(SEM V) THEORY EXAMINATION 2019-20 SOFTWARE PROJECT MANAGEMENT

SOFTWARE PROJECT MANAGEMENT (RIT-051)

B.Tech (SEM-V) – AKTU

SECTION A

(Attempt all questions in brief – 2 × 7 = 14 marks)

Q1 (a) List the qualities required for a project manager.

A project manager should have leadership skills, good communication ability, technical knowledge, decision-making capability, risk-handling skills, planning ability, and team-management skills. These qualities help in successful project execution.

Q1 (b) Define CMM.

CMM (Capability Maturity Model) is a framework developed by SEI to assess and improve the maturity of software development processes in an organization. It defines five maturity levels to measure process capability.

Q1 (c) Differentiate between CPI and SPI.

CPI (Cost Performance Index) measures cost efficiency of a project by comparing earned value with actual cost.
SPI (Schedule Performance Index) measures schedule efficiency by comparing earned value with planned value.

Q1 (d) Discuss MS Project.

MS Project is a project management software tool used for planning, scheduling, resource allocation, tracking progress, and controlling project activities. It helps project managers visualize timelines and manage tasks effectively.

Q1 (e) Define Activity-on-Arrow (AOA). State its use.

Activity-on-Arrow is a network representation technique where activities are shown by arrows and events by nodes. It is used in CPM and PERT to represent project schedules and dependencies.

Q1 (f) What is Earned Value Analysis?

Earned Value Analysis is a project performance measurement technique that integrates scope, schedule, and cost to assess project progress and performance.

Q1 (g) State the purpose of Statement of Work (SOW).

Statement of Work defines project objectives, scope, deliverables, timelines, and responsibilities. It acts as a legal and contractual document between client and developer.

SECTION B

(Attempt any three – 7 × 3 = 21 marks)

Q2 (a) How do we measure productivity? How does team structure affect productivity?

Productivity is measured as output produced per unit of effort, usually expressed as lines of code or function points per person-month.
Team structure affects productivity by influencing communication, coordination, and responsibility sharing. Well-defined roles and balanced team size improve productivity.

Q2 (b) Is the critical path important if only one person is working on a software project? Explain PERT/CPM concept.

Yes, the critical path is important even for a single person project because it identifies activities that directly affect completion time.
PERT and CPM help define optimal schedules by identifying critical activities, dependencies, and project duration.

Q2 (d) Discuss Software Project Management. What is the need for SPM? Explain structure of SPM Plan.

Software Project Management involves planning, organizing, directing, and controlling software projects.
SPM is needed to handle complexity, control cost, meet deadlines, and ensure quality.

A Software Project Management Plan includes:

Project scope

Schedule and milestones

Resource allocation

Risk management

Quality assurance

Cost estimation

Q2 (e) Explain with example how Gantt chart is useful for project manager.

A Gantt chart shows project activities against time. It helps project managers plan tasks, track progress, identify delays, and manage dependencies. For example, software design, coding, and testing can be easily monitored using a Gantt chart.

SECTION C

Q3 (a) Differentiate Project Life Cycle and Product Life Cycle with example.

(7 marks)

Project Life Cycle includes phases such as initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closure. It focuses on project management activities.
Product Life Cycle includes stages such as introduction, growth, maturity, and decline of a product in the market.

For example, development of a mobile app follows a project life cycle, while the app’s market performance follows a product life cycle.

Q4 (a) Explain Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) in context of software project. How is it useful?

(7 marks)

WBS is a hierarchical decomposition of a software project into smaller, manageable components such as modules, tasks, and sub-tasks.
It helps in accurate estimation, scheduling, assigning responsibilities, and tracking progress, making it very useful for project managers.

Q5 (a) Discuss software quality factors and attributes.

(7 marks)

Software quality factors include reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability, portability, and security.
Quality attributes define how well software performs its intended functions and satisfies user requirements.

Q6 (a) What is Critical Path Method? Explain advantages, disadvantages and identification of critical path.

(7 marks)

Critical Path Method is a project scheduling technique used to determine the longest path of dependent activities.
Advantages include better scheduling and resource optimization.
Disadvantages include complexity for large projects.
Critical path is identified by calculating earliest and latest start times of activities.

Q7 (a) Discuss important points for identifying risk during software development. Also state categories of risk.

(7 marks)

Risk identification involves analyzing project scope, technology, resources, schedule, and cost.
Common risk categories include technical risk, schedule risk, cost risk, people risk, and organizational risk. Proper risk identification helps in timely mitigation.