Crashing a project is usually a last resort, and it comes
with significant risks. Before you go down this path with your project, there
are a few things to think about. Are the tasks you want to crash in the
critical path, for example? These tasks will have an impact on the timeliness
of your project's completion. You can probably ignore tasks that aren't on the
critical path.
Another factor to consider is the task duration. It will be difficult to speed up a short task, especially if it does not repeat itself throughout the project. Long tasks will almost always have some fat to trim. However, regardless of the task, you must have resources on hand. It makes no sense for a project to crash if you don't have access to the necessary resources. Having to acquire new materials or team members is likely to be prohibitively expensive.
Once you've decided to use project crashing, there are a few
things you should do to get the results you want.
1.
Critical Path
The first step is
to examine your project's critical path. This will assist you in determining
which tasks can be shortened in order to complete the project sooner. Calculate
your critical path, and see which tasks are critical and which are secondary to
the project's success, if you haven't already.
2.
Identify Tasks
Make a list of all
the tasks you have and meet with the people who will be responsible for
completing them. Inquire if they believe any of the tasks for which they are
responsible are on the critical path and could be shortened. Then start looking
for ways to make those tasks more efficient.
3.
What’s The Trade-Off?
Start calculating
how much adding more resources will cost once you've narrowed down the tasks in
the critical path that you believe can be shortened. Find the tasks that can be
given more resources and come in earlier with the least amount of financial
strain.
4.
Make Your Choice
When you know how
much money you'll have to spend (in comparison to how much time you'll save) on
each task in your critical path, you can choose the least expensive option.
Project crashing isn't just about adding resources to get things done faster;
it's also about getting the most bang for your buck.
5.
Create a Budget
You must pay for
your plan, just like any other project, once you've decided on it. The next
step in carrying out your project crashing plan is to create a project crashing
budget. To align with your new initiative, you'll need to update your baseline,
schedule, and resource plan.
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