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OPTIONS TO SHORTEN SCHEDULES 115

Practical Options to Shorten Schedules

So you’ve done all the things that we’ve suggested here. You have developed a list
of all the tasks. You have estimated task durations, defined task relationships, im-
posed date constraints where appropriate, and allowed for contingency. You have
a reasonable schedule. Except for one little problem. The resultant project end
date is not acceptable.

Is there anything that you can do to shorten the schedule? Our objective is to
retain a reasonable schedule. It should still represent something that can rea-
sonably be accomplished, rather than something that we wish would happen. It
doesn’t take long for the team to see through a window dressing schedule. Here
are a few options that you can consider.

Shorter Durations Are the task estimates really based on the most likely times,
or do they have a bit of slop built in? Some contingency is important, but check to
see if it hasn’t been overdone. Do you want 90 percent confidence? 80 percent?
50 percent? Keep it reasonable and consistent. Check the critical path first, that
is, the task chains having the least amount of float. It won’t do you any good to re-
duce the times on the noncritical paths.

Overlapping Again, look at the critical paths first to see if some of the series
tasks can be overlapped. Does task B really have to wait until task A is complete?
Or can it start when task A is about 50 percent complete? Selective overlapping of
critical tasks is a good way to shorten the schedule. But remember, it has to re-
flect real conditions, and should not be forced just to make the schedule fit.

Reduce Scope Schedule too long (or over budget)? Perhaps an option is to re-
duce scope. It’s done all the time, but usually after some of the work has been
promised and executed. Why not address this issue early? If the entire workscope
cannot be fit into the time available, negotiate reducing some scope or transfer-
ring it to a later phase.

Alter Strategies The schedule will be based on the identified work and the
strategies that have been selected to accomplish that work. If the schedule is not
acceptable, it may be appropriate to review the strategic alternatives. There may
be other ways to accomplish the goal that result in shorter schedules. For in-
stance, re-using older code rather than starting from scratch. Or buying an off-
the-shelf component rather than getting a custom part. The initial strategies may
have been selected without consideration of the impact on schedule. Now that
there is a known problem, you will want to reevaluate the decisions. Again, con-
centrate on the critical paths first.