As a manager of a construction company, you have to deal with a lot of moving parts every day.
The difference between a good manager and a bad one often comes down to the tools they utilize.
You should always use project management methods and tools to your advantage. Every project is different, but when you can schedule tasks consistently, you increase your chances of success.
Critical Path Scheduling is one of the most valuable project management tools to consider and we’ve discussed how it works.
Why the Critical Path Method is Important for Project Management
A project manager needs to have their finger on the pulse of any construction project. Timely completion of projects is essential to boost your bottom line and create customer satisfaction.
The Critical Path Method (CPM) identifies tasks, develops a timeline, incorporates flexibilities, and assumes obstacles.
Construction projects are complex, but they can become more simplistic when broken down into individual tasks. That’s exactly what the CPM does and here’s how you can implement it.
Create a High-Level List of Tasks
Start the CPM process by creating a general list of tasks that need to be completed for a project. You can break those tasks down into phases if it’s appropriate to do so.
You will use this list as a basis for the rest of the process. It’s easy to get bogged down in details and lose sight of the big picture, so this step is important to do first.
Understand Which Tasks are Dependent on Others
You can’t assign a timeline unless you identify which tasks are dependent on others. So you might say task A will be completed in 10 days and task B will be completed in 12 days. This doesn’t mean both tasks A and B will be completed in 22 days from today.
If task B can’t get started until task A is complete, then flexibility needs to be built in. Delays are inevitable, and a good project manager will anticipate them.
Doing so will help get a better idea of the critical path scheduling.
Design a Flowchart and Estimate Job Durations
When you have tasks listed and dependencies identified, you can create a flowchart with a timeline. This gives you a chronological timeline of events and an accurate representation of the expected duration of the project.
As a project manager, use your experience to determine how long a particular task will take.
When completing this part of CPM, the assumption is there will be no delays outside your control.
Factor in Flexibility when Determining the Critical Path
Flexibility always needs to be a factor in project management. If not, you’ll give incorrect information to clients or provide unrealistic expectations. Some tasks might not have any flexibility, so those need to be noted on your CPM chart also. And some tasks can have flexibility without impacting the overall timeline of the project. You have to think about flexibility in terms of how the big picture is impacted and adjust your timeline accordingly.
Project management jobs are crucial to the success of any construction project. The more experienced a project manager is, the more likely it is to stay on track. Gryphon Consulting has 35 years of experience operating two construction companies.
We know how to utilize the right tools to ensure every project stays on schedule. Critical path scheduling is crucial for project management and every manager should utilize it. Contact us today to learn more about how we implement it and how we can help you use it for your projects.