UNIT-III

Review Techniques:
PERT & CPM Methods
 PERT (Program Evaluation Review
Technique)
❑ A PERT chart, sometimes called a PERT diagram, is a project management tool
used to schedule, organize and coordinate tasks within a project. It provides a
graphical representation of a project's timeline that enables project managers to
break down each individual task in the project for analysis.
❑ The PERT chart template uses nodes -- drawn as rectangles or circles -- to represent
events and milestones throughout the project. The nodes are connected by vectors --
drawn as lines -- which represent the various tasks that need to be completed.
❑ PERT charts provide project managers with an estimation of the minimum amount
of time needed to complete a project. Managers can also analyze the work
breakdown and task connections, as well as assess the risk associated with the
project. The breakdown structure makes it easy to organize a complex project with
a variety of moving parts by visualizing the dependencies between each step of the
process.
❑ PERT stands for Program Evaluation Review Technique, a methodology developed
by the U.S. Navy in the 1950s to manage the Polaris submarine missile program. A
similar methodology, the critical path method (CPM) was developed for project
management in the private sector at about the same time.
PERT (Program Evaluation Review
Technique)
PERT (Program Evaluation Review
Technique)
 What is Project Evaluation Review
Technique (PERT)?
❑ In project management, the Project Evaluation Review Technique,
or PERT, is used to identify the time it takes to finish a particular
task or activity. It is a system that helps in the proper scheduling and
coordination of all tasks throughout a project. It also helps in
keeping track of the progress, or lack thereof, of the overall project.
In the 1950s, the Project Evaluation Review Technique was
developed by the US Navy to manage the Polaris submarine missile
program of their Special Projects Office.
❑ Knowing the time it should take to execute a project is crucial, as it
helps project managers decide on other factors such as the budget
and task delegation. No matter how big or small a project is,
estimates can be too optimistic or pessimistic, but using a PERT
chart will help determine realistic estimates.
 Creating a PERT Chart
Creating a PERT Chart:
❑ A flowchart is used to depict the Project Evaluation Review
Technique. Nodes represent the events, indicating the start or end of
activities or tasks. The directorial lines indicate the tasks that need to
be completed, and the arrows show the sequence of the activities.
❑ There are four definitions of time used to estimate project time
requirements:
❑ Optimistic time – The least amount of time it can take to complete a
task
❑ Pessimistic time – The maximum amount of time it should take to
complete a task
❑ Most likely time – Assuming there are no problems, the best or most
reasonable estimate of how long it should take to complete a task.
❑ Expected time – Assuming there are problems, the best estimate of
how much time will be required to complete a task.
 PERT formula
❖ You can use the PERT formula to calculate the expected
duration of a task and completion time using: (O + (4 ×
M) + P) ÷ 6. This can be measured by minutes, hours,
days, or even weeks.
❖ Expected time = ( Optimistic + (4 x Most likely) +
Pessimistic) / 6
❖ For example, if the optimistic time is 30 minutes, the
pessimistic time is 60 minutes, and the most likely time
is 45 minutes, the PERT formula would be: (30min + (4
× 45min) + 60min) ÷ 6 = 45 minutes.
 Terms Used in PERT
Here are several terms used in a PERT chart:
❖ Float/Slack – Refers to the amount of time a task can be delayed without resulting in an
overall delay in completion of other tasks or the project
❖ Critical Path – Indicates the longest possible continuous path from the start to the end of a
task or event
❖ Critical Path Activity – Refers to an activity without any slack
❖ Lead Time – Refers to the amount of time needed to finish a task without affecting subsequent
tasks
❖ Lag Time – The earliest time by which a successor event/task can follow a prior event/task
❖ Fast Tracking – Refers to handling tasks or activities in parallel
❖ Crashing Critical Path – Shortening the amount of time to do a critical task
To implement a PERT chart:
✓ Identify the different tasks needed to complete a project. Make sure to add these in the right
order and indicate the duration of each task.
✓ Create a network diagram. Use arrows to represent the activities and use nodes as milestones.
✓ Determine the critical path and possible slack.
Advantages & Disadvantages of PERT
Advantages of PERT:
Here are several benefits of using PERT in project management:
▪ It helps maximize the use of resources.
▪ It makes project planning more manageable.
▪ It’s useful even if there is little or no previous schedule data.
▪ It enables project managers to better estimate or determine a more definite
completion date.
Disadvantages of PERT:
Like any other method, PERT comes with its share of limitations:
o In complex projects, many find PERT hard to interpret, so they may also
use a Gantt Chart, another popular method for project management.
o It can be tedious to update, modify, and maintain the PERT diagram.
o It entails a subjective time analysis of activities and, for those who are less
experienced or are biased, this may affect the project’s schedule.
 Critical Path Method (CPM)
What is critical path method?
❑ The critical path method (CPM) is a step-by-step project
management technique for process planning that defines critical and non-
critical tasks with the goal of preventing project schedule problems and
process bottlenecks. CPM is ideally suited to projects consisting of
numerous activities that interact in a complex manner.
In applying CPM, the following five steps are often followed:
✓ Define the required tasks and arrange them in an ordered, sequenced list.
✓ Create a flowchart or other critical path diagram showing each task in
relation to the others.
✓ Identify the critical and non-critical relationships or paths among the tasks.
✓ Determine the expected end date or execution or completion time for each
task.
✓ Locate or devise alternatives or backups for the most critical paths.
 Critical Path Method (CPM)

