Project Management Tools and Techniques | by Business Management Consultants

Activity Networks: Network analysis
At one time the terms PERT and CPM were used to describe the activity-on-arrow and activity-on-node diagramming methods, respectively. Today, PERT and CPM are used as methods for analyzing a network diagram and determining the scheduling implications.

PERT (Three-Point Analysis)
(Program Evaluation and Review Technique)

This technique is used to estimate durations when there is uncertainty in the individual activity duration estimates. Durations are calculated as a weighted average of optimistic, pessimistic, and most likely duration estimates. Probability estimates can be developed for durations of individual tasks or for the whole project.

CPM
(Critical Path Method)

This technique is used to predict project duration by analyzing which sequence of parallel activities has the least flexibility (no slack or float). It is the longest addition of durations linked together in the network. It is also defined as the shortest time the project can be completed. This sequence of linked activities is called the critical path.

Slack (also known as float or free float): The amount of time a schedule activity can be delayed without delaying the early start of any immediately following schedule activities, or (total float) without delaying the overall project schedule. You have slack only if tasks are scheduled in parallel.