The Ultimate Guide to the Critical Path Method

Project management entails juggling resources—human and materials—to ensure a successful one. It involves identifying the critical path in your project to set proper schedules and meet your deadline. That’s where the critical path method (CPM) comes in.

CPM is one of the methodologies and frameworks for project management. This method is best for project planning, scheduling, monitoring, and reporting. Its ultimate goal is to complete a successful project on time. But what exactly is it, and how does it work?

This page is our ultimate guide to the critical path method for project management. Read on to learn the following:

• What CMP is, including the factors affecting it;
• What CMP steps to take for your project; and
• How beneficial it is for project management.

Ready? Let’s dive right in!

What Is the Critical Path Method?

The critical path method (CPM) is a project management technique for identifying the critical path, which is the longest path in your project between the start and end dates. It requires a thorough understanding of all activities involved and proper management of all deliverables.

As you can see, a project comprises a sequence of activities that determine its timeline. CPM seeks to reduce the duration required, particularly for crucial tasks in the critical path. The ultimate goal is to accomplish them on time to meet the project deadline. That’s what it takes to manage a project from start to finish.

Case in point: You are responsible for cooking sunny-side-up eggs for breakfast. There are several steps involved in the cooking process. However, you can sum up the crucial steps into three:

• Heat the pan with oil
• Crack and pour the egg on the pan with a sprinkle of salt
• Cook it for about three minutes or so

In reality, you take other steps like preparing all ingredients, setting aside the kitchenware, using butter and adding pepper, and performing final garnishments. However, CPM requires you to prioritize the three critical steps above and find ways to reduce your cooking duration.

The example above is a simple CPM illustration. However, this method applies to a wide range of complex projects in business, such as the following:

• Product launching
• Product manufacturing
• Computer system installation
• Software development
• Web designing
• App development
• Sales and marketing
• Construction project

In today’s business landscape, CPM is one of the project management trends for handling complex projects. Simply put, it answers the crucial question: How long does each task take before you can finish the project? The answer to this question determines the project’s end date.

Factors affecting the critical path

It’s crucial to identify the critical path in your project. More importantly, plan and prepare for possible events that can prolong your project duration. That said, here are key factors that determine your critical path:

• The team assigned for critical activities—What if one of your team members gets sick, injured, or hospitalized? That can impact your task delegation and accomplishment.
• The availability of various resources—For instance, your team has encountered a supply chain issue. Delayed supplies can prolong the duration of your project.
• The budget required for the critical path—Your financial resources determine your project duration. Without enough money, your team can’t continue working on the project, especially for seemingly crucial tasks.
• Other stakeholders involved in the project—You might be working with third-party vendors or service providers. Your partnerships with them can impact your project duration.
• Unforeseen circumstances—Think of natural calamities like storm, flood, and earthquakes impacting operations. Consider unexpected events, such as a fire outbreak and political uprising.

Companies and organizations now invest in project management software to identify CPMs and manage projects. In fact, the global market for this software could grow from $6.59 billion in 2022 to $20.47 billion by 2030 at a 15.7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR).

In the next section, learn what crucial CPM steps to take for your project management.

Key steps to take for your Critical Path Method

Nothing is more fulfilling and rewarding than beating the project deadline. As a top-notch project manager, you must identify the critical path and find ways to squeeze the project timeline. CPM is key!

Case in point: Suppose you’re planning to launch a new product for your company. In that case, you must employ the critical path method. Here’s a simple table representing the CPM for product launching, including the list of tasks, activity dependencies, task durations, start dates, and end dates.

Let’s discuss the CPM steps in project management with product launching as an example.

1. Set your project goals

As with any project type, you must start with goal-setting. What do you aim to achieve from this particular project? Set clear goals and objectives to guide your whole team in the entire process.

Given the product launching example above, your project goals or operational objectives might be:

• To create an innovative product
• To tap into a new market
• To expand your business operation

Further, Alan Parkes, Owner of Denver Roofing and Colorado Springs Roofing, cites the value of goal-setting in any construction project. According to Parkes,

“Setting goals precedes your CPM implementation. Are you pursuing a full home construction, roof replacement, or kitchen remodeling project? Defining your project objectives lets you determine how long it will take to finish your project.”

2. List all activities involved

After setting your goals, you can list all the activities involved in your project management plan. It’s crucial to identify all the tasks involved in your project and not miss any.

When it comes to product launching, for instance, your activities might include the following:

• Market research
• Product design
• Prototype development
• Product testing
• Production planning
• Manufacturing
• Marketing campaign
• Product launching

Jim Pendergast, Senior Vice President at altLINE Sobanco, recommends identifying activity dependencies for CPM implementation. Pendergast explains,

“Say, for example, your B2B company will introduce a new product in your industry. You won’t be able to proceed with your product design, testing, and launch without conducting market research. That’s what it means to identify activity dependencies, which help save money, time, and energy put into your project.”