Figure 1. CPM contributes to the planning, execution and management parts of a project
lifecycle.
 Critical Path Method (CPM)
What is the critical path method?
❑ When developing an overall project management plan it is essential to identify
the project scope, which is all the activities and tasks that must be performed. In
addition, those tasks must be assembled in the correct sequence and estimated time
frames to complete provided for each. This helps project managers track the
following:
✓ where the project is at any time;
✓ whether activities are ahead of or behind the critical path schedule;
✓ which steps need additional resources;
✓ which steps need to be rescheduled; and
✓ whether the project is on budget.
❑ The critical path method is the piece of the project management plan that identifies
the steps that must be completed -- the critical path. CPM also provides insight into
ancillary activities that support the outputs and deliverables needed for other critical
path activities and parallel critical paths that are linked to the primary critical path.
These are all important to keeping a project on schedule and budget and reaching its
goals.
 Critical Path Method (CPM)

Figure 2. A CPM plan can track a primary set of activities, as well as ancillary ones that are
required to complete the primary activities.
 Critical Path Method (CPM)
❖ In Figure 2, the critical path is highlighted. It includes the activities
that must be completed for the project to reach its conclusion and is
usually the longest path in the diagram. The diagram also depicts
other elements of project planning: the sequence of tasks and the
ancillary activities that are initiated from other parts of the plan and
the activities they impact. The arrows identify the sequence of
events.
❖ Each activity box could be filled in with specific details related to
each activity, such as a project timeline that includes the earliest
start time and earliest finish time for each task, required resources
and options to launch if the activity is not completed on time.
Depending on the complexity of the project, more information may
be embedded in each activity box.
 Steps in the CPM process
CPM encompasses the following six steps:
1. Identify each activity to be completed in the project; start with the high-level ones
and then identify ancillary activities.
2. Define the activity sequence. This also requires identifying dependencies among
activities, such as which ones occur before or after others and which should occur
concurrently.
3. Build a flow diagram, also called a network diagram, similar to the one in Figure
2, that positions all activities for the entire project.
4. Estimate the amount of time for completion of each activity and map that to the
whole project plan, including the estimated completion date.
5. Perform a critical path analysis to define the activities that must be completed to
ensure project completion and success.
6. Update the plan as the project progresses, accounting for delays, resource
allocation, staffing issues and other factors. For this step, project management
software with CPM capabilities is essential. These tools use a critical path
algorithm that automatically adjusts the plan based on specific inputs, such
as changes in scope or time frame.
 Pros and cons of using CPM
Some of the advantages of using the critical path method include the
following:
▪ identifies the sequence of activities and work breakdown structure;
▪ defines the activity duration for all elements of the plan;
▪ specifies cross-functional relationships among project activities;
▪ identifies dependent tasks for each activity;
▪ cites risks to the project, such as failure to complete a specific activity on time;
▪ identifies ways to shorten time frames;
▪ compares the plan with performance to quickly identify issues;
▪ helps optimize project resources;
▪ identifies opportunities to change time frames, adjust team members and their duties, and modify the
overall plan to achieve the desired outcome.

