A project has an expected duration of 34 weeks with a critical pathvariance of 6. Suppose the project network is given and the criticalpath is identified on the network. Suppose the normal time, crash time,and the associated cost for each activity is given. You have been askedby your supervisor to prepare a research paper that addresses thefollow criteria:

• What is the probability that the project will be completed in 32 weeks or less?
• If the project is to be shortened by four days, list theprocess you would take to determine which activities, in order ofreduction, would be shortened and the resulting cost.
• Describe project cost and the requirements for its determination and application in a production facility.
• Analyze implications of changes in the parameters of project timing and cost determination.
• Evaluate application of project cost and timing concepts on a firm's business operations.

Present your findings as a 3 page Word document formatted in APA style.

Using Earned Value to Determine StatusJennifer turned in her status report for the newly approved mailingactivities. She feels that her pieces are on track with nothing for youto worry about. She reports the following information for the criticalpath tasks:You review her status report and determine that Jennifer does nothave a solid grasp of her status. Ben was unable to provide you withanything more than, "Things are moving along just fine."

• Using earned value measurements along with the other information andmetrics available, determine the true status of Jennifer's portion ofthe project.
• Prepare an updated status report (1 page) for Jennifer andshare the measurements and your rationale in your determination of thestatus for the project.
• Create a 2-3 slide presentation explaining the benefits of using EVM.
• Be sure to document some instructions (1-page document) forJennifer and Ben for determining the project status for their nextproject update to you.
• Also, provide materials that would be used to train Jennifer and Ben on the benefits and application of earned value.
• The materials should include some guidelines for Jennifer and Ben to help them create and then interpret the metrics.

Please refer to the following multimedia course material(s):

• Unit 5: Cost and Schedule Measures
• Unit 5: Controlling a Project
• Unit 5: Earned Value and Risk Management
• Unit 5: Earned Value Analysis