3. Delegate each task

Project management requires establishing a solid team. As a project manager, you must recruit team members competent enough to handle particular activities. Then, you assign each task to each member based on their specialized knowledge and technical skills.

In product launching, for example, you delegate the following tasks:

• Market research to your group of researchers
• Product design and development to your production team
• Product testing to your QA team
• Marketing campaign and product launching to your sales and marketing team

Albert Kim, VP of Talent at Checkr, suggests being critical in task delegation for your CPM implementation. Kim argues,

“Your project success lies in the hands of the entire team. When building a team, examine their backgrounds and screen them for their knowledge and skills. In the end, you want to ensure they are capable of handling their assigned tasks.”

4. Schedule each activity

At this point, you are ready to schedule all the activities involved in your project. You can leverage project planning software to estimate the time and plot your schedule. However, it takes sitting down and brainstorming with your team to do this.

For instance, the following tasks required for product launching might take:

• Market research – 3 days
• Prototype development – 5 days
• Product manufacturing – 7 days
• Product launching – 1 day

Jeffrey Zhou, CEO and Founder of Fig Loans, believes project planning and scheduling are critical to CPM implementation. Zhou explains,

“Time is of the essence when it comes to completing a successful project. Of course, you don’t want to waste time, money, and resources. Hence, planning and scheduling the sequence of activities involved in your project sets you up for success.”

5. Identify the critical path

This step is the most crucial part: critical path identification. You can now identify this path after listing all activities, assigning each task, and scheduling them. Then, you can leverage project management software to improve your workflow and reduce the time needed to accomplish each task.

For example, you can perform the following for your new product launch:

• Build a team responsible for product design, development, and testing to avoid silos.
• Combine your marketing campaign and product launch handled by your sales and marketing team.
• Consider product design, development, testing, and manufacturing as the critical path for a successful project.

Brooke Webber, Head of Marketing at Ninja Patches, underscores the importance of the critical path in project management. Webber believes,

“The critical path consists of activities integral to your project success. Without these activities, you won’t be able to complete your project at all. Meanwhile, there are other activities you can simply remove from the overall equation and still finish the entire project.”

6. Monitor each activity

Identifying the critical path and finding ways to reduce the project duration isn’t enough. While your team might stick to the planned schedules, unexpected circumstances might happen. Therefore, consistent project monitoring is imperative.

Let’s say you are the project manager responsible for ensuring a successful product launch.

Here are some scenarios you must stay on top of:

• Ensure your research team performs due diligence to see what products your target market needs.
• Establish a critical path for product designing, development, testing, and manufacturing without taking shortcuts.
• Assess your sales and marketing strategies to ensure a successful product promotion or marketing campaign.
• Set contingency plans with a backup team ready to take action in unexpected circumstances.

Chris Aubeeluck, Head of Sales and Marketing at Osbornes Law, highlights the value of accountability and responsibility in CPM implementation. Aubeeluck explains,

“Team members are pieces of the puzzle in any given project. Instill in their minds that they are valuable to the entire team and instrumental to the project’s success. This means making them responsible for accomplishing assigned tasks and making them accountable for every action.”

The CPM Benefits for Project Management

At this point, you may wonder why there’s a need to employ CPM for project management. For instance, using CPM for product launching reduces the time it takes to put your new products on the market. See how this method can help?

Adam Tishman, Co-Founder at Helix Sleep, highlights the value of CPM in project management.

“In essence, CPM aims to achieve a timely completion of a particular project. However, its benefits are multifold.”

Pierce cites the following benefits of the critical path method:

• Efficient scheduling and reduced downtime: CPM is an effective time management technique for scheduling tasks and eliminating downtime. It makes your team members more efficient and productive, allowing the entire team to finish the project on time.
• Effective resource allocation and management: CPM entails utilizing all your resources in the best way possible. It involves procuring and allocating tangible and intangible resources, enabling your team to accomplish their tasks promptly.
• Organized collaboration and teamwork: CPM helps promote teamwork for a successful project outcome. It works by improving activity scheduling, task delegation, and team monitoring. With this in place, everyone has a role to play but working together towards common project goals.
• Seamless project monitoring and reporting: CPM entails tracking task completion in the critical path and reporting progress in every project phase. Ultimately, this method results in a successful project that is completed on time.
• Improved efficiency and productivity: CPM focuses on project time management. This method includes proper planning, scheduling, monitoring, and reporting, which makes your team members more efficient and productive.
• Decreased cost and increased profitability: CPM focuses on time management but paves the way for project profitability. The method assists you in reducing costs and boosting your profits. Not only does it help you reduce time, but it also lets you save money.

Final Words

The critical path method proves beneficial in project management. It assists you in managing activities as a project manager and guides your entire team in accomplishing their tasks. Ultimately, CPM can be instrumental in completing a successful project on time!

That said, follow the crucial steps above for employing CPM. It helps in various aspects of your project, from planning and scheduling to resource allocation and team collaboration down to monitoring and reporting. With all these practical steps and tips, your team will get things done—efficiently and effectively!