❑ CPM provides many benefits, but it may not always be the most appropriate method for managing a
project. For example, smaller, less complicated projects may not need the complexity of CPM.
Various project management applications provide simpler tools and templates that might be more
applicable to a less complicated project.
❑ For complex projects, a project management team with CPM experience is essential. That, however,
requires factoring in the overhead and related costs of using CPM.
 What was the origin of CPM?
❖ DuPont developed CPM in the 1950s. The chemical company first
used the methodology in developing neoprene, a type of synthetic
rubber. CPM streamlined production and maintenance in that
development process.
❖ Around the same time, the U.S. Navy developed a similar project
management method -- Program Evaluation Review Technique
(PERT) -- to address the development and production of submarine-
based Polaris missiles. The two methods have similar objectives.
❑ As a project planning tool, CPM has been adapted to other fields,
including hardware and software product research and development.
Various computer programs are available to help project managers
use CPM.
❑ CPM is part of overall project management and business process
management (BPM) practices.
 CPM MODEL
With the help of CPM, we’ll be able to create a model that
enables you to determine the following:
✓ Tasks required to complete the project
✓ Dependencies between tasks
✓ The duration required to complete an activity

❑ Now, before we can get started with CPM or Critical Path

Method, we’ll have to understand two major concepts which are
Events and Activities. To help understand them better, let’s have
a look at the network diagram (which is also the output) of the
process.
 CPM MODEL

This output represents some of the most important parts of the process: Events and
Activities.
 CPM MODEL
Event
▪ Events are represented by a circle and will occur at the start and end of an activity.
Event 1 is the tail event and Event 2 is the head event. In the case of our example,
the events are 1, 2,3,4, 5, and 6. Taking into consideration, nodes 1 and 2, and the
connection between them, 1 will be referred to as the tail event, and 2 will be
referred to as the head event.
▪ Similarly, for 2 and 3, 2 is the tail event, and 3 is the head event.
Activity
▪ Activities represent action and consumption of resources like time, money, and
energy required to complete the project. In the case of our example, A, B, C, D, E,
and F represent the activities taking place between their respective events.
Dummy Activity
▪ A dummy activity represents a relationship between two events. In the case of the
example below us, the dotted line represents a relationship between nodes 4 and 3.
The activity between these nodes will not have any value.
 CPM MODEL

Other rules to consider

▪The network should have a unique starting and ending node. In the case of our example,
event 1 represents a unique starting point and 6 represents the unique completion node
▪No activity can be represented by more than a single arc (the line with an arrow
connecting the events) in the network
▪No two activities can have the same starting and ending node.
The Critical Path Method

❑Now, let’s talk about the

process of the Critical Path
Method with an example.

