critical-chain-scheduler

Productivity

Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) skill with buffer management and resource leveling

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Critical Chain Scheduler

Overview

The Critical Chain Scheduler skill provides comprehensive capabilities for implementing Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM). It supports critical chain identification, buffer sizing and monitoring, resource leveling, and multi-project synchronization.

Capabilities

Critical chain identification
Project buffer sizing
Feeding buffer calculation
Resource buffer placement
Multi-project buffer management
Buffer consumption tracking
Relay runner behavior monitoring

Used By Processes

TOC-004: Critical Chain Project Management
CAP-002: Production Scheduling Optimization

Tools and Libraries

Project management APIs
Scheduling optimization tools
Resource management systems
Buffer monitoring dashboards

Usage

skill: critical-chain-scheduler
inputs:
  project_name: "New Product Launch"
  tasks:
    - id: "T1"
      name: "Design"
      duration_50: 10  # 50% confidence estimate
      duration_90: 18  # 90% confidence estimate
      resources: ["Engineer A"]
      predecessors: []
    - id: "T2"
      name: "Prototype"
      duration_50: 5
      duration_90: 9
      resources: ["Engineer A"]
      predecessors: ["T1"]
    - id: "T3"
      name: "Testing"
      duration_50: 8
      duration_90: 14
      resources: ["Engineer B"]
      predecessors: ["T2"]
  resource_constraints:
    - name: "Engineer A"
      capacity: 1
outputs:
  - critical_chain
  - project_buffer
  - feeding_buffers
  - resource_buffers
  - project_schedule
  - buffer_status_report

CCPM vs. Traditional Project Management

Aspect	Traditional	CCPM
Task estimates	Include safety	Aggressive (50%)
Safety time	Hidden in tasks	Aggregated in buffers
Start rule	As soon as possible	As late as safely possible
Progress tracking	Task completion	Buffer consumption
Resource focus	Utilization	Flow

Buffer Types and Sizing

Project Buffer

Location: End of critical chain
Size: 50% of critical chain length
Purpose: Protect project due date

Feeding Buffer

Location: Where non-critical path joins critical chain
Size: 50% of feeding chain length
Purpose: Protect critical chain from delays

Resource Buffer

Location: Before resource-constrained critical chain tasks
Purpose: Alert resources to upcoming critical work

Buffer Management

Buffer Status	% Consumed	Action
Green	0-33%	Plan recovery
Yellow	34-66%	Implement recovery
Red	67-100%	Escalate and expedite

Relay Runner Behavior

Don't start early
Work at full effort once started
Pass work immediately when complete
Focus on elapsed time, not effort

Integration Points

Project management systems
Resource management platforms
Portfolio management tools
Time tracking systems