Critical Path

A Critical Path Facelift

The Critical PathAfter having the same look on my website for over 2 years, I think it's time for a facelift.  So, if you come to the site within the next week and notice things looking a little different, don't fret!  In addition to the frontend changes, I plan to move the site over to PowerVPS (Virtacore Systems), who hosts my other sites.  So, grab yourself a fresh cup of coffee (or tea) and continue enjoying my rants and insights. If you think the graphic above looks a little like me drawing a Critical Path, you should go to Pictofigo and check out their other offerings.  Thank you again to Pictofigo for doing such an awesome job!

Regards,

Derek

The Critical Path Turns 1 Year Old

iPhone CalendarWow, where did the time go?  A little over a year ago, I found the need to start blogging.  Little did I know how energized I would become.  Other then learn as much as I can about my craft, I want to share my knowledge and experiences with other project managers or those who wish to become project managers.  Since logging onto Twitter a little over a month ago, I have discovered a whole new world of people to exchange ideas with.  What will happen in the next year? 1.  Launch at least one project management centric iPhone application

2. Author an article pertaining to project management and have it published in a refereed journal (e.g. Project Management Journal or Crosstalk)

3. Publish a Project Management centric book and offer it on Amazon.com

4. Monetize the things I enjoy doing

(Calendar image by Apple)

Finding the critical path

PERT Critical Path Method includes determining the longest path in a network diagram and the earliest and latest an activity can start and the earliest and the latest that activity can be completed.  Here are a few basic things you need to think about.

  • It is the longest duration path through a network diagram and determines the shortest time to complete the project
  • It helps prove how long the project will take
  • It helps the project manager determine where best to focus his or her efforts
  • It provides a method to compress the schedule during the project planning phase and whenever there are changes
  • It provides a method to determine which activities have float and can be delayed without delaying the overall project.

The easiest way to find the critical path is to identify all paths through the network and add the activity durations along each path.  The path with the longest duration is the critical path.