❑The objective of the

question below is to
determine the critical path,
based on the information
available, like activity,
immediate predecessor, and
duration (which in this
case, we’ll take as months)
❑First, let’s analyze the
activities and their
immediate predecessors.
STEP 1
Activities A, B, and C
don’t have any immediate
predecessors. This means
that each of them will have
individual arcs connecting
to them. First, we’ll draw
nodes 1 (which is the
starting point) and 2. We’ll
add the activity on the arc,
along with the duration.
STEP 2
We’ll have to also keep in
mind that A acts as the
immediate predecessor for
both nodes E and F.
Similarly, let’s draw the
arcs for nodes B and C.
STEP 3
Before we can draw the
nodes for activity D, a quick
look at the table will tell us
that it is preceded by activity
B and that a combination of
activities C and D act as
immediate predecessors for
activities H and J. This
means that both activities C
and D have to connect at
some point. That’s why we’ll
be drawing an arc from
events 3 and 4.
So now, we’ve completed
activities A, B, C, and D of
the critical path method.
Next, let’s take a look at
activity E.
STEP 4
Activity E is preceded by
activity A and acts as the
immediate predecessor for
activity G. Since this is an
independent activity, we’ll
be able to draw an arc like
this.
STEP 5
If we have a look at
activity F, it’s preceded by
activity A, and a
combination of F, G, and H
act as immediate
predecessors for the
activities K and L. So let’s
wait before we take it up.
Instead, let’s shift our
attention to activity G. It’s
preceded by B. So, we’ll
draw it like so.
STEP 6
Now, let’s take a look at
activity H. It is preceded by
both C and D and will act
as the immediate
predecessor for K and L,
along with F and G. So, we
can connect node 4 to 6.
STEP 7
Now that we’ve done that,
let’s go back to activity
F. Now that we know
where activities G and H
connect to, we can
combine nodes 2 and 6,
fulfilling the conditions
required for activities K
and L.
STEP 8
Following this, we have an
activity I. The activity I is
preceded by activities C
and D. It also acts as an
immediate predecessor to
activity M. Since it’s an
independent activity, we
can draw it like so.
STEP 9
Next, let’s take a look at
activity J. Activity J is
preceded by activity E. We
can also see that a
combination of J and K
will act as an immediate
predecessor for activity N.
We can then draw an arc
like this.
STEP 10
Let’s go on to activity K.
Here we can see that K is
preceded by F, G, and H. It
also acts as an immediate
predecessor to activity N.
So, we’ll connect nodes 6
to 8.
STEP 11
Next, let’s continue with
activity L. The table now
shows that L, M, and N
don’t act as immediate
predecessors for any other
activity. Hence it can be
assumed that it’ll connect
to the final node.
L is preceded by activities
by F, G, and H. The arc can
be drawn like so.
STEP 12
We’ll now go to activity M.
This activity is preceded by
activity I. Similarly, we can
connect an arc from node 8
to 9 for activity N.
Now, the network is
complete!
Now, to find the critical
path. For this, we’ll need to
find two values, Earliest
Start Time (Es) and Latest
Completion Time (Lc).
STEP 13
The process of determining the Es
for all events is called a forward
pass.
The process of determining the Lc
for all events is called a backward
pass.
Let’s get into the forward pass.
For this, first, we’ll need to create
boxes at all nodes. These are then
divided into two. The lower half
of the box represents the earliest
start time of the node, while the
upper half represents the latest
completion time.
Your network diagram should
look something like this.
STEP 14
For this, we’ll be using the
formula, Esj = max (Esi + Dij)
Which when simplified, the
earliest start time for the
second node (head node), is
the maximum of the
combination of the earliest
start time of the tail node and
the duration between the two
nodes.
So, for node 1, the earliest
start time is always zero.
For node 2,
it would be, Es2 = 0 (earliest
start time for node 1) + 3
(duration between 1 and 2) = 3
STEP 15
For node 3,
