Does anyone here regularly use Critical Path planning for projects?

[CTyankee]

I learned what it is in college a millineum ago but just remembered it when I was trying to figure out how to get a project done and out the door and it involved my daughter's assistance. My neighbor, a retired architect, helped me think it through, as did our friend who is a retired plumber.

It's amazing how many things can get done if you employ this process...

[Mopar151]

1. Why is this not taught in high school?

All part of the "learning how to think" skill set, that gets lost in "teaching to the test".

[CTyankee]

2. I think I learned this in high school math (algebra?) class but I don't remember clearly.

my plumber friend told me how it was used for plumbing projects. Duh. he knew it from the courses he had to take to get certification.

[Stallion]

14. Its Used in Construction Projects

where a general contractor may have to balance hundreds of contracts and subcontracts and needs to ensure that each separate contract is performed at right time and correct order for timely completion of the project--even in the event of critical delays. It comes up in lawsuits a lot when calculating late charges in construction lawsuits and determining whether there has been a breach of contract for failure to timely perform or which party is financially responsible for a given delay

[dsc]

10. I teach it in discrete math

[Turbineguy]

3. I had that in my first year college NROTC

They called it Naval Operations. A bunch of topics on scientific management.

I use Critical Path all the time.

[CTyankee]

4. I'll bet.

My project is simpler but I was getting a little crazy because of lack of progress where the linchpin of the whole project is one person, my daughter. Her expertise is what I need to go forward.

[WhiteTara]

5. I didn't know it had an official name

I always call it working in sequence by working backwards. I'm using that method in my deconstructing our home, getting it ready to sell and downsize our life.

[CTyankee]

6. Exactly. That is what I did. I started with my end goal.

then I asked what do I have to do to get to it. My project hinges on one person who can start the process. After that, the process itself is in the hands of the entity producing what I want. In this case the printer of my book and delivery of 100 of them to my home.

[WhiteTara]

7. I'm excited for you. A solid book in your hands.

Quite the accomplishment. Happy New Year!

[CTyankee]

12. It's not done yet! But keep your fingers crossed.

[LastDemocratInSC]

8. I use it regularly in my work (software development)

But it useful in any endeavor.

[Captain Stern]

9. Maybe. But, it might take a while to find out for sure. n/t

[MineralMan]

11. I use it all the time.

Anytime I have a complex task, I think it through thoroughly, step-by-step, before beginning the job. Often, that lets me reorganize the project in a better way beforehand.

I remember the first time I had to prepare a complete traditional Christmas dinner for 12 people by myself. I even wrote down the steps in chronological order with time notes. I followed the plan and everything got served precisely on time and at the right temperature. Because of the planning, I even had time planned to sit down with the company several times for a while.

That was the first time I ever did a mise en place for a cooking project. I did that the day before, so on Christmas day, it was much easier, because i had done all the prep in advance. I learned a lot from that meal.

My mother-in-law, who normally prepared Christmas dinner, said, "You made that look really easy." It wasn't, but I just smiled and said, "Thanks."

I've done the same for almost all major projects that require a lot of time and many steps. I hate getting out of sequence and wasting time because of it.

[CTyankee]

13. What I had to face up to was that I needed a certain other person to get it done.

My plumber friend knew all about it. Literally nuts and bolts.

[mia]

15. I thought of my last Thanksgiving dinner when I read the OP, but your post sums it up.

I think we all do it intuitively for smaller projects, but the same logic applies.



http://epicentergroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/2009-10.pdf

[MineralMan]

21. Three decades ago, I was working as a freelance writer,

working for woodworking and home-related magazines. A lot of the time, I was designing woodworking projects, like furniture or even small buildings, for those articles. As part of the process, I had to create detailed drawings for each project, and had to build the project and take step-by-step photos during the construction process. Most often, I would propose a project to a particular magazine long before I actually created the thing at all. I got assignments from the magazines, based just on my description of what I had in mind.

Once I had an assignment, I always spent a couple of days in planning. I'd make sketches for myself, establish overall dimensions, and think carefully through all of the steps needed, including planning for the in-progress photos. Since I worked by myself, I had to use a self-timer on the camera and set up for each photo so I could be exactly in position for the best shot. What I didn't do, though, was create a detailed drawing before the actual construction. Instead, I created a materials list and a written schedule for the process I'd use, including the photography. Once the project was completed, I did the drawings for the publication and then wrote the step-by-step instructions the reader would follow to duplicate the project. The process of building was done before that, and there were often minor changes in my original plan concept as I went. It was fascinating work. It didn't pay very well, though, so I switched to writing about computers in the early 1980s.

[Mopar151]

16. Sometimes uses a Gantt Chart

Example using Excel @ link:[link:https://support.office.com/en-us/article/present-your-data-in-a-gantt-chart-in-excel-f8910ab4-ceda-4521-8207-f0fb34d9e2b6|]

Dependencies and interferences, theory of constraints - I was a manufacturing guy, focused on machining, that was my neighborhood! One day, while fetching a pail 'o lunch at the ornate Chinese, my $$ went from my hand to the snowplow man's wife, and the Main Man said "Buisiness like kitchen! Have 7 woks, 4 cover! Hard to cover all at one time!" (Yeah, they knew me there... )

[bluecollar2]

17. As a structures repair mechanic in the aviation industry

I used the technique extensively when I could.

Repairing a damaged fuselage or wing is a complicated process. You have to evaluate the sequence of the repair process before you start or the job can get very difficult.

My father taught me a phrase which I fell back on whenever i was asked why i hadn't started the repair yet...

I'd reply, "Time spent in reconnaissance is seldom wasted."

If that didn't click I'd say it's cheaper to do it once than twice.

[CTyankee]

18. Yup. And lives depend on it...

[Drahthaardogs]

19. All Project Managers use the foward and backward pass

To establish the Critical Path (has no float). Its part of the PMI curriculum just like earned value.

[NutmegYankee]

20. Shipyards use it.

The problem is repair work can be like opening a can of worms, and then you get new critical paths.