Driving activities
See which tasks control the project end date and where you have float to absorb change. Critical flags and float values appear across registers and views so trade-offs are visible, not buried in the plan.
CPM & drivers
Critical path
Identify driving activities, float, and constraints to protect on-time completion.
The critical path shows which activities control the project end date—so you know where delays matter and where you have room to move.
Forward and backward pass logic, float, and relationship types give you a rigorous, calculated view of schedule drivers rather than a manually maintained list.
Use critical path insight to focus reviews, recovery plans, and stakeholder communication on the work that truly determines delivery.
How it shows up in Deming+
Critical path is a cross-cutting signal: the same driving logic surfaces in tables, network and time views, leveling options, scenarios, and assistant answers—so your critical list stays current automatically, not by hand.
Precedence and CPM
Forward and backward pass calculations, relationship types (FS, SS, FF, SF), and total and free float combine so the critical path is a schedule output—calculated from your logic, not drawn on top of it.
Lag and lead logic
Model signed lag directly on dependencies, including positive lag and negative lag (lead), so overlap and waiting periods are represented in the same CPM network.
Network diagram
Open the network view to trace drivers visually: links between critical activities stand out so you can walk dependencies with sponsors and explain why certain work truly gates delivery.
Gantt and line-of-balance
Time-scaled and rhythm views can emphasize critical sequences, so field and office teams share the same mental model of what must stay green.
Resource leveling
When you level resources, choose whether to protect the critical path and whether delays on driving work are acceptable—so optimization rules match how hard you want to defend the end date.
Scenarios and EVM
Compare scenarios to see when activities move on or off the critical path, and monitor schedule performance alongside critical work as the plan evolves.
Status-date forecasting
Use data date, actual starts and finishes, and remaining duration to recalculate forward-looking drivers, so critical path analysis reflects where the project stands—not just where it started.
Constraints and capacity pressure
Combine dependency logic with date constraints (for example, start-no-earlier-than and finish-no-later-than) and resource leveling rules so hard dates and finite capacity are both reflected in the schedule outcome.
AI assistance
Ask in natural language which activities sit on the critical path, where float exists, and how delays might propagate—grounded in the same schedule data your Gantt and network use.
Common questions
Related features
Critical path connects scheduling, structure, and conversation—use it alongside Gantt, WBS, and the AI agent.