it would be, Es3 = 0(Es1) +
4(D1 to 3) = 4
STEP 16
For node 4, we can see that
two arcs connect to it. This
means that we’ll need to
choose among the largest
of the two options available
to us.
Es4 = 0(Es0) + 6 = 6 or
Es4 = 4(Es3) + 3 = 7
We’ll choose 7 since it’s
larger.
STEP 17
Similarly, we have three
options to choose from
when it comes to node 6.
Since three arcs connect to
it.
Es6 = 3(Es2) + 1(D2-3) = 4
Es6 = 4(Es3) + 4(D3-6) = 8
Es6 = 7(Es4) + 5(D4-6) =
12
Hence we’ll select the last
option since it’s the largest
among the three.
STEP 18
Now, for node 5. Since it’s
directly connected to node
2, we can directly apply the
formula.
Es5 = 3(Es2) + 9(D2-5) =
12
STEP 19
Let’s take node 8.
Es8 = 12(Es5) + 3(D5-8) =
15 or
Es8 = 12 (Es6) + 6(D6-8) =
18
We’ll choose Es8 as 18
since it’s the larger of the
two.
STEP 20
Now for node 7. We can
directly apply the formula
to these nodes.
Es7 = 7(Es4) + 4(D4-7) =
11
STEP 21
Finally, we’ve got node 9.
It has 3 nodes connecting
towards it. We’ll have to
choose the maximum of the
three.
Es9 = 18(Es8) + 9(D8-9) =
27
Es9 = 12(Es6) + 3(D6-9) =
15
Es9 = 11(Es7) + 6(D7-9) =
17
We’ll choose the arc from
node 8 since it’s got the
highest value.
STEP 22
And like that, the forward pass is
complete. Now, for the second part
of the critical path method. Let’s
take up the backward pass. For that’
we will be using the following
formula.
Lci = min(Lcj - Dij)
This, when put simply, means the
latest completion time of the tail
node is equal to the latest
completion time of the head node
minus the distance between the two.
Let’s start from the final node,
number 9.
The Lc for this node will always be
equal to its Es.
So, Lc9 = 27.
STEP 23
Next, let’s have a look at
the latest completion time
for the 8th node. Since it’s
directly connected only to
the 9th node, we can
directly apply the formula
mentioned earlier.
Lc8 = 27(Lc9) - 9(D9-8) =
18
STEP 24
Now, let’s have a look at
the latest completion time
for node 7. Since there’s a
direct connection between
nodes 9 and 7.
Lc7 = 27(Lc9) - 6(D9-7) =
21
STEP 25
Let’s move on to node 6.
As we can see in the
diagram, there are two
points extending to nodes 8
and 9 from node 6. So we
have two options to choose
from.
Lc6 = 18(Ls8) - 6(D6-8) =
12 or
Lc6 = 27(Ls9) - 3(D6-9) =
24
We’ll choose the Lc of
node 6 as 12.
STEP 26
We’ll now go to node 5.
Since it’s directly
connected to the 8th node,
we can directly apply the
equation.
Lc5 = 18(Lc8) - 3(D5-8) =
15
STEP 27
Next up, let’s find the latest
completion time for node
4.
Since there are two
connections extending
from the node, to nodes 6
and 7 respectively, we’ll
need to select the minimum
between the two.
Lc4 = 21(Lc7) - 4(D4-7) =
17
Lc4 = 12(Lc6) - 5(D4-6) =
7
We’ll choose 7 as the latest
completion time for node
4.
STEP 28
Now for node 3.
Since there are two nodes
connecting from node 3 to
nodes 4 and 6. So, we’ll
need to choose between the
2.
Lc3 = 12(Lc6) - 4(D3-6) =
8 or
Lc3 = 7(Lc4) - 3(D3-4) =
4
We’ll choose 4 as the latest
completion time for node
3.
STEP 29
Let’s now go to node 2.
Again, since there are two
connections made from 2
to node 5 and 6, we’ll need
to choose the minimum
among the two.
Lc2 = 15(Lc5) - 9(D2-5) =
6
Lc2 = 12(Lc6) - 1(D2-6) =
11
We’ll choose the latest
completion time of 2, as 6.
STEP 30
And finally, we have node
1.
Since there are connections
to 2, 3, and 4 from 1, we’ll
need to choose from the
three.
Lc1 = 6(Lc2) - 3(D1-2) = 3
Lc1 = 4(Lc3) - 4(D1-3) = 0
Lc1 = 7(Lc4) - 6(D1-4) = 1
We’ll choose 0 as the latest
completion time for the
node.
STEP 31
And there we go! The backward
pass is complete.
Now, for the final step of the critical
path method. To determine the
critical path, there are three major
criteria that need to be satisfied.
Esi = Lci
Esj = Lcj
Esj - Esi = Lcj - Lci = Dij
From the diagram, we can see that
nodes that satisfy the requirements
are: 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 9.
Hence the activities on the critical
path are B - D - H - K - N.

Hence the critical path is B + D +

H+K+N=4+3+5+6+9=
27.
And there we go! We’ve found the
critical path!
 THANK YOU

STUDY WELL
AND
REVISE

GOD BLESS YOU