Advice for the Project Management Professional (PMP)

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Appendix A
FIGURE A-36 Changing the Network Diagram Layout
TIP
Some users prefer to create or modify files in Network Diagram view instead of Gantt Chart view. To add
a new task or node in Network Diagram view, select New Task from the Insert menu, or press the Insert
key on your keyboard. Double-click the new node to add a task name and other information. Create finishto-start
dependencies between tasks in Network Diagram view by clicking the preceding node and dragging
to the succeeding node. To modify the type of dependency and add lead or lag time, double-click the
arrow between the dependent nodes.
Critical Path Analysis
The critical path is the path through the network diagram with the least amount of slack;
it represents the shortest possible time to complete the project. If a task on the critical
path takes longer than planned, the project schedule will slip unless time is reduced on a
task later on the critical path. Sometimes you can shift resources between tasks to help
keep a project on schedule. Project 2007 has several views and reports to help analyze critical
path information.
Two particularly useful features are the Schedule table view and the Critical Tasks
report. The Schedule table view shows the early and late start dates for each task, the early
and late finish dates for each task, and the free and total slack for each task. This information
shows how flexible the schedule is and helps in making schedule compression
decisions. The Critical Tasks report lists only tasks that are on the critical path for the
project. If meeting schedule deadlines is essential for a project, project managers will want
to monitor tasks on the critical path closely.
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