in Fig. 3-11, the danger zone (black area) requiring immediate action typically is wide at the beginning of a project and narrow as the project is completed to reflect the decreasing size as work is completed. The pattern of zone sizes over the life of a project, however, tends to vary by industry.

Review of Resource Buffers

A resource buffer adds no time to the project plan, but it is a vital part of the CC internal communications plan. It is a calendar event set prior to a Critical Chain task or path initiation so that the PM can inform resources when they should prepare to perform the task. To maintain a tightly planned project schedule, a Critical Chain task must be started as soon as its predecessor is completed. The duration of each resource buffer should be set based on the PM's knowledge of the project resources and their requirements. Some project members will have comparatively inflexible line duties and will require more set-down and set-up time. All resource buffers, therefore, will not necessarily have the same alert time. Resource buffers are established and placed in the project schedule after the Critical Chain is determined and project and feeding buffers are in place.

Review of Scheduling Buffers

Like project and feeding buffers, a scheduling buffer has no task time, but logically is placed between projects to regulate the initiation of projects in a regulated manner. The buffer is used as an internal communications tool to prevent project overload and to limit ineffective multitasking. A SR is designated and scheduling buffers are placed between the SR tasks which staggers the different projects. The buffer size is determined by the PMO (or equivalent) and based on knowledge of the entire project portfolio schedule. If the SR does not have a task in a particular project, the other resources on the project should be examined for potential multitasking and a scheduling buffer inserted before the project is initiated.

Changing Priorities

Periodically, organization priorities will change to admit new projects and to de-emphasize, delay, or cancel projects. Resource managers and PMs need this information so they can establish work schedules.

Since resource managers and PMs typically have access to detailed project information, they may be assigned the task of preparing reports describing the consequences (both expected additional costs and opportunity costs) of changing priorities. Thus, the advantages and disadvantages of a change in priorities can be analyzed prior to a final decision.

External Reporting

External entities in the context of this section will include those that have no immediate and direct oversight of projects and include: 1. The board of directors, the executive committee, or equivalent governing body 2. Other organizations for whom project work has been contracted 3. Regulatory bodies There are three general requirements for project status reports to external entities: 1. Contractual requirements such as the Earned Value Management System (EVS) 2. Non-contractual performance reports to project owners 3. Internal control schedule and scope reports to a project office or similar oversight entity

Project Planning, Deliverables, and Periodic Reporting

In general, the best information to provide in status reports is the buffer burn rate: the percentage of CC tasks that have been completed and the related percentage of consumption of the project buffer. If 25 percent of the Critical Chain has been completed but 40 percent of the buffer consumed, the PM most likely will be required to explain how this trend can be reversed and the project brought back under control.

The Earned Value System

The Earned Value System (EVS) is a set of 32 criteria established for control and reporting in project management. The criteria are organized into five sections with five in Organization, ten in Planning and Budgeting, six in Accounting Considerations, six in Analysis and Management Reports, and five in Revisions and Data Maintenance. Most branches of the U.S. Government (and other governments) require adherence to the criteria for major project contracts.32 The requiring entities have also published volumes on interpretation of the criteria and "guides" for their implementation. If PMs wish to use the power of CCPM, but are also required to adhere to the EVS criteria and guidelines, they may need to reconcile differences in the two concepts by providing a CC view of status and an EVS view (based on traditional scheduling). Because of the complexity involved, detailed treatment of EVS is beyond the scope of this chapter. However, it is important to note that it is possible to use CC with EVS.

Non-Contractual Performance Reports to Project Owners

If the organization is using only certain aspects of earned value, the use of CC concepts should not present a problem. Buffer Management can be used internally and earned value (EV) calculations can be used for external reporting. In a few cases, traditional project plans adhering to EVS criteria have been successfully managed using only the behavioral concepts required for CC (discussed later in the section "Causing the Change").

Internal Control Schedule and Scope Reports to a Project Office or Similar Body

Legal requirements, such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX; Sarbanes and Oxley, 2002), have reinforced the need for more stringent internal reporting on projects that impact an organization's financial reporting system-as do many, if not most, projects. External auditors of companies required to file financial information with the Securities and Exchange Commission now want detailed information on projects that affect the financial reporting process. In our experience, EV, which is largely based on the familiar standard cost system, is being used more frequently to satisfy these requirements. External auditors are familiar with EV; they may require some education to feel comfortable with CC metrics.

The completion of some projects might determine the life or death of the organization. Other projects have a profound influence on the company's future success. If this is the case, stringent internal controls dictated by SOX (Sarbanes and Oxley, 2002) might apply. Even if a project currently is not required to meet the law's financial operations internal control criteria, it might be required to do so in the future. EVS offers an internal control environment that will meet SOX internal control requirements. Of course, provided auditors have been educated in CC concepts, CCPM also supports SOX internal control requirements.

Causing the Change: Behavioral Issues, Management Tactics, and Implementation

To obtain maximum benefit from CCPM, it should be applied to all of an organization's projects. However, as part of an implementation plan, it may be advisable to conduct a pilot project of one or two projects. While CC concepts may be intuitively obvious to many individuals, you should not underestimate the difficulty of smoothly introducing a new planning, scheduling, and control system.

First, top management must actively and continuously support a CC implementation. Top management must make sure that they, and all other managers, have been trained in the need for new behaviors.

Next, most workers have experienced more than one reorganization and usually many "improvement" programs that have not delivered promised outcomes. However, these are the people who must implement a new system; management cannot do it alone. The last topic in this section addresses the issue of change.

Managerial Actions to Support Critical Chain Project Management

The more employees who understand CC concepts, the easier a CC implementation will become. However, all managers should receive CC training and should agree with and support CC concepts. In addition, certain actions are required of top managers, resource managers, and PMs.

Top Management Responsibilities

To set the proper environment for change, top managers (CEOs and Executive VPs) will: Outwardly and continuously support the implementation of CC concepts.

Help enforce the ban on unproductive multitasking.

Reinforce FIFO work rules.

Direct all performance evaluation, positive and negative, to the project team, not to individual project team members.

Resist any temptation to enter additional projects into the system without appropriate planning, impact analysis, and change control procedures.

Show appreciation for a crisis-free work environment. (That is, top management will not single out individual "heroes," who may have solved some crisis, for special recognition.) Give attention to sustainable ongoing improvement of project management for the enterprise.

Use CC schedules and reporting mechanisms to evaluate the implementation of organization strategy and determine required changes.

Resource Manager Responsibilities

Resource managers generally have considerable power in a traditional project management system because they have been able to influence, and perhaps control, project priorities. In a CCPM system, resource managers will: Be fully educated in CC concepts so they can make appropriate priority decisions according to buffer consumption reports from PMs.

Outwardly and continuously support the implementation of CC concepts.

Work closely with a PMO or similar body in establishing project priorities and selecting a SR.

Help enforce the ban on unproductive multitasking.