Introduction to Business (BUSA 101) Project Management Study Guide: Critical Path, PERT, and Gantt Basics
Arizona State University
Introduction to Business (BUSA 101) | Study Guide

Overview
A BUSA 101 project management quick sheet for exams: how to build a simple network, find the critical path, interpret PERT estimates, and read Gantt timelines for scheduling questions.

Key topics
•network diagrams and dependencies
•critical path method (ES/EF/LS/LF) basics
•slack/float interpretation
•PERT optimistic/most likely/pessimistic estimates
•Gantt chart reading for milestones and sequencing

Suggested study tasks
•compute critical path for 3 small networks
•identify slack for 12 activities
•convert 10 word problems into dependency diagrams
•do 8 PERT expected time calculations
•write a 7-step checklist for scheduling problems

Common pitfalls
•mixing up forward vs backward pass
•incorrectly computing slack
•forgetting that critical path can change after updates
•misreading precedence constraints
•rounding PERT too early