Project Management At
Dazzling Speed
(“Critical Chain” Project Management)
1
(Almost) A Joke ...
The weakest link in a chain is
in fact the strongest one
since it breaks it !
St. Letz
2
A Few General Issues:
•A great deal of today’s
business activities have
project approach;
•Traditional Darwinism (“The
strong eat the weak”) is
already substituted by
business Darwinism (“The
quick eat the slow”)
3
Main problems in project
management
The main problem is variation – things happen in
a not predictable way (“It is always different!” : ®
Mr. Peter Ivanov, my respected friend). And Mr.
Murphy is a workaholic!
Basic negative factors can be grouped as:
– Multitasking (accumulation of numerous pending tasks
at the same time);
– “Student’s Syndrome” (everything is done at the last
moment and then something goes wrong);
– Mutual dependence between tasks (delays are
accumulated and not work finished in advance).
4
Contradictions in Project
Management
What we want...
...and what we actually do
To finish projects on time
We try to finish separate tasks on
time
To take more projects;
We try to make our people more
efficient
To decrease the time for project
accomplishment;
We try to decrease the time for task
accomplishment;
To keep projects within their budget;
We take risks related to
comparatively small costs;
To make customer happy;
We fight with each other on resource
conflicts;
In this column we have only
In this column we have
global, companylevel factors;
only local
factors!
5
And ... -”So what”?
We must attack the assumption
that people must be measured by
their “being busy” and by their
timely reporting for accomplished
tasks;
To provide protection against the
permanently vigilant and VERY
laborious Mr. Murphy!
6
Miracles are Possible…
… and the only REALLY
DRASTIC improvement may be
done only on Company-wide –
that is, System level!
7
But There Is a Way!
Our salvation lies in application of method known as
Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM). CCPM is an
application of Theory of Constraints (TOC) in the field of
project management ( including design )
This method stresses protection of the whole project by
application of Project Buffer and working with challenging
“net times” for each separate task.
Critical Chain is the longest chain of dependent tasks and
resource usage steps in a project. (You know traditional
concept of Critical Path? Here we go a bit further!).
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The Five Focused Steps in
Constraint Management:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Identify the constraint;
Exploit the constraint;
Subordinate everything else in the System to
Art. 2;
Eliminate the root cause of the constraint;
Go back to Art. 1 – and do not allow inertia to
become the real constraint!
( E. Goldratt )
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How To Manage Project This
Way?
1. Identify the Constraint!
It is the Critical Chain that acts as project
constraint;
It defines its success or failure!
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2. Exploit the Constraint!
“Squeeze” the Critical Chain! Press timely implementation
(“net times!”) of all tasks lying on it!
Resources work without fixed deadline – their orders look
like “Start at …, work with full priority and maximal intensity,
and when you are ready – pass the task to the next
resource!”
Protect the whole project length by Project Buffer;
Main indicator is consumption of the project buffer!
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3. Subordinate everything else in the
System to Art. 2!
1. The non-critical parts of project plan are completely
subordinated to the Critical Chain.
2. These part are known as “Feeding chains”;“Subordination”
means that these chains must be completed before
planned start of next task in the Critical Chain;
3. Resulting protection time “gap” is called Feeding Buffer.
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About Buffers:
Project Buffer protects the whole project from variation along the
Critical Chain;
Project Buffer serves as main indicator for project progress;
Feeding Buffer protect the project from variation along feeding chains;
Buffer length is defined by application of ROT – “Rule of Thumb” often 50% from “net time length of corrresponding chain;
Definition of timing for feeding chains is shown in sequence 1-2-3
below.
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Tough Issues!
We must create attitude in people which
does not allow the “Student Syndrome”!
Apply “relay race method” (“When I get a
task, I will start it immediately, I will do it
in the fastest possible way, I will do
nothing else and I will transfer it
immediately to next link of project chain!”)
No multitasking is allowed!
Make this basic part of Company culture!
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4. Eliminate the root cause of
the Constraint
Double the resources along
the Critical Chain;
Other possibilities include
doubling of feeding chains
and/or their acceleration.
15
Project Buffer As Indicator
0
Project Buffer
Consumption
• The project leader sees a chart like that below; this may
happen in real time;
•Delay in accomplishment of certain task look like “crawling
upwards” of corresponding task point – upwards to the red
area;
•Rule is simple: if points are in green area – do not do anything;
if in yellow area – check what is going on; if in the red area –
(only then!) take action!
0
25
50
75
Critical Chain Accomplishment (%)
100
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Managing of More Projects
Here we manage CRITICAL (Strategic)
RESOURCE – a Company-level resource
which defines whether things will be done on
time ;
Here we buffer this resource by STRATEGIC
RESOURCE BUFFER;
This buffer is located in front of the task(s) of
the Strategic Resource in order to guarantee its
continuous work.
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Example for Two-Project
Management Set
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Project Monitoring Screenshot (Example)
(Or what does the boss
see…)
Priority
1
Status
Project name
Project 1
Project manager
Deadline
% accomplished
John Screw
98
25.12.2006
21
Project 2
Mary Mess
48
31.01.2007
13
Project 3
Peter Pickpocket
63
14.02.2007
54
Project 4
Mary Mess
15
23
Project 5
George Binladin
03.03.2008
24.05.2007
13
Project 6
Helluv O’Booze
01.08.2008
18
17
Project 7
Mary Mess
30.10.2007
38
41
Project 8
Helluv O’Booze
23.11.2007
34
The main indicator is the colour of the Project Buffer status!
41
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But If We Still Have
Problems …
... Just apply the Five Focusing Steps:
Identify the constraint;
Exploit the constraint;
Subordinate everything else in the System to
Art. 2;
4. Eliminate the root cause of the constraint;
5. Go back to Art. 1 – and do not allow inertia to
become the real constraint!
1.
2.
3.
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