Guide to Schedule Control according to the PMBOK Guide Seventh Edition

The concept of Schedule Control, according to the PMBOK Guide Seventh Edition, is a crucial aspect in Project Time Management.

Importance: Schedule Control forms an adaptation plan if the project schedule changes. It helps in keeping the project aligned with its planned schedule, or if necessary, adjusting it. This is important to ensure on-time project completion and to prevent cost overruns.

Concept: Schedule Control involves analyzing the status and progress of a project, and managing changes to the schedule baseline. It requires the use of various tools and techniques including schedule network analysis, critical path method, schedule compression, and performance reviews.

Working: Schedule Control starts with performance measurement, where actual progress is compared with the planned schedule. This results in the identification and quantification of variances, i.e., differences between actual and scheduled performance. The corrective actions are then identified and implemented to adjust the project schedule.

Exam Tips: Questions on Schedule Control often test your ability to evaluate project performance information and use appropriate scheduling tools. You will be expected to understand and analyze variances and to propose corrective actions. It would help to familiarize yourself with tools like schedule network analysis, critical path method, etc. Also, remember the process of schedule control - Measure performance, Identify variance, Determine corrective actions, and Implement the plan.