A Comparison of Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) Buffer Sizing Techniques
Abstract
Current project management literature exhibits a rise in popularity (at least in discussion) of Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM), a management concept based on Eli Goldratt's Theory of Constraints. Some of the literature notes this to be a significant departure from current methods; others claim it is really not revolutionary at all, but is instead a coherent compilation of long-known techniques (McKay and Morton 1998). Some organizations that have implemented the technique report good progress; others report no progress. Intuitively, many of the concepts are good rules that any project should follow, regardless of whether the organization directly embraces the CCPM concept. A fair amount has been written about the differences between CCPM and traditional project management techniques (notably Steyn (2000), Leach (2000), and Herroelen and Leus (2001)). There has also been a reasonable amount written about sizing the buffers when establishing the critical chain plan (notably Goldratt (1997), Leach (1999, 2000), Herroelen and Leus (2001), Hoel and Taylor (1999)). However, while the available literature about sizing the buffers does note some general differences between the methods, it fails to mention or recommend cases where one technique is superior to another (nor does it state that such a recommendation would be inappropriate).
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 19, 2001
- Accession Number
- ADA400313
Entities
People
- Greg Kokoskie
Organizations
- George Mason University