1. An activity network is a diagram that shows the sequence in which tasks will

Question

1. An activity network is a diagram that shows the sequence in which tasks will take place and their interdependencies. Quite literally it is the key tool that helps you to understand what you have to do to deliver the project. One of the problems of an activity network is that it uses only one estimate of duration per task, and if any of these duration estimates are wrong the whole project could be affected, especially if the error is on the critical path. One way around this is to have two or three estimates of duration: a pessimistic estimate, and optimistic estimate and an expected estimate. This information can then be used to calculate both the expected duration of a project (and its critical path) and also the fastest/slowest timelines. Critical path identification and analysis follows the construction of a network diagram and is that sequence of activities which takes the longest to deliver a project. If activities on a critical path are delayed it will delay the entire project. Hence the relationship is that an activity network is required to conduct the critical path analysis.

2. The Gantt Chart is also known as a bar chart. This shows the start and finish of a task using a bar chart. Before the advent of project management software, spreadsheet software was used by using dates as column titles and extending lines to indicate the duration. A Gantt Chart is useful for a quick glance of the project. The Critical Path is the longest path within the project. Any delay of tasks along this path will delay the project and miss the deadline. The disadvantage of the Gantt chart is that it does not show the dependency of tasks to each other and it does not show which tasks are ‘critical’ to finishing the project on time. This is where the Critical Path Method (CPM) comes in. The Critical Path Method is a method used to calculate the critical path of a project. A critical path is a sequence of tasks that must be finished before the project can be finished and in some cases a task must be finished before the next dependent one can start, so if a task cannot be finished on time, then the whole project will take longer to the same extent

Explanation / Answer

Activity Network, Critical Path, & Gantt: Add a section heading. 1. Write a paragraph describing the the relationships between an activity network and a critical path analysis (see pages 649-657). 2. Write a paragraph describing the the relationships between a critical path analysis and a Gantt chart (see pages 651-